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PRECIOUS, YET DESPISED

May 27, 2001 PM

Sermon Outline

1 Pet 2:7,8

INTRO: Its so strange how two people can look at the same thing and see two different things! Well, the verses we have read certainly accentuate that fact. Jesus, chosen as the precious head of the corner by some, is rejected as a misshapen, useless stone by others. This diversity of view concerning Christ began with His ministry and continues to the present. Some choose Him. Some cast Him aside. Which choice have you made?

I. HE IS PRECIOUS TO BELIEVERS1 Pet 7a

A. Precious is the superlative degree of value

1. think of gem stones there are plain old rocks; there are semiprecious stones; there are precious stones

2. precious stones have greatest value

3. a value that is intrinsic not just sentimental

B. Well, to believers Jesus is precious

1. He is not just another historical figure

2. nor is His preciousness sentimental in the same sense as people special to us (relatives, friends, etc.)

3. His is an intrinsic value no matter ones feelings ... and believers recognize that preciousness! they have accepted Him and His word in obedience of faith

C. The basis of His preciousness?

1. He is the only begotten of God --Jno 1:14,18

2. He is the only true information we have about God -- Jno 14:9

3. He is the only hope of redemption -- 1 Cor 3:11

4. being one of a kind certainly emphasizes the intrinsic preciousness of Christ!

II. DESPISED BY UNBELIEVERS 1 Pet 2: 7b, 8a

A. Is despised too strong a word?

1. just because one doesnt believe in Jesus, must he hate Him

2. note Isa 53:3 despised and rejected

3. and what have the unbelievers of our text done? disallowed the stone, rejected Christthey (and all who choose unbelief) despised Him! there is no middle ground (Mt 12:30)

B. Now, who despised Him?

1. the Jewish leaders did --Acts 26:15

2. the Roman authorities didCaesar worship was immediately undermined by the Lord! (civil disturbance)

3. and what about apostate Christiansthey, too, would have been unbelievers --3 Jno 9-11; 2 Tim 2:17-19a (do we infer that though these two claim to be Christians God knows they are not?)

C. And what about now? who despises Him?

1. we can observe three things from our text:

2. the unbeliever (v. 7); one who stumbles at the word (v. 8a); one who is disobedient (v. 8b)

a. one who rejects Jesus in general

b. one who rejects the testimony of the word (see

1 Cor 1:18,23)

c. one who chooses to disobey at any point

3. comparatively, then, Jesus, is precious to very few!

III. WHAT HAPPENS TO ONE WHO REJECTS THIS STONE? 1 Pet 2:8b

A. Note Isa 8:13-15 (quoted in 1 Pet 2:8)

1. we see first a sanctuary for those who set God in their hearts as Ruler

2. but - prophetically of Jesus - there will be those who stumble (Peter tells us they are unbelievers, disobedient)

3. note especially verse 15...the stumbling is a breaking, an imprisonment, a punishment of God!

4. so, to reject Christ is to incur Gods judgement

B. Whereunto also they were appointed

1. the inevitability of the punishment of unbelief

2. this is a truth clearly demonstrated from the scenes in the garden of Eden through the Bible

3. Rom 6:23

4. great are the disadvantages, then, of unbelief

CLOSE: Is He precious to you...or despised? Remember, there is no middle ground of neutrality. You can make Him precious by obeying the gospel now!

Cecil A. Hutson

27 May 2001

God's Plan of Salvation

You must hear the gospel and then understand and recognize that you are lost without Jesus Christ no matter who you are and no matter what your background is. The Bible tells us that "all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23) Before you can be saved, you must understand that you are lost and that the only way to be saved is by obedience to the gospel of Jesus Christ. (2 Thessalonians 1:8) Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) "So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)

You must believe and have faith in God because "without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him." (Hebrews 11:6) But neither belief alone nor faith alone is sufficient to save. (James 2:19; James 2:24; Matthew 7:21)

You must repent of your sins. (Acts 3:19) But repentance alone is not enough. The so-called "Sinner's Prayer" that you hear so much about today from denominational preachers does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, nowhere in the Bible was anyone ever told to pray the "Sinner's Prayer" to be saved. By contrast, there are numerous examples showing that prayer alone does not save. Saul, for example, prayed following his meeting with Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:11), but Saul was still in his sins when Ananias met him three days later (Acts 22:16). Cornelius prayed to God always, and yet there was something else he needed to do to be saved (Acts 10:2, 6, 33, 48). If prayer alone did not save Saul or Cornelius, prayer alone will not save you. You must obey the gospel. (2 Thess. 1:8)

You must confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. (Romans 10:9-10) Note that you do NOT need to make Jesus "Lord of your life." Why? Because Jesus is already Lord of your life whether or not you have obeyed his gospel. Indeed, we obey him, not to make him Lord, but because he already is Lord. (Acts 2:36) Also, no one in the Bible was ever told to just "accept Jesus as your personal savior." We must confess that Jesus is the Son of God, but, as with faith and repentance, confession alone does not save. (Matthew 7:21)

Having believed, repented, and confessed that Jesus is the Son of God, you must be baptized for the remission of your sins. (Acts 2:38) It is at this point (and not before) that your sins are forgiven. (Acts 22:16) It is impossible to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ without teaching the absolute necessity of baptism for salvation. (Acts 8:35-36; Romans 6:3-4; 1 Peter 3:21) Anyone who responds to the question in Acts 2:37 with an answer that contradicts Acts 2:38 is NOT proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ!

Once you are saved, God adds you to his church and writes your name in the Book of Life. (Acts 2:47; Philippians 4:3) To continue in God's grace, you must continue to serve God faithfully until death. Unless they remain faithful, those who are in God's grace will fall from grace, and those whose names are in the Book of Life will have their names blotted out of that book. (Revelation 2:10; Revelation 3:5; Galatians 5:4)