What Can the Exiled Do?

Kongsvinger Lutheran Church

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Welcome to the teaching ministry of Kungsvinger Lutheran Church. Kungsvinger is a beacon for the Gospel of Jesus Christ and is located on the plains of northwestern

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Minnesota. We proclaim Christ and Him crucified for our sins and salvation by grace through faith alone.

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And now, here's a message from Pastor Chris Roseberg. A reading from Psalm 102.

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Hear my prayer, O Lord, and let my cry come to You. Do not hide

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Your face from me in the day of my distress. Incline Your ear to me.

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Answer me speedily in the day when I call. For my days pass away like smoke.

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My bones burn like a furnace. My heart is struck down like grass and has withered.

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I forgot to eat my bread. Because of my loud groaning, my bones cling to my flesh.

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I'm like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake.

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I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. All the day my enemies taunt me.

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Those who deride me use my name for a curse. For I eat ashes like bread and mingle tears with my drink.

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Because of Your indignation and anger, for You have taken me up and thrown me down. My days are like an evening shadow.

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I wither away like grass. But You, O Lord, are enthroned forever.

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You are remembered throughout all generations. You will arise and have pity on Zion.

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It is time to favor her. The appointed time has come. For Your servants hold her stones dear and have pity on her dust.

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Nations will fear the name of the Lord and all the kings of the earth will fear Your glory.

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For the Lord builds up Zion. He appears in His glory. He regards the prayer of the destitute and does not despise their prayer.

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Let this be recorded for a generation to come so that a people yet to be created may praise the

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Lord, that He look down from His holy height from heaven. The Lord looked at the earth to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set those who were doomed to die free, that they may declare in Zion the name of the

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Lord and in Jerusalem His praise. When peoples gather together and kingdoms to worship the

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Lord, He has broken my strength in midcourse. He has shortened my days.

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O my God, I say, take me not away in the midst of my days, You whose years endure throughout all generations.

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Of old You laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will remain.

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They will all wear out like a garment and You will change them like a robe and they will pass away.

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But You are the same, and Your years have no end. The children of Your servants shall dwell secure.

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Their offspring shall be established before You. In the name of Jesus.

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That sounded like a gasp, a sigh. Amen. So in Scripture, we have learned that there are major motifs in Scripture.

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During the summer, we worked our way through a large portion of 1 and 2 Samuel, and we looked at what

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God's Word reveals regarding the kingdom of God. We were working our way through and are continuing to work our way through the story of the

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Exodus, which is the story of God's people being born in slavery and literally being beaten and tortured under the load of slavery and God, through a mighty hand, setting them free from captivity to a false god -king and then baptizing them in the

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Red Sea and thus them beginning their wilderness wanderings as they head towards the promised land.

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You can kind of think of Exodus and kingdom theology as big blocks in Scripture. But there is another block in Scripture and one that is very important for us as Christians today, and that is the motif of exile.

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You think of Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. They were exiles.

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You think of Queen Esther. She also was an exile. And the

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Apostle Peter here in our text tonight, starting in 1

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Peter 2, verse 11, is picking up on this great theme of the

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Old Testament where we have to consider ourselves as just passing through.

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We are right now in our Babylonian captivity, waiting for the decree of the

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Lord for us to be able to return to the promised land. That's the idea of exile.

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And as a result of it, where we find ourselves tonight, Oslo, Minnesota, somewhere in the

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United States of America, we must not consider where we are right now to be our home.

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We must consider ourselves to be sojourners here, people who are just passing through.

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Now, we as Americans love to talk about home. Home, sweet home.

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And you think of like the Wizard of Oz and Dorothy saying, there's no place like home.

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There's no place like home. There's no place like home. And of course, after a long day's work, coming home, taking off your shoes, putting on your favorite comfortable moccasins or house slippers, turning on the fireplace, and relaxing in your home is just so cozy.

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There's nothing wrong with that. As long as you understand that even these wonderful creature comforts of home are to be considered to be temporary.

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Don't get used to them. You won't be here for much longer. That's the idea. And so tonight,

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I don't normally say what the name of the message is, but I think the name of the message is quite helpful.

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This is an exile's guide to good works. And you'll note, last week we unpacked the

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Christmas present and we kind of took a peek at it regarding Christ's death and resurrection. And yet, Peter is not done proclaiming to us the excellencies of Christ's death on the cross and how they inform how we are to live our lives now as sojourners and exiles.

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So with that, let's take a look at our text tonight from 1 Peter 2 starting at verse 11.

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Beloved, Peter writes, I urge you as sojourners and exiles, because that's what you are.

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That's what I am. To abstain from the passions of the flesh which wage war against your soul.

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Something to consider there. And we all know about this. I don't think there's a single one of us here.

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In fact, there's nobody on the planet that has no experience when it comes to the passions of our flesh.

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Our flesh has desires for all types of sin, debauchery, wickedness, and evil.

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It's quite disgusting. And yet here, as exiles, we recognize that it is not appropriate for us to indulge the passions of our flesh and instead embrace what this text says.

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That these very passions wage war against our very souls.

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The new man that Christ has created us in. The one that was brought forth in the waters of baptism.

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Your flesh and its passions war against that very thing. And so the idea is this.

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We want to wake up on that great last day from the sleep of death into the resurrection having not forsaken the faith that was given to us.

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And so we must see sin for what it is. A mortal enemy. Sin does not desire to peacefully coexist with you or me.

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Sin wages war against our souls with the desire to destroy what

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Christ has created in us. So keep your conduct then among the

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Gentiles. And for us, we're all Gentiles, so think of it this way. Keep your conduct then among those who are unbelievers.

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Keep it honorable. So that when they speak against you as evildoers, and they will if they haven't done so already, especially with the world becoming darker and darker by the day.

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If they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify

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God on the day of visitation. Yeah, that's right. Our good works, our good deeds are a light to the

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Gentiles, a light to the pagans that God has done a work in us. We do our good works because we are saved.

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And so what does it look like to bear fruit in keeping with repentance and to do good works as exiles who are just passing through?

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First and foremost, be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.

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You think politics in the United States is bad. I would argue that Imperial Rome was not known for its moral and just emperors.

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And so here the apostle Peter, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells us that we are to be subject to even somebody as wicked as an emperor of Rome, unless, of course, he tells us to disobey

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God. For this is the will of God, that by doing good, you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

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We like to think that the way we silence the ignorant is by using our words to shut them down.

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But here, Peter says, that we are to use our good works to silence the ignorance of foolish people.

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So therefore, live as people who are free, free from sin, free from the devil, free from the world, free from the passions of our flesh, which is all slavery and death.

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So live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover -up for evil, but living as servants of God, because you are.

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That's the idea. So honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

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Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect. We might as well translate that a little stronger.

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Slaves, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and the gentle, but also to the unjust.

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You see, even slaves do good works, and they do good works in their vocation as slave.

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And here, Peter is telling us that when you have an ornery boss, you have that fellow you are working for who is just terrible.

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He's the one that when people say, what do you do for a living? You say, I work at such and such a place.

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And they go, oh, you work there. Do you know so and so? Yeah, he's my boss.

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And they go, oh, I'll pray for you. What do you do in that situation? Well, listen.

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You are subject to your boss. Treat him with all respect, not only to the good and the gentle, but also to the unjust, the mean, the vindictive, the wrong, the abusive.

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For this is a gracious thing when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.

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Yes, that's right. We, as exiles, are called, if necessary, to be willing to suffer unjustly.

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And there's a reason for that, and you'll notice how the cross plays into this. What credit is it if when you sin, you are beaten for it and you endure?

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But if when you do good and you suffer for it and you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God.

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Have you ever thought of it that way? That boss that's so difficult to work for, God tells us to continue to do good even to that unjust boss, and to serve him and to respect him.

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And if no good deed goes unpunished, you continue to be punished for doing good deeds, then this text says that what you are suffering is a gracious thing in the sight of God.

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For to this you have been called. What?

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You're thinking, well, no, I've been called to change the world. No, you've been called to suffer. This is what exiles do.

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Because Christ also suffered for you, he has left you an example so that you might follow in his steps.

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So when you are suffering unjustly for doing good, you are following in the very steps of Christ.

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Was he not one who suffered unjustly? Was he not one who did nothing but good and who was rewarded for his good by being nailed to a cross?

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Indeed he was. So he has left us an example that we might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was any deceit found in his mouth.

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When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten.

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But he continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

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Let me read that again. He bore our sins in his body on the tree so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness.

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By his wounds you have been healed. You have been healed from the sickness of sin.

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For you were straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and the overseer of your souls.

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So likewise, wives, be subject to your own husbands so that even if some do not obey the word, that they may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives.

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When they see your respectful and pure conduct, do not let your adorning be external, the braiding of hair, the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear.

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In other words, don't take your cues from the fashion magazines or the commercials on television.

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Instead, a Christian woman who is in exile here on earth, waiting to enter the true promised land, is to adorn herself with the hidden person of the heart with imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious.

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For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, as Sarah obeyed

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Abraham, calling him Lord, and you are her children if you do good, and do not fear anything that is frightening.

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And that last phrase is kind of the important part. This calls for faith. Fear and anxiety and worry oftentimes are the launching points from which women disrespect their husbands.

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And refuse to submit to them in a godly way. I'm not talking about an oppressive husband,

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I'm talking about a godly husband. And fear and anxiety becomes the impetus by which they demand things that they are not to be demanding.

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Because ultimately that type of fear is a lack of faith. But, as exiles, we recognize that only half the equation is covered when we talk about wives.

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What about husbands? Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel.

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Think of her as a china vase. Not that she's weaker, she's very beautiful. Delicate, if you would.

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Since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

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Yeah, so note, since women and men are all heirs of the grace of life, that makes us equal, but we're different.

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And so even though we men are strong, even though we men are the leaders, we lead from the bottom, not the top.

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We do not domineer over our wives. Instead, we are understanding, showing them honor, loving them sacrificially as Christ has loved the church.

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Protecting them, recognizing that God has made them different than us.

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And at the same time, they are equal to us in the grace of life. And men who do not heed this instruction, for us exiles here on earth, their prayers end up becoming hindered.

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God doesn't like to listen to men who domineer and abuse and treat their women harshly.

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And you'll note, tonight we're hearing a lot of law. A ton of law.

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Already, each and every one of us has recognized that we have fallen short of what this book is telling us to do as far as living in exile.

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And so, when the law pricks our consciences and the Holy Spirit says to us, we're not doing that, we must always again turn back to the cross and hear the words that Jesus has bled and died even for these sins.

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So, we continue. Finally, all of you have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.

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Man, this sounds nothing like what the world wants from people. The world says, go and seize the day.

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Take your moment. You've got to step up to the plate. You've got to rise to the occasion.

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You've got to, you've got to, you've got to. And as exiles here, forgiven of our sins, we have the mind of Christ.

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And we bear the fruit of the Spirit. And the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, self -control.

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And so we see that in league with that then is this idea that we are to be united of mind, sympathetic towards others, expressing love towards each other in a brotherly way, tender -hearted and humble towards others.

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We should not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling. On the contrary, we are to bless.

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For this is to what we have been called, so that we also may obtain a blessing. For whoever desires to love life and to see good days, let him keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit.

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Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it.

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For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the

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Lord is against those who continually do evil. Now, who is there to harm you if you are zealous for what is good?

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It's kind of an interesting question because we all know that Christ has called us to suffer, and the text just earlier told us that we might actually suffer for doing good.

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But this is taking us into a broader perspective. But even if you should suffer for righteousness' sake, you will be blessed.

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Don't consider just what you're going through in the here and now as if that has the final say.

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God has the final say. And God Himself sees that if you do suffer for the sake of righteousness,

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He sees it. He will bless it. So, have no fear of them, nor be troubled.

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In your hearts, honor Christ. The Lord is holy. Always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks for the reason and for the hope that is in you.

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Yet do this with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that when you are slandered, and notice it doesn't say if, it says when.

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When you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.

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For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil.

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For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, so that He might bring us to God.

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Have you noticed as we've been working our way through 1 Peter, Peter can't go more than a half a chapter before he has to tell us about the cross again.

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Over and over and over again, he focuses our faith on Christ and assures us that Christ has once and for all bled and died for the sins of the whole world.

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He, the righteous one, for us, the unrighteous, so that He might bring us, the ungodly, to God and make us holy.

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He did this by being put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the Spirit, in which

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He went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison, because they formerly did not obey when

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God's patience waited in the days of Noah. Now there's a comma right there, and you're thinking, what is he talking about there?

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What's this going and proclaiming and preaching to the spirits in prison? Remember in the

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Creed, when we say that He died and He descended into hell, and on the third day

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He rose again from the grave, this is a text that is dealing with Christ's descent into hell.

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So Jesus, when He says, it is finished, and He's done bleeding and dying on the cross, and He cries out into your hands,

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I commit my spirit, and then He breathes His last, where does Jesus go?

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Answer? Our confessions say He descended into hell. A better translation may be

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Sheol, of the Old Testament. And He didn't go there to continue His suffering,

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He had done His suffering already. Instead, Peter tells us that after Christ's suffering on the cross,

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He went down to Sheol, to the place where the spirits were, and He proclaimed to them

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His victory, announced to those people who refused to repent in the days of Noah that He had been vindicated.

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It was a preaching and proclamation of victory for their judgment. Because they, back in the days of Noah, did not obey.

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When God's patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is eight persons, were brought safely through water.

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And that is a good text for us to consider in Advent. Noah, we learn, was a preacher of righteousness.

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And according to Scripture, he preached repentance for a hundred years while he built the ark.

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And his preaching produced zero converts.

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The only people who were with him on the ark were his family. And if a preacher can't even get his family on board with him, then he may not be worth his salt.

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But you kind of get the idea here. It was only Noah and his family. Preached for a hundred years!

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Hundred! That got absolutely nowhere. But, those who trusted, those who believed, those who got on board that crazy boat, they were brought safely through water.

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And that, the flood and the ark, is all a picture of our very salvation.

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Baptism, which is an antitupas, an antitype to this, the flood, now saves you.

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You, also, have been brought safely through water. Baptism now saves you. It's not a removal of dirt from the body, that's called a bath, and you need to take one of those at least once a year whether you think you need it or not.

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But a bath only removes dirt from the body. Baptism does far more than that.

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It is an appeal to God for a good conscience through the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And the reason for this is that cross -references regarding what

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God does in baptism teaches us that in our baptisms our sins are washed away.

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They are forgiven. We are united with Christ in His death and His resurrection, and our hearts are circumcised by none other than Christ Himself.

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So, truly, our baptism is an appeal to God for a good conscience. A good conscience through the resurrection of Christ because we have been united with Him in His resurrection in the waters of baptism.

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And He, Christ, has gone into heaven and He is currently at the right hand of God with angels and authorities and powers having been subjected to Him.

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That's the major theme, if you would, of our Ascension Day message from earlier this year that Christ is currently ruling and reigning and that all of this that you now see will at some point cease to be because Christ says,

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Behold, I am making all things new. And so, this second

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Wednesday of Advent, as we consider it an exile's guide to good works, note over and again how

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Peter anchors all of our good works as Christians. Even the suffering that we are called to do and to participate with Christ in, everything is anchored in the cross.

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It is through Christ's bleeding and dying that our sins are forgiven. And it is because of His bleeding and dying that He has left us an example that we are to follow when it comes to suffering unjustly.

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And, rather than reviling and returning evil with evil, we are then shown through the cross that we are to return evil with good, hatred with love, anger with patience, reviling with kindness.

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And all of this is because that is exactly what Christ did for us, revealing

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His true nature. And through His Word and Sacraments, and through the continual practice of daily repentance and the forgiveness of sins and trusting in Jesus and mortifying our sinful flesh, we, through the

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Spirit and the Word, are being made to be more and more like Christ every day.

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And when He finally appears in glory to judge the living and the dead, the

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Scripture says that in the twinkling of an eye we will be transformed.

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We will be transformed in such a way that we will never again have sinful passions or desires or be tempted by the devil or the world or our own ambitions.

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Instead, we will be with our Savior, our King, in a true homeland, with the heavenly

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Jerusalem come down to earth in a world without end. It is coming.

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It is practically here. To say that it is Advent, and this is a time for repentance, it's not repentance for the birth of Christ.

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It's repentance in anticipation of Christ's second Advent, which we remember so poignantly because of His first.

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In the name of Jesus, Amen. Oslo, Minnesota 56744

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And again that address is Kungsvinger Lutheran Church 15950 470th

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Avenue NW Oslo, Minnesota 56744 We thank you for your support.

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