LOVING THE BRETHREN-IV—1Peter 1:22—2:12
Attention:
Senior Puzzle
A little silver-haired lady calls her neighbor & says, "Please come over here & help me. I have a wonderful jigsaw puzzle, & I can't figure out how to get started."
Her neighbor asks, "What is it supposed to be when it's finished?"
The little silver haired lady says, "According to the picture on the box, it's a handsome rooster."
Her neighbor decides to go over & help with the puzzle.
She lets her in & shows her where she has the puzzle spread all over the table.
She studies the pieces for a moment, then looks at the box, then turns to her & says,
"First of all, no matter what we do, we're not going to be able to assemble these pieces into anything resembling a rooster."
Shee takes her hand & says, "Secondly, I want you to relax. Let's have a nice cup of tea, & then," she said with a deep sigh ............"Let's put all the Corn Flakes back in the box."
Our love for others, especially our brothers & sisters in Christ, says much about our reliance upon God in Christ.
So far in our study of 1Peter we have examined the fact that
Christians are...CONSIDERED ALIEN(:1-2)...
We’ve examined...WHAT’s So GREAT About GOD—(:3-12)
And discovered God’s means of...UNLEASHING Your SPIRITUAL VITALITY/Vigor—(:13-21)
Today we will continue applying the above truths toward LOVING THE BRETHREN(1:22—2:12).
Peter exhorted the aliens to love their brothers & sisters in Christ as they were also loved by God.
Christians are to love as they are loved by God.
How are Christians to live out God’s love?
13 encounters thru which Christians are to live-out God’s love.
We have found that
God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...
1. CLEANSING(:22a)“Purified”
2. OBEDIENCE(:22b)“Obeying”
3. SINCERITY(:22c)“Sincere”
4. INTENTION & DEPTH(:22d)“Fervently with a pure heart”
5. REBIRTH(:23a)
6. GROWTH POTENTIAL(:23b)
7. THE INVINCIBLE WORD(24-25a)
Purity—Begins with obedience
Obedience—begins with the truth(word & voice)
Sincerity—begins with purity
Fervency—Begins with sincerity
8—God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...
The INESCAPABLE/Available WORD(:25b)
Explanation:(:25b) Doctrine/Truth
:25—“But the word of the LORD endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.
Though this is a quote from the OT(:24-25a—Isa. 40:6-8), the “word” or message to us is the same! It is the same “word” which has been “preached” to the church of Christ Jesus today! This “word” is the “word from YaHWeH.” It is the same good news that God’s people have heard & been witnesses to & of.
to euaggelisyen—Literally—‘Which good news was preached/announced.’
The verse immediately following in Isa. 40 states:
Isa. 40:9—“O Zion, You who bring good tidings, Get up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, You who bring good tidings, Lift up your voice with strength, Lift it up, be not afraid; Say to the cities of Judah, “Behold your God!””
God’s word is the same word which was “preached to” God’s people, who are pilgrims, foreigners, & strangers to this world in which we live(1Pet. 1:1; Heb. 11:13).
Because God’s “word” is abiding/remains, we are called thru its everlasting work & power, we are compelled...To love the brethren sincerely & fervently(:22).
“By the Gospel”—Added—Not present in TR, Byz, or Maj.T—It is an attempt to elucidate euaggelizw—‘to preach good news/glad tidings.
“Preached/Announced”—euaggelizw—Aorist Passive Participle—To bring good news, to announce glad tidings. The verbal form of the noun translated [in old English]’Gospel.’
From—eu—To be well off, prosper or acting well—&—aggelov—a messenger, envoy, one who is sent, an angel, a messenger from God. Lit.— ‘Message of well being from God.’
Argumentation:
Deut. 30:11-14—““For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us & make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ “Nor is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us & make us hear it, that we may observe it?’ “But the word is very near you, in your mouth & in your heart, that you may observe it.”
Rom. 10:6-9—“But the righteousness of faith speaks in this way, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’”(that is, to bring Christ down from above) or,” ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’”(that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth & in your heart”(that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus & believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Eccl. 3:14—“I know that whatever God does, It shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, And nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him.”
1Jn. 2:1-9—“My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, & not for ours only but also for the whole world. Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” & does not keep His commandments, is a liar, & the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning. Again, a new commandment I write to you, which thing is true in Him & in you, because the darkness is passing away, & the true light is already shining. He who says he is in the light, & hates his brother, is in darkness until now.”
Illustration:
In October of 2015, I & our youngest daughter Ellinor were in our 2013 Ford Focus, waiting at the red light facing east on Tennessee St. & Macomb St. in Tallahassee, FL/We were enjoying our conversation when all of a sudden WHAM!!...someone hit us from behind/I called 911 & very soon a police car rolls up on the north corner of Macomb &, thru the loudspeaker he very clearly & unequivocally directed us to pull onto Macomb St(which has much less traffic, as Tennessee is a main thoroughfare)/I was compelled to heed the policemen’s directive, as they faithfully represented the demands of the city govt.—they were there to enforce the law!/INESCAPABLE WORD
I could have refused to listen to the word, but it was & remains “Inescapable!’
When our daughter Catherine was first driving, she drove thru a neighbor’s grass to avoid mud—Is it legal?--don’t know but I could find out!/Is it right?--No!/INESCAPABLE WORD
?‘Is it illegal to have an abortion?--No!—Is it wrong to have an abortion?--Yes!/INESCAPABLE WORD
Circa~ 2004(?) our 1989 Plymouth mini-van died on Hwy 84 by-pass outside of Thomasville, GA/Didn’t know what to do-legally & didn’t want to get into trouble making a misstep in calling the wrecker early on, so I immediately called the GaHP/INESCAPABLE WORD
Application:
?You encountered the INESCAPABILITY/Availability of God’s WORD?
?You Live Out God’s love?
9—God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...
AFFIRMATIVE ACTION(2:1a)
Explanation(2:1a)
2:1—“Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, & all evil speaking....”
“Therefore”—All that proceeds this point of the text, is the result &/or basis for what follows.
It is the duty of every committed Christian who sincerely & fervently loves the brethren, to “lay aside/put off” certain things...It is a positive, conscious & willful action on the part of every believer. We must 'affirm' God's work in our lives by surrendering our flesh to Him.
**“Malice”, “Deceit/Guile”, “Hypocrisy”, “Envy” & “Evil-speaking/Slander” are wholly incompatible with a sincere & fervent love of the brethren!
I can preach & teach till I’m blue in the face...but you must decide individually whether you will “lay aside” that which is dishonoring to God & thus detrimental to His Church!
“Laying aside/Putting aside”—apotiyhmi—1)To put off or aside or away. Strong—To put away(literally or figuratively). Used 8X.
From—apo—a primary particle; “Off,” i.e. Away(from something near), in various senses(of place, time, or relation; literal or figurative)—&—tiyhmi—To place(in the widest application, literally & figuratively; properly, in a passive or horizontal posture, & thus different from isthmi, which properly denotes an upright & active position, while keimai is properly reflexive & utterly prostrate).
“All”3X—pav—Adj.—1) individually—1a) Each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything; 2) collectively—2a) Some of all types. Strong—apparently a primary word; All, any, every, the whole.
“Malice”—kakia—1) Malignity, malice, ill-will, desire to injure; 2) Wickedness, depravity—2a) Wickedness that is not ashamed to break laws; 3) Evil, trouble. Denotes a vicious disposition. Strong—Badness, i.e. subjectively--Depravity, or actively--Malignity, or passively--Trouble. Used 11X.
“Deceit/Guile”—dolov—1)Craft, deceit, guile. Strong—from an obsolete primary verb, dellw(probably meant to decoy; compare deleazw[To entrap/delude]); A trick(bait), i.e. figuratively--Wile. Used 12X.
“Hypocrisy”—upokrisiv—1) An answering; 2) An answer; 3) The acting of a stage player; 4) Dissimulation, hypocrisy. Strong—Acting under a feigned part, i.e. figuratively--Deceit (“hypocrisy”). Simulate, feign or pretend. Used 7X.
From—upo—a primary preposition; Under, i.e. (with the genitive case) of place--Beneath, or (with verbs)the agency or means--Through; (with the accusative case) of place(whither)--Underneath] or where--Below or time (when)--at)—&—krinw—properly--To distinguish, i.e. Decide(mentally or judicially); by implication--To try, condemn, punish.
“Envy”—fyonov—1) Envy; 2) For envy, i.e. Prompted by envy. Strong—Ill-will(as detraction), i.e. Jealousy(spite). Used 9X.
Envy is a resentful wanting for another’s possessions, qualities, achievements so that it drives one’s entire attitude.
Jealousy results in an unwarranted & suspicious protection of what one has in hand.
“Evil speaking/Slander”—katalalia—1)Defamation, evil speaking. Lit. ‘from speaking.’ Used 2X.
Argumentation:
Jas. 1:21-22—“Therefore lay aside all filthiness & overflow of wickedness, & receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, & not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
Jas. 4:17—“Therefore, to him who knows to do good & does not do it, to him it is sin.”
Rom. 12:1-3—“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good & acceptable & perfect will of God. For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.”
1Cor. 6:15-20—“Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ & make them members of a harlot? Certainly not! Or do you not know that he who is joined to a harlot is one body with her? For “the two,” He says, “shall become one flesh.” But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him. Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, & you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body & in your spirit, which are God’s.”
Col. 3:1-17—“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, & your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory. Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, & covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, & have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all & in all. Therefore, as the elect of God, holy & beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, & forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; & be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching & admonishing one another in psalms & hymns & spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
Illustration:
The way I remember: The old TV comedy show ‘He Haw’/Patient would come into the country doctor’s office complaining of an ailment every time he would move a certain way or touch something in a particular manner/“Doc, when I move my elbow like this, it hurts.” The doctor’s solution...“Well, don’t do that anymore!”/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
OR
The redneck confessing his misdeeds & trespasses to the country lawyer-judge, asks, "What can I do?"/The lawyer-judge would invariably respond, “Well, stay outta’ them places!”/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION
Application:
?You encountered the AFFIRMATIVE ACTION of God’s Word?
?What has Your encounter with AFFIRMATIVE ACTION yielded?
?You Live Out God’s love?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
Senior Puzzle—"Let's put all the Corn Flakes back in the box."
Action:
God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...
8. THE INESCAPABLE/Available WORD(:25b)
9. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION(2:1a)
1. OBEDIENCE(:22a)
2. CLEANSING(:22b)
3. SINCERITY(Sincere)(:22c)
4. INTENTION & DEPTH(:22d)“Fervently with a pure heart”
5. REBIRTH(:23a)
6. GROWTH POTENTIAL(:23b)
7. THE INVINCIBLE WORD(24-25a)
Pts. 8-9 presented 04/03/2016pm to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave.(A Ave. SE)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 10-12 Presented 08/15/04pm to:
Providence Baptist Church
975 Providence Road
Whigham, GA 39897
