That's all I can say. I know, we're still looking pretty bad. But I'm honored to be here and open up God's Word, and it's been a long time since we've been able to spend any length of time up here, and it's just good to be here. Open up your Bibles, if you will, to 1 Peter chapter 2. Tonight I'm not going to give you a lot of visual type things on the overhead because I want you to engage your minds and your hearts with the Word of God. I want you to look upon that and in the scriptures that you have before you and to think about these things as we go through there. What an incredible book. I was just struck at the fact of listening to the speakers prior to me begin to exposit this book that I've read so many times, but to be reminded again of how the Apostle Peter connects everything that is said in our in our perception of who Christ is and what he's accomplished to the very act of his work on the cross for us. Our life in this world today is so intrinsically connected to the work of Jesus Christ, and it comes out verse after verse after verse in the epistle of first Peter. And it's been such an encouragement to see the centrality and the sufficiency of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And so tonight, Let's read again and see that in chapter 2, beginning in verse 13. I'll be reading through verse 25. I'm in the New King James Version. Therefore, verse 13, submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king of supreme or to the governors or to those who are sent out 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, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants 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 wrongfully. For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For to you, for to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow in 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 now have returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls." I can say to you this, if we were to speak for a week on this passage every day, we would never exhaust the depth of the truths here about the sufficiency of the gospel of Jesus Christ in a practical way, not only for eternity, but also for time. When we left Lancaster Bible College in the late, mid-1990s, we were headed to plant a church in Mullen, Nebraska. Our young family of of Melissa, Adam, and Ben, after we left here, spent three years in Lancaster, or four, and then ended up moving back to the Sandhills of Nebraska, kind of our home area to plant a church. And I know that many of you prayed for us, and we just appreciate that. We saw a lot of people respond to the gospel of the grace of God in that community, and we're just blessed to be a part of the Lord's work there. We arrived in July of 1996 and planting a church, pioneering a work in this little community of 500 people. I know some of you were, in fact I just met one of you here again after 15 or 20 years that was there on that trip the Duluth Bible Church took out there. And I just remember arriving to this community and needing a job on missionary support and we were dirt scrabble poor. and just believe that God had called us there, and we're going to go and plant this church. And just people would ask us when we came into town, so what's bringing you to town? I'd say, well, we're here to plant a church. And you get people kind of like, oh, I see. That's nice. And do you know we already have three churches here? Yeah, actually, I do. And I know what you teach. And there's kind of that cold shoulder. And so we thought, well, you don't blend into a community that's nearest town is, you know, 40 miles away. And I mean, everybody knows you arrive in a 26-foot U-Haul, the biggest they have, and dump your junk out. And so the first thing we want to do is change the license plate on our car. And so we went to the sheriff's office and went in there. And I happened to know the sheriff that was sitting there from previous years. I'm like, Rich, what are you doing here? He goes, Mark, what are you doing here? I said, I'm here to plant a church. And he goes, oh, good. We could use more churches. And I didn't know exactly how to take that. I talked with him a little bit. We exchanged things about what we'd done. I'd worked in the prison for nine years and 10 months, got released for good behavior, and went to Bible college. And we're sharing stuff. He goes, well, you know what? I need an in-deputy, because I'm about ready to fire the one I got. And I think he's going to quit. And he's not doing the job. So would you like the job? And I'm thinking, well, the kids are getting hungry. So yeah, I'll go ahead and take that job. How hard could that be? I need something to do. So I raised my right hand, took the oath of office. And when I'm done, he pitched me this little badge right here. It weighs about three ounces. And it's worth about $2. He gave me the badge and a gun, and he gave me the keys to my new cruiser, a 1979 Ford Bronco. That was looking sweet. It was green and white. It had two huge cherries on the top, and only one of them worked. And if you'd reach out the window and slap the one, the little motor would start turning that thing. The previous deputy was about four times my size, and I inherited his shirts and pants and gun belt, too. I now use that belt for a rear cinch on my horse. But nevertheless, I put on the shirt and hooked my badge to my shirt and it hung down around my waist here and wrapped the belt around me a couple times and stuck the gun on there and jumped into my 1979 Ford Bronco. And old Rich, he says, before I left, he says, oh, you know, he says, I haven't been out of town in a long time because I haven't had anybody to cover for me. And he goes, I wonder if you could just hold down the fork for a while while I'm gone. I said, well, sure. What do you want me to do? He says, oh, yeah, just drive around, you know, and kind of force like see somebody breaking the law, just pull them over and, you know, just, and just write him a little ticket. That sounds like fun, glorying at the sin of other people, right? And so I, I thought, yeah, I can handle that. And before he left, he says, oh, and by the way, you're also the coroner. I don't touch dead people, OK? And he said, no, he said, don't worry about it. Nobody ever dies around here. If somebody would happen to die, you know, there's a thing in the back of the rig. It's that thing, you know, you kind of put it in your ears and you have a little thing on your hand, you just kind of stick it on their neck there. And if they don't have a heartbeat, then you just go back to the office and type up a little report, put it in that little file that's a corner file. But don't worry, nobody ever dies. We'll see you later, you know, nine days later. And off he goes to South Dakota or Minnesota or somewhere, I'm not sure where. And he goes off and there I am, the chief deputy sheriff. in Hooker County, Nebraska, 9931. Oh, my wife was a dispatcher, too. No, we didn't have cans and strings. We actually had a phone. And on day one or two, I don't remember what it was, a couple days into that thing, you know, I get a call from the Pioneer Memorial Nursing Home. Chief Deputy Mark Danielson, oh, actually he dies the only deputy. Chief Deputy Mark Danielson says, yeah, Deputy Danielson, I need to report to you that someone has died. Just a second. Liar! Right? You said nobody ever died around here. And so I put on my gun belt, wrapped it around me twice, put on my shirt that hung down to my knees. and got in my cruiser and turned on my red lights and slapped the one on the top and off I go to Pioneer Memorial Nursing Home. Code three. And I'm going up there and I get out of the vehicle and I forget to get the thingy out of the back. And so I go into the nurse's desk and I go, here, I'm Deputy Danielson. And she's looking at me and thinking I have this horrible feeling of inadequacy coming over me. I'm like, what am I doing here? I'm just so scared to death. I don't even know what I'm doing here, and I've never had any medical treatment. I don't even know how to put a Band-Aid on, and they want me to pronounce somebody dead. So I go, she escorts me back to room 102, bed B, and there, laying in that bed, was a lady, and her hand is pointing up, and her fingers pointing up to the ceiling like that. And I'm looking at her, thinking, I don't know if she's dead or not. And so I walk over next to her. I said, don't think I'm going to smell either. I held my breath the whole time. And I look up at the ceiling to see what she's pointing at. I had no idea there wasn't anything up there. I think she might've been pointing at the person who was leaning over top of her when she took her final breath. But anyway, here's this blessed soul. And let me say this. You know, I found out later this woman had trusted Christ as her savior. And I don't know what she's pointing at, but I know where her eternal soul was because of her faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. That's what I know for sure. So anyway, I walked into the room. The nurse escorts me in there. There's a couple of family members sitting to my right. There in the bed was this dear departed lady, and she's laying in the bed, pointing to the ceiling. And something come over me. I said, I told the nurse, I said, I forgot my thingy. I said, can I borrow your thingy? And she's like, what do you mean? I go, what thingy? You know, you put in your ears. Do you know there's a right way and a wrong way to put those things on? The little things point backwards. I don't know, but do my ear holes go back? They go forward, I think. So anyway, I had them on backwards, and I'm twisting this thing around, trying to put this thing on her neck. And I remember Rich says, just put it on her neck and just count to like 30. And if you don't hear a heartbeat, then she's dead. She's gone. And so I closed my eyes, and I'm trying to hold on to this thing. And I'm trying to figure out where to put that thing. I think I finally hit the neck there. I opened up one eye, and I stuck it on her neck. And I listened, and honest to my heart, true story, I heard this dum-dum, dum-dum, dum-dum, dum-dum. And it kept getting louder and faster. And I'm thinking, praise the Lord. Oh, I won't raise a hand. In Mullin, Nebraska, I was a deputy. I told my folks in the church, listen, the only time I want to see a hand up there is if I got a gun on you when I'm arresting you. So we got that settled early. So I'm like, praise the Lord. And we got our first miracle in Mullin, Nebraska, right here. Then finally, some measure of sanity came over me, and I realized, you know what? I think I got my thumb on the end of that little. I was listening to my own heartbeat. I'm alive! And that began this 13 years of law enforcement and pastoral ministry slash church planting slash proclaiming the gospel. And in the course of those 13 years, I began to see that the chief deputy sheriff of of Hooker County, Nebraska, was simply a fulfillment of what the Apostle Peter had said here to his people and via the Word of God to us. Therefore, submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether 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." You know, things were a little more serious in Peter's day. He was not talking about a government that just took away funding for health care or raised their taxes. He was talking about a government that took away their heads and raised them up on wooden crosses. Roman ruler Nero was on the throne, so to speak, and Christians were being drug into the lion's den and killed, and now we just call that government overreach today. But if any time in history there was a time to rebel and stand firm against the persecution that was going on, it would have been then. Nero had reigned 13 years, died at 29 years old or so from unassisted suicide, arranged for the murder of his own mother, blamed Christians for the great fire in Rome, which many historians believe he started himself, and subsequently burned many believers alive at the stake and fed them to wild beasts or crucified them on poles. History taps Nero as the man behind Peter's execution on the cross and Paul's beheading. That's the government. It certainly wasn't like it is today. Life was not easy for believers in Peter's day. Believers want to be warriors and victors, not wussies and victims. But nevertheless, Peter is telling the believers that this is not the time to fight back. In the face of suffering horrible evils, you must still submit. to the authorities. So what does Peter tell him? I thought about this. Imagine Malchus' reaction if Peter was getting ready to sit down and write this. He's probably ducking his head like, ooh, what's Peter going to write and tell him about how to respond to authorities? But Peter says, therefore, Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake. Therefore, it takes us back to verse 12. This isn't hard to figure out. Verse 12 really summarizes and says, you know, that honorable conduct glorifies God. It's essentially what he's saying. Therefore, because honorable conduct brings glory to God, and he's going to explain this in the rest of these verses here. Hold on for just a second. But he looks back to that. Therefore, because honorable conduct glorifies God, submit yourself to every ordinance of man, because God will be glorified in this. He says, submit to authorities for the sake of the Lord. For the sake of the Lord. Hupotasso, which is the word for submit yourselves, in the Aorist passive is really to obey or to be placed under. It's a positional arrangement under something or someone, and he tells us what that is. And it has, I think, as it bears out in scripture, it has really three aspects that are worth mentioning. Number one, it's a positional aspect. You are under. To place below someone, it shows humility. It speaks to humility. To be placed under the authority of another person means that you recognize the authority of that position and you place yourself or submit yourself to that authority. It's positional. It also relates to power. It's yielding the power to another person. It's yielding power or influence in their capacity to make decisions for your life. We do that all the time. We willingly submit to the authorities above us and in doing so we play by their rules. They make the rules, we follow the rules, we're submitting to their power. Not only positionally and with an attitude of humility but also but also through power. And the third thing is direction. We're following the directive of another person, willingly. We're yielding our will, our co-native side of us, the side where we actually make the decisions in life, where thoughts and beliefs become activities. At that very point there, we're yielding to those things. So we're placing ourselves under, We're yielding to the power, we're making decisions, we're being led by other people. That's what we're doing. Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man. It's interesting that this is a word for every human creation. human framework that is designed by man for the purpose of administrating the activities of man. And so, the word is catesis, which is a human creation. That which humans have created, we align ourselves in order under the authority, under those ordinances, we become submissive to them. This isn't really hard to understand that. We've done that our whole lives. We understand what it's like to live under the rule and reign of those laws or those embodiment of laws and those people that enforce them. Some of us do that better than others. I remember the first speeding ticket I got. I just didn't want to tell my dad. He was a secret service agent and he had a really dim sense of humor to come to violating the law. I thought he was going to throw me in jail for it, you know. Whoa, that was bad. I was only going like eight over, too. It's like, now I do that all the time. No, I don't. Just checking to see if you're listening. Every, every ordinance of man. Look at verse 15, or 13, excuse me. Whether to the king of supreme, or to the governors or to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of those who do good. Peter explains who those are. The king, the governors are those sent by him. Paul explains that these institutions are set up ultimately by God. Turn back to Romans chapter 13 for just a second. That's to your left. Let every, verse one, let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God. And the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore, whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God. And those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. I love that verse in law enforcement. It's like, that's my life verse right there. I didn't want that verse when I got pulled over for speeding though, that's for sure. But Paul is clarifying and saying these institutions, these human institutions are set up by God for the administration of rule and order. We'll talk about why they're important. Because they have a function in society. Verse 4, for he is God's minister, to you for good, but if you do evil, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain, for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore, you must be subject, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience sake." I love both Peter and Paul using the preposition to drive through this idea that for the sake of the purpose of what they set forth that there's a course of action to follow. We submit for the sake of the Lord. We submit for conscience sake that we go through that item to the goal or the destination or the reason for it. It's a beautiful picture in Scripture giving us the reason why we do these things. For the Lord's sake. For the sake of conscience. Turn back to 1 Peter for just a second here, or for the rest of our time, I guess. 1 Peter chapter 2. And I want to give you four purposes here to answer the question why we should submit. What's the point of it? And they come right out of the text. Number one is in verse 13. It's for the Lord's sake. Just mention that. And we saw that also in verse 12. For the Lord's sake is the first purpose of why we submit or why we are called to submit to governing authorities. For the Lord's sake. That honorable conduct glorifies God. That's a general thing. And it's going to become a little more specific here. Look in verse 14, or to the governors as those who were sent by him, here it is, for, there's a purpose, for the punishment of evil doers and for the praise of those who do good. He states another two reasons. Purpose number two of why we submit to governing authorities is for the punishment of evil doers, the punishment of evil doers. Obedience, listen, obedience to authority in our world establishes safety in our society. Why do we have speed limit signs? So we don't get into wrecks. Why do we have rules about how we behave and so that we don't hurt each other? Those rules are established for our safety. And Peter points it out. We submit because if you don't, you're going to be punished. And those people that don't conform will be punished so that you don't become hurt. Pretty simple, really. I mean, punishment or the threat of it reduces crime. A few years into being a deputy, I was driving down the highway out west of Mullen, running radar, not wanting to glory in anybody's sin, just so we're clear about that. But it's a pretty cheap thrill to pinch somebody for speeding, you know, when you're driving down the highway. I mean, they're out there breaking the law, and they could be hurting me. So anyway, so I'm out there running radar, and here comes a car from Colorado. Colorado cars are always... Anybody from Colorado? Okay, I know at least one person is. Yeah, there they are. This doesn't apply to you guys. Okay. People from Colorado are crazy drivers. They drive fast. And anytime you see a Colorado-plated vehicle, it's automatically a citation. You can get them over time. Here come a car tearing down the highway. And the chief deputy sheriff just happened to be out there. I flipped on my radar. They were like 25 or 30 over the speed limit. So I pull them over. And inside the vehicle were three or four, yeah, I think there were three, very nicely dressed Colorado people. And they're wearing nice, nicer clothes than what I have on. And they're looking really good, very trimmed up and neat. And they're in this car. And they are not happy to see me. I don't expect people to be like, oh, hey, it's great to see you. Glad you're going to get my wallet for $250 tonight. And I don't expect that at all. But nevertheless, I pulled them over, and they are mad. Like, what are we doing? There's nobody out here anyway. I said, sir, I pulled you over for speeding. And I need to see your driver's license, registration, proof of insurance, please. And being from Colorado, I'm sure you have it. And the way you drive, I'm sure you've got it handy right there. And he is so indignant that I would pull him over. And he says, there's nobody out here. And I said, well, I believe I'm out here. And he's right. I was the only one. And my pen is starting to leak in my pocket. You know what I'm saying? I'm like, oh, it's wanting to leak all over a citation. So I go back to the car and I write up a citation. I give him the whole thing. I think it was $226 fine. And I go back out. And he is, sir, you need to sign it. I don't need to sign that. I said, sir, you, you, you need to sign it. You know, signing this citation is non-admission of your guilt. Only promise to appear in court or take care of this fine prior to this date by mail. So I need to have you sign it. He says, I'm not going to sign it. I said, sir, I need to inform you. If you not sign it, I'll extricate you through that window and take you to jail. He says, I'll sign it. So he signs it, give him a copy. And I go back home. That speed limit sign is there for the protection of people. So the next day, I'm not on duty, okay? I'm at home, and Cindy and I are just doing home things, you know, and get excited and talking about things, and you know, and here comes this car. My cruiser's parked around back, and here comes this car in my driveway. I'm thinking, uh-oh, this is not good. I thought, what are we going to do? He must be coming after me. He must know where I live. He's going to complain. My gun's, like, clearing the house. You know, it's like, and this guy gets out of the car, and I don't have my uniform on. You know, I look like this? No, I don't. Blue jeans, yeah. And he goes, hello, sir. He says, have you noticed that today in society, the world's just getting worse and worse? And I see in his hand, he's holding a bunch of Jehovah's Witness literature. And I thought, hallelujah, this is going to be fun. I said, oh, yes, sir, I sure do. I just know that people, he says, you know, people just don't seem to have a respect for the law these days, do they? And I thought, this can't be true. And I said, well, sir, why don't you just come on in the house with me? Let's sit down and talk about that. And so these other two people stayed in the car and he came into the house with me. Now, when they come to my house, I always open up the door, invite them in, give them dinner, tea and everything else. And I positioned myself just between them and the door. Come on in, sit down. And so we begin to have this conversation, and he's talking about how the moral element of the world is going bad and bad, you know, worse and worse, and that people need God in their lives, and I'm just nodding my head, going, yep, yep, yep, yep, yep, I agree with you completely. And finally, finally, I just couldn't handle him more. I said, sir, you don't really remember me, do you? And he looks at me, and the color just left his face. Sometimes I feel bad for people caught in those situations, but I didn't then. Submit to every ordinance of man as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evil doers. Our world is made safer. Our world is made safer. Prison, we incarcerate people. It reduces crimes. This is simply it does until they get out. I mean, the death penalty, it is a deterrent for crime to those who suffer the fate of the sword. Purpose number three. It's in verse 14. not only for the punishment of evildoers, but Peter mentions that it's for the praise of those who do right. And so you see two different opposing purposes, one for the punishment of evildoers and another for the praise of those who do right. Obedience to authority not only establishes safety in our society, but it brings recognition that God is operative in the lives of his children. I believe he's saying that there, which results in his glory. He says that for the praise of those who do good. He just said this is for the Lord's sake that honorable conduct glorifies God and the recognition of those who do right. You know it's easy to tell in many ways those who just have a a natural inclination to put themselves under the authority of the, or submission to the authorities. Because you see that evidenced in their lives. How does that work? Look at verse 15. He tells us, for this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. To put to silence is a word that means muzzle. To shut the mouth. To leave someone speechless. That's what submission to authority does to those who are always leveling their comments against the believers. Peter says, it shuts their mouth. Not only does it punish them that do evil, not only do they praise those who do right, but it silences the ignorance of foolish men. Out of the mouths of foolish men comes ignorant speech. It's true with religion, it's true with government, it's true with higher education, and submitting to authorities is part of the equation God uses for us to silence the mouth of those who make those accusations. That's how submission honors God. It's done for the Lord's sake, for the punishment of evildoers, for the praise of those who do right, and to put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. What are the limitations of submission? I mean, we're always thinking in our minds, so, you know, and that's usually where our minds gravitate. As I studied this passage, the first thing is, okay, what's the exception to it? It's like, that's dangerous thinking, isn't it? Well, you're supposed to submit, so what's the exception? When do we not submit? And that's how we naturally gravitate, because we have a sinful desire that oftentimes wants to resist authority or resist any type of controlling or governing or influence in our lives. And that's where my mind went right away. There are limitations to it. I think we know that. We're not going to spend a lot of time here. But in verse 16, he says, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Put to silence ignorance of foolish men as free people, as free people, yet not using your liberty as a cloak for vice." Let me say this first of all, and to state what I would think would be a theological maxim here is that God never contradicts himself, so when the command of a government violates the precepts of God, the believer is ultimately not obligated to obey. We saw that in Acts 4. But I think secondly, and we could spend the rest of the night talking about that, but I want to move to the second issue of the limitation of submission, because I think it's probably more prominent in this area and more applicable to our own time and our own life, that number two, submission honors the position but it doesn't have to respect the person. And that's what he's talking about. These are about honoring the positions that God has instituted as a framework for man. An example for that would be Jesus and Pilate. Do you remember in John 19, you know, Pilate said, do you not know that I have the power to crucify you and the power to release you? And what was his response to Pilate? You remember that. You could have no power at all against me if it were not given to you from above, respecting the position, but not the person. But he asks us to agree with the spiritual element and output and the moral output of a person. but we can still respect the position. And I think that's one of the limitations. Jesus honored the position, but he didn't necessarily respect the person. What are the threats to submission? Live as free people. Live as free people. We're not under the requirements of the Mosaic Law. We've been set free from the condemnation of the Mosaic Law. Believers live under the operative realm of God's grace. But he says here, do not use your freedom as a cover-up or a cloak or to conceal evil works. It's easy to think, well, what does he mean by that? What's a practical application of that? I think we could find a lot of them in our society today. I think one of them is if you cheat on your taxes, God isn't going to kill you. because you're under grace and not under law. We don't execute people for cheating on their taxes. But he says don't do it. Don't do it. Don't use your liberty as a way to cover up evil activity. I was driving down the highway, the same one. We only had one. That's why I kept driving down it. And there was a van driving down the highway, tearing it up. And it had a big old sign in the back of its window. And it said, we're on a mission from God. And I thought, this is going to be fun. I mean, I want to be on a mission from God. I'm a pastor, and I'm a cop. And so I pulled this van over, and it was full of kids. They had a sign, we're on a mission from God. It had South Dakota plates. And I don't remember what church they were from, like Duluth? No, they weren't. They and they were they were driving down there going back or from a mission trip and said we're on a mission from God I said, well, it must be a pretty important mission be driving that fast They thought that somehow because We're on a mission from God that we have a right to get there quick and or something or they were you know, like a lot of folks there in the Sandhills and I pulled one over one time and I pulled them over and I'm getting ready to ride a ticket, you know, and I noticed that the person in the passenger seat is jumping up and down in the seat like this. And I'm like, what's going on there? It's like they're bouncing on the seat. And I said, we're trying to get to the restroom. You have to know the Sandhills, there's no restrooms out there. We just use trees. There's no trees out there either. So we're driving down, yeah, and so I'm like, I'm like, wow, okay, hey, you know what, I don't want to be the cause of the problem here, why don't you just drive the five miles into town to the gas station, I'll meet you there. And so they took off, and I'm telling you what, I just about, you know, I almost pulled them over and gave them another ticket, but anyway. So I pull in there behind them, and they're in there doing their thing, and dad comes back out, and I said, why don't you give me your license registration? And I wrote the guy a ticket. I felt horrible. I feel bad about that even to this day. No, I don't. So I wrote them a ticket and they said, you know, we only have one request. Is this money be used to build bathrooms along the highway? So I bought a five gallon bucket and threw it out by mile marker 188. We're on a mission from God. Why is Peter's summary in verse 17 is so important. I love the way this distinguishes between the levels of submission, the way we submit to man and the way we submit to God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, and honor the king. If we start and view those as steps, we start at the bottom, and let's put those together. honor all people, we honor the king. And then we take a step up, agapao, agape love, love the brotherhood. And then we take another step up and we fear or revere or have reverence for God. I love the order. It's a great framework for me in life to put this together and say, my level of submission and commitment is to honor and respect the people and the king, as long as they're... No, never mind. And then love the brotherhood and then to revere God. Revere God. He moves from verse 17 to verse 18 with another thought. So what about the folks in your own home? The idea of submission to masters or perhaps slave owners or employers to another level of relationship away from the institutions of man to the institution of a home. And he says here, servants, verse 18, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. Wait a second. Let me read that again. Be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. This is an incredible verse of grace here. Let's just look at it a little closer. Submit, same word, upotasso. He says, position yourself below that authority, below the authority of good masters. That's easy to do. I love working for this person. I love being submissive to him. But also to evil masters. Scolios, or you get the word scoliosis, crooked, twisted, perverted, evil. Evil masters. Seriously? Why? Notice what he says. For this is commendable. Circle that word if you like drawing in your Bible. Write it down. It's the same word in the New Testament translated grace. Grace. Chorus. It's grace. This is commendable. Here's what's going on. He says, for this is commendable, verse 19, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongly. For this is commendable. This is a picture of grace. This is gracious. If one endures suffering according to their conscience, for not doing anything wrong. If a believer's conscience motivates suffering for the right reason, then God is glorified through the picture of grace. It's really what he's saying here. He's saying here you are getting something that you do not deserve. Wait a second. That's a pretty good definition of grace. to receive something that you do not deserve and you cannot merit and you cannot earn. That's a beautiful picture of eternal life that Jesus Christ offers as a free gift of His grace when we put our trust and faith in Him alone. We receive the gift of eternal life and no one can take it away. And he says, when you are working for someone, and you're doing good, and you're suffering for it, you're getting something you don't deserve, and that's commendable. It's commendable. It's gracious. Well, let's see if the opposite is true. Look at verse 20. For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. So in verse 20, he says that endurance for suffering associated with sin is not commendable to God because we're getting what we deserve. Therefore, it's not grace. It's not gracious at all. And I love the reminder and it's amazing as he sits there and he pins these words because you know where he's going. You know this verse, don't you? You know what's on the mind of the Apostle Peter. He is moving from submission to suffering. He's making the connection between putting ourselves under the authority of another and then suffering for it. And then that being a picture of grace. And look at the next verse. Look at verse 21. That's why we know Peter's going there. And don't you love this? For to this you were called. What? Suffering patiently as commendable to God? For to this you were called because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow in his steps. Unbelievable. a loaded verse in the word of God. For to this, what is this? Demonstrating grace, to which you were called because, for the purpose of, knowing that Christ also suffered, here's substitution, for us, his suffering in our place, leaving us an example. a hupogrammos, a pattern of writing, a form, an example. It's almost like a sampler where the forms of the letters exist in the sample of this writing and it's set before us. He said, that's the writing before you that Christ suffered for you and you were called because He is an example of that. He's connecting suffering with submission to authorities. and then connecting that to the example of Christ. The word follow means to just place your feet in the same imprints as the person that you're following, to take step after step after step after step. Believer, understand the reason why. Understand the reason why that you that you suffer, because it is providing a picture, following the example of Jesus, providing a picture that brings glory to God. Jesus Christ is clearly being portrayed as a supreme example in verses 21 to 25. Look at verse 22, who committed no sin, it's a quote from Isaiah 53.9, who committed no sin nor his 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." Peter is walking us down and saying, suffer in the same manner as Jesus. Because that's an example to the world about what Christ has provided through grace. That's exciting. That's incredible to think about that. When you suffer, you're fulfilling the calling of your life to become a witness and a follower of Jesus Christ. It has purpose. It has meaning. It has a testimony and a witness to the grace of God. And he does that all through this book. In verse 22, he did not provide or provoke his own suffering through sin. We know that. And we've just been instructed to submit and suffer without accusation. Verse 23, reviled and insulted without yelling back. Insulted, yelled at, screamed at, railed. All of those. He suffered without threatening back. Think of how many times we suffer and we sit there and we complain and whine and moan and go through all these things. Why am I going through this? Because it has been granted on behalf of you to suffer for the name of Jesus. To embrace that. Not like we want it. But it is a testimony to the grace of God. He committed the judgment in righteousness to the Father. It's a beautiful picture. He committed Himself to Him who judges righteously. Understanding that in the same manner, that which we receive. God is aware of and he will use it for his glory. Commit your judgment to God just as Jesus did. You will be unjustly judged and punished in this life by this world, no question about it, just like Jesus. Take heart, but commit your judgment to God. Verse 24, and Peter can't stay away from the essence of the gospel as to why all of this is possible. We could spend six weeks on one verse. Verse 24, Who, read it with me, 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. There's like a volley going back and forth, the work of Christ on behalf of us. the work of Jesus in his body on the tree for our benefit, for our spiritual healing. Verse 24 is the work of the Savior. The work of our Savior was substitutionary in nature. He bore our sins. His work, our sins. Not his sins. His work, our sins. His body, our sins. Substitutionary. It's the work of the Savior. The word bore on a furrow is an aorist act of indicative. It's completed. He did it. It's a fact. It means to carry a burden, to offer a sacrifice. Jot down Hebrews 7 27. We won't go there because of time. But Christ bore our sins in his own body on the tree. He offered or carried the burden or the sacrifice and placed it making an efficacious payment for our sin debt upon his body at no cost to us. And we appropriate that, the benefit of that by placing our trust, confidence, belief upon his finished work of what he has done. He died for our sins and he was buried and rose again the third day according to the scriptures. And when we trust Him and believe in Him, we receive the benefit of that, which is eternal life that begins at the moment we trust Christ alone on a basis of His grace. It is so simple and so profound. The work of our Savior was also sacrificial in nature, was substitutionary in nature, but it was sacrificial in nature. It says that in verse 24, having that He bore our sins in His own body on the tree, on the cross. He took full payment for our sins. He didn't take our sins to the church or to the altar. He took them to the cross. He bore them upon His body on the cross. The payment for our sins is in view here. And look in verse 24b, or c, or d. that you might live for righteousness. I think we're talking here from the work of Christ, the work of the Savior, to the benefit of man. That we, having died to sins, Paul said, I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless, I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me. In the life, I now live in the flesh. I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. Identification truth in the death of Jesus Christ. This is a key to surviving the suffering that submission brings. It's found right here. Give me the drum roll. It's found in the gospel. That's how we survive suffering in this life. Not only do we receive the gift of eternal life, but we find the power through the lens of the gospel to survive suffering in this life, to deal with suffering. He says, take heart, Jesus went through this. You're now identified with him. Your sins are identified with him on the cross. You have the power to move forward and appropriate that. It's not found in therapy. It's not found in history. It's not found in psychology. It's not found in retribution. It's not found by hiding. It's not found by meditation or medication. It's not found by running. It's found by recognizing that your identity in Jesus Christ is having died to sins. is a prescription to endure suffering in this world. We can't miss the connection between submission, suffering, and the sufficiency of the gospel. It's right here. It's right here. And there's a conclusion by whose stripes or wounds you were healed. Some believe in the physical healing, and there's no question that someday we'll receive a new body, but this is spiritual healing. That means on the account of Jesus' death and resurrection, He is able to offer man the free gift of eternal life. So that if man receives this gift of grace by faith alone in the substitutionary death and resurrection of Jesus Christ alone, he is healed for eternity and nothing can rip him from the grasp of God's hand. Your evil government can't do it. Your family can't do it. Your evil boss can't do it. No one can. That's identity truth. And verse 25, for you are like sheep going astray and you have now returned to the shepherd and the overseer of your souls. How does verses 24 and 25 show the relationship between positional truth and practical reality? Don't miss it. Isn't it amazing how positional truths, everywhere you see in scripture, the positional truths are connected to practical realities, appropriating those by faith, and living in light of the promises of God, and letting those practical realities be a motivation for the activity of our lives. The gospel drives your motivation and your ability to live in such a way that we embrace suffering. We embrace it, knowing that God has a purpose in it, knowing that He'll be glorified, knowing that the gospel will be promoted, knowing that our sins are forgiven, knowing that we have a standing before God. In suffering, we find the joy of living as Jesus did and the power to become a witness for the gospel. the grace of God. Remember the example of Christ's suffering, because his suffering brings not only the positional standing, but also the practical power that we need to endure the trials of this life. Let's pray. Father, I thank you so much for the richness of the Word of God. And, oh Lord, we've just skimmed the surface of this passage of Scripture. And I pray that you would take the truths that were talked about tonight and embed them into the minds and hearts of the believers for your glory. We give you the praise and the honor and thank you for the incredible work of Christ that provides the benefits of eternity as well as time. Glorify yourself in the lives of the believers here. I pray in Jesus' name and for the sake of Jesus, amen.