WEBVTT 00:00:00.618 --> 00:00:04.673 "But grow in the grace and knowledge 00:00:04.673 --> 00:00:07.544 of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 00:00:07.544 --> 00:00:10.542 To Him be glory both now and forever. 00:00:10.542 --> 00:00:11.990 Amen." 00:00:11.990 --> 00:00:15.661 2 Peter 3:18 00:00:15.661 --> 00:00:19.597 Now, one of the great goals of this conference 00:00:19.597 --> 00:00:23.289 is expressed by Peter in these words, 00:00:23.289 --> 00:00:26.086 that we grow in the grace and knowledge 00:00:26.086 --> 00:00:29.219 of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. 00:00:29.219 --> 00:00:33.280 Many benefits come from conference - 00:00:33.280 --> 00:00:35.296 the renewal of friendships, 00:00:35.296 --> 00:00:39.042 moments of inspiration from speakers, 00:00:39.042 --> 00:00:41.704 and meeting someone special perhaps, 00:00:41.704 --> 00:00:44.479 but unless we grow 00:00:44.479 --> 00:00:46.633 from our time here - 00:00:46.633 --> 00:00:48.168 grow in graciousness, 00:00:48.168 --> 00:00:51.452 grow in our knowledge of the Savior, 00:00:51.452 --> 00:00:55.103 then there will be major failure 00:00:55.103 --> 00:00:58.087 in our gathering together. 00:00:58.087 --> 00:00:59.821 Some of you know Don Whitney's 00:00:59.821 --> 00:01:03.063 helpful little book: "Praying the Bible." 00:01:03.063 --> 00:01:05.876 And we gather to pray this Scripture. 00:01:05.876 --> 00:01:08.888 Lord, help me to grow in graciousness. 00:01:08.888 --> 00:01:11.815 Lord, help me to grow in knowledge 00:01:11.815 --> 00:01:13.637 of the Savior. 00:01:13.637 --> 00:01:15.377 And who needs to pray that? 00:01:15.377 --> 00:01:17.362 Well, the baby Christians here - 00:01:17.362 --> 00:01:19.133 they need to pray it. 00:01:19.133 --> 00:01:22.254 And then, the man who is the most holy 00:01:22.254 --> 00:01:23.493 and most mature 00:01:23.493 --> 00:01:25.631 and has followed the Lord for many years - 00:01:25.631 --> 00:01:28.711 he needs to still pray this prayer. 00:01:28.711 --> 00:01:30.708 So what are we asking 00:01:30.708 --> 00:01:33.401 when we are asking that we may grow 00:01:33.401 --> 00:01:35.376 in grace and in the knowledge 00:01:35.376 --> 00:01:37.563 of the Lord Jesus Christ? NOTE Paragraph 00:01:37.563 --> 00:01:42.359 Well, firstly, we are asking for genuine, 00:01:42.359 --> 00:01:46.123 progressive concern for the needs of others. 00:01:46.123 --> 00:01:47.688 The second commandment, 00:01:47.688 --> 00:01:49.574 after to love God with all our hearts 00:01:49.574 --> 00:01:53.326 is to love our neighbor as ourselves. 00:01:53.326 --> 00:01:57.254 And that's the impact that we are to make 00:01:57.254 --> 00:01:59.115 on one another. 00:01:59.115 --> 00:02:01.551 A real concern for other people. 00:02:01.551 --> 00:02:02.731 How is it with you? 00:02:02.731 --> 00:02:05.136 Do we know where 00:02:05.136 --> 00:02:07.109 the members of the congregation are? 00:02:07.109 --> 00:02:09.780 Do we know where there are doubts? 00:02:09.780 --> 00:02:12.429 Do we know where people are close to giving up? 00:02:12.429 --> 00:02:13.971 Do we know where the troubles 00:02:13.971 --> 00:02:14.989 and the problems are? 00:02:14.989 --> 00:02:16.797 And you'll say, well, the elders know. 00:02:16.797 --> 00:02:18.174 Well, perhaps they do. 00:02:18.174 --> 00:02:19.795 But perhaps with some people, 00:02:19.795 --> 00:02:21.558 you know more. 00:02:21.558 --> 00:02:24.642 I'm not talking about inquisitive prying 00:02:24.642 --> 00:02:26.693 into the lives of other people, 00:02:26.693 --> 00:02:31.223 but I'm speaking about a concern for them. 00:02:31.223 --> 00:02:33.945 Do they have some fear? Do they have some worry? 00:02:33.945 --> 00:02:35.985 How can I help them? 00:02:35.985 --> 00:02:41.081 So, that's going to be our lives from now on. 00:02:41.081 --> 00:02:43.628 We're going to be corns of wheat 00:02:43.628 --> 00:02:45.480 that fall into the ground and die, 00:02:45.480 --> 00:02:48.133 or we'll abide alone. 00:02:48.133 --> 00:02:50.448 We're going to be concerned 00:02:50.448 --> 00:02:53.525 that there be fruit in the lives of others 00:02:53.525 --> 00:02:56.558 and fruit in our own lives. 00:02:56.558 --> 00:02:58.486 The Savior, then, He didn't come 00:02:58.486 --> 00:03:00.545 to be served, 00:03:00.545 --> 00:03:01.790 but He came to serve. 00:03:01.790 --> 00:03:03.850 So He calls us also 00:03:03.850 --> 00:03:06.083 that we're better servants of one another; 00:03:06.083 --> 00:03:07.322 more concerned; 00:03:07.322 --> 00:03:10.724 more aware of the needs. 00:03:10.724 --> 00:03:13.621 How is it with you? How is it at meal times? 00:03:13.621 --> 00:03:16.258 Do you look to see if everyone's got what they want? 00:03:16.258 --> 00:03:17.901 And you're concerned about them? 00:03:17.901 --> 00:03:22.497 You just don't look at the food in front of you? 00:03:22.497 --> 00:03:25.119 The nicer seats - are you anxious 00:03:25.119 --> 00:03:26.935 to help other people? 00:03:26.935 --> 00:03:28.434 When you drive a car, 00:03:28.434 --> 00:03:31.116 do you let other people cut in? 00:03:31.116 --> 00:03:33.179 When there are family choices, 00:03:33.179 --> 00:03:34.196 do you ask your wife: 00:03:34.196 --> 00:03:36.247 what do you want to do? 00:03:36.247 --> 00:03:37.767 Do you ask children 00:03:37.767 --> 00:03:39.946 what their concerns are? 00:03:39.946 --> 00:03:41.818 It's a very sad life 00:03:41.818 --> 00:03:43.831 if it's just centered on you. 00:03:43.831 --> 00:03:45.724 An egotistical life. 00:03:45.724 --> 00:03:48.536 And so growing in grace, 00:03:48.536 --> 00:03:50.928 growing in graciousness then 00:03:50.928 --> 00:03:53.107 shows itself in a progressive concern 00:03:53.107 --> 00:03:54.277 for the needs of others. 00:03:54.277 --> 00:03:56.606 That's the first thing that we're praying for. NOTE Paragraph 00:03:56.606 --> 00:03:59.869 And the second thing we are praying for 00:03:59.869 --> 00:04:07.230 is that we are growing in knowledge 00:04:07.230 --> 00:04:10.180 of the gospel, of the Christian faith, 00:04:10.180 --> 00:04:11.914 and growing especially 00:04:11.914 --> 00:04:15.177 in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:04:15.177 --> 00:04:20.413 A literal, mental grasp with our minds 00:04:20.413 --> 00:04:22.206 of the teaching of Holy Scripture. 00:04:22.206 --> 00:04:24.829 It may seem to you very elementary 00:04:24.829 --> 00:04:26.261 and very basic. 00:04:26.261 --> 00:04:28.516 But the first thing that a believer puts on 00:04:28.516 --> 00:04:30.993 is the girdle of truth. 00:04:30.993 --> 00:04:33.399 And the first thing that he must attend to 00:04:33.399 --> 00:04:35.235 in terms of spiritual knowledge 00:04:35.235 --> 00:04:37.795 and spiritual growth is familiarity 00:04:37.795 --> 00:04:38.803 with the truth; 00:04:38.803 --> 00:04:40.623 with the teaching of Scripture; 00:04:40.623 --> 00:04:42.848 with the system of Christian doctrine. 00:04:42.848 --> 00:04:45.138 It's all very well for us to speak 00:04:45.138 --> 00:04:47.714 of the perils of a dead orthodoxy, 00:04:47.714 --> 00:04:51.346 and I guess it's a real peril. 00:04:51.346 --> 00:04:55.375 There are people and their concern 00:04:55.375 --> 00:04:58.822 is not interest in the great foundational doctrines, 00:04:58.822 --> 00:05:02.427 but they're interested in the conundrum of theology. 00:05:02.427 --> 00:05:04.157 And let's avoid that. 00:05:04.157 --> 00:05:05.403 And there are other people 00:05:05.403 --> 00:05:07.590 and they're only interested in the doctrines 00:05:07.590 --> 00:05:10.505 that have given rise to controversies 00:05:10.505 --> 00:05:12.128 amongst Christians. 00:05:12.128 --> 00:05:14.355 Doctrines that men fight about. 00:05:14.355 --> 00:05:16.860 Doctrines that men disagree with. 00:05:16.860 --> 00:05:20.261 Let's mortify that spirit too. 00:05:20.261 --> 00:05:23.013 But we are bound as Christians 00:05:23.013 --> 00:05:25.623 to make conscience of growing 00:05:25.623 --> 00:05:27.774 in our grasp of Genesis, Exodus, 00:05:27.774 --> 00:05:30.295 Leviticus, Numbers, and so on 00:05:30.295 --> 00:05:31.875 to Revelation. 00:05:31.875 --> 00:05:36.138 And to that life of Adam, and Noah, 00:05:36.138 --> 00:05:40.251 and Abraham, and the Patriarchs, 00:05:40.251 --> 00:05:41.760 and Moses, 00:05:41.760 --> 00:05:45.896 and the deliverance from Egypt, 00:05:45.896 --> 00:05:49.297 and then the time of the entry 00:05:49.297 --> 00:05:52.658 and Joshua and Judges, 00:05:52.658 --> 00:05:53.782 and Samuel, 00:05:53.782 --> 00:05:55.041 and the rise of Saul, 00:05:55.041 --> 00:05:56.452 and the rise of David, 00:05:56.452 --> 00:05:58.189 and Solomon - the great division 00:05:58.189 --> 00:06:00.434 that took place under him, 00:06:00.434 --> 00:06:03.334 and then the destruction 00:06:03.334 --> 00:06:05.395 of the Northern kingdom of Israel, 00:06:05.395 --> 00:06:09.919 and then the temporary Babylonian captivity 00:06:09.919 --> 00:06:12.256 of Judah and their return, 00:06:12.256 --> 00:06:14.450 and the coming of Christ 00:06:14.450 --> 00:06:15.413 as promised. 00:06:15.413 --> 00:06:17.309 So, we ought to know those things. 00:06:17.309 --> 00:06:19.678 And know the letters. 00:06:19.678 --> 00:06:21.460 And so when the Jehovah's Witness 00:06:21.460 --> 00:06:22.489 comes to your house, 00:06:22.489 --> 00:06:24.354 then you say, "Do you know the Bible?" 00:06:24.354 --> 00:06:26.201 "Yes." "Well, what..." you say to him, 00:06:26.201 --> 00:06:27.525 "What is the main theme 00:06:27.525 --> 00:06:29.854 of the letter to the Romans?" 00:06:29.854 --> 00:06:31.843 And that's a good question to ask him 00:06:31.843 --> 00:06:33.323 because he won't know. 00:06:33.323 --> 00:06:35.520 He'll know his stuff, 00:06:35.520 --> 00:06:38.028 but he won't know a question as important as that. 00:06:38.028 --> 00:06:40.506 "Well, Ephesians is shorter," you say, 00:06:40.506 --> 00:06:42.210 "six chapters - tell me, 00:06:42.210 --> 00:06:45.736 what is the main teaching of Ephesians?" 00:06:45.736 --> 00:06:47.627 And then he'll get a bit frustrated 00:06:47.627 --> 00:06:48.610 and angry with you. 00:06:48.610 --> 00:06:52.621 "Well now, come back and let me know." 00:06:52.621 --> 00:06:55.141 Because you're driving him to the Word. 00:06:55.141 --> 00:06:57.219 Aren't you? To read the Word. 00:06:57.219 --> 00:07:02.383 And that is the only chance of him changing. 00:07:02.383 --> 00:07:03.707 And so I'm saying to you 00:07:03.707 --> 00:07:06.448 we have to soak ourselves 00:07:06.448 --> 00:07:07.802 in the Word; 00:07:07.802 --> 00:07:10.042 marinate ourselves in the Word of God, 00:07:10.042 --> 00:07:13.297 because if we're going to ask then 00:07:13.297 --> 00:07:15.364 a Jehovah's Witness to tell us 00:07:15.364 --> 00:07:17.063 what the main theme of Romans is, 00:07:17.063 --> 00:07:18.952 we better know it ourselves. 00:07:18.952 --> 00:07:20.909 We better know it ourselves. 00:07:20.909 --> 00:07:23.941 So, we ought to know about the Person of Christ. 00:07:23.941 --> 00:07:26.325 His deity, His humanity, 00:07:26.325 --> 00:07:27.941 His incarnation, 00:07:27.941 --> 00:07:31.220 His states as pre-existent, 00:07:31.220 --> 00:07:33.409 humiliated, exalted; 00:07:33.409 --> 00:07:36.388 His offices of Prophet, Priest, and King. 00:07:36.388 --> 00:07:38.370 We ought to know the great doctrines 00:07:38.370 --> 00:07:39.647 of God's sovereignty, 00:07:39.647 --> 00:07:42.522 of justification by grace through faith, 00:07:42.522 --> 00:07:44.027 of adoption, 00:07:44.027 --> 00:07:45.290 of union with Christ, 00:07:45.290 --> 00:07:46.526 of sanctification. 00:07:46.526 --> 00:07:51.071 These teachings are not simply for theologians, 00:07:51.071 --> 00:07:53.586 but they are the stuff of believing meditation. 00:07:53.586 --> 00:07:55.221 They are the stuff of doxology. 00:07:55.221 --> 00:07:58.515 The great hymns are about those themes. 00:07:58.515 --> 00:08:01.475 And if we're to be growing Christians, 00:08:01.475 --> 00:08:03.991 we are to be growing intellectually. 00:08:03.991 --> 00:08:06.037 We are to be growing theologically. 00:08:06.037 --> 00:08:08.651 We are to grow in our grasp of it, 00:08:08.651 --> 00:08:10.048 and we are to grow 00:08:10.048 --> 00:08:12.150 in the emotional impact that they make 00:08:12.150 --> 00:08:14.530 upon our lives. 00:08:14.530 --> 00:08:17.726 That the Word of God lives in us. 00:08:17.726 --> 00:08:20.159 Because the Psalms begin by a man - 00:08:20.159 --> 00:08:23.025 his delight was in the law of the Lord, 00:08:23.025 --> 00:08:24.167 and in that law, 00:08:24.167 --> 00:08:26.556 he meditated day and night. NOTE Paragraph 00:08:26.556 --> 00:08:29.654 Thirdly, if we are praying this prayer 00:08:29.654 --> 00:08:32.354 that we might grow in graciousness, 00:08:32.354 --> 00:08:35.200 in grace, we are praying that we might 00:08:35.200 --> 00:08:39.174 progress in conscientiousness. 00:08:39.174 --> 00:08:42.831 That is, in responsiveness 00:08:42.831 --> 00:08:45.938 and obedience to our own consciences. 00:08:45.938 --> 00:08:48.744 Because God has placed that monitor 00:08:48.744 --> 00:08:50.935 in our minds, 00:08:50.935 --> 00:08:53.375 and it reproves us when we do wrong, 00:08:53.375 --> 00:08:56.596 and it encourages us when we do right. 00:08:56.596 --> 00:09:00.453 How is it with your conscience and you tonight? 00:09:00.453 --> 00:09:02.091 How are things between you 00:09:02.091 --> 00:09:08.008 and that monitor, that voice of God? 00:09:08.008 --> 00:09:10.389 You know, there are many consciences, 00:09:10.389 --> 00:09:13.227 and in Thomas Boston's words, 00:09:13.227 --> 00:09:16.859 they are too persnickety. 00:09:16.859 --> 00:09:20.484 They condemn what God's Word doesn't condemn. 00:09:20.484 --> 00:09:22.588 We must educate that conscience. 00:09:22.588 --> 00:09:26.836 Does the Bible condemn blood transfusions, 00:09:26.836 --> 00:09:28.494 for example? 00:09:28.494 --> 00:09:30.691 And there are other consciences 00:09:30.691 --> 00:09:33.195 and they let anything pass. 00:09:33.195 --> 00:09:36.977 They let pass what God's Word condemns. 00:09:36.977 --> 00:09:39.425 They are less sensitive than they should be. 00:09:39.425 --> 00:09:40.620 They are much too broad, 00:09:40.620 --> 00:09:42.215 much too open. 00:09:42.215 --> 00:09:44.882 So, we must always bring our conscience 00:09:44.882 --> 00:09:47.279 under the light of the Word of God. NOTE Paragraph 00:09:47.279 --> 00:09:49.855 You know the Puritan illustration then 00:09:49.855 --> 00:09:52.068 of the sundial. 00:09:52.068 --> 00:09:54.263 And the sundial will work 00:09:54.263 --> 00:09:55.587 if it's at the right angle 00:09:55.587 --> 00:09:59.504 and in regards to the light of the sun. 00:09:59.504 --> 00:10:01.083 But on a bright moonlight night, 00:10:01.083 --> 00:10:02.585 you can go out to your garden, 00:10:02.585 --> 00:10:04.052 and you can look at a sundial. 00:10:04.052 --> 00:10:05.459 And there will be a shadow - 00:10:05.459 --> 00:10:07.403 a moon shadow. 00:10:07.403 --> 00:10:11.117 And it will give you the totally wrong reading, 00:10:11.117 --> 00:10:13.492 because it's not a moondial, 00:10:13.492 --> 00:10:16.117 it's a sundial. 00:10:16.117 --> 00:10:18.682 And so there is the conscience 00:10:18.682 --> 00:10:21.426 of the cannibal. 00:10:21.426 --> 00:10:23.612 And there the conscience 00:10:23.612 --> 00:10:26.607 of the abortionist. 00:10:26.607 --> 00:10:30.441 And they are not living in accord 00:10:30.441 --> 00:10:33.856 with what the Word of God 00:10:33.856 --> 00:10:39.043 who created the conscience gives to us. 00:10:39.043 --> 00:10:41.091 Now, let's supposed that you have 00:10:41.091 --> 00:10:42.356 an enlightened conscience. 00:10:42.356 --> 00:10:44.436 Let's suppose that you have the full light 00:10:44.436 --> 00:10:47.285 of God's Word on your conscience then. 00:10:47.285 --> 00:10:51.349 Are you carefully obeying it 00:10:51.349 --> 00:10:54.560 when you are emotionally disinclined? 00:10:54.560 --> 00:10:56.605 When you're lying on the floor 00:10:56.605 --> 00:10:59.252 in despondency and sulking 00:10:59.252 --> 00:11:01.523 and unhappy because your worst fears 00:11:01.523 --> 00:11:03.515 have been realized? 00:11:03.515 --> 00:11:06.495 When you're in the depth of depression 00:11:06.495 --> 00:11:07.982 and self-pity, 00:11:07.982 --> 00:11:10.421 and there's a duty that you have to attend to - 00:11:10.421 --> 00:11:12.084 it's a duty, it's very unpleasant; 00:11:12.084 --> 00:11:14.341 it's very demanding. 00:11:14.341 --> 00:11:18.497 Do you do what your conscience tells you 00:11:18.497 --> 00:11:20.361 that you should do? 00:11:20.361 --> 00:11:24.224 Do you have the maturity to stand on your emotions 00:11:24.224 --> 00:11:26.327 and reject them in the face 00:11:26.327 --> 00:11:29.355 of their reluctance and aversion 00:11:29.355 --> 00:11:31.905 to attend what God commands us? 00:11:31.905 --> 00:11:35.112 There's no greater peril in the Christian life 00:11:35.112 --> 00:11:38.324 than to make our emotions the touchstone 00:11:38.324 --> 00:11:40.482 of our duties. 00:11:40.482 --> 00:11:43.625 And time and again, we have to pick ourselves up 00:11:43.625 --> 00:11:46.552 off the floor of discouragement and say, 00:11:46.552 --> 00:11:48.044 I have a duty, 00:11:48.044 --> 00:11:49.478 and I know this is right, 00:11:49.478 --> 00:11:51.018 and I'm going to do it. 00:11:51.018 --> 00:11:52.526 Or again, let me ask you, 00:11:52.526 --> 00:11:56.335 are you conscientious about small things? 00:11:56.335 --> 00:11:58.351 Because there most of all 00:11:58.351 --> 00:11:59.836 Christians are tested. 00:11:59.836 --> 00:12:02.357 We don't have huge sacrifices to make, 00:12:02.357 --> 00:12:04.773 but every day, there are 00:12:04.773 --> 00:12:08.946 many little duties that you know have to be done. 00:12:08.946 --> 00:12:11.923 And we have to pay careful attention 00:12:11.923 --> 00:12:14.621 to matters of detail, 00:12:14.621 --> 00:12:18.636 because our Lord, He commends people 00:12:18.636 --> 00:12:22.197 who are faithful in little things. 00:12:22.197 --> 00:12:24.258 And so often we are losing the battle 00:12:24.258 --> 00:12:26.891 in little things. 00:12:26.891 --> 00:12:29.512 It might seem to you 00:12:29.512 --> 00:12:35.291 not a big issue to be in prayer meeting 00:12:35.291 --> 00:12:37.973 on a Wednesday night there. 00:12:37.973 --> 00:12:41.340 It might not seem a big issue 00:12:41.340 --> 00:12:44.290 to be in Sunday nights at church. 00:12:44.290 --> 00:12:45.882 It's a small thing. 00:12:45.882 --> 00:12:48.398 It might seem just a little thing 00:12:48.398 --> 00:12:52.633 to ignore writing a letter to someone 00:12:52.633 --> 00:12:56.655 to say thanks for your kindness to me. 00:12:56.655 --> 00:12:58.591 Certain things. 00:12:58.591 --> 00:13:01.946 But we must make conscience then 00:13:01.946 --> 00:13:04.160 if we are going to grow in graciousness 00:13:04.160 --> 00:13:07.105 our conscience - we respect it. 00:13:07.105 --> 00:13:11.203 Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. NOTE Paragraph 00:13:11.203 --> 00:13:12.819 And then fourthly, we must 00:13:12.819 --> 00:13:20.630 make progress in victory over besetting sins. 00:13:20.630 --> 00:13:23.053 And that's a great reality in the Christian life. 00:13:23.053 --> 00:13:26.109 There's just some sin that you know 00:13:26.109 --> 00:13:29.280 it's a problem for you, isn't it? 00:13:29.280 --> 00:13:31.558 And you know you're not going to grow 00:13:31.558 --> 00:13:34.884 unless you deal with that particular sin. 00:13:34.884 --> 00:13:37.602 It's perfectly possible to be normal 00:13:37.602 --> 00:13:41.165 in every part of the Christian life 00:13:41.165 --> 00:13:43.714 in your emotions and your affections 00:13:43.714 --> 00:13:44.905 and will and so on. 00:13:44.905 --> 00:13:46.832 Everything seems to be in order 00:13:46.832 --> 00:13:51.078 except at one point. 00:13:51.078 --> 00:13:54.231 You're in the grip of one temptation. 00:13:54.231 --> 00:13:57.752 You are dominated by one lust. 00:13:57.752 --> 00:14:00.709 You are entangled in the meshes 00:14:00.709 --> 00:14:03.253 of one particular sin. 00:14:03.253 --> 00:14:05.930 And you see it in the world around you. 00:14:05.930 --> 00:14:08.501 It's called monomania. 00:14:08.501 --> 00:14:15.779 One man - in 99 out of 100 areas of his life 00:14:15.779 --> 00:14:18.376 he's straight down the line. 00:14:18.376 --> 00:14:20.224 But there's one area of his life 00:14:20.224 --> 00:14:23.148 where he's walked, 00:14:23.148 --> 00:14:27.072 and he's grasped by one sin. 00:14:27.072 --> 00:14:28.181 And when you say, 00:14:28.181 --> 00:14:30.568 well, it may be a mysterious thing 00:14:30.568 --> 00:14:32.504 that I'm not growing as I should be 00:14:32.504 --> 00:14:34.887 as a Christian. 00:14:34.887 --> 00:14:37.657 Is it so mysterious? 00:14:37.657 --> 00:14:40.306 Is the reason why I'm not growing 00:14:40.306 --> 00:14:43.784 as I should be because my spiritual life 00:14:43.784 --> 00:14:49.236 is diseased in one area. 00:14:49.236 --> 00:14:52.393 Unless it's dealt with, 00:14:52.393 --> 00:14:55.217 it's going to - just like a bug, 00:14:55.217 --> 00:14:58.175 a virus is just in one part of you 00:14:58.175 --> 00:15:00.010 and it affects the rest of you. 00:15:00.010 --> 00:15:02.869 You're weak and listless and so on. 00:15:02.869 --> 00:15:06.318 You must deal with that besetting sin. 00:15:06.318 --> 00:15:08.684 Worldliness, prayerlessness, 00:15:08.684 --> 00:15:10.513 irritability, impatience, 00:15:10.513 --> 00:15:14.215 aggressiveness, what have you... NOTE Paragraph 00:15:14.215 --> 00:15:16.572 So, those are four, 00:15:16.572 --> 00:15:18.642 and then one more point 00:15:18.642 --> 00:15:21.353 in which when we are praying for 00:15:21.353 --> 00:15:24.069 growing in grace, 00:15:24.069 --> 00:15:27.998 we are praying that we should grow 00:15:27.998 --> 00:15:31.913 in evangelistic earnestness. 00:15:31.913 --> 00:15:35.098 Now, you know, when you first knew the Lord, 00:15:35.098 --> 00:15:37.439 you see it in the young convert - 00:15:37.439 --> 00:15:41.509 it's lovely to see - how bold he is. 00:15:41.509 --> 00:15:43.100 You tremble at times 00:15:43.100 --> 00:15:45.016 because he'll blurt out things 00:15:45.016 --> 00:15:49.577 that you might have said rather more sweetly. 00:15:49.577 --> 00:15:51.858 But he just sees the world's need 00:15:51.858 --> 00:15:54.493 and he sees Christ as a great Savior. 00:15:54.493 --> 00:15:56.611 And he speaks a word 00:15:56.611 --> 00:15:58.806 in and out of season. 00:15:58.806 --> 00:16:01.542 And the mature amongst us, we smile 00:16:01.542 --> 00:16:03.882 and we may sneer even, 00:16:03.882 --> 00:16:07.499 because much of it was immature. 00:16:07.499 --> 00:16:10.286 The witness was unwise and indiscreet 00:16:10.286 --> 00:16:12.451 and ineffectual. 00:16:12.451 --> 00:16:15.402 But that does not justify that fact 00:16:15.402 --> 00:16:20.053 that many Christians as they grow older, 00:16:20.053 --> 00:16:24.448 they grow more reticent and quieter 00:16:24.448 --> 00:16:27.360 and share their faith less and less. 00:16:27.368 --> 00:16:31.811 The vision of the world's lostness just disappears. 00:16:31.811 --> 00:16:36.426 And that's a maturity that our churches 00:16:36.426 --> 00:16:38.239 need to do without. 00:16:38.239 --> 00:16:39.671 It's expected sometimes - 00:16:39.671 --> 00:16:40.987 it's only the young people 00:16:40.987 --> 00:16:45.353 who go out on missions and work 00:16:45.353 --> 00:16:50.451 and go to Mexico for a week and so on. 00:16:50.451 --> 00:16:53.509 And they haven't the equipment; 00:16:53.509 --> 00:16:55.272 they haven't the wisdom. 00:16:55.272 --> 00:16:58.837 They're great helpers, but they're not great leaders. 00:16:58.837 --> 00:17:01.681 So, as we've been coming now, 00:17:01.681 --> 00:17:03.258 we've been Christians many years. 00:17:03.258 --> 00:17:05.139 How is it with you 00:17:05.139 --> 00:17:09.424 and your evangelistic concern? 00:17:09.424 --> 00:17:11.517 Are you prepared to get involved 00:17:11.517 --> 00:17:15.721 in every true evangelistic cause? 00:17:15.721 --> 00:17:17.336 Are you prepared to support it 00:17:17.336 --> 00:17:20.441 and pray and give and cooperate? 00:17:20.441 --> 00:17:23.056 I know there's a lot of misplaced evangelism. 00:17:23.056 --> 00:17:26.290 I can give statistics for evangelistic failure, 00:17:26.290 --> 00:17:28.034 and you know all that. 00:17:28.034 --> 00:17:30.844 And that won't help us at all. 00:17:30.844 --> 00:17:32.817 We must stand back 00:17:32.817 --> 00:17:35.701 from simply criticizing. 00:17:35.701 --> 00:17:40.093 And we have to be involved in every form 00:17:40.093 --> 00:17:42.468 of biblical evangelism. 00:17:42.468 --> 00:17:44.054 We have to do that. 00:17:44.054 --> 00:17:46.527 And it's a sad thing for any Christian 00:17:46.527 --> 00:17:49.815 if that vision is gone. 00:17:49.815 --> 00:17:52.579 So, I'm saying, those are the sorts of things 00:17:52.579 --> 00:17:58.674 we are praying for when we hear 00:17:58.674 --> 00:18:02.534 the exhortation - the last words of Peter - 00:18:02.534 --> 00:18:05.679 but grow in grace; 00:18:05.679 --> 00:18:07.984 grow in graciousness. 00:18:07.984 --> 00:18:10.591 And we're talking about making 00:18:10.591 --> 00:18:14.186 progress in being concerned for other people. 00:18:14.186 --> 00:18:18.518 And growing in our knowledge of the Bible 00:18:18.518 --> 00:18:20.273 and what the Bible teaches. 00:18:20.273 --> 00:18:22.670 And growing in conscientiousness. 00:18:22.670 --> 00:18:25.950 And growing in victory over besetting sins. 00:18:25.950 --> 00:18:30.746 And growing in evangelistic earnestness. NOTE Paragraph 00:18:30.746 --> 00:18:36.220 And then, very briefly, as a postscript. 00:18:36.220 --> 00:18:39.753 How is this to be achieved? 00:18:39.753 --> 00:18:43.087 How are we as Christians going to grow? 00:18:43.087 --> 00:18:45.309 And the first answer is 00:18:45.309 --> 00:18:50.164 that it must be a priority in our lives. 00:18:50.164 --> 00:18:53.201 These are Peter's last words, aren't they? 00:18:53.201 --> 00:18:55.666 Think of the life he lived. 00:18:55.666 --> 00:18:57.350 He preached at Pentecost 00:18:57.350 --> 00:18:59.322 and 3,000 were converted. 00:18:59.322 --> 00:19:01.752 Do you think he would sort of float along 00:19:01.752 --> 00:19:04.639 in the glow of that for the rest of his life? 00:19:04.639 --> 00:19:06.677 But he doesn't. He's here and there, 00:19:06.677 --> 00:19:08.993 and he's going to Cornelius' household, 00:19:08.993 --> 00:19:12.907 and he's traveling and he's speaking everywhere. 00:19:12.907 --> 00:19:15.287 And his last words to people are: 00:19:15.287 --> 00:19:19.928 grow now; grow in the grace 00:19:19.928 --> 00:19:23.000 and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:19:23.000 --> 00:19:24.915 That's the greatest thing in our lives. 00:19:24.915 --> 00:19:27.058 There's nothing more important for us. 00:19:27.058 --> 00:19:30.279 What's more important than this? 00:19:30.279 --> 00:19:32.588 In the midst of all the other engagements 00:19:32.588 --> 00:19:35.700 and preoccupations and concerns, 00:19:35.700 --> 00:19:38.606 a Christian's relationship with God 00:19:38.606 --> 00:19:41.827 controls his life. 00:19:41.827 --> 00:19:44.633 It's what his life is built around. 00:19:44.633 --> 00:19:47.830 And his greatest longing is to be more fit 00:19:47.830 --> 00:19:50.895 for the Master's use. 00:19:50.895 --> 00:19:53.604 This one thing I do - one thing, 00:19:53.604 --> 00:19:54.935 the apostle says, 00:19:54.935 --> 00:19:58.920 a single eye Jesus speaks about. 00:19:58.920 --> 00:20:01.131 I look at my own life and I wonder 00:20:01.131 --> 00:20:03.089 as the years have gone by, 00:20:03.089 --> 00:20:06.594 have I changed that scale of values 00:20:06.594 --> 00:20:09.579 and my sense of priorities? 00:20:09.579 --> 00:20:13.228 I know it's easy to react against 00:20:13.228 --> 00:20:16.047 extreme religionism. 00:20:16.047 --> 00:20:18.593 A person just talks about religion 00:20:18.593 --> 00:20:21.169 and isn't interested in anything else. 00:20:21.169 --> 00:20:22.780 That's unbiblical too, 00:20:22.780 --> 00:20:24.296 because in the Bible, 00:20:24.296 --> 00:20:28.576 they talk about all that's in God's creation. 00:20:28.576 --> 00:20:30.102 But there's a far greater peril 00:20:30.102 --> 00:20:32.245 than that sort of extreme. 00:20:32.245 --> 00:20:33.980 And that's a reduction 00:20:33.980 --> 00:20:36.767 of religious aspiration; 00:20:36.767 --> 00:20:39.648 of religious vision; 00:20:39.648 --> 00:20:44.213 of a relegation of my relationship to Christ 00:20:44.213 --> 00:20:47.852 to not be the first thing 00:20:47.852 --> 00:20:51.163 and the greatest thing in my life. 00:20:51.163 --> 00:20:53.653 And at times I think it's happened to me. 00:20:53.653 --> 00:20:57.864 And it's happened to other people. 00:20:57.864 --> 00:21:02.755 That things that should be primary 00:21:02.755 --> 00:21:08.111 have become secondary in my priorities. 00:21:08.111 --> 00:21:12.964 And I think as I look at my old church, 00:21:12.964 --> 00:21:15.587 and at evangelicalism as I meet it, 00:21:15.587 --> 00:21:19.504 I see slackness and sloppiness 00:21:19.504 --> 00:21:23.957 coming into so many areas of church life. 00:21:23.957 --> 00:21:28.847 For to me, to live is Christ. 00:21:28.847 --> 00:21:31.899 That's what he says, isn't it? 00:21:31.899 --> 00:21:35.102 If our chief end in life is not that, 00:21:35.102 --> 00:21:38.722 we are facing the most appalling 00:21:38.722 --> 00:21:41.739 and unhappy futures. NOTE Paragraph 00:21:41.739 --> 00:21:43.924 And then secondly, 00:21:43.924 --> 00:21:45.331 it must be a priority - 00:21:45.331 --> 00:21:48.280 secondly, our religious lives 00:21:48.280 --> 00:21:51.503 are not going to take care of themselves. 00:21:51.503 --> 00:21:54.515 We can't simply expect our soul 00:21:54.515 --> 00:21:57.087 to nourish and fend for itself; 00:21:57.087 --> 00:21:58.593 to provide for itself. 00:21:58.593 --> 00:21:59.718 You have to see for it. 00:21:59.718 --> 00:22:03.410 I have all the weight of an apostle's command 00:22:03.410 --> 00:22:09.111 to say you have to grow. 00:22:09.111 --> 00:22:11.226 You have to make sure you are growing, 00:22:11.226 --> 00:22:13.407 and that applies to every form of life. 00:22:13.407 --> 00:22:15.242 We're concerned for our plants. 00:22:15.242 --> 00:22:17.041 We give our key to our neighbor 00:22:17.041 --> 00:22:19.208 and we say I'm going to Florida now 00:22:19.208 --> 00:22:21.793 for two weeks, can you feed the plants? 00:22:21.793 --> 00:22:23.748 When I'm away, we're concerned 00:22:23.748 --> 00:22:29.649 about the bushes and the flowers. 00:22:29.649 --> 00:22:31.608 We're concerned about our animals - 00:22:31.608 --> 00:22:34.643 how they'll be fed. 00:22:34.643 --> 00:22:36.969 And our minds 00:22:36.969 --> 00:22:38.738 and our intellects - 00:22:38.738 --> 00:22:43.381 what stuff we are feeding our minds with. 00:22:43.381 --> 00:22:46.350 They won't look after themselves. 00:22:46.350 --> 00:22:48.317 And so our souls - 00:22:48.317 --> 00:22:49.944 our souls won't look after themselves. 00:22:49.944 --> 00:22:53.165 We have to feed our souls, 00:22:53.165 --> 00:22:59.518 as a program of provision for them. 00:22:59.518 --> 00:23:01.472 Peter speaks in the 17th verse 00:23:01.472 --> 00:23:02.477 about being led away 00:23:02.477 --> 00:23:03.985 with the error of the wicked, 00:23:03.985 --> 00:23:06.266 and we all know people who've been led away 00:23:06.266 --> 00:23:08.029 because they didn't look after 00:23:08.029 --> 00:23:14.228 their own souls. 00:23:14.228 --> 00:23:15.578 There are people - 00:23:15.578 --> 00:23:17.999 and Paul tells Timothy about them - 00:23:17.999 --> 00:23:24.780 they have a form of godliness. 00:23:24.780 --> 00:23:29.132 And they go to church and so on. 00:23:29.132 --> 00:23:32.116 But it's just a form. 00:23:32.116 --> 00:23:34.487 It's formalistic. 00:23:34.487 --> 00:23:35.524 That's it. 00:23:35.524 --> 00:23:38.174 There's nothing under it. 00:23:38.174 --> 00:23:41.482 Nothing beneath it at all. 00:23:41.482 --> 00:23:47.319 So, let's be so careful about this. 00:23:47.319 --> 00:23:49.178 You know, not to prove 00:23:49.178 --> 00:23:51.738 I'm not a Puritan. 00:23:51.738 --> 00:23:53.551 Not to prove to people 00:23:53.551 --> 00:23:55.606 that I'm not narrow-minded; 00:23:55.606 --> 00:23:57.338 that I believe in Christian liberty 00:23:57.338 --> 00:24:00.334 and the freedom of conscience. 00:24:00.334 --> 00:24:03.186 To show people I know about politics 00:24:03.186 --> 00:24:05.829 and I can speak about all these things. 00:24:05.829 --> 00:24:08.090 I wonder if some of the energy 00:24:08.090 --> 00:24:10.994 that we pour into that, 00:24:10.994 --> 00:24:12.988 can be poured into 00:24:12.988 --> 00:24:17.434 my relationship with Jesus Christ. 00:24:17.434 --> 00:24:20.034 And that I'm growing. 00:24:20.034 --> 00:24:22.346 I'm growing in the knowledge of Him. 00:24:22.346 --> 00:24:23.646 My Savior. 00:24:23.646 --> 00:24:25.914 And that I'm feeding my soul. NOTE Paragraph 00:24:25.914 --> 00:24:27.725 So, how do we do this? 00:24:27.725 --> 00:24:31.759 Well, it must be a priority in our lives. 00:24:31.759 --> 00:24:33.750 And then, we must be aware 00:24:33.750 --> 00:24:35.924 that we've got a duty to feed our souls; 00:24:35.924 --> 00:24:38.336 that they won't look after themselves. 00:24:38.336 --> 00:24:44.253 And then Peter tells us in this 14th verse: 00:24:44.253 --> 00:24:45.891 "To make every effort 00:24:45.891 --> 00:24:47.849 to be diligent..." he says. 00:24:47.849 --> 00:24:51.142 Be diligent. 00:24:51.142 --> 00:24:53.414 And in what direction? 00:24:53.414 --> 00:24:55.813 Well, you've got to seek food for your souls. 00:24:55.813 --> 00:24:58.106 You've got to get away to a conference. 00:24:58.106 --> 00:25:01.442 Travel a long distance to be here. 00:25:01.442 --> 00:25:03.276 Drive 15 hours. 00:25:03.276 --> 00:25:04.666 Drive through the night. 00:25:04.666 --> 00:25:08.388 Drive just to be here. 00:25:08.388 --> 00:25:11.412 And search for things that can nourish you 00:25:11.412 --> 00:25:13.070 and build up your knowledge 00:25:13.070 --> 00:25:16.797 and your graciousness; 00:25:16.797 --> 00:25:19.792 that you don't want to be unfruitful 00:25:19.792 --> 00:25:21.624 and static, 00:25:21.624 --> 00:25:23.576 but there's a dynamism, 00:25:23.576 --> 00:25:26.124 and a maturing, 00:25:26.124 --> 00:25:28.791 and a beauty, and a fragrance, 00:25:28.791 --> 00:25:31.908 and a loveliness about your life. 00:25:31.908 --> 00:25:34.485 You're seeking for truths that will do that. 00:25:34.485 --> 00:25:36.624 That will produce love, 00:25:36.624 --> 00:25:38.315 and joy, and peace, 00:25:38.315 --> 00:25:40.657 and longsuffering, and gentleness, 00:25:40.657 --> 00:25:42.444 and goodness, and faithfulness, 00:25:42.444 --> 00:25:45.039 and meekness, and self-control. 00:25:45.039 --> 00:25:47.567 You've got to fall in love with the Bible. 00:25:47.567 --> 00:25:48.916 You've got to search it. 00:25:48.916 --> 00:25:50.165 You've got to ransack it. 00:25:50.165 --> 00:25:53.337 You've got to sit under the best ministry you can 00:25:53.337 --> 00:25:54.567 on a Sunday. 00:25:54.567 --> 00:25:56.434 You've got to read the best books. 00:25:56.434 --> 00:25:58.213 You've got to sit and listen 00:25:58.213 --> 00:26:01.011 to older Christians as they talk together 00:26:01.011 --> 00:26:02.609 and they reminisce about how God 00:26:02.609 --> 00:26:04.969 has dealt with them over the years, 00:26:04.969 --> 00:26:06.694 and learn from them 00:26:06.694 --> 00:26:08.114 the mysterious influence 00:26:08.114 --> 00:26:10.369 that one Christian can have over another. 00:26:10.369 --> 00:26:12.654 You seek good fellowship 00:26:12.654 --> 00:26:14.411 with other Christians. 00:26:14.411 --> 00:26:16.290 And you hunger for truth - 00:26:16.290 --> 00:26:18.464 you want the Word of God to come 00:26:18.464 --> 00:26:19.430 not in word only, 00:26:19.430 --> 00:26:21.927 but power and the Holy Spirit 00:26:21.927 --> 00:26:24.209 and much assurance. 00:26:24.209 --> 00:26:25.416 Fall with love. 00:26:25.416 --> 00:26:27.823 Meditating upon Scripture. 00:26:27.823 --> 00:26:29.698 Praying Scripture. 00:26:29.698 --> 00:26:31.621 So, you read a verse like this: 00:26:31.621 --> 00:26:33.736 "But grow in the grace and knowledge 00:26:33.736 --> 00:26:35.009 of our Lord and Savior..." 00:26:35.009 --> 00:26:37.286 And you say, "Lord, me too. 00:26:37.286 --> 00:26:38.677 I want to grow. 00:26:38.677 --> 00:26:40.440 I want to grow. 00:26:40.440 --> 00:26:42.661 This week, I've got a special time here; 00:26:42.661 --> 00:26:44.488 special privileges. 00:26:44.488 --> 00:26:46.433 Help me to grow 00:26:46.433 --> 00:26:49.372 in the grace and knowledge of my Savior 00:26:49.372 --> 00:26:51.602 Jesus Christ." 00:26:51.602 --> 00:26:55.825 Because your souls won't grow without food. 00:26:55.825 --> 00:26:59.541 And there's no food for the soul 00:26:59.541 --> 00:27:01.412 like the Word of God. 00:27:01.412 --> 00:27:03.549 There's no place to be better 00:27:03.549 --> 00:27:08.742 than before the face of Jesus Christ. 00:27:08.742 --> 00:27:16.078 You need that. NOTE Paragraph 00:27:16.078 --> 00:27:17.853 Let's pray together. 00:27:17.853 --> 00:27:19.144 Heavenly Father, 00:27:19.144 --> 00:27:23.900 we've heard these searching exhortations, 00:27:23.900 --> 00:27:27.164 and so now we just roll them out before Thee, 00:27:27.164 --> 00:27:30.914 and oh, we wish we were much stronger, 00:27:30.914 --> 00:27:34.399 and maturer, and wiser, and more loving, 00:27:34.399 --> 00:27:37.342 and more patient, and gentle, 00:27:37.342 --> 00:27:38.929 and longsuffering. 00:27:38.929 --> 00:27:43.040 Oh, we wish there was more purity 00:27:43.040 --> 00:27:46.628 and love for what is good and holy. 00:27:46.628 --> 00:27:49.497 Oh Lord, give us a nudge. 00:27:49.497 --> 00:27:51.467 Give us a little push - 00:27:51.467 --> 00:27:53.991 a big push as we go. 00:27:53.991 --> 00:27:55.690 Speak to us. 00:27:55.690 --> 00:27:56.507 Humble us. 00:27:56.507 --> 00:28:00.230 Encourage us in the Christian life this week. 00:28:00.230 --> 00:28:04.235 That as a result of being in the conference, 00:28:04.235 --> 00:28:07.082 we'll grow in the grace 00:28:07.082 --> 00:28:10.307 and knowledge of our Savior Jesus Christ 00:28:10.307 --> 00:28:13.001 to whom be glory forever and ever, 00:28:13.001 --> 00:28:14.817 Amen.