THE IMPERISHABLE WORD OF GOD

1 PETER 1:22-25Steve Shepherd

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1 Peter 1:22 NET You have purified your souls by obeying the truth in order to show sincere mutual love. So love one another earnestly from a pure heart. 23 You have been born anew, not from perishable but

from imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of God.

24 For all flesh is like grass: and all its glory like the flower of the grass; the grass

withers and the flower falls off, 25 but the word of the Lord endures forever. (Isaiah 40:6-8)

And this is the word that was proclaimed to you.

Many good things don’t last long, do they? A delicious meal. A good pair of shoes. A favorite

pair of jeans. A favorite car or truck. They eventually all wear out, even if we get rid of

them before they do, they wear out.

And how about the human body? Whew! Man, does it ever perish or fade with the passing of time! Have you looked in the

mirror lately? What do you see that wasn’t there 10, 20, 30 or 40 years ago?

Wrinkles? Gray hair or no hair? Sagging this and sagging that?

Bulging this and bulging that?

An older woman took a package to the post office to mail and was told it would cost

$3.95 for fast delivery or $2.30 for slower service.

"There is no hurry," she told the clerk, "just so the package is delivered in my lifetime." He glanced at her and said, "That will be

$3.95, please."

A woman walked up to a little old man rocking in a chair on his porch. "I couldn’t help noticing how happy you look," she said. "What’s your

secret for a long happy life?“"I smoke three packs of cigarettes a day," he

said. "I also drink a case of whiskey a week, eat fatty foods, and never exercise.“

"That’s amazing," the woman said. "How old are you?’ "Twenty-six," he said.

Some of the things we do age us faster than others.

Two elderly couples were enjoying friendly conversation when one of the men asked the

other, "Fred, how was the memory clinic you went to last month?“

"Outstanding," Fred replied. "They taught us all the latest psychological techniques - visualization,

association - it made a huge difference for me.“"That’s great! What was the name of the clinic?"

Fred went blank. He thought and thought,

but he couldn’t remember.

Then a smile broke across his face and he asked, "What do you call that flower with the long

stem and thorns?" "You mean a rose?" "Yes, that’s it!" He turned to his wife and said,

"Rose, what was the name of that clinic?“If nothing else, our minds are

perishing or wasting away.Brothers and sisters, there is one thing in this world that will never perish or fade away and

that’s the Word of God!

Jesus said: Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Mark 13:31 NET Isn’t it great to know that what we believe is eternal truth? It will never die or pass away.

And it’s not just the Word of God that will never pass away. It’s something else that is extremely valuable in the eyes of God that

will never pass away. DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS?

1 John 2:17 NET And the world is passing away with all its desires, but the person who does the

will of God remains forever.

In our text, let’s consider what the imperishable Word of God

produces in people:1- Purification 2- Love3- Eternity

PURIFICATION1 Peter 1:22a NET You have purified your souls

by obeying the truth…The state of Pennsylvania once had a law that

reads: “If any person shall willfully, premeditatedly and despitefully blaspheme, or

speak loosely or profanely of Almighty God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, or the Scriptures of Truth, such a person, on conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine, not exceeding $100,

and undergo an imprisonment, not exceeding three months, or either, at the

discretion of the court.” WOW!I wish that the state of Pennsylvania still had that law as well as every other state in the

U.S.! We need to understand, of course, that passing a law to keep people’s speech pure will not get the job done. It takes something far greater to produce purity in a person’s

speech, heart and mind.

1 Peter 1:22a NET You have purified your souls by obeying the truth…

The father of five children had won a toy at a raffle. He called his kids together to ask

which one should have the present.

"Who is the most obedient?" he asked. "Who never talks back to mother? Who

does everything she says?"

Five small voices answered in unison. "Okay, dad, you get the toy."

What does obedience have to do with the Word of God and our salvation? Quite a bit.Matthew 28:19 NET Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am

with you always, to the end of the age."

Luke 11:28 NET But he replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey

it!“Acts 5:32 NET And we are witnesses of these

events, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."

2 Thessalonians 1:8 NET With flaming fire he will mete out punishment on those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our

Lord Jesus.Wow!

Hebrews 11:7 NET By faith Noah, when he was warned about things not yet seen, with reverent regard constructed an ark for the deliverance of his family. Through faith he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place he would later

receive as an inheritance, and he went out without understanding where he was going.

1 John 2:3 NET Now by this we know that we have come to know God: if we keep his

commandments.These scriptures and more tell us that we must obey God’s Word as best we can in order to be purified or cleansed from our

sin. True Bible faith is an obedient faith. Faith that doesn’t obey God’s Word isn’t true

faith.

Thomas a Kempis wrote: Instant obedience is the only kind of obedience there is; delayed obedience is disobedience. Whoever strives to withdraw from obedience, withdraws from Grace.

During the War Between the States, General Lee one day sent word to

Stonewall Jackson that the next time he rode in the direction of headquarters the

Commander-in-Chief would be glad to see him on a matter of no great importance.

General Jackson received the message and immediately prepared to leave the next

morning.

Rising very early, he rode the eight miles to Lee’s headquarters against a storm of wind and snow, and arrived just as Lee was finishing breakfast. Much surprised, Lee inquired why Jackson had

come through such a storm.General Jackson replied: “But you said that you

wished to see me. General Lee’s slightest wish is a supreme

command to me.”Is the Lord’s slightest wish a supreme command to us? The Word of God can make us pure but only if

we obey it.

LOVE1 Peter 1:22 NET You have purified your

souls by obeying the truth in order to show sincere mutual love. So love one another

earnestly from a pure heart.

A sincere love for your bothers. When we learn to obey the

Word of God we’ll also develop a strong love for others.

Do you recall we talked about Faith & Hope in last week’s lesson? We discovered, "In fact,

faith and hope in God are both the purpose and the result of Christ's resurrection and

ascension." (Coffman) Faith & Hope are so important, but there is something greater that comes from Christ

through His Word.1 Corinthians 13:13 NET And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest

of these is love.

John 13:34 NET "I give you a new commandment — to love one another. Just

as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 Everyone will know by this that you are my disciples — if you have love for

one another."

1 John 2:5 NET But whoever obeys his word, truly in this person the love of God has been

perfected. By this we know that we are in him.

When the Moravian missionaries went to Greenland, they were unable during the first year to make any impression whatsoever. Then came an awful epidemic of smallpox in which multitudes became sick, and the

missionaries went about among them ministering to their bodies and souls in

Christ’s name. After that the way was clear.

The people said, “You have nursed us in our sickness. You have cared for us in our

distress. You have buried our dead. Now tell us of your religion.”

Those missionaries demonstrated love and that is what made the difference in their

mission work. Demonstrating love toward others will make a difference in our witness

for Christ as well.

As some has said: People don’t care how much we know until they know how much

we care! And that care must be demonstrated in some physical or material

form.

Missionary Ron Elerick’s favorite saying was,

“Don’t lead them to Christ, Love them to Christ.”

The parable of the Good Samaritan gives three philosophies of life:

- The robber’s philosophy was “What you have is mine, and I will take it.”- The priest and Levite had the philosophy that “What is mine is mine, and I will keep it.”- The Samaritan’s philosophy was “What is mine is yours, and I will share it.” Jesus endorsed the Samaritan’s philosopher and said, “Go and do the same.” (Luke 10:37)

It should be obvious to us that if we have truly obeyed the Word of God that we will have the good Samaritan’s heart. At least,

we’ll try to help others every chance we get. We will care for others who are in distress

and help if we can.

An experienced surgeon asked a young intern assisting him during an operation a

question. “Young man, Whom do you consider the most important person in this

room?”The intern groped for an answer. He

thought of responding, “You are, Sir,” but he couldn’t believe that his mentor would be

that self-serving.

Finally, thinking he would sound gracious, the intern replied, “Well, I suspect it would be the nurses who

assist you in such an efficient manner.”

The surgeon shook his head. “No,” he said, “The most important person in this operating room is the

patient.”

A heart that has obeyed the Word of God will always be thinking of others, loving others, serving others!

ETERNITY23 You have been born anew, not from perishable but from imperishable seed, through the living and enduring word of

God. 24 For all flesh is like grass: and all its glory like the flower of the grass; the grass withers and the flower falls off, 25

but the word of the Lord endures forever. (Isaiah 40:6-8) And this is the word that

was proclaimed to you.

Passing a cemetery one day, the Irishman paused at a startling inscription on a

tombstone. He read the words: “I still live.” After scratching

his head in puzzlement for a moment, the Irishman said: “Bejabbers, if I was dead I’d be

honest enough to own up to it!”I’d say that man whose gravestone read, "I still live" knew something that Irishman didn’t know. He knew that there is life beyond this life! THIS

LIFE IS NOT THE END! Believe it!

Before his death, 56 year old Patrick Swayze, was interviewed about his stage four pancreatic cancer and his thoughts

about life, etc.

Swayze, when he went public with his diagnosis said the disease has taken an

emotional toll. "There’s a lot of fear here," he said. "Yeah, I’m scared. Yeah, I’m angry.

Yeah, I’m [asking], why me."

Swayze said the illness has made him think more about the afterlife. He said, "I don’t

know what’s on the other side. It tests everything I believe in … that there is

something unique in all of us that does not, does not die.“

Even though Patrick Swayze was not sure what’s on the other side of death,

WE ARE! And we believe in our eternal God and our savior, Jesus Christ. And we believe in the promise of eternal life! God, through His Word and Spirit, has put eternity into our hearts and

minds and we long to go there! We’ve been born again through faith in and

obedience to the Word of God. And we recognize that all men are like grass that withers. In fact, we’re all in the withering process, aren’t we?

In 1846 former president John Quincy Adams suffered a stroke. Although he

returned to Congress the following year, his health was clearly failing. Daniel Webster described his last meeting with Adams: "Someone, a friend of his, came in and made particular inquiry of his health.

Adams answered, ’I inhabit a weak, frail, decayed tenement; battered by the winds

and broken in upon by the storms, and from all I can learn, the landlord does not intend to repair.’" The same is true for us or will be

for us. And even though we don’t like the withering process we do like the thought of living forever in a place where there is no

pain, no crying, no tears, no sin, no shame, no hurt, etc. AMEN?

On his deathbed, British preacher Charles Simeon smiled brightly and asked the people

gathered in his room, "What do you think especially gives me comfort at this time?" When

they all remained silent, he exclaimed, "The creation! I ask myself, ’Did Jehovah create the

world or did I?’ He did! Now if He made the world and all the rolling spheres of the universe,

He certainly can take care of me. Into Jesus’ hands I can safely commit my

spirit!"

A few days before his death, Dr. F. B. Meyer wrote a very dear friend these words: "I have

just heard, to my great surprise, that I have but a few days to live. It may be that before this

reaches you, I shall have entered the palace. Don’t trouble to write.

We shall meet in the morning." May God give us the grace in our dying days to look forward with hope to eternity as these men of faith did. And it is the Word of God that will

continue to produce that hope in us.

25b And this is the word that was proclaimed to you.

The Word of God has indeed been preached to us. Over and over. Again and again. And if we

have truly heard the Word and respond by faith and obedience we will be different people. We will be better people. We will be in Christ, living a life of faithful obedience, a life of love, and a life that is looking forward in faith to eternity.

Amen.