Overall Humility October 19, 2008

Overall Humility 1Peter 5:1-7

As Peter comes to the end of this first general letter to the believes scattered about the part of the Roman empire that is now Turkey, believers who are beginning to be persecuted for being and living like disciples of Jesus, he speaks as a fellow elder (sumpresbuteros). This is significant in understanding who Peter was in the first century church. His exhortation (not a bull or an edict) is as a fellow servant, not as head of the church, not as prince of apostles, not as pontiff. He calls himself fellow-servant, witness (martyr) of Christ, sharer / joint heir, a tender of those who hunger for God. And he sets the example of doing so with cheerful readiness.

NOTE: Some “church words” in this section: elder = presbyter 5:1; overseer = episcopal 5:2; those in your charge = those to whom you are clergy.

OVERALL THE WORD TO ELDER AND YOUNGER - HUMBLE YOURSELF ACKNOWLEDGE THAT GOD IS IN CHARGE.

Philosophies of life (3) (much of these ideas are from a sermon my Matt Chandler – Village Church, Dallas)

1. Irreligious = secular godless

• World, life, relationships have no real eternal significance --- So, eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die. While you are here have as much pleasure as you can, live as well as you can because this is all we have. Some are lucky. Some are unlucky. But, life is what it is.

2. Religious = There is some sort of god and therefore

man must work to appease him

• Religious ceremony or morality is the means of salvation --- From outside to inside --- If I do this or that I can have the approval, the love, the blessing of God

Anyone who looks at life with philosophies #1 and #2 is blind to some things.

>>>>> The blindness inherent in these philosophies results in belief systems that contradict truth and reason.

EXAMPLE: 1a. There is no god. We all got here by evolution. Since there is no god, we humans have to fight against social injustice --- the strong eating the weak. --- Problem --- Evolution says we all got here by the strong eating the weak.

EXAMPLE 2a. Even though claiming to believe the Bible, many religious people believe that good happens to good people and bad happens to bad people. --- Problem --- THAT IS NOT FROM THE BIBLE!! THAT IS FROM “MY NAME IS EARL”...KARMA!!! So tragedy often drives religious people away from God.

The Result --- Pride

EXAMPLE 1b. Everything you have is the result of your effort. Eat right; exercise; best education for you and kid; romantic with spouse. You earned your good life. PRIDE = “I am in control.”

EXAMPLE 2b. Everything will be good because you control God by doing this or that or using the right words or names... PRIDE = “I've got God under my control. He does what I want Him to do.”

The Hope --- To be made “low” (James 1:10)

EXAMPLE 1c and 2c There is a lump. A child is killed. A job is lost. A spouse leaves... The illusion of control is removed... with nothing more than a phone call.

EXAMPLE 3 (This applies to Philosophy 3 which is coming)To be made low by seeing something so much bigger, so much more beautiful, so much more than you are that you have something greater than yourself to worship...seeing how small you are. >>>>>Colossians1:15-20

Col 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

Col 1:16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things were created through him and for him.

Col 1:17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.

Col 1:19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell,

Col 1:20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

3. (Philosophy 3) The Gospel “peace by the blood of his cross”... all things are by Him...all things are through Him and FOR Him...He is before all things...He is the fullness of God revealed...He is the reconciler.

Everything is for the glory of Jesus...from largest to smallest...all for glory, renown, worship of Jesus Christ ...even sorrow (God can stop it and often does – unless He has a plan for it and the devil becomes a pawn for His glory),

Gospel VS Religion --R. God gets obedience by threatening to squash you with guilt and shame. God is all powerful and will damn you.

G. God frees you to walk in the joy of obedience by bearing your guilt and shame Himself. God says, “You are wicked but I will bear your wicked to avoid the mockery of My name and reveal the greatness of my grace.”

If the err of secularism and religion is PRIDE and self sufficiency. In gospel understand your joy is authored by Jesus and even in sorrow you understand that Jesus has allowed it for His glory and your sanctification So even in sorrow you are pressed by not crushed.

So you can loosen up your hands. Secularism/religion theme is MINE! I must protect. God gave this to me for me. This is MINE.

Gospel theme is YOURS It is not mine. That is liberating... This stuff is not mine. This salvation is not my doing. This is not even my life. That is freedom.

MINE make you a slave to that thing you say mine of.

So ... Whatever age, whatever gender, whatever position ... Be humble and trust gracious God. Trust your cares to Him. He cares for you. He will carry you and your burden.. Matthew10:29-31;

Mat 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.

Mat 10:30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.

Mat 10:31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Psalm40:17; Psa 40:17 As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!

Psalm 27:10; Psa 27:10 For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in.

Isaiah49:15; Isa 49:15 "Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.

Psalm71:18 Psa 71:18 So even to old age and gray hairs, O God, do not forsake me, until I proclaim your might to another generation, your power to all those to come.

That makes us, gospel believers, different. Our joy has been created for us by God – even in tough times. We think differently from the religious and the irreligious...Matthew20:21-28 “It shall not be so among you.”

Mat 20:21 And he said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Say that these two sons of mine are to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom."

Mat 20:22 Jesus answered, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?" They said to him, "We are able."

Mat 20:23 He said to them, "You will drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father."

Mat 20:24 And when the ten heard it, they were indignant at the two brothers.

Mat 20:25 But Jesus called them to him and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.

Mat 20:26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,

Mat 20:27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,

Mat 20:28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Makes us -- instead of protecting our money because who knows what might happen next week -- It allows us to be free to buy milk for orphans. ...Cases of milk. ...Buy dispensas (non-perishable foods) for our poor... to give to build a house for someone we don't even know.

Instead of guarding our time and our cleanliness. The Gospel sets us free to love on kids... questionable kids ...dirty kids... The Gospel sets us free to work in a thrift shop...or teach ESL ...

To travel 4 hours to stay at an orphanage and give a Christian couple some time off.

Because our money is not ours. Our cleanliness is not ours. Our time is not ours. Our car is not ours.... Our life is all about bringing glory to Jesus Christ.

There is a need we ought to do that. Not... There is a need someone ought to do that.

Is that what your life is all about???

Scarcely Saved 1Peter 4:12-19

The story and the message of the cross is sheer absurdity and folly to those who are perishing and on their way to perdition, but to us who are being saved it is the [manifestation of] the power of God. 1Corinthians1:18 [Amplified Version]

Many problems in relationships are caused by unrealistic expectations. As a matter of fact ofttimes when dating there are efforts made to guard against reality i.e. We dress differently than normal. We are abnormally generous, agreeable, considerate, and focused. Thus, with the criteria presented, plans for the future are skewed.

God, on the other hand, is blatantly honest about our future in relationship to Him. Jesus said, “In the world you will have tribulation...(John16:33); “...if they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you...”(John15:20); “Blessed are you when men shall revile you, and persecute you...”(Matthew5:11). God the Holy Spirit, speaking through Peter said, “Don't be astonished at the fiery trial...as if something unusual were occurring to you”...because you have presented your bodies as living sacrifices...which is the true worship that you should offer... Romans12:1

You can rejoice in suffering (whatever kind, since Jesus suffered all kinds other than for wrong) because in Christ, you suffer with Him – sharing – and thereby reveal His glory. (1Peter4:13) And you should be willing to magnify the glory of Jesus by whatever means for your salvation as if you were the last one picked. The world would call that crazy but we call it the power of God...even if we are scarcely saved.

SCARCELY SAVED? Verse 18

• Narrow VS Broad Matthew7:13-14 Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

• One VS Many 1Corinthian8:6 1Co 8:6 But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him. ; 1Timothy2:5 1Ti 2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Hebrews10:12 Heb 10:12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

• None other VS one of a Few Acts4:12 Act 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

• The (one) Way VS A (of some) Way John14:6 Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

• The Truth VS a Teacher of truth “

• The Life VS a Way of Living “

• Chosen VS Qualifying Romans9:15-16 Rom 9:15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.

Rom 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

; Ephesians1:4-5 Eph 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

Eph 1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

• At this Late Date 1Peter4:7 But the end of all things is at hand: be ye therefore sober, and watch unto prayer.

• It is worth the short times of sufferings Romans8:18 Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

• Trust the God who chose you 1Peter4:19

GLORIFYING GOD THROUGH JESUS CHRIST - WORSHIP

To glorify God does not mean to make Him glorious. It means to display His glory, to reflect His glory. There is a connection between glory and worship. Romans11:36-12:1 “To him be glory forever. Amen. Therefore...sacrifice...which is your spiritual worship.”

Worship:

1. We hold a person or thing in a place of glory.

2. We worship that person or thing.

3. Our worship is done by making sacrifices.

Worship of God through Jesus

1. We show off the glory of God demonstrated by Jesus' substitutionary atonement to pay for our sin. We brag on him.

2. We focus on Jesus as the fullness of God in a form that is understandable by humans. We consider how our lives will portray His reality and His glory.

3. We make sacrifices of the lives that have been entrusted to us.

   ...including time, money, family, our bodies...

So if you can show Him off in or by your suffering, there will come a time of rejoicing and gladness. Romans8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

You can expect Holy Spirit blessing and relief.

DISGRACING THE IMAGE OF GOD BY WORLDLY LIVING – MEDDLING

• Expect to be punished if you are a law breaker

• Do not expect Holy Spirit blessing and relief if your persecution is for anything other than the gospel.

You Should:

• Confront sins in the lives of other believers using the Word

• Help administer church discipline according to the Word

• Challenge unbelievers with the gospel

• Exhort fellow believers to greater levels of godliness by the Word

You Should Not:

• Consider yourself the holy spirit.

• Cause disruptions in work or government that are not in keeping with godly character and respect.

JUDGMENT BEGINNING AT THE HOUSEHOLD OF GOD

• The vision of Ezekiel 9

  • The mark on those who weep over sin V.4

  • None spared who do not have the mark. Begin at My sanctuary V.6

  • Not many were spared V.8b But a scarce few were!!!

Do you have reason to believe that you have been saved?

The End is Near! 1Peter 4:1-11

The Bucket List is a movie about two men, Edward Cole - a corporate CEO on top of the world and Carter Chambers - an auto mechanic, who met in a hospital room as cancer patients and there find out that they had a short time to live. Carter (Morgan Freeman) had once taken a college course where the professor gave the assignment to fill out a Bucket List of things you want to do before you kick the bucket. Carter starts his list. Edwards (Jack Nicholson) sees it and starts writing his own list. They decide to leave the hospital and embark on fulfilling the things on the bucket list. They did things like sky dive, race classic American muscle cars, and try to kiss the most beautiful girl in the world...all pretty frivolous things in this life or in eternity.

However, if you knew your time on earth was limited, what would you do?

It is! (1Peter 4:7) What will you do?

GETTING TO VERSE 7

• “Since therefore” or “Forasmuch then” re. 1Peter 3:18-22

  • Jesus' suffering ushered us (believers) to God.

  • God is gracious and patient, but the opportunity to accept salvation in Jesus alone, by faith alone is a limited time offer.

  • To reject the gospel is to choose eternal punishment.

  • Salvation is from sin and death, to life and holiness, by God, involving faith and faithfulness, demonstrated by water by which Noah was buoyed and in which believers are ”buried”

  • Jesus, at the right hand of God, with angels, authority, and power is the reason for our hope (v.15) and our leader in victory.

• Start packing a weapon / prepare for battle.

the same intentions (“mind” also Hebrews 4:12 ¹² For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.) as Christ...even a willingness to die Luke 9:23, 24 ²³ And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me. ²⁴ For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: but whosoever will lose his life for my sake, the same shall save it.

• Expect to surprise the world by not acting like them.

• Physical death to those who have accepted the gospel of Jesus only delivers them to a new level of life.

THE END IS NEAR (We knew in the '60s and '70s - the Jesus Movement, new Bible translations, new churches, church growth.)

• End = fulfillment, consummation, attained purpose...

• Near = approaching Romans 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

• Be Ready Luke 12:35-37 ³⁵ Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;
  ³⁶ And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.
  ³⁷ Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

THREE BASICS TO BUILD UP

• Personal Holiness 4:7b

• Sound judgment – self-control, sober mind – spiritually observant. 2Corinthians 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; , 2Timothy 3:15-17 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. ¹⁶ All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: ¹⁷ That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

• For the purpose of Prayer - forsake the world, cling to God's truth, seek God's purpose 1Corinthians 14:15 ¹⁵ What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. /Jude 20 ²⁰ But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, ; Hebrews 10:22 ²² Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.; 1John 5:14-16 ¹⁴ And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: ¹⁵ And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him. ¹⁶ If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it.

• Mutual Love 4:8-9 Since believers still sin, only love that forgives and reaches out will maintain unity.

• Above all ... fervent(stretching or straining)... love for one another

• Hospitality (philoxenoi)= love strangers

• Without murmuring

• Spiritual Service 4:10-11a

• Each one (superlative) has received a special gift...1Corinthians 12:7,11 ⁷ But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. ¹¹ But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.

• Gift of grace – not of merit – free and gracious sovereignly superintended by the Holy Spirit

• Use to serve (deacon) one another

• Good stewards – wise, obedient, managers of entrusted affairs

NOTE: The analogy and 1Corinthians 12:15-25 ¹⁵ If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? make obvious that to NOT use one's gifts weakens the local church because others cannot replace the unique giftedness of those who are not ministering.

• Two categories: 1)Speak – ie. teach, wisdom, knowledge, discernment...not human opinion

2) and Serve – administration, prayer, mercy, helps...not in human power

SO THAT GOD IS GLORIFIED THROUGH OUR SAVIOR JESUS

Jesus in Hell? 1Peter3:18-22

The Apostle's Creed states in the fourth tenet: “Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell;” the Athanasian Creed (article 38) says the same. The Nicene Creed leaves out, “He descended into hell.” Though we draw our teaching and authority from the scriptures rather than from creeds, these statements are not inconsequential. Many Christians have grown up in traditions that regularly quote one of these and have come to accept the statements as Biblical truth.

The bases for speaking of Jesus descending into hell include 1Peter 3:19 along with Ephesians 4:8-9, Acts 2:27(Psalm16:10), and 1Peter 4:6 (and perhaps others). We want to discern the intent as well as the content of the scripture. We can best determine what the Holy Spirit was conveying through Peter by keeping the verses in the context in which they were written.

Words in this section of scripture that stand out:

ALSO - Christ also suffered. (as you are now suffering)

BRING - Jesus ushers us into relationship with God.

PROCLAIMED - can mean just to declare something, but this sense is rare in New Testament writings. Normal in NT – “to preach the gospel”

PRISON - to some held captive, most likely as punishment

SAVED - from ___, to ____, by _____, involving ____, demonstrated by _____

SUBJECT - what source is available as we go through suffering

SOME CLASSIC INTERPRETATIONS

• Between his death and resurrection, Jesus went into hell and gathered the Old Testament people who trusted Him and released them to heaven. (The Harrowing of Hell) – Roman Catholic

• Jesus, pre-incarnate preached repentance through Noah to people of his day who would eventually be destroyed in the flood. Augustine and most reformed theologians

• Jesus preached in the interval between His death and Resurrection, proclaiming His victory to the spirits of Noah's day who are confined in the realm of the dead or

  to imprisoned fallen angels who caused trouble in Noah's day (Genesis 6:2,4) John MacArthur and others

• Jesus proclaimed His victory to fallen angels at His Ascension into heaven. Jesus preached to those who once heard Noah but were now in prison and offered them a second chance. We can rule this one out by Hebrews 9:27 ...once to die but after this judgment... and by asking, “why these of all in eternal punishment?”

MacArthur points out:

• “in spirit” (His spirit, not the Holy Spirit) alive in spirit though His body is dead.

• “He went” denotes from one place to another

• “to the spirits” the word used is pneumasin rather than psuchai, the normal designation of human spirit or soul.

• “prison” = an actual place rather then merely a condition and compares this to the abyss or pit in Revelation 9:1-2 (though not the same Greek word) and points to 2Peter 2:4

Concluding that Jesus proclaimed victory to spirits that were: 1)under Satan's command in the days of Noah and 2)spoken of as “sons of God” in Genesis 6 who corrupted marriage and perhaps possessed men who married and 3)produced especially evil offspring (Nephilim); these spirits being in particular bondage waiting their final judgment at the end of time (not to be released by Satan at the fifth trumpet of Revelation 9)

ANOTHER PERSPECTIVE

Jesus did not go to Hell (punishment) – in Psalm 16:10 (quoted in Acts 2:27)“hell” and “corruption” are synonymous and speak of the grave – because His torment was finished on the cross. Rather, He went (in spirit) to Paradise to be with His Father, accompanied by the thief until His resurrection and eventual ascension.

THE PURPOSE OF THE PASSAGE That We May Know:

Jesus' suffering ushered us (believers) to God.

God is gracious and patient, but the opportunity to accept salvation in Jesus alone, by faith alone is a limited time offer.

To reject the gospel is to choose eternal punishment.

God's instrument of judgment of the wicked in Noah's day (the flood) was God's instrument of salvation to the faithful.

Salvation is from sin and death, to life and holiness, by God, involving faith and faithfulness, demonstrated by water by which Noah was buoyed and in which believers are”buried”

Jesus, at the right hand of God, with angels, authority, and power is the reason for our hope (v.15) and our leader in victory.

Rule of Engagement 1Peter 3:13-17

We live in a world that is hostile to the worship of and obedience to Jesus (not god necessarily, but Jesus Christ). Secular humanism has beaten down the life principles of submission to the Word of God and recognition of the only Way of God, Jesus. The process has killed values and knowledge / meaning. The result has been a degenerated society, promoted decadence, celebrated depravity, and a love affair with violence for the sake of violence.

Francis Schaeffer warned in his book, How Should We then Live? , that the result of modern man's loss of meaning and values would have a result that many will overlook – that result: “...that the elite will exist. Society cannot stand chaos. Some group or some person will fill the vacuum. An elite will offer us arbitrary absolutes, and who will stand in its way?” (published by Crossway, 1976) Christians will face more and more hostility from civil authorities and from unbelievers in the increasingly ungodly culture.

What is the strategy laid out in 1Peter?

HAVE A PASSION FOR GOODNESS. “...zealous for what is good” (ESV)

l Good – agathos = goodly, benefactor, kind, kindly

l Psalm37:3 “Trust in the LORD, and do good,”; 2Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”; Galatians 5:22 “ But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”

l It is not self-righteousness. It is a God-enabled zeal / intentionality and intensity which produces a godly life – the aim of all believers and which results in loss of appetite for the world's ungodly attractions.

- Like CT Studd and the Cambridge Seven to China Inland Missions, then speaking then Central Africa http://www.traveltheroad.com/missions/missionaries/studd.php

= Lottie Moon from Virgina Plantation to North China died 50 pounds in harbor of Kobe, Japan 24 December 1912 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lottie_Moon

HAVE A WILLINGNESS TO SUFFER FOR RIGHT OR WRONG. “...if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed.”

Some examples of willingness to suffer for right or wrong:

l John Gibson Paton (1824-1907) Missionary to the New Hebrides:

Mr. Dixon, an elder in the church, told Paton, “Cannibals will eat you!”

(This was only nineteen years after two missionaries to the New Hebrides Islands were clubbed to death and eaten as soon as they landed, still within sight of the ship they disembarked from.)

To which Paton replied, “Mr Dixon, you are advanced in years now and your prospects are to soon be laid in the grave and there to be eaten by worms. I confess to you, if I but live and die by serving and honoring the Lord Jesus, it will make no difference to me whether I be eaten by cannibals or by worms And in the Great Day, my resurrection body will rise as fair as yours in the likeness of our risen Redeemer” http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Biographies/1482_You_Will_be_Eaten_by_Cannibals_Lessons_from_the_Life_of_John_G_Paton/

l Shonnie Moore's dad... heard to pray in the waiting area of the emergency room where Shonnie was taken paralyzed from her shoulders down... “Lord, we thank you for the events of this day...knowing that you are a loving Father and you will get glory from this...”

“ ...Have no fear of them, nor be troubled...”

HAVE A DEVOTION TO CHRIST “...but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy...”

Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, and Ed McCully, three college friends working as missionaries in Ecuador, had a burning desire to follow Jesus' command to take the gospel message into all the world. They had prayed for years for this primitive group that had never heard the redemption story of peace with God through the death of Christ. Now the men began to feel they should act soon or perhaps lose the opportunity for peaceful contact. The three men rounded out their team with two more: Pete Fleming and Roger Youderian.

Here were five common young men whose unifying distinction was less their inherited abilities or acquired skills than their commitment to seek God's will and to carry out his purposes for their lives. They were aware of the risk they were taking but felt it was justified, though they could have had no idea of the impact their martyrdom would someday have. www.atanycost.org/DidTheyHaveToDie.htm

Rachel Saint (Nate's sister) and Elizabeth Elliott (Jim's wife) stayed in Ecuador and lived among those who killed their loved ones and led those killers to Jesus.

HAVE A READINESS TO DEFEND THE FAITH “... prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,”

l Ready (convinced and standing by) Luke 22:33 (Peter);

l A defense – apologia, - an answer; and an account – logos -word

gentleness and respect – reverence for God and regard for His truth

You be ready God will do it.

- Don and Carol Richardson --- warring tribes give sons to enemy http://www.traveltheroad.com/missions/missionaries/richardson.php

HAVE A PURE CONSCIENCE “... having a good conscience” A pure conscience is possible when your actions and attitudes line up with God's Word. 1Timothy 1:5,19

l The only purifier of conscience - Hebrews 9:14; 10:19-22