Sermon Scriptures for Sunday, December 19, 2021

 

“O Little Town of Bethlehem”

December 19, 2021

Micah 5:2-4, ESV

² But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
    who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
    one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
    from ancient days.
³ Therefore he shall give them up until the time
    when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
    to the people of Israel.
⁴ And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
    in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
    to the ends of the earth.

 

Luke 2:1-14, ESV

¹ In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. ² This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ And all went to be registered, each to his own town. ⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵ to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. ⁶ And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

 

⁸ And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. ¹¹ For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

 

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest,
    and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

 

“On Being Holy”

1 Peter 1:13-23

¹⁵ But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do;

¹⁶ for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:15-16

 

¹³ Therefore, with minds that are alert and fully sober, set your hope on the grace to be brought to you when Jesus Christ is revealed at his coming. ¹⁴ As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. ¹⁵ But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; ¹⁶ for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

 

¹⁷ Since you call on a Father who judges each person’s work impartially, live out your time as foreigners here in reverent fear. ¹⁸ For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your ancestors, ¹⁹ but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. ²⁰ He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake. ²¹ Through him you believe in God, who raised him from the dead and glorified him, and so your faith and hope are in God.

 

²² Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply, from the heart. ²³ For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God. 1 Peter 1:13-23

 

What Holiness Is Not

 

 

What Holiness Is

“Holy,” means to be “marked off” or “set apart,” “withdrawn from common ordinary use.

 

 

 

The Demand of Holiness

 

 

 

On Being Holy

 

 

Sermon Notes for Sunday, September 26, 2021

 

“Hope beyond Suffering”

1 Peter 1:1-9

 

Pastor Joe Alain

Date: September 26, 2021, Carrollwood Baptist Church

 

¹ Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,

 

To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, ² who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood:

 

Grace and peace be yours in abundance.

 

³ Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ⁴ and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, ⁵ who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. ⁶ In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. ⁷ These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. ⁸ Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, ⁹ for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:1-9, NIV

 

We Have a Permanent Inheritance (1:4)

1. Unravaged: Can never “perish,” “Imperishable” (ESV), “Incorruptible” (NKJV).

 

2. Undefiled: Can never “spoil,” “Undefiled” (ESV, NKJV), “Be ruined” (CEV).

 

3. Unfading: Can never “fade,” “Disappear” (CEV).

 

¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. Matthew 6:19-20, ESV

 

We Have a Divine Protection (1:5, 9)

1. Kept by God’s Power: “Shielded,” “Being guarded” (ESV), “Kept” (NKJV).

 

2. Kept for God’s Purpose: “Until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.”

 

(1)    “Chronos,” ordinary time.

 

(2) “Kairos,” special or seasonal time. The “last time” is a reference to the second coming of Jesus (Matt. 24:36, 44; 1 Thess. 4:16-17; 5:2-3; 2 Peter 3:10).

 

The word, “End” (1:9) means “completion” as in the completion of purpose, or a goal has been realized.

 

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6

 

We Have a Developing Faith (1:6-7)

1. Trials are necessary, “proven genuineness of your faith” (1:7).

 

2. Trials are distressing, “suffer grief” (1:6).

 

3. Trials vary in number and forms, “all kinds of trials” (1:6).

 

4. Trials grow our faith, “genuineness of your faith” (1:7).