Our Witness of God’s Faithfulness

1 Peter 2:1-3

“Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.” I left this line out of last weeks message at the end of chapter 1, verse 25. I wanted to include it in this week’s lesson for it ties the two chapters together and says a lot about Christian witness.

In Acts 8:26-31 we read of Philip, who was urged by an angel to go on a mission trip, as he began he was urged further to witness to an Ethiopian man. This man was reading the word and was struggling with the meaning of it. In verse 35 it says that Philip opened his mouth, and preached Jesus to him. This is the gospel that is preached to many, that they may believe. First we see that Philip was sent, and then urged by the Spirit to witness. We must be opened to the urging of the Holy Spirit to give to others what is in our hearts and what He impresses upon us to share at that time. We may or may not have angels stopping us on the road, but we all should strive to find the will of God for our lives, study His word, and make ourselves available to God. Anyone can witness to the grace which was given to you by God, through His Son Jesus Christ.

Also we see that the Ethiopian man was struggling with the meaning of what he was reading. Many times during my Christian walk I have struggled with the meaning of certain scriptures, only to have them revealed to me sometimes years later by others, circumstances, or the Holy Spirit. I continued to come back to these questions as they bothered me and I searched the scriptures. It is good to talk about our questions with other believers, who may have the same questions themselves. God in His infinite wisdom will reveal the answers to us in His timing, in a way that we can not miss them. Sort of like getting hit by a truck, and saying: “Man, why didn’t I see that.”

V. 1 “Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking,”

Hebrews 12:1 says: “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” The saints that have gone on before us do not sit in the clouds and cheer us on, but the life that they led and how they overcame tribulation does. As we study their life and see their faithfulness to God, we are encouraged to keep the faith.

The actions that Peter lists in verse one, are like weights that drag us down and keep us from being all that God wants us to be and hurt our witness. Malice is the willful hurting of another person out of hate for them; this can not be a part of the Christian walk. Deceit can mean more than lying, it can mean misleading someone to do your will, or get your way, by means that do not honor God. A hypocrite is some who playacts, acting without sincerity, causing again, others to doubt not only you, but God. People will watch our walk to see if it matches our talk. There are hypocrites in the church, and when confronted by others about this, I tell them I can always move over to make room for one more. For as I look over this list of wrongs Peter lays out before us I realize he is talking to the church and I can look back to times I have been guilty of all of them, but yet God convicts me of them, forgives me, and still chooses to use me. These actions make our witness void of any meaning. Sin is a trap, which catches even the most faithful of believers. Christianity is not a sprint to the finish line, but a marathon that calls for us to prepare and endure to the end.

V. 2 “as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby.”

Matthew 18:3 “and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Mark 10:15 “Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.”

1 Corinthians 3:2 “I fed you with milk and not with solid food; for until now you were not able to receive it, and even now you are still not able;”

A new convert has placed in them a hunger for the word of God. I remember this hunger, and that it was so great I devoured the Bible, as it became my constant companion. I took it to work and read it while unloading my trailer, I marveled at the words of Jesus and that I had never heard anyone speak with such wisdom, and authority.

Peter was writing to just such a people, new to the faith, and hungry for the word. Unfortunately their friends and family did not share in their joy, and I am sure that it confused them as they searched in their own wisdom for the words to express what they were feeling. This is why Peter says to desire the pure milk of the word, the pure doctrine of the gospel, which was being taught to them. Many have asked where to start reading the Bible. The majority of people told me to start wit the book of John, and I echo this advice.

When Jesus was telling His disciples to become as little children, He was telling them to become teachable, sponges absorbing all that He had for them. If they were not teachable, or pliable, how could they accept this doctrine that Jesus taught? If they remained hardened and stiff necked to the teaching of Christ, how could they enter into the kingdom of God? In some churches where God is trying to do a new thing, as His words reminds us, some cling to the ways in which they were brought to Christian faith. They become hardened, and unusable to God. God reached them in a way that was great for them, but God treats us as individuals, knowing our hearts and what will bring us growth. Salvation is not the end product of faith, but the beginning of a life serving God and walking in His glory.

Growing thereby, or as other translations state it as unto salvation, means looking forward to the day when Christ returns and salvation is complete. During our lives we are to desire the doctrines of the gospel, that they may help us in our growth, keeping the goal in sight. Nothing can effectually promote this lifestyle than a steady diet of the word, claiming the fulfillment of its promises, and acting upon what we have read.

V.3 “If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”

Coffee is an acquired taste. Remembering back to a camping trip as a child, when I got my first taste of coffee to take the chill off the morning, I put cream and sugar in it and took my first sip and my last for several years. When I began driving I began drinking it again to stay awake, or to get going in the morning. I recently began drinking flavored coffees, and am now spoiled and want to drink nothing else.

When Teresa and I began looking for a house, we had a certain house in mind. We wanted modular, so that being over forty we didn’t have a big mortgage, but we didn’t want it to look like a modular. We wanted it with dry wall throughout and lots of woodwork. It had to have the master bedroom away from the rest of the house so that I could sleep during the day. I also wanted a garage and bathroom with a whirlpool tub. We agreed that this was what we wanted and made plans to begin saving for it. I prayed that God would bless our plans, but as time went by it looked like our plans would be delayed for anther year. I saw an ad in the paper for a home and was tempted to look at it. When we walked in we saw that it was a modular, with dry wall throughout, woodwork was abundant in the house, and it set atop a half basement and a two car garage. We smiled as we walked through the house and saw that it was set up just as we had wanted. Looking in the bathroom we realized that our prayers may be answered, as there was a whirlpool tub. Six months after we put our plans before the Lord and asked for His blessing, we moved in to our home, I have tasted of the gracious of the Lord and I have acquired a taste for His goodness. We had a plan for buying a home and God sat I have a better plan. My sister sat God doesn’t care if you have a whirlpool tub, but I say He does, praise His name.

Psalm 34:8 says: “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trust in Him.” Remembering that these people were being persecuted, Peter is telling them rely upon the graciousness of God, as He echoes the words of this Psalm. We have gotten a taste of Glory in our salvation, and walk with God, we have read and poured over the words that Jesus spoke and marveled and them. We have had prayers answered and tasted that the Lord is gracious to those He loves. Peter is telling us that if you are indeed saved, born again of the righteousness of Christ, tasting of the fruits of that righteousness, walking in the truth that we find by devouring the word of God, rely upon all that you have experienced and read to carry you through all tribulation. Rely on the one who called you out of sin, and set you on the path of salvation, and rely on the one who will one day split the sky and return for you, His bride, dressed in the robes washed white by His blood, beautiful before the Lord, and takes you home to be with Him forever. The Lord is good, blessed be His name.