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“Before
the World”
a sermon by
Thomas L. Jenkins
Text: 1Peter 1: 17-23
“He was destined before the
foundation of the world, but was revealed at the end of the ages for
your sake.”
DEAR SISTERS AND BROTHERS, based on the passage we just read from 1
Peter, what I may very well be doing this morning is more teaching
than what is considered preaching.
This small passage of 7 verses refers to HOLINESS, SALVATION,
INCARNATION, and what all these have to do with us.
If someone were to ask us what holiness is, our first thought would
probably have something to do with self righteousness and religion. We would probably say, “A holy person is involved in many
aspects of the church, and never disobeys any of God’s laws.”
But as we look at our very first verse, where Peter writes, “If you invoke as Father the one who judges all people impartially
according to their deed,” he is showing us that, yes, even as God
is a holy judge, the highest level of holiness in God is about God’s
loving relationships. And
the highest aspect of holiness that we may experience is not how often
we go to church, it is not how often we pray, it is not how often we
read the Bible—though all these things are wonderful—the highest
aspect of holiness that we may experience is divine love for one
another.
One of the last verses we read, said, “Now
that you have purified your souls by your obedience to the truth so that
you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from the heart.”
Our whole salvation is about our being lifted up by God and then being
placed in the most loving personal relationships that are even above
heaven.
In one of the major verses we read this morning, it referred to the
foundation of our salvation. “He was destined before the foundation of the world,” I want to
talk about salvation.
Again, if someone were to ask us about salvation, we would probably say
something like this: “We needed to be saved from sin and the power of
evil’s death, so God sent His Son to save us.”
Now these words are good, but there is a higher level of
understanding salvation that is being revealed to us.
DESTINED BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD. By
the ways we begin our look at salvation; it is described with painful
and negative referrals; sin, death, and evil.
But, for God our salvation was very positive to begin with.
For God our salvation meant for us to be placed in His holiness,
that is to say, His life of loving relationships.
The Son of God was destined before the world was even created, because
before there was any creation, God the Father and God the Son loved each
other personally in the Holy Spirit.
And their eternal choice, their eternal election, was to create a
universe, and creatures on the earth; and as for the human creatures on
earth, the Son of God was going to pass through the heavens, be born as
a human on this earth, and then go back to His Father so that he could
continue his holy relationship, but now with mind and feelings of a
human being. So that by the
Holy Spirit we may be in their relationship. Now we are.
Had there never been any sin, evil, or death the Son of God would have
still become a human being among us.
This is the foundation of our salvation.
How can we grow in our understanding of our salvation? Well, the situation is not that we are separated from God,
and that the only way we can earn our salvation is that we pray and ask
Jesus to come into our hearts. That
is not the most proper description of our salvation.
Here is a closer one. When the Son of God entered into the heart of humanity, He
entered into the heart of who you are.
When the Son of God was born as Jesus Christ, it was then that
you were connected to God. Your
salvation is located in Christ.
When He died, you died. When
He was resurrected, so were you. When
He went back to God the Father, He took you with Him.
The ultimate truth about who you are, whether you know it or not, is
that, just as God chose this for you, before this world, you are now a
personal member of the relationship Jesus has with our Father.
That is who you are.
Those two disciples, on their way to Emmaus, did not even know Jesus was
with them until He broke the bread.
We are saved in Jesus Christ.
But we don’t always know this and see this.
Let us pray that the Lord will open the eyes of our hearts to see
our salvation in Christ, as He breaks bread for us.
Let us pray…
Amen.
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