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I WAS THERE!

June 19, 2005 PM

Sermon Outline

2 PET 1:16-18

INTRO:2 Peter is written to correct some myths being circulated by false teachers within the church. Times have not changed all that much. There were purveyors of error then, and there are those today, within the body, who would have you believe things foreign to the word. One of the great errors Peter wrote to correct had to do with the Lords return. There were those who taught that Jesus would not be returning to claim His own. In chapter 3 Peter called them scoffers. But Peter knew that Jesus would come again!

I. WHAT HE TAUGHT WAS NOT ARTFUL FABLE

A. Yes, the religious world did (does) have its fables

1. the pagan world was rife with such tales and stories

2. even the Jewish world had its own spurious works

B. Apostolic writers warned about fables

1. 1 Tim 1:4 & 4:7

2. 2 Tim 4:3,4

3. Titus 1:13,14

4. fables are inventions; they are not truth!

C. Peter (with James and John) was an eyewitness

1. he had been with Jesus through teaching, miracles

2. he refers here to the transfiguration

3. and he had seen the risen Jesus - 1 Cor 15:4,5

4. Peters testimony, remembrance was not hearsay

II. PETER KNEW THAT THE LORD WOULD COME AGAIN

A. Perhaps, however, his reason for knowing seems a bit strange

1. he does not cite words of the Lord, promises

2. he cites the transfiguration event as his reason!

3. what does this have to do with combating error?

B. Why refer to the transfiguration?

1. clearly, they saw majesty - Lk 9:29

2. they say Elijah and Moses ... alive and talking - Lk 9:30

3. they heard them talk of Jesus decease (exodus) ... not of His death (exodus is not the usual word for death - and Peter chose that word of himself at 2 Pet 1:15)

4. the glory of God surrounded them - Lk 9:34 (bright cloud - Mt 17:5)

5. they heard Gods voice declare that Jesus is His son - Lk 9:35

6. they heard God attest to integrity, validity of Jesus words - Lk 9:35 (so, Lk 9:22 with Lk 9:51)

7. this was an event of monumental importance to Jesus integrity ... and to Peters - Peter is able to declare, I was there. I saw it all. I heard it all

C. Now, what else had Peter seen?

1. Acts 1:9-11 - I was there!

2. how could anyone doubt the Lords coming again? there were eyewitness accounts ... no fables

3. and Paul wrote: 1 Thes 4:13-18

4. true, His coming would not be of the same sort as before ... but He is coming!

5. and what did John write? Jno 14:1-3 with Rev 22:20

6. remove the Lords coming, and there is simply no reason to the faith

7. Acts 17:31 - ...whereof he hath given assurance unto all men...

D. I hear great reverence, significance at 2 Pet 1:17,18

1. I heard Gods voice clearly - I was there

2. but this was just after Peter had proposed the three tabernacles - a proposal suggesting equal weight with the law and prophets ... a proposal which God quickly rejected!

3. Peter knew Jesus would come again!

CLOSE: Where is our anticipation? Interestingly, both Peter and Paul include holy living with their discussions of Jesus return. If we anticipate, we must, then, live holy, godly lives. 2 Pet 3:11 - Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness...

Cecil A. Hutson

June 19, 2005

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)