The first epistle of Peter, and we're at
the first chapter.
Last week in the class here we began
what I call pathways through Peter's epistles, and
we started last week by looking at Peter
himself.
We had a good look at his gifts
and his graces, and we had a very
good look at his great ability when he
was gifted of God, and of his humility
right through service.
And we got together from the Bible, a
plain scriptural, sensible picture of this great servant
of God, who opened this letter by calling
himself Peter.
And tonight we're going to not only look
at the writer, but we're going to look
at the readers of this letter.
Just taking two verses tonight, we're not going
too far, taking the first and second verses
of this first chapter of this first letter
of Peter.
Looking at that first word again, I don't
want to say very much because we said
a lot about it last week.
I've just called that on your notes tonight,
the rational servant.
You know, he was very sensible about everything,
especially in his latter years when he came
to write these great letters.
And let me say tonight that all the
great scholars of literature write down through the
ages have proclaimed these letters of Peter, these
writings of Peter, to be among the finest
writings the world has ever seen.
Now that's a little bit amazing, and yet
it's not amazing.
It's amazing when you think that Peter was
a non-landman, just a fisherman who spent
many years on Galilee fishing.
He'd never been to any of the great
colleges or universities of the world, and certainly
he had not sat at the feet of
Gamaliel like Paul.
He was just a very common five-inch.
In fact, the Scriptures call him an ignorant
and a non-landman.
And yet it's not amazing when you think
that the Spirit of God took him up.
And these great writings came from his heart,
and the things that will underline in these
writings will bring you to the decision that
these could only come from Peter through the
Spirit of God inspiring him.
These are inspired writings as he was moved
by the Spirit of God.
But although he had these great gifts, and
we went into the mall last week, he
was an apostle in the early church, and
he was a prophet when the morning meeting
met many times without a New Testament.
Of course, he was a great evangelist, preached
on the day of Pentecost and three thousand
souls were saved.
And as you can see from these letters,
he was a great teacher and a very
valuable pastor or feeder of the flock.
In fact, he fed the flock with the
very finest of the wheat.
And although he had these great gifts, you
can see that in his latter years in
these writings here that he trod very softly
with God.
He was a humble character.
This letter starts with the word Peter, and
that is enough for us.
Not Holy Father Peter, no, just Peter.
And not only does this first letter start
with the word Peter, which would prove his
humility, but as he ends this first letter,
let's have a look at the fifth chapter
of this first letter.
He's writing to the young people in the
assemblies that he's writing to in verse 5.
He says, likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto
the elder.
Yea, all of you be subject one to
another.
And here's a mighty phrase, he said, and
be clothed with humility.
What a wonderful phrase.
You know, you can never get me to
believe that the man who penned these letters
and began with the simple word Peter, and
put this tremendous, unique phrase into this letter,
be clothed with humility.
You can't tell me that he ran about
with Babylonian garments on.
We talk about vestments now.
This is all he was concerned about.
He was concerned with being clothed with humility.
In fact, he uses this word, humility, and
the word humble, here again and again.
He said at the end of verse 5,
for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace
to the humble.
This was a mighty lesson he had learned
in life, that we should be clothed with
humility, because God giveth grace to the humble.
And then he seems to take a deep
breath and shout to all the saints, humble
yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God,
that he may exalt you in due time.
So that's why I called him, at the
beginning of your notes, the rational servant, for
the letter begins with Peter, and he's urging
us to humble ourselves under the mighty hand
of God.
But although he starts with the word Peter,
you know, he immediately puts his credentials on
the table of these epistles.
He says, Peter, I'm the apostle of Jesus
Christ.
Yes, this was one of the great gifts
that he had.
In fact, it was a special gift.
Last week I was pointing out to the
class that he was an apostle in a
special sense.
Let me do that for the moment for
the folks who were not here last week.
Let's go back to Galatians, and at the
first chapter, Paul's letter to the Galatians, and
at the second chapter it is, Paul had
gone up to Jerusalem to talk to Peter
and James and John, and he says in
verse 6, But of these who seem to
be somewhat, these were the great leaders at
the church in Jerusalem, and Paul quickly puts
in here, whatsoever they were, it maketh no
matter to me that God accepteth no man's
person.
For they who seem to be somewhat in
conference addeth nothing to me.
But contrarywise, when they saw that the gospel
of the uncircumcision was committed unto me, as
the gospel of the circumcision was unto Peter,
for he that brought effectually in Peter to
the apostleship of the circumcision, the same was
mighty in me toward the Gentiles.
And when James and Cephas, that's another word
for Peter, and John, who seem to be
pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto
me, they gave to me in Barnabas the
right hands of fellowship, that we should go
unto the heathen and they unto the circumcision.
And I was pointing out from this portion
last Tuesday that Peter had a special apostleship
towards the circumcision.
I want you to get the hold of
that verse, eh?
For he that brought effectually in Peter to
the apostleship of the circumcision.
And do you know what that means?
That he was an apostle to the Jews.
These are the circumcised people.
And, of course, Paul was the great apostle
to the Gentiles.
And I say again, if the Roman church
had been wise at all, they ought to
have proclaimed Paul as the first pope, not
Peter.
For Peter was the great apostle to the
circumcision.
Paul was the apostle to the uncircumcised.
He went out to the heathen.
He came to Europe with the gospel.
In fact, this very letter that we are
reading now, it was written from Babylon, because
Peter went out and told the Jews that
was scattered in Mesopotamia and the Arab economy.
The thing that I want to prove to
you tonight is something that was really wonderful
to me when it dawned upon me.
You know, we're supposed to listen to people
of the great infallible head of the church.
This is what we're told so often.
Well, let me tell you this, that in
his verses, Peter, by a few strokes of
his pen, destroys everything that ritualistic religion stands
for, just with two simple strokes of his
pen.
And if they had been listening to what
they call the infallible head of the church,
then they would have learned it.
Because writing as an apostle to the Jews
here, this is what they say of him,
1 Peter.
Let me point these two things out to
you.
1 Peter, in chapter 1, and I don't
want to take too much out of this,
but he's saying to these believers that he's
writing to, in verse 18 of the first
chapter, for as much as you know that
you were not redeemed with corruptible things of
silver and gold from your vain conversation received
by perdition from your fathers, but with the
precious blood of Christ as of a lamb
without blemish and without spot, who verily was
foreordained before the foundation of the world, but
was manifest in these last times for you,
who by him do believe in God, these
were believers he was writing to, who by
him do believe in God that raised him
up from the dead and gave him glory
that your faith and hope might be in
God, seeing he has purified your souls in
obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unseen
love of the brethren, see that you love
one another with a pure heart fervently.
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but
of incorruptible by the word of God which
liveth undivided forever.
The last verse says, but the word of
the Lord endures forever, and this is the
word which by the gospel is preached unto
you.
You see, the first thing that this great
teacher teaches these believers is this, that they
were born again, not with corruptible seed, but
with incorruptible seed by the word of God,
through the gospel preached unto them.
You know, when he talks about them being
born again of the word of the gospel,
he's doing away with baptismal regeneration that they
all rave about, and he does away with
it just like baptism.
He's letting them know how you get born
again.
Did you ever hear the strike that you're
born through water being sprinkled on your brow,
did you?
Because that's poopish nonsense, that's what that is.
You're not born again by water on your
brow, man.
The man that puts water on a child's
brow and says, I make thee a child
of God and inheritor of the kingdom, is
a liar from hell.
Did you get that as clear as that?
I'll tell you how you get born again.
No, Peter will tell you how you get
born again.
He says you're born again of the word
of God by the gospel being preached unto
you.
You young fellows learn to preach the gospel
because that's how people get born again.
Man who just puts baptismal regeneration down with
a clunk.
He's a mighty teacher, you know.
And look at this, in the second chapter,
he said this, he's writing to be saints,
and in the second chapter, verse nine, he
said, but ye are a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood.
Mind you, he's writing to all the saints,
isn't he?
You know, he believes that every believer is
a priest before God.
Yes, a royal priesthood we are, that we
should show forth the praises of him who
has called you out of darkness into marvellous
light.
You know, I think that some of the
Protestant churches forget this too, because I know
some of the tight places where they wouldn't
even let a woman pray.
Ah, well, let me tell you that the
women are priests as well as the men.
In the church of Jesus Christ, Christ has
made us kings and priests under God.
And Peter's doing away with this clergy and
laity, with Christ's book.
Ah, this is Peter's author, great apostle.
Baptismal regeneration on the head, and then priesthood.
Because every believer in this place tonight is
a priest under God.
And you ladies, don't you let any man
take your right away from going in before
God and talking to him.
That is not taught in the scriptures at
all.
Yes, you know, he was a great apostle,
and he's putting down his credentials, isn't he?
Let's get back to the first verse again.
Peter, that's the rational servant, an apostle of
Jesus Christ, and that's the credential note.
And then you can see who he's writing
to.
He's writing to the stranger scattered throughout Pontus,
Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Lithuania.
And I've already pointed out to you last
evening that when you get these two words
together, stranger scattered throughout these different places, he's
a Jew.
And you know, friend, the Jewish nation has
been scattered again and again and again.
You know, just for about two minutes last
night, I heard that great leader, that mighty
leader that Israel has just now.
And she said to the man who was
question master, she said, can you explain to
me that my nation has been peeled and
scattered again and again and again, and that
times have been out of the land for
over 2,000 years at a stretch, and
yet they have had the ability, they've had
the constitution, they've had what it takes to
hold them together and come back again, and
they're still existing tonight.
She was wanting to know.
But when Peter's talking about Jews being scattered
here, in a moment or two we shall
find out for sure that they're saved Jews.
And you know when saved Jews are scattered
abroad, my, it makes them strangers even to
other Jews.
Yeah, they're strangers even to Jews, especially when
they're saved.
Yes, I want you to get this, because
he's writing to these strangers, and this is
the descriptional position of the people that he's
writing to.
They're saved Jews scattered, and you can see
the geographical location.
And you know that's very interesting if you
look at those places, they're all in Asia
Minor as the map was then, Pontus, Galatia,
Cappadocia, Asia.
I wonder if I asked the class a
question.
When did you see some of those words
together before?
I wonder how many of you could stand
and say, I remember.
Where did you see them before now?
Oh, I'll show you.
Have a look at the Acts of the
Apostles, chapter two, and it's the day of
Pentecost, isn't it?
And you know many Jews from many lands
were up at Jerusalem on that day, and
that was the day that the Spirit came
upon the early believers.
And you remember Peter preached, and it says
this, verse six, Now when this was noise,
the broad, the multitude, came together, and were
confounded, because that every man heard them speak
in his own language.
And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying
unto one another, Behold, are not all these
which speak Galileans?
For here we every man in our own
tongue wherein we were born, Parthians, and Medes,
and Aramites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and
in Judea, and Cappadocia, and Pontus, and Asia.
You know what I believe?
I believe that Jews came to the feast
of Pentecost, and then the Holy Ghost came
down upon the early disciples, and they were
able to speak to these men in their
very own language.
Remember this, without any interpreter.
This wasn't just the Bible, you know.
This was standing up and speaking up, and
they heard them speak in their own language,
and they were amazed.
They said, How can these fellows do this?
They've never learned these Galileans.
It was the Spirit of God upon these
early pictures, and many of these from Pontus,
and Asia, and Cappadocia, got saved, and went
back again.
And Peter's looking after them now.
He's going to write to these Jews, because
he was the apostle to the Jews.
And so that's who he's writing to.
You can see this quite clearly.
This is Peter writing, and he has put
his credentials on the table of these letters,
and he's writing to these strangers scattered throughout
Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, so on.
And then he begins talking to them like
this.
This is a very dogmatical phrase, you know.
It says, Elect according to the foreknowledge of
God the Father.
Now, that's a mighty statement.
That could take quite a lot of time,
isn't it?
But we'll take our time with this.
He's writing to these Jews.
They're saved, all right.
The rest of the epistle will prove that.
They were redeemed, not with conductible things.
They were born again.
They're the royal priesthood, and you can get
a thousand other facts in the letters.
But Peter begins with this one.
He says, Elect according to the foreknowledge of
God the Father.
Now, this great doctrine of election, a mighty
doctrine, and I think that every true Bible
scholar should try to really understand it.
You know, it's taught quite clearly and often
enough in the New Testament, and Paul was
writing through the Ephesians, that God hath chosen
us in Christ before the foundation of the
world, before the world was formed at all,
before this planet was here.
You know, God foreknew the end from the
beginning.
You wouldn't like to come round and argue
with me about the foreknowledge of God and
tell me He didn't know.
You wouldn't like to take me back to
a time when God didn't know.
Oh, no, He always knew.
Before the hills and all that stood, the
rest received its frame.
God, with a sovereign choice, because of its
foreknowledge of everything, He elected us.
And Peter's looking at these believers and he's
saying, Elect according to the foreknowledge of God
the Father.
Now, this doctrine of election, I noticed this
down through the years, that some of the
very good and very able and very clever
young Bible scholars, you know, they get their
minds fixed on it.
And I know this from experience, when you
get your mind fixed on it, you know,
you see it so clearly and so wonderfully
that, you know, you don't have any place
for free will at all.
Now, let me tell you this, that the
doctrine of the free will of man is
just as clearly taught in the New Testament.
And it's up to you and I to
balance the two.
It's very easy, you know, to pick one
side, because I know a whole crowd who
have no time for election.
They're all free will men.
I know that crowd, all right.
And I know another crowd growing up and
they're just all election and they have no
time for free will, because they can't balance
the two.
Let me put to you that both sides
are taught in the New Testament and you
just can't trample over one or the other.
When this New Testament says, God has given
us in Christ before the foundation of the
world, and when Peter says that these were
elect according to the full knowledge of God
the Father, then of course this is stating
quite clearly, categorically, dogmatically, I've called it, this
great doctrine of election.
But when Paul stood and marched and preached
and said, but now God commandeth all men
everywhere to repent, you're on the other side
of the fence now.
Because if God is commanding now all men
everywhere to repent, you're on the free will
side.
And when the Lord Jesus looked into a
man's face and said, ye will not come
unto me that ye might have life, you're
on the free will side.
And when God will say at the end
of the day, because I called and ye
refused, you're on the free will side.
When the Lord Jesus looked at the Jews
and said, for often would I have gathered
you together at the hand of gatherer, her
brood, her race, and you would not.
He didn't say you could not, he just
said you would not, and you're on the
free will side.
And I could put any of the two
sides in the biggest pit that we're ever
in, because I know both sides.
But you'd need to learn both sides, wouldn't
you?
And I think that's what we ought to
do, you know.
And I'll tell you gospel preachers, if you
don't know both sides thoroughly, you'll never be
much use of the preaching of the gospel.
Never be much use.
You know, when Peter writes this letter to
these Jews scattered throughout Asia Minor, and he
says, elect according to the foreknowledge of God
the Father, that phrase implies at least four
things.
It implies that they were elected by God
the Father before history itself began.
They're not elected according to the knowledge of
God, you know.
Oh no, they're elected according to the foreknowledge
of God the Father.
You see, God is looking down the ages
before the ages again.
You know, it amazes me that God saw
me before the world began.
How could God look at a thing like
this?
And I'll tell you this, he elected me
before the world began.
I have no support about that at all.
But I was elected because God foreknew a
whole lot of things that I'm going to
tell you in a minute.
And because of his foreknowledge, he elected me,
and you, and these Jews, and people trying
to get it over with.
It implies election before history really began.
And I think as we get into the
subject of that, you'll find this, that it
implies that they were not elected as a
body, they were elected as individuals.
You'll find that out just in the moment
when we get into this.
Oh God, elected individuals are way up there.
Yes, it's all you, me.
Yes, I think it implies that we're elected
individuals, but then I'll bring that out in
the moment.
And then, of course, if God, before the
world began, elected me, or you, to certain
things, it's absolutely certain that the blessings he
elected me to are mine.
Absolutely certain.
I want you to get that into your
mind before we begin to discuss it at
all.
If God, that God in that heaven of
holiness, when there were no planets about at
all, and in this solar system of ours,
we have nine tremendous planets, and the earth
is just a little sized one among them.
You know, I was looking last Sunday morning
at this text while we were sitting at
the table when Geoffrey was preaching.
I was looking at the text, the Lord
Jesus was cut off out of the land
of the living.
I just wondered, is that what God calls
this planet, the land of the living?
Because there's no other planet with any living
on them, called the land of the living.
And to look for a long time in
the afternoon, or anybody come and roam on
them, or anywhere else, this is the land
of the living.
Well, before the land of the living was
here at all, God, in that great eternity
of holiness, before he threw the stars into
space, before he spoken it was done, before
he commanded, and the world stood fast.
You know who elected me for certain eternal
blessings, and they must be mine.
Don't be coming around and saying that God
sat down in eternity and elected me to
salvation, and I'll be lost again eventually.
Geoffrey was on a God above that, and
a few other things before we're finished.
Now, here's something else I want to establish
before we argue at all.
This is election before history began.
This is individual election.
This is election that makes the blessings that
God elects me to absolutely certain for me
for all eternity.
I want you to get this, because this
is a great argument, you young people paying
attention.
Now, this is elect according to the full
knowledge of God.
Oh, knock on your life, it's not.
It's elect according to the full knowledge of
God the Father.
This tells me that there was a Father
before he, before the world began.
Oh, the trade that goes about now called
goodness, and they don't have personalities in the
Godhead.
There's just one God was there.
Let me tell you there was a Father
before the world began, and let me say
this, if there was a Father, there must
have been a Son.
You know, when the Lord Jesus was praying
in John 17 with his hands up, lifted
his eyes to heaven, he said, Father.
He's talking to God the Father.
He says, Father, give me the glory which
I had with thee before the world was.
Did you get that?
Because way back there, you know, there were
personalities in the Godhead.
There was the Father doing this particular work.
This is the Father's work.
If I want you to get the hold
of that, I want you to watch this.
Let's go to 2 Thessalonians, and that's the
second chapter.
2 Thessalonians chapter 2, and Paul's writing here
to these believers in the city of Thessalonica,
and this is what he said to them
in verse 13.
He said, but we are bound to give
thanks always to God for you, brethren beloved
of the Lord, because God has from the
beginning chosen you to salvation.
I want you to get that.
You see, I was one of the elect
for salvation.
I want you to get that.
If God elected me, according to his foreknowledge
for salvation, do you think I won't get
it?
Do you think that's an illusion?
Do you think that God's in the tool?
Do you think that the plan and purposes
of God can be upset when you like
to come down and tell me who's going
up there?
Yes, these people here, Paul was set to
show they were chosen of God, yea, before
the foundation of the world.
Yes, bound to give thanks always to God
for you, brethren, because from the beginning God
has chosen you to salvation.
Now, let's leave that just for a second,
because this is a difficult thing, and we'll
take it patiently.
Have a look at Ephesians, and we're at
Ephesians chapter 1, and
Paul says, verse 3, Blessed be the God
and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in
the heavenly places in Christ.
According as he hath chosen us in him
before the foundation of the world, that we
should be holy and without blame before him.
And the full stop should have been there,
in the old original manuscript the full stop
is there, and the next two words are
in the next sentence.
Capital I at the end begins the sentence,
In love having predestinated us unto the adoption
of children.
Yes, he predestinated us, that's he designed us
to something before the world began, it's predestination.
And it's the adoption of children, and that's
a tremendous thing.
You know, that's an old Jewish one.
You see, when Jacob got married, then he
took another wife, and yet another, and another.
And some of the Old Testament saints had
quite a number of wives.
Now, I want to tell you this, that
God put up with it, he allowed it.
But mind you, it was never the mind
of God.
The Lord Jesus talking about this thing said,
from the beginning it was not so.
He just clamped down on it.
And of course, having two or three wives,
and several families, brought a problem to the
father of that great household.
You see, he must select one out of
some of the families to be his heir.
And there came a time, it was called
the fullness of the time.
There came that period in this man's life
when the fullness of the time comes.
He must pick out one of the boys,
and he must take him down to the
forum, or the judge of speech in the
city, or in the gate of the city,
and he must proclaim him as his son.
And this is what is called the adoption
of sons.
He's proclaiming this one as my heir, my
child, my son.
Now, this is something that God predestined us
for.
Now, hear that, Ephesians there?
Go back a chapter in Galatians.
Do you see Galatians?
In chapter four, Paul says, Now I say
that the heir, as long as he is
a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though
he be lord of all, but is under
tutors and governors until the time appointed of
the father.
Even so we, when we were children, were
in bondage unto the elements of the world.
But when the fullness of the time was
come, God sent forth his son, made of
a woman, made under the law, to redeem
them that were under the law, that we
might receive the adoption of sons.
And because he has sons, God has sent
the spirit of his son into your hearts,
crying, Abba, Father, wherefore go up no more
a servant, but a son?
And if a son, then a heir of
God.
You know, I was elected to be so.
I was elected to be a son of
God, in fact, a heir of God, and
adjoined there with Christ.
Do you think that God's plan will fall
through?
You know, this election, it's tremendous, it goes
on and on.
You know, in Romans chapter 8, in which
it implies God has predestinated every believer, at
the end of the day, in eternity, to
be conformed to the image of his son.
Now, this was election, an election before the
world began, before there was a planet formed.
God in eternity, with no solar system made
and no earth, no land of the living
made, God knew everything.
He foreknew.
And because of his foreknowledge, he alofted me
to salvation, to the adoption of sons, and
to eventually be conformed to the image of
his son.
And it will all happen.
Of course, you know, when you picture that
like that, you know, unsaved people come with
problems then.
Unsaved man came to me once and he
said, this, did you see what you're talking
about?
Because God did this way before the world
began.
That's right.
He says, then I've none to do with
it.
If you've left with me, it's okay.
I haven't anything to do with it.
Let the very few stand that get on
balance in election taking.
Did you see one time, he just said
that as clear as that.
If God did that, then I have nothing
to do with it.
I can't imagine he did it before the
world began.
All right, then, I want to show you
some scriptures.
Hey, fella, have a look at this with
me and follow me carefully now.
John's Gospel, Chapter 6.
Lord Jesus is preaching, and this is what
he's saying to the crowd in verse 44.
He says, no man can come to me
except the Father.
And we want to keep this word Father
well in the text.
Except the Father which hath sent me draw
him.
I said, do you quite agree with me
that election is by God the Father?
He said, yes, that's what I believe that
is.
I believe that people are elect according to
the full knowledge of God the Father, but
it happened before the world began.
I haven't a say in it.
I said, you know, that's not the only
thing the Father does.
Because if that was the only thing the
Father does, you would have the argument and
you would say, well, I want to tell
you this, that the Father draws people.
And I want to tell you this, that
the Father calls people.
Yes, you know, I was drawn the law
I was elected.
I could tell you this, I was called
the law I was elected.
Now, I want to ask the fellow this
thing.
How did the Father draw people to Christ?
To Christ?
Just by some sort of magnetic power of
religion?
You think I don't know?
So I'll tell you.
He draws them through the preaching of the
gospel.
That's why I'm dogmatic about you young fellows
learning to preach the gospel, because that's how
people get born again.
That's how the Father draws.
He works through this thing.
And he doesn't work through another place that's
supposed to be the gospel.
And the sooner you learn it, the better.
Because this is the way the Father works.
He works through the gospel.
And you see, in the gospel, Christ is
the center of this message.
And why did I be lifted up?
I said, you know, what's the Father drawing
these men through the uplift of Christ for?
What's he drawing them for?
He said, I don't know.
I said, I'll tell you.
Look up the chapter of it.
See verse 37.
Watch the wording again.
All that the Father gives me.
You get that?
Because the Father wants to give them to
Christ.
Of course, if you went back, you know,
what we've been saying, they were chosen in
Christ.
The Father wants to give them to Christ.
And Christ said this, all that the Father
gives me shall come to me.
And him that cometh to me.
You know what that is?
I will let responsibility go.
And I'm talking to the wee fellow now
who's trying to get out of it.
I said, you're trying to tell me that
the Father elected in eternity, you have nothing
to do with it.
That's quite true.
But the Father does a bit more than
that.
The Father draws, as the Father ever drawn
you through the gospel.
You know what your responsibility is now that
it comes to Christ?
And the man that comes to Christ, then
you're responsible to come to Christ when you
hear the gospel.
And I can tell you, you're left according
to the full knowledge of God the Father.
And I can tell you this, that you're
getting sovereignty and responsibility.
Here's a man coming, and when he opens
his heart, sovereignty and responsibility meet in harmony
in a yielded heart.
And that's the only place you'll harmonise then.
And don't get onto one foot of this
thing.
You know, once I preached to you one
Sunday night on the choice that Judas made,
and I'm saying this for the young people's
sake now.
Wanting to listen fast enough.
We get some scholars into this place, you
know.
And the headmaster of the royal school at
Armagh, who was there at that time, he
used to come here Sunday evening by Sunday
evening.
And he was a great, and may I
say, a very gracious and a very learned
character.
And I preached on the choice that Judas
made.
And, you know, he came wandering fly off
the outside of the place and let me
in the desk and sat down.
He said, Willie, you know, you were talking
nonsense tonight.
Well, there's nothing like being blunt about it,
is there?
Well, when a fellow comes like that, I
can enjoy that.
He's impulsive.
Well, I said, I'll sit down in the
chair, Master, and you tell me where the
nonsense.
He said, you know, you were talking about
a choice that Judas had.
Judas had no choice.
Well, it says in the Old Testament that
Judas would go to his own place and
that he is the son of perdition.
And this man could do nothing else, only
go to hell.
I said, are you telling me just now,
Master, that God damned Judas before Judas was
born?
That's what you're trying to tell me, because
you're going to have bother getting that over
to me.
You're charging my God with something, with damning
a person without any choice whatsoever.
He said, well, there it's in the Old
Testament.
I said, that's God speaking about Judas before
Judas was born.
That's right.
Well, I said, you know, Master, I'll have
to do this song for you, because you're
not going to see it.
I said, you know, I'll pretend to be
God.
And I remember taking my watch out and
looking at the time.
And it was exactly then, twenty-five past
eight, that night in the wee room.
I said, it's twenty-five past eight and
I'm God.
And I'm going to prophesy.
I'm going to foretell you something.
Up on the main street at the crossroads,
where the main street and Union Street and
Windsor Avenue meet, at exactly ten o'clock
tonight, there's going to be a car crash.
And I'm foretelling it, and I'm God, and
I know because I know everything.
And I said, you know, we'll just sit
here as it were, and then when five
to ten comes, we'll go up.
And I said, you and I are standing
on the footpath, coming up to the time.
I said, ten o'clock, and there's a
minute to ten, and there it comes, and
then the two cars come, and they crash.
They're going to crash, because I'm God, and
I'm you all above.
I foretold it a long time before it
happened.
I said, you know the two men get
out and argue, and the policeman comes along.
And then you got in, and you say,
look, those fellows are not to be blamed
for that.
They hadn't a chance.
He forecast it.
He began to pull in his horns now.
I said, you see, Master, you've got one
word in your vocabulary all wrong.
You're trying to say that because I foresaid
it, they couldn't do anything else.
I only foresaid it because I knew they
wouldn't do anything else.
And there is all the difference between couldn't
and wouldn't, you know.
Did you get the hold of that?
Because God can foretell, you know, that he
doesn't take the responsibility from the man.
Just because I foretold the extra good, doesn't
alter the rules of the Lord, and I
didn't take the wheel out of the fellow's
hand.
He'll get summoned when everyone's wrong, because he's
responsible.
Ah, friend, this is a tremendous thing.
These were elect, you know, according to the
foreknowledge of God.
They came about when the gospel was preached,
and I believe in many of the cases,
it was the day of Pentecost.
And they responded to the gospel and that
responsibility.
You see, this wonderful thing of election, let's
get back to 1 Peter.
1 Peter, I wanted to get the hold
of this.
Peter, this great apostle, is writing to these
Jews, and he says, elect according to the
foreknowledge of God the Father.
And then this was all brought about through
sanctification of the Spirit.
Ah, that's a thing we must take into
account too, mustn't we?
Let's go back to that Thessalonian one we
had, 2 Thessalonians chapter 2.
I read the whole thing now to you
see.
Paul in verse 13 said, But we are
bound to give thanks always to God for
you, brethren and beloved of the Lord, because
God hath from the beginning chosen you to
salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief
of the truth, whereunto he called you by
your gospel.
You know, friends, I think you can see
this, can't you?
Now for you young preachers again.
Oh, friends, I wish I could impart to
you all that I know about this gospel.
I wouldn't like to die without imparting it
to you.
Remember that men and women are only born
again through the words of the gospel.
Remember that the Father called their love through
the word of God.
But remember this, that it must be the
gospel in the power of the Holy Ghost,
because it's the Holy Ghost that sets these
people apart.
It isn't your eloquence, you know, or your
bull's eye, or your nice hair, or anything
like that.
Oh, no.
No, you're off to a bad start, aren't
you?
That's a bit of it, isn't it?
That's, give it!
It's the Holy Ghost!
Get that!
When you get on your knees to the
thrones of the Holy Ghost, far more than
to get married, far more than your matriarchs.
This is what will come.
Don't worry too much about the hell with
the Spirit.
It's because it's the Spirit that's doing it.
You know, some of them talk to me
about sanctification of the Spirit being the second
blessing.
Well, have a good look at it, and
be honest with yourselves.
God has chosen these people onto salvation.
How?
Through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of
the truth.
Tell me, which one comes first?
Well, sanctification of the Spirit comes before belief
of the truth.
How often I preach from this platform, sweating
my life out on Sunday night, getting the
Gospel over, and knowing right well that the
Holy Ghost has taken control of it.
And then the crowd rises and goes out,
and you see a woman.
Sometimes you see a man.
Here's a big man in the corner.
You remember the night you sat on, when
everybody went out buying?
Man, you do.
Yes.
Carl just sat on.
I could see him from here, you know.
Big man sitting with the head down, and
the whole crowd passing him by.
What was wrong?
The Holy Ghost had got the hold of
him.
God was drawing the Spirit of God.
He was sanctified through the Spirit now.
Oh yes, he was out from the crowd,
wasn't he?
The Spirit had taken him out.
What they needed was belief of the truth.
And it was my privilege to put the
truth just before them.
And it was their responsibility to believe it.
Oh yes, you know.
Why should they get that?
It's the Spirit, you know, who is the
great separator.
But I want to get this done properly.
Let's get back to Peter.
Now, watch it very carefully now, as this
is where the muddle comes.
It's Peter, he's an apostle.
He's writing to these Jews, and we now
see the saved Jews, elect according to the
full knowledge of God the Father, all worked
out by the sanctification of the Spirit.
Now, I want you to get this.
Onto, onto obedience and sprinkling of the blood
of Jesus Christ.
Now, let's do it the way one of
the old manuscripts does it.
Onto the obedience of Jesus Christ.
Let's get that bit done first, because that's
exactly what it means.
You know, I want you to get that
quite clear in your mind.
You know, the obedience of Jesus Christ.
Now, it doesn't mean this.
It doesn't mean that you're elected, and then
you're sanctified, and then you've got to obey
Christ.
That is not the sense.
I know you have to obey Christ, but
you're elected and sanctified onto the obedience of
Jesus Christ, the obedience that He has.
You get that bit?
That's what it's talking about.
You know, when you think about the Lord's
obedience, it will tell you.
You know, He came into this world, and
as He came, He answered back to heaven.
He said, I come to do thy will,
O God.
And the obedience of Jesus Christ is a
tremendous thing.
Oh, what a doctrine this is.
You know, though He were a son, He
had learned the obedience by the things which
He suffered.
And don't for any fix get it that
He learned to obey.
You don't mean that He was a rebel
before that, and He learned to obey.
No, what it means is this, that though
He was a son of God, the eternal
Son, yet learned He obeyed.
He learned by experience in the human body
what obedience really was.
And then you're at the whole subject, the
obedience of Christ.
You know, the Father's will for Him was
poverty.
Ah yes, that's, He was obedient to poverty.
And the Father's will for Him was that
He would go through suffering.
He learned what obedience was by the things
which He suffered.
You can see them in the wilderness, and
the devil's tempting them, and the devil says,
no, you're hungry.
You've been 40 days and 40 nights here,
you know, you're really in hunger.
Come on, these soldiers are in their beds.
You know, the Lord would rather suffer the
pangs of hunger than use His power to
be outside the will of God.
You know, this obedience of Christ means suffering,
and it certainly means poverty.
And of course, you do know, don't you,
that it means the cross for Him.
He became obedient unto death, even the death
of the cross.
You know, we believers, we like to talk
sometimes about election, and there may be a
wee smuttering of almost pride and joy in
our hearts, and we can rejoice in this
thing.
You know, we want to get it balanced
out.
You know, we were elected, all right, and
predestined, we are the sons of God, and
the Holy Ghost worked this out.
Yes, He found us and brought us to
Christ.
Friend, the only way the world will not
is by your obedience, and it's the obedience
of Christ working out in your life.
That's what it is.
Oh, you should just talk in here.
Some folks talk about their election, they can
do what they like, I don't believe they're
even saved.
You cannot do what you like.
You're set apart unto the obedience of Jesus
Christ, is what you are set apart to.
And if you can fool around and do
what you like, you need to go and
get saved.
Oh, you can't do that.
You know, this is the only thing that
keeps you right with men, when they can
see something of Christ in you.
And it's the obedience of Christ that they
can see.
Now, there's a bit more here, isn't there?
You know, that's the fundamental, that's the practical
outcome of the whole thing.
See the fundamental bits.
You know, the spirit of faith divides us
onto the obedience of Jesus Christ, and onto
the sprinkling of the blood.
You know, I love the way that Peter
puts this.
No wonder these great scholars say that this
is the masterpiece, because I'm sure it's a
masterpiece.
You see, friends, when we walk with the
Lord, and we follow in his steps, and
if we say that we abide in him,
we ought to walk as he walks.
That's what the New Testament says.
Now, even though you walk in the light,
as he is in the light, I'll tell
you, you'll need something.
You'll need to be covered with the blood
all the time, because there's not one of
us bothering you, or one of us.
Even in your calmest, stillest, holiest moments, suspicions
come running through you, and you couldn't go
into God's presence if you weren't under the
sprinkling of the blood of Jesus.
And it's the obedience of Christ that puts
you right with man, and it's the sprinkling
of blood that makes you right with God.
And your whole salvation is from Father, Son,
who shed his blood, and the power of
the Holy Ghost who shed your blood.
Oh, Peter can write, can't he?
Yes, he can write.
Friend, you could be a rational judge, and
you could be an apostle of credits, and
election could be a lot, and redemption, and
priesthood.
But remember all the time, you're like Ephraim
in Egypt now.
You need to be under the sprinkled blood.
Friend, it's wonderful, the power of this blood.
Wanted to get this bit before you stop.
Do you know, he stops these two verses
like this.
He says, you're elect from sanctification of the
Spirit unto obedience of Jesus Christ, and the
sprinkling of the blood.
He says, grace and peace, ultimately multiplied.
You know, friends, sometimes you have trials in
life, and you have tests, and you need
grace.
And you know, if necessary, you can have
the grace multiplied.
There's a wee man over there somewhere who
always talks about tons of grace.
Praise the Lord, there's tons of grace.
Yes, you can have it multiplied.
And I'll tell you this, friend, even in
this evil day, even if you watch the
television and see the houses burning, and men
lying in the streets, and blood clotting, and
we're sad about the Roman Catholic priest being
shot, you know.
Oh, I don't agree with the priest at
all, and a whole lot of things.
But if a fellow runs out to try
to do good, I don't think he should
be shot.
I don't think, and I'm sorry about it.
Friend, I'll tell you, even in this dark,
evil, diabolical day, peace can be multiplied for
you.
Your eyes are up these days.
Get them on the Lord, you see.
You can fill your bosom with peace, and
it can be multiplied after that.
Tell me this, isn't that wonderful writing?
It's an impressive thing.
Amazing they are to me.
This fellow was a fisherman.
If I could draw his picture, you should
see his hand, big rough hands.
Oh, yes, you could see the rod, could
hardly hold the pen, this fellow.
Big rough mind.
God took him.
To see what God could do for a
fellow is a chance for you and me.
Give yourselves to God.
Look and you see some of the things
that Peter says in this letter.
See you next Tuesday, all being well.
I'd like to say thank you to all
of you who came so far this evening,
see the wind that comes away from the
distance there, to do this, you can pray
to that country of yours, and all the
rest of you.
God bless you.
Dear Lord, take all thanks for all that
thou hast done for us.
Thou hast never yet been told.
And for what thou art doing for us,
and for what thou wilt yet do for
us, in these days, keep thy eyes on
thyself.
Part us now in thy fear.
Take these ones who have come from a
distance safely home tonight.
Part us now and bless us.
For thy name's sake.
Amen.