First Peter, chapter four, and you can see
from the notes prepared that we're looking at
the first seven verses, just seven verses this
evening, and I have summed the whole teaching
of the seven verses up like this.
I believe that Peter is exhorting the believers
here to live and follow and suffer for
Christ.
I think he's exhorting them to go on
following and to go on living for and
suffering for Christ in the light of the
judgment morning, and in the light that all
things, that the end of all things is
at hand.
I wish we could see poor lost sinners
standing at the great white throne, and the
books opened against them, and they're condemned by
a holy God, and cast into the lake
of fire to be doomed and damned for
all eternity.
And I think if we could only get
a heavy vision of that memorable morning, the
judgment morning, I believe that we would live
and suffer for Christ before unsaved men like
we have never done before.
And this is what Peter does in these
seven verses.
He's exhorting us to go on following closely
and living a hundred percent out and out
for Christ, and suffering continually for his name
in the light of the judgment morning, and
in the light of that the end of
all things is at hand.
It's a great portion, and it's got one
or two problems in it.
Some have argued over some of the phrases
in this paragraph for years and years, and
so we're going to take it very closely.
You'll notice that Peter brings before these believers,
and of course before us, the example of
Christ as he suffered at the hands of
men.
Verse one begins with these two words, for
of much then, and Peter seems to think
that he has proved conclusively that Christ has
suffered at the hands of men in the
chapters that have gone before.
He says, for of Christ has suffered for
us in the flesh.
Do you remember chapter two?
Let's go back to chapter two.
See verse nineteen, for this is thankworthy, if
a man for conscience toward God endured grief,
suffering wrongfully.
You remember how long we spent suffering wrongfully.
That's not marching for your civil rights at
all.
That's just suffering wrongfully.
And then he begins to question them.
It says, for most glory is it if,
when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye
shall take it patiently.
But if when ye do well and suffer
for it, ye take it patiently, this is
acceptable with God.
For even here on to where ye call,
because Christ also suffered for us.
Leaving us an example, that ye should follow
his steps who did no sin.
Nay, there was guile found in his mouth,
O, when he was revived, revived not again.
When he suffered at the hands of men,
he threatened not.
And we must get this into our hearts
this evening, that our Lord Jesus Christ suffered
for us at the hands of men.
I wish I could do this properly.
You know, these gospels of ours, they tell
us that men buffeted him.
And when I looked up the Greek word
on the word buffeted, I found it meant
to strike with a clothed fist.
Men punched Christ in the face.
When he stood in silent judgment, O, some
of the soldiers just punched him in the
face.
He never said a word.
They slapped at the crown of thorns, of
course.
The long string thorn, as long as my
forefinger.
And they just slapped him onto his lovely
brow.
You remember how they tore the robe from
his back and bent him over the scourging
pool.
And they whipped his back in sorrows with
the Roman lash.
Let's get it into our heads tonight.
Christ suffered at the hands of men.
I know quite well that he suffered at
the hands of God.
Because as we waded through the sufferings that
men ruined upon him, he was moving on
to the spot where he would become our
substitutionary sacrifice.
And when he was burying our sins in
his own body on the tree, God struck
him.
Jehovah barbed his thorn away, O Christ, it
woke against me.
But we're not thinking just now on the
substitutionary sufferings of Christ.
Let's get that.
We're thinking of Christ's suffering at the hands
of men.
And Peter seems to come to the conclusion
that he has got this over to us
perfectly.
So he says, for us must then.
Christ has suffered for us in the flesh.
Then he comes to the point he wants
to make.
And I've called this the expedient thing for
all victims.
And this is expedient thing.
It says, arm yourselves likewise with the same
mind.
Mind is apt to command and to say
that it is.
It says, arm yourselves.
Do you know what to be armed means?
It means to be ready, doesn't it?
It means to be prepared, I think.
And what is changed in us is just
this, now Christ has suffered in the flesh,
now you be prepared to do the same
thing for him.
We arm ourselves with the same mind.
I wonder do we understand that properly.
Do we know that when we were called
out of darkness into light, we were not
only called to believe on Christ, which we
certainly were, but we were not only called
to believe on him, but to suffer for
his name.
I wonder have we got that quite clear,
because that's the expedient thing for all Christians
in us.
Of course if we are going to follow
Christ fully, then we'll be outside the camps
of empty religion, and well, it's got you,
you know.
You bear Christ's reproach.
People will say things about you.
If you begin to live for Christ the
way you should, if you're in the factory
and you start on time, and you won't
steal your master's time, somebody will say something
to you.
And if you absolutely creep up and down,
rushes out and out of house, you'll suffer.
Oh yes, if you live for the Lord,
tongues will wag, and slander will come, and
critics will talk, and reproach and scorn.
Some folks, when they give their lives to
the Lord, their parents don't love them anymore.
Oh well, you've got to suffer.
That may be what the Lord wants you
to do for him.
Have you armed yourself with this mind?
Are you ready for this?
Are you prepared for this?
Because this is an expedient thing for all
Christians.
You know, I think that no one in
the Bible knew more about suffering for the
Lord than Peter did.
In fact, I would go as far as
to say this.
Let's go to Peter.
You see, five chapters is the most illuminating
exposition on Christian suffering that's abroad today.
In every chapter he does something about suffering.
There is a chapter mark for you, and
then you'll remember.
Have a look at chapter one.
You remember he was talking about these people
being re-elected, and being sanctified, and having
great blessings from God.
He was talking in verse four about them
having an inheritance, incorruptible and undefiled, and that
status not away, reserved in heaven for you,
who are kept by the power of God,
who is sent on to salvation, ready to
be revealed in the last time.
And because that they were redeemed and sanctified
and have this great inheritance, he says, wherein
ye greatly rejoice.
All the Christians plenty to rejoice about.
But he put this phrase in, though now
for a season it may be, ye are
in heaviness, through manifold pestilence, the word should
be.
Let the toil of your faith be much
more precious than the gold of heaviness.
You see, if you have exercised faith in
Christ, then that faith must be examined.
God is going to test it.
God is going to try it out.
And when God tries your faith, and the
heaviness is on you for the season, I
can tell you, you are suffering.
Ah, but you are suffering at the hands
of God.
God has just tested your faith.
God took Abraham out of one of the
towns, he brought him across the Syrian desert
and brought him.
This is you, given the dimensions of the
land.
And the next famous test, there was a
famine in the land.
God was testing you.
Yes, you suffered under the test in hand
of God.
But look at the second chapter.
Second chapter, that's where we were a moment
ago, isn't it?
And I must read it over again.
Verse 19.
For this is faith worthy, if a man,
for confidence toward God, endure grief, suffering wrongfully.
You know, as you go through this world,
keeping high the banner of the cross and
following after the Lord, you know, you are
going to have to suffer wrongfully at times.
You just have to put up with it.
If the gun of Rose told you that,
you just have to let them throw stones.
You see, you are following on after the
Lord.
And you are arming yourself with the same
mind.
And then he was reviled.
He just didn't say a thing.
He was reviled not again.
When he suffered, he suffered what?
Oh, what a tight, wild group the Christians
have to work.
Yes, Peter knew all about this.
And in the third chapter, do you remember
not doing this?
Verse 14.
But, verse 14, but and if ye suffer
for righteousness sake.
Sometimes you have to suffer for righteousness sake.
You've got to tell the truth to me.
In certain circumstances and situations of life, some
folks, maybe even your neighbor, doesn't want you
to tell the truth.
Maybe even your father wouldn't want you to
tell the truth, as you've got to tell
the truth.
And in those occasions you suffer for righteousness
sake.
Sometimes you suffer because of your faith, for
faith's sake.
Sometimes you suffer wrongfully and you say nothing.
Sometimes you suffer for righteousness sake.
And here we are in chapter four, and
if we go down to that sixteenth room,
we'll find this.
Yet if any man suffer as a Christian.
Oh, you've got to suffer as a Christian.
If even you're a Christian, you're different.
In this old world tonight, the whole complete
race is divided into three.
There is the Jews.
God keeps them different.
There are the Gentile nations.
There is the Christians.
And the real believers.
You know, when I was in Palestine, I
got very proud.
It was an old Arab who took us
about day after day.
Used to go away the back ways up
into the mountains, where some of the tourists
had never been.
And one tap of the match.
We were going out to Calvary on Sunday
morning to spread the table and remember the
Lord.
And I said to this Arab fellow, where
can I get on fermented wine?
He said, what do you want on fermented
wine for?
I said, you wouldn't know.
Where do we get it?
He said, you think I don't know.
He said, I suppose you're going to have
to remember the Lord in the morning.
And I smiled and said, what is the
meaning of remembering?
He said, I'm Christian.
I said, no sir, I don't think you
are.
He said, then I am.
He said, I was born a Mohammedan.
I lived in my Bible days under the
Mohammedan faith.
And then I was converted to become a
Roman Catholic.
And I call myself a Christian.
I don't think that I'm the same as
you, if that's what you're talking about.
It is the way I distinguish this, that
I was a Mohammedan.
Now I'm a Roman Catholic, but you are
a believer.
Now we were speaking of different angelic things,
all right.
But we hadn't got the words properly.
And I tried to fix him on this.
And I think immediately what a Christian you
are.
You are a believer of the system.
And sometimes you have to suffer as a
Christian.
It's because I believe certain things.
Some man tries to take me down a
bit, you know.
I was sent, sir, yesterday, only yesterday, to
the university, Coombs.
Dr. Raphael was over.
He's a Jew.
He just spent a week in Italy.
And he was trying to tell me a
lot of things.
And you know, he looked at me once
and said, You know right well that I'm
an atheist.
But don't bring the pig about all these
things.
I said, you know, you're terribly anxious to
know what's going to happen to Israel.
And you always ask me, show me in
the book, the things that are going to
happen.
What are you, what are you depending on
the book for, if you think it's no
use?
And it scoffs you at times.
Oh, but don't worry about the scoffing.
You know, if you can arm yourself with
this mind, it'll do you a lot of
good.
I tell you, then, you'll be ready to
suffer.
If God wills that I must pass through
a period of heaviness.
If God wills that I must suffer wrongfully.
If God wills that I must suffer for
righteousness' sake.
If I must suffer as a Christian.
Oh, I can tell you, Peter, you know
a lot about this suffering business.
In fact, I think this is the greatest
expedition.
He justified because he does it in all
the chapters.
He says in verse 10, That the God
of all death, who has called us unto
his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, After that
ye have suffered a while.
In that you perfect, publish, strengthen, and topple
him.
So that will be the end of it,
you know, the heavenly glory of the Lord.
God will call unto eternal glory.
I can tell you, then, that this is
something that's expedient for all Christians.
To be armed with this mind of Christ.
To be prepared, to be ready.
To suffer for righteousness.
Or suffer wrongfully.
Or suffer as a Christian.
It will come our way, all right.
Now, I want you to get this very
carefully.
That he begins talking about the example of
Christ.
For as much then as Christ has suffered
for us in the flesh.
All yourselves likewise with the same mind.
And here's what it says, For he that
hath suffered in the flesh hath to strengthen.
And I call that the expedient of strengthening.
The expedient, of course, means going out or
getting away from.
You know, this is one of the debates
in this chapter.
Somebody said to me once, you know, If
you only knew the way to suffer you
would become sinlessly perfect.
Ah, well that's not what that is teaching,
you know.
It was drunk to think it was.
For he that hath suffered in the flesh
hath peace from sin.
Do you think that's what it's saying?
Come now, I'm deaf in the class.
I mean, I'll look at it then.
For he that hath suffered in the flesh
hath peace from sin.
Is that what it's saying?
You know, I had a great compliment told
to me last Tuesday after the heretical passage.
And it was said to me by one
of our bishops.
Oh, I should say who it was, it
was Albert.
And Albert said to me just after the
meeting, he came and said, Pastor, if you
could only teach us to read the way
you could read, it would help us.
And I assure you that he was on
the right line.
For some of you young boys coming up,
and some of you young girls that are
getting a slapping of education, you think you
can read, but I know you can't.
And I found one or two of yours
just by the things you say.
Now, let me tell you this.
Here is what Peter is saying.
He's saying, for he that hath suffered in
the flesh hath peace from sin.
And the fruit top is not there.
And that's why the boys that get the
argument put the fruit top.
Ah, but that is not all that he
said.
He is saying, for he that hath suffered
in the flesh hath peace from sin, that
me no longer should live the rest of
this time in the flesh to the lust
of men, but to the will of God.
And that's what he said.
He is saying, he hath peace from sin
in the particular sense.
That's what he said.
In the particular sense he is saying.
You see, sometimes before we have said, you
know, we run about with a bunch of
men, let's put it like that.
And you know, they want you to do
certain things.
This is what we call the lust of
men.
They want me to go booze and go
through the bookies and do this and that
and the other thing.
And then, you know, I've got an old
thrasher way down inside me that wants to
do the things that men want me to
do.
That's what he said.
Ah, but after him said, I've got a
God who wants me to do things.
It's the will of God that comes.
And you know, the things that men want
me to do and the things that this
old flesh wants me to do, by the
grace of God, because it is the will
of God, I've got to get away from
that.
And I'm seeking from that particular kind of
sin.
Just because I see that's quite clearly the
will of God, but that doesn't make me
sinless and perfect.
I know there were things I used to
do before I was able.
I don't do them anymore.
I've ceased them now.
I don't do them now.
And there's a thousand other things I used
to do.
I do them no more, but I am
not sinlessly perfect.
I have ceased from sin to sin to
sin.
You get that, because you need to read
the whole passage.
And I'd say to you, if you would
read the comments, and stop at the friendly
call, and go on to the full stop,
and get the whole thing, maybe you would
do a bit better at it.
And I think that was a great compliment
that was paid to me by a fellow
who's far cleverer and smarter than I am.
But he's got enough sense to see that.
Now, what I want you to see is
this.
I want you to see that some Christians
have ceased from some particular kind of sins,
and they're no more really by the lusts
of men, or even of the flesh.
They're following on to know the Lord in
the will of the Lord.
Now, I want you to get this.
We have the example of Christ, and the
speaking and preaching of all Christians, and this
exegesis of some Christians.
Now, this is the exercise for real Christians.
You know, the will of God is the
thing that matters most to us.
Mind you, this is something that all of
you should think about very carefully.
Because I can tell you that it is
the will of God for every believer to
be baptized by a merchant.
And if you would like me to prove
that to you, it would be quite a
pleasure.
And if you are not baptized, and
I can tell you that God not only
wants you to be baptized, but he wants
you to be a member of a New
Testament festoon.
Some folks, you know, go about laughing and
smiling and say, I belong to nothing.
Well, if everybody was like you, we'd have
no meeting.
And it wouldn't be heated, nor would there
be life, nor would there be a pastor.
The order of God must be seen.
And you're against the order of God.
Now, well, the will of God is a
very important thing in many directions, you know.
And I could go on for an hour
now, couldn't I?
I tell you, friend, that's something that real
Christians attend to.
But I want to get down to this
bit, you know.
It's not only the example of Christ that
he brings before them, and the expedient thing
for all Christians, and the exodus away from
particular sins for some Christians, and the exorcise
of real Christians.
You know, there comes the exposure of these
Christians.
And by that I mean the exposure of
their lives, it's not of the Christians at
all, but of these particular Christians that he's
speaking about.
Now, watch it carefully.
For as much then as Christ has suffered
for us in the flesh, so have you
yourselves likewise with the same mind.
For he that hath suffered in the flesh
hath ceased from sin, that he no longer
should live the rest of his time in
the flesh to the lusts of men, but
through the will of God.
For the time passeth, all life may suffice
us to have wrought the will of the
Gentiles.
Now, I must take a breath there to
tell you that he's writing to Jews.
Could you remember when we began the epistle,
that Peter and the apostle of Jesus Christ,
to the strangers scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia,
Asia, and so on.
You see, he was writing to these Jews
scattered throughout these different provinces.
But Jews who were saved, who were redeemed
by the flesh of God, were born again
by the word of the Lord.
But before these Jews were saved, they were
running against the Gentiles.
Could you put it in for you to
get?
Watch it again.
For the time passeth, all life may suffice
us to have wrought the will of the
Gentiles.
These fellows have been running with the Gentiles.
Watch this.
When we walked, now here are the sins,
in lasciviousness, in lust, in excess of wine,
in revelries, in banquets, under formidable idolatries.
Oh, some of these Jews before they were
saved had gone out to these feasts where
idols were.
You know, these were the sins that they
had gone into with the Gentiles.
Did you get that now?
Because that's the sense he has used the
phrase.
They are saved from these perpetual sins.
More, more excess of wine.
More, more of formidable idolatries.
Some of them.
Let me give this to all the young
preachers.
If you meet somebody some day and they
tell you that their two barbs had been
saved, would you put them here and let
them see that these boys who had done
all these things had got saved?
There are two great catalogues of sins in
the Bible.
Here is one of them here.
These men before they were saved, they had
been running with the Gentiles in lasciviousness, love,
excess of wine, revelries, banquets, and abominable idolatries.
Just have a look at the other catalogue
when you are there.
It's 1st Corinthians, Paul writing in that 1st
letter to the Corinthians, 1st Corinthians chapter 6
it is.
1st letter to the Corinthians, chapter 6.
Now here is what he said.
I think everybody should mark this.
Verse 9.
He said to the Corinthians, Know ye not
that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom
of God?
Mind you he meant that.
The unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of
God.
It has been not deceived, neither fornicators, because
you know what fornication is, don't you?
It's all excess of sexual things.
That's what it is.
There is a terrible lot of excess in
sex.
He said, Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor
idolaters.
You don't need me to expound that.
Nor adulterers, nor effeminate.
That's young fellows running about like old women.
And it didn't begin in Liberty.
Not too big of it, it was away
in Corinth.
Nor abusers of themselves with mankind.
That's all the captiality, in case you don't
know.
But this book doesn't mention matters, you know.
And the British government under Wilson brought in
a law that you can do this.
There's a law and a license for men
to run with men.
I'll tell you this, you'll never get into
heaven.
That's one thing sure.
You may have your name on a church
wall, but you'll not get into heaven if
you practice from that in the dark.
For a biddy, they haven't the chance.
Be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor
adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with
mankind.
Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers,
nor extortionists, shall inherit the kingdom of God.
And you may say amen.
And then as good as it's like, he
said, I'm touched with some of you.
Oh, that's the crowd he was talking to.
He says, but ye are washed.
But ye are sanctified.
But ye are justified.
And sanctified comes before justified man.
For some reason.
Well, the second lesson that time happens to
be before justified.
It's when you're washed, by the blood of
the Lamb, you're sanctified for God, and you're
justified.
And if anybody tells you that two barbs
are the same, take them to that passage
and the one in Peter and tell them
that the clothes of each case have got
saved.
Washed.
Sanctified.
Justified.
Which is not to be taken.
You see this?
It is just the exposure of these Christians,
what they once were.
But I want you to get the whole
story.
He says, For he that hath suffered in
the flesh of feasts from ten, that he
no longer should live the rest of his
time in the flesh to the lusts of
men, but to the will of God.
For the time past of our life may
suffice us to have wrought the will of
the Gentiles.
When we wrought in lasciviousness, lust, excess of
wine, revelings, banqueting, and abominable idolatries, wherein they
think it strange that ye run not with
them to the same extent of life.
You see, not only had these Jews run
with the Gentiles into their abominable banquets, but
there were other Jews as well.
Of course they hadn't got saved.
And now they were thinking it very strange
that these Jews wouldn't run any longer.
You know, he is extolling these separated Christians.
Ye run not with them to the same
extent of life.
You see, when you get saved, you know,
it's wonderful.
Some of the old chains that bound you
fall off and you cease from staying in
that place because of all these people who
came to your mind.
They can't understand it.
They think it's strange he's turned queer.
What happened to him?
Queer.
Somebody said to me, once a year square.
I said, yes, no matter what way I
fall, I always turn off to the right
side.
What's this now?
I want you to get this.
You know, this is extolling the separated Christians.
I want you to see this.
It says, wherein they think it strange that
ye run not with them to the same
extent of life.
And then the next thing is they speak
evil of you.
They always do.
You always find people who will speak evil
of you if you don't run with them
the way you used to do.
If you're prepared to suffer in the flesh
and cease from these ridiculous things and live
for the will of God, there's nothing sure
when they'll think you strange and they'll speak
evil of you.
You can be prepared for that.
People there before too ridiculed the real believer
at every cut and turn.
You know, in my early days, the Baptist
student of Ireland bought a great big fashionable
caravan.
In those days, I'm talking over 25 years
ago, it was a costly affair.
It was about $1,600.
And in those days it meant a great
caravan.
There was every equipment in it for living,
and the whole back of it dropped down
and it became a stage in which you
could set up the mic.
I used to take it into affair every
morning.
And I mean I did it.
That was my job, and what a wonderful
job it was.
There was every pair in the morgue of
Ireland.
And I knew the law.
I went and applied my own tone and
let the back end of the caravan down.
An entire mile square and top of the
gear, many, many dozens of tons.
And I was wide awake for all the
farmers.
I knew they were there to buy and
sell cattle.
And you couldn't see them all day.
So I got there early in the morning,
got the old caravan opened up, and the
record player going with all the beautiful hymns
I could find.
And then I got out on the rake,
clap-clop, clap.
My hands were tied, my feet were tied.
How about it?
And I'd get all the farmers in ranting.
And they knew me, you know.
They knew I would preach all day.
But in ten minutes, like thunder and lightning,
I would give them the gospel.
And I'd never miss a bar.
One day, I'd just finish it with all
my arms, let the boys go to the
dealing.
That's what they were there for.
The only farmer was yellow boots so I
can see him still, sticks below the arm,
the hat on the back of the head.
Says to me, that's a fine caravan you
have.
I said, Jesus, what's the one inside the
seat?
He says, this is good to have a
row, the men will have it inside.
And I preached it to the men, came
in with row, and I sold them everything
in the caravan.
He said, how much did it cost you?
Sixteen hundred pounds.
He said, it was fake.
He turned on me like shit like that.
It was a fake.
Actually, he didn't say it was fake, he
used another word.
I said, what's wrong with you?
What do you want me to do with
the money?
He said, there are a thousand sheds in
this country.
There's no clothes, no shoes.
You are setting this thing up and spending
the money.
I said, don't you think you've got your
priorities all wrong, that you're not starting at
the beginning?
He says, where's the beginning?
I said, you're thinking about their bodies, aren't
you?
Yes.
Well, do you know that they have a
soul?
Do you think that their bodies are worth
more than their soul?
I said, we're looking after the soul.
That's what our job is, you know.
We're not a social group.
We're an evangelical group.
And he was a good old character.
He could see when I hit him hard
where it meant.
He could see the truth.
He said, I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
We've got critics around the town, you know,
who talk about social gospel.
Of course, if I'm trying to evangelize the
truth with texts, or books, or faiths, it
doesn't please the social gospelers.
They ought to know better.
They ought to know the difference between socialism
and evangelism.
And if they don't, they should get saved
and then they would know.
My job for Christ is to save the
souls of men.
Somebody else must look after their boots and
socks.
My job is big enough.
Yes.
You always get the critics, you know.
I'm a critic, cripple some of them.
I was going to say cripple some of
them.
But I want you to get that, you
know.
I think you're getting the message.
I'll put it out very carefully for you.
The example of Christ.
And then the expediency for all Christians to
be armed with the same mind that Christ
was armed with.
The exodus, seeking from sin in a certain
sense.
The expertise of all real Christians was to
live for the will of God.
The exposure of some Christians.
Paul and Peter let us know the kind
of men of good faith.
And there's the extolling of these separated Christians.
They're not running riot with these men anymore.
And the experience of every man of God
is that as you go all out for
Christ the way he wants you to, he'll
speak evil of you.
Now we come to a difficult part of
the chapter and I'm taking time with that.
He says that for the time past of
our life might suffice us to have brought
the will of the Gentiles.
When we walked in lasciviousness, lost sex, excess
of wine, residence, banqueting, and abominable idolatry.
When in they think it strange that ye
run not wisdom to the same extent of
loyalty.
Speaking evil of you.
Who shall give account to him that is
ready to judge the quick and the dead?
You know the people that throw stones by
slander at the servants of God have to
stand in judgment.
Because when the books are opened at the
great white throne, God will ask them one
or two questions.
And of course if they're Christians who have
thrown stones, they'll have to stand at the
judgment seat of Christ, won't they?
And they'll be judged for their virtue.
God won't allow you to throw stones.
You see, these were Jews who had run
riot with the Gentiles into the banqueting, idolatry
of feasts.
And some of them had got saved, but
other ones were still stuck there in their
sin.
But they were speaking evil of the Jews
that had got saved and would run riot
no more.
Well, they were going to give an account
to him that is ready to judge the
quick and the dead.
Now, I want you to get that into
your mind before we approach the next verse.
I want you to see that it's Jews
who have not saved and who are running
riot with the Gentiles to the feast and
they're speaking evil of Jews who have got
saved and who will run riot with them
no more.
Well, they're going to have to stand in
judgment.
You know, there's one thing that the Jew
doesn't understand and doesn't properly understand the mighty
unsaved Jew and that is he's accustomed only
to the judgment of the living.
You know, the Jews in Israel in the
old economy were judged immediately.
If king were taken in adultery, they were
stoned to death.
If a boy should dare to take his
father's wife, he was not only stoned, he
was burned.
And he only needs to go through Leviticus
20 and so on and you'll find that
all the judgments came upon them and they
were accustomed to the judgment of God sorry
upon the living but they knew precious Michael
So Peter's going to let these folks here
see that these Jews who are speaking evil
shall give account to him that is ready
to judge the quick and the dead.
And then he said for this cause was
the gospel preached to them that are dead.
You see, he's trying to prove to them
that God is going to judge these men
even after the dead.
That's why the gospel was preached to them
before they died.
You see, some people try to take this
phrase the gospel was preached to them that
are dead and bring it up into the
third chapter and say there we told you
that they went into the spirits in prison
and preached the gospel.
That is not what Peter is saying.
Peter is saying they're going to be judged
whether they're alive or dead.
And if they're dead they're going to be
judged on for this cause so that God
could judge them righteously the gospel was preached
to them.
Somebody yesterday who must have been looking at
the passage said to me Pastor, was the
gospel ever preached to the Jews?
No.
I don't know where he was brought up.
Somebody should buy a new testament.
Have a look at this.
This is Hebrews.
Letters of the Hebrews.
And we're at chapter 4.
Hebrews chapter 4.
You remember that Hebrews chapter 3 ended seeing
Israel turning back and on the knees.
You know they came to a spot in
the wilderness and they saw the promised land
and then they turned back and on the
knees.
Verse 1 of chapter 4 says Let us
Let us believe as therefore fear which the
promised being lift up of entering into his
rest any of you should seem to come
forth of it for unto us was the
gospel preached as well as unto them but
the word preached did not profit them not
being mixed with faith and men that had
heard it.
You see the gospel was preached to them.
And I'll tell you this you can go
through the Old Testament and you can find
a thousand places where the gospel was preached
to them and it was preached to them
for this purpose that whether they were dead
or alive they'd be judged at the great
white throne.
Watch this again.
Now watch this carefully.
You can see that it's on saved Jews
who are speaking evil of saved Jews and
Peter's saying Who shall give account to him?
They'll have to give him account.
That he's ready to judge the quick and
the dead.
For this cause was the gospel preached also
to them that are dead that they might
Now there are two things here.
Take the last one first and you'll get
it clear.
That they might live according to God in
the Spirit that is if they accept the
truth of the gospel.
Way back in the old economy if they
accepted the truth of the gospel they would
live on to God in the Spirit.
But you know if they didn't accept the
truth of the gospel just because the gospel
was preached to them they can be judged
according to man in the flesh.
There are no problems in it.
None whatsoever.
My dear friends it's always good to remember
who the writer is and who he is
writing to when you come against Nazi problems.
I want you to get that.
That's the determination of non-Christians.
They'll give an account.
I want you to get this bit that
Peter puts in.
He says but but but the end of
all things is at hand.
And again somebody said to me once you
know Peter must have been wrong here.
Because almost two thousand years ago coming up
to it that Peter wrote these words and
said the end of all things is at
hand.
But you know Peter is the one who
explains to us just turn the page so
you see 2 Peter chapter 3 2 Peter
3 and here's what he says who he
is writing to that is but beloved be
not ignorant of this one thing that one
day is with the Lord as a thousand
years and a thousand years as one day.
You know God is eternal and time is
not.
You know a thousand years to God is
like one day.
When it's only two days ago in God
reckoning that Peter said the end of all
things is at hand.
But you know friend if Peter said it
two days ago then it must be very
near the time you've now.
And this is one thing I'm persuaded about
more than any other.
I'm persuaded that brethren and sisters that the
coming of the Lord is really at hand.
There are so many problems all over the
world.
Pakistan and India Israel and the others black
and white in Rhodesia black and white in
America Protestant and Catholic in Austria and you
can take the whole world in.
And the whole world is gone mad.
And I can tell you that the devil's
abroad as he's stoning the flames.
I believe that one of these nights something
that this world never dreamed would happen will
happen.
Jesus will come and that will solve a
thousand problems whoever likes can take off.
We'll leave this land ourselves.
We'll rise to meet the Lord in the
end.
And he'll take us after the judgment seats
of the city he has prepared.
And we'll never be back again.
And I'll tell you for us for us
the end of all things is at hand.
And it's nearer now than when Peter wrote
it back.
Now he follows it up like this.
He says that but the end of all
things is at hand.
Be ye therefore sober.
And watch on to prayer.
I can tell you that the greatest need
of the hour prayer.
Oh that I could get this over to
you.
I don't think we would have room in
our prayer meetings if we could get it
real.
If we could always say that maybe this
week, maybe next week Jesus will come.
Jesus promised he would come.
What about your gossip?
What about your son?
What about your mother?
What about your father?
You can't even turn over to all you
can cover.
I'll tell you this.
The greatest need of the hour is for
me, true born again believers to get on
the knees.
And I'll tell you it would be worth
more than all the battalions that Britain could
send to alter at this time if the
believers could really get on their knees.
I think we're a long way forward.
Never mind about the whole thing.
What about you?
Could you be up with their meeting on
Thursday night?
Could you?
I'll tell you this now and I'll get
into trouble for this but then I don't
worry about the trouble too much.
I'm here eighteen years and there are some
names on the roll in this church, Baptists
who have never been once at the prayer
meeting in those eighteen years.
I'm not too sure whether they'll go to
heaven or not.
I may as well tell you that because
that's what I think.
Some of you old Baptists will die and
go to hell.
They're so bigoted about being Baptists.
Let's see a bit of life.
The man can't go on one to eighteen
years.
God help its criminality, I don't know where
it is.
I'll wait out of it.
But on the last laugh, you know.
And if you go to hell, you'll know
that I said I wouldn't.
But I'm responsible for you.
Open door on Thursday night.
And you need to pray for the kids
like you never did before.
Let's start again.
The end of all things is at hand.
Put it up and say it.
Oh my God.
634 again.
634.
Savior, thy dying love thou givest me, nor
should I else withhold my Lord from thee.
634 please.
Dear Lord, heart us in thy fear.
Keep us close to thy Son.
If we must need suffer, give us grace
that is sufficient.
And grant, Lord, that all and sundry may
know whose we are and whom we fear.
Heart us now in thy fear and with
thy blessing for thy nation.
Amen.