Listen to this sermon: 04292012FirstPe1.10–12DonRuhl

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Angels Desire to Look into What You Have!

Do you understand the preciousness of the salvation of your soul?

First Peter 1.10–12

Don Ruhl • Savage Street, Grants Pass, Oregon • April 29, ad 2012

Scripture Reader and Reading: Lake – First Peter 1.6–9

Prelude: 

  1. [Scripture for Gazing] 
  2. Do you understand the privilege that we have as disciples of Christ? 
    1. Matthew 13 records Jesus giving the Parable of the Sower.
    2. The disciples wanted to know why Jesus spoke to the multitudes in parables.
      1. He explained that parables hide the truth from those unworthy of it, but
      2. that parables reveal the truth to those who love it.
        1. He quoted Isaiah to affirm this truth, and then
        2. Jesus made this remarkable statement, which also applies to us,

          16 “But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; 17 for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it” (Matt 13.16, 17).

Persuasion: 

  1. First Peter 1.10, 11 – The Curiosity of the Prophets

    10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow (1Pe 1.10, 11).

    1. The prophets were curious about the salvation of our souls (v. 9).
      1. What has Peter said about our salvation?
        1. God guards us in His power for our salvation at the last time (v. 5), and
        2. the end of our faith is the salvation of our souls (v. 9).
      2. The prophets sought out and searched out the time of these things.
        1. They wanted to know more about it.
          1. They wanted to know how it would happen.
          2. They wanted to know when it would happen.
        2. They searched their own writings, and
          1. the writings of other prophets,
          2. concerning “the grace that would come to you” (v. 10b).
    2. The prophets wanted to know what, or
      1. what manner of time,
      2. the Spirit of Christ who spoke through them,
      3. was indicating.
        1. Would it be during their generations?
        2. Was it hundreds or thousands of years into the future? And how it would all happen.
    3. The Bible shows Daniel searching Jeremiah’s writings
      1. to determine the length of the Babylonian captivity (Dan 9.1–3), and
      2. when Daniel discovered that the time had been fulfilled,
        1. he went into a masterpiece of a prayer, and then
        2. God sent Gabriel to reveal another time schedule of something.
      3. Peter indicates that other prophets examined Daniel’s writing, et al.,
        1. to know when the Messiah would arrive,
        2. the very thing Peter addresses in our text, e. g.,

          25 “Know therefore and understand,
          That from the going forth of the command
          To restore and build Jerusalem
          Until Messiah the Prince,
          There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;
          The street shall be built again, and the wall,
          Even in troublesome times.”
          (Dan 9.25)

          1. Daniel would read that himself and try to figure it out, and
          2. other prophets would do the same, and
            1. do the same with other prophetic writings, because
            2. this passage prophesied of the very thing Peter addressed.
    4. Peter narrowed down what exactly about Jesus they searched.
      1. They sought out and searched out
        1. the sufferings of Christ, and
        2. the glories that would follow.
      2. Perhaps the prophets could not reconcile the two.
        1. They read of the glories of the Messiah, but
        2. they could not figure out how He could suffer.
          1. Peter himself provides an example of that kind of thinking
          2. when he told the Lord that He would never suffer,

            21 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. 22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” (Matt 16.21, 22).
  2. First Peter 1.12 – The Curiosity of the Angels

    12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things which angels desire to look into (1Pe 1.12).

    1. The prophets knew that on earth they were left out of these things!
      1. Remember what Jesus said about John the Baptizer and the kingdom, for
      2. what Jesus said of John could be said of anyone before the church,

        28 “For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he” (Luke 7.28).

        1. Do you understand and appreciate what Jesus said?
        2. John, Moses, David, Isaiah, and the others, were not in the kingdom.
    2. The prophets did not minister these things to themselves, but
      1. to us they ministered these things!
      2. They suffered for preaching these things that did not pertain to them!
    3. No, we benefit from their work,
      1. through the preaching of the Gospel, and
      2. the Holy Spirit worked in the apostles as He did in the prophets.
    4. This means
      1. that the Old Testament is for Christians, and
      2. that Christians should be in the Old Testament.
        1. That is why every New Testament preacher preached the Old Testament.
        2. Yes, there are specific commands that we cannot keep, but
          1. we need to know those commands, because
          2. they prefigure things we have in the New Testament.
      3. We cannot appreciate grace fully (v. 10),
        1. we cannot appreciate Christ’s sufferings and His glories (v. 11),
        2. we cannot appreciate the Spirit-inspired preaching of the apostles (v. 12),
          1. without knowing what the Old Testament prophets declared.
      4. Therefore, ignore the Old Testament to your peril!
        1. The Holy Spirit built the New Testament Gospel message upon
        2. the Holy Spirit-inspired testimony of the Old Testament prophets.
          1. Neglect the Old Testament prophecies, and
          2. you weaken the New Testament Gospel.
    5. God sent the Holy Spirit from heaven to move the apostles, et al.,
      1. that we might have an accurate report of the things that Jesus did,
      2. including His suffering and His glory.“…the Spirit which had predicted the events [through the prophets], preached their fulfillment through the apostles” (Guy N. Woods).
    6. Consider what Peter has said:
      1. Verse 2: God has elected us according to His foreknowledge.
      2. Verse 3: God has begotten us again!
      3. Verse 4: God has reserved in heaven an unsurpassable inheritance for us.
      4. Verse 5: God guards us in His power for our salvation at the last time.
      5. Verses 6 and 7: God purifies our faith to praise, honor, and glorify us.
      6. Verses 8 and 9: God will save our souls.
      7. Verses 10 through 12: God used
        1. the prophets,
        2. the suffering of His own Son, and
        3. the Holy Spirit to bring salvation to us.
    7. Do you see the magnificence of our salvation?
      1. Another group was curious about all that God had promised us.
      2. The angels,
        1. who dwell in the presence of God,
        2. like the prophets
          1. did not know everything
          2. until God revealed all things in the New Testament.
        3. They wanted to look at it!
          1. We desire to look into the things of angels, but
          2. they desire to look into the things of man!
      3. The angels serve God, but
        1. they also serve for us, and
        2. that made them curious about matters pertaining to us,

          14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation? (Heb 1.14).
      4. In Ephesians 3, Paul declares that the angels
        1. did not know what we know and
        2. did not know what we have
          1. in the New Testament and
          2. in the church
            1. until the apostles and the church announced those things,

              8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God [hidden from prophets & angels] who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places… (Eph 3.8–10).
            2. When I contemplated prophets wanting to know what I have,
              1. that angels desired to look into what I have,
              2. that I know more of the prophet’s writings than they could,
              3. that even the angels did not know these things
                1. until the church preached it,
                2. I did not believe it.
      5. So you know what I did?
        1. I got up and restarted the coffee pot in the church kitchen and walked around in the fellowship hall, thinking that would clear my mind and I would discover that I was reading information into the Bible.
        2. I came back to these biblical texts, and they read the same as earlier.
          1. I thought, How I can convey this to the brethren?
          2. So you know what I did?
            1. I restarted the coffee pot and
            2. ate a peanut butter and homemade strawberry jam sandwich.
              1. It was just too much for me to comprehend.
              2. I walked in the fellowship hall again, hoping that Nathan would not see me, wondering what I was doing.
                1. I came back to my Bible and to my notes, and
                2. there was the truth.
      6. May God help me to help you to see it.
    8. And then, the majority of humanity
      1. thinks this is irrelevant, out-dated, and boring.
      2. Yet, these things were not for the angels,

        16 For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham (Heb 2.16),

        1. They have such a high interest in these things for humanity, but
        2. most of humanity cares not for one second about these things!
          1. It is for us, but we do not care.
          2. It is not for angels, but they do care.
        3. How strange is that?
      3. An angel was a fellow-servant to John and the prophets (Rev 22.9), and
        1. by implication to us, but
        2. we can be research associates
          1. with the angels
          2. by taking the same interest in these things as they do!

Exhortation: 

  1. Do you see what you have missed by not being a Christian? 
  2. Do you accept these things that have been said about your salvation? 
    1. If so, why not turn your life around and
    2. live as the Bible directs,
      1. starting with baptism in water for the remission of your sins?
      2. The Lord shall remove whatever obstacles might be in the way.
  3. What would the prophets, 
    1. who sought out and searched out the matter of our salvation, have thought,
    2. if they knew that the Lord of heaven, the Creator Himself,
      1. would one day leave heaven,
      2. live as a man,
      3. work as a carpenter,
      4. teach and preach as a prophet, and then
        1. die as a criminal
        2. at the hands of His wicked and lawless creatures?
  4. What would the angels, 
    1. who saw the face of Jesus in heaven before He ever left heaven, have thought,
    2. if they knew that the holy Lord whom they served continually,
      1. whose glory they saw,
      2. whom all of heaven worshiped,
    3. if they knew that the sinless Creator of human life
      1. would leave His glorious throne,
      2. would live among sinful creatures,
      3. would submit Himself to a Roman crucifixion, and then
      4. would allow Himself to be separated from His Father?
  5. What do the prophets and the angels think, 
    1. when they see people carelessly disregard salvation? Or
    2. when they see Christians put other things in life before their salvation?
  6. Here is what the angels do when someone does turn to the Lord,

    10 “…there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15.10).

    1. If you repent and turn to Christ,
    2. the angels will rejoice and we will join them.
      1. Are you ready finally?
      2. Come now!