Living His Goodness, Part 3

Welcome to Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, Pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. We know that the Christian life calls us to live differently than we lived before coming to Christ. But we're not called to keep up appearances or simply manage our sin.

That would be equal to tying apples on a hemlock tree and calling it an apple tree. Instead, we have a radical call to abide in Christ, to let His Word inform and transform our desires and affections. The fruit in our lives will be a product of our genuine confidence and satisfaction in Him. Listen as Rich takes us through 1 Peter 2, 11-12, in this message titled, Living His Goodness. Today is the third part of this sermon, first preached on September 18th, 2022. Pour your confidence and satisfaction in God.

Pour all of that, the outflow of that, pour into your relationships and your conversations and your activities. That's how you live the gospel. I want you to notice something here in verse 12. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see what? They may see all the things that you did not do. Is that what it says? What does it say? They may see your good works.

That is proactive, okay? Be known for what you are for and what you do instead of simply being known for what you don't do and what you're against. Church has a lot of ground to make up on this today. The evangelical church does. Jesus said this well in Matthew chapter 5, let your light shine that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father. In other words, he's calling for intentional sacrifice. That you invest yourself to live the gospel and you do so by investing in other people.

You can't live the gospel just alone in your house, totally. It has to involve other people. Third principle is this. We are salt by contact and light by contrast.

Salt is only good if it makes contact with a substance. And light is meaningful because of its contrast. You are the salt of the earth, you are the light of the world, Jesus said. So conduct honorable is the outflow of the inner person. And what does Paul say that we need to be doing with our minds? Philippians 4-8, whatever things are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, excellent, praiseworthy, meditate on these things. And the word honorable that is used here is a word that means beautiful and attractive. And listen, if the things upon which I meditate are actually beautiful and attractive, if they reflect the beautiful and attractive character and purpose of God, then my life will be, my activity will be an outflow of my attitudes.

That's how grace works. Honorable, your life will be beautiful and attractive. Fourth principle, living a greater purpose by serving the greatest person.

Living a greater purpose by serving the greatest person. Know this truth, our freedom is found in submission. Our freedom is found in submission. What I did is I just gave you the fourth characteristic of people who are free. That's chapter 2, verses 13 to 17.

That's next week. Our freedom is found in submission. Freedom from living for self. That's four principles that are true about what it means to live the gospel, to have, to keep your conduct honorable among the unbelieving peoples. Why, why should I keep my conduct honorable among the gentiles?

Two reasons. Number one, because it's who you are, because it's who I am. Who am I? I am, I am chosen and beloved. I am a new creation. I am in Christ. I'm the temple of the Holy Spirit. Keeping my conduct among the gentiles honorable, living the gospel only makes sense because it's who I am.

Beloved exiles, living your position and status humbly and graciously. It's interesting as I've been reading, a couple authors that I've read already so far present a pretty significant indictment against Protestantism. They're Protestants, they're reformed, but they present an indictment against Protestantism.

One is Paul Miller and the other is David Helm. You've heard me quote him. But the indictment is this, because of the Reformation, Protestants tend to be so bent on justification through faith alone that we have abandoned the necessity of good works, the vitality of good works. Good works not for our justification, but for our sanctification, for our witness, for our fulfilling our position as ministers of reconciliation. We know these verses well. Ephesians 2, we quoted it this morning. Ephesians 2, we know verses 8 and 9, by grace you've been saved for faith and out of your works lest any man should boast. Verse 10, for we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto that we should walk in them. Titus 2, 14, he has purified for himself his own special people, what? Zealous for good works. A people for his own possession, zealous for good works.

James says this, I will show you my faith by my works. What the world is crying for today, listen please, what the world is crying for today is authenticity. They want to see authentic outflow of the reality that we claim exists within. They don't want to know how much we know. They want to see authenticity.

That will get people's attention. That's why we're called to live the gospel. Here's the second reason. The number one reason why you should live the gospel, keeping your conduct honorable, is because it's who you are. The second reason is it points people to God and leads people to Christ.

He says in the day of the visitation. Glorify God on the day of visitation. There's debate among scholars and exegetes about what that exactly means, the visitation. But the reason is that we should live the gospel. The number one reason why you should live the gospel, keeping your conduct honorable, is because it's who you are. The second reason is it points people to God and leads people to Christ. He says in the day of visitation, glorify God on the day of visitation. There's debate among scholars and exegetes about what that exactly means, the visitation. One, it could mean the future judgment. When judgment comes, a person will say, yeah, this person lived the gospel in front of me.

I am without excuse. They lived the gospel. Maybe that's what it means. I lean towards the day of visitation, like visitation is used in Acts chapter 15, where it talks about God visiting the Gentiles and from them calling a people to himself. In other words, it speaks about somebody coming to Christ.

Why? Because somebody lived the gospel in front of them. That's powerful. Part of following Jesus is helping others follow Jesus by living the gospel and living his goodness. And the Spirit prompts. When I am walking in step with the Spirit, he prompts me to say, to pray, to interact, to go visit, to get together with.

The Spirit does things like that. And what is the impact, finally, of all this? Living the gospel is the greatest apologetic for the goodness of God. Living the gospel is the greatest apologetic for the goodness of God. It is the goodness of God that leads people to repentance. How will the goodness of God be seen and heard but through the people of God?

That's why we are his chosen vessels. A significant part of what it means to be chosen and precious is that we are set apart as God's instruments of choice, to bring more people to himself. So in that day, when we are face-to-face with the Father and with Jesus Christ, someone will be able to, someone standing near me, maybe even next to me, will be able to say, Father, your goodness lived and spoken through, rich, drew me to acknowledge your goodness and to submit myself to you. Now the Holy Spirit is deeply, the Holy Spirit and the Word of God are deeply at work in all of that.

It's not because I'm so good and special, it's just simply because I'm living in the outflow of having feast at the banquet table of God's goodness. That is the emphasis of 1 Peter 2 verses 11 to 12, living his goodness. This is our calling, folks. This is serious business. Let's be about this. This is who we are, it's what we're called to, but remember all the resource that is ours to do this. There's a negative side and there's a positive side.

Abstain from the passions of the flesh which wage war against your soul and live the Gospel so that others will see the goodness of God and that living is done in the outflow. It's authentic. It's real. It's not a put-on. It's not a put-on.

It's real stuff and that gets their attention. Stand with me, please. Father, we are grateful for the challenge of the apostle to our lives this morning, communicating the Word of God by the Spirit of God to the people of God. Father, we want to be faithful stewards of this that you have entrusted to us, Father. We acknowledge our status and our identity in Christ.

We acknowledge all the resource that we have in Jesus Christ. Father, please rescue us. Rescue us from attraction, any attraction we may have to that which is not your banquet table, Father. Draw us to yourself because it is in your goodness that you lead people to repentance, Father, and we want to be your chosen instruments in that mission. Thank you for that delight and that calling.

Amen. Father, use us, I pray, this morning. And as we close in singing this song this morning, Father, may it be the prayer of our hearts that indeed you are all to us. Father, as we confess that, I pray that you would consume in your holy wrath anything that would be more to us than you are. We are yours, Father.

We pray in Jesus' name. We're so glad you've joined us for Delight in Grace, the teaching ministry of Rich Powell, pastor of Grace Bible Church in Winston-Salem. You can hear this message and others anytime by visiting our website, www.delightingrace.com. You can also check out Pastor Rich's book, Seven Words That Can Change Your Life, where he unpacks from God's Word the very purpose for which you were designed. Seven Words That Can Change Your Life is available wherever books are sold. As always, tune in to Delight in Grace weekdays at 10 a.m.