SHINING BRIGHTLY ON THE MOUNTAIN

November 1, 2009 am
MF Blume

1 Peter 1:4-19 KJV Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust. (5) And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; (6) And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; (7) And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. (8) For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (9) But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. (10) Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: (11) For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (12) Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. (13) Yea, I think it meet, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance; (14) Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me. (15) Moreover I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things always in remembrance. (16) For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. (17) For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. (18) And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount. (19) We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Recall that Jesus said the house on the rock is the life of a person who hears His words and does them!

Peter said that truth of adding to our faith seven things will cause us to never fall.

This reminds me of people in Matt 7 whom Jesus said know He is Lord, and call Him, "Lord, Lord," but are not on the rock because they hear His sayings and don't do them.
And his sayings are things many people don't really like to do since they involve TAKING UP OUR CROSSES AND DENYING OURSEVLES.
So they like the first revelation of who Jesus is, which the Father gave to Peter in Matt 16:16-17, but when Jesus also beings to speak about the rock and taking up their crosses, the second revelation is easily dismissed.

Remember that Jesus began to speak about dying at Jerusalem after He saw someone got a revelation from the Father about Him being the SON OF GOD.

Peter says that seven things must be added to our faith, so we never fall, like the house on the rock that does not fall.

If the people who know Jesus sis Lord but do not do the sayings of Jesus, and are like houses on sand that fall, then when we compare Peter's words with Jesus' we get this conclusion:
ADDING TO THE FAITH so we do not fall is like GOING BEYOND THE FAITH THAT JESUS IS LORD, and doing what Jesus said.
He said doing what He said is like building a house on Rock.
He referred to His words about DENYING SELF AND TAKING UP THE CROSS.

So the SEVEN THINGS Peter says to add to our faith are associated with the CROSS and SELF DENIAL.

1 Peter 1:(5) And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; (6) And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; (7) And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. (8) For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (9) But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. (10) Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

Do what Jesus says and be a house on rock that does not fall in storms.

Add seven things to your faith and you shall never fall.

See how these go together?

Obviously Jesus sayings must agree with adding seven things to our faith, since both cause us to NOT FALL.

This is how everything in the bible all fits together.

Add ...

1) virtue,
2) knowledge,
3) temperance,
4) patience,
5) godliness
6) brotherly kindness

7) charity.

Virtue is courage and manliness or valour. A backbone.

Many people know Jesus is Lord but have no backbone to live a life that stands for this since a person is intimidated about being mocked by a world that is against Christ.
Our self would much rather shut up and not make waves with our friends and family, than stand for Jesus for what is right in a world where what is right is mocked and ridiculed.
So SELF must be denied here.

Knowledge is wisdom so we are mature believers.

We need to learn the things of God.
Peter says grace and peace are multiplied through the knowledge of God.
Many do not want to learn anything if it takes more than two minutes to study.
So we have many people who say JESUS IS LORD, but hardly know anything about the things of God.
The devil really got an inroad when TV came along since it has turned the majority into people who do not like to read and study.
They want to see moving pictures!

Temperance is not allowing the animal part of us to rule us, and it is limiting all earthly pleasures in our lives.

DENYING ourselves really comes into play in this.
Do not give in to your flesh every time your flesh wants to sin, since it makes your flesh feel good.
All sin makes the flesh feel good.

Patience is being able to sustain our Christianity and strength in the midst of tribulations and trials.

More cross!
Our flesh likes to "lose it" instead of believe God is in control and everything is going to be right, though it MAY TAKE TIME.

Godliness is true love for God and great respect for God.

Respect for God means you do what He wants despite our feelings to enjoy sin, and this again is denying self.

And brotherly kindness and charity speak for themselves

Sometimes SELF wants everyone to bow down to us, but we need to deny self and bless others.

If these things are not added to our faith, we will fall and never enter the eternal Kingdom!

Recall that Jesus said the man who hears his words and does them is in a house on the rock that storms cannot bring down.

Add these seven things to your faith of who Jesus is, and you will never fall.

2 Peter 1(10) Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

Matthew 7:24-25 KJV Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: (25) And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

Matthew 16:18 KJV And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

2 Peter 1:19 KJV We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Last week we started to preach of how the whole episode on the Mountain of Transfiguration was mentioned here by Peter.

And the idea of Jesus being transfigured (KJV) or transformed before their eyes was wonderfully related to the words of Peter.
Peter said we need to take heed to his words as unto a light that shines in a dark place until the day dawns and the days star arises in our hearts.
He just mentioned the events from Matthew 17 in verse 17 where the Father spoke of Christ's identity saying, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am wellpleased."

Matthew 17:5 KJV While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

2 Peter 1: (17) For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

It is interesting that PETER is the one writing about our need to take special heed to the words he was referring to, because it was PETER who had a problem hearing Christ's words.

In Matthew 16 we read that although Peter received a revelation from the Father of who Jesus was, when Jesus spoke some additional words after this, ("And I say also unto thee"), Peter did not receive them.
Those words spoke of building the church on the rock and taking up your cross and following Jesus.
Peter did not want to hear about the cross.
He did not want Jesus to go to Jerusalem and suffer and die.
Peter totally missed the words about the resurrection that would follow Jesus' death.

Matthew 17 occurs a week later on a rock, a large mountain, as though Jesus physically illustrated His words about the HOUSE ON THE ROCK.

And just as a week before when Jesus spoke of the cross, Peter did not want Jesus to go to Jerusalem and suffer and die, and mentioned that they should all just stay there on that mountain.
The cross was a repulsive thought to Peter.
Although Jesus rebuked him a week ago, saying unless they take up their crosses they cannot be His disciples, he still did not accept the idea of the cross.

So the sequence started all over again.

Once again the Father gives a revelation of who Jesus is, as Peter received a week prior.
And like a week prior, Jesus' additional words about the cross follow, and the Father tells Peter to "HEAR YE HIM."
We learned that Jesus was speaking to Moses and Elijah, who suddenly appeared there, about his decease, or death he should accomplish at Jerusalem.

Luke 9:30-31 KJV And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias: (31) Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.

That is why Peter did not want to leave that mountain.

But the Father told him to HEAR JESUS!
LISTEN TO THE REVELATION OF THE CROSS>

What I want to emphasize this morning is how Peter's words in 2 Peter 1, when he referenced us to the time when the Father announced to them that Jesus was His Son, the next words of Peter about the light shining perfectly correspond to the SHINING and the GLOWING OF Jesus Christ on that mountain of transfiguration.

We said that in Matthew 17 on that mountain of transfiguration, Jesus was ILLUSTRATING the truth He just spoke in Matthew 16 about the house on the Rock.

When Jesus face shined like the sun, it represented physically what Peter was trying to say in 2 Peter 1.

2 Peter 1:19 KJV We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

HEED PETER'S WORDS.

Truth is LIKE LIGHT!
When you carefully make sure you GET what Peter was taught and endevaour to OBEY IT, it is like LOOKING AT LIGHT UNTIL THE DARKNESS INSIDE YOU IS BLASTED AWAY BY LIGHT, AND YOU EXPERIENCE THE SUNSHINE BEAMING FORTH FROM WITHIN YOU!
In other words, LOOK AT LIGHT UNTIL IT MAKES YOU START TO SHINE yourself!

God IS TRUTH.

John 14:6 KJV Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

GOD IS LIGHT.

1 John 1:5 KJV This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

Revelation 21:23 KJV And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it: for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light thereof.

This means GOD is like the SUN and Jesus, God manifested in flesh, is the BEAMS OF LIGHT FROM THAT SUN.

2Pe 1:4 KJV Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust

And just as the picture of hearing LIGHT of truth until it shines so much on you that you ABSORB IT AND START SHINING YOURSELF, Peter said these promises cause us to be partakers of HIS DIVINE NATURE!

It is not our goodness that shines out.

It is HIS DIVINE NATURE that shines out.
We did not become good by making ourselves try our best, but we ABSORBED HIS TRUTH into our lives and IT CHANGED US and GOD STARTED SHINING OUT OF US!

PAUL SAID THE SAME THING!

IT IS ALL OVER THE BIBLE!

2Co 3:18 KJV But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed (METAMORPHOSIS) into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

2Co 4:5-6 KJV For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. (6) For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Romans 12:2 KJV And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed (Metamorphosis) by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Matthew 17:2 KJV And was transfigured (METAMORPHOSIS) before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.

Paul even said that His message he preached was JESUS!

As our callings and elections are made firm and sure by adding to our faith of who Jesus is, when we add the teachings of self denial and truth of the cross, we come more and more into the IMAGE OF JESUS CHRIST!

HIS SHINING LIKE THE SUN when He spoke about the decease at Jerusalem REPRESENTS THE LIGHT OF THE TRUTH of the cross shining in our hearts when we open our hearts for this truth and do not reject it.

2Pe 1:3 KJV According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:

He called us to GLORY - TO SHINE - and it gives everything that has to do with life and godliness.

It comes THROUGH THE KNOWLEDGE.
Through HEARING HIS WORD and OBEYING IT to deny ourselves and have virtue, knowledge, temperance/self-control, etc.

All of this puts our house on the rock.

SO NOW WE HAVE A NEW COMPARISON.

Getting these things in our hearts changes us into His image and causes us to shine in glory, too, is PUTTING YOUR HOUSE ON A ROCK.
THE MORE YOU ARE CHANGED INT HIS IMAGE, THE MORE SOLID YOUR HOUSE IS ON THE ROCK.

THIS IS "KINGDOM COME!"

When we are on the ROCK we are on the MOUNTAIN OF ZION -- THE KINGDOM OF OUR GOD.

SEEK FIRST HIS KINGDOM AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.
His KINGDOM is where He is KING, but IT GOES HAND IN HAND with HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.
If you want His kingdom to come, you better realize that the way God's kingdom operates involves what is right and all that is righteous.
SEEKING RIGHTEOUSNESS means you understand that WE HAVE TO LIVE RIGHT when His kingdom comes.
That is why so many like to call Him Lord but not do what He says.
His Kingdom means HE RULES, and we live in every aspect of our lives the way HE thinks we should act.

You cannot have the power of the kingdom on you when you do not want to live the way He wants you to live.

His word teaches this and that and so many do not want this or that, just the fun parts.
The bible teaches baptism.
Many people do not want that.
But Jesus preached it and the apostles preached it and we must obey it.
It's all part of seeking the Kingdom AND HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS.

So this KINGDOM is a mountain of transfiguration FOR OUR LIVES, TOO!

WE TRANSFIGURE when we allow JESUS TO SPEAK TO US AND RECEIVE TRUTH ABOUT TAKING UP OUR CROSSES AND DENYING OURSELVES - WE CHANGE INTO HIS SAME IMAGE.

Compare these verses:

Rev 2:26-28 KJV And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: (27) And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. (28) And I will give him the morning star.

2 Peter 1:19 KJV We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

Rev 22:16 KJV I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

We are changed into His image as He is the Morning Star, and He gives the Morning star, Himself, to us.