November 25, 2007
Scripture:
Scripture:
I’d like to read a few words from John 17: “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (vv. 1–3). The marvellous truth is that God wanted to be known by His creature, man. Man fell into such darkness through sin, and God became an unknown God to those outside Israel. To make Himself known in the fullness of grace and truth, He sent His eternal Son. It could not be done by prophets, visions, priests, or angels; it could only be done by the person of God coming in manhood to take up man’s cause. He died on Calvary so that through resurrection we could be brought onto new ground with a risen Lord in glory. “This is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
EG Hymn 366 – We are little children, very young indeed,
Prayer
We’ll continue in the book of Acts; we’re on chapter 10. At the end of chapter 9, we left Peter at the house of Simon, a tanner, in Joppa. Read ch. 10:1 & 2. Cornelius was a centurion; he was a devout man who gave alms and prayed to God. Now, when the Lord came, He came to the Jews only; but Cornelius was a Gentile. Even though he prayed and gave money to the poor, he was still not part of who the Lord came to save. But God saw how earnest he was and sent an angel to talk to him. Read vv. 3 – 8. Cornelius was a seeker; he was looking for something. Hosea 10:12 says “It is time to seek the Lord.” That’s what the Lord wants us to do.
Now the story goes to Joppa, where Peter was praying on the rooftop. He was hungry, so they prepared some food for him; but while they were doing so, he fell into a trance and began dreaming. He saw a sheet come down from Heaven, filled with unclean animals. In the law given to Moses, there were instructions on which animals they were and were not allowed to eat. The unclean animals were forbidden. But Peter heard a voice that told him to kill and eat these unclean animals. He replied, “Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean.” But God said, “What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common.” This happened three times before the sheet went back up to Heaven. Now to understand this better, read v. 28. God was showing Peter that the Gentiles were no longer to be called unclean. So while Peter was thinking about what he had seen, vv. 17 – 20, the men from Cornelius came to the door and asked for Peter. The Lord told Peter to go with these men, and not to worry about it. Peter was God’s servant, he had to obey. He might not have understood why God wanted him to do this, but he had faith and obeyed. Isaiah 55:8 says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.” Although we may not always understand what God wants us to do, we must do it. Now, v. 21, Peter went to the door and introduced himself and invited the men in for the night. The next day he went with them to Caesarea and taught the way of salvation to Cornelius and his household. Peter found that “Whosoever will, may come.” We can learn from this story that we can be a seeker, like Cornelius, and a servant, like Peter, and discover God’s ways and do them.
I Peter 3:5 – 9
Last week we looked at Peter’s word to wives and in v. 5 we have an Old Testament example. It starts with “after this manner,” which connects it with the previous verses.
But before we get there, there’s something interesting to note in v. 3. The Greek word translated “adorning” is cosmos. This word is usually translated world, meaning order or arrangement. It also has a further meaning of ornament or adornment. This gives it the connotation of beauty! What is the opposite of cosmos? Chaos; God created the Cosmos, an orderly, beautiful world; but Satan has turned it into chaos. The word cosmos is found 187 times in the Bible, but only this once is it translated adorning; every other time it is translated world. This one translation is a special reference to the order and beauty of a submissive wife. The Greek words for plaiting and wearing are used only this once in the Bible, which is notable as well.
Now the meek and quiet spirit is what Peter is telling us was found in women of old times. Meekness is not retaliating when you are offended; quietness is not trying to offend others. The example Peter gives is Sarah, who was subject to Abraham. It is interesting to note that while the faithful are called the children of Abraham (Galatians 3:7), the meek and quiet are called children of Sarah. From what we read in Genesis, Sarah was a very attractive woman; Abraham was afraid that he would lose her on more than one occasion. But it is probable that it was more than her outward beauty; her inward beauty made an impression as well.
V. 7 begins with “Likewise, ye husbands”; the first command to husband is to “dwell with them [their wives] according to knowledge.” What does this mean? Obviously, we live with our wives. But one man who had married an unbeliever, said, “We live together, miles apart.” Although they lived in the same house, their spirits were miles apart; they didn’t agree. Dwell means something more than just live with. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom,” “For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily,” There is a deep permanency to dwell; we are talking about a unique relationship here. And is not this knowledge the wisdom of the word of God—God’s thoughts of this relationship?
Furthermore, since the wife is to submit to the husband, the husband is to honour the wife. The world today mocks marriage; they especially make the man the brunt of many jokes. In this modern day of feminism, husbands are made to look stupid. But marriage is not a matter of one being smart and the other stupid. The fact that the wife is the weaker vessel doesn’t mean that the husband should be dominating and overbearing. Adam’s wife came from a rib, from his side. It is there that he should keep her, protecting, honouring, and loving her. This is not an easy calling for the husband; he is to love his wife as he loves his own body, as Christ loved the church. Together, they are *“heirs … of the grace of life.” *
“That your prayers be not hindered” It is wonderful to have a likeminded spouse. Two people seeking the Lord’s will and guidance together is an amazing thing. It’s all in the weaving of two lives together.
EG Hymn 269 – This world is a wilderness wide!
Prayer