To Have The Knowledge By The Word

SERMON: # 1123

PASTOR: EDITH CRUZ

DATE: AUGUST 26, 2020

TOPIC: "To Have The Knowledge By The Word" 1 Peter 1:23 - 2:1-3 Peter was clear in his life and I think he wanted you and me to learn it. Who better than him to teach us! There is a way to get to heaven and it is based on the Word, not how each one thinks and speaks to his great advantage or to his presuming. I cannot base myself on what I know, but rather I have to find out what heaven has said! So when the Word is sought, it is to have the true knowledge!

I. (Vs. 23) Peter tells us: “…being reborn…” (born again)

A. We are reborn, thus we receive the new life of grace by believing and being baptized.

1. Being changed through a new birth.

2. Peter talks about what he lived when he met Jesus, he talks about his new birth.

3. He mentions the seed (the seed) of that birth: the Word of God!

4. It was not Peter's word, it was the well-known Word of God that was spoken by his Lord Jesus Christ.

5. “…not of perishable seed…” The new birth is not produced by a corruptible seed (seed) It is NOT produced in the same way as the natural birth.

6. Human life is brought by a seed that must obey the physical laws of decay and death! The physical life produced at birth has the same quality as the seed from which it sprang, it is of a temporary nature.

7. Instead, the new birth is produced through the Word of God! It is eternal! It is not corrupted or damaged! "...but of imperishable..."

8. "...but the word of the Lord stands forever." When men hear or read the Bible they are convicted of their sins, convicted that Christ is the only and sufficient Savior, and then they are converted to God.

9. The Word lives and abides forever! 10. Although heaven and earth pass, it will never pass! Matthew 24:35

11. It is established in heaven forever! It is eternal! And the life it produces is also eternal!

12. Those who are born again through the Word assume the eternal character of the Word! How beautiful!

13. (Vs. 24) The transitory character of human life is seen here with a quote from Isaiah 40:6, 7.

14. Human life is as non-permanent as the grass!

15. Physical beauty is as ephemeral as the flowers of the field!

16. "The grass withers and the flowers fall..." It dies!

17. (Vs. 25) On the contrary, the Word of the Lord abides forever (Isaiah 40:8).

18. Our life is equally incorruptible!

19. "And this is the word that was preached to you." This incorruptible word is the Word of the good news announced to Peter's readers and caused them to be born again.

20. It is the source of his eternal life!

21. (2 Peter 2:1) Because we are partakers of the divine life, we must cast out all of the following traits that are against love:

a. Malice - harboring bad thoughts against another person. Malice fuels rivalry or competition, builds grudges, and secretly waits for the other to be overtaken by revenge, harm, or tragedy.

b. Deception - making believe something that is not true.

c. Hypocrisy - double-mindedness, false pretenses. The hypocrite is an actor who pretends to be someone he is not. He pretends to be spiritual on Sundays, but he's carnal. He pretends to be interested in others, but his motives are selfish.

d. Envy - jealousy. Desire what others have. Sadness despite the good of others, desire for something that is not possessed. Displeasure or annoyance produced in someone before the good of another. (Matthew 27:18) It was envy that caused the chief priests to hand Jesus over to Pilate to be killed.

e. Detractions - defame, denigrate with malicious backbiting. Slander is the attempt to be clean by throwing mud on someone else.

22. These sins are violations of the fundamental commandment to love our neighbor as ourselves! (Matthew 22:39)

23. No wonder Peter says so decisively to strip ourselves of such things!

24. (Vs. 2) A second obligation of the new birth is to have an insatiable craving for unadulterated spiritual milk.

25. The sins mentioned in the previous verse stop spiritual growth; but the good Word of God fuels our growth in God.

26. Whether the faith is greater or less, we must thirst for the Word as newborns cry out for milk.

27. Through "unadulterated spiritual milk," the believer grows spiritually.

28. The ultimate goal toward which all spiritual growth in this life is directed is conformity to the image of our Lord Jesus Christ.

29. (Vs. 3) "...now that you have tasted that the Lord is good."

30. What a tremendous motive to be thirsty for unadulterated spiritual milk! We have tasted and seen that the Lord is good (Psalm 34:8).

31. His sacrifice for us was an act of unspeakable goodness and kindness (Titus 3:4).

32. He who has already tasted his kindness should whet his appetite to de fed more by Him.

33. The sweet knowledge of this communion with Him should make us fear to never depart from Him. Amen.