Keys of the Kingdom 2 – Grounds For Faithfulness

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the Dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace be multiplied. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

How do we maintain faithfulness to the Lord when opposition comes against us and trials press upon us?

"Peter, an Apostle of Jesus Christ"

It happens from time to time that I'll be out in the community and run into someone I haven't seen in years. Always there comes that point in the conversation: "So what do you do now?" I say, "I'm a pastor," and the reaction is always the same. I remember once standing in firefighter uniform as a chaplain, with a firefighter I'd never met talking freely and dropping words I don't normally use—until someone said, "This is Miles, our chaplain," and everything changed.

I wonder if Peter ever had that. Imagine someone saying, "Simon, what are you doing these days?" and he answers, "I'm Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ." That certainly wasn't the life his parents expected for him. From what we can deduce, Peter was likely the oldest of his family, and his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather had probably all been fishermen. He grew up in Bethsaida on the northern banks of the Sea of Galilee, expected to take over the family business and care for the family.

From Fisherman to Disciple

One day his brother Andrew came to him: "Peter, I've met a man—I think he's the Messiah." There was great expectation in that day that the Messiah would soon come. Politically it was a nightmare, both in their own nation and under those occupying them, and the people longed for someone to save them. Sound familiar? John was baptizing in the wilderness, and Jesus of Nazareth was preaching through the countryside.

When Jesus first met Simon, recorded in John 1, He changed his name on the spot to Cephas—Peter. Later, as Jesus preached from Peter's boat at the edge of the Galilee, He said, "Cast your net into the water for a catch." Peter, a fisherman by trade, knew this wasn't how it worked: "We've worked all night and caught nothing. But at Your word I'll do it." The next thing he knew, the net was so full he had to call others to help. Amazed, he said, "I'm not worthy to be in Your presence." Jesus replied, "This amazes you? You'll see greater things than this. Follow Me, and I'll make you a fisherman of men."

Luke 5 says Peter forsook all—no doubt to the concern of his parents—and followed Jesus. A disciple is simply a follower. If you follow Jesus today, you're a disciple. For three and a half years Peter followed, and at one point Jesus commissioned him and eleven others as apostles—those "sent ones" given a message and the authority to cast out demons and heal the sick.

Faithfulness Is More Important Than Giftedness

Their expectations of Jesus were purely political, and ultimately He did not fulfill that political expectation. He was crucified, raised from the dead, and at the same edge of the Galilee—John 21, which we considered last week—Jesus told Peter, "Now is the time to fish for men. Follow Me. You'll suffer shame and ultimately be killed for My name's sake, but follow Me and tend My sheep."

Some forty years later, Peter is still fulfilling that apostolic commission. He had watched James, the brother of John, killed by Herod in A.D. 44. Philip was crucified in Phrygia around A.D. 54. Matthew was killed with a spear. Andrew, his own brother who had introduced him to Jesus, was crucified in western Greece. Bartholomew was beaten to death; Thomas was run through with a spear in India; Paul was in prison in Rome. Peter had seen all of this suffering and death for the name of Christ, and still he maintained faithfulness—and he calls the church to that same faithfulness.

This teaches me point one: faithfulness is more important than giftedness. Peter and the other apostles were unlearned, untrained men—common tradesmen with no pedigree from the best religious schools. What they lacked in giftedness they made up in faithfulness. Jesus calls the foolish, the weak, the despised. First Corinthians 1 says God has chosen the foolish things to confound the wise and the weak to shame the mighty. That gives me great hope. First Corinthians 4:2 says, "It is required of stewards that one be found faithful." Faithfulness in the eyes of God is more important than greatness.

Faithful Followers Will Always Feel Displaced

Now, around A.D. 63–64, Peter writes from Rome to believers about a thousand miles east, in what is modern-day Turkey, and calls them "pilgrims of the Dispersion." The first-century Roman world was hostile to non-conformist outsiders, and Christians quickly became seen as exactly that. All the earliest Christians were Jews, but God's plan from the beginning—Acts 1—was to carry the gospel to Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth. It didn't take long for most Christians to be of Gentile origin and for believers to be considered outsiders.

As the gospel spread through the Roman Empire, Christians were different. They didn't worship the many gods of the Greco-Roman world. Added to that was the growing Roman imperial cult—the Caesars came to see themselves as gods, requiring annual offerings of incense and the confession "Caesar is Lord." For Christians who confessed Jesus as Lord of lords and King of kings, this was impossible. As early as Ephesus around A.D. 50, this was already a problem. Christians were seen as treasonous outsiders, excluded from daily life and mistreated. As is always the case, when a minority is different, its differences are accentuated and picked on.

This matters for us in the 21st century, because our world is becoming more and more like the first-century Roman world. Point two: faithful followers of Jesus will always feel displaced. So stop trying to fit in—you never will. Fitting in with the world comes at the expense of faithfulness to Jesus. James 4:4 says, "Friendship with the world is enmity with God; whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." Jesus said in John 15:19, "Because you are not of the world... the world hates you." Don't think it strange when you feel displaced. God is in the displacement—He wants us placed out into the world to bring the light of Christ into darkness.

Chosen and Set Apart for Obedience

Peter continues: "elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ." If you follow Jesus today, you need to know that you are chosen by God. We're in an election season; this November we will choose a president. But here Peter says that even though you're displaced in a hostile world, you are chosen by God the Father. That should give you great peace. Notice the end of verse 2: "Grace to you and peace be multiplied." Remembering that God by His grace chose me multiplies my peace in a world that is contrary to me.

There has been an ongoing argument among Christians for centuries about this concept of election—especially since the Reformation, which produced two major camps, one stressing God's sovereign selection and the other stressing man's responsibility. The questions abound: Did God choose me because He foreknew I would choose Him? Did He choose me regardless of my choosing? This contention still divides churches and Christians today. I don't think any Christian knows the answer perfectly, and I'm convinced that those who say they do are overselling themselves. But whatever the case, it is clear here: God chose us by the work of His Holy Spirit and grace, He chose us for a purpose, and He sealed that work by the shed blood of His Son. Notice the Triune aspect—Father, Spirit, and Son.

Point three: God chooses and sets us apart—that's the "sanctification of the Spirit"—for obedience. Our salvation is secured by Jesus' shed blood, not our obedience; however, we are saved and secured for obedience. And what is obedience but faithfulness? Those saved by Jesus show their love and devotion by their obedience. John 14:15: "If you love Me, keep My commandments." Verse 21: "He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me." Verse 23: "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word, and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him." We show our love for Jesus by faithfully obeying Him.

Praise God for His Abundant Mercy

Verse 3: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." That word "blessed" can be translated "praise." This is something I heard a million times growing up from my mom, Geanie—"Praise the Lord!" Peter says it here: praise God for His abundant mercy.

Have you ever dwelt on the mercy of God? The turning point in my own life, my transformation, came about because I saw a picture of mercy—and saw how my own life lacked it—and God transformed me by His mercy. Among all of God's innumerable attributes—love, goodness, holiness, justice, perfection—I'm personally convinced that, even if in the smallest way, His mercy is elevated above all else. If it were not, we would not be here. Lamentations 3:22 says, "If it were not for the mercies of God, we would all be consumed."

I believe there's scriptural support for this. When Moses said, "Show me Your glory," God replied that no one could see His full glory and live, so He set Moses in a cleft of the rock to see His afterglow. God has so much glory it permeates everything around Him—like that grandmother who wore too much perfume; you still smelled her after she left the room. Then, in Exodus 34:6, God declared His name, defining who He is: "The LORD, the LORD God"—and the very first word He chose to describe Himself was merciful. We should all be grateful that He did.

A Living Hope and an Eternal Inheritance

Point four: it is God's abundant mercy that gives us a living hope. We have been born again to a living and lively hope. The New Living Translation says we "live with great expectation." Because Jesus is alive, we have great expectation. If Jesus had not risen, we would have none. The resurrection assures us His word is true—the works of Jesus prove that the words of Jesus are true.

So when Jesus said to Martha in John 11:25, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die"—no one can read those words and not say, "I wish that were true." What do all men fear most? Death. "Whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die." The resurrection proves it's true. This is not blind, wishful thinking like hoping the Chargers win a Super Bowl; it's a living hope, an absolute certainty.

This living hope is "to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you." That "you" is specific to each follower of Jesus. We have an eternal inheritance that is perfect, imperishable, and forever. I was recently in a meeting of pastors when one shared that a man who had always been in need came into the office—and instead of asking for help, left an envelope with a check for eighteen thousand dollars. "I got an inheritance," he said. We all love the idea of an inheritance. But if you are a follower of Jesus, you have reserved for you in heaven, in the bank of eternal securities—not backed by the FDIC but by something far greater—an eternal inheritance far greater than silver, gold, stocks, or cash.

Kept by the Power of God

But what about me? I'm not sure I won't fade away in the face of trial. Peter continues in verse 5: you are "kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." If you follow Jesus, you are kept—held, protected, preserved, maintained—by His power, through your trust in Him, not your trust in yourself. Every one of us tends to trust in ourselves, and we always let ourselves down. You are kept by the power of God through your confidence in Him.

Earlier I asked, how do I become more faithful? Point five: the resurrection is the firm foundation upon which faithfulness is built. The resurrection proves God is powerful, and my confident trust in that resurrecting power strengthens my faithfulness to the very God who can keep, preserve, and protect me. His power—powerful enough to raise the dead—is what gives us the ability to stand.

A Greater Salvation Awaiting the Saved

We are kept "for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time." Point six: there is a greater salvation awaiting the saved. It is wonderful to have forgiveness, the Holy Spirit, hope, joy, and peace in this life. But all of those blessings barely begin to scratch the surface of the great salvation that awaits us—an inheritance incorruptible, reserved in heaven. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 2:9, quoting Isaiah, "Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him." Ephesians 2:7 says that throughout all eternity God will be revealing the riches of His grace toward us. It will take all eternity for us to see it.

How does this stir my faithfulness? Romans 8:18: "I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." And Hebrews 12:1–2: "Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Therein lies the lesson of faithfulness. Jesus endured the cross for the joy set before Him. How do I maintain faithfulness? It has everything to do with focus on the end—there is an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled, reserved for you in heaven.

Closing Prayer

Father God, I thank You for this truth. The grounds for our faithfulness is not our strength, not our abilities, not our training, not our connection to a church, not our pedigree, not our financial standing. The grounds for faithfulness is a focus upon You in eternity, waiting to welcome us home. Lord, help us to have that focus this week and to run with endurance the race set before us, that You would be glorified in our lives—whatever we go through, that You would be exalted. We ask this in Jesus' name, and all those who agreed said amen.