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Pamphlet #5102 KC1Peter3
Sometimes it gets wearisome trying to control these flesh bodies.

Whew!

That last study covered a lot of ground but only two verses in 1st Peter.

So today let's get started right away.

1 Pet. 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
Many of us have probably read and heard this verse read before as if it were just a "matter of fact" part of Peter's salutatory.

But it is not!

If we could put ourselves in Peter's shoes and feel the gratitude and joy and love that he felt towards our Father when he wrote these words, we would never be the same again.

You see, we have a New Covenant in Jesus Christ through His death and resurrection that gives us a "living hope", even a life full of hope, for no matter what we have to endure in the flesh, we can look forward to eternal life and an inheritance beyond the wildest imaginations of mortal man.

[4] To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
For you!

Read that again!

Your inheritance is there and waiting under His protection, in the HRB (Heavenly Reserve Bank)!

The apostle Paul also had an attitude of gratitude and spoke of our inheritance of and in salvation.

Ephes. 1:3
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

Ephes. 1:11
In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

And look whose guarding the vault!
1 Pet. 1:5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
Just wait until that last time, that last day, that last trump, when the gift of eternal life is granted to His saints at His coming.

What a glorious day it will be!

Also, it would seem to me that if one is under the protection of the power of God that there is nothing and no one in the world, including Satan and his cronies, that He can't handle.

Right?

Paul says it even better:

Romans 8:31
What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?
This is not to say that there are none who are against us, for certainly Satan and his followers are, but it means there are none who can prevail against us.

Christ even said in Luke 10:19 "Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you."

Romans 8:33
Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth.
Should we worry about what others might think or say about us, including Satan who accuses us day and night before God (Rev. 12:10)?

Nope, God is our Judge.

Tell everyone else to take a hike, unless you can plant a seed.

1 Pet. 1:6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:
So you've got a few problems, huh?

Maybe some of the "seasons" of life in Ecclesiastes 3 have come up on the negative side and it's not a happy time.

Well, we have an expression that applies especially to God's elect: "When the going gets tough the tough get going."

Deal with the reality of whatever the situation is while at the same time keeping the vision of the last few verses in mind, i.e. salvation, your inheritance and the power of God, which is Christ Jesus.


Editors Note: Read Ecclesiastes chapter 3 to learn more about 28 seasons of life everyone experiences.  live link to- Ecclesiastes chapter 3
Or perhaps you have allowed your flesh to have its own way with some of those manifold [various] temptations and you're feeling like a "scum bag".

That's why we have the blessing of repentance.

Sometimes it gets wearisome trying to control these flesh bodies.

The "inner man" is often like the cowboy on the bucking bronco at the rodeo, hanging on for dear life, trying not to let the bunch of bull get away from him.

Suddenly he finds himself flat on his back on the ground with some clown looking down at him.

Yep, that old flesh is a spirited fighter!

Digression: Have you ever stopped to consider how much time out your day you have to deal with your flesh body? You have to feed it, bath it, clip its nails, comb its hair, brush its teeth, wipe its youknow, dress it, adjust the temperature for it, and then visit supply dealers like grocery stores, drug stores, clothing stores, shoe stores, etc., and then visit maintenance professionals like dentists, doctors, chiropractors, beauticians, and the list goes on and on. After all that you'd think it would be content and settle down for awhile. But no! Now the ungrateful chunk of meat has a whole bunch of demands ready to lay on you. "I'm tired, give me rest! I'm bored, take me to a movie! I'm lonely, get me someone to talk to! I'm sick and tired of the diet you have me on, take me to McDonalds, Now! I'm horny, do something for crying out loud!" And this is just the beginning because it's probably only 10 o'clock in the morning. And somewhere in there you have to go to work to support this flesh monster, not to mention you have to deal with other members of your family and circle of influence presenting their demands to you and requiring you give them attention and help them with their list.

So when someone says "I just don't have time to study the Bible", it's understandable, I suppose, not really.

Maybe we could make up bumper stickers like "Skip a shower, not a chapter" or "Just wear a hat and comb through Jeremiah".

But be prepared to have a fight on your hands cause it will be Rodeo Time again!

How good are you at riding your bull? (End digression)

Now would be a really good time to read Romans 7:15-25 which begins with Paul saying "For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I."

Let's return to Peter who brought this subject of trials and temptations up in the first place.

1 Pet. 1:7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:
The way I see it, we shouldn't even count the things in our lives that are only boiling over at 212 degrees Fahrenheit [at sea level].

They are only warm-up exercises. So stop whining.

Gold doesn't melt until the temperature reaches 1947o Fahrenheit.

Check it out.

So only when things get really, really hot can we get rid of the "slag" in our lives!

Slag is what the impurities in gold are called that rise to the surface and are skimmed off when the gold is melted.

Thus is the gold made pure.

(Hey, isn't 1947 about the time of the planting of the fig tree which commences the final generation when things begin to really heat up?  Yes it is.)

"The Parable of the Fig Tree" Click this link to open Pamphlet 1031  Jesus said Learn it! Mark 13:28 Now learn a parable of the fig tree;...

So Peter says our trials of faith are much more precious than gold.

God just loves it when His children overcome and score an A+ on their tests.

He probably stamps "Job well done" along side the detailed account in His books.

Knowing that, what should our attitude be concerning our trials and temptations?

Well, Peter just said that they are precious and James says to count it all joy!

James 1:2-4
My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; [3] Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. [4] But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.
Patience?

Now there's a bucking bronco if I've ever seen one!

Peter just told us though, that Christ will reward the trial of our faith with praise and honor and glory at His coming!

1 Pet. 1:8 Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory:
And we do love Him though we haven't seen Him with flesh eyeballs.

Even through trials and tribulations, because we believe, we have and maintain an inner peace and joy that words cannot describe.

[9] Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.
What is the end result of faith and believing (vs. 8)?

Salvation, which means Eternal Life in a glorious spiritual body (without having to ride a bucking bronco anymore).

And along with that salvation an inheritance from the 1st Title Owner of the Universe.

[10] Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
Salvation was not available until the Lamb of God shed His blood as the sacrifice for our sins.

Then Christ was able to offer salvation to the prophets, which He did while He was yet in the tomb.

[11] Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
The words "of Christ" should come after "signify".

Nevertheless, all you have to do is read the 22nd Psalm written by the prophet David (Acts 2:29-30 declares him a prophet), and see how accurately the sufferings of Christ were testified to beforehand.

The prophet Isaiah in the 53rd chapter of his book also testifies.

In fact, the testifying goes all the way back to Moses, the prophet who wrote the words of Gen 3:15.

[12] Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.
The prophets testified of Christ and His salvation, to us and for us, long before the Holy Spirit was sent in Acts chapter 2 and the apostles reported the good news that the living hope, vs. 3, has arrived.

Now if that isn't the best news that sinners like you and me have ever heard, then there is none.

No wonder Peter begins verse 3 praising our Father.

Let's end this study as we began:

1 Pet. 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
Amen
To study the Bible is the noblest of all pursuits; to understand it, the highest of all goals.
We pray that with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, you accomplish both.
1 Corinthians 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them {the ancient Israelites} for ensamples, and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

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