Tough & Tender - Week 1 - The CORE - Pastor Michael Ewart
Tough & Tender
Week 1 - The CORE
Pastor Michael Ewart
Welcome everyone and welcome to our brand new sermon series that we start today at eight weeks, serious. As we dive into 2nd Peter and Jude series that we are calling Tough and tender. So there's more than one way to study the Bible. One of the ways you can study, the Bible is topically and that's kind of what we were doing in our previous series. We take a topic and then we search through all of scripture. What is talked about in various parts of scripture. What is the sum total of what? God says about this and then each week we were kind of looking at a different topic. That's the way our starting point group is arranged as well. By the way topically, we look at things like, why is the world so crazy? And then you look at what the Bible says about us about the world and we find out why it is the way it is. And today, in our starting point will be talking about the beginning. Where did everything come from? And what for what purpose and topically? We're going to pull out different verses from the Bible to look at what God. Says about the beginning of all things, topical studies are one way that you can study the Bible.
Another way to study the Bible is to read through it a book at a time. Now. Did you know that the Bible is a collection of 66 books. We call it the Bible as if it is a book, but the truth is, it's 66 distinctly different books written by different authors at different periods of time that we now have collected into a single book. We call the Bible. But because it is 66 separate books, you don't have to start at the beginning and read cover to cover. Otherwise, you're going to ruin the ending. Although Revelation does kind of ruin it ruin the ending. So spoiler alert, Jesus wins and the church survives. That's Revelation. But, that's the way that we, it's a good way to study the book of the study the Bible as well as to read a book at a time from the beginning of one of the 66 books, to the end of that book. You get the whole book in context.
You understand God's Word even better. So I'm excited that we're starting this new series because that's the approach that we're going to be taking from now until the end of summer, studying a book of the Bible from beginning to end. And we are going to be looking at second Peter, just three chapters. So there's not a ton to it. But those three chapters are like concentrated truth. It's kind of got a sucking candy. You don't pop them in your mouth and chew them up. You might know somebody that does that isn't that annoying, but that That's not how that's not how we want to go through second Peter. Just quick, read through it, to it up. And okay, done. Next book. You really have to just let it sit in your mind. Let it simmer. Let it marinate really think about CDs. Think about it because it is so profound. There's so much in there. In fact, if you read through, just the first 11 verses, which is what we're going to cover today. If you just write it from beginning to end. I'm not going to do that because
Did that for the very first time? I thought, “I'm not sure what I just read. I don't, I don't matter what that means. I may have to read that again and I read through it again and I read through it again and I read through it again, dozens and dozens and dozens of times to be able to prepare to share this message with you today because there is so much truth packed into. So few verses it takes some study. It takes some work, it takes some time, and that's what we're going to try to do it through this series six weeks on three chapters that is second Peter now, why is this worth?
The cost of your attention. The reason is but let me just ask you do any of you have struggles in life. I bet you do. Do any of you sometimes feel challenged in your Christian faith. Do any of you sometimes? Feel uncertain about what you believe and why do you have some doubts about the Bible or the nature of the Bible? Are you not sure who you are in Christ. Sometimes, do you sometimes? Wonder if it's all worthwhile, if you if you if it's really worth it. Is it worth it to be a Christian? Is it?
You get mocked. Sometimes you might, your worldview might be. It's not popular. Should we keep going? Why should we keep going? Are you struggling in any way in your Christian faith? So are the people that Peter wrote to and that's why we're going to be covering 2nd Peter over the next six weeks. So, second beer was written about as near as we can tell about 65 AD. So this was a little over three decades after Jesus died. On the cross rose again, and ascended into heaven. Now fast forward, three and a half decades, and we're starting to get into a second generation of Christians. Now, there were people 30, 35 years old who were born into Christian families and that's all they knew and I know that describes some of you as well.
And yeah, it's in the world at that time. It is writing to some people that lived in an area called Asia Minor. It's in modern-day turkey, a group of congregations there and they had struggles much like the ones you are going through today. The Christian faith was persecuted, people were not getting ahead. If they identify themselves as Christians. They also had struggles and hardships in life, just like you. Their faith was challenged. So Peter wrote them a letter and they learned a lot from it. And I know that you will too, one more thing. You should know about Peters. Letter, before we dive into it. Is that as you read through it, you get the message that he believed. His life on Earth was drawing to a close. Our best. Guess is that Peter wrote this this letter from prison in Rome and according to church tradition, which probably fairly reliable. Peter died, under the persecution of Nero in Rome in that imprisonment where he wrote this letter and he suspected. It was coming according to church tradition. Peter was crucified and put to death just like Jesus was. But Peter said, I'm not worthy to be crucified like my Lord. Hang me upside down. And they did. Crucified upside down. That is the church tradition as to how Peter ended his life. So, Peter knows the end is coming.
I got to write these people a letter. He knows this is probably the last communication. I'm going to get to this church. Most likely these were a group of churches that were under his direct spiritual care and oversight. What will I say to them? How can I encourage them? What do I want them to remember? What do I want them to believe about the word of God? What do I want them to know about themselves? All of this is packed into 2nd Peter and they're important words, think of it as L last will and testament. This is what I want red long after I'm gone, people should come back.
This truth is encouraged in their faith. That's the book. We're going to look at it. So let me jump right into it. We're going to go through it, verse by verse again, a different way of studying the Bible. I hope you are gonna enjoy going through it this way. I enjoyed studying. It this way. Let me just share the introduction first and then I'll have a few other comments about what I want you to listen for. So Peter has a common type of introduction to his letter that you see in a lot of those letters of the New Testament. First of all, he identifies himself, Simon Peter. A servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ. Okay, no doubt about who wrote this. He identifies himself right up, front, Simon. Yeah, but there's hundreds of Simon's, Simon, Peter always, there's only one of those Simon was the name that his parents gave him, Peter was the name. Jesus gave him the word, Peter means Rock and if you read through the four gospels Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, you look for everything Peter said and did eat.
And sound like a rock. He was all over the place. He was saying stuff without thinking he was impulsive, but Jesus knew what he was going to become. Jesus knew what he was going to make him. And so he gave him the suitable nickname Rock. So, written by Simon the rock, a servant and Apostle of Jesus Christ. You see the humility there. First of all, I'm a servant of Jesus. Peter, this prominent leader in the early Christian Church, one of the 12 disciples, one of the inner three disciples one of the few to see some of the miracles of Jesus, this great man, and revered by people. Who is this. I'm a servant. I'm a servant of Jesus. It's all about him. I'm just a servant. I mean slave that's how Peter identifies himself. He's a servant and an apostle.
An apostle was somebody that was called. Eat by Jesus. It was somebody, that was that who had the exact words of Jesus. He directly gave them his words. It is somebody that carried the authority of Jesus. It was somebody that was sent out by Jesus. He was one of the Apostles so he had a bit of Jesus Authority as he spoke and here he speaks with the Holy Spirit. Speaking, the very words of God. Who is he writing to those who through the righteousness of our God? And Savior, Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours. Who is he writing to? He could have said, I'm writing to you, fellow Christians.
But instead he said to those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ, have received a faith as precious as ours. You have a faith that is of equal value and quality as the apostles. You have it, he says, and you have the approval of God. That's what righteousness means: you have the approval of God, through the Lord, Jesus Christ, and you have this Faith, this connection to God, that is of no inferior, quality whatsoever. / as to that of the Apostles. That's who he's writing to and he's writing it to the whole church. He's writing it to you too. And then verse to Grace and peace, be yours in abundance, through the knowledge of God and of our, and of Jesus, our Lord, the common greeting on that day. Among Jewish people was Shalom. Peace. And so in the letters you see that often as well, but that but they add a word to it. That Christian started to use, that wasn't a common greeting.
Grace is God's undeserved, loving kindness. You didn't have it coming. You didn't deserve it. He didn't owe it to you, but he gave it to you. Anyway, that's yours. May it be yours an ever-increasing abundance? And as a result peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. You have a peaceful relationship with him. You can establish peace with others. Peace. And Grace, is how he begins this letter, through the knowledge of God and of Jesus, our Lord. Through knowledge. Would you note that word mentally? Underlying it knowledge. We're going to really hear that at least two or three more times through the knowledge.
You learned about Jesus, you learned about his death on the cross. You learned about how he forgives all your sins. You learned about his bodily, real Resurrection from the dead on the third day. You heard you learned about these things, you know, these things. Peter said, I know, you know them because I taught them to you. It is through that knowledge, that you have God's grace and you have peace with God. So these were Peters introductory versus now. We're going to start to get into the body of the letter. This is worth listening to. He tells us something very important here. So tune back in church to turn it up to high. There are there are two things that I tend to hear as a pastor from people that that are Christians, especially if they've been Christian for a while and even from those who aren't sure that they can be or should be Christians.
And it's this, I can't change. Or the second thing I sometimes hear is I don't need to change. I can't change. Is what Peter is going to address first. I can't change. I can't be changed. I'm it's hopeless, I'm helpless. I've tried, I'm stuck, people kind of get here for different reasons. Some people will get to that point because maybe they're struggling with an addiction and they want to be free from it. They want to get rid of it. They've tried, and then they fall back into it. I can't, I can't change and they start to feel worthless and that they can't be changed either.
That's one way. Or maybe you struggle with a certain sin. That is a habit that you keep falling back into a certain weakness. You know, what yours is? And you say I'm never doing that again. Nope, and then tomorrow, you do it again and you fall back into it. And find it, you're throwing up your hands and you're thirsty. You're thinking, I can't, I can't change. I'm never going to change and, and I can't be changed. Or maybe, maybe it's you, maybe you might blame it on genetics or just the way you are the way you're wired. Yeah, I do this thing. I fly off the handle. That's just the way I am. Its way. I'm wired. I can't help it or I do this and yeah, well, sort of my dad sort of my grandpa. It's just the way we do it in our family. There's no hope for me to change. I can't change or maybe we blame it on the culture. And I say, well, this is the way that everybody does. Everybody does this. I'm going to do this and there's no hope for ever changing. So with that in mind, if you struggle with any of those things, listen to what Peter says next in verse 3. His divine power that would be God's God's divine power has given us everything we need for what? For a Godly life. Through our knowledge of him who called us. There's that word knowledge. Again. I told her to watch for it, through our knowledge of him who called us by his own, glory and goodness. And let me just pause there again. Look at these verses again. Let it soak in deep.
He's given you everything that you need for a Godly life and in the original language, I think it's maybe better rendered. It says for life and godliness and then the translators of this version put those two together and said a Godly life, but I like it better to separate life and godliness. God has given everything you need for life and godliness. That is he can he gives you everything you need to change any changes you, first of all, from the inside and then he also changes you on the outside.
He gave you everything for change on the inside. He changes your life. We were dead in our sins, in our rebellion, in our stuckness because we keep doing the same stuff and we can't change. There's some truth to that statement. But Peter says God changes you God gave you everything needed to change you. God changes you and he gave you life and godliness. He also gives you everything that you need to change on the outside. Godliness is so you're devoted to God, but that's kind of in your heart. It's kind of in your mind godliness, is devoted to God In Action. What does it look like to be devoted to God, acted out in your life? That's called godliness. And God gives you everything that you need for that as well.
How does he give you this? Through our knowledge of him. We know him. We know his truth. We know his grace. We know his son. We know our sin. We know his salvation. We know that we have forgiveness of sins through Jesus through our knowledge of him. He has given us everything that we need for life. And for godliness, And why, what was the motivator? What caused him to do this?
By his own glory and goodness. God did this for you. He gave this to you because you're such a good person wrong. That's not what it says. Read it carefully. He did this by his glory and goodness. God decided because of His glory, because he is a good god. He said I'm going to fix them. They can't change, but I can change him. Also, through the Lord, Jesus Christ in the faith. He creates in us, through the knowledge of what God did for us by his for his glory because of his goodness. He draws you into his family. He gives you everything you need everything. So would you jot this down? Here's the takeaway. Sometimes it's hard to follow all these points. But if you write this down, you'll remember what Peter's trying to say here, and I want you to write down these two accomplished facts will get the first one from this verse. We just read accomplished facts. God has given you everything needed.
God, notice the past tense, has given already. It's yours. Everything needed. Everything needed for life. Everything needed for godliness. What more do you need? God has given you everything. You can't change. That's a lie. When you are in Christ Jesus. You already are changed. He changed you from the inside. He changes you on the outside. Then he has another point in verse 4. Let's go on to that. Through these, he has given us his very great and precious promises. So that through them, through these great and precious promises. You may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires and then an amazing statement read that again. You participate in the divine nature because of the Divine promises that the amazing promises that God gave you that. Are forgiven of all sin, you are connected to God through the Lord Jesus Christ. You participate in the divine nature itself. You remember what God Said to Adam and Eve way back. Originally, in the Garden of Eden, Satan came and tempted, Satan came and tempted Eve and said, if you will separate from God and align yourself with me, you will be like God. And Peter says, that was exactly opposite. If you would separate yourself from this wicked world, and connect to me, through baptism, which we saw today.
Connect to me through the knowledge that you here in God's promises about the Lord Jesus Christ. If you will connect to me, you will participate in the divine nature of God. So here's your second accomplished fact by faith. You got God. Is that amazing? You literally participate in the divine nature of God himself through the Lord, Jesus Christ by faith connected to Christ. You have a connection to God, you participate in his divine nature. You are filled with everything that you need for life and godliness. These are accomplished facts. This is not potential. This is not what you're trying to become. This is what you already have through your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
That's amazing. And change you already have. In Jesus, you are a changed person. God did it? So let me kind of illustrate this. Let me show you a plant. Misty Blue, bit weird at first. This is a plant that we have in our house. It's a jade plant.
It's not the potential of a jade plant. It's not a seed. It's not becoming a jade plant. Its entirely got leaves. It's got a stalk, It's got orots. It's planted in dirt. It gets watered and it is a jade plant. There is nothing I could do to this plan to make it more than what it already is.
It's not going to become more of a jade plant. Like, oh, there's, there's a partial jade plant. That's a full one right there. That's a real jade plant. You can't say that about this, doesn't matter. How big or small it is. It is what it is. It is a jade plant. It is what it already is. And God says that by faith, God has already made you to be what you are. What is your identity? Not a lot of jade plant. You are a Christian. You are a child of God fully not partially. Lee not potentially. You are his child. You belong to him, you're destined for heaven through the Lord Jesus Christ. So I guess Peter could have said. Amen, a 5 verse letter. We're all done. We have everything. What more can you add to that? Well, there's actually three chapters. So there must be more. What are we missing here? What is there? What additional is there? Can I show you a? Can I show you a second plant? We show you a comparison of the original plant, which is on the left. You can see that to another jade plant that is on the right now at that one on the right. We actually don't have anymore when our youngest son, who's now 25. When he was born. We were actually in Russia at the time and one of the members of our church gave us a jade plant. That was literally this big less than an inch tall.
And over the 12 years that we lived in Russia. It grew into that massive plant. By the time we left. Obviously, we couldn't bring it back to America. So we brought little leaves from it, planted them, one of them survived and now we have several offspring that are still surviving to this day, many years later, and that one on the left, a little one is actually the great. Great, great granddaughter of the big one. But as you look at those two jade plant, jade plant, true or false.
This is of a jade plant, it's less jade I know. It's every bit as much of a jade plant doesn't want to the right, which one looks healthier, Fuller and more incredible and amazing. The one on the right now. My son is actually standing next to it by cropped, him out of the picture. That jade plant. Actually, it was huge. It was a little tree. It was absolutely amazing. So listen to what Peter says next in his letter because he says, yes, this is what you already have. This is who you already are, but there's more that you can add to this verse 5 for this very reason because of what you already are, because of who you already are what God made you to be. Because everything you need is already yours, make, every effort to add to your faith. Now, what He says? Add to your faith. He's not saying change what it is and do something different. It's still going to be Faith. It's still going to be a jade plant. You're still going to be connected to Jesus. You're not making it into something that isn't already but you're making it. You're adding to it in quantity and strength. In what it does in productivity. You're adding to your faith. Now, what does he say to add to your faith? Verse 5? Add to your faith, goodness. And to goodness knowledge and to knowledge self-control and to self-control perseverance and to perseverance godliness and to Godliness mutual affection.
And to Mutual affection, Love.
Don't be content with the little faith. Add to your faith. Make it big and strong and certain. What are we adding to our faith? He didn't get them all down. We're going to jot them down real quick. Here. You got seven blanks all in a row there and I'll just unpack them very briefly. So, you understand what you, what each one is what it is that you're adding to your faith or first one is goodness. Write that in goodness. Another way of saying goodness is moral excellence.
That you are aligning. What you consider right and wrong with What God Says, is, right and wrong. Are you there yet? Is there more that you need to align with What God Says? Does your level of goodness or moral Excellence? Does that need to grow? I bet it does, right second, one knowledge. I've already kind of told you. This one was going to come up several times. Now. You already have knowledge, if you've been coming here for a little while. Anyway, you have knowledge of the Lord Jesus. You have knowledge of what he did for you. When he died on the cross, you have knowledge of his resurrection and eternal life to come. You have knowledge of these things already, but this knowledge means out, dive deeper, appreciate more, explore the nuances. It's kind of like you can't fly over the Atlantic Ocean.
Say, yeah. Now I know the Atlantic. You can spend the whole rest of your life, exploring the depths of the Atlantic Ocean and you still wouldn't scratch the surface. In your faith. Also add knowledge. Read your Bible and come to church regularly to grow deeper in your knowledge and appreciation of what all God did for you. In the Lord. Jesus Christ. Third, one self control. You know what your impulses are. You know what your weaknesses are. You know, what you're likely to fall into sin doing.
And Peter says to grow in self-control. In what areas do you need to grow when it comes to self control? What will your week look like this week as you intentionally focus and make an effort to add to your faith self-control? What we were? What is your week going to look like this week? Next one, perseverance. Or another word for that is patient endurance. That is when something happens in your life when you get those setbacks, when you struggle, when you're attacked for your faith, whatever it is.
Perseverance, is you standing firm. You stand strong. You don't let that knock you off your faith, pedestal, you still stand on the truth, and Grace of the Lord, Jesus Christ, you stand strong. So what is it you're struggling with right now. What is it? That's challenging. Your faith. Are you going to have perseverance? Can you add to your faith perseverance? And then add to perseverance, godliness. We started unpacking that one a little bit earlier godliness is again Devotion to God in action.
What can you do this? That will show your Devotion to God in the things that you do. What's going to come out of your mouth. It's going to show. I'm devoted to God, what's going to? How are you going to spend your time? It's going to show. I'm devoted to God. How do you show Devotion to God in your actions godliness and godliness? Add to your godliness Mutual affection. Now, I love our church because we have this for sure. I come to church on a Sunday and people are smiling at me and greeting me. And I've seen you guys doing that with each other, you’re greeting each other. The mutual affection is absolutely there.
Can we add to it even more? Can you imagine what this church would look like, if, if the mutual affection grew even bigger, what kind of turned boat? If you like to come to church on a Sunday? What would what would a guest feel? Like when they came to our church, if the mutual affection continues to grow? And add to Mutual affection. The last one is love. Love. Now, you look at that. You say, you just said Mutual affection. Why are you repeating yourself? This is a different kind of love. This is that word Agape. If you've ever heard that word before, it's the God kind of love. It's not a love that's deserved. It's a love of decision.
Human love is often something that we deserve if we condition it on the other person. But this love is a love of decision. Why do you love them? I decided why do you love them? We're not just going to. What did they do? Nothing. That's the kind of love. God had for us in Romans 5. It says while we were still sinners Christ died for us. Meaning he didn't wait to see us, improve and change and take a step form and lean in. Okay, now I'll save him.
While we were still sinners Christ died for us. That's the kind of love. We want to add now to Faith and all these other things is this decision that we are just going to love all the people in our life. We're just going to love God. It's a decision that we make. Now, why does Peter want us to keep adding all these things? But if you shape for, if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord. Jesus Christ. There's that knowledge again.
You will not be ineffective or unproductive in your knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. If you keep adding all of these things to your faith, but whoever does not have them is near sighted and blind. Forgetting that. They have been cleansed from their past sins.
Peter wants us to keep increasing in measure these qualities, so that we will be productive in our faith. One of my sister's once asked me this years ago. She said, so why when you become a Christian, the moment you become a Christian, why doesn't God just zapped you with lightning so that you immediately go to heaven to be with him. Wouldn't that be better rather than the risk of maybe losing your faith and the struggles of this world? Why does it not? Why is he not in love immediately? Just take us to be with him.
Peter just answered didn't because God is leaving. You here to be fruitful and productive and effective in your Christian faith that you can love others giving glory to him in your daily life. This isn't a Sunday thing. This is a daily life thing to be productive in the faith that you have in the Lord Jesus Christ. So what Peter is essentially saying, is this, when you grow in these qualities, you will reap the benefits.
And you will reap the benefits. Now.
There will be a different kind of life. When you increase these qualities. You will be productive. You will be fruitful.
This past December my wife and I were able to get away to Phoenix, warm up a little bit for a few days. I've got an aunt and uncle that lived down there. We went and visited them while we were there and in their backyard in Tempe, Arizona, they have some citrus trees, and one of them was a grapefruit tree and it was a sight to behold. Let me tell you. I don't know if you ever seen a grapefruit tree, but there are literally clumps of grapefruits that look like clumps of grapes, except they're this big and they're all over this tree. There were literally tied, there's
of fruit in this tree that didn't even see him. That big now, can you imagine if we went out there and there was zero fruit, and you all. Here's a lemon tree. Here's an orange tree. That's a grapefruit tree. There's no fruit on it. And really, that's what grapefruit trees look like. Yeah. That's great food. How do you know? It's a grapefruit tree. What? We planted a years ago. Somebody told us it was, I don't know that. I'm lacking some certainty because I'm not sure because I've never seen fruit on it, but they say it's a grapefruit tree. See the connection with your faith. Now they say they're a follower of Jesus. They say they know his love, they say they're heading for eternal life that they're connected to God. What fruit do you see? I've never seen anybody. Do they look just like everybody else in this world? Never seen any fruit, but they say they're a Christian.
Let's see the problem there. Peter wants us to have an effective productive Faith, that's full of fruit, tons of it. So it looks like the trees going to break because there's so much fruit because of our connection to God. Let me show you verse 10 to I've heard so many people say Pastor. I sure I sure hope I get to heaven and there's this measure of doubt and uncertainty. I don't know if I'm going to but I boy I sure hope so. Look at verse 10 therefore my brothers and sisters make every effort.
To confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble and you will receive a rich welcome into the Eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Verse, and you might think that's a little bit confusing. I need to add to my faith in order to confirm that I'm going to go to heaven. You're not changing what you already have. That's already. Said that right? You already have everything. He's given you everything. You already are who you are, but What happens when you add to it? What happens when you're productive? What happens when you're fruitful? Doesn't that tell you something? When you look at your tree and you see all this fruit. Wow, it doesn't change anything in your relationship with God is you add all those things because that's already done. But does it change your certainty? Does it help you? See who you are? And the fruitfulness that follows when you're connected to Jesus, it increases your confidence.
And he says, then you get this rich welcome from Jesus when you get to heaven. I think it's a really cool image. Don't you? That you get to have an in God? If God isn't doing this. He's got his clipboard next. Okay? Yeah check next. Come on. Keep it moving people. No. No. When you get to heaven, God's going to. He's going to see you and run over to you. Welcome. Welcome, Gary. Come On In. I've been looking for you. I've been waiting for you. I'm so happy to have you here. I know you're connected to my son, Jesus. I've got nobody like, he's been preparing a place for you.
It's right next door to my room. All of them are in Heaven, by the way, this right next door to my room, and I want to show you where you're where you're living. He's got he knew you and he got it prepared just for you. You're going to love it. I'll come on. Come on, God's gonna be excited to see you when you get to heaven because you're going to get a rich rich welcome, which means that living and living this life. Now you have faith, but then adding to it these qualities in increasing measure, gives you more and more certainties that you have. You have more benefits. You will reap the benefits. Now. Now, but you will also reap the benefits. If you were to write this one forever.
Benefits. Now, benefits forever. You are fruitful. You are productive. You have eternal life. In the Lord, Jesus Christ. Now you look at your life as a Christian and you can say it's hard. It's a struggle. We live so good. God wants us to live so differently from the world that draws attention and persecution. It would be so much easier to live this life, like everybody else in the world just to blend in to not grow in these qualities. Why should I do that? And Peter says, because it's so worth it. You're going to be fruitful in this life. You're going to have life forever and ever with God in heaven.
So, you might, before we before I say, amen, I got to leave you with some tools. Okay, so that's all nice, Pastor Michael. But how do you do this? How can I grow in these qualities and add those things to my faith. I want to, you convince me, but I just don't know how to do it. Let me give you three things as an assignment? First thing is this. Keep coming. This is an easy one. Keep going to church every week. Don't miss a week in this series or any of the ones to come that as you keep coming and joining with God's people and praising God and increasing your knowledge. Through what we study together, here in God's word, your faith is going to continue to grow and you are going to add those other qualities. As you keep coming week after week after week after week. Second thing. I want to challenge you to join our Bible reading plan.
I sign up for it. Do it alone. Do it with friends. Do it with a group. Whatever. Do the Bible reading plan. You're going to read through first and second Peter. You're going to read through the first, second, third, John. You're going to read through Jude. It's going to correspond with what you're also hearing in the messages here on Sundays. This is going to help you grow in your faith as well. Join the Bible reading plan. Third thing, I want to ask you to do. Would you go to our website, thecore922.com?
Click at the top where it says Roots and I don't have time to unpack this for you right now. But would you just read that page and find the link to the worksheet that says my roots. It will help you in five different areas, develop an intentional plan, so that you will be adding these qualities. That Peter just described for us. We have these five roots and we encourage all of our members to make intentional planning. So I have already done that. If you were three years ago, it's time to refresh it.
I've never done that before its time. It makes your summer, my roots plan, have an intentional plan for each, one of the five routes. And you tell me at the end of summer, if you didn't grow. In grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. And tell me if you didn't become more productive. In your faith. So you are changed. Jesus, did it? You have everything that you need. It's already happened. God gave it.
And you need to change. Peter wants you to add these qualities to your Christian faith. And God will help you grow and you will reap the benefits now and forever. So that your faith can look like the Jade on the right. Rather than the one on the left, God help us and bless us as we do it. Let's pray.
Dear Heavenly Father. Thank you for this teaching that we heard today. So much to take in, so much to think about and contemplate. Lord help us to remind us to go back to this scripture throughout the week today and to look at it again to read it again, to take it to heart, to let it sink in deeper and deeper and deeper and create in us. The desire to know you better to grow in our faith, in you to increase the certainty that we have in our own salvation and to be productive.
For Christians that that help others, love others and show on the outside. What is already true on the inside? Lord help us. As we do this increase, increase our faith, Lord. We trust in you to do this. We prayed in Jesus' name. Amen.
