Transcription downloaded from https://sermons.heritagesermons.org/sermons/33137/1-peter-quality-good/.

Disclaimer: this is an automatically generated machine transcription - there may be small errors or mistranscriptions.
Please refer to the original audio if you are in any doubt.


[0:00] I bring so much to need the Lord's merciful and gracious help. I venture this evening in directing your thoughts to the first epistle of Peter, chapter 1, and reading the second verse.

[0:20] The first epistle of Peter, the first chapter, and reading the second verse.

[0:32] Let us elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.

[0:57] Grace unto you and peace be multiplied. I've been reading through the Bible at home, in our reading from day to day, and we came to this first chapter this morning.

[1:27] And how good it is when, as we read the Word of God, we find that there is response in our hearts to what we read.

[1:42] And I'm sure there are those here that would say, yes, Lord, that is. How different when, as we read the Bible, and it's a good thing whenever we do, that how different when we read the Word of God, and our hearts remain unmoved and unaffected.

[2:05] And if someone was to ask us, at the end of our reading, what we had read, might well be at times that we'd have to say, well, I cannot remember.

[2:22] Such is the sad state that we are found in by nature. But, oh, how good, how profitable it is when our heart is opened, as we read the Word of God, and we find in it that which we respond to, and when we can say, Lord, that is what I believe.

[2:55] The whole chapter seemed so full of divine truth this morning. And I felt, as we read this second verse, that it was to be the text this evening.

[3:14] And I would just notice what is contained in the first verse of this first chapter of the first epistle of Peter.

[3:25] God's servant Peter is speaking by the divine power of the Holy Spirit. And he is speaking in love to those to whom he was writing.

[3:44] And you know, dear friends, it is my desire continually that I may be helped to preach the Word of God in love. In love to yourself.

[3:59] And he addresses those to whom he speaks or writes. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia.

[4:22] And yet they were not strangers. That is very evident. They were not strangers to the truth of God.

[4:36] They were among those that are no more strangers or foreigners fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God.

[4:47] they were among those they were among those that the second verse speaks of. And I hope that this evening, I know it's a great thing to desire, but you know, I hope that every one of you here may receive a crumb.

[5:06] Because if you receive a crumb from the master's table, it will mean something to you. You won't then have to go home and say, well, there's been nothing for me.

[5:21] And I wonder how many of us can join with a hymn writer in this who said, A crumb of mercy, Lord, I crave, unworthy to be fed, with dainties such as angels have, or with the children's bread, have pity on my needy soul thy peace and pardon give.

[5:46] Now, may we then be helped in our meditation. We have in this one verse really the whole gospel, the whole gospel, it's contained in just one verse.

[6:06] The precious doctrines of grace are contained in one verse. May we notice then how the verse is worded. First, it is elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father.

[6:24] Then it is through sanctification of the Spirit unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.

[6:38] And then the apostle goes on and let us not forget that he is being motivated by the Holy Spirit. You know, I feel I can say this from my heart to all of you.

[6:51] Here this evening, grace unto you and peace and peace be multiplied. Well, may our meditation be made so by the divine work and power and operation of the Holy Spirit within our hearts.

[7:12] you will remember, I believe, that when Jesus was speaking in John chapter 6, he said concerning all his dear people.

[7:29] And dear friends, let us not be narrow-minded in this. May we have an enlarged heart in this that our thoughts may go out throughout the whole world.

[7:46] Let us never forget what the Lord has said regarding heaven and those that will inhabit heaven out of every nation, tribe, kindred and town.

[8:04] What a multitude, an innumerable multitude will be gathered with Jesus Christ forever and ever.

[8:17] One has said what must it be to be there if you have had a taste of heaven on earth, you will have known the effect of it upon you.

[8:35] Whether you had a taste of heaven directly from the Holy Spirit or through the word of God as you were reading it or as you may have been favored in prayer I hope I'm not a stranger to feeling what it is to be near my Lord in prayer.

[9:07] Remember the dear woman who came and she worshipped him saying Lord help me and how good it is when we are favored in this and then those of you that have had just a touch a glimpse of heaven through the proclamation of God's word when the word of God has come right into your heart and when your hard heart has been softened under a sense of the goodness and the mercy of God and you've been dissolved at his dear feet and then you've crowned him Lord of all.

[10:00] But coming back to the thought regarding what Jesus says in John chapter 6 and it's this first of all all that the father giveth me shall come to me.

[10:17] In the first part of this verse we have this very important truth elect according to the foreknowledge of God the father.

[10:31] And while it is a truth that our poor finite minds will never be able to grasp oh dear friends every soul that was given by God the father to the Lord Jesus Christ in the covenant of grace and let us not forget what Jesus says in John 17 of all that thou gavest me and that before the foundation of the world you know it's beyond my finite mind but if our names are written in the Lamb's book of life they were written there before the foundation of the world oh what a truth election is the electing love of

[11:32] God the father father and that is made known in the word that Jesus so feelingly expressed when he said all and any of us here tonight we may have sons or daughters you may have brothers or sisters you may have loved ones you may have neighbours you may have those that you meet with in your daily life whom God has laid in your heart to pray for to travel over and let me remind you not one can be lost for whom Christ has died not one soul can be lost that is our mercy may be an encouragement to parents and grandparents and others here this evening those wondrous words not a hoof should be left behind and that when that time comes wherever poor sinners are and has the Holy

[12:50] Ghost forgot to quicken souls that Christ has bought and let them lifeless lie well dear friends the answer to that is no we lose sight of this at least I do and unbelief rages sometimes and in our first hymn we had this didn't we begun unbelief my saviour is near and for my relief will surely appear by prayer let me wrestle and he will perform with Christ in the vessel we'll smile at the storm no unbelief and I must acknowledge this in my own heart the Lord knows we have sons we have a daughter and oh you see there they are they're living their life according to their own pleasure and will and I'm sure there are those here tonight that would have to say the same and any of you that have been favoured with your children and you've seen them born again in their perhaps in their very early life you've seen them born again

[14:08] I'm thinking of those that have children that never leave the house of God and you need to be thankful if it is so and the Lord will make you aware that it has been through sovereign grace alone that this is the case it's nothing to do with us but oh those that have those that lay in their hearts the Lord knowing where they are this very evening and yet they're not beyond the electing love of God the Father oh how good that is to be aware of it sometimes unbelief rages in my heart and oh I think of children and others and there's this that comes you know and we think well this will never be this will never be but if the Lord has laid a soul or souls in your hearts to pray for if the thing is of God he will never allow that exercise to leave you it may well do

[15:26] I'm not suggesting you'll always know the power of the exercise but it will bubble up in your heart and from time to time you'll think of that son those sons daughters and still you'll pray and still you'll wait upon your God well this is the first part of this verse elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father another word in John chapter 6 which so often seems to come into my thoughts regarding this subject of election and it is this no man can come to me no boy or girl can come to me no man or woman can come to me oh this is the foundation and one has said that God's election is a truth small comfort there I see till I am told by God's own mouth that he has chosen me now that's just where the Lord brings those that know further truth in this verse through sanctification of the spirit through that life giving power that comes alone through the holy spirit but this is the if we might use such a word the plan of salvation and yet think of this no man can come to me except or unless the father which has sent me draw him and I will raise him up at the last time

[17:23] I'm sure there are those here tonight who are exercised regarding this great question am I among these people is my name written in the Lamb's Book of Life and the apostle Peter in another place he says this wherefore give diligence to make your calling and election sure giving diligence oh but you'll say Lord I do not possess that true diligence but when the Lord burdens our heart with it we shall be burdened and then we shall be very diligent in this matter giving that true diligence to make our calling and our election sure for if ye do these things ye shall never fall for so an entrant shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our

[18:31] Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and if we are among the strangers and pilgrims on the earth we shall declare plainly that we are seeking a better country that is an heavenly wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God for he hath prepared for them a city well there we have this foundation truth and so you see with those of you here this evening can you trace this in your life do you know this has happened to you no man can come to me except the father which hath sent me draw him and I will raise him up at the last day and how are we drawn well we are drawn through everlasting love that is how we are drawn the Lord hath appeared of old unto me saying yea

[19:33] I have loved thee with an everlasting love therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee may we consider the loving kindness of this great God love to us each in our lives when that love reached our heart you may not have known it or felt it to be love at the time the Lord may have dealt with you very severely in the first place or the Lord may have dealt very gently with you in the first place but whatever method the Lord uses this great God God the Father in his everlasting love to sinners and when that power is put forth no heart is too hard but that it can soften and then we shall be drawn and where shall we be drawn we shall be drawn to

[20:34] Jesus Christ I can testify to that when the word of God first reached my heart in stone chapel it had that effect upon me I know that not everyone can speak in just the same way but friends it had that effect on me and it sent me home as it were upon my knees and as I have sometimes said over the years one could take you to the spot of ground where we first began to pray just know the spot of ground where Jesus did they meet wonder how many of you have your spot of ground could have been anywhere but when your soul was quickened you may have been aware that it was in that sense but what is the effect of being quickened into life well we use an illustration that many of us will know about when a child is conceived in the world and you know as time goes on and the time comes doesn't it for that baby to be quickened and the mother knows this and a real mother is very glad for that to be so because you see it's an evidence of life and how with husbands and wives in these matters how thankful they are together to know that there's life to know that there's movement and so it is with those that are drawn by divine love they then enter or begin to enter into the second part of the verse elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the

[22:46] Spirit now that is the Holy Spirit's divine work sinners are drawn by everlasting love the love of God the Father but it is the Holy Spirit's divine work to quicken souls into life and when souls are quickened into life the soul begins to move Godward heavenward and those that have received that spiritual life they commence to feel their need of God where before they didn't oh they may have had thoughts of God especially if we've been favoured to be brought up under the sound of truth but until the Holy Spirit quickens our soul into life there's no movement Godward heavenward but as soon as life is imparted there will commence to be movement and of course the well known words spoken by

[23:51] God to Ananias regarding Saul of Tarsus they come to mind and what was the word of God the testimony of the Holy Spirit that a change had taken place in the life of Saul of Tarsus in these simple and yet profound words for behold he prayeth well dear friends do you pray you may say well I pray for the Lord to help me in my life I pray for strength from day to day to do and to attend to my duties and responsibilities I pray for guidance regarding the matters of this life my need as a father as a wife in my life my daily calling or even those of you that are younger at school that wherever the Holy Spirit quickens a soul into life that soul will begin to pray but I cannot just leave you there because if we possess spiritual life we shall begin to feel our need in our souls you'll be aware that you'll have a soul you'll commence to be aware of the solemnity of death the solemnity of eternity you'll be made aware that there's going to be a day of judgment you'll be shown by and through

[25:35] God given faith these great truths and why do you now understand them at least in measure because you possess life and you're concerned about it well I think of the first verse of a well known hymn that the Lord has used sometimes and oh that he would use it this very evening to any of you that have not yet known this divine and drawing power of God the Father and the quickening operation of the Holy Spirit in your heart but this is the verse it's pause my soul and ask the question am I ready to meet God am I made a real Christian washed in the Redeemer's blood have I union to the church's living hair do you know what it is you'll know what it is to pause and ask this question it will become a question as dear

[26:46] Mr. Dawson used to often say in his ministry the question that needs to be you may know that you do possess life and if you do possess it then these evidences will be so known in your heart and life you'll have to pray about everything and the more the nearer we live to the Lord the more we shall have to pray I found it in my heart today to pray yet again that the Lord would come in this service and that he would grant a little of that divine power to me and the ministry of his word and that it may be known and felt that the Lord is here and that the Lord is speaking this is what we need isn't it otherwise you'll only hear my poor voice and that will never do you any good but to hear the voice of

[27:47] Jesus say come unto me and rest and you'll feel to need it another evidence of life as we've mentioned in prayer you'll feel to be just like the poor down and you'll go to and fro in this earth and you'll never find any rest in it the Lord will see to it that we do not find rest in this life not to his dear people those that are left to die in their sins their rest is here but have you ever been able to say this world is not my home can you say this evening that this this is not your rest it's not my rest Lord I cannot find it in anything here but oh have you at least found it in the exercise of it that you may find it in Jesus Christ have you been led to him but I do want just to keep to the order of this word here elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father through sanctification of the

[29:02] Spirit now that not only takes in his divine and quickening power but the continuation of it in our life would you know whether you're among these people I'm sure there are those here tonight that are saying yes that is just what I do want to know well does this help you for as many as are led by the Spirit of God they are the sons of God and daughters how does that word affect your heart do you need the Holy Spirit do we really need the Holy Spirit you'll say yes I need his divine help in prayer I need it as I read the Bible I need it as I sit in chapel listening I need it in my life and you'll feel to need the Holy Spirit to be with you in even the smallest details of your life you may need to go and buy something for your home you may need there may be the need to buy a car there might be the need to buy a house you may have some particular need in your heart this evening but if you are sanctified by the Spirit of God you'll have to pray over it it won't be an easy matter it will not be an easy matter whatever there's the need for us to do or to buy or to act it will be

[30:39] Lord help me it will be Lord guide me and the lines of the hymn come to mind which really I often have to pray and it's this guide oh guide me by thy spirit leave me not to walk alone friend you'll dread to walk alone if there's one thing that a living soul will dread it's to walk alone you won't want to be left to that but then what is the effect of this true sanctification unto obedience unto obedience well that in itself is a great subject unto obedience now if we possess spiritual life we shall want to obey the Lord we shall want to obey him again in every aspect of our life

[31:44] I can only touch on this this evening but obedience now there is a word that I've looked at in the last chapter in the Bible which perhaps may help us to understand at least a little but coming back first of all to the words of Jesus what does he say I believe it's John 14 and verse 15 it's this if ye love me keep my commandments if ye love me keep my commandments now you see with this spiritual life there will be mingled with it the tender fear of God and the love of God friends do you want to be motivated by the love of God you'll want to if you possess this life and if you're living near your

[32:48] Lord you'll want to be motivated by love so important this is whether it's the ministry or in the diaconate or as church members in everything that we may look at we do all things in vain unless we do all things in love we want the love of Christ to constrain us well there is this word in the 22nd chapter of the revelation and listen to this blessed are they that do his commandments now that is a vast subject but if you want to know what the commandments of God are they are all written in the Bible and there are many of them but they are all in the Bible and you see this is a wonderful word here blessed are they that do his commandments and John 14 comes back to mind

[33:55] I believe it's verse 21 he that hath my commandments if you have them in your heart you see you'll want to keep them he that hath my commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me there you have the evidence of this true spiritual life but what does the Lord say to these he says blessed are they that do his commandments that they may have right you think of it to the tree of life and may enter in through the gates into the city now that's speaking about heaven blessed are they that do his commandments you know dear friends it means that they've got to be done it's no use just looking at them they've got to be done they've got to be lived in and then it goes on doesn't it and it says and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus

[35:06] Christ now this is another important truth because if we've been made aware that we're sinners and that is because we possess life you know if we look at it rightly no one will ever know they're a sinner until they are quickened into life but one of the first evidences of spiritual life is known in this it's felt in the heart these dear people they begin to feel it in their hearts they know that they sin they know that they're sinners but here you see if we possess this life if we're among these people you'll certainly feel your need of the precious blood of Jesus let me ask you all a question this evening here do you feel your great need to be sprinkled with the precious blood of Jesus do you feel to need cleansing do you feel to need washing oh be ye clean that they're the vessels of the

[36:24] Lord now dear friends there's only one way in which sin can be pardoned sin can be cleansed and that is through the precious blood of Jesus invaluable blood does it mean something to us and dear Mr. Stanley Dales were preaching in 1958 from those well known words and when I see the blood I will pass over you and you know the word of God it came right into my heart and that precious blood was made precious and I felt that it was true of me a poor sinner and when I see the blood I will pass over you oh I've never had an experience like it before or sin I long to be favoured and we will long to be favoured you know if we are blessed we shall need blessing again and again it is as it is with us every day we need food we need drink and so it is spiritually and isn't it why we've gathered here this evening our strength will soon decrease unless our souls be fed we feel we know our health and peace depend on living bread compassion on us have we pray and empty send us not away well I must say amen but you know as I said at the beginning

[38:07] I believe oh to know more of these precious truths in our heart the sacred doctrines of grace dry doctrine cannot save us blind zeal or false devotion but the feeblest prayer if faith be there exceeds all empty notion oh it will always be dry doctrine until the Holy Ghost opens their heart to receive them and to know them to be so necessary and to want to know them for ourselves so that it might be with us my doctrine shall drop as the rain and my speech shall distill as the dew and there are those of you that are saying Lord that's just what I need now I can say to you in closing this evening grace unto you and peace be multiplied grace unto you and peace be multiplied

[39:15] I've told this little story before but it comes to mind when one of God's servants was asked by his pastor as the case was dear Mr.

[39:28] Stanley Dells as to how things were going with him in the ministry he hadn't long been preaching and of course this young minister he said to his pastor he said oh I need more ability I feel to need more ability and his pastor knew better than him you know and he said my dear friend what you need is more grace more grace grace you know ministers can only preach with the ability that God gives them and all to that end that God may be glorified and it doesn't matter who the minister is they can only preach with the ability that God gives them but what they need and what I need is more grace so grace unto you and peace be multiplied Amen May we help to conclude our service this evening with hymn 908

[40:53] Saved is the sinner that believes the sacred gospel annals show to him repentance Jesus gives and sins complete remission to hymn 908 and ch free for Spirit of the Ages

[41:56] As the lucerne žecolored In repentance, Jesus, lives and sins, complete redemption.

[42:38] He gives the Spirit's voice within the sacred matrix from His eyes.

[43:08] He blessed once, blessedly, all saved and naked, now to Jesus Christ.

[43:36] Sprinkled with blood, His conscience is, He fails the saints, so sin forgave.

[44:07] All Jesus stopped, blessed righteousness, becomes His greatness, now for them.

[44:36] Jesus, God hath blood and pain, O Tis, O Tis, eternal life to know, O Tis, O Tis, O Tis, O Tis, O Tis, O Tis, God name, полез and sonder and

[45:38]  Lord, over them I hear now. Sin-bidden soul with tempest dust My book shall have every stone and bright Grace once received can never be lost Your help of Christ my soul divine