Sundays at Home
This page has the Sunday Sermon stream, notes for the sermon, and links for songs used during children’s music time each week. Scroll down to the bottom for the children’s info.
To Be Like Jesus
Sunday, September 13, 2020
Pastor Jojo Ma
You can download the weekly bulletin here.
Lyrics for today’s songs are available here, but note they are password protected in order to comply with copyright restrictions. Please refer to the password sent in an email on Saturday afternoon from info@crosslifecc.com, or email info@crosslifecc.com if you need the password again.
Finally, pages for children can be downloaded through this link.
1 Peter 3:8-12
1 Peter 3:8-12
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For "Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."
The early followers of Jesus suffered tremendously for their faith especially at the hands of the Romans. Christian life in the 1st century was very, very hard.
It’s in the Word of God that we hear our King speak. He gives us instruction, encouragement, and reminds us of his great love, of which nothing can separate us.
Two of the great themes of 1 Peter are submission and suffering.
Today Peter shifts a little bit more toward the theme of suffering. The apostle wants believers to know how to faithfully endure the trials of this life as we sojourn toward the next.
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.
I want you to be of one mind, to have unity of mind. That’s the first thing the apostle says to submitting and suffering believers: One mind.
Peter wants the church to be in agreement about the most essential things like the nature of God and basic Christian doctrine and the care of one another. Augustine had it right when he said: “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.”
Notice Peter then says to have sympathy, brotherly love, and a tender heart. Those three are actually forms of love.
He simply wants believers to know what brotherly affection looks like in practice: It’s being the kind of person who, from the heart, is sympathetic and tender, caring, and truly loving.
Romans 12:10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.
Hebrews 13:1 Let brotherly love continue.
Peter not only calls for unity of mind but humility of mind.
John Calvin: “Self-denial is a good summary of the Christian life.”
Becoming more and more like Jesus is the fruit of truly believing the gospel. So read v8 with a desire to be more like your Lord and Savior.
9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.
If we are becoming more like Christ in the way we treat one another, we will become more like Christ as we engage with the unbelieving world.
We’ll be the kind of people who don’t return in kind but return in kindness…with blessing.
Be what you are, display what you’ve experienced. And one day God will finish redemptive history and you will experience final blessing, final salvation, your imperishable inheritance.
10 For "Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."
Peter’s life was all of grace, his writings are all of grace, but grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning. Grace is not opposed to effort.
I want you to hear it not so much as some self-salvation project, as if you can earn God’s favor or blessings, but hear it as the kind of life that flows from knowing Jesus and being loved by Jesus.
8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. 10 For "Whoever desires to love life and see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit; 11 let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 12 For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil."