The Vindicated and Victorious Jesus (Part 2)

[0:00] Thank you.

[0:30] Thank you.

[1:00] Thank you. Thank you.

[1:32] Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Now, corresponding to that, baptism now saves you.

[1:42] And I want to begin with this one.

[2:16] And it's a little bit of a challenge to us to think carefully about the way that we approach living the Christian life. And what that means is what it means to follow Jesus Christ as a disciple, as someone who's been saved and forgiven, born again, made fit for heaven.

[2:37] This is this is what we want to think about. The Christian life is not the casual life. I just just think about that for just a moment with me.

[2:51] The Christian life is not a casual life or the casual life. I don't know how you would define a casual life.

[3:03] But here's how Webster defines the word casual. Happening by chance. Without definite or serious intention.

[3:15] Careless. Offhand. Seeming or tending to be indifferent to what is happening. That is unconcerned. And so some synonyms that we would use.

[3:26] Unplanned. Chance. Unintentional. Unintended. Off the cuff. Accidental. Now, by those definitions and associations, I think you can see there's no room for casual in the Christian life.

[3:40] I've made it part of my own prayer life, in fact, to pray against my heart drifting toward a casual attitude about my life and about my relationships.

[3:51] Because that's my bent. Apart from the Lord Jesus, I'm consumed with me and I drift toward ease.

[4:02] I drift toward casual. It's what I crave. Becoming a Christian puts me at odds with that.

[4:14] And I feel that tension, don't you? Sometimes. Sometimes. Now, I'm probably going to say more about this later.

[4:25] Just a little bit about it now. You could probably put it in the bank and anticipate a sermon coming soon entitled The Curse of a Casual Life. Something like that.

[4:37] I was so sorely tempted. But you know how the rabbit things are. You just have to rein that thing back in. So we need to examine. That's the point. We need to examine how we approach the Christian life.

[4:50] My Christian life. Your Christian life. Scripture never characterizes our life in Christ as chance.

[5:04] As something that is unintended or off the cuff. That's not how we came to know the Lord. Jesus Christ himself did not live a casual life.

[5:17] None of the apostles lived casually. And Peter is not calling us to a life of casual indifference. Quite the opposite.

[5:27] You can't read this letter and not see so much of the intentionality of this man's heart. The focus of his life. You can't read the apostle Paul without being impressed with the discipline of his life.

[5:44] The focus of these men were always on the Lord Jesus Christ. And that just brought them into such a meaningful, purposed life of commitment and sacrifice and suffering.

[6:01] I'm sure that if you had asked any of those men at any given time in their walk with the Lord. Oh, what a sacrifice you're making for Jesus. How do you do that?

[6:11] They would have looked at you and said, what sacrifice? What are you talking about? If you want to talk about sacrifice, let's talk about the sacrifice he made for me. Not what I'm making for him.

[6:27] In stark contrast to casual. The scripture speaks to the Christ like life. The cross life.

[6:43] The crucified life. Now, just think about that with me for a moment and let it really sober you. Let your mind focus on the crucified life.

[7:01] Only God could come up with that. The crucified. The crucified. That's what you're called to live. Is a crucified. Life.

[7:12] Jesus said, if anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself. Take up his cross. And follow me.

[7:24] That's your calling. That's the foundation and footing of the Christian life. Paul said this. I have been crucified with Christ. And it is no longer I who live.

[7:38] But Christ lives in me. That's the crucified life. That's Galatians 2.20. The first one was Mark 8.34. So the cross life.

[7:51] The cross life. Is a calculated. Well considered. Measured. And intentional life. Of this. You.

[8:02] You. Striving. In God's grace. To make the most. Of Jesus sacrifice. To bring you to God. That's what you're doing. That's what you're living.

[8:14] I want to live in such a way. That I am making the most. Of Jesus sacrifice. On the cross. For me. I would never. I would never want to live in a way.

[8:26] That would in any way. Diminish. That sacrifice. Or take for granted. The offering. That Jesus made of himself. To purchase me away from sin.

[8:36] That's. That's. What the Bible calls. A thankful life. We just. Never. Ever. Get over. Who Jesus is.

[8:47] And what he's done for us. And so we live in constant gratitude. Now. Challenge yourself. Just for a moment. For those of you. Who are married. This will be easier. For those of you. Who wish to be married.

[8:58] Or hope to be married. One day. Just think in terms of maybe. A really close friend. Or even your parents. Somebody really close to you. But for you married. Think of this. How easy is it.

[9:09] For you. Or has it been for you. In times in your marriage. To take your spouse. For granted. That is one of the worst things. You can possibly do. In any relationship. That you're close in.

[9:21] Is take that person. For granted. But we do it. And if you've ever been. On the receiving end. Of being taken for granted. How's that feel?

[9:34] It's. It's too easy. For us. To drift. And the casual life. Is not our friend. A casual heart. Is not our friend. What it does. Is it.

[9:44] Is it causes us. To take the cross. For granted. And we need to repent. Of that. One of the ways. That helps us.

[9:54] Repent of that. Is meditating. Contemplating. Thinking through. Considering carefully. Each day. The wonderful sacrifice. That Jesus made for us. And then thinking.

[10:05] On the victory. That he's won for us. So that we could have life. That can help us. It helps shake us. Out of that complacency. That casual.

[10:15] Kind of drift. It puts us. Where we need to be. But we have to give ourselves. To thinking like that. And then. Living thankfully. That's why you see.

[10:27] So often. In the New Testament. The writers. Of these different letters. Telling you. And live thankfully. And be thankful. People. Because they don't want you.

[10:37] To take Jesus. For granted. Well. In 1st Peter 3. 18 through 22. Peter. Focuses our hearts.

[10:48] On how Jesus. Unjust suffering. And death. Something we need. To constantly consider. As well as his. Victorious resurrection. Secured meaning. And secured purpose.

[10:59] In all of our suffering. For his sake. That's so important. What I'm trying to do. And as I outline this passage. I'm outlining.

[11:11] What I would call. Maybe three ways. Jesus victory. In unjust. Suffering. Suffering. Helps us. Overcome sin.

[11:22] And remain. Faithful. To him. In times of unjust. Suffering. So maybe three features. Maybe you could think of it. That way. Three features. Of how Jesus.

[11:33] Suffering unjustly. On the cross. And the examples. That Peter's going to give. Commensurate with that. Help you and I. To think about. Being encouraged.

[11:44] Along the way. As we suffer. In this world. As we battle against. Look. Our bodies. Deteriorating. Right. That just the fact. That is. If God grants you.

[11:55] Old days. As you get closer. And closer. Things are just. Wearing out. And it's frustrating. When I remember. In my 20s. You know. You feel invincible.

[12:06] I was in the army. In my 20s. And I was an old. Man. I was like. 26 years old. In basic training. I think. Something like that. And I was in there.

[12:16] With with 17. 18 year olds. And. 26. Didn't look good. Next to 18. Let me tell you. Just wait till you get to be 60.

[12:30] It's things like that. Just the regular issues. Of life. But Jesus makes all of this. Meaningful. Meaningful for us. Especially.

[12:40] When you and I. Are battling against. People. Being mean to us. Not in the sense that we're. Trying to battle against them. But a battle against our hearts.

[12:52] Becoming embittered. Against our hearts. Wanting to make. People enemies. And hold grudges. And withhold forgiveness.

[13:04] And structure our lives. Around the past. And all of the hurts. That we've experienced. Well last week. We looked at Jesus.

[13:15] Physical death. Because that was verse 18. For Christ. Also died for sins. Once for all. The just for the unjust. So that he might bring us to God.

[13:27] Having been put to death in the flesh. But made alive. In the spirit. And today. Peter's going to give us. Two more of these features. Two more of these ways. About Jesus.

[13:38] Vindication and victory. Bearing on our ability. To find meaning and purpose. In our suffering. For his sake on this earth. That should encourage our hearts. This is what it looked like.

[13:49] From last sermon. Jesus physical death. In verse 18. His suffering. Sacrifice. Substitute. It's sufficient. All of that was sufficient.

[14:01] One time. This is all sufficient. And then we focused. Right at the end. On the spiritual. And that's where we're going to pick up. For today. Jesus.

[14:13] Died. Physically. Yes. It's a fact. But the inner person. Of his eternal spirit. Remained alive. So it was. It was like a spiritual death.

[14:23] For Jesus. To take on our sins. Which temporarily. Separated him. From God. But. Nothing. Not even the total. Of all of our sins.

[14:35] Being put on Jesus. Could kill his eternal spirit. So Jesus triumphed. Over sin. And death. Now that brings us.

[14:46] From verse 18. Into verses 19 and 20. Let's read those again together. In which. He's talking about the spirit of Jesus now.

[14:57] Not the Holy Spirit. The spirit of Jesus. Look. In which. In which. Also. He went. And made proclamation. To the spirits. Now in prison. Who once were disobedient.

[15:10] When the patience of God. Kept waiting in the days of Noah. During the construction of the ark. In which a few. That is eight persons. Were brought safely through the water. Peter reaches way.

[15:22] Back. Into history. To provide us with this example. Now questions. Abound. There are all kinds of questions. We could ask about this text.

[15:33] And we will. We will take. Several of them. Perhaps not all that you're thinking of. But several of them. In turn. But here's the most important thing. That I want you to hold in your mind. As we move through this together.

[15:45] Here it is. The question we most want. And need to answer. How. How. Does this material. Relate.

[15:55] To Peter's. Main idea. How does what follows. In these verses. On verse 18 down. Relate to Peter's. Main idea.

[16:06] And what is that? Our need. To sanctify Christ. As Lord. In our hearts. That was a previous sermon. And. Keeping. A good conscience.

[16:17] Before both. God. And men. And in both. Of those things. So that we suffer. For doing. What is right. Rather than for doing. What is wrong.

[16:28] And the temptation. The drift. Again. Is that. As we are wronged. We will wrong. In return. Peter says. No. Don't suffer.

[16:40] For doing. What's wrong. Suffer. For doing. What's right. If they wrong you. And you don't return. Evil for evil. But you return. A blessing.

[16:50] Instead. And you continue. To be wrong. Then you're suffering. For doing. What is right. Not for doing. What is wrong. That's powerful. And it's. Pleasing.

[17:01] To God. It's pleasing. To God. That's what we're being. Called to here. Suffer. For what. Is right.

[17:11] Not for what is wrong. It's Peter's. Primary concern. And it's expressed. In the immediate context. Of this material. So our next. Fact then.

[17:21] That I want to bring to you. Our next way. That Christ's. Victory and vindication. In his suffering. Helps us. In our suffering. Is this. It concerns. Jesus spiritual life.

[17:33] And that's following. Right on the end. Of verse 18. Because he says. Some very important things. Jesus was made alive. In the spirit. In which.

[17:44] Also. He went. And made proclamation. To the spirits. Now. In prison. I hope you see. How that's just kind of. Rolling along. In Peter's flow of thought.

[17:54] As these things connect. Even though. We kind of. Outline them. And I break them up. For matters of. Instruction. They all connect. And flow together.

[18:04] In thought. The original readers. Would have been. Picking up on this. We have to delve in. And bridge those gaps. Of time. And language.

[18:17] And culture. So we have to really study. To kind of lift this out. But Peter's readers. Were tracking right along. With this. Even as they suffered. Persecution.

[18:28] Now in these examples. That Peter offers us. Following on verse 18. About the death. And suffering. And crucifixion. Of Jesus.

[18:39] These examples. Help kind of. Fill in. And fill out. And expose. His main idea. That he's wanting. To pursue. This is where we encounter. The proofs.

[18:51] That Jesus. Suffering. And death. On the cross. Were not. In vain. We just have to lift it out. We have to tickle it out. And we will. Friends.

[19:01] Listen. One of the most. Effective. Satanic. Assaults. On our faith. And confidence. In Christ. Is aimed. At our suffering.

[19:11] For Christ's sake. Satan. Wants to convince us. In all kinds. Of different ways. That suffering. For Christ's sake. Isn't worth it. He convolutes.

[19:22] As Greg mentioned earlier. He deceives. Why does doing. Right. Bring suffering. Now when you're. In the midst of it.

[19:34] Sometimes. It's so convoluted. It's hard. To sort through this. Isn't it. And so you need. A friend. Or friends. You need people. In the church. To help speak.

[19:44] Into your life. To help you. Sort out. All the emotion. And all the nuances. Of the attack. Or the. The persecution. Or the doubt. Or the fear. Or all that.

[19:56] That's going on. In your life. Why does doing. Right. Bring suffering. Here's another way. That we can think. About this. Does our pain. And suffering. In this life.

[20:07] As we serve. Jesus. Mean. That Jesus. Owns. Suffering. And death. Did not. Accomplish. God's purposes.

[20:17] For us. After all. If he took on. All the suffering. And the pain. Why do we suffer? Why do we experience pain? Was that not enough? Is our suffering.

[20:32] For Christ. Meaningless. It can feel that way. When I'm in the throes of it. It can feel meaningless. It can feel. Why? Why are.

[20:43] Why is this happening. To me. Peter's powerful. Powerful. Explication. Of the cross. In verse 18.

[20:55] Is to show us. That Jesus. Suffering. For doing. What was right. And best. In. God's. Sight. Won.

[21:05] A great. Spiritual. Victory. For us. Friends. And for God's kingdom. And so now. Following. On the heels. Of what appeared. Like a victory.

[21:17] For Satan. When Jesus. Was on the cross. Jesus. Eternal spirit. Our text says. If you'll look at your text. And notice this.

[21:28] Went and made proclamation. To the spirits. Now in prison. In verse 19. Well. Who are these spirits? Why did Jesus.

[21:38] Do this? Where did he do this? Why was this necessary? What does any of that. Have to do. With my pain. And my suffering. As I seek. To follow Jesus.

[21:50] What does that have to do. With sanctifying Christ. As Lord. In my heart. What does that have to do. With me having. A clean conscience. And living in gentleness. And reverence.

[22:02] What is. What does that have to do. With any of that. In my Christian life. All right. Once again. Let me remind you. We need to keep in mind. That Peter. Is trying to instruct us.

[22:13] In spiritual realities. To encourage. Our hearts. In a life of suffering. For doing what's right. For Jesus sake. So this isn't about.

[22:25] This isn't a message. About. Helping you. Figure out a way. To relieve yourself. Of pain and suffering. In this life. There. There is. You're not. You're going to listen.

[22:35] To this sermon. It's going to end. And you're just not going to find. There's no parachute. There's no eject handle. You're in the thing. If it crashes and burns. You die and go to heaven. Yay. It's staying in the cockpit.

[22:49] That's the hard thing. When the thing's shaking. And rattling. And seeming like a bolster. Falling apart. And you're looking for a way. To get out of this thing.

[23:01] And you've got to stay the course. Remember these. The illustration. These people are being persecuted. The persecution's growing. It can seem like.

[23:13] This thing is on fire. And getting ready to. Nosedive. And so Peter's telling them. Stay the course. Stay faithful to Christ.

[23:24] There is a greater cause. And a greater work. That God's doing. In and through your life. In all of this. Whether you see it or not. That's the faith element. That's the hope element.

[23:36] And he uses this. As the supreme example. There were a lot of ways. This appeared to be.

[23:47] A bad plan. Now you put yourself. In the. In the position. Of a disciple. Or one of the women. One of the women. Who'd been following Jesus.

[23:58] For those years. Caring for him. And helping him. Helping care. For the disciples. Listening to all their. Bickering. Cooking for him. And stuff. And now you're seeing.

[24:10] Your Lord and Savior. On this cross. Being crucified. Tortured to death. There are a lot of ways. That could appear. To have been. The end of everything. Well.

[24:22] Appearances aren't everything. Are they? While Jesus. Physical body. Was lying dead. In the tomb.

[24:32] Peter tells us. In this text. That his eternal spirit. Went to the place. Where demons. Are kept. In prison. This is fascinating stuff. It's the abyss.

[24:43] The dark place. And Jesus. Made proclamation. Now. That is just fascinating. To me. But let me tell you. That. Caused me.

[24:54] No small. Consternation. As I tried to. Think through. And figure this out. And. What in the world. Why. What does this have to do. With anything. Going on here.

[25:04] Is Peter just doing. What Paul does sometimes. It is. He just kind of. Takes off. In loftiness. And you kind of. Have to go. Paul. Paul. Come back. No. No. The question.

[25:16] We want to ask. At this point. Made proclamation. Well. What was that? What was his message? What did Jesus say? Well. Let me tell you. What it wasn't. We can know this.

[25:27] For sure. By the. The context. It was not a sermon. On how the demons. Could be saved. Jesus. Jesus didn't go into hell. To evangelize anybody. You're in hell. You're beyond evangelization.

[25:41] You're cooked. That's it. That's why it's so bad. There's no hope in hell. Folks. That's why it's hell. His message was this.

[25:54] I can put it in three words for you. It. Is. Finished. That was his message. His work to secure our salvation.

[26:10] Was to tell us die. It stands completed. Meaning Jesus work on the cross on our behalf. Stands forever finalized.

[26:21] And the finished results remain. I shared that with you last week. So Jesus stood before. These.

[26:32] Incarcerated. Demonic. Spirits. And proclaimed himself. Victorious over sin. Over death. Over them.

[26:43] And over their boss. Satan. And there was no denying it. Because there he stood. In their midst. Hey wait a minute. I thought. We killed you.

[26:59] Think again. So this is not teaching. That Jesus took on our sins. And because that made him. Sinful.

[27:09] He had to go suffer in hell for it. That's aberrant. Sickening. Disgusting. Theology. Don't believe it for a second. Jesus died for our sins.

[27:22] Not for his. He went to hell. To proclaim victory over sin. Not wallow in it. That's amazing to me.

[27:34] Now I'd like for you. To just think about this correlation. To your life as a Christian. As a follower of Jesus. As a believer in Christ. As someone who has been spiritually.

[27:45] By God's power. Been put into Jesus. And Jesus put into you. So that you are in union with Jesus. You can't understand all of that.

[27:56] Neither can I. We can accept that the Bible says. You are in him. And he is in you. Now look at this. When you were dead.

[28:08] In your transgressions. And the uncircumcision of your flesh. He made you alive. Together with him. Having forgiven us all our transgressions.

[28:20] Having canceled out the certificate of debt. Consisting of decrees against us. And he has taken it out of the way. Having nailed it to the cross.

[28:31] Jesus. That's you. That's Jesus victory. For you. In Genesis 3.15.

[28:44] You might recall. I mentioned this to you last time. God made the first mention. It was actually a promise. Of what would be Satan's ruin. By Messiah. But Satan.

[28:55] Didn't know. The method. God would use. You understand that? Satan's not omniscient. He can't look into the future. Like God can. Satan did not know the cross.

[29:08] He didn't know the plan. He. He. This thing's happening. As he sees it happen. In real time. And so.

[29:19] It's amazing to me. That Satan. Made. Repeated. Efforts. To destroy. The line. The line. Of human beings.

[29:31] God would use. To bring forth. Messiah. Remember. Jesus is going to be born. Fully human. He is the God. Man.

[29:41] He's not half human. And half God. He's fully God. And fully man. Never been anybody else. Like that. Because there's only one savior. That's what we're dealing with.

[29:55] God. So God made a promise. That from the seed. Of the woman. There would be a godly line. Bloodline.

[30:05] From the seed of the woman. That God would protect. Over. Through time. Until. Messiah. Would be born. Well. Satan knew that.

[30:16] And so. He made all of these attempts. To corrupt. That bloodline. To do anything. He could possibly do. To eradicate. The. Potentiality.

[30:28] Or possibility. For God. To make good. On that promise. And his. Ultimate. Gamble. Was inciting. The Jewish.

[30:38] Leaders. To kill. Jesus. Okay. Fine. I haven't been able. To prevent. This. God. Man. From coming. Into the world. Through this.

[30:49] Line. Bloodline. Of promise. That God made. But. Maybe. I could just. Eradicate. The person. Himself. So. I tried. To tempt him. In all these.

[31:00] Different ways. And. That didn't work. So. I'll. I'll work through. These. Wicked. People. And. We'll get this guy. Killed.

[31:10] And. Then. We'll be done. The project. Will be over. So. You understand. When Jesus said. It is finished. He meant. One thing. The demons. Thought it meant.

[31:21] Something else. And so. They celebrated. And so. Now. The Bible. Is teaching us. That Jesus. In his. Eternal spirit. Went into this. Dark abyss.

[31:31] And preached. And preached. To. These. Spirits. And we need to know. Well. Who were these spirits? We need to get to that as well. It's very interesting to me.

[31:45] Peter describes. These demonic spirits. As. Look at your text with me. If you would. Those who once were disobedient. So. We know two things about them.

[31:55] So far. They are now. In prison. Their spirits. Now in prison. Verse 20. Who once were. Disobedient. And then he fixes the time.

[32:08] Or the era. When this disobedience took place. And that's helpful. He says this. When the patience of God. Kept waiting in the days of Noah. During the construction of the ark.

[32:21] Boy. We're going all the way back. To that time frame. To deal with these demonic spirits. Well. What was the issue.

[32:31] Of disobedience. In the days of Noah. What's going on there? This specific issue. Of disobedience. Whatever it was. That became the reason.

[32:43] God imprisoned. These spirits. And has kept them in prison. These are not the spirits. That you've heard about. In the New Testament. Or read about in the New Testament. About demon possession.

[32:54] No. These particular demonic spirits. Have been kept in prison. Since the days of Noah. And they will remain incarcerated. Kept in a real place.

[33:05] In the abyss. In the dark place. This may be. Now don't quote me on this one. But this may be related. To sometimes. You've heard where. Jesus confronted.

[33:16] The demonic spirits. And they would say. Don't send me. To the dark place. Or the abyss. Right. That's the place of. Incarceration for them.

[33:28] Where they no longer have. The freedom. To antagonize. To tempt. Or even in Jesus. Case as he encountered. Actually possess human beings. Now I'm.

[33:39] Look. Don't think of this. As fanciful stuff. This is just. Spiritual reality. That you and I. Can't see with our eyes. But we accept by faith. That this is really going on. And it's. It's.

[33:49] It's a very real. Real issue. In our lives. We believe. That we were. One. From darkness. And satanic. Rule. To.

[34:00] Light. And the rule of Christ. In our hearts. We believe. That transaction happened. So there's no. Jump here. There's no. Leap of faith. For us to understand.

[34:11] That there's a. Spiritual world. That we were once. Captured to. In darkness. A spiritual realm. Of satanic evil. And we were.

[34:23] Transferred. All right. All right. All right. Colossians. Go there with me. Real quick. We've looked at this before. Let's just let the Bible. Say this for me.

[34:35] Colossians chapter one. Beginning in verse 13. For he rescued us. You see. We needed rescuing. For he rescued us. From the domain of darkness.

[34:46] That's where we used to reside. We were imprisoned. Spiritually. And transferred us. To the kingdom of his beloved son. In whom we have redemption.

[34:57] The forgiveness of sins. See that. And so now. You and I. Are talking in more specific terms. About some aspects.

[35:08] Of that domain of darkness. That spiritual realm. Of darkness. And that's where these. Spirits. Are kept.

[35:20] So he's standing before these. And spirits. And he's telling them. All of this. And Peter is relating it. Back to the time. Of the days of Noah.

[35:31] I think. One thing that might help us here. Is something that Dr. MacArthur pointed out. Peter's readers. Must have understood.

[35:43] They must have known. What this issue. Of disobedience. Actually was. Because Peter doesn't explain it. So they must.

[35:54] They must have grasped. Through. Through. The teaching. That they had been brought up in. Or that had been. Brought to them. In some way. But they knew. But I think we can answer it.

[36:06] For ourselves. I think. Let's go back to Genesis 6. And let's look at Genesis 6. Together. I won't have this up on the slide.

[36:17] So you'll turn there with me. If you would. Genesis 6. Beginning in verse 1. And the question that we're dealing with. Is what is this specific issue.

[36:27] Of disobedience. Back in the time of Noah. That caused God. To imprison. Or incarcerate. These demonic spirits. And keep them in this abyss now.

[36:40] Genesis 6. Beginning in verse 1. Now it came about. When men began to multiply. On the face of the land. And daughters were born to them. That the sons of God.

[36:50] Saw that the daughters of men. Were beautiful. Now notice right away. The contrast. You have sons of God. And daughters of men. You have some type of spiritual element.

[37:02] And some type of human element. And they took wives for themselves. Whomever they chose. That's interesting. Then the Lord said.

[37:12] Notice the reaction. We want to ask ourselves. Was that a good thing? Is that a bad thing? Is that a weird thing? Well verse 3. Then the Lord said. My spirit.

[37:23] Shall not strive. With man. Forever. Obviously the Lord didn't think. That's a good idea. Because. He also. Is flesh.

[37:34] There's that contrast again. Nevertheless. His day. Shall be. One hundred and twenty years. The Nephilim. Were on the earth.

[37:44] In those days. And also afterward. When the sons of God. Came in. To the daughters of men. And they bore children. To them. Those were the mighty men.

[37:56] Who were of old. Men. Of renown. What do we have going on here. In Genesis 6. One through four.

[38:07] And why is it so critical. So important. To Peter's example. That he gives us. In verse 18. About the cross of Christ. Look. Here it is. In an all out effort.

[38:21] To corrupt. Human marriage. And thwart. God's plan. To bring Messiah. Into the world. Through a godly line. Of married people.

[38:33] Fallen angels. Took women. As wives. How weird. Is that? I think it's very weird. But Dr. MacArthur.

[38:44] Was so helpful here. And I am so indebted. To Dr. MacArthur. More than just about. Any other commentator. I read. To help me think. This thing through. And so what you're getting. Is kind of a hybrid.

[38:56] Of a number of ways. That I. Tried to work through. Different aspects. Of this text. All right. But this is Dr. MacArthur. Heavenly spirits. Are being contrasted.

[39:08] With earthly women. These then. Are fallen angels. Who acted perversely. Overstepping the boundaries. Of their realm. They defied God.

[39:18] By leaving their spirit world. To enter the human realm. And he gives us an example. Just as Satan. Had entered the animal world. In Eden. So this is the first.

[39:28] Biblical record. Of demon possession. Demons. Indwelling. People. So these demons. Married. Women. So that the issue.

[39:40] Was consensual. The only way. That this could happen. Is if demons. Possessed human men.

[39:51] And procreated. With the women. Producing a race. Of people. Who were. Listen carefully. Please. Brothers and sisters. Fully. Human.

[40:03] These were not. Half spirit. People. We don't have. They're half demon. And half human. No. These people.

[40:13] Are fully. Human. Because we have. A demon possessed. Man. Going into. A woman. And having. A human. Child.

[40:24] Now. What did that do? What happened. In all of that? Well. It created. People. Who were fully human.

[40:36] But terribly. And deeply. Driven. By a spirit. Of demonic. Influence. How bad was it? Oh brother. How bad was it?

[40:48] Have you ever heard of the flood? God. How bad did it get? Look at verse 5. Of Genesis 6.

[40:59] Then the Lord saw. That the wickedness. You. I hope your Bible reads like that. Then. Then the Lord saw. As a result. Of the sons. Of. God.

[41:10] Coming into the daughters of men. And creating these. These. Human beings. Now. Who are under this. Terrible. Terrible. Darkness. Of satanic influence.

[41:21] Then the Lord saw. That the wickedness. Of man. Was great. On the earth. And that. Every intent. Of the thoughts. Of his heart. Was only evil.

[41:32] Continue. You see that? That's the result. Of these unions. Every intent. Of the thoughts. Of these people's hearts. Were on. Only doing.

[41:42] Evil. All the time. The Lord. Was sorry. How bad did it get? The Lord. Was sorry. That he had made man. On the earth. And he was grieved.

[41:53] In his heart. The Lord said. I will blot out man. Who I am. Of created. From the face. Of the land. From man. To animals. To creeping things. Birds. Of the sky.

[42:03] I'm sorry. I've made them. Now. We have that. Noah. Found favor. In the eyes of the Lord. He gives a record. Then pick it up. In verse 11. Now the earth.

[42:15] Was corrupt. In the sight of God. And the earth. Was filled. With violence. Folks. That's a way of saying. Everybody. All the time.

[42:27] In complete fashion. God looked on the earth. And behold. It was corrupt. For all. Flesh. Had corrupted their way.

[42:37] Upon the earth. How many times. Does he have to say it. To repeat it for emphasis. Over and over again. It's. It's like looking up. And saying. Things were as bad. As they could be.

[42:50] This is as bad. As it can be. For 120 years.

[43:02] God gave a grace period. Noah preached. God's deliverance. While God patiently. Endured this. Terrible. Terrible. Ongoing.

[43:13] Display. Of wickedness. And the people. Continued to go. From bad. To worse. Now here's the thing. They kept having. Children.

[43:24] Who further. Populated the earth. With greater. And greater. Displays. Of that evil. Dr. MacArthur. Referred to them. As demon. Dominated.

[43:34] People. Can you imagine. The known. World. World. Where humans. Are dominated. Completely. By demons.

[43:45] We're not that bad. Yet. We may be getting there. But this is unprecedented. This is amazing.

[43:56] Folks. Think about. How much. Help. Some of these people. Could have been to Noah. As. As he. Tried. In this monumental. Task. To build this giant.

[44:07] Ark. Took him 120 years. Years. But these people. Lived in their sins. And continued. To mock. Noah. During that. Entire time. I told Suzanne. I was working on this.

[44:19] We. We would. Read this story. To our kids. And we've taught on this. And everything. And. I seem to remember. This book. This illustrated. Children's book. And I remember.

[44:30] One page. You open it up. It was a big book. Not a little book. It was a big picture book. Kind of thing. And you open it up. And both pages. Had this. This. Huge expression.

[44:41] Of these people's faces. Coming forward. And they had these. Maniacal. Grins. On their faces. And their eyes. Were lit like animals. And they were dancing.

[44:52] And partying. It was just this big party. And all. And I said. That's. That's not eat. Drink. And be merry. That's something else. That's like a bunch of animals.

[45:06] Getting together. And I never have. I wondered what it did to my kids. To see. You know. Those. Those eyes. And.

[45:18] That's what's going on. At this particular time. There must have been. Millions. Of people. On the earth. And in the end.

[45:31] Eight. People. Responded. In repentance. To God's provision. Of salvation. Now Peter is saying. That the spirits. Christ. Preached to.

[45:42] Were those. Who possessed. And corrupted. The women. Of that time. To thwart. Jesus is coming. Into the world.

[45:53] Through the godly line. Of promise. So this was. A satanic. Attempt. To thwart. Messiah. He might not.

[46:04] Have known. About the cross. But he knew. God was bringing. A deliverer. And that he promised. That deliverer. Through the seed. Of a woman. So there was going. To have to be. An uncorrupted.

[46:14] Godly bloodline. That this would come from. And so you read. About these. What do you think. Ruth's all about. The book of Ruth. Did you think of that? That might have come. To your mind. And Boaz.

[46:27] Right. This is amazing. Stuff. And God's power. I think about Tamar. This is just.

[46:40] All right. Second Peter. Would you go to second Peter with me? Second Peter two. We'll begin in verse one.

[46:53] But false prophets. Also arose. Among the people. Just as there. Will also be. False teachers. Among you.

[47:04] And we have plenty. Of those today. We have plenty. Of false teachers. They're not just in the churches. But they are. Not limited. To just being in the churches. Who will secretly.

[47:16] Introduce. You notice that. This is all deception. They will secretly. Introduce. Destructive. Heresy. You could read that. Demonic. Even denying.

[47:27] The master. Who bought them. Bringing swift. Destruction. Upon themselves. Many will follow. Their sensuality. And because of them.

[47:38] The way of the truth. Will be maligned. And in their greed. They will exploit you. With false words. Their judgment. From long ago.

[47:49] Now. Now see what he's doing here. Their judgment. From long ago. Is not idle. And their destruction. Is not asleep. Peter's reaching back again.

[48:01] In second Peter. That destruction. Long ago. And he's tying it to something. What's he tying it to? For if God did not spare angels. When they sinned.

[48:12] But cast them into hell. And committed them to pits of darkness. Reserve for judgment. There's your spirits. There they are.

[48:23] And did not spare the ancient world. But preserved Noah. A preacher of righteousness. With seven others. When he brought a flood upon the world.

[48:33] Of the ungodly. And if he condemned the cities. Of Sodom and Gomorrah. To destruction. By reducing them to ashes. Having made them an example.

[48:44] To those who would live ungodly lives. Thereafter. And if he rescued righteous Lot. Oppressed by the sensual conduct. Of unprincipled men. Folks. Are you seeing a pattern here.

[48:55] Of the kind of sin. That brings societies. Down. Down. Down. Down. Sexuality.

[49:07] The male female issue. Of how God made us to be. So that we could respond to him. As people who are. Who are. Gender centered. Attack that.

[49:19] And you attack the very fabric. Of what God's made us to be. As worshipers. This is no secret now. Why we see this.

[49:29] All over. Suzanne told me a story yesterday. I don't even want to repeat it to you. Because it made me so mad. I couldn't even sit in the chair. I told her. Don't tell me those stories anymore. The story about what's.

[49:41] What. Somebody did at the highest level. Of our government. And some things that were said. And how they handled. You.

[49:52] It's everywhere. And we just pray for them. And we want them to read this. And see. God did not spare. Even angels.

[50:04] Who left their realm. To sensually. Cohabit. With human beings. God did not spare. Sodom and Gomorrah. God. Example.

[50:18] After example. Then it says. And if he rescued righteous lot.

[50:29] Oppressed by the sensual conduct. Of unprincipled men. Verse eight. For by what he saw. And heard that righteous man. While living among them. Felt his righteous soul. Tormented day after day. By their lawless deeds. Then the Lord knows.

[50:42] How to rescue the godly. From temptation. And to keep the unrighteous. Under punishment. For the day of judgment. There you go. The Lord knows.

[50:52] How to rescue. The godly. From temptation. Hallelujah. And especially. Those who indulge. The flesh. In its corrupt desires.

[51:05] And despise authority. Folks. Please hear this. That is why the apostle. Has hammered. And hammered. And hammered. This issue.

[51:15] Of submission. In our lives. As Christians. Because as soon. As we start. Drifting away. From being under. The authority. Of the Lord. As we respond. To the authority.

[51:26] Of this earth. We are in a dangerous. Dangerous place. Many. Many. Many. People. Have suffered. In ancient times. Up to modern times. Because of this issue.

[51:36] Of authority. In their lives. This is where Satan. Attacks us. In our sense of pride. And entitlement. And deservedness. What does he say?

[51:49] The Lord knows. How to rescue. The godly. From temptation. And keep the unrighteous. Under punishment. For the day of judgment. And especially. Those. Who indulge. The flesh.

[52:00] In its corrupt desires. Do you see that? This is what we're seeing. Right now. In our time. And despise. Authority. Was it any shock.

[52:13] To me at all. When I heard them say. Disband the police. My shock was. What?

[52:24] We're there already? Of course. They hate authority. Daring.

[52:37] Self-willed. They do not tremble. When they revile. Even angelic majesties. They have no shame. No guilt. That's what we're dealing with.

[52:50] I know that. That's what you see. I know that you recognize this. And. I hope any anger. That I have. Is righteous anger. I'm not mad. At. The people. I become. It's so terrifying.

[53:04] To me. To think about. Where they are. It terrifies. My soul. For them. The things. That come out. Of their mouths. That just.

[53:15] Betray. And display. The reality. Of the darkness. Of their souls. How could we not. Be concerned. About that. Well.

[53:29] Fortunately. My friends. God's purpose. Prevailed. Over Satan's schemes. In Noah's time. In Peter's time. In Paul's time. And it will.

[53:40] And it does. In our time. Even though Noah. Was persecuted. Think about it. Even though Noah. Was persecuted. And greatly. Greatly. Outnumbered.

[53:51] You talk about a man. Who suffered unjustly. A hundred and twenty years. Of being mocked. Only God knows. The kind of stuff. That guy. Put up with. Noah's suffering.

[54:02] And hardship. For doing. What was right. Was not. In vain. The ark. Was built. And God. Saved. Eight people. To preserve. The godly line.

[54:15] Back to first Peter. Corresponding. To that. You with me. The ark. Gets built. Noah. Endures.

[54:26] In unjust suffering. He does. The right thing. Eight people. Are preserved. In the ark. Now. Peter says this. Look. Verse twenty. One.

[54:37] Corresponding. To that. Baptism. Now. Saves you. Wait a minute. Not. Baptism. In the sense. That you get. Baptized. In the water.

[54:47] And brought up. No. No. No. Not the removal. Of dirt. From the flesh. He's not talking. About water. Baptism. Here. But an appeal. He tells us. What he means. By baptism. An appeal.

[54:59] To God. For a good conscience. And then he tells us. Even more. Clarifying info. Through the resurrection. Of Jesus Christ. Christ. That's what we're dealing with.

[55:11] So what is the correspondence. With Noah. And his time. That we need to know. And that we need to follow. All right. A key here is this. And this is where.

[55:22] It started to help me change. The way that I thought about. Where this was going. And why Peter made this. The example that he did. He's obviously fond of it. Because he's going to pick it up again.

[55:33] In second Peter. I read that to you. Don't focus so much on the water. As the wood. God used the wood of the ark.

[55:48] To deliver Noah. And his family. And to preserve the bloodline of promise. That would bring Messiah. That's the issue. Satan is working to thwart.

[55:59] And corrupt. That bloodline of promise. And God is preserving it. Through Noah. And his family. The water didn't do that. Wood did it.

[56:10] In the form of an ark. That's the deliverance. How did God carry them. Through the judgment. How will God carry you.

[56:23] Through the judgment. Somebody took your judgment. For you. Somebody paid your price. For you. God used the wood of the cross.

[56:39] To sacrifice his son. To bring us to himself. And preserve his promise of salvation. To all who would believe. In him. Amen.

[56:53] Baptism means to immerse. So Peter is stressing. That we are immersed. In Jesus. As our ark. Of salvation.

[57:03] Helping us avoid. The destruction of God's judgment. In the last days. The destruction of the sea of sin. If you will. Washing over our own hearts.

[57:14] The destruction of a sea of sin. That this world is a wash. In as well. So friends look. Our deliverance comes. He tells us.

[57:26] From an appeal to God. For a good conscience. We baptized four people. Last week. As a picture. Of the spiritual reality. Of each one of those souls.

[57:37] Making an appeal to God. For a clean conscience. Lord. I want my guilt. To be dealt with. I don't want to live in guilt. The guilt of my sin.

[57:48] Unpaid for. Undealt with. I know where that leads me. Jesus took on my guilt for me. And paid my penalty for me. I want Jesus.

[58:01] Not my guilt. And that's what we're looking at. Deliverance. Jesus victory.

[58:11] On the cross. Was our. Victory. He's our ark. Our deliverance. Comes from an appeal to God.

[58:22] For a good conscience. If you go back to what we said. About animal sacrifices. Up in verse 18. You might remember this. If you were here. Animal sacrifices.

[58:32] Cannot cleanse you. From the true guilt of sin. You carry that guilt. In your conscience. And you are never free from it. But.

[58:43] But. Being immersed in Jesus. By faith. By faith. Your sins are forgiven. And then you are cleansed. From the stain of sin.

[58:55] In every part of you. So Jesus death to sin. And his resurrection to new life. Become. Your death to sin. And your new life.

[59:08] In him. So you being put into him. By faith. Corresponds to Noah and his family. Being put into the ark. Do you see that?

[59:20] And that brings us to the third way. Jesus suffering and death. Brings victory. To our suffering and death. So. So that we should fear. No one. And nothing.

[59:31] King. And all I do is just make a couple statements about it. Jesus triumphal resurrection. Folks. I'm only going to say a couple things. Just because. This is what we've been talking about all along.

[59:43] I just. I have to put it up here as. Point number three. Because. It's verse 22. Who is at the right hand of God. This is the result. This is the result.

[59:54] Of all that suffering. All that unjust suffering. This. This is the result. Of what the demons thought. They won. You didn't win.

[60:06] Who is at the right hand of God. Having gone into heaven. He's not in hell. After angels. And authorities. And powers. Had been subjected to him.

[60:18] This is what Paul. And Peter. And all the apostles. Say about Christ. He's supreme. He reigns victorious. Now. Jesus is at the place.

[60:30] Of highest honor. And authority. His resurrection. Is the proof. That his suffering. And his death.

[60:40] Were accepted. By God. So fittingly. The word for subjected. In the phrase. If you look in your Bible. There in verse 22. Had been subjected to him.

[60:52] That's how mine reads. After angels. And authorities. And powers. Had been subjected to him. You'll never guess. What the word for subjected is.

[61:03] Hupotasso. The word Peter's been flinging around. Right up to this point. About our submission to Christ. Our submission to the government. Our submission. To line up under.

[61:15] What's he saying? All creation. Lines up under Jesus. As supreme authority. And Jesus submission to God. In unjust suffering. Became our victory.

[61:27] As well as our example. In our submission to him. In all things. Far from being. A defeat. We live in the victory.

[61:37] Of the cross. And that's our hope. And that gives meaning. And purpose. To our suffering. And now to close. Look at verse. Chapter four.

[61:48] Verse one. Therefore. Whenever you see therefore. See what it's there for. Right? Therefore. Since Christ has suffered in the flesh.

[62:00] Arm yourselves also. With the same purpose. Because he who has suffered in the flesh. Has ceased from sin. So as to live the rest of the time. In the flesh. No longer for the lusts of men.

[62:12] But for the will of God. You see the contrast? No longer for the lusts of men. But for the will of God. There's your life. There's your hope. There's your Christ.

[62:26] Let's pray. Father. These are matters. Certainly. That are deep waters. And as your servant.

[62:37] Has done my best. To bring before your people. The truth of the word. Lord. I pray God. That you would bless. That truth. Into our hearts.

[62:50] I confess to you. Almighty God. As. I feel this. Every single time. I come before your people. In any. Context. That we're in.

[63:02] Lord. I am so dependent. On your grace. I'm so weak. And so incapable. So I. Thank you. For making me. Not only willing. But useful.

[63:13] I pray now. That your people. Will be able. To receive the word. Implanted. That it would be. A balm. And healing. For their souls. That they will. Base their lives.

[63:24] On sound doctrine. And good theology. As they look. To serve you. Father. We stumble. And we fall. And we're weak. Please continue.

[63:35] To help us. Almighty God. As we look. To you. And hope. Knowing that. We can count on you. We can believe you. Thank you. For embracing us.

[63:46] Thank you. For taking us. Into your arms. And transferring us. From the domain. Of darkness. Into the wonderful. Light of your beloved. Son. In whom. We have redemption.

[63:57] And the forgiveness. Of our sins. Thank you. For this wonderful. Work of truth. That you. Work in. Our hearts. May we.

[64:09] You. With faithfulness. And love. In Jesus. Precious name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. And habt for goodness me. May we. And haven't.

[64:19] May we love you. Friendly. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[64:31] Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.