Wayfaring Strangers
A Study of 1 Peter
Part 17
“The End of the beginning “
Today in our study of 1 Peter
We come to another scripture that if taken out of context
Can and has led to all sorts of mis- teachings
How many of you have seen street preachers with signs?
Saying
Repent for the end is near?
How about hearing some “con artist “ I mean so-called preacher or “televangelist?
Claiming to have
Knowledge about the end times that no one else is privacy to
Some ever have the boldness
To set dates and times
All this
While even Jesus himself says
No man knows the day and time of my return
To paraphrase he says
I don’t even know
Only God the father Knows
Listen to me
God’s word is the authority on the end times
Jesus in his Olivet discourse
His teachings to his disciples about the end times
Just prior to his death
Said these words
Matthew 24:36
36 “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself.[k] Only the Father knows.
If Jesus does not know when he is returning
I can assure you no one does
In this passage Peter appears to shift focus for a moment
But it is important for us to understand
He is still offering a word of encouragement to those who are suffering and will face persecutions
Trial and hardships
That includes the readers of his day
And that includes the believers of today as well
He is saying simply
Be prepared
Let me remind you
Peter knew something about not being prepared
Jesus told him to watch in the garden and he slept instead
He told him to walk on the water and keep his eyes on Jesus
He looked off
Jesus told Peter the things that must happen
And Peter rebuked him.
Peter made many, many mistakes
And still Jesus used him in mighty ways
Why?
First Jesus forgave him
And then Peter learned to be prepared
Chuck Swindoll says
“We should live each day in the light of Christs’ return”
What does that mean
In common terms
Always be prepared for Jesus to come back
Live each moment as if it may be the last
I can tell you this
I don’t know when Jesus is coming
And neither does anyone else
But I do know this
It could be any time
I also know this
We started living in the end times
When Jesus returned to heaven
And this is a fact
We are patiently waiting on his return
So, we need to live like it
Winston Churchill in a speech to parliament after London had been bombed
Said these words
“This is not the end; This is not even the beginning of the end. But it is perhaps the end of the beginning
Peter in this passage gives us some pretty good words that when applied will help us do what we have been called to do
Reach the lost, in the midst of troubles
Let me read 1 Peter 4:7-11 for you and then we can break it down
1 Peter 4:7-11
7 The end of the world is coming soon. Therefore, be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. 8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.
10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 11 Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies. Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.
Verse 7 a
Says
“The end of the world is coming soon”
We know this to mean the end of the world as we now know it
God’s word says there will be a new heaven and a new earth
It says there will be no tears
No sorrow
No pain
And no sickness
But his word also says
Only those who have placed their trust in Jesus
Will experience these blessings
Those who don’t know Jesus will spend a different eternity
Listen
I do not know when Jesus is coming back
But I do know that he is
And I also know that anyone who has not accepted his gift of salvation before then
Will not be happy about tomorrow
Hell is not a joke
It is also not popular topic
But it is a reality
So
Peter says --because time is limited
We should
As New Creations
Those with the same attitude as Christ
Desire that no one be lost
That all
Everyone
All who will
Be saved
And in light of that
Our priorities need to reflect our desires
Or better stated God’s desires
So, Peter gives us 5 things in this passage to help us achieve our goals
Verse 7a
7 The end of the world is coming soon.
Peter says
Because the world will one day end
And because we don’t know when that will be
We need to live each day as if Jesus was going to come back any minuet
And then he begins giving us a plan for getting that done
Verse 7b
“therefore”
Because the end could come at anytime
Verse 7c
“be earnest and disciplined in your prayers”
Be earnest
And disciplined
In your prayers
Other versions of God’s word say
Have sound judgement
And sober spirit
Others say
Be sane and alert
While still others say
Be clear minded and self-controlled
All of these words are referring to our prayers as well as our actions
We should
In light of the imminent return of Christ
Be praying in very specific ways
And acting in specific ways
Let’s talk about actions first
All of these say don’t quit
Don’t panic
Be calm
Stay cool
And remember that God is in control
Listen to me
Many in this world claim we are out of control
Nothing could be further from the truth
God is in complete control
So, in our actions
We need to show the love and light of Jesus
Remain calm and focused
While everyone else is freaked out and crazy
In our prayers
We must be earnest and disciplined as well
We need to pray intently
We need to pray intelligently
We need to pray appropriately
This simply means we are praying for the lost
Praying for our families
For our church
For our church leaders
For our country and its leaders
Praying asking God to work in the hearts and minds of those who do not know him
Praying for spiritual growth
Praying for revival
listen
We must move past shallow prayers
Like blessing the food
Or a quick thank you at bed time
I love to hear our kids pray
But they send up the prayers of a child
We as maturing believers
Need to pray deeper
Pour our hearts out for the lost and dying
Seek spiritual growth for the saved
Seek Guidance and direction in the lives of others and ourselves
We must humble ourselves
And petition God to move in the lives of everyone we have been blessed to interact with
And we need to do this constantly, without ceasing God’s word says
In order to do this, we must spend time with God
Personally
Listen to me
I may step on your toes here
Take it up with my boss if I do
I like the little devotional books and emails
I have several in my library and I read them sometimes
And I get several devotional emails daily and I enjoy them as well
But these can or should never take the place of God’s word
God speaks to us through his word
When we spend time in it
Listen
We must spend time in the word
Many say they just don’t have time
Really
Did Jesus say that when he died for us?
Get real
Spending time with God in Prayer and study of the word is a choice
And if you want to be prepared
If you want to be earnest and disciplined
Clear minded and have a sober spirit
Make time for God
Daily
Next
We must make love a priority
Verse 8
8 Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.
Love as we have said many times is the glue of life
Love is the mark of a Bona Fide believer
And Jesus himself says if the love is not in you God is not in you
Peter takes this a bit further
Remember, He is taking to believers
And he is assuming they are already loving each other
And he says
Don’t stop
He says make loving each other
And showing love for others a priority
How do we do that
Giving comfort
A smile
A hand shake, a hug
A pat on the back
A kind word of encouragement
We have the ability to show love in so many ways
Let me lay one on you that you might not expect
Holding someone accountable is showing love
Would you let a kid play in traffic?
No
Why?
Because you love them
Because they could get hurt?
Even if they are not yours
You love them enough to care
But we as Christians will often sit back and what a fellow brother or sister
Wreck out their lives with sin
And say absolutely nothing
For fear of offending them
Hurting their feelings
Losing their friend ship
Or so many more shallow reasons
This is not love
Please remember we must be kind when we hold someone accountable
And it needs to be something that is offensive to God not just offensive to you
But looking the other way is not love?
Sharing the gospel with the lost is an expression of love
Beating them over the head with God’s judgement is not
Love each other and do everything in love
Next
Be Hospitable
Verse 9
9 Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or a place to stay.”
In the time of this writing
Motels
Hotels and such were rare
Add to the fact that
Believers in Christ we often looked upon as traitors
And so, in traveling there was suffering
Peters’ teaching is about caring for others
It may be that a meal
Or a bed
Some clothing or a blanket
can lead someone to Christ
Or encourage someone who is suffering
It may be the simple offer and show of love that does the trick
Listen to me
Whether you open your doors
Or are hospitable in one of thousands of other ways
Peter says do this cheerfully
With no though of repayment
Or personal gain
Next, he says
That we should use the gifts God gives us to serve others
Verse 10-11b
10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 11 Do you have the gift of speaking? Then speak as though God himself were speaking through you. Do you have the gift of helping others? Do it with all the strength and energy that God supplies.
I believe in my heart every believer has a spiritual gift
And I also believe that our spiritual gifts are for serving others
We could spend weeks
Months and even years
On the gifts of the spirit
And that is a topic for another day
So
What it is my desire to do today
Is to stay on task
And the task is this
What it is that we are to do
Since Jesus may return soon?
Regarding gifts
Use them to lead the lost to the Lord
Use them to build up the believers
Use them for God’s glory
Don’t take them for granted
don’t abuse them
Don’t consider one gift more valuable than others
Listen to me
Being envious of another’s gift
Is saying
God you did not give me your best
What we are to do is be good stewards of the gifts we have received
And use them for one purpose
Verse 11b
“Then everything you do will bring glory to God through Jesus Christ. All glory and power to him forever and ever! Amen.”
Everything we do
Everything we say
Everything we are
Should bring glory to God
We are to be a light for the lost
A refuge for the weary
A hospital for the afflicted
And a place of hope for the hopeless
Here is the take home lesson
The end is coming
But please don’t get hung up on dates and times
And moons and stars
Don’t waste precious moments on something you can’t control
Jesus will return when it is time
And we must live like that will be any second
We do that by being clear minded and alert
Praying with a purpose
And
Seeking a deeper relationship with him
By being on guard
Staying calm
And always remembering God is in charge
It is urgent that we reach the lost for Christ
We do this with love and hospitality
Truth and respect
We do this by serving with all we have
To the glory of God almighty
And we do all of this cheerfully
It’s all about love
Mahatma Gandhi, A non-believer known for his love of peace is quoted as saying
“I like your Christ,
But I don’t like your Christians”
If we want the world to like the Christians
And see Christ for themselves
We must be like Jesus
Full of love
Forgiveness
Humility
Self-sacrifice
Kindness
Gentleness
Self-control
We must be different on purpose
Never apologize for our beliefs
We must expect hardships
But face them with the attitudes of Christ
For his glory
Close from the heart
Pray
