Please turn with me in your Bibles to 2 Peter, 2 Peter chapter 1. We will be looking at verses 8 to 11 this morning, but I'm going to read from the beginning of the letter down, beginning of the chapter, verse 1 down to verse 11 for sake of context, and then we will Look at what God has to teach us this morning. 2 Peter 1, verse 1, Peter writes, Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ, to those who have received the same kind of faith as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ, Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the full knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord, seeing that his divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness through the full knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence. For by these he has granted to us his precious and magnificent promises, so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust. Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these things are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For in whom these things are not present, that one is blind, being nearsighted, having forgotten the purification from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make your calling and choosing sure. For in doing these things, you will never stumble. For in this way, the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be abundantly supplied to you. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank you for these words. These words which were written to your people in a time and place for their instruction, for their edification, for their faith, and we thank you that they are recorded for us as well for the same reasons. And we pray, Lord, as we come to these words, that you would help us to focus on them. We pray that you would illuminate our minds by the power of your spirit, that you would guide us, that you would help us to understand these words, to see the implications and the applications for our own lives and our own time and place, that we would remember these words and that you would plant them deep in our hearts and minds and that they would bear fruit. They would bear fruit unto sanctification for those who are yours and perhaps for salvation for those who have yet to repent and believe upon you. And I pray, Lord, that you would guide me as I preach your words, that you would speak through me and even in spite of me and my own weaknesses and frailties and sin, and that your people would hear your words and that your words would impact their hearts for their benefit and for your glory. It's in Christ's name we pray. Amen. This is a third message now in our exposition of Peter's second letter, which he wrote to these believers. It's the same group of believers that we see in the beginning of his first letter, those believers who have been scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia, regions in modern-day Asia Minor or Turkey. And those who have been scattered primarily because of persecution, fleeing persecution, and maybe even going through persecution or about to enter persecution, they are scattered in different regions. And so it's a circular letter, the first Peter and second Peter. And as he says in chapter three, verses one and two of chapter three, He is stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder. He says this is a second letter I'm writing to you, similar purpose, that they would remember, that they would remember the words spoken by the prophets and by the apostles concerning the commandments of our Lord and Savior, basic discipleship issues concerning the Christian life, but also concerning their salvation and living in light of their salvation, and especially in the face of suffering. Second Peter continues not only in that theme but has another theme concerning false teachers. And so he prepares them not only for suffering, to be faithful in suffering, but also to be faithful in the midst of false teaching and to bolster them in their faith, to build them up in their faith so that they would be discerning and would not fall prey to the false teachers. But as he wrote in 1 Peter, he does the same in 2 Peter, reminding them once again of their great salvation in Christ, verses 1 and 2 of chapter 1, of God's abounding grace which He has granted to every believer. Even Peter himself says to those believers of like faith, of equal faith, that there's not so much a greater degree of faith in terms of your standing before God as a believer. There's different offices and giftings, but you have the same faith as the apostles. And so also, strengthening them against any lies of the false teachers. He reminds them of their great salvation, of their like faith, of God's abounding grace, which has granted to every believer everything we need for life and godliness, verses 3 and 4. And that because of this, we are to apply all diligence and supply to our faith or fortify our faith, what we saw last week, with these Christ-like virtues, which he lists in verses 5 to 7. And then now, in verses 8 to 11, we see him continue his argument by emphasizing these things. And that's the key word. I want you to see these things, or some translations have these qualities. Things or qualities is actually a supplied word. The original quite literally just says, for if these are yours, and referring back, that demonstrative pronoun, referring back to its antecedent of these virtues. these Christ-like virtues that we are to supply to our faith. And as we saw last week even, this is not so much a comprehensive list. There's other passages in the New Testament which speak of moral virtues and qualities, Christ-like virtues that we are to exhibit as evidence of our faith. We think of Galatians 5 and the fruits of the Spirit, other lists that Paul writes, and it's not a comprehensive list. And there's also a sense that it's not as if we apply one and then the other. that they build upon one another. We do see that they start with faith and it ends with love, but all these things are to be present in our lives. And then he gets to these verses and he continues the same argument, but he shows us now implications concerning these qualities. And as we see that key word, these things, or these qualities, I want you to see implications concerning these things. In these few verses, there are particularly three serious and significant implications concerning these Christ-like virtues. You can see them in different categories. The first category would be the positive implications. the positive implications of these things. What are the positive implications if these things are present in our lives? And he lists two positive implications in verse 8. For if these things are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful, in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. There's two positive implications concerning these qualities. Positive implications if they are ours. The first would be spiritual effectiveness. Spiritual effectiveness. That if we have these qualities and not imperfection because we won't reach perfection until heaven, but if they are ours, and as he says, are increasing, that if we exhibit even the minimal amount, but we are growing, then we won't be useless nor unfruitful in our service to God. We will be spiritually effective in our Christian life. We will be competent competent in the exercise of our spiritual gifts and our abilities, we will be useful to our Lord and Master in whatever task or area of service that He has providentially marked out for us in our particular time and season and place of life on this earth, that we will be useful to the Master. It may even bring to your mind those words which Paul wrote to Timothy. that if anyone cleanses himself of these things that he will be useful to the Master. And he talks about those different vessels in a house using that illustration that we would be useful to the Master. And that should be our desire. We should be desiring to be useful to our Lord and Master or even as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians, that we have as our aim to be pleasing to Him. This is the goal of the Christian life, to be pleasing to Christ, to be useful to Him, to obey Him, to make Him known. We do that by being competent in the exercise of our gifts and abilities. That begins with pursuing Christlikeness, being faithful, exhibiting these virtues. Also, our spiritual effectiveness is not just the sense of competency, but in another aspect, this metaphor of being fruitful. We see this metaphor used several times in the New Testament. Last week I pointed you to the spiritual fruits or the fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5. Most of us are familiar with that passage, but this fruitfulness, essentially meaning being godly in your influence and in your impact. More of those character traits of being fruitful and there is a sense John MacArthur has pointed out that there is two sides or two aspects of the fruits of the Spirit. There's those attitude fruits, which is we see that in most of them, but also action fruits. But I want you, just by way of reminder, to turn with me to John chapter 15. Most of you are familiar with this passage, but Jesus himself, using this metaphor of fruitfulness, and that we are called to be fruitful as believers, and even linking that back to him, that we can only be fruitful so much as we are abiding in him. As he says to his disciples in John 15, I am the true vine and my father is a vine grower. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away. And every branch that bears fruit, he cleans it so that it may bear more fruit. You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. You don't want to press this metaphor too far, but there is a sense that every believer will bear fruit, but then there's also seasons in which we bear more fruit than other seasons. Seasons in which we may not be bearing so much fruit, and there may be a sense where he's pruning us. He's disciplining us. Not so much a discipline for sin, but a discipline for training. so that we may bear more fruit in the future. And so our fruit-bearing is not just according to the season or according to whether or not we are in Him. It's also according to our gifting. But it begins with abiding in Him. And we'll be more fruitful the more we abide in Him. As he continues, verse 4 of chapter 15, from itself unless it abides in the vine. So neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him, he bears much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing. Apart from me, you can do nothing. That's a great reminder. You can do nothing of spiritual value, nothing in the spiritual realm. You can obviously do things, unbelievers do things apart from Him, and sometimes even moral things. And that will be a theme in our passage, that there is a sense in which even unbelievers can be moral backsliding believers can backslide into immorality and yet still be a believer, but be indistinguishable from unbelievers. John goes on to record Jesus' words in John 15, 6. If anyone does not abide in me, he is thrown away as a branch and dries up, and they gather them and cast them into the fire and they are burned. If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples." That's in a sense of what Peter is getting at in 2 Peter 8-11, that we would bear much fruit, and by that fruit bearing and pursuing Christlikeness, we would prove to be disciples of Christ. We would give evidence of our saving faith, evidence of God's work in our lives by how we live. that we would be spiritually effective. That is the first implication of if these virtues are ours. But then the second implication, because he says this, he says this, that if these things are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. And so that raises a question, how does the presence and the increase of these things relate to the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ? That brings up the second implication. The second positive implication is that if these things are yours and are increasing, they not only cause us to be spiritually effective, but they also lead to spiritual intimacy. that we grow in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because as I pointed out last week, our knowledge that, and even Peter uses this. In this word, we see knowledge in a few places, talking about the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, because the false teachers claim to have a knowledge of God. But by their works, they denied him. And sometimes false teachers are not easily discernible. But with their false teaching will come false fruits, and eventually those false fruits will be evident. But if we are growing in Christ and growing in the knowledge of our Lord, we will have spiritual intimacy or a fuller knowledge of Him that will be evident in how we live our life, that we will walk as He walked, we will live as He lived. I think Peter is getting at not just an intellectual knowledge of facts about Christ and knowing His word that begins there, but it grows into a greater spiritual intimacy with Christ so that as we apply His Word, that we're not merely hearers of the Word, but doers, as James says, that as we apply His Word, We grow more like Him, and we grow closer to Him, and there's a greater relational knowledge with Christ, and even, as I dare say, an experiential knowledge of Christ that is in the realm of the subjective, but it is there. It begins with the objective Word and knowledge of Christ, but we continue living in accord with the Word, and as we live in accord with the Word and obey the Word of Christ, we grow in our union with Christ, our intimacy with Christ, our deeper knowledge of Christ. A great commentator, Thomas Schreiner, he says this concerning this verse. He says, Perhaps the opponents are particularly in view since their libertine lifestyle contradicts their profession of faith. Peter likely means that they give no evidence that their conversion is genuine. At the same time, those growing in virtue will not travel the road of the false teachers. So he's pointing out the fact that your faith should not just be superficial or just be full of facts about Christ. And perhaps some of us, and we have met people like that, who perhaps they've grown up in the church, perhaps they've been around the church, that they know the scriptures and they can quote the scriptures, but their life does not it does not match. And there's a sense that even true believers, there's inconsistencies and we're not as faithful as we ought to be. But there is a greater distinction between those false teachers and false professors than a true believer or there should be. And we should bear these fruits and we should exhibit these Christ-like virtues. And if we do so, we will grow in the full knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. We will be spiritually effective. We will be spiritually fruitful. And we will have a greater degree of spiritual intimacy with our Lord and Savior. That is a positive implication Peter draws out concerning these virtues. But then he goes to the negative. implications concerning these virtues. Verse 9, For in whom these things are not present, that one is blind. being nearsighted, having forgotten the purification from his former sins." He moves to the negative implications of those, and he's speaking to believers here, those whom these Christ-like virtues are not present, or they're not distinguishable, they're not evident. And he lists two major negative implications of the one who does not have these things, or they're not present, they're not evident. That person will exhibit spiritual blindness. He will be blind, being nearsighted. And clearly, that is a metaphor referring to spiritual blindness, not physical blindness. But we see this metaphor being used. The Apostle John uses it in his first letter. We see him, John, use the metaphor of darkness and light, of one who is blinded because he's walking in the darkness. And this can happen to a believer. 1 John 2. In verse 9, John writes this, and if you're familiar with 1 John, you know that it is somewhat a list of tests to test whether or not you're in the faith or to test the false believers or false teachers, that's probably more along the lines of the test, but he gives these different aspects by which a believer can assure themselves. And he says in 1 John 2, 9, the one who says he is in the light, yet hates his brother, is in the darkness until now. The one who loves his brother abides in the light and there is no cause for stumbling in him. But the one who hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness and does not know where he is going because the darkness has blinded his eyes." And he's speaking primarily of the believer who's walking in sin, who's walking in darkness. There is also a sense that even as he talks about love and hate, love for one another, or even hatred in our heart, you don't have to be a Christian long to know that you don't love everyone the way you're supposed to. Hopefully, you grow in your love for others, but there are times when you even are convicted by hatred in your heart for one another. You're frustrated with others, but there is a progression here. If what's primarily in your heart and is coming out of your heart through your mouth and your actions is hatred, frustration, division, irritability rather than love, and patience, and all the different aspects of love, which even Paul defines in 1 Corinthians 13. If there's more hatred than love, then you're walking in darkness. And if there's so much so, then your testimony and your faith, your salvation, comes into question. And you even become indistinguishable from the unbeliever. And so this is what Peter writes, this is what John writes, that if you're a believer in Christ, then you should walk as Christ walked. We won't achieve that standard perfectly until we see Him face-to-face and are in heaven, but there should be a progression. as we grow, and yes, sometimes it is two steps forward, three steps back, and we stumble and we fall at times, but over the course of our life, we should be growing, and I've said this before, others have said this, that there's a different spectrum of believers, and some can be maybe overconfident, and not see their flaws. Others can be maybe morbidly introspective where they're focusing too much on themselves and maybe their falls in the day-to-day. But we measure our sanctification not in days and weeks, but in months and years, in months and years. And we should be able, as a believer, you should be able to look over the past year and see some bit of growth. either in understanding, growing in your knowledge of God, but more than just your intellectual knowledge, but your applied knowledge and walking in Him. And if these qualities, these Christ-like virtues are not yours, then there is a spiritual blindness. There is a nearsightedness. And then that even leads to the second negative implication of a spiritual amnesia. At the end of verse 9 he says, having forgotten the purification from his former sins. And so even as he speaks, he's speaking primarily to believers who are not walking faithfully. are not walking in holiness, are not walking in the light, but in darkness. And the darkness is blinding their eyes. And so they lack spiritual discernment. They have spiritual amnesia. They've perhaps even forgotten their salvation. And so that leads to doubts. It leads to fear. It leads to lack of assurance. And that's one of the next things Peter will speak about. This passage, it speaks a lot about assurance. Assurance of our salvation and tying it to our faithfulness, our holiness, our walk, our fruitfulness. Whether or not we understand what God has saved us for. that He is conforming us into the image of Christ and that we are to also work out our own salvation with fear and trembling for His God who works in us both to will and to work, Philippians 2, 12 and 13. That there is work for us to do, not for salvation, no one is saved by works, it's by grace through faith that no one may boast, but we are His workmanship created for good works. We're not saved by works, but we're saved for works. And we are to work out our faith. We are to work out our salvation. We are to, in effect, be active in pursuing Christ-likeness and holiness, putting off the deeds of the flesh and putting on the fruits of the Spirit, putting off sin and putting on righteousness, pursuing holiness and Christ-likeness. John MacArthur, he writes this concerning these verses, he says this, unable to discern his spiritual condition, will have no confidence about his profession of faith. He may be saved and possess all the blessings listed in verses 3 to 4, but without the excellencies of verses 5 to 7, he will live in doubt and fear." And for some of us who struggle with assurance, that may be the case. because we're not applying what we know about God. We're not obeying those commandments we know we ought to obey. We're not pursuing righteousness. Coasting in this Christian life has led to drifting in the Christian life, and drifting will lead to stumbling, and stumbling may lead to serious falling in the Christian life. But if we are saved, we are His. No one can take our faith away, but we are to live faithfully. And so that leads us to the third set of implications. Peter's shown us the positive implications concerning these virtues, these things. He's shown us the negative implications if these things are not present in us, that leads to spiritual blindness, spiritual amnesia. But then he shows us the future implications, or more along the lines of the positive. And this is where he gets to his, probably the The only command here in this passage to apply these things, and then the implications if we do apply them more along the lines of positive, but it has a future aspect. Verses 10 to 11. He says, to make your calling and choosing sure, or some translations, your calling and election sure. For in doing these things you will never stumble. For in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. And so there's some future implications here. There's a near future implication, our present life or the near future as we progress in the Christian faith, and then there's, in a sense, moving into eternity, somewhat of a far future, but there is a future aspect. If we apply these things, then there's implications that we will be secure and steadfast. We will have, first implication, spiritual stability. spiritual stability. We won't be blown about by every wind and wave of doctrine. We won't be like the emotional roller coaster concerning our faith. And some of us are naturally more given to be the type that rides the emotional roller coaster. But as we grow in faith, we should grow in stability, spiritual stability. primarily in our assurance, being sure of our calling and choosing that God has chosen us, that he has called us. Referring to this doctrine of election that we see in We see in John chapter 6, John 3, John 10, we see it in John 15, we see it in Ephesians 1, we see it in Romans 8 very clearly. that we are to be all the more diligent to make your calling and election sure by exhibiting these characteristics. Now, we don't make it sure for God. God knows who are His. He knows who are His children. We are making it sure for ourselves. We are assuring ourselves by walking in Christ because we have been saved by Christ. And as we are obedient, we make for ourselves. And there is this aspect of this verb, to make. It is reflexive. It is in a middle voice, meaning we make ourselves sure by being diligent to apply these virtues. We don't make God sure, God's already sure. 2 Timothy 2.19 reads, Paul writes, he says, nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands. Having this seal, the Lord knows who are his. The Lord knows who are His, those who are His. And everyone who names the name of the Lord is to depart from wickedness. The Lord knows. He's the one that has called you, has chosen you, has drawn you by His Spirit to His Son, has saved you by the sacrifice of His Son. The Lord knows. God knows everyone who is His, but sometimes we don't know. Or we're not sure whether or not we are in the faith. Or we're not sure of others. God knows perfectly those who are his. But as we walk in the faith, as we apply these Christ-like virtues, we assure our own hearts. Once again, John MacArthur, he says this, Romans 8, 31 to 39, we see that golden chain of redemption as he references. He goes on, he says, But he's still secure. And then he draws out, MacArthur draws out this distinction between the security of the believer and the assurance of the believer. He writes, security is a Holy Spirit revealed fact that salvation is forever. Once saved, always saved. If you are saved, no one can take that away from you because it had I want nothing to do with you. It is about God from beginning to end. Salvation is of the Lord. It's of grace from beginning to end. And so no one can snatch us out of God's hand. Nothing will separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus. That's security. That's eternal security. But then assurance, MacArthur writes, is one's confidence that he possesses that eternal salvation. And so though security is fixed, and it is secure, that's why we use that term for that doctrine, eternal security, assurance ebbs and flows. It ebbs and flows according to our knowledge, according to our faithfulness, according to our obedience. This sense, this subjective feeling of assurance by the Holy Spirit, and even linking to being filled with the Spirit. that when we come to faith in Christ, we are baptized by the Spirit, the once for all baptism by the Spirit, uniting us to Christ Jesus, but we're also called to be being filled continually with the Holy Spirit, and we do that by obeying the Spirit's Word. and keeping in step with the Spirit. And if we do that, there will be spiritual stability. Spiritual stability in our lives. A sense of assurance and steadfastness. Steadfastness in our Christian walk and testimony. Listen to what John writes in 1 John. You can turn there for a moment. This is another key passage concerning assurance, 1 John 3. John writes to these believers to assure them whether or not they're in the faith. He says this, 1 John 3, 18, Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth. And by this we will know that we are of the truth and will assure our heart before Him." We will have assurance. If we love not only with word or with tongue, but indeed in truth. If we not only believe the word and know the word, but we apply the word, we will have assurance, and we will know that we are of the truth because we walk in the truth, and we exhibit the fact that we are in the truth, and we will assure our heart before Him. Then he goes on, 1 John 3, 20, and whatever our heart condemns us, because there's those condemning thoughts. I mean, you didn't do this, or can you really believe, and even get to the point of self-pity and pride, not measuring up to the standard which you have in your own mind or your view of your own self. And so then there's self-pity, you're such an idiot, you're dumb, or you're probably not even a believer. And so our heart does condemn us at times. Usually when we sin, and there is a sense where our heart, our conscience, if it's informed by Scripture, it should to a certain degree convict us and bring about a true guilt, not a false guilt. But if we are walking in the truth, if we are being obedient, if we are being faithful, then we are sure our heart, and then in whatever our heart condemns us, for God is greater than our heart and knows all things, there is a sense that there might be false guilt. that our heart's condemning us because of false guilt, because our heart is not fixed, or our conscience has not been fully trained according to Scripture, but our conscience may be bound to human tradition, church tradition, family tradition. And so we feel a sense of false guilt, and our heart is condemning us. But if we are faithful and we're walking in step with the Spirit, in step with His Word, then our heart should assure us. John goes on, he says, Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God, showing a sense of maturity and faithfulness. And whatever we ask, we receive from Him because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight. And so we see that connection between knowledge of God, a surety of salvation by that applied knowledge and working out our salvation and striving towards holiness and Christ-likeness to exhibit those spiritual fruits and those Christ-like virtues that will give us spiritual stability in the here and now, but also second future implication will give us spiritual hope. spiritual hope because he goes on, verse 11, for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. He speaks of spiritual hope and this verse, verse 11, could easily be twisted or misinterpreted to maybe someone might be thinking it speaks to salvation by works, or security by works, or that we're saved by grace through faith, but we have to work to keep ourselves saved. And there's something else that Peter is speaking to here. Not that we could lose the entrance into the kingdom. If we are Christ, we are Christ. And we will be with Him. It's a done deal. No one can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus. No one can snatch us out of His hands. So if we are a true believer, our eternity is sealed. It is sealed. It's a done deal. We will go to heaven. But what Peter is speaking about here is a spiritual hope of living with hope, not living with fear and self-condemnation and lack of assurance and constantly doubting whether or not you are truly saved, whether or not you are truly born again. He's talking about the hope of living with the hope of assurance. And yes, there's also a lesser implication of the hope of eternal rewards. if these virtues are ours, there is some implication of that here, but what Peter is primarily speaking about is that if these virtues are ours, if we are being diligent to apply these things, to do these things, to make our calling and election sure, not sure to God, but sure to us, so that we have assurance, and then that will lead to spiritual stability. Then there is a sense that it will also lead to a spiritual hope of assurance, that we will live in a state of hope, of present hope, in the assurance of our entrance into the eternal kingdom that we are indeed saved and we are indeed Christ because we are following Christ and we're striving to live like Him and to speak like Him and to proclaim Him and so that assures our own hearts that we are His. Spiritual hope, spiritual stability. John MacArthur once again He says this, "...assurance of ones having entered into the eternal kingdom is the experience of the Christian who practices what Peter has listed." And he goes on, he says, "...no believer needs to live with doubt regarding salvation." but he may have assurance abundantly supplied in the presence." That's what Peter's talking about. Our assurance abundantly supplied to us that we are indeed in Christ, and we will be with Christ, and we will enter into His eternal kingdom. We will be transformed into His image, and we will be made just like Him, And we'll see him, and even John once again, and everyone who has this hope fixed upon him purifies himself even as he is pure. And if we have that spiritual hope, we will purify ourselves and we will walk in these things. But there is, and we know there's some here that do not have this hope. And for those of us that do have this hope, we can look at those and we can see evidences that you don't have this hope. Maybe even you know for certain that you're not a believer. And you don't exhibit in these fruits. Or maybe there's a professing believer here who is self-deceived and walking in darkness. And maybe they exhibit a little bit of these fruits, but not all of them. And maybe they're racked with doubt. And the solution is to recognize that you are a sinner and that you deserve eternal condemnation for your sins. You deserve God's wrath for your sins because you have sinned against Him. And He is a just and holy God. And He will bring every act into judgment. He will judge every careless word. And He will uphold His justice and His righteousness, but He is also a forgiving God, and a merciful God, and a gracious God, and a loving God. And He demonstrates His love toward us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. And so we repent and we believe upon Him, but for the believer that is struggling in assurance and maybe walking in sin, the same thing is true. We repent and believe as we did at the first. As even Jesus speaks to the churches in Revelation, to remember from where you have fallen and repent. Remember from where you have fallen in your Christian walk. Repent. Return to Him. Trust that He has saved you. Trust in His provision of every grace needed for life and godliness. Trust that He is able to make you stand, that He is able to equip you, that He is able to empower you to walk according to His commandments, that He would not give you a command that you are unable to fulfill, that He would not also, with that command, give you the necessary resources to fulfill that command. that we are called to be faithful and to believe upon Him and to follow Him and to trust in Him, remembering what He has done for us and sacrificing Himself for us. And that's what we're about to do now as we remember not only His sacrifice and His commands for us to walk as He walked, but to remember His sacrifice as an act of worship. In coming to this table and remembering that Jesus Christ came to this world, took on human flesh, lived a life which none of us could live, and then went to the cross to die the death that we all deserve to die, so that by His wounds we could be healed, and through Him God could be both just and the justifier of those who have faith in Christ Jesus and we celebrate that and we remember that and as we come to the table we're also commanded to examine ourselves to see whether or not we're in the faith but also to examine ourselves to to make sure that we confess any known sins and so that we would not eat of the Lord's Supper in an unworthy manner. And so just before I pray and the men come to distribute the elements, just by way of reminder and instruction that this table here, is for every true believer. You don't have to be a member of this church, but you do have to be a member of Christ's universal church, and you do have to be a true believer to partake of the Lord's Supper. Otherwise, you would partake of it in an unworthy manner. Furthermore, if you're walking in known sin, gross sin, and even unrepentant sin, keyword unrepentant sin, also should not partake of the Lord's Supper, because you would eat of it in an unworthy manner. And even as I mentioned those walking in sin, there is a sense that we all have sins that we need to confess, and it's not perfection but our direction. Do we strive for holiness? And if you are a true believer striving for holiness, this supper is for you, to remember Christ's sacrifice for us and on our behalf. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word. But most importantly, we thank you for your son. We thank you for his perfect life. We thank you for his perfect, once-for-all sacrifice, which cleanses us from our sins, through which we can be forgiven, we can be made whole, and not just have our sin debt cleared, but have his righteousness applied to us so that we would be clothed in his righteousness and be righteous in your sight, not because of what we have done, but because of what He has done and because of what you are doing in our lives to conform us into His image. And so, Lord, I pray, we pray for anyone who is outside of Christ here this morning that they would recognize their sins, that they would recognize the condemnation that they are under. and that by your spirit you would convict them, you would compel them, you would draw them to yourself, and you would convert them, and that they would be born again. And for the struggling believer that struggles with assurance, I pray that you would remind them perhaps of where they have fallen, that they would repent and return, or that you would comfort them and assure them and guide them and direct them and equip them to walk in your ways. But most of all, Lord, we pray that you would cause all of us to reflect upon you and the work of salvation in and through your Son, by your Spirit. And we thank you. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.