Temptation From Sin
Tom Shrader picks up at 1 Peter 1:13, walking through Peter's call to prepare the mind, remain sober-spirited, and fix hope entirely on the grace of God revealed in Jesus Christ. He emphasizes that holiness is not achieved by human effort but is the progressive work of the Holy Spirit in the believer, flowing from the gospel that sustains Christians just as much after conversion as before it. The teaching closes with a reflection on the daily disciplines of scripture and prayer as the primary means through which the Spirit transforms the mind and produces sincere love for others.
“There's nothing I can do to make God love me more, nothing I can do to make God love me less — He accepts me, He did it, He initiated it, He began the relationship.”
— Tom Shrader
Series: 1 Peter
Recorded: 2012 at East Valley Bible Church
Duration: 47 min
Themes: holiness, temptation, hope, grace, prayer, scripture, transformation, self-control, struggling with sin, feeling spiritually stuck, new believer, young adult, seeking daily discipline, doubting in hard times, growing in faith, husband
Scripture: 1 Peter 1:13-21, 1 Peter 1:22, 1 Peter 1:3-5, 1 Peter 2:2-3, 1 Peter 2:17, 1 Peter 3:8, 1 Peter 4:8, 1 Peter 5:21, Isaiah 6, Leviticus 11:44, 2 Corinthians 7:1, Ephesians 2:8-10, Ephesians 4:24, 1 Thessalonians 4:7, Hebrews 12:14, Philippians 1:6, Philippians 2:12, Philippians 3:12-14, Romans 12:2, Acts 5, Psalm 147:11, John 1:1, John 14:15
Theological Themes: sanctification, becoming holy, progressive sanctification, the gospel, soteriology, spiritual disciplines, holy spirit, 1 peter
Full Transcript
Introduction and Context
Peter's readers were experiencing various kinds of trials that were causing them various degrees of grief and suffering. Their Christian faith was being slandered and maligned. Their social status, family relationships, and possibly even their livelihood were threatened. When one's Christian faith is criticized or mocked, it is natural that one might begin to doubt the truth of the gospel. So it is not just a matter of understanding the gospel, but of how they respond to it. In the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Peter writes this amazing letter back to them.
Several commentators describe the letter in striking terms. One calls 1 Peter "the most condensed New Testament resume of the Christian's faith and of the conduct it inspires." Martin Luther described it as "the noblest of books in the New Testament, a paragon of excellence, even on par with Romans of the gospel," and believed it contained all that is necessary for the Christian to know. Another author writes, "Perhaps this letter's universal relevance is due to its presentation of how the gospel of Jesus Christ is the foundational principle by which the Christian life is lived out within the larger unbelieving society." There is great application for us here, even though the immediate audience was experiencing suffering, grief, and pain because of their faith within their own culture.
The Therefore of Verse 13
Peter ends his letter in chapter five, verse 21 with what is something of an anthem or a call: "the true grace of God, stand firm in it." That is what he has been building toward, and you have studied it for the last two weeks. Verse three of chapter one sets the foundation: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ." Verse four speaks of an inheritance, and verse five reminds us that "we are protected by the power of God," and we rejoice in this.
Peter is writing to a group of Christians who are diverse but united by their faith. What seems implied from their situation is that the suffering they are enduring may be shaking their faith, causing some doubt — which is understandable. Difficult times come, and it is almost instinctual in many instances to ask, "Where are you, God?" — the kind of question people asked on 9-11, for example.
The passage I am working through today begins at verse 13, and technically the assignment runs through verse 21, spilling over into chapter two, verse three as well. The passage opens with the word "therefore," which means we have to go back and connect everything that has come before it — to ask, as the saying goes, what the "therefore" is there for. With even a casual reading of verse 13, three things stand out immediately: prepare your mind, keep sober, and fix your hope.
Approaching the Text
Here is what I do when I come to a passage of scripture. I read it, read it again, read it in different translations, make notes along the way, try to get some insights, and see if there is a natural structure. Verse 13 is a great example of an easy entry point — even a casual reading reveals clear commands: "Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ." I make those notes, then I turn to commentaries — in a passage like this I am working with about half a dozen — and they help with language, structure, and things that would not be apparent on the surface. Often they serve as locksmiths: they take ideas and unlock them, and then I try to pull them together so we can understand what the text says and what it means for us.
What I found interesting is that just three of the commentators, in their headings for this section, gave an immediate insight into where this passage is going. One heading was simply: "Application — You Must Be Holy."
Be What You Are
In all your conduct. Another was: live obediently in hope. And the third, looking at this passage, verses 13 to 25, said: be what you are. It is the idea that theologians talk about — the expression of the already but not yet. You have been saved, yet you are being saved. This is who you are in Christ, and ultimately you will see it in glorification, but now you are in that process.
So look at verse 14: "As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in ignorance. But like the holy one who has called you, be yourselves holy also in all your behavior." Isaiah verse 16: "It is written, you shall be holy, for I am holy." Now this is something that Peter writes to everyone who believes, not just to a group of super saints. The idea is that every believer is to be holy.
This call to holiness is not unique to Peter, not unique to this letter. Let me read you three, four, five passages — just to capture the call in the New Testament. Paul writing in 2 Corinthians 7:1: "Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in fear of God." Paul again, Ephesians 4:24: "Put on the new self created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." 1 Thessalonians chapter four, verse seven: "God has not called us for impurity but in holiness." The author of Hebrews writes, Hebrews 12:14: "Strive for peace with everyone and for holiness without which no one will see the Lord."
The Pursuit of Holiness and the Work of God
You get the aggressiveness here — the pursuit of this. This is a target, this is a goal. And yet what Peter is telling us, what the New Testament tells us, is that just as our salvation was accomplished by God — it was done to us, not by us — so it is true of living out and working through this Christian life. He is the vine, we are the branches. God is at work in us.
There is a kind of dilemma here, and I cannot fully explain it, though certainly the scripture speaks to it: we are to strive, strain, and pursue, but the reality is it is God who is working in us. That is what Paul writes in Philippians chapter two, verse 12: "Work out your salvation in fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." It is God who does this work in us. It is the mysterious work of the Holy Spirit. From that moment we become followers of Christ until we leave this world, there is a battle within us.
What Peter is telling us here is this: verse 13, prepare, keep, fix — and then you see the result in that passage. Verse 14, you obey. Verses 15 and 16, there is holiness. Verse 22, there is sincere love. And verse 2 of chapter 2, there is a longing for the milk, the word of God.
The Therefore of the Christian Life
Let me read you one of the paraphrases. This is the Phillips paraphrase of 1 Peter 1, verses 13 through 16: "So brace your minds and, as men who know what they are doing, rest the full weight of your hope on the grace that will be yours when Jesus Christ reveals himself. Live as obedient children before God. Don't let your character be molded by the desires of your ignorant days, but be holy in every department of your lives, for the one who has called you is himself holy. The scripture says, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'"
The imperatives of the Christian life — the way we are supposed to live — always begin with the therefore. Peter does not begin to exhort Christian pilgrims until they have celebrated the wonders of God's salvation in Christ. If we want to go back to it, it is that Isaiah 6 model. We have work to do — who should I send? — but we are not ready to be sent until we have been saved, until we plumb the depths and continue to plumb the depths of the gospel.
So often — my fear, and I would say it has been in my life for a long time, so my assumption is it has been in many of yours — when we talk about the gospel, we think of something that unbelievers need. Here is this person who does not know Christ; they need the gospel. They need to be confronted with their sin and presented with the claims of Christ and the reality that Christ died on the cross and we have eternal life in Him. But the gospel is not just for unbelievers. Once I come to Christ in repentance and faith, what this commentator is saying, what Peter is saying, is: because all of these things are true, because you have been saved, because you have been redeemed, because God has done this amazing work in you, now you are ready for life — and certainly ready for death.
Yearning for Heaven and for Jesus
Absent from the body, present with the Lord. I am totally convinced that when I breathe that last breath, whatever it is, I will be absent from this body and in the presence of Jesus. That is what heaven is all about. And one of the things I am striving toward in my mind is to yearn for heaven in order to be with Jesus — not merely to yearn for heaven in order to be away from here, to be out of this.
I hear that almost all the time. Instinctively, when someone dies, we say there is no more pain, there is no more grief — yes, yes, yes — but here is something bigger: they are with Jesus. That is the desire. I confess I have to work at having it. It is to fall in love with Him, to pursue that relationship with Him, to know Him, to have this endless passion to pursue Him — and then one day, the fulfillment of that: I will be with Him.
Gird Your Mind
But He says we have some things to do before that. So prepare your minds. Some translations will say gird your mind. It is imagery that probably does not mean much to modern people, but in that day and age most men would be wearing some kind of a loose garment. The idea of girding is to reach back, grab that garment, pull it up, and tuck it into the belt you are wearing — to gird yourself, to prepare yourself to run, to walk quickly, or to engage in some sort of strenuous activity. When Grudem
The Girding of the Mind
In his commentary, the author talks about the girding of the mind, saying this: "It appears admonishing the reader to be ready to see God work, and to respond to Him with instantaneous obedience." My mind is ready. Don't be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of my mind. Set your mind, Paul says, on the things above. Don't be conformed to the world and its way of thinking, and its worldview, but be transformed — how? By the renewing of my mind. I start to think differently.
This is a point I think I made the last time I talked, but let me make it again. Over the years we've come back to this. There are little nuggets — like when you get that God owns it all and you're the manager, and when it comes to giving, you ask not how much should I give, but how much of God's money do I keep? Those are the kind of big nuggets. This is a big nugget.
When Peter and Paul and the New Testament were being written, when they came to the concept of humility, there was not a Greek or Latin word for humility. That wasn't even a concept that hit their radar screen. If anything, it connoted some sort of weakness. But Paul comes along and says, "I want you to have the mind in you" — I want you to think like Christ, who humbled Himself. He had to invent a word.
He humbled Himself. He emptied Himself, not of His deity, but of His glory — that Isaiah 6 moment. He took the form not of a conquering king, but a humble servant who came not to be served, but to serve. And now Paul says, I want you to think that way too. That is totally revolutionary.
Counter-Cultural Humility
So when we talk about a transformed heart and an informed mind and a radical life, there is nothing more radical than you and I developing a spirit of humility and love. It is totally counter-culture. It is counter to our instinct.
Yesterday was game day. When we're in town, we get together — all the kids and grandkids. It is fun to watch them, and they are, I assume, like your kids and grandkids. They are very well-behaved and very cute and amazing to watch. And yet you see those little moments when it doesn't go the way they want, and they seethe. If they had the strength and the capacity and the ability, they would rip your heart out and stomp on it. They want what they want. Mine. That is natural man.
Along comes the gospel and says, listen, you have been redeemed. Salvation was something that was done to you, not by you. And as a result of this, you have the mind of Christ. You think differently. You prepare yourself for battle with the culture — battle in the sense of a struggle, not in the sense of an ongoing aggressive war.
Keep Sober — Keep Your Eye on the Ball
Keep sober. Obviously we think of booze and intoxication, but it is way more than that. It is keeping your mind free from those things that would distract it or divert its attention.
For me — and Sandy has been awesome in this — I prepared her before we got married. I said, listen, there are three things that are big to me: television is big, politics are big, and sports, especially college football, and especially a game day Saturday. Game day Saturday begins about 6:45. I hang my flag out — my little Iowa flag. It is all stupid. Let me just stipulate that up front. It is all stupid. Game day starts at seven, and I watch the games all the way through.
Yesterday was a strange day because all the good games were at night. And every week — it happened yesterday as well — every week there will be a play where a running back or a wide receiver goes out and turns for a pass. He is wide open, nobody around him. But he wants to get to the first down marker, or maybe he thinks he can score. And as the ball comes, there will be that moment — and now with replay you can really see it — there will be that moment when you see him peek. Is there anybody around? How far do I need to go? What is going to happen?
You see the same thing in baseball. There was a guy trying to turn a double play — easy ball, all he had to do was scoop it. As he was getting ready to scoop it, he was trying to see how much time he had. His eye came off the ball. He dropped it. It becomes one out instead of two. That is the idea of the word here. Be sober. Be focused. Keep your eye on the ball. Don't let your mind drift away with things that preoccupy it, because it will take you off the grace of God.
Fix Your Hope Completely on Grace
God has chosen you — this is the point He has been making all the way through, and He is building it. God chose you. He saved you. He redeemed you. You have this inheritance. You have been set apart for Him — that is the idea of a saint, someone who is set apart. You have His protection. You have His promise. You have His guarantee.
He uses this imagery all through this letter. You were saved, and the proof of your faith is much more precious than gold, which is perishable. He talks a great deal about that which is perishable and that which is not. He says this redemption is not something perishable, not something that is passing away. Fix your hope — fix your hope completely on the grace of God. There is our hope.
There was an event at the Gateway Campus last Monday. They held an evening on the gospel and politics — Luke's response to something he is seeing, and something we see here as well. There are two extremes. One is those who say this is the most important election of all time — and I tend to think it is — and who declare that this election is our salvation, our redemption. Just change this, or just do that, or just reelect this or that person. People putting their faith and hope in the system. And the other extreme —
Fixing Our Hope on the Gospel
Every person, place, or thing other than Jesus will disappoint you. Anything you trust other than the gospel of grace will disappoint you, so fix your hope on that. Should we participate in politics, work, and the other things of the world? Yes. Is work important? Yes. But none of those things are of supreme importance. False gods never fail to fail.
So be on the alert. Be prepared. Be sober. Set your mind for action. Be ready, but fix your hope not on the things of the world, but on the gospel — that Jesus came, lived, died, and redeemed you. This is all about Him. It is grace. God's grace.
Max Lucado writes: "Paul announces to us that God has a way. Where men fail, God excels. Salvation comes from heaven downward, not from earth upward." Please note, Lucado writes, salvation is God-driven, God-given, God-empowered, God-originated. The gift is not from man to God, but God to man.
Grace is created by God and given to man, and on that point alone, Christianity is set apart from every other religion in the world. Every other approach to God is a bartering system — if I do this, God will do this. A person is either saved by their works, what they do; their emotions, what they experience; or their knowledge, what they know. But along comes the gospel, and God, in His great mercy, reaches down, and in spite of you — not because of you — brings you into His family.
Lucado continues: "Ponder God. Ponder the achievement of God. He doesn't condone our sin, nor does He compromise His standard. He doesn't ignore our rebellion, nor does He relax His demands. Rather than dismiss our sin, He assumes our sin, and incredibly, He sentences Himself. God's holiness is honored, our sin is punished, and we're redeemed. God does what we cannot do, so we can be what we dare not dream — perfect before God."
Trusting the Character and Promises of God
Our hope is in God. Psalm 147:11 says, "The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, and those whose hope is in His steadfast love." It was His love that motivated all of this. He loves us.
As I rest and fix my hope, I find myself returning to four things I can trust: the character of God, the promises of God, the sovereignty of God, and the faithfulness of God. In a world where promises are broken day after day, these remain the firm object of my faith. We come again and again to the life-changing reality that Christ died and rose again.
When Peter thinks of transformation, that is what he thinks of — the transformation that the gospel produces in our lives. And it is not only for unbelievers moving into the kingdom of God. It is for those of us already in God's kingdom who need courage. Remember, the people reading this letter are discouraged, perhaps a little afraid, doubting, and wondering. The answer is not simply to believe harder — it is to believe. Believe the gospel.
That gospel puts courage into us. It allows us to reorder our priorities and begin to live for Christ. And it is not our own effort — it is Christ working in us, working through us. That is what we saw when we studied the letter of Ephesians: it is in Him, in Christ. He is the one who does it.
So it is not just about our salvation. Our being conformed to the image of God is also a work He does in our lives.
The Sequence of Commands in Peter
The grammatical structure of this passage carries a sequence. The first command is to gird up — prepare your mind, get set for action. The second is to be sober. Now you are ready for God to work. Then comes the third: fix your hope on grace. And the result of all of this is that you will act as obedient children.
The picture Peter uses here is not that of a wrathful God, but of a parent and child. When we begin to contemplate the gospel — who God is, what He has done, and who we are as a result — something shifts. Out of a desire to please Him, and out of a healthy fear of discipline, we begin to become the people He wants us to be.
This is a very different kind of motivation. We are moved not by duty, but by desire. Not by "I have to," but by "I get to." When children are small, they want you to see everything. They want to please you, to share with you, to make you proud. A room full of grandchildren — ages six, five, four, three, two, one, and zero — and all day long it is, "Papa, look at this. Papa, look at this." They want you to see it. They want to share it with you.
Peter says: get ready. Fix your hope on grace. And now, verse 14, live as obedient children.
The Call to Holiness
"Don't be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in ignorance, but be like the Holy One who called you. Be holy yourselves in all your behavior. It is written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy.'"
He will do that work. That is the promise — He will fulfill it in you. If you address Him as Father, the one who impartially judges according to each one's conduct, then conduct yourself in fear during the time of your sojourning here.
Accepted by God Through Christ
The fear we speak of is not a trembling fear of God's wrath, because there is no condemnation. It is the fear of displeasing Him or the discipline that accompanies that. We are reminded that our redemption was not based on perishable things like silver or gold from the futile way of life inherited from our forefathers. It was not temporary. It was not based on human effort or something here today and gone tomorrow, but on the precious blood of the Lamb, unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
"For He was foreknown before the foundations of the world, but has appeared in these last times for your sake, who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God." That is where faith is. That is where hope is. That is where trust lies.
When we talk about God being holy, we are talking about separation from sin. Peter is talking about our conduct, but he is also talking about an inward change — a connection with God that is an inward connection and an inward transformation that results in outward conformity. As Jesus said, "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
There are people who follow, or attempt to follow, the law of God without truly loving Him. That is not the way of salvation. That is fruitless and futile, and it will never work. You can never be good enough to be accepted by God. Those of us who are followers of Christ are accepted on the basis of the finished work of Jesus Christ.
We say it over and over: there is nothing I can do to make God love me more, and nothing I can do to make God love me less. He accepts us. He initiated the relationship. He chose you. He brought you into this relationship, and He is the one who will continue it. "He who began the good work in you," Philippians 1:6, "will continue it till the day of Christ Jesus." He will never leave you. He will never forsake you. He loves you.
The Fear of God's Discipline
You are not on probation. This is not God saying, "I've done My work — now let's see how you do. If you do well enough, you'll still be My child." No, you are His child in this relationship, accepted by Him. The fear, then, is the fear of discipline. The desire is to not disappoint God, knowing there is discipline that comes with it. We see this in Acts chapter 5 with Ananias and Sapphira, where the discipline of the Lord is made visible. But out of this discipline comes not a pulling away — it comes growth and closeness to Him.
To paraphrase verse 17, it is something like this: conduct your lives with fear of God's discipline, because you know that God has redeemed you and set you free. God is the one who cleansed your conscience. God is the one who grants bold access to pray to Him and to worship. He is the one who progressively makes you aware of your sin, over and over again.
Purified by a Divine Work
Verse 22 says, "Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart." On the surface, the word "purified" may seem to refer to human work — something I did myself. In the Greek, however, it is in the perfect participle. It describes something that happened in the past, was done to you, and whose results continue.
John MacArthur writes that, on the surface, "purified" may seem to refer to human work, but on the contrary, it refers to a fully divine work that God is doing in our lives over and over again. This brings us to Ephesians 2:8-9 — saved by grace through faith, not of ourselves, the work of God, so that no one may boast. We often quote those verses but perhaps never reach verse 10, which says we are His workmanship, prepared for good works which, just like salvation, He prepared beforehand. It is the Holy Spirit in you. It is your effort, with God supplying all the power — much like how Paul wrote the book of Romans, yet under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. How do you fully explain it? You cannot.
Love for the Brethren
What is striking is that as Peter begins to talk about preparation for the obedient life, the first specific application he draws from these general commands of holiness is love for the brethren. He mentions it here in chapter 1, verse 22. He returns to the same concept in chapter 2, verse 17: "Honor all people, love the brotherhood." In chapter 3, verse 8, he calls us to live in a harmonious way. And in chapter 4, verse 8: "Above all, keep fervent your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins."
Consider Jesus the night before His crucifixion, gathered with His disciples. He says, "I give you a commandment — love one another, love God with all your heart, love your neighbor as yourself." And then He says, "This is how the world will know you are My disciples, that you love one another." We begin to see the transformation of the gospel in our lives when there is genuine concern for other believers. Not merely a tolerance. Not simply an endurance. Not just an acknowledgment that we are all a little different and can put up with one another. No — it is an active participation in bearing one another, being concerned for one another, and encouraging one another.
Human Effort and the Spirit's Work
This love, as MacArthur notes of purification, is not the product of human effort alone — yet there is human effort involved. In Philippians chapter 3, the Apostle Paul has just described his former life as a Pharisee among Pharisees, listing all those former credentials and achievements. From there he continues, and what he writes speaks directly to this tension between our striving and God's working in us.
The Holy Spirit's Work in Sanctification
Paul said, "I was the super Jew," but, "I count that but dung compared to the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. That I know Him and the power of His resurrection." Then here is Paul, who is talking about being in Christ, who fully grasps the idea that He is divine, that we are the branches, and that we cannot do one thing apart from Him. Yet listen to this language: "Not that I have already obtained it, or am already becoming perfect" — he means mature — "but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet, but one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus."
Those terms are all through Paul's writing, and we get them here in Peter as well — striving, pursuing. The image is of a racer coming to the finish line. Think less of a marathon and more of a sprint — think of the hundred meter dash, where that little stretch at the end may be the difference. That is the picture Paul is painting.
Paul says, "This is what I am doing," and yet the Holy Spirit is the one doing it in his life. The Holy Spirit comes into our lives and becomes the one who sanctifies us. He is the one who moves us from darkness into light, gives us the ability to understand, transforms us, gives us the desire to do what God would have us do, and then gives us the power to do it.
How the Holy Spirit Sanctifies Us
There are three things the Holy Spirit does in this work. First, He convicts us of our sin. God does not expose us all at once to how sinful we are. There is a sense in which on that very first day God saves us, it is the moment we may feel as holy as we ever felt, because every day since then the Holy Spirit is revealing a little bit more about us. The fundamental core of the issues of strife and everything else in our lives is our sin.
As we think about developing relationships — for instance, a relationship with a spouse — we need to approach every problem recognizing that we are each bringing our sin into that relationship. I remember it was J. Vernon McGee who told a story one day. He received a call in his office on a Monday from a little old lady. Monday was his day off and he was rarely there. She said, "I need to see you. I have sinned terribly." Out of pure curiosity, he said, "Come on over." She came in and was just distraught. He asked what was wrong, and she said, "You remember yesterday when I was leaving church and I saw you?" He said yes. "Do you remember when I told you the sermon was good?" He said yes. She said, "It wasn't."
How many times have we said, "That was really good," when inwardly we knew it was not? She had, over a period of time, become finely tuned to her own sinfulness. There is something remarkable when you meet men and women who have walked intimately with Christ for decades — one of the things you notice is how acutely aware they are of their own sinfulness.
The Holy Spirit convicts us of our sin, and He creates in us a desire to change. Then He creates in us the power to change — to abide, which simply means to rely on Christ and Him alone.
The Role of God's Word
How does the Holy Spirit do this? He can work in a variety of ways, but chiefly He works through His Word. I came across something the other day while working at my computer. C.J. Mahaney had conducted interviews with Jerry Bridges, John Piper, and Wayne Grudem, asking each of them the same question. I read through the answers and was stunned by how essentially similar they were. I want to share them — not at all to condemn, but because I found them very convicting for myself.
The question was: "Describe your morning devotions. What time do you wake? How much time do you spend reading, meditating, praying? What are you presently reading?" Jerry Bridges — he is 82 years old and has written wonderful books, with The Pursuit of Holiness at the center of his work, along with a newer book called The Transforming Power of the Gospel — answered this way: "On a normal day, I get up at five. I spend from 5:30 to seven reading and meditating on Scripture, spending time in prayer. I begin with what I have tried to teach others, which is to preach the gospel to myself. My usual practice is to read through the Bible simply, starting in Genesis and going through to Revelation. Currently I am in the book of Numbers. For prayer, I start with thanksgiving and move to meditation. I always start with the first petition of the Lord's Prayer, 'Hallowed be Thy name.' Then over a period of six days, Monday through Saturday, I pray for the progression of the gospel around the world. I pray for my family, my organization, their leaders, and for my own personal growth. I have about eight ongoing special prayer requests for friends who have acute needs."
John Piper — many of you will know him from books like Don't Waste Your Life and Desiring God — answered the same question this way: "I get up two mornings at 5:15, four mornings at 6:15, and one morning at six. I set aside an hour for prayer and Bible reading using the Discipleship Journal Read Through the Bible reading plan." If you search for reading plans online, you will find thousands of them if you need one. He noted that the plan had put him at that time in Exodus, Psalms, Matthew, and Acts.
Wayne Grudem — Dr. Grudem, the author of Systematic Theology, a brilliant man who lives here locally in Phoenix — said he usually
A Morning Rhythm of Word and Prayer
I wake up around 6 a.m., sometimes as late as 7 or 7:30 if I've been up late. I need between seven and eight hours of sleep or I don't think clearly. I get a cup of coffee and one of Margaret's excellent high-protein muffins and open my Bible. I simply read sequentially through the Bible and then start over at the beginning. I'm currently in 1 Corinthians and Psalms, reading two portions each morning.
I'll read the Bible for 15 or 20 minutes, underlining some verses and making brief notes. Many times I wonder about something in the Greek or Hebrew and might check it briefly, but I don't get involved in extensive study. That's not my purpose. I'm looking for God to teach me directly from His Word with application in my life. I usually camp on a verse or a phrase, sometimes writing it out and pondering the application in my own life.
I also keep a blank notepad nearby, because God often brings to mind things I need to do or make a quick note of. Then I usually pause for five or ten minutes, just waiting for the Lord's presence and thinking about the verse or talking to Him. After that, I pick up a notebook with different pages for people and things I'm praying for — some pages covering various things in my own life, my wife, our kids, our family, our friends, extended family, and others. There is also a section having to do with government and concerns for the nation or the world. I'll take 15 or 20 minutes, sometimes longer, so the total time may be 30 to 60 minutes.
I usually end with my to-do list, bringing the things on the calendar for the day before the Lord. And here is the last paragraph: I find in those times of quietness, when I'm not praying about anything in particular but simply resting in the Lord's presence, that He will bring to mind solutions for problems, or people I need to contact, or things I need to write, or things I should not spend time doing, or any number of other things. I also find that it covers the course of the entire Bible reading plan and gives me a deeper sense of peace and rest in the Lord's presence.
Conviction, Not Guilt
I don't want to read those things and create a religious checklist for you. When I read this to you, you probably immediately felt guilty because you don't do that. You can draw some level of comfort from the fact that we are sinners in this nature together. I have, at times in my life, done variations of that. Currently, I'm not — I'll begin again tomorrow in that process.
I became incredibly convicted as I worked my way through this, and I would say it was a God thing. I've been praying all week for the Spirit to lead me, guide me, and help me. I end up on this passage, and I read these three great men — giants, really — who have been through this. Grudem writes his systematic theology, and yet I go back to the beginning: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." That consumes my time, and that is that power we have.
When we talk about power, we are not impotent in this. We are the most powerful force in the world — the Spirit of God applying the Word of God to our hearts. I say that not to dump guilt on you. Mornings are not particularly good for me. Sandy, on the other hand, is up and out the door swimming in a competitive way at five o'clock every morning. That has actually been good for me, because what I do now is get up and read. What I need to do is refocus my reading a bit.
The Gospel That Sustains Us Daily
All of this, over these three weeks, is to say: here is the gospel. And it is not just for those of us who don't know Christ, but for those of us who do. It is what sustains us every day. I need to preach that gospel to myself every day. I need to be reminded every day of the power that I have, and that He does that as I submit to Him.
The core of that gospel is the cross. I've been thinking a lot about Susan lately, especially about how crummy I felt — and probably how poorly I served her — as she was hurting so much. But I remember when she couldn't come to church and she said, "I really miss church." I asked if she missed the teaching. She said, "No. I miss the worship. I miss the people. I miss communion."
My guess is that a whole bunch of us who are here every week take communion for granted. Let's not do that today.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for this awesome truth. You are a holy, true God. Thank You for the gospel that not just brings us into Your kingdom, but sustains us in that kingdom. Let us be men and women and students of prayer and study — not just in endless pursuit of knowledge, but that Your Spirit would apply Your Word to our hearts, that You would transform our minds, and that we would live radical lives. God, we pray that in Christ's name, amen.