Tracing Christ (Part B)

We all fail the way we hear these things we perk up again okay go at it again. Hell hates spirit loves stand with Jesus in a world that runs to the devil, that's what you're called to do. That's what I'm called to stand with Jesus while everybody's robbing off the rebellion. The Levites stood with Moses and as such, God rewarded the tribe of Levi with her priestly duties stand with Jesus world that runs to the devil. This is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of first Peter, please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching, and now here's Pastor Rick as he continues his message called tracing Christ in first Peter chapter 2 when we suffer for our principal.

I have found the first times not as difficult it could be difficult, but not as difficult as the second time the second time. It's harder to stand for my belief.

My principal subsequent challenges they will. Here's how it works.

You stand for your principal. You do a good thing to do the right thing folks turn on people that you thought were with you, turn on you. The second time you're at a fork in the road. It's a crisis which way you going to go you going to say going to this again. I don't need the drama don't need a headache I'm just going to look the other way. I'm just gonna not be part of or we say and I'm not backing down again. I'll get what they do at this time the next time five times after this is right.

Paul is what made him so gallant as a modern facing things over and over again how many spellings is a man have to receive well as many as they come. He suffered without abandonment. He did not abandon his principles to take one beating is good, but to take them all that is grand.

That's the guy I want to be because I watched so many people cave we we say this about politicians do, they would do we not they came in they gave into the wrong side they succumb to the pressure because their unprincipled they did not do what was right, they did what was convenient so he says this is grace that you be obedient to Christ.

You're mindful of him, you don't become a rebel.

He's going to intensify what he is saying to them, he himself having experience with Dave explore experiencing and knows it is going to get worse for him. Verse 24.

What credit is it if when you are beaten for your fault. You take it patiently. But when you do good and suffer if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. Well, this suffering in this enduring grief and being wrongfully treated is keeping it in front of them. He says honor is reserved for innocent suffers not guilty sufferers. It's hard to say sufferers punishment. Punishment for something that you did not do wrong, God says I will reward you for that, see the world has the advantage in this sense, they offer our flesh everything out flesh wants to be accepted to be liked to be free from marketing and abuse Christianity throws us into an arena where those things are coming our way in the spirit.

Better get the upper hand of the flesh will give in. Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves. But he's going to be with us to that experience. So again we remember is writing to slaves when he says when you are beaten well.

We are not in this country. As a rule were not beaten for our performance physically, but we can be beaten in other ways. Even when we do right and in these days it is writing some of the slaves had a pretty bad some of them did have harsh masters as he otherwise would say this and this was all over the Empire wasn't Justin's audience wherever Peter found himself. This was the culture.

This is what was going on, and so he could not get them out of it.

There's nothing he could say or do that would emancipate the slaves or stop them or you know create laws that would be in their favor so he doesn't even try. What he does do is encourage them to be blameless in the face of these things.

Sometimes we feel as though we must take some action any action, even if it's not going to work. We just have to do something that could create larger problems even in the way we perceive things. For instance, the Scripture we could look at this. The saints in the Scripture and begin to question their decisions to suffer references back to David. How many of you would've done Saul in but daring to come and kill me for nothing for messing up my life. I've got a live in caves. I better stay on the run because of you, but I just ended right now for you. Well, he could not because he linked Saul's existence is King to the throne of God.

God put them on the throne. God can take them off. That's the kind of approach I want. If you want to have that approach, you better stick by your principal, because the going to be bills going to try to move you off of it with reason.

Think it through body, its dependence, full dependency on God to make it through these things. But when you do good and suffer. He says here in verse 22 Peter uses the Greek word for suffering where we get our English word pathos from 15 times in his two letters he really uses that word a lot more than anybody else and you get the idea that he understands what's happening. I wonder now reference. One of my favorites which would pretty much be all the great characters of the Bible, but in particular there.

This moment is Jeremiah. What a man the prophet was. He didn't see what was coming his way. He thought he thought because he was a priest and love Yahweh that all the other priest of Yahweh would feel the same way they did not.

Jeremiah 1119 talking about suffering as a servant we getting to going to get to the tracing Christ a little bit but I was like a domicile lamb brought to the slaughter, and I did not know that they had devised schemes against me, saying, let us destroy the tree with its fruit.

Let us cut them off from the land of the living that his name may be remembered no more. The prophet was totally naïve unsuspecting that there were those in Israel that wanted to kill him.

It was like a lamb going to the slaughter lamb doesn't know they can kill you. Another not. They do this all the time. We just following them to the ghosts going.

There's fine tribute brings his picture that it's him again, thinking that since he loved God and hated idols that those other others who claimed Yahweh share his zeal in his priestly village even in his own family of priest blood brothers. He was very wrong. They hated his loyalty to God.

They hated that he stood by what he believed what was in the Scripture what he was called to be just like them. They hated him for it loyalty to God was rebuke on their treachery and so they said let us cut them off from the land of living.

Let's chop down this route tree, no matter the fruit is on it. We hate it so much, would rather kill it than have it so we we find these lessons throughout our Bible there to cause us to pause and think about things and connect a life to them with the lives of those around us to it. These things contribute to our sobriety that we become mature followers of Christ. This is commendable. He says again at the bottom of verse 20 the same Greek word for Gracie says this is grace. This is what it looks like to be a believer, mindful of Jesus Christ. Grace shows up in each chapter of Peter's letters. I just those kind of those little details to me a profound.

This is the Holy Spirit saying I did it on purpose.

On purpose of speaking to you, not to scald you though if the shoe fits you have to wear it so that you won't have to wear the second time that you there are better shoes to wear in the shoes of being scolded. Verse 21 for to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow his steps for to this you were called call to show the grace of Christ as we stood been talking about that from the beginning of his letter you been born a second time, this time in the eyes of God. The righteousness of Christ is on you and I want you to live that way and we all fail, but when we hear these things we perk up again. Okay, I can go at it again. Hell hates it.

Spirit loves it stand with Jesus in a world that runs to the devil, that's what you're called to do. That's what I'm called to do stand with Jesus while everybody's dropping off the rebellion. The Levites stood with Moses and as such, God rewarded the tribe of Levi with her priestly duties stand with Jesus in the world that runs to the devil, just read a news article. Watch how fast they run to him one who attempted to correct the Lord received the correction of the Lord. This is important we talking about for you were called and it is calling Peter newly was called to follow Christ is never seen anything like this ever knew that anyone else and yet the day came when he was when he had the gall to challenge Christ. Far be it from you that you should go to the cross and die. Peter is talking like Satan get behind me Satan and unmindful of the things of God but of the things of man the flash, the lowlife Laura life, which is the lowlife from Fromm's perspective well.

He received his correction when it came in. Not only did he go on to become an obedient preacher of the cross of Christ, but he died on the cross of his own physical as well as practically first John's gospel chapter 21 verse 18 Jesus speaking to Peter after Peter felt miserably. Christ restored him.

Remember, he denied the Lord three times in the Lord asked him three times. You love me do you love me do you love me Peter Corsi's and you know I love you. I just can't love you the way I thought I could love you story my life. Most assuredly, I say to you when you were younger you girded yourself and walked where you wished when you are old you will stretch out your hands and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish Peter you had that control over your life, you will lose it, you will lose it for me and thereby gain it forever. So he says here because Christ also suffered for us is a menace sought yet he did flee, but he hung around to see enough of it. Our Lord Jesus.

He suffered at the hands of people. People he had come to save the guy that spit in his face and the other one and punch them in the faith died for them.

We don't lose sight of that is vital that we don't lose sight of that next time you're being persecuted that person persecuting you, Christ died for us so easy to tell you that I just don't want to have to live it out.

But but I don't have much choice in bee stings because hopefully in the spirit we are girded by Christ sent where he sends us. Jesus suffered loneliness, suffered rejection, malicious hatred I hatred that was unfounded. His family disbelieved his claims and accused him of being crazy without proof, Peter himself with a flurry of votes denied him when he needed them most. Judas sold them for a pocket full of change, relatively speaking, he wept his heart out in Gethsemane because of us is falsely accused of blasphemy beaten and abused by the people of God. It was marked scourged crucified by Roman soldiers endure the torments of death on the cross.

We all know this and yet listening to it. Listening to it is edifying he was made sin for each. For each and every one because he was abandoned to God and therefore on the cross for our sin, he was abandoned by God, my God, my God, quoting the 22nd Psalm, why have you forsaken me why are you so far from hearing made day and night I cry out goes the Psalm crisis took it all in my God, my God, why have you forsaken me it was rhetorical. He knew why he's preaching to us.

The experience of the cross of Messiah.

He left us an example, it says here in verse 21, leaving us an example that you should follow his steps now that Greek word for example, means a writing copy to imitate and what the Greeks had was a tablet with all the Greek letters on and they would put paper over that and they would teach the students how to write the letters by tracing the Greek letters from Alpha to Omega is a copy. It was something to trace, leaving us an example, we ought to trace Christ, we are to follow his example. His life were to put a top of his life, our life and mimic it as best we can imitate better word so the word there again.

For example, in the Greek is the word for the tablet use. It had other uses to essentially a letter to copy. You could also say that would be accurate. How we come up with these understandings will we look not we me. Those who are scholars of language they look into the various secular writings and see how a word was used by their philosophers and their scholars and that brings them closer to understand how the word was used so they make sure they get it right and its context intact. All the text about it and we are very grateful for them and so that is a powerful part and we just were going to move on because it doesn't need to be enhanced.

You don't paint gold you polish it you take it as it is and that is one of those sex. This is one of the section of Scripture where he says he leaves us something to trace himself. Verse 22 who committed no sin. This is one with tracing nor was deceit found in his mouth is a quotation from Isaiah 53, but it is also a statement of observed fact Peter was there as in the case never had anything on him. Isaiah 53, one of the most beautiful chapters in all the Scripture because of how Christ fulfilled it but a very sorrowful chapter to read so much so the Ethiopian eunuch asked Philip who is he talking about himself or someone else who is this great supper of Isaiah 53 verse nine of Isaiah 53 they made his grave with the wicked, but with the rich at his death because he had done no violence, nor was any deceit found in his mouth. Prophet called long before it happened to be nothing in Christ charged with falsity of sin. There was no work of the devil in him.

The only sin found in Jesus belong to you and me. The only righteousness found in you and me belong to Jesus.

Thank you Lord, because he could've just scrapped us. He did not.

He died for us sending his son. He was incapable of sin because of who he is John's Gospel. He says this in chapter 14 the ruler of this world that is Satan is coming and he has nothing in me is nothing inside of me that he can commit to. The only person the Bible says is sinless in this way is Jesus the Christ our Lord. And anyone who says otherwise speaks heresy is walk his talk is work. All of it flawless. All of it perfect. Such a statement can be made of no one else not Buddha. Not Confucius, not Mary, not Mohammed. All of them that I just named need needed a Savior to be forgiven by a holy God. Like every other human being. The great heroes of the Jewish faith Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, Daniel, all of them need Savior.

All of them were sinful men in Christ, there is the Savior. You either you know no one really goes to hell because of sin. Go to hell for rejecting Christ because if you went to hell because of sin and we are all going to hell what keeps us out of that hot place is him.

The Lord Jesus Christ. What about all those other ones those hard cases and hard to God to do the right thing and is good with me.

Verse 23 who, when he was reviled not revile in return when he suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously read that when he was reviled. He did not revile in return I said myself. Are you kidding me know what happens when I reviled my feelings get hurt and you know what happens when you when your feelings get hurt.

I mean, it is a big thing when there when someone has penetrated your defenses and touched you emotionally up that way. It is a big thing you look at them. You can have contempt discussed, you want to avoid is a whole range of things depending on the moment the personality circumstances all range of things that make you want to strike back in some form even of it. I just will withdrawal. I will be around more.

Siebel is also some stuff going on. Christ did not know they hurt his feelings.

Is that your child the fornication were not. He took it he continue to minister preach truth the one that detonated the universe could've snuffed them out at any time and he did not. Human history is never seen such restraint as in Jesus Christ. Note not one all are sinners. There is none righteous, no not one. That's the truth. None have the restraint of Christ. Note not one face the mock trial. The false judges the lying witnesses.

The biased jury. He did not take law into his own hands. Even though he had every right to.

He said I can call 72,000 angels. All I have to do is sigh deeply and you had it. One angel, one angel grabs Satan change him and him him to jail. One angel, what would 72,000 of them do, and is just toying with them because he doesn't have to call any of them. What a magnificent Lord we have the truth of which is not yet been fully told. But we have enough of the truth to get to the second part while his miracles were awesome. Proper use of the word going to pass that up his restraint what you call that I again the one that has formed the galaxies and maintains them. You know how much energy is tied up in the universe and Adam how much energy is built into that, and yet he holds it together as we are told, even in the new testing estimate upholding all things by the word of his power. Keeping it all in check, to have such power to create and hold together so much and then to hold back against those who will going to hurt you and hurt the ones you love. Incidentally, Isaiah 43 verse three. A bruised reed he will not break the smoking flax. He will not quenched. He will bring forth justice and truth. Bruised reed.

That's weakness atop of weakness arenas not very strong to have it damaged further weakens it and yet the Lord does not come in the bullying trampoline is the one that endears himself to the week have smoking flax smoking flax is something that has an element of self-destruction is burning away move. We are so glad you tuned in today to study the book of first Peter on cross reference radio cross reference radio is the daily radio ministry of Pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel in Mechanicsville, Virginia, and we are blessed to bring you God's word with each broadcast.

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