All right, go ahead and have a seat. I bring you greetings from hot Southern California, 105 degrees a couple days ago. And my wife is seven months pregnant, eight months pregnant actually. And she's about at that point when she says, get this baby out of me. but she really wishes she could be here with me this weekend and get to know you folks a little bit better and meet you and I know that our hearts are united in longing to be here and longing to fellowship with you, shepherd you and you know I think a church plant is so awesome because you're starting from the ground up. You guys are of the church, right? You know that. You are the body of believers. At the church at large, all believers are together in one sense, but really, when you meet together on Sundays and throughout the week as you fellowship and disciple and spend time with one another, you are representing Christ and growing the body of Christ. And so, keep that up. Keep doing that. I'm excited to be here. in a couple of months. Let me just say one thing real quick. Do pray for me if I can be so selfish just to take a moment and ask for that. Tomorrow morning at nine o'clock I begin a bunch of exams this week for my schooling program and pray for me. Pray that God just miraculously gives me a lot of knowledge. that I don't have right now. And I have a three-hour flight tonight that I'm hoping God can work that miracle and give me all that knowledge that I need. But pray for that. And pray that I can finish my schooling quickly so that we can move and come here. If I haven't met you yet, please meet me afterward. I want to meet you. I want to get to know you and introduce myself and try to get all your names locked away in my brain. What I want to do today is spend some time in God's Word with a topic that I love talking about. And I understand that my father has been teaching and preaching on a church from Matthew chapter 16 and I am so thankful and grateful for a godly man to teach and preach and really fill in the pulpit during this time. But he asked me to teach on how a Christian should live in light of heaven. You know, if you're like me, you can get caught up in this world, right? We can get caught up with our jobs, we can get caught up with family and children and money and friends and activities and sports and those are not bad. But sometimes we forget that this isn't even our home. It's kind of so cliche that we just forget about that. So how are we supposed to live now knowing that our home is really there. Now I want to talk about that today, but before we do, I need to pray and ask God to help me. Let's do that. God, I have been in your throne already this morning, begging you for grace, and I come to you again, asking that you would help me to be clear. But Father, give all of us the gift of illumination so that we might know your word and rightly understand it. And then apply it to our lives so that we would leave this room changed. In Jesus name, amen. So, a man went to war. And you know these stories. A man went to war, left his wife behind, two sons and his newborn daughter. He was away for years across a deep dark ocean which really seemed like galaxies away. And while he was in this far distant land, this soldier labored so hard and he served and evidenced himself to be such a caring and sacrificial soldier that his fellow comrades respected him greatly. His commanders respected him greatly. In fact, he even made headlines because of some of his sacrificial acts at some of the most vicious points in the battle. After being away for years, now, think of this, years, After being away for years, missing the early years of his daughter's life, missing the little league baseball games and the little soccer games of his other son, he was finally able to return home. And after that war was over, news got out that this soldier would be coming back. And that he would be on a flight that would arrive at 9 o'clock on a cold, snowy winter night in New York City. Little did he know that his family, friends, strangers, people he'd never met, and a huge gathering of people were there at the airport to meet him and give him a proper greeting when he finally arrived back on American soil. They wanted to be there when he entered home. You think, imagine that, what an entrance that would have been. What a life, what a sacrifice, what a calling and determination that that man evidenced. His conduct as a soldier validated his commitment to the service and gave him a rich and unforgettable entrance back to really his real home. here in America. And so it should be with your life and my life. That we live in such a way that with the fellow soldiers around us and with the other commanders, as it were, around us, that we are known for our sacrifice and our labor and our diligence and our commitment to the service of not just our human commander, but our heavenly commander. And so that, like that American soldier, he knew that when I go home, I will reach, that's my real home. Not overseas. So it should be with us. That we long for that kind of an entrance to heaven. You know, there's an interesting quote that I came across in my reading and it said this, a robust spiritual life is absolutely essential to confirm and certify your spiritual life. In other words, the way that you're living your life now, your commitment to Christ, your life that you're living, is really the proof that you're in the soldier's army. holiness is what fits you and prepares you for heaven. Open your Bible, if you would, to 2 Peter chapter 1, if you haven't yet. 2 Peter 1, I want to read verses 10 and 11 and set before you God's Word and a couple of verses that we are going to work through in some detail so that we can learn how to live now for heaven. Follow with me, 2 Peter 1 beginning in verse 10. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you. For as long as you practice 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. The book of 2 Peter was written by the Apostle Peter, one of the twelve disciples. And according to 2 Peter 1, verse 14, it was written right before his death. Peter knew he was gonna die. He knew that his life was just about over. And he wrote this letter, a small letter, three chapters, to a group of Christians. And there's one theme that pervades this book. One theme, and it's this. Beware of the false teachers. They're out there. And they're among you. but you need to be aware of them because the false teachers are known for their hypocrisy and their false teaching and they live lives that indulge in the sinful nature but yet they call themselves followers of God And Peter didn't tolerate those who claimed to be Christians, and they claimed a special knowledge and a special hope, but they totally contradicted that claim by the way they lived. But Peter writes to encourage the church. Yeah, the false teachers are out there, but you know what? You need to live in such a way that you don't fall prey to their schemes. You live godly lives, holy lives, committed to Christ and God will honor that and he will bless that and he will take you safely into his heavenly kingdom. That's one of the things we're going to talk about this morning. I want to give you two truths in terms of an outline that I think just come right from the passage in front of us. The title of the message is Christian, make your calling and election very sure here's how you should live. What's the first truth? How do you live? Number one, validate your calling by your life. Validate your calling by your life. In other words, let the way that you live your life validate and certify and confirm that your Christianity is the real deal. Or in other words, to use kind of a common cultural phrase, prove your profession. Prove it. You say you're a Christian and you're going to heaven? Prove it. You say you're a follower of Christ? Prove it. Look at verse 10. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you for as long as you practice these things you will never stumble. Now, the point is this. Validate your calling by the way you live your life. What this is not saying is that you need to do good things in order to get saved. We are not saying that. The Bible does not teach that. Works cannot save you. Paul says that in Galatians. No one can be justified by doing the works of the law. Morals cannot save you. Jesus said to the Pharisees, you guys look good on the outside, but on the inside you're like dead men's bones. And lip service will not do anything before God. Because in Matthew chapter 7, verses 21 to 23, people on the final day will stand before Jesus and say, Lord, didn't I prophesy in your name? He'll say, no. I never knew you. Depart from me. So, Peter is talking to Christians right now. If you look at chapter 1, verse 1, Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Christ Jesus, to those who have received a faith of the same kind as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ. So we're not talking about how you get saved. We understand from the scriptures that you are saved by faith alone, in Christ alone, not by works of the law, but by repenting of sin and coming to Christ. Right? We believe that? So we're talking about, how do you know if you're really saved? How do you confirm this? How do you prove it? Verse 10 again says, therefore brothers, Be all the more diligent to make certain about his calling and his choosing of you." The phrase here says, be all the more diligent. Be all the more eager in the NIV, if you have that translation. It's the idea of doing something quickly or urgently in a way that is with haste. It's a conscious, zealous, deliberate endeavor. Verse 10. Be all the more diligent. Two things. Number one, it's a command. This is a command. If my son, if my son were to go underneath our sink into the bottom shelf there in the cabinet and pull out a cleaning bottle, and he were to undo the top and begin to pull it up to his mouth like he's going to drink it, Now, would it be appropriate for me to say, son, I encourage you to not do that. That would be foolish. He would do that. What do you do as a loving parent? You say, son, don't do that. Right? It's an imperative. You're calling him to obey you. That's what God is doing to Christians right here. Be all the more diligent to make your calling and your election sure. Not only is it an imperative, second, it's in the plural. And that's important because what Peter is doing is he's talking to the entire church and he's saying every one of you is included here. Not just some of you. Not just the super spiritual people. Not only the pastor, or the elders, or the guy who's been a Christian for 50 years, but all of you, all of you, as a command, make your calling and his election of you sure. It's the same kind of thing if you turn over to chapter 3 of 2 Peter. 2 Peter 3 verse 14, right at the end of the book. Therefore, beloved, since you look for these things, what things? Verse 13. Since you look for the new heavens and the new earth, be diligent, same word, be diligent to be found in Him in peace, spotless and blameless. So work hard. Work hard. Be diligent at your Christian life. And work hard to confirm your faith. Make certain about your faith. Make certain that it's true. The word in chapter 1, verse 10, to make certain about his choosing of you, comes from a Greek word that was used for legal documents. Make so certain about your faith like a government, federal document that is stamped and legal and it is a done deal. It's certain. That's kind of what Peter's saying to you and me. Make your calling that certain. Your calling and your election. Two different words but probably saying the same thing. Salvation is from the Lord. He chose us. He called us. He has elected us. It is all of grace. But here's the interesting thing. Remember Ephesians chapter 1 verse 4? It says that He chose us. before the foundation of the world. Amen! God chose us before the foundation of the world that we would be adopted into his family. We know that, but how does that calling and that election from so long ago, how does that get flesh and blood and work itself out in our life? How do you do that? That's the very issue we're talking about today. And in order to do that, we need to go back a little bit to verse 5 in chapter 1. And you know, there is this pervasive thought in Christianity today to kind of ignore the commands of God and the demands of God in our Christian lives and really opt for something far less demanding. Right? I mean, you would agree with me that we don't like to be commanded in our world today. I would like you to share your thought with me. But God's Word says, no, no, no. Here's what you must do. So how do you validate your calling? A number of things, beginning in verse 5 of chapter 1, 2 Peter. Now for this very reason, applying all diligence, by the way, that's the same word, that we saw in verse 10. Applying all diligence in your faith supply the following things. Number one, moral excellence. You might have virtue in your translation. It's really an idea that means wonderful excellences. Apply to your Christian life moral and wonderful and beautiful excellences. You know that passage in Philippians chapter 4? If anything is of good reputation, think on these things. That word, good reputation, is the same word right here for moral virtue, moral excellencies. Let your life just explode with moral beauty, with the excellences that reflect a godly man. It's like in 1 Peter 2, verse 9, the purpose of your Christianity is so that you might proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Well, the excellencies of Christ is the same word right here that should be applied to your life. The beautiful nature The awesome excellencies, the virtue that characterizes our Savior Jesus, apply that to your life. We should be a church that glows with the rays of virtue, of moral excellencies in everyone that is here and in everything that we do. The question is, in your home with your spouse and with your children and at the job with your boss and your co-workers and when you're out with your friends or on the soccer field or the basketball court is the moral excellency like the sun rays that just shine forth from your life That's the question. But he goes on, because he's not only concerned about moral virtue, but second, verse 5, "...apply all diligence in your faith, supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, then, knowledge." Knowledge, intimate knowledge, true understanding. Paul says in Romans 15, 14, all Christians are full of this kind of knowledge. You say, well Jeff, how do I How do I get this knowledge? How do I get it? I want it! I want to have this kind of knowledge. I want to have this kind of wisdom and insight. How do I get it? Take your Bible, go with me to 2 Corinthians chapter 4. 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and I want you to see this because we did a retreat at church about a year ago and spent a whole weekend digging into this verse 2nd Corinthians 4 verse 6 for God who said light shall shine out of darkness that's the creation of God he is the one who said light is the same one who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ So how do you get this light of knowledge? How do you get it? By looking at the face of Jesus Christ. That's how you get it. You delight in Christ. You look to Him. That's how you get the knowledge. After all, Colossians 2 verse 3, in Christ are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, right? And when you are pursuing knowledge by knowing Christ, You can then say with Paul, in Philippians chapter 3, and as I read it, ask yourself, can I say this right now? Paul said this, more than that, I count all things to be lost in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. whom I have suffered the loss of all things." Paul said, I could count everything that I have in my life as loss because I know Jesus. That's the question in your life. Can you say, I count everything as loss because I am growing in my knowledge and in my love for Christ. the humbling thing, is that we will never attain that perfect knowledge in this life. But at the end of 2 Peter 3, verse 18, there's a command to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. So I want to ask you, are you growing in your knowledge of Jesus? Are you growing? You say, Jeff, I'm here, right now, listening to you talk. Yeah, that's good. But what about during the week? Are you growing in your knowledge of Christ? Are you walking with Him? Are you reading good books? Or if you're an online guy, are you reading good blogs? They're gonna feed your heart and your soul with godly, Christ-like, biblical truth. You say, I've got a full-time job, I know! But really, biblically, isn't it accurate to say that our full-time job is to be a follower of Christ? And then, that's our vocation. After that, yes, I'm a lawyer, I'm an engineer, I'm a pastor, I'm a businessman, right? we should be growing in the knowledge of God and of Christ. So Peter says in chapter 1 verse 5, add to your faith moral excellence and then knowledge, and then to your knowledge, verse 6, add self-control. It's the idea of mastering your body and all of its desires. This is one of those things that just... it happens to you when you become a Christian. Galatians 5, 22. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. As a Christian, you're walking with God and God will produce self-control in the life of His people. So do you have self-control over your pride? Over your anger? And over disobedient children, or over a spouse that doesn't meet your expectation, or a boss or co-worker that gets you upset. Do you have that kind of self-control where you can control your body, and your emotions, and your words, and your actions? Not only self-control, but he continues in this list. Verse 6, and in your self-control add perseverance. Uh-oh. It's a word that means endurance. Steadfastness. It's like in Luke 8.15, Jesus is giving a parable about a man who went to sow a seed, and in chapter 8, verse 15 of Luke, Jesus said, But the good seed is the good soil, and these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and they hold it fast, and they bear fruit, and here's our word, with perseverance. You say, oh, well I want this perseverance, The way you get it is by enduring hardship. Romans 5 verse 3, not only this, but we exult in our tribulations because we know that our tribulation brings about, that's a word that means produces, perseverance. So if you want to add this characteristic to your spiritual life of perseverance and endurance, then get ready for hard times. And then the question is, how are you going to respond in those hard times? What are you going to do? It's like that husband who was married for two years, lost his wife in a horrible car accident. He was a farmer, had a couple of children early on in their marriage. They were both murdered at school. He was a farmer and struggled his entire life to produce the crops and sell the crops and make a living. Struggled with health, surgeries, injuries. You look at that life and you think, what a horrible life! Yet, he was a man who, day after day, was in God's Word every day. And spent time praying every morning. and even singing when he was on the tractor in the field and saying, God, you will give me perseverance and you will give me endurance even in the hard times. Be like that Olympian who runs all the way to the finish line. It's hard. Be like that Olympic swimmer who finishes all the laps but he finally makes it to the end. It's hard. It's tiring. It's rough. But you can do it. with Romans 15, 5. The God who gives you perseverance will enable you to do that. We go on, godliness. Look at verse 6 again, 2 Peter 1, verse 6. Add to your knowledge self-control, self-control, perseverance, and then to your perseverance add godliness. Godliness. Do you know what this word means? In this context, it's somebody whose life is a life characterized by delighting in Christ. Who is characteristic of our Savior. 1 Timothy 3 verse 16, Great is the mystery of godliness, who is revealed in the flesh, seen by men, revealed among angels, who is taken up in glory. First Timothy 4, 7, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness. The word discipline is where we get our English word agonize. You are to agonize in your life for the purpose of godliness. It doesn't just happen. I wish it did. It doesn't. Being a godly man doesn't just happen. You gotta work at it. Being a godly husband doesn't just happen. You gotta work at it. Being a godly father doesn't just happen. You gotta work hard at it. And he says, add to your faith godliness. One commentator said, this kind of godliness is when you live your life constantly consumed with the thoughts of God. That's a good way of thinking of it. When when all throughout your day from the early morning hours to the late night hours So whether you're at school whether you're at work whether you're with friends whether you're driving You're thinking about God and you're growing in your love and in your delight for God This is when your eye is to God you live in God's sight you dwell close to him and you seek fellowship with him and Not only that, he continues. How do you like this list? Is it good? Are you convicted yet? Me too. Verse 7. In your godliness, add brotherly kindness. We don't do this often, but let me give you a Greek word. Philadelphia. It's a Greek word that means brotherly kindness, brotherly love. It means a benevolent friendship. In Romans chapter 12, verse 10, I love the way Paul does this. Paul defines what this kind of Philadelphia love is. Because in Romans 12, verse 10, Paul says, be devoted to one another in brotherly love. That's the Philadelphia love. How do you do it? By giving preference to one another in honor. Now, now, think about that. Giving preference to one another in honor? Not just a, alright, I guess I gotta be your friend and I gotta serve you, so go, take this. But it's giving preference to one another with a joyful heart because you honor them. Because they're made in the image of God. They're a fellow brother or sister in Christ. We are all equal. We are all brothers and sisters for those who are in the family of God. to give preference to one another in honor. Peter says in 1 Peter 1.22, because you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love for the brethren, Philadelphia love, then fervently love one another from the heart. You say, alright, how do I do that? You know, maybe a great way that we can apply that here in our context, number one, maybe an option for you is to maybe get out of your comfort zone a little bit and meet somebody you don't know. And shake their hand and say, hey, I'm Jeff. What do you do? How can I pray for you this week? How can I encourage you? Give me your number, your email, so I can call you later this week and just shoot you a note and say, hey, say I'm praying for you, I'm thinking of you. That's a way to show brotherly love and kindness to someone else. Or maybe go up to somebody today and say, I want to have lunch with you this week. Now, I wish I could do that. I can't. I'm leaving to go 2,000 miles away today. But maybe you can do that and say, I want to have lunch with you. Let's get together this week for lunch and let's talk about Christ and how He is working in my life and ask me if I've been in the Bible this week. And I'll be honest with you and tell you yes or no. You can hold me accountable. Or maybe a third way that you could apply this to your life is by asking somebody, how can I serve you this week? Do you need anything done? Can I call you? Can I do something around the house for you? Is there a way that I can practically, tangibly, show brotherly love toward you? But if that isn't enough, End of verse 7. Look at it there in your Bible. In your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, then put on love. This is the kind of love. Alright. Get ready. Totally selfless. Absolutely unconditional. No strings attached. A sacrificial giving of oneself for the benefit of another regardless of how they respond. That's what this love is. By the way, this is the same love in Ephesians 5. Husbands, love your wives unconditionally, regardless of how she responds. Love her. This is what characterizes God. 1 John 4.8. God is love. This unconditional, selfless, giving of oneself to another. This is what Jesus has done for us. 1 John 4.10. In this is love. Not that we have loved God, but that He loved us. And He sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. That's a huge word that means Jesus has turned away the anger of God that was directed toward me and you. And that's what you and I should do. John 13, 35, By this all men will know that you're my disciples if you have this kind of sacrificial, selfless, for the benefit of another, for the good of another, regardless of how they respond, kind of love. Galatians 5.13, through love serve one another. Can I actually tell you a way that that could be translated? Through sacrificial, selfless love, the word serve means to be enslaved to one another. It was the word that Paul used when he said, I'm a slave of Jesus. I'm owned by Him. I exist for Him. Can you imagine saying, I exist for you? And I exist for you, to serve you, to love you, to care for you. And the only way that we can accomplish all of these things is in our own strength. No. We would fail miserably. The only way that we can accomplish all of these things is by depending upon the Holy Spirit who lives in true Christians. Now, go to chapter 1, verse 3 of 2 Peter, and look at what Peter says. We see that His divine power has granted to us, what's the next word? all things, or maybe you have everything, He's granted to us everything or all things pertaining to life and godliness through the knowledge of Him who has called us by His own glory and excellence. So you have the ability and you have, through the Word of God, the sufficiency to live a life of godliness. to make your calling and your election sure. That's what all this is about. That's the context of this. Make your calling and your election sure by depending upon the Holy Spirit and depending upon the Word of God. And I need to say this, this is not a whole list of bullet point commands that say, you know what? You must do this. Like, take out the trash, and do the dishes, and feed the cat, and make your room, and things that you don't want to do. These are things that as a spirit and dwelt Christian, we do not because we want to earn brownie points with God, but because we have been saved by God from hell. So, what can I do to serve Him? What can I do to be more like Him? What can I do to make my Christianity certain? And to give assurance to my own heart. And verification and proof to everybody who's looking at my life. What do I do? I do these things because I love Christ. And I've been saved by Him. Look at verse 8, chapter 1. Back to our text verse 8 for if these qualities all these qualities are yours and are increasing now that word is tough if they're yours and increasing that means Christian you cannot just be stagnant if you put a car in neutral he's gonna roll downhill you need to accelerate to go uphill If these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless or unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. I don't want to be useless. I don't want to be unfruitful. I want to be used by God. Don't you? I want to be used by God in an awesome way. And, verse 9, there's a little warning. Verse 9. He who lacks these qualities is blind and short-sighted. having forgotten his purification from former sins. Normally blind and short-sighted characterizes a non-Christian. Normally. But he's writing to Christians here. They've been forgiven of their past sins. Wouldn't it be so bad if you just barely make it into heaven? And you have a miserable life of depression and anxiety and worry thinking, am I really a Christian? Am I really going to get there? Am I really a follower of Jesus? How do I know for sure? I believe in Jesus, but I've always believed in Jesus. How do you know? You look at your life. And if these are there, existing, and if they're increasing. Not that you're going to be perfect. But that they're increasing. Well, If you do these, verse 10, back to the text that actually is in your bulletin, verse 10. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to make certain about his calling and choosing of you for as long as you practice these things, all the things we just talked about in verses 5 to 7. Love, brotherly love, self-control. Virtue. Godliness. If you practice these things, you will never stumble. Isn't that a great phrase? That doesn't mean you'll be sinless. That's not what it means. It means that you're going to live a life as a hiker. You're walking to your destination, but you're not going to go off track. You're not going to go down side paths and side hiking trails that are going to take you down sinful paths. Why? Hebrews 12, you've got your eyes fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of your faith. And our English is kind of funny because it says you'll never stumble. The Greek could not be more emphatic. There's one way to negate something where you put two negatives next to each other and they don't cancel each other out like it does in English. It emphasizes it all the more. And that's what happens here. And Peter just wants you to be sure that this will never happen, so he adds the word ever. You will never, ever, ever, ever, ever stumble if these things are there in your life and increasing. So, is your conduct right now confirming or condemning your calling? Is what comes out of your mouth confirming or condemning your calling? Or the thoughts in your mind and the thoughts in your heart that nobody else sees. Is that confirming or condemning? Are you bearing fruit? Is your life changed? Is there a love for Christ? Is there a delight in Christ? Is there a desire to follow Him? I know a great place that you can come be a part of and serve and get involved. It's a small church just starting called Christ Fellowship Bible Church. that you could be a part of this launch of a small group of Christians that want to make their calling and their election certain by practicing these things. Not just here on Sunday, but throughout the week as well. So at the beginning, I gave you the first point. I have another one. A little bit shorter. Number one, validate your calling by your life. Second, and perhaps not less important at all, fix your hope on heaven. I have a little signature at the bottom of my emails. It has my name and my number and so on, and at the bottom there's a little quote. This is the Christian who does the most for God in this life is the one who is consumed most with the next. That's right. That's right. C.S. Lewis wrote that. And that's exactly what Peter is saying in verse 11. Look at it. For in this way, in what way? Well, verse 10, if you're practicing these things, what things? What we just looked at in verses 5 to 7. So in this way, the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you. If you are growing in this constellation of graces, if you're like that couple who's been married for 55 years, and not only do they have the same hobbies, and the same interests, and the same desires, but they even begin to look the same. If you're like that with Jesus, the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior will be abundantly supplied to you. The word will be supplied is passive. You can't get there on your own. That's not something that you do, it is given to you. I need to say that is the gospel. The gospel is a work of God and only God that happens to a bunch of sinners. When God has convicted them of sin, we are all sinners. And God does that work of transformation in the heart. Where it says in Ezekiel, He takes out the heart of stone and He puts in a heart of flesh. And He transforms you and gives you a whole new perspective. Because you have repented of sin, you've turned from it, and you look to Jesus and you say, I believe in Him as my only Savior because He died on the cross as somebody who didn't deserve to die. Yet He died in the place of me, and of you, sinners who deserve it. And not only just death, but He took the punishment that came with sin, all of it, for His people, in full. That's why Paul can say in 2 Corinthians 5.21, God made Him, Jesus, who knew no sin, to be sin for you. so that you might become the righteousness of God in Him. That's the great exchange. He died in your place so that you then receive all of His perfection and righteousness. So think about it. You, if all of these things are active in your life and they're increasing in your life, you get this kind of a rich welcome in heaven. Can you imagine your Savior being at the gates of glory the moment you die to welcome you into heaven? It's much better than a soldier who comes back to a New York airport to see his family and friends and strangers with banners welcoming him. Can you imagine the day when your Savior, the one who died for you, will reach out his arms to embrace you with the nails? Nail, pierce, marks. That's the greatest welcome ever. And the only ones who will receive that welcome are those who are truly saved. And those who have put their faith in Christ and who are walking with Christ and evidencing Christ-likeness in a changed life. Long for that day. Long for that day when you will be welcomed into that rich inheritance of heaven. And it's not just the streets of gold and it's not just the fact that there's no sin there. That's great. It's not just the fact that there are no hospitals there. That's great. It's not just the fact that there's no illness and sickness and pain and crying and mourning and tears. That's good. But what makes heaven heaven is that Jesus is there. Love coming home from a long day out. And I open up our little apartment door and my son just comes running to the front door. And he yells in his little high-pitched two-year-old voice, Dada! And that's good. But you compare that to a rich inheritance and a rich entrance and a rich welcome into heaven forever? I love my son, but that doesn't compare. I want to close with the words from a man named John Owen. 17th century pastor and theologian and godly man. His words serve as a fitting conclusion for our study. He said gospel truth is the only root where gospel holiness will grow. God leads no one to heaven who is not sanctified on earth. Think about this, the living head will not admit any dead members into heaven. There is no thinking more foolish than the persons not purified, people not sanctified, people not made holy in this life should afterwards be taken into the state of blessedness and happiness which consists in the enjoyment of God. Neither can ungodly persons enjoy God, nor would God be a reward to them in heaven. Holiness indeed is perfected in heaven. But the beginning of holiness is invariably and out of necessity confined to this life. You won't grow in holiness. You won't make your calling and your election sure by standing still. You need to work at it. You need to You need to be zealous for this. You need to be diligent to make your calling and your election sure. Holiness needs cultivation like a garden. If you leave your garden untended, there'll be some weeds that start popping up. Some critters that start showing up. and all your flowers and all your fruits and all your vegetables, the good ones are going to be gone. You need to tend that thing daily. And so it is with your spiritual life. Let's make our election sure as we continue to grow together at Christ Fellowship Bible Church. Not just on a Sunday thing, but throughout the week. As you're living with your family, selflessly grow in what we talked about in verses 5 to 7. All of those virtues. Apply them to your life. Maybe even take time this afternoon. Spend time in prayer, number one, repenting. Confessing. Asking for God to forgive you. For falling short. I need to. And then saying, but here's how I can apply this to my life. at school this week, with my family this week, at work this week, in my own thinking, in my own life, here's how I can apply this. And when your life here on earth is done, keep thinking and keep focusing on that day in heaven when the inheritance of heaven and of Christ will be richly supplied to you. Amen? Let's pray. Father, we give you praise that you are a God who has saved a people for your own glory. I thank you for each person here today. God, I pray that you would encourage your people, that you would build them up, that you would comfort them, conform them to the image of Christ, change them, Convict them of sin. God, do the same with me. May we be a people who are committed to your glory and to making your reputation radiate from our lives. Help us to make our calling and our election sure. by proving these godly virtues in the way that we live. We need your strength. We need your help. We need your enabling to make this a conscious, deliberate daily pursuit. Help us to do this. For your glory we pray. Amen.