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[Music] you well good morning and welcome to everybody that's here the brothers in christ that usually attend and it looks to me when i can see that there's lots of visitors today so welcome to all the visitors as well it's nice to be in the house of the lord today we can gather together to worship him um just before we get started in our worship service we'll um the there's a couple announcements nothing really new we announced it last week as well um word indeed ministries is going to be here um next sunday during the usually the prayer session at 9 30. if you'd like to attend to see their presentation they have some new ministries that they're starting so that should be interesting also there's no bible study again this week i don't know it's going to resume later this probably in august i think is when it's going to start again and also there's a luncheon that's going to be coming up on the 26th of this month but uh steve informs me that there's gonna be an email sent out to notify people again or remind them of the time and uh what they have to bring so if you'd like to join me now in our call to worship if you'd like to turn to psalm 63 we've got psalm 63 for our call to worship this morning psalm 63 starting in verse 1 a psalm of david when he was in the wilderness of judah oh god you are my god early will i seek you my soul thirsts for you my flesh longs for you in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water so i have looked for you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory because your loving kindness is better than life my lips shall praise you thus i will bless you while i live i will lift up my hands in your name my soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness and my mouth shall praise you with joyful lips when i remember you on my bed i meditate on you in the night watches because you have been my help therefore in the shadow of your wings i will rejoice my soul follows close behind you your right hand upholds me but those who seek my life to destroy it shall go into the lower parts of the earth they shall fall by the sword they shall be a portion for jackals but the king shall rejoice in god everyone who swears by him shall glory but the mouth of those who speak lies shall be stopped may the lord bless his word so our first song this morning if you'd like to turn in your hymnal is number two number 138 b number one three eight b if you just like to stand and we'll sing praise to the lord [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] oh [Music] [Applause] is [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] me [Music] ah [Music] [Applause] amen [Music] me [Music] let's just bow and go to our lord in prayer this morning to praise him for this time together our father who art in heaven we just want to come before you this morning we want to praise you and thank you for the privilege that we have to gather here together in your house to sing praises to you to worship you and to hear your word lord we praise you that you have been merciful to us and given us another week to do so to come before your presence and we just want to give you thanks for all things lord and uh to pray for the things that you've put on our hearts to pray for the concerns the needs both here locally and those around the world lord we want to pray here for our local church first of all we praise you and thank you for it for your grace towards us we pray for the and thank you for the spiritual growth that we have experienced by your grace and through the ministry here of pastor jim we thank you for him and we want to pray for him as well right now as we're thinking about him and rebecca way still for some holidays much deserved holidays lord we pray that you might give them this time for rest and relaxation for recharging as it were to re-energize brother jim that you might return them to us when the time comes we thank you for that we pray as well for those who are sick and infirm uh amongst us lord there are many that have been suffering through various forms of illness and and things we um we want to pray we received the prayer request earlier this week for corey niels shane and requested that we we would pray for this brother who is struggling with cancer and we pray that you would be with him to encourage him through this time to strengthen him and to look to you in all these things lord to find his strength in you we also want to uh pray for uh doug's brother doug's family lord at this time at the loss of doug's father and the upcoming funeral there will be many that are not saved that are there and we pray for those that they might hear the glorious gospel the word of truth and that they might as well be challenged to look to their days on this earth and to see that life here is is temporary lord and that they might be provoked by your spirit to flee unto the lord jesus christ and above all we pray for doug's family that you would strengthen them through this time [Music] lord to find strength in christ and to comfort one another through this time we thank you for that we want to pray for isaac's father as well we have heard that he is still he's still recovering from his stroke and lord we pray for strength for him and for the family and that you would be pleased to recover him completely lord we pray for mr neufeld for the hip surgery that he's had that has gone well but in his recovery we pray that you would be with him and strengthen him through this time lord we pray as well for mr faber ted faber that you would continue to to help him in his recovery we thank you for that lord we as well want to praise you lord for the birth that has taken place just recently of the matthias both andy and priscilla have been blessed by you to give birth to a new daughter and we thank you for her for ruth louise is her name and we thank you for your grace and for being with um priscilla during the delivery we just pray that you would be with the family to help them adjust to this time with a new child in the house and we thank you for that father and we also want to praise you for the upcoming wedding of uh shane and beckas later this month lord we pray for them and through the times of stress and anxiety i'm sure that they go through with all the planning that takes place we pray that you would be with them and with um becca's family at that to have these things organized we praise you and uh look for your blessing on their married relationship together that it might be one that would honor you and and bring praise to your holy name we thank you for that and lord as well we there are so many needs that we have even looked at this morning from around the world um but we pray first for the sister churches that we have fellowship with most regularly the ones in surrey and and we pray there for them and pastor mike that you will be with them that you would bless them that your word the glorious gospel will go forth from them we pray for those in in dryden as well as they seek to establish a faithful church there lord we pray your blessing upon the brothers there that you would help them in these things and that your name could be glorified in that part of this world and we pray as well for brother ryan as he prepares to head to vernon lord we thank you we rejoice that it looks like they might have a building lined up that they would worship be able to worship in and we just pray that you would uh superintend these things lord for be your will that you would secure this place of worship that you would bless ryan and esther and the family in their transition when the time comes to go at that time and we just want to thank you for that lord there uh this morning in our prayer times you know because we've lifted these things to you already of the terrible things the atrocities that go on uh throughout this world we saw this morning of the things that happened in the african continent and how the brothers are persecuted there and we pray for them that you would be with them to strengthen them in order to help them in their persecutions that they might um find as christ said in this world we will have persecutions but in in me you'll have peace so we pray that they would find their peace in christ and strengthen him we pray uh that your your grace would be upon them lord we pray for those in myanmar that are still struggling in the midst of a civil war there basically lord and the terrible atrocities that we read of that are there we thank you for your faithfulness in keeping the brothers there and uh and the compound at the orange grove where they tend to the needy refugees we pray your protection there your hedge of protection around them and as well that the gospel might go out to all that those that you would give to take refuge in this place that you have provided uh at this orange grove and um lord we we just pray for your uh restraint for those that uh persecute the churches and these other places in africa where we're here of just terrible shootings and massacres of of people that profess to gather in the name of the lord jesus christ and we pray for your strengthening there but that you would lord restrain it would be by your grace that you would restrain these that seek to do this this evil uh mischief there lord we thank you for that and as well lord this day again we would pray for civil governments and we would pray for our government here in particular and the government to our for our uh brother brothers in into the south in the united states lord and the many things that we hear and that are going on each each day and each week we see the the terrible evil and corruption that is within government the persecution of the populations in many ways lord and we would pray that you would just restrain these things lord that you would grant grace to those who are put in these places to to lead these countries lord that they might have a modicum of morals and and uh restored unto them and that they might do what you have designed that they do in ruling those countries and we just pray for strengthening for all the brothers and sisters both here there and everywhere else that uh undertake these things and that have to put up with with these abuses and these which really are persecutions that come upon each one of us in this loss of freedoms that we suffer both in this country and in the united states and we we thank you for that father and above all we would pray that the glorious gospel of the lord jesus christ would go forth from this place from every christian church in this country and in the united states where we know that despite all these things that happen with the corruption and immoral behavior that we see around us that the only thing that can truly change a man is the gospel of the lord jesus christ and jesus christ himself so we pray lord that you would be pleased to send neighbors into that harvest that you would bring many from far and wide unto the lord jesus christ that they might find salvation in him and that they might have their life changed by the gospel and by the truth of your word and we just give you thanks now as we want to commit the remainder of this time to you lord may we worship continue to worship you through your word and in song and uh and do so in spirit and in truth for we just ask all these things in jesus christ precious name amen okay if you would like to turn with me to number 349 is our second hymn number 300 and 49. [Music] trees are [Music] oh [Music] is [Music] love [Music] is is [Music] oh [Music] [Music] is [Music] okay our scripture reading this morning is going to be hebrews chapter 6. hebrews chapter 6 if you'd like to turn their bible and join me in the reading of god's word it comes obviously after chapter 6 where we heard of christ our high priest who is made so by god the father and christ who is the author and the finisher of our faith that we have eternal salvation in him and there we started to hear about melchizedek the high priest melchizedek which was the high priest and a type of the lord jesus christ and so then as we start into chapter 6 we hear of the warning that are given and the encouragements given us by the apostle so hebrews chapter 6 starting in verse 1. therefore leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of christ let us go on to perfection not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith towards god of the doctrine of baptisms of laying on off hands of resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment and this we will do if god permits for it is impossible for those who were once enlightened and have tasted the heavenly gift and have become partakers of the holy spirit and have tasted the good word of god and the powers of the age to come if they fall away to renew them again to repentance since they crucify again for themselves the son of god and put him to an open shame for the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated receives blessings from god but it bears thorns and if it bears thorns and briars it is rejected and near to being cursed whose end is to be burned but beloved we are confident of better things concerning you yes things that accompany salvation though we speak in this manner for god is not unjust to forget your work and labor of love which you have shown towards his name in that you have ministered to the saints and do minister and we desire that each one of you show the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end that you do not become sluggish but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises for when god made a promise to abraham because he could swear by no one greater he swore by himself saying surely blessing i will bless you and multiplying i will multiply you and so after he had patiently endured he obtained the promise for men indeed swear by the greater and an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute thus god determining to show more abundantly to the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel confirmed it by an oath that by two immutable things in which it is impossible for god to lie we might have strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us this hope we have as an anchor of the soul both sure and steadfast and which enters the presence behind the veil where the forerunner has entered for us even jesus having become high priest forever according to the order of melchizedek and may the lord bless his word it's a it's a wonderful thing to read here how that the oath that god made there's two these two things these two immutable things that are talking ab that are talked about here are both the promise of god and the oath of god because god is true and can never lie and we have that comfort in christ who i take for ultimately as our hope that we have and uh just i just thought this morning in closing i just read this i have a little section this is the geneva study bible and there's a little uh portion given here on this hope uh the christian hope and it's saying it says here christians look forward with hope to the joy of being with christ in glory forever faith is defined as the substance of things hoped for because the invisible things hoped for in the future are grasped through faith hope is certain it is an anchor of the soul both sure and steadfast according to the bible christ is our hope and our god is called the god of hope an ethic of hope pervades the new testament it is an ethic of pilgrimage for strangers on their way home it is an ethic of purity as the one who hopes to be like jesus when he appears purifies himself just as he is pure it is an ethic of preparedness since we should be ready to leave this world at any time hope calls us to be patient hope gives strength and confidence for running the race fighting the good fight and enduring the tribulations that continue in this life though the christian life is marked more by suffering than by triumph our hope is sure and our mood should be free from danger if you'd like to turn with me now to our last song it's number 490 number four nine zero [Music] i [Music] is [Music] foreign [Music] me [Music] is [Music] [Applause] [Music] is [Music] is [Music] is [Music] this while you're waiting for me to struggle with this microphone you can turn to first peter chapter two first peter chapter two we'll read the entire chapter this morning we'll look at the first five verses actually just halfway through verse five um that we'll look at this morning but we we will read the entirety of the chapter here so first peter chapter 2. therefore laying aside all malice all deceit hypocrisy envy and all evil speaking as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word that you may grow thereby if indeed you have tasted that the lord is gracious coming to him as to a living stone rejected indeed by men but chosen by god and precious you also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house a holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to god through jesus christ therefore it is also contained in the scripture behold i lay in zion a chief cornerstone elect precious and he who believes on him will by no means be put to shame therefore to you who believe he is precious but to those who are disobedient the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense they stumble being disobedient to the word to which they also were appointed but you are a chosen generation a royal priesthood a holy nation his own special people that you may proclaim the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light who once were not a people but are now the people of god who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained obtained mercy beloved i beg 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 therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the lord's sake whether as to the king as supreme or to governors as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good for this is the will of god that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men as free not yet not yet using liberty as a cloak for vice but as bond servants of god honor all people love the brotherhood fear god honor the king servants be submissive to your masters with all fear not only to the good and gentle but also to the harsh for this is commendable if because of conscience toward god one endures grief suffering suffering wrongfully for what credit is it if when you are beaten for your faults you take it patiently but when but when you do good and suffer if you take it patiently this is commendable before god for to this you were called because christ also suffered for us leaving us an example that you should follow his steps who committed no sin nor was deceit found in his mouth who when he was reviled did not revile in return when he suffered he did not threaten but committed himself to him who judges righteously who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree that we having died to sins might live for righteousness by whose stripes you were healed for you were like sheep going astray but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls let's pray our father in heaven we do come before you now and again lord we ask for the your holy spirit to be poured out among us this morning as we study this passage of scripture together lord how we thank you for your word how we thank you for the the clarity of your word and the and the truth contained in your word so lord i pray that you would be that you would be glorified this morning among us that you would be pleased to to edify and build up your people here that you would be pleased to save sinners if there are any among us here this morning who who have come in and who do not know christ as the savior that that they would that that today that would be the day of salvation lord we pray that you be glorified in all that that we say and do here and we pray this in christ's name amen well this this passage of scripture is just a continuation of where we left off last week so if you remember last week we looked at the the concept of brotherly love that we find here in at the end of uh chapter one that peter peter exhorts is his here's to um to this this brotherly love concept it's a concept of their relationship with one another as as they are in christ so this is not a love for you know for where jesus tells us to you know love our neighbor as our self which means all men everywhere but there's a special love that we have for one another as uh as brethren and so then we continue on here in this in this section and he just and he builds on that and shows the purpose of this uh of this brotherly love of of course it's just you know it's for the unity of the of the church but it but it's also for the for the the building up of the church the growing of the church here and that's what he talks about in in verse five that we are we are living stones and we're being built in this this spiritual house this the the the church of of jesus christ is the spiritual house that christ is is building here so so uh in this in this uh in this section here then the emphasis is on is on spiritual growth our our own personal spiritual growth now as we've worked through first peter i know it's been over probably a course of a year that we've uh that that when in uh when i've been preaching here that as we've gone through this um section but in first peter but i've i've often exhorted you as peter has that um to to spiritual growth that we study these things the truths of scripture and how they they build us up and they strengthen our faith we see that in in chapter 1 verse 13 gird up the loins of your mind so this idea of taking action and using our our minds to to to study the truth of scripture to understand and to comprehend them and how that blesses us individually as as individuals as we go through the trials of life the difficulties of life then uh having us a strong faith in in understanding of the truths of the of the word we have this this hope that that john talked about you know this this hope that we have and that's what gets us through the trials of life but personal but but our growth as believers doesn't only bless us personally it it has a i would say a pr more of a primary purpose is blessing the church of jesus christ and and it's for the building up of the church of christ here so which is which is the the advancement of the of the kingdom of christ so advancing his kingdom there and so we are called to be to be strong believers and strong christians here as as as we are building blocks in this in the church of christ now when we when we um when we come to this we under and we understand here our our responsibility as we're going to go through and it's always important to remind ourselves that christ is the one building his church and i think you know we we we need to remind ourselves of that matthew 16 where he tells us that very clearly there that um to to peter you could turn there if you like matthew matthew chapter 16. so so uh this is the the jesus and and peter um talking there and and uh and jesus says you know who do you say that i am in verse 15 and simon peter answered and said you are the christ the son of the living god jesus answered and said to him blessed are you simon barjona for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my father who is in heaven and i say this to you that you are peter and on this rock i will build my church and the gate is and the gates of hades shall not prevail against it so very very clear here that that christ is the one doing the building he is the ultimate master builder as it uh as it were but yet we do play um a role in that in uh we we're not we're not just passive per um you know passive participants we are we we play a role obviously we see that in in matthew 28 with at the great commission to you know where to go go therefore and make disciples that's that's what building the church is that's what advancing the kingdom of christ is making is us making disciples christ uses and works through us so so we become the building blocks in the church of christ that's what peter says you know the living stones he says here in verse five so um and and so so it's important to to understand you know both both aspects of this obviously christ doing the crisis doing the building but you know as as as reformed christians as as those you know understanding the the the the the absolute sovereignty of god we always have to we always have to ensure that we don't resort to fatalism that well if god is sovereign he's gonna work it all out you know we we saw this morning in the prayer hour i'm reading from john calvin about prayer it's the same the same concept you know if god is sovereign we don't resort to to fatalism here god uses means to bring about his his uh his purposes and in the building of the church he uses believers to do that and and we can we see that concept um we see that concept here that of this we can almost imagine it as layers layers in a wall that are being built upon a one on top of of another so if you turn to first corinthians chapter chapter 3 we see we see that there first corinthians chapter 3 again so this is dealing with this the sectarianism that's happening in the church there you know one saying i'm of apollos one you know i'm of paul that that type of thing now look at verse nine paul says here we are god's fellow workers you are god's field you are god's building according to the grace which which was given to me as a wise master builder i have laid the foundation and another builds on it but let but let each one take heed how he builds on it for no other foundation can anyone lay then that which which is laid which is jesus christ so we see that concept there building upon the these layers um there so the the apostles paul and apollos there are are those are builders and turn to ephesians 2 briefly we see that um one more example there ephesians chapter 2 verses 19 to 22. now therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of god having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets jesus christ himself being the chief cornerstone in whom the whole building being fitted being fitted together grows into a holy temple in the lord in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of god in the spirit so very very clearly there we see this this this concept of of building blocks of layers in the in the in the church of christ as as the as the church advances through the ages so that's what um that's what the concept that that we need to to understand that peter's using here as we work through as we work through these uh this passage here so so the passage i've broken it down in three parts again so first in verse one you have the removal of all hindrances and then we have the exhortation in verses two and three and then we have the the ultimate purpose of this in of of the building of the for the building of the church of christ in verses four and five here so so he begins then with the with the removal of all of all hindrances so hindrances to spiritual growth like i said that's the focus in this passage here that we're growing spiritually there so we have to you know we have to remove the what's going to hinder us and that's obviously is sin sin and unrepentant sin in our lives hinders christian growth we see that concept in hebrews 12 very clearly there that that we are the the call to lay aside these extra these these weights that are going to slow us down in the race it's a it's you know paul or the author of hebrews giving this analogy of someone running a race but you don't carry extra weight well the sin is the extra weight that's going to slow you down so we need to we need to get we need to we need to cast that aside we need to lay lay it aside here says peter and so so laying aside that doesn't mean that doesn't mean putting a trying to put a clean a clean garment that's the word is that has this idea of taking off a a garment a coat or something like that so it's not it's not putting trying to just put a clean one over top of the of the old one that's there but it's it's casting aside that that old one you know we're not trying as a christian and and and um you know we don't try to cover up cover up a sinful heart and sinful actions with with better ones that's just simply that's hypocrisy that's what we talked about last time was that that hypocritical love that we're or hypocrisy that we are not supposed to have as believers towards one another towards anyone for that matter so we need to get rid of we need to put off put off the old man paul uses that uh that that um saying in colossians and ephesians there so we're getting rid of that old nature we're killing it we're mortifying it more mortification is the is the word that we talk about sometimes there these and again these these sins here that that he lists in this is in the context of brotherly love so there are these these sins you know towards one another the the like i said last time the horizontal relationships here now it's not that sins toward god um you know don't hinder our christian growth but in this in this context there you know of brotherly love for the building up and the edifying and the unifying of the church here that's uh these are the sins that we need to we need to to get rid of here so you know the the attitudes um the you know the attitudes that would that would hinder our personal growth hinder the strength and hinder the unity of the church so he begins then with the first one is malice here so malice is just you know maliciousness we might say or a basic attitude of of ill will towards others and it's and it's a it's it's secretly what it is is secretly enjoying someone else's misfortune when someone else you know has something bad happen to him whatever you have this this this feeling that like oh that's kind of that was that was good because there's something in it that it seems to make us feel better when someone else is having you know something bad happens to someone so enjoying someone else's misfortune again it goes completely opposite to that this love that we're supposed to have of self-sacrifice and serving others and wanting their best so that's you know that's uh that's that's malice you know we don't we don't need to uh to to worry if others have or to be um upset when others have it better than us or something like that but and again so when something bad happens to them we don't want we don't want to secretly feel feel um you know a sense of of where we enjoy that so that would that's malice then we have we have deceit deceit is taking advantage of another by cunning and deception for personal gain so again i think it's it's self-explanatory but but again it's this it's this me first attitude that that um that we're supposed to lay aside and and put off hypocrisy then um hebert a commentator that i uh that i use he says hip hop hypocrisy are various forms of pretense to which deceit resorts in its endeavor to throw the intended victim off guard so it's it's trying to be so so so if deceit was taken to take advantage of another by cunning well hypocrisy is is um is a is a form of pretense you know in order to be to to to be this deceitful so so you know pretending to be kind pretending to be friendly you know but it's simply there's a there's a self-interest self um self-interest um motivation behind it something trying to get something from us from our for ourselves from the situation and then and then we have envies here and these are feelings of displeasure produced by witnessing or hearing of the advantage or prosperity of others again this is you know it's it's different than than than uh jealousy jealousy is wanting what someone else has envy is is is wanting someone else to not have what they what they have i think we probably all have pastor butler's classic fishing story in our minds right now uh i'll save that for him to tell that another day if um if you're unfamiliar with it but that's a that's a classic example of envy just not wanting someone else to have what they have not because you necessarily want it you just simply don't want them to have it so um you know so so these are these are things that and again these these three if you notice in your in your bibles those those three we have malice and then we have a we have deceit hypocrisy and envy those are all sort of coupled together there and then um and then and then it ends with all evil speaking so those three are are connected you know this um the in or all of them are are connected here there's all this a self-seeking self-serving um interest at the at the expense of others not wanting others to do to do better and then and then it include it concludes with with uh you know all evil speaking or or slander of every kind um other translations say so so it's speech that assaults the character of another and usually takes place behind the victims back so again self you know we understand what these things are slander um you know but again all all these things your selfish attitudes um putting others putting putting others down to try and make ourselves feel better and you know with this me first attitude you know at the at the expense of others so so we have to just just think about this for a second we're supposed to be growing as christians an attitude that is that is that that puts others down it does not promote any sort of growth in us it doesn't make us a it doesn't make us uh um a better person if we're if we're here we try to push someone else down we we haven't grown anymore it's very simple it's a very simple concept and i think um you know it's uh there's no growth in us and even and even even secular you know personal development gurus will tell you exactly the same thing there's you know you do not advance as a as a as a as a person as an individual your character does not grow in any way with that type of of attitudes you know we grow through self-sacrifice we grow through through truly seeking the best in others well so if that's if that's you know common knowledge just in the secular world well how much more than for our spiritual life and our growth in in christian character you know that we don't um we we're our growth obviously it comes through the the you know growing in grace and knowledge in the scriptures but yet our growth as in christian character and and this uh this self sacrifice and putting others first is a is a means for our growth in that in that character and it's a means for the strengthening of the of the church so now one thing to notice about these about these um these this vice list here that he gives they're all primarily acts of of speech for the most part or they all you know include that so you know he doesn't say you know don't steal from your neighbor don't don't murder and generally it's those things those are the things that we don't we don't struggle with as much as as um you know with murder and and stealing as we as we would with with slander and envy and and hypocrisy you know and i think i think peter understands here these are these are the sins that that as christians we have a lot uh a lot harder time of of of laying aside and casting casting off you know and you know what was true for for first century christians is just as true for for 21st century christians here that that you know we we still struggle with these things nisbet another commentator even the even the children of the lord are ready to cleave very close to their unmortified corruptions to forget the necessity of a further degree of mortification than what they had already attained to so speaking of that constant constant growth and constant mortifying of that of our sins and you know how much we have we still want to cleave to these things and these are some of the sins that we we often cleave to a lot uh a lot more than um than we would you know like i said those those bigger sins like of stealing and and those types of things so again this this this reminder here um you know just like we had last week this that we are to have this a genuine sincere love for one another truly desiring the the best john brown says let us never forget that christianity is the religion of love and the religion of truth the spirit which the father has given us is the spirit of meekness and charity that dove-like spirit dwelt without measure in our head meaning christ and by him is communicated in various degrees to all his members let us remember that the true way to put off malice is to put on charity and the true way to put on charity is to put on christ so is that the mind which was in him may be in us so that's that's the heart attitude that we that we have as as john brown says here to put on christ and then we put on this charity and that is how that is how we grow in our christian character and and and and of course as that as the building blocks in the church of christ for that purpose there and we'll see that more as we get to the end so then we have now we come to the the exhortation here and in verse two so he says as as newborn babes desire the pure milk of the word so so this uh as newborn babies now he's not you know he's not speaking in this instance about uh about spiritual immaturity we see that in in other places paul indicts the corinthians also you know the author of hebrews same thing there that you know he says you're like you guys are like babies you should be and only drinking milk you should be eating eating meat at this point you know so he's speaking of uh he but that's not what that's not what peter's doing here paul's comparing them and saying you're like babies you're not supposed to be babies anymore you should have grown up by now but what peter he's comparing here is the is the uh is the desire that babies have for for their mother's milk you know as it's it's a comparison of the desire not the comparison of the growth in this instance so as as um as as much as the the the context is our christian growth you know and what paul is saying to the corinthians and hebrews we need to take that to to account but it's a different analogy that he's using here so um you know so so the the the like a newborn you know what they they crave their mother's milk at least when they're when they're when they're awake you know they that they just they just they want to be nursing you know we we think of the old the saying you know eat sleep and repeat that's what babies do you know so it's this constant dependence that they have and that is that is as as believers that's our desire for the for the word for the for the milk of the word that he says here we're supposed to have that desire for our our our growth to to be constantly dependent constantly feeding upon the word of god and so he says he calls it here the pure milk of the word now this is a very interesting um and difficult passage in in translation there's there's you know various translations trans translated differently and especially the the word here um that that is translated of the word in our english bible or in the new king james it's the it's the the adjective uh logical uh is is what it means so so it would be what it it would it would say literally i guess would be desire the the pure and logical milk now it's a again it's a that's a that's a very wood and rough translation so we have to we have to we see that in romans 12 and verse one is that that same word is used there um you know i beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of god that you present your body is a living sacrifice holy acceptable to god which is your reasonable service so there it's translated as as reasonable so you can see that that connection to logical um in in that instance there so so now it could be in this case here referring to you know to logic reason the use of our mind i think that's that would fit the context peter's in like as i mentioned earlier in verse chapter 1 verse 13 to gird up the loins of our mind to engage our minds as we as we study scripture to so that we can learn and and and grow by it but but there's another um this word is used only in in romans there in the in the in the bible but there's extra biblical sources that um that use the word there and it's in a sense of it being used where it's where something is being used metaphorically so we can almost say you know where peter could say desire the pure you know metaphorical milk so understanding that you know he's not speaking of exactly of milk but it's it's you know he's he's referring it to now our source of christian growth which happens to be the word of god so so you know our our translations say the same thing they just they just you know they they get their or it's it's maybe not exactly what the translation says but that's the that is the concept here is that that you know as a baby desires after milk for their nourishment you know believers ought to desire after their own spiritual nourishment which we know is is the word of god so and and of course the the gospel truth contained in this in the scriptures and and all all that is in there so um this this this word which is the the source of our of our life as as christians we saw that last time having been verse chapter 123 having been born again not of corruptible seed but incorruptible through the word of god which lives and abides forever so so that is our source of of growth and what we need to desire after that so our our um you know again again we saw last time that in in chapter one this this uh the word of god there meaning was that was the the declaration the proclamation the the gospel message is is the is was what brought life to us there but again we don't stop at us you know a simple basic understanding of the gospel where we can we continue to to go on to study all the truths contained in the bible there and and it's um you know that that is the that is our the appointed means that god has given for our spiritual growth so um and and again when i say when i say gospel this this whole context here as we've tried as i've tried to point out as we go as we've gone through first peter it's the the gospel of our salvation it's these these content concepts that we need to understand and study is everything that's contained within our you know our our salvation the all the truth surrounding that the the the inheritance the the hope of glory that we have you know so things to things to think about and study about you know that like our salvation where where we were what we what we once were what we've been saved out of things like justification how that works was i you know was i really that bad was it was you know is is christ that christ is that amazing god's graces is is so amazing all these things that we need to to study the nature of god himself who who is god you know that that we we're instructed to to you know to live in the fear of the lord fear of the lord is the beginning of wisdom well we then we come we study who who is god these are all these concepts in that are in the word that we need to that we need to examine and study and that's that is how we grow as christians and how we become become stronger christians and and those that that solid building block in the church of christ so and then one other one other thing i just want to point out here he says to he says to to um desire the the pure milk of the word so you know or unadulterated some translations uh translated that you know so these are this is the you know the the truths that we find in scripture but but but pure the unadulterated not not partial truths that might sound good at first but lead us into error you know we need to we need to understand and and you know this is why doctrine is so important that you that that um you know we have the solid truths to stand on that so truths that aren't going to lead us into errors truths that are going to help us get us through the the the trials of life you know we see that in ephesians 4. you know if we're we're carried about by every wind of doctrine you know we're going to be tossed to and fro you know so we want to we want to ensure that as we as we study the word we're studying truth pure truth the what is what is truth and that's why systematic theology is is is so important systematic theology is that you know how the truths of god's word fit together and work together we don't want to have you know truths that take us off that don't you know truth uh you know what we think might be true takes us off in a direction that doesn't fit in with the rest of the scripture so it's that's these are these are important things for our christian growth but you know when i say that now the the best part is is that we're not on our own in this we don't have to try and come up develop our own systematic theologies we have fantastic systematic theologies we have fantastic creeds and confessions that are that you know these the church councils that happened you know in the early centuries and you know on trinity christology these things we we have it all there so we don't need we're not on our own we're not trying to re reinvent things um here but we have these these blessings from god that we can use to in in our study to ensure that the truth that we are that we are taking in and studying are in fact truth is contained in god's word we also have you know the the in ephesians 4 the the the godly men the pastors and teachers and evangelists that god has christ has gifted to the church you know so we come to church to to listen to these men so that we can we can we can grow thereby you know these these men are specifically for our our growth and for the edification of the body of christ and paul tells us in ephesians four so so again you know you're not we're not on our own in this that's not what i'm trying to what i'm trying to say but it's you know it's we come and for one the the use of the means in in terms of church you know we come and we gather we study and we we study the or we hear we engage our minds and we get these truths into our into into us so that we understand we and we become solid building blocks in the church of christ and of course there's that personal individual benefit as well as as i mentioned as we saw in chapter one of peter so so that is so that is a we're we're called we're called to desire after these things and then the the goal of that is that you may grow thereby and and and and there's a textual variant there most many other translations will say that you may grow in or unto your salvation there so you know it's not it's not implying that spiritual growth um produces salvation but it's uh it's it's growing in this knowledge of all that's contained in our in our salvation growth in the knowledge this is nisbet again growth in the knowledge of christian truth is that on which spiritual growth depends so growth in the knowledge of christian truth is that on which spiritual growth depends the great influential principles of saving truth are few and simple and some are apt to think that they are they are easily and soon fully learned but this is a dangerous mistake that's a that's a very uh important and good observation that the great influential principles of saving truth are few and simple and some are apt to think that they are easily and soon fully learned but this is a dangerous mistake so we need to we need to be continuing to you know to have that desire to grow in in the the things of the lord so so i think as you know this is time where we can examine ourselves you know do we have that desire do we have that desire like a like a newborn desires its mother's milk you know do we have that desire to learn about our savior and learn about everything that's included in in our salvation i think so often when you know when we're just we're just saved and and you know we use the term on fire we're on fire we're just we're hungry we're learning as much as we can't stop learning but but there's there's times when that seems to go away or at least it ebbs and and it flows somewhat you know well what changed there was that was it because the truth changed well of course not it you know it's us often we become we become sluggish and we just don't give it the energy or give it the time to to do these things you know so so you know we should we need to have this desire well what's the best way to cultivate the the desire in us well it's it just comes with simply simply doing it you know wetting our appetite and we get that we get that that taste for it you know so it could be as simple as just you know just read your bible every day take it take advantage of things like church attendance and the various things that the church you know in our church there's no there's really no excuse for no um for you know for a lack of of of of growth we there's so many things here now through the summer that's obviously um laspo you there's theology studies there's there's bible studies there's confession studies there's many things to come and grow so you know so so to take advantage of these things use them to grow and you know we start to get that that that taste and that desire again to grow so you know are we are we um you know are we increasing in our understanding of the scriptures yeah you know like like the writer of hebrews says careful to not get caught up in strange doctrines that don't profit those who hold to them so you know we need to be we need to be working on these things studying and and ingesting the scriptures you know putting off that old man putting on the new man the new man who's who's being renewed in knowledge according to the image of him who created him colossians 3 10. you know so so again things to ask ourselves do we are we glorying in tribulation are we are we rejoicing in the midst of trials as we saw you know um in uh in in in chapter one there these are these are all things that were evidence you know do we have this this this joy this joy and this desire for the things of god so now obviously i think i think we we we all probably think we fall short and and you know feel like we're we're falling short but again that's that is that is the christian the the christian life is one of of continual progress you know it's not of immediate perfection you know so so we just so so so we we press on in this if you feel like we're you know we don't we're not growing as we ought or we're not we don't have this desire as we ought to well you know we can praise god for for grace we can praise god you know that we can we can press on as we you know as we as we as we work to grow again it's not like it's not like we're you know we're not all expected to read volumes of systematic theologies and and and things like that you know that's not what god requests or requires from us you know that we're doing that you know but he he just tells us that we're not to be stagnant in in our growth you know we're you know there's there's i understand you're a uh you know a busy mom a busy dad hard-working dad you know you finally get the kids to bed at night the last thing you want to do is is pick up a theology book the last thing you have energy for is to pick up a theology book you know so that's not what what i'm trying to say here is that you know we need to be reading systematic theologies and those those types of things but at least you know the pure milk of the word as peter says here that's our source so you know just just just make the time to to read our bibles and to pray and come to church you know these are the things that that they do wonders for for our souls spiritual growth is is is so important it's you know it's for our benefit of course it enables us to get through the through the hard days but it's for the benefit of others it's our responsibility that that we are these these building bloc that we are strong building blocks solid building blocks in in the church of christ you know we we you know we think of you know our our children our our grandchildren whatever it may be whoever is in our life that that we have an influence on we we ought to be a strong building block to to to provide them the next layer above us in the in the in the church of christ a solid foundation a solid support um and you know to be on there so you know and then we can encourage them to be strong building blocks so that is the purpose there of this of this of this uh of our growth we'll we'll examine that in a bit more detail briefly here so um but now we have the the the incentive for this um this or maybe maybe incentive is the wrong word but um but you know this past experience of our salvation he says here if indeed you have tasted that the lord is gracious i think he's probably has psalm 34 verse 8 in his mind oh taste and see that the lord is good blessed is a man who trusts in him that's that's the incentive that's what gets us what gets us going the first uh the first taste there you know of the of the of the grace of god of his mercy that we can be reconciled to him through through the lord jesus christ that's you know that's what that's what gets us going and then we have this hopefully this hunger that that continues and that we that we have continued to have this this desire again here no you don't note the the connection between between tasting and you know and um and this metaphor of milk that he's using there so you know it's the same thing you you've tasted you know i don't have obviously any experience with nursing infants but you know i have it at least in the in the animal world with with calves for example would be a good one you know they they don't really want to drink until they get a taste of that milk that first taste of milk and then they and then they drink like crazy well that's what that's what we need to we need to be as as as believers you know we have this this this first taste of the grace of god that that ignites our our hunger and this desire after these things so you know peter doesn't want us he doesn't want us to lose that you know where he but he he wants us you know where it's we just can't get enough we want to keep studying keep keep um you know like isaiah says here with with with that with joy we draw water at the well of salvation you know that that we continue at that well drinking these things in and um and and and and like first verse four says here he's uh you know he's he's he's precious you know so we we have this taste of the preciousness of christ when we when we're first saved he's he's so he's he's precious his blood is precious as peter says in verse 19 of chapter one there and then and then this um you know so we need to strive that we never lose the uh and allow that that the preciousness of christ to to dissipate in in our lives and that's what peter's intent is here that you know that he's trying to encourage them to be constantly reminded reminded of the of the the blood of christ of the goodness of god so that it never it never loses that that that preciousness so that that ought to be our our response to the grace of god you know that's the natural response if indeed you have tasted that the lord is gracious well then you you'll have this hunger you ought to have this hunger this desire and again like i said you know we we all fall short and we all we all feel like we don't have what we should but but at least that we know we ought to be you know dutiful in this in in cultivating that in in using the means that uh that god has given so so um now in in verse four it says coming to him as a as a living stone rejected indeed by men but precious by god so so christ is the is the is the foundation upon which the the church is built here so now as we get in more to this building analogy here we we saw already in the in the the verses i quoted at the very beginning christ being the chief cornerstone he's the foundation of the church the apostles built upon that and then the church continues to build upon upon that so christ is that is that foundation you know we saw in matthew 16 um upon this rock i will build my church you know the the rock what is that rock that jesus is referencing i think we're probably familiar with the john owen quote there it's not the person of peter who confessed christ but the person of christ who peter confessed so christ is that foundation of the church you know crisis is is and rejected by men here he says you know so so again it could be this could be a specific reference to the the the jews of jesus day who who crucified him and probably even more directly the the pharisees you know the ones they were supposed to be the leaders of israel they're supposed to be the the the ones um leading and promoting the spiritual growth in the israelites you know they were the one who's supposed to who were supposed to understand the scriptures and and realize jesus was the messiah if they would have interpreted them the scriptures rightly but you know instead they were they were looking for an earthly kingdom they were looking for a a national kingdom and they rejected the messiah they rejected christ you know so um you know they they were um you know they sorry they um so they they were they they were they should have been the ones teaching the people about the the true nature of the messiah um through which they would have become part of the the true people of god that true spiritual kingdom that true heavenly heavenly spiritual house that peter says here they should have been they should have been teaching the people about that you know but rather they were focused just on simply on on national israel israel as a nation and and uh you know jewish law jewish customs they even they even engaged in in mission work to try to bring people into the to the the jewish nation of israel not not into the you know the the kingdom of the of the of the messiah the spiritual kingdom there and and jesus indicts them for that he says woe to you scribes and pharisees hypocrites for you travel land and sea to win one proselyte and when when he has won proselyte means someone who's converted to judaism and when he is one you make him twice as much as son of hell as yourselves you know so they they were rejecting they were rejecting christ they thought that you know the messiah was going to come and and save them from their enemies and make them the the greatest nation in the world you know like like they were in david's time but but the bible is so clear that you know as peter says christ didn't didn't he christ didn't come to set up a a national kingdom christ came to set up a spiritual kingdom this this uh this the what we call the church a spiritual house this living living organism made up of you know it's a it's a it's a super structure made up of all those whom he has rescued from the kingdom of darkness all those who who believe in christ so then we have the we have the the purpose then of of christian growth here so in uh in verse five you also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house so um you know as again as i said a layer layer upon layer of the uh is built on the church as the church marches through the ages you know where we all become building blocks in that you know in in that church we're all we're all a living stone as peter says here a building block and we're we're built upon someone else you know something else in in or another person in that um another block which has been laid so so that is why our christian growth is is so important we need to be a solid building block a strong building block in this in in this organism this this the church because others will be built upon us you know we don't so we don't want to be a a a marshmallow block in this in the wall because you know when that's just a going to be a shaky foundation for those going on before us those whom we are have built upon us when when it comes to you know our children or whoever it may be that we are we are influencing you know so and that's how i think why the church as a whole at least in in western culture right now the western side of the church is is so it's so shaky because we've lost that we've lost that we're built out of marshmallow blocks we've lost that commitment to sound doctrine um that that makes us a solid solid building blocks we've lost that commitment to to holy living and casting off the old man and these old things that that uh are that are part of the the old nature and the sins there you know they make for for for soft you know i'm going to use the term marshmallow blocks in this in this in the wall of of the church and that's why we find ourselves where we are as a church as a as a whole right now we've lost these things we can see how how important they are for the for this a solid uh a solid church so we need to be committed then to to growth as christians that we become stronger and stronger so that we become a sure foundation for the ones who come after us and the and the ones who follow after us because you know and again like i said the easiest example is our is our children you know we we we teach our children these things we need to be teaching we need to be strong so we can teach our children so they are strong so that so that the wall of the church remains a strong a strong um strong wall and again if you don't have children this still this still applies to to you i i guarantee that you will have you know other you'll have other christians that come to you you know they share their struggles but you need to be you need to be that that solid foundation of truth so that you can encourage encourage uh their hearts with you know so we need to be constantly growing in our christian character to be like that and i think that's one of the one of the greatest benefits in a church of having older members in the church members that have walked with the lord for for so many years my own personal experience i'm sure many of you can relate of just having these older people who've gone on before you that you can go and you can talk to and they can be such a source of encouragement and a means for building up for building up you because they are they are strong solid blocks they have they have studied the word they have they have studied doctrines they have you know they they have grown in their in their um life of sanctification these the the sins that are hindering are you know are not there as much anymore you know so they are they're these solid building blocks we can go to them for for for encouragement for strengthening and then and so in turn we can become strong building blocks so that others can come to us be it our children be it our be it be it others in the church be it whoever it may be you know so these are these are important uh important things and again then we can also see here that that um how important it is to get rid of these these these vices that we saw in verse one you know these all these things that um you know that are that are self-serving um you know if if malice malice towards others you know it it makes it really impossible for for others to be built upon us then if we have this attitude of malice towards others you know that um you know if if people people are people will perceive that they'll perceive if you have if you have ill feelings toward others and and and if you're slanderous whatever it may be it might not be to them directly but yet you know they'll they'll realize that oh that person i i don't feel like i can trust that person and so they're not going to come to you and then and you know you you will the the wall will stop in a sense you know in your case there will not be a building upon that so we need to it's very we can really see then how how important it is to rid ourselves of these types of of thoughts and actions and and to and to uh to to be there in a self-serving way to support to support them you know we as i mentioned at the beginning we've been commissioned by christ to go and make disciples but it's not only just going out into uh on a missions trip elsewhere but it's you know we make disciples and then what do we do we teach them and that's part of this so you know we need to we need to make sure we know the truths that we need to teach to others we can't miss that that that teaching part here you know and and uh so you know the this this passage will deal with the with uh when we when we think of the great commission to go and make disciples that proclamation of the of the gospel well that this passage deals with that i won't deal not going to look at it this time but uh but we read it you know to proclaim the excellencies of of of him who called you out of darkness into marvelous light but but here now we're we're uh he's just speaking of internally of strengthening that church and teaching teaching others you know so let us i hope we see the the importance of this you know if we to have a strong church not only just locally not you know it's very practically applied to the local church as well but but universally the church as a whole we see that we see like i said the western church is in is is is is soft and shaky right now because we've we've lost these the importance of these things so let us be let's then be resolved to to grow as as christians that we put off all all sins of ill will towards others we we we go with a with a self-sacrificing um self-sacrificing love for others but that we grow in our knowledge of the of the truths of scripture knowledge of the the the faithfulness of god the the gospel the hope that we have all these things that make us you know stronger stronger christians to be there for the next generations this morning in our prayer meeting we prayed for the you know for the next generation that's coming up well well you know for for that generation to to succeed yes we need the grace of god by all means but the the the means god uses w will be the solid and and firm foundation of those who have gone on before and again as i said this is this is a pro this is a process this doesn't mean that you know by next sunday you all have to read you know 16 volumes of john owen that's not the that's not the that's not the the goal here it's a process you know we we you know sometimes i always think of busy moms because everybody everybody knows how busy moms are but but you know so that doesn't mean busy moms have to have to just be studying theology all the time busy moms need to be busy moms they need to take care of those kids but what are they doing they're they're that that's how they're strengthening and building up their though that that next that next um level in the wall the next generation of the church you know so so again so don't feel like this has to all be done at once don't feel like the only way to do it is to read is to read systematic theologies but rather it's just to have this steady growth in in the things of god so that we can be the the solid building blocks in of the church and resolved to see the the the blocks that are going to rely on us for support that you know that they become solid building blocks for the next generation and then of course we always have to be dependent on the grace of god for this we we never want to uh when we we always got to maintain that balance as i always try to say we have to be disciplined we don't want to resort to fatalism and say christ is going to build this church and that's and that's um you know doesn't matter what we do so we don't want to be uh we need to be disciplined we need to do these things but we also need to be dependent we need to be dependent upon the grace of god for um for the for the ability to do this as i often say jesus says without me you can do nothing so let's uh let's remember that let's be resolved to do this but again let's also remember that this is not this is not connected to our salvation we don't have to we don't we don't um think well if i'm not if i'm not persevering and and and knowing so much well then you know then we're questioning our to the point where we question our salvation that's not that's not my intent here at all um here we have to we always we can never remember we can never forget justification is by faith alone the smallest tiniest little faith is a faith that saves um i i can't remember the the who said it but you know a faith if faith is as the size of a mustard seed it may not move mountains but but it does reconcile a sinner to to the to god so let us let us never lose sight of that we are saved by faith alone in christ alone and and but yet from there we go on and we persevere part of this perseverance of of uh perseverance sanctification part of this sanctification casting off the old but it's also growing in and learning so that we we become a solid building block in the in the church of christ well let us close in a word of prayer father we do thank you for your word we do thank you for your church we thank you lord that you have promised that you will build the church and the gates of hades will not prevail against it lord how encouraging that is when we think of that lord we know that we feel we fall short in these things all the time is of our responsibility of of um of growing your church and being a solid building block in your church one of those living stones in the in the wall of the church where we feel we fall short but how much comfort we take from the from the fact that you are building your church and it will not it will not fall apart lord you but but rather it will it will descend on the gates of hades and and and continue to to to rescue sinners out of that kingdom of darkness and bring them into the into this marvelous light that peter talks about so lord how will we rejoice in that i pray that you would help us to to be resolved to grow in our christian character help us to be resolved to to love one another and to to truly desire the better the best of of one another help us to have unity and and and love for each other in this local church here lord we thank you for that blessing that that you have blessed us so much with with the unity and and with the with the a strong church here and lord we just thank you for your goodness to us that way and i pray that that you would be with us and the rest of this day and and that if it's in your will lord that you bring us back together this evening again to to worship you again in our in our evening service lord we thank you for your son the lord jesus that that is that without him we can do nothing we thank you that for his life his death and his resurrection and that that he is the reason lord we come together each each lord's day to to celebrate him and to celebrate his his kingship and his that he has conquered death he has conquered all these things and he is building his kingdom so lord we rejoice in that when we we pray this all in his most precious name amen well we'll stand in uh in closing with it's to sing the doxology number 568 so you can stand as we sing that together please me [Music] is [Music] now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy to god our savior who alone is wise be glory in majesty dominion and power both now and forever amen you may be seated for a time of meditation you