Four Perspectives as Pilgrims

Take your Bibles this morning, open them to 1 Peter chapter 2 and find verse 11.

! 1 Peter chapter 2 verse 11. Before we get into the text this morning, let me sort of give you a kind of map out our journey over the next several Sundays.

1 Peter chapter 2 verse 11 through to the end of the chapter, chapter 2 and really on into chapter 3, comprises Peter's practical teachings.

We might say practical or the technical term would be ethical teaching or that is principles for Christian living.

And that's really going to be the focus for the next several Sundays because that's the focus of the text. We need to remember, though, and I want to keep this before you as we continue throughout this wonderful letter, that Peter wrote to persecuted Christians.

Don't forget that. We need to remember that context here. Peter wrote to persecuted Christians. And he sought to encourage them, certainly.

But he also desired to instruct them. With this goal, this end in his letter, his objective was to help them, to lead them to live in spiritual victory in the midst of their persecution.

Does not give them, if I might remind you, does not give them steps that they can take to avoid persecution, does not give them some kind of formula to follow in their lives so that they can get along with their persecutors.

He doesn't do any of those things. Rather, he really reminds them of who they are in Christ. That's his approach in this letter, as I've said a number of times as we've been preaching through this letter.

Reminds them of who they are in Christ, savingly. Who they are relationally and eternally.

And he does so with some really incredible doctrine that he shares with them. And this kind of reaches a crescendo in the text that we looked at last Sunday in verses 9 and 10.

Just look there at verses 9 and 10. Where he says, kind of midway through verse 9, he says that we are his own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of him who did what?

Called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. And then on into verse 10, who, speaking of these persecuted Christians, remember, you were the ones who were once not a people at all.

But now you're the people of God. At one point, you once did not receive the mercy of God, his mercy.

But now you have received, obtained mercy. So it kind of reaches a crescendo as Peter is describing, reminding them of who they are in Christ.

And this is his answer to their persecution. This is his instruction to them on how they can handle persecution and to live in spiritual victory in spite of the persecution.

Now, starting with verse 11, Peter continues his reminder of who they are in Christ. But his focus changes just a little bit.

His focus is now more on how who they are crosses over into the way they live. Where they live their lives. In the midst of their persecutors.

And that's what all Christians need to consider. And that really would be the point of contact for those of us here today who, in comparison to the believers in Peter's day, are not really persecuted.

So the crossover, the connection here, is this. As we consider how who we are in Christ crosses over into how we live.

And that's the point of Peter sharing these ethical teachings, these practical teachings. And it's very interesting how Peter lays this out for us. In essence, Peter reminds his readers that they and we are citizens of two worlds.

We are citizens first and foremost. We are eternal citizens of heaven, aren't we? But at the same time, we are temporal citizens.

Temporary citizens of this planet. This earth. We are both. And the point here, and we need not miss this point. We must live exemplary lives as citizens of both worlds.

That's very important. Very key in our understanding of this portion of the letter, this first letter of the Apostle Peter. Now, verses 11 to 12 pertain to our eternal citizenship.

And the implications of that as being citizens of heaven. Verses 13 and following and on into chapter 3, as we're going to see over the next several Sundays, pertain to our temporal citizenship.

Here on earth. As citizens of this earth. Now, we're going to take verses 11 and 12 this morning. And so, if you have your Bibles open there to 1 Peter chapter 2.

Let me read verses 11 and 12. Peter says, Beloved. And I love the way he begins. Beloved. He's about to give some very important exhortations to them.

And what better way to warm up his audience than to say, Beloved. Really, literally reminding them that they're loved of God. Beloved. I beg you. Or plead with you.

As sojourners and pilgrims. Abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul.

Having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles. That when they speak against you as evildoers. They may, by your good works which they observe.

Glorify God in the day of visitation. Interesting passage of Scripture. And by the way, when he says the Gentiles. He's not talking about all non-Jews.

He's primarily talking about the unbelieving nations. People that are unbelievers. And so, it's kind of a code word for those out of faith. Those who are unbelievers.

And he says that they are observing. Observing your good works. Now, Peter defines our status as Christians.

He defines our status as pilgrims. At least that's the word that appears in the New King James translation. You might have some other words. But let's just go with the word pilgrim, okay?

Because it's important. I think it's good for us to understand what that means. And this is what Peter does. He defines us. Well, he defines his first readers as pilgrims. And we are his readers.

And God has given the words that Peter wrote. He's given those to us. And so, as he defined his first readers as pilgrims. He's defining us as pilgrims as well.

We're pilgrims. That's our status here on this planet. Because, remember, our eternal citizenship is where? It's in heaven.

And so, quite naturally then, as we're here, we're living here as pilgrims. We're citizens of heaven. And as citizens of heaven, there are four deliberate actions that we should take every day of our lives as we live here.

As pilgrims. They are essentially perspectives, okay? Kind of perspectives on life. And here they are.

An upward look. It's real simple. An upward look. An inward look. An outward look. And a forward look.

Very simple. That's our perspective as citizens of heaven. As we're living here. As pilgrims. We are to be an upward, inward, outward, forward looking people.

As citizens of heaven. Alright, so. Let's just get right on into it. First of all then. Look upward. Look upward for the pilgrims context.

There's the entire point. Look upward for the pilgrims context of life. Now let me explain.

Peter said. Beloved. I beg you. I plead with you as sojourners and pilgrims. Now let's not pass over that too quickly.

And not delve into the depth of the meaning there. As he's addressing these people. He's identifying them. He is. In essence. He is. Defining the context of their life.

And. We have to look upward to understand it. We are sojourners and pilgrims. Now I want to. Continue to dwell on that word pilgrim.

What do you think of when you hear the word pilgrim? And just honestly. Do you think of those quaint little folk who came over on the Mayflower in 1620?

You know the men with broad brim black hats. And short pants. And big buckles on their shoes. You know. And the women with kind of bonnet kind of things.

And full petticoat dresses. And white aprons. And we can just kind of picture. Pilgrims right? Is that what we normally think of when we. When we hear the word pilgrim?

As some of you guys out there might be thinking of John Wayne. Ha ha ha. Pilgrim. You know. I know that was a pretty poor impersonation of John Wayne.

Whatever you're thinking of. There's one thing for sure. You do not think of yourselves as pilgrims. We really don't think of ourselves as pilgrims.

Do we? Now think about that. And I would suggest to you that that's a big part of our problem. Especially as Christians living in this country.

Where things are pretty easy. Where life is pretty good. Where living out the Christian life. Really faces very little opposition.

In comparison to Peter's first readers. Now perhaps if we were living in some other country. One of the. Where persecution flourishes.

Persecution against Christians. Maybe we would think more. In terms of being pilgrims. But we do not think of ourselves as pilgrims. Here. And I say again. That's part of our problem.

But Peter identifies Christians. As pilgrims. We're sojourners and pilgrims. And what does Peter mean by this? Well. Simply this.

We don't really belong here. That's hard for us to think in those terms. We really. We really resist. Even the notion. Even thought of it.

In fact. Even if we're not resisting it. It's just difficult for us to. Wrap our brain around that. That we don't really belong here. We're foreigners.

That's what we are. No matter where we live. Whether it's America. Or. Or Russia. Or. Or. Or some country in the Middle East. Or China. Wherever we live.

Christians are foreigners. On this planet. We are aliens. In fact. That is a word that a lot of translations use. Aliens. In this world. Paul.

wrote to the Philippians. In Philippians. 3. 20. He said. For our citizenship. Is in. Heaven. From which. By the way.

From which. We also eagerly wait. For our. Savior. The Savior. The Lord. Jesus Christ. And so listen. Christians are aliens. Now. Thankfully. In America. We are still. Legal aliens.

Aren't we? But in some countries. In many countries. On. On this globe. Christians are. Illegal aliens.

Several years ago. When I was pastoring. In South Haven. I invited. A journeyman missionary. By the name of Neil Creasy. Come and speak to our church. About his experiences.

Overseas. And Neil. Had spent several months. And then later. Went back. And spent. A year. Or maybe two years. With missionaries. In Yemen.

And we understand. About that country. Don't we? We're familiar with that. Yemen. And he. Of course. Related to us. What we.

Fully expected to hear. That it's quite difficult. To share the gospel. In. In a Muslim country. And Yemen. Is like. 99% Muslim. Very difficult.

To share the gospel. Because Christianity. Is illegal. In that country. At least. For its citizens. But I shall never.

Forget. Something Neil. Shared with us. About what the missionaries. There. Told him. When he first got on the field. They said to him. Said. Neil.

In America. When someone. Is converted. To Christ. We usually say. Welcome. To the family. But in Yemen. We usually say.

Goodbye. Because. We likely. Will never see them again. They'll either be killed. For their faith. Or imprisoned.

Or. They have to flee. Either way. We usually. Never see them again. Can you imagine? Kind of reminds me.

Of the martyrs. Mention. In Hebrews. 11. 13. Of whom. The Bible. Says. These all. Died. In faith. Not. Having.

Received. The promises. But having. Seen them. Far off. Were. Assured. Of them. And embraced. Them. And confessed. That they were.

Strangers. And pilgrims. On this. Earth. Now. That's what Peter. Is wanting. His readers. To get. Because that. Is exactly. The situation.

They were in. And what he's. Wanting them to do. Is to look upward. For your citizenship. The con. Your context. Of life. To understand. And have the right.

Perspective. On the context. Of your life. You must look upward. You are. Eternal citizens. Of heaven. And that helps us. You see.

To have the right. Perspective. On the things. That take place. Here. On this earth. Peter's point. For us. Is this. As pilgrims. Or strangers. Or aliens.

Or foreigners. Whatever word. You want to use. Understanding. The context. Of your life. Will keep you. Help to keep things. In their proper perspective.

Because you are. Pilgrims. Here. Pilgrims. Now here's the problem. I'm afraid. That our view. Of Christianity. Is primarily.

Focused. On the here. And now. And that is. I think. True. Of nearly. Every. American.

Christian. Our. Our view. Our perspective. Of Christianity. Our. The context. Of Christianity. For us. Is here. And now.

Now beside the fact. That that's just natural. For. For. For us. Because we're human. And. Because of our flesh. But it is also natural. Because of. Where we live.

You know. What I'm talking about. What Christianity. Will do for my marriage. And for my family. That's. That's our focus. Or what. What. What it will do. Or how it will help me.

Succeed in my career. And it does. Doesn't it? It does help the family. Does. Does. Does. Does help marriages. There's instruction. God's word for that.

But our. Focus is almost totally. Upon what Christianity. Will do for us here. You know. How it will help me. Overcome personal issues.

In my life. Or how it will transform. My culture. We focus on that. Or how it will. What it will do for my government. If we could just get. Christians elected.

To every office. In our government. From the president. All the way down. And there are a lot of. Born again believers. Working very hard. And their entire focus of life.

Is on that. Anything wrong with these things. Not. Anything wrong with these things. You know. In and of themselves. But here's the problem. Because we're so focused.

That our Christianity. Is so focused on the here and now. We have kind of. Bought in. To the idea. That a Christian society. Is our entitlement.

And if we were to lose it. Or even have the threat. Of losing it. Or even to begin to experience. Some. Some. Real persecution.

We. We come to the wrong conclusion. About it. We think God is mad at us. Or we think we have fallen out of fellowship with him.

Out of graces with God. Or maybe we're not doing things right. And we've got to. To double our efforts. To. To. To relate better. To unbelievers. And. And maybe to win their favor.

And so forth. We think. Somehow. That Christianity. Is an entitlement. A Christian society. And it is not. And the reason why we struggle with this.

And we don't even realize. Is because. We're so focused on the here and now. And the here and now. Is just a. Such a. Short period of time.

In relation to eternity. And we think more then. Of our citizenship here. And maybe. Without. Very. With very little regard.

About. The reality of our citizenship. There. As one preacher. Aptly put it. He said. Heaven. Is usually thrown in.

As a nice benefit. At the end. At the end of the ride. But heaven. Is not our focus. I think he's right. He went on to say.

We want to enjoy life now. And cling to it. As long as we're able. We don't view death. As the gateway. To everything. We've been living for. Do we? Not really.

We see it as something. To be postponed. That is death. We see it as something. To be postponed. And to be avoided. At all costs. We don't view ourselves. As pilgrims.

And yet. That's exactly. What we are. Paul wrote. In first Corinthians. Fifteen. Nineteen. If in this life. Only. We have hoped. In Christ.

We are of all people. Most to be pitied. That's the idea. I think. Peter had in mind. If you and I.

Are just. Living. For the good life. That American Christianity. Gives us now. That's what we're living for. That we wouldn't last.

A split second. Under real persecution. Because our focus. Is not on heaven. It's on earth. And we've embraced.

And. And. Desire. At all costs. A good citizenship here. Peaceful citizenship here. And someday.

We may lose that. So. Look upward. For the pilgrims. Context of life. Christian life. Is a pilgrim life. It really is.

We're aliens. We are strangers. In this world. And I would add. This hostile world. Second.

Look. Inward. For the pilgrims. Conflict. In life. Our real conflict.

Is in here. We may think. It's out here. And certainly. There are. Implications. Of. The culture. And things out here.

But. But our conflict. Is in here. What did Peter say? He said. Abstain. From. Fleshly lusts. Which war.

Against the soul. I mean. That's very poignant. Statement. It is. Abstain. It comes.

It comes to us. Kind of. Grammatically. In the form. Of a command. Though it's not. An imperative. But it. But it is a command. He's saying. This is what you need to do. Abstain.

From fleshly lusts. Which war. Against the soul. That is. Every born again. Christian. Is involved. In.

A lifelong. Battle. Against. The flesh. Do you know that? It's so true. And what does Peter say? Abstain.

That's. That's his instruction here. Abstain. Abstain. Now. Every Greek verb. Give you a little lesson here. Every Greek verb.

Has. Mood. Tense. And voice. We're not going to get into all the grammar. The mood is not all that important. It's an infinitive. It really. Literally. Is. To abstain.

But the. Tense. Is. Present. Tense. And that carries the idea of. Ongoing. Continuous. Action. Now that is important.

As we understand. What Peter is saying. It's an ongoing. Continuous. Kind of action. And the voice. Of the verb. Is.

The Greek. Middle voice. In English. We don't really have a. Anything to compare with that. We have. Active. And passive. But. Greek. It's middle.

What does that mean? Well. It means. That the act. Or the action. Is done. By oneself. To oneself. In behalf of oneself.

Now. Not to get it all. Complicated here. Let me just. Bring it down. To this meaning. Here's what he means. Actively.

Constantly. Keep oneself. Away. From. Something. That's what the verb abstain. Means here. And. Away from what?

Fleshly lusts. Now that we do understand. Oh. We think we do. Well. What is it? Fleshly lusts.

Is it sexual immorality? Yeah. But not just that. It's much more than that. The word lust.

Comes from the Greek word. Epithumia. My wife will kind of snicker about that. But. That's another story. Epithumia. That's the word here.

Compound word. And the. The main part of the word. Is from the Greek word. Thumos. And it means. Passion. In fact.

It really means to have a heated. Passion. For something. Or we might substitute the word. Craving. I think that's a better word. Or.

A passionate. Craving. For something. A strong. Overpowering. Desire. For something. That's the meaning of this word.

Lust. And by the way. It can refer to both good and evil things. It's an amoral kind of word. Just by itself. And so you've got to look at the context here.

And. We're going to do that. And to give you an example. In verse 2. We studied this several weeks ago. When Peter says that we are to. As newborn babes.

To desire. The spiritual milk. The pure milk of the word. The word desire. Is this word. Epithumia. So certainly in that. In that context.

Peter's meaning is. This is a good lust. So lust by itself. Is not always bad. And so. The idea here.

Is not so much. The substance of the lust. Well that's important. The idea we need to get here. Is. The origin. Of this lust.

Where this particular. Passion or craving. Comes from. And. Peter says. It comes from the flesh. The flesh.

And I know you've heard that before. And what exactly is the flesh? Well. The short answer is. It is our fallen nature. That unredeemed.

Part of us. And so fleshly lusts. Are. Then. Passions. Cravings. Strong desires. That come from.

Our fallen nature. Or that unredeemed. Part of us. It's important that we understand this. That's the origin of this lust. Comes from the fallen nature.

And you see. When you repented of sin. And you trusted Christ. As your Lord and Savior. Your soul was saved. And you received a new life.

A new heart. You were bathed. As it were. In the soul cleansing blood. Of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you were born again. And regenerated. And there was placed in you.

A new you. That's what happened. When you were saved. There's a new you there. And yet. We need to understand. That the new you.

Is still. Incarcerated. In the old you. The old you. Is the flesh. The flesh. And one day.

That will be redeemed. As well. When we. Die. And are resurrected. Or raptured. And. And the flesh. Will then also be redeemed.

And then we will. Enjoy. Eternity. Completely. Separated. From. All presence. Of sin. But until now.

Till then rather. Our redeemed. Soul. Is in. An unredeemed.

Flesh. That explains. A lot. If you'll understand that. Because the result. Is war. The result.

Is. Conflict. That every one of us. Experience. And Peter says. Fleshly lusts. Which war. Against. The soul.

Fleshly lusts. The unredeemed. Part of us. War. Against. The soul. The redeemed. Part of us. And it's. By the way. Not just a single battle. Or an occasional battle.

We're talking here about. The idea. Here. Is. A military campaign. That is constantly. Being organized. And warring.

Against. That redeemed. Part of us. Our soul. And so. Every believer. Faces. A lifelong. War. Against. His. Or her.

Flesh. Against. Fleshly lusts. Which. If yielded to. Now listen to me. If yielded to. Will enslave you. And will ultimately.

Destroy your life. It's serious stuff. Let me. Give you a little ditty.

On how you can understand. The power of. Fleshly lust. In your life. Sherry. Reminded me. Of this.

The other day. Sin. Just remember. These three things. Sin. Will always. Take you.

Further. Than you want to go. And keep you. Longer. Than you want to stay.

And cost you. More. Than you want to pay. Now. What makes this doubly difficult.

Is that we live. In a culture. That offers. Everything. Our flesh. Desire. Right there. Right there. Easily.

Excessed. I'm right at our fingertips. Literally. Our culture. Has it all out there. It's everywhere. Around us.

And so what do we do? Abstain. Abstain. That's Peter's answer. Abstain. Or as I've already defined it.

To actively. Constantly. Remove. Or keep oneself. From it. Abstain. To flee. Either flee.

It's proximity. Or flee. The perspective of it. That is. Take your eyes off of it. If you can. Get your. Whole body. Your whole self. Away from it. Flee it.

Perhaps. You failed to notice. That Peter did not say. That we should. Fight it. I bet you didn't notice. Anything here.

That says. We're to fight. Against fleshly lusts. What do you mean? Of course. We're to fight this. No. We're not. He said.

Peter said. Fleshly lusts. Wage war. Against us. But he did not say. That we're to wage war. Against it. No. What do you keep away?

That's a very important point. To understand. We're to keep away. We're to abstain. We're to flee. He does not say. Take up arms. And do battle. He says.

Get away from it. You see. As believers. We have three enemies. In this world. Did you know that? The world is one of them. I'm not just talking about. The planet. I'm talking about.

The world system. The world. Mindset. The world. Way of thinking. Way of living. The world is an enemy. Satan is an enemy. And the flesh. We have those three enemies. In fact.

Our biggest enemy. I think. Is the flesh. But those three enemies. Now. The key to victory. Over the world. Is according to the Bible. Faith. It's faith.

First John 5. 4. For whatever. For whatever. Is born of God. Overcomes the world. And this is the victory. That has overcome the world. Our faith.

Our faith. Faith. Faith is. The key. To victory. Over the world. Faith. The key to victory. Over Satan. Is fight.

You fight Satan. James chapter 4. Verse 7. Resist the devil. And he will flee. From you. And the word resist.

Is an active word. We resist. We. In fact. It kind of describes. The. The. The. The. Football player. Stiff arming. His opponent. His tackler.

His would be tackler. It's. It's an active thing. We fight the devil. But. The key to victory. Over the flesh. Is.

Flight. Not fight. Victory over the world. Faith. Victory over Satan. Fight. Victory over the flesh. Flight.

First Corinthians 6. 18. Flee. Flee. Sexual immorality. Not fight it. Flee it. If you stand to fight. You will not win.

Flee. Yeah. Flee it. Flee. I. I. I. Am. Am. Taken back to. Joseph. And Potiphar's wife. I think it's a perfect example.

Remember that story. The Old Testament. Potiphar's wife. Lured. Joseph in. And there they are. Sitting on the swing. Out in the backyard. I don't. Wasn't that. But. And she's whispering little things.

You know. Trying to tempt him. And lure him. And what does he do? Does he get out his Bible. And say. Now listen here. Young lady. The Bible says this. And by the way.

If you'll just trust Jesus. You can be saved. No. What does he do? Get out of there. Leaves his coat behind. Flee.

That's the. That's the key. To. Victory over the flesh. It's flee. Flee. Get out of there. Get away from it. First Corinthians.

1014. Therefore my beloved. Flee from. Idolatry. What's idolatry? We put a little statue up in your house.

And bow down to it several times a day. We're sacrificed little animals. To it. No. Idolatry is anything. Your flesh. Puts.

Above or before God. Anything. Anything. And what are we to do? Flee. Flee from it.

Get away from it. Where there is any potential. Where it. Begins to reveal itself. And the flesh is drawn to it. Get. Out of there. Timothy.

First Timothy. 6. 10. Verse 11. 10 to 11. For the love of money is the root of all evil. He says. And then. In verse 11. He says. But you. O man of God. Flee.

These things. Love of money is the lust of the flesh. Fleshly lust. Second Timothy. 2. 22. Flee also.

Youthful lusts. Not useful lusts. Youthful lusts. So you see. It's not something you stand to fight.

You flee. Get out of there. Close your eyes. Close your ears. If you can't move that quick. You know. The TV is on.

And suddenly. Boom. There. There it is. That thing. That draws. And. And lures your flesh. Because your flesh craves. And whatever it may be. Close the eyes.

Or turn the TV off. You can't get out of there that quick. Or don't go where. The. The flesh is going to. Be tempted. And where.

Where. You know. That certain button. Can be pushed in your life. Just stay away from that. Alright. Enough of that. To live righteous. In a hostile world.

That's what we're talking about here. We need to look upward. For the pilgrim's context of life. We're to look inward. For the pilgrim's conflict in life.

And then third. Look outward. For the pilgrim's conduct. In life. Look outward. For the pilgrim's conduct. In life.

Look. At verse 12 again. Having. Having. Your. Conduct. Honorable. Among the Gentiles. Among the unbelieving nations.

That when they speak against you. As evildoers. They may. By your good works. Which they observe. Glorify God. In the day of visitation.

Now this is interesting. Isn't it? Imagine. Yourself. Walking down. A dark. Street. And you're all alone.

At least you think you are. And you're walking along. And suddenly you have. The sensation. That someone. Is. Following you. You ever had that experience?

And you kind of glance back. And indeed you. To your horror. You see. You know. Some shadowy people. Behind you. Shadowy figures.

And they get closer. And then. Finally. You notice. That it's three. Big. Men. Right behind you. And they're coming up on you. Because they're walking faster than you.

And. What do you do? Nowhere to go. Nowhere to hide. Just one of you. Three of them. Terrifying.

Would it make any difference to you. If you knew. At that point. That those three men. Were just simply walking home. From a Bible study. At their friend's house.

Make a big difference. Wouldn't it? Now. What if you. Were not a Christian.

And you found yourself. In that situation. And you knew. Those guys. Coming from. A Bible study. That they were committed Christians. Would it make any difference?

You bet it would. And that's. Somewhat the idea. Peter has in mind here. See. The unbelieving world. And they're all around us.

All around you. Everywhere you go. Work. Play. The unbelieving world. May not accept. Your.

Testimony of the gospel. Your message of the gospel. They may not accept it. They may not accept. Your God. God. And his Christ.

But they should be able to observe. This is the word. That Paul. Peter used here. They should be able to observe. Our conduct. Our good deeds.

And admit. That we are good people. People not to be feared. People to be respected. People of integrity. People who are honest. People who are good people.

And believe the world ought to be able to see. Right. By the way. The word observe. Here.

Speaks. Of a long term. Kind of. Ongoing observation. It also speaks of a reflective.

Observation. Of your life. It's not just a casual glance. And just. Oh. Notice something. We're talking about someone who is focused on you.

And intent. To see. How you react to things. And. How you. What you decide. Here. And there. What happens when somebody pushes your button.

It's a long term. Ongoing. Observation. Reflective observation. The point is. You may be unaware of it. And yet it's happening.

Every day. Every day. And they're watching us. Yes they are.

Unbelievers are. And the more they know about you. That you're a Christian. And they even know that you're a member of Highland Park Baptist Church.

The more they know about you. May have heard you. Give a testimony of your faith in Christ. They may have been the recipients of.

Of a witness from you. To some degree or another. The more they know of you. The more they hear from you. The more they are checking.

To see. If your conduct. Matches your message. Your testimony. They're evaluating that. And they're coming to conclusions.

Do you know that? It's happening all around you. And what. In your life.

Have they observed. And what is their conclusion? Does your life. What they observe.

Match. Your testimony of Christ. Is it consistent? Isn't it? Someone has said. Some of us speak. So loud. By what we do.

That no one can hear what we say. See. Listen. Christians. Should be. The best. Employees.

A company ever hires. In fact. Your life. As an employee. Ought. To. Send a signal.

To an employer. That Christians. Are the kind of people. You want to hire. Is that the case. Always. Sadly. No. Should be.

This is Peter's point. Christians. Should be. The kindest. Most. And. Most. Easy. To get along. With.

Parents. That a little. League. Coach. Ever knows. Christians. Should be. The honest. The most.

Honest. People. That a tax. Preparer. Ever. Works. With. Christians. Should be. The most.

Gracious. Customers. The. Walmart. Store. Associate. Ever. Checks. Out. Through. His. Or. Her. Register. Christians.

Should be. The most. Humble. Speed. Limit. Breakers. A highway. Patrolman. Ever. Pulls. Over. Hey.

It happens. To the best. Of us. And. How. We. React. At. That. Point. Speaks. Volumes. To that.

Officer. Or. That. Little. Lead. Coach. Or. That. Walmart. Associate. Or. That. Employer. Speaks. Volumes. About.

Our. Faith. And. The. Reality. Of. Faith. That's. The. Point. Jesus. Said. It. This. Way. In. Matthew. 516. Let. Your. Light. So. Shine. Before.

Men. That. They. May. See. Your. Good. Works. And. Do. What? Glorify. Your. Father. In. Heaven. To.

Live. Righteous. In. A. Hostile. World. Look. Upward. For. The. Pilgrim's. Context. Of. Life. Look. Inward. For. The. Pilgrim's. Conflict. In. Life.

Look. Outward. For. The. Pilgrim's. Conduct. In. Life. And. Then. There's. One. More. Look. Forward. For.

The. Pilgrim's. Conquest. After. This. Life. This. Is. Interesting. Peter.

Said. That. These. Unbelievers. Would. Observe. Our. Good. Works. And. Then. Do. What? Glorify. God. In. The. Day. Of. Visitation. Or.

On. The. Day. Of. Visitation. What. Does. That. Mean. Well. I. Would. Admit. To. You. It's. A. Little. Difficult. To. Understand. What. He. Means.

This. Day. Of. Visitation. What. Is. That. Well. In. The. Old. Testament. The.

Day. Of. Visitation. Almost. Universally. Refers. To. The. Day. Of. Judgment. In. The. New. Testament.

The. Few. Times. That. We. Find. That. Idea. That. Concept. It. Generally. Refers. To. A. Person. Salvation. The.

Day. Of. Visitation. When. The. Holy. Spirit. Regenerates. Them. Draws. Them. To. Christ. And.

Saves. Them. So. Which. Is. It. Well. My. Problem. Is. If. We're. Just. Strictly.

Talking. Peter. Just. Strictly. Talking. About. About. The. Day. Of. Salvation. Then. We. Know. That. Those. Who. Observe. Our. Good. Works. Not.

All. Of. Them. Are. Going. To. Be. Saved. Are. They. No. They're. Not. Peter. Doesn't. Suggest. That. He.

Doesn't. Even. Suggest. That. Some. Of. Them. Will. Be. Saved. Salvation. Doesn't. Enter. Into. The. Conversation. I. Tend. To. Believe. That. We're. Talking. About. Ultimately.

The. Day. Of. Reckoning. For. Unbelievers. The. Day. Of. Judgment. And.

Yet. I. Would. Say. To. You. That. Really. There's. Room. For. Both. Thoughts. Here. Peter. Just. Had. One. Thought. One. Intent. For.

The. Unbeliever. Who. Observes. Your. Good. Works. And. Because. Your. Life. Has. Been. A.

Testimony. Of. Christ. And. They. Connect. The. Gospel. That. Is. Being. Proclaimed. They. Connect. That. With. Your. Life. That.

That. Gospel. Has. Changed. Your. Life. And. They. Observe. The. Outcome. Of. That. In. Your. Life. And. That. It. It. It. It. It. It. Has. Made. A. Lasting. Permanent. Consistent.

Change. In. Your. Life. And. Because. Of. That. They. Then. After. That. Respond. To. The. Gospel. Themselves. And. Place. Their. Faith. In. Jesus. Christ. That. Will. Happen. Does. Happen.

And. When. That. Happens. That. Is. In. A. Sense. The. Day. Of. Visitation. For. Them. And. What. Will. They. Do. Glorify. God.

I. Tell. You. Listen. If. Someone. Is. Pointed. To. Christ. To. The. Gospel. And. Ultimately. Responds. In. Faith.

To. The. Good. News. Of. Jesus. Christ. Because. First. They. Observe. Your. Christian. Life. Then. That. Gives. Glory. To. God. Not. Not. To. You. Gives.

Glory. To. God. And. So. They. Will. Glorify. God. In. The. Day. Of. Their. Visitation. If. They. Saved. But. What. If. The. Idea. Here. And. I. Think. This. Is. The. Idea. That. It. Is. The.

The. Judgment. Will. They. Glorify. God. Then. Yes. If. Unbelievers.

Do. Not. Come. To. Faith. They. Observe. Your. Life. And. It. Consistent. And. They. Take. Note. Of. That. And. Through. Their. Observation. They. Come. To. This. Conclusion.

You. Know. This. This. Faith. They. Proclaim. It. Must. Be. Real. To. Them. Because. It. Has. Changed. Their. Life. And. So. They. Evaluated. It. All. Properly. But. They. Themselves. Do. Not. Come.

To. Christ. And. They. Die. And. They. Stand. Before. God's. Judgment. Day. Judgment. See. On. That. Day.

Your. Life. The. Gospel. God. Himself. Has. Been. Vindicated. On. That. Day.

Been. Vindicated. For. His. Glory. They. They. Are. Going. To. Know. At. That. Day. That. Everything. You. Said. And. Everything. You. Lived.

Was. Real. It. Was. True. And. Now. They. Know. And. Your. Life. Has. Been. Vindicated. The. Gospel. You. Preached. Has. Been. Vindicated.

It. It. Your. Conquest. Your. Conquest. Over. Evil. Your. That. Will. Happen. One. Day.

Because. They. Will. Remember. They. Remember. That. Gospel. Message. They. Heard. They. Will. Remember. About. Those. Christians. Who. Lived. A. Different.

Kind. Of. Life. Lived. As. Pilgrims. That. Just. Really. Weren't. Quite. The. Same. As. Everybody. Else. They. Are. Going. To. Remember. That. And. Now. They. Are. To. Know. Why. You. Live. That. Way. And. Why. There. Was. Such. A.

Change. In. Your. Life. Now. Be. Too. Late. For. Them. To. Receive. It. And. To. Trust. It. And. To. Make. That. A. Part. Of. Their. Life. Be. Too. Late. But. You. Will. Be. Vindicated. And. So. Will. God. On. That.

Day. For. His. Glory. And. Apply. That. Especially. To. The. Context. Of. The. Letter. The. Context. His. Persecution. And.

Those. Unbelievers. Who. Persecuted. Those. Christians. For. Their. Faith. On. That. Day. The. Day. Of. Visitation. They. Are. Going. To. Know. How. Wrong.

They. Were. And. How. Right. You. Were. And. Everything. You. Claim. To. Be. Will. Be.

Vindicated. That. Day. That. The. Pilgrim's. Conquest. Either. Way. Either.

Through. The. Conversion. Of. A. Lost. Sinner. To. Christ. In. Part. Because. Of. Your. Witness. And. The. Witness. Of.

Your. Life. Or. One. Day. When. All. Things. Will. Be. Revealed. And. The. Reality. Of. Your. Life.

Spiritually. Will. Come. To. Light. And. Everything. You. Claimed. To. Be. True. That. Unbelievers. Scoffed.

At. Ridicued. Beat. You. Took. Advantage. Of. All. That. Will. Be. Vindicated. That. Day. Day.

Thank you.