Here are some sermon notes from a sermon I recently preached for Father’s Day originally entitled “Father Day Sermon 6-15-25”. For the purposes of having this sermon flow with the rest of the site content, I’ve renamed it to “Things God Calls Us To”. (And then I renamed it to “The Father’s Call” for YouTube ( subscribe! )
Verse 13 - God calls us to holiness
13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; 1 Peter 1:13
Here we receive a call to holiness. That call to holiness involves 3 things.
- Gird up the loins of your mind What does gird up mean?
The defenses of your mind must be strong. Every battle you will ever face in your life must first be won on the battlefield of your mind. This is not heebie-jeebie wellness manifesting talk. This isn’t stand in the mirror and tell yourself you’re great every morning after you brush your teeth. This is Biblical.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. Philippians 4:8
We must constantly be thinking on edifying things. For our minds to be fully sober and hopeful, they must be strong in Christ.
-
Be sober No one is just sober. They are sober for a day, a month, a year, 15 years. It’s a continual process. Addictions and ailments don’t just attack you once. They keep coming. You can’t be “girded up” just once. It’s a continual process. You have to REMAIN sober.
-
Hope to the end for the grace brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus
Verse 14 - God calls us to obedience
14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: 1 Peter 1:14
Who are we to be obedient children to? God the father! Remember, the mind that is in Christ Jesus is to be the mind in us. Jesus Christ was obedient to the will of his father. At Gethsemane we see a poignant picture of the relationship between God the father and God the son.
39 And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him. 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation. 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s cast, and kneeled down, and prayed, 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. 43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him. 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground. 45 And when he rose up from prayer, and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow, 46 And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. Luke 22:39-46
Jesus’s mind was under such pressure that he physically began to sweat blood. Hematidrosis is a real medical condition. In cases of severe fear or stress, tiny blood vessels around sweat glands can burst and cause blood to exit the body through the sweat gland What was happening here? Jesus being obedient to God the Father put him in a place of extreme stress. A place of extreme discomfort. But His obedience still came first. Notice that there was not a problem with Jesus telling God the Father that he didn’t want to follow the plan. He prayed “let this cup pass from me”. He was essentially saying, “Father, I’d rather not do it this way”. Still though, he was obedient.
God the Father’s plan for Jesus (God the son) involved pain. It involved suffering. It involved tearing a mother away from her child. It involved abandonment on the cross. Remember, Jesus cried in verse Matthew 27:46
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? Matthew 27:46
Doesn’t sound like a loving father does it? Doesn’t sound like the kind of Dad you’d want to be obedient to does it? Let’s not shy away from it folks.
*Well Sam God had a bigger plan. All that was only for a time. God eventually made it right. *
Exactly. So if it’s so easy for us to understand that, then why don’t we understand it today when our heavenly Father puts us through trials? Why is it so hard for us to be obedient.
Jesus sweat drops of blood for the task God the Father gave him. I’d wager to say none of us ever here have gotten to that level of stress
Well Sam you don’t know about my dad here. He isn’t like God the Father. His plan wasn’t for my good. There was no good in his heart when He hurt me. He abandoned me. He left me.
I understand this is the approach some have on Father’s Day. It’s true for some this isn’t a stellar day.
For those in this camp, I bring you back to the main point. If your HEAVENLY FATHER (who, as we’ve discussed, has a good plan and purpose in place for your life) put you with YOUR EARTHLY FATHER (who doesn’t or didn’t) then wouldn’t it stand to reason that you should be seeking God the Father in the same way Jesus did? Lord let this cup pass from me. But if it doesn’t (or if it didn’t) I love and serve you regardless. I’m obedient regardless. I don’t get bitter. I don’t get resentful. I don’t carry the grudge. Because I know in your divine wisdom you gave me the strength I would need to withstand every trial in my life. And I know there is a bigger plan in place that ultimately works together for my good and your glory.
You are not to have spiritual ignorance. The end of verse 14 says to avoid the former lusts of your ignorance. The excuse of I just didn’t know can only be made until someone tells you. This day, you’ve been told . We are to be obedient to God our Heavenly Father, knowing that the plan he has for us encompasses both the pain and the pleasure that we will have in this life here on earth
Verse 15-16 - God leads by example
15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; 16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy. 1 Peter 1:15-16
God isn’t calling us to be obedient to a standard that he hasn’t kept himself. The Bible says we are to be holy as He is holy. This attitude of holiness should extend in all manner of conversation we find ourselves in. What does the word conversation mean there? It doesn’t just mean me talking to you. It literally means “the conduct of your life”. This encompasses the actions that you do and the words that you speak.
Notice how verse 15 starts with the word BUT . This tells me have to look back at verse 14 to get the full context. Whenever a verse starts with but that’s your clue to look back at the previous verse
What is he saying here? He’s saying INSTEAD of fashioning your life in sinful ignorance, fashion it in holiness. Holiness like God’s holiness. Not the fake holiness that some people think they can achieve on their own.
If you’re trying to fashion your life in man’s holiness apart from God (aka you’re trying to be a “good person”) then what are you actually doing? You’re living in sinful ignorance! Indeed, the Bible tells us that our righteousness is as filthy rags. All of our man-centered righteousness and holiness is sewage and filth when placed next to God! So, as soon as you are made aware of God’s truth regarding our “man-centered” righteousness, you should recognize that you need Jesus. You need someone to come in and wash your life white as snow. We are to holy, for God our heavenly Father is holy. This can only be done by looking to Him for cleansing and guidance.
Verse 17 - God is no respecter of persons
17 And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: 1 Peter 1:17
Are you calling on the Father today? What does your communication look like with your heavenly Father? Some of us have dads here that we are close to. Some have dads that we are estranged from. Some have dads that are with us. Some have dads who have gone on. Some of us have dads we can call on. Some of us don’t. However , when it comes to your heavenly Father, we ALL can call on Him. He gives us the choice. That’s why the word “if” is there. God the Father doesn’t force himself on anyone. We are given the free will to choose to live a life apart from Him, or a life in accordance to His Will and way.
That said, if you do call on Him, know that he takes your requests in without bias or judgment. We see in the Bible that there were dads like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jesse, and others who prioritized certain children over others.
- Abraham valued Isaac over Ishmael. Now Ishmael and Isaac’s descendants don’t like each other.
- Isaac valued Esau over Jacob initially, because Esau was a manly man hunting in the field while Jacob was a Mama’s boy cooking in the kitchen. The Edomites (Esau’s descendants) had problems with the Israelites (Jacob’s descendant)
- Jacob becomes Israel and has a favorite son too… Joseph. So he makes him a coat of many colors. Then all the other brothers get mad at Joseph and sell him into slavery. Fast forward a while…
- Jesse didn’t think David was fit to be considered by Samuel the prophet. He left him out. Then we see there’s some animosity between David and his brothers when he goes to give them food on the battlefield As we’ve seen, favorites existed! These favorites caused all sorts of contention. Unlike some of our earthly fathers, God doesn’t have favorites. The Bible says in verse 17 that God is without respect of persons.
However, we should spend our time here on this earth with fear in our hearts, knowing that one day He will righteously judge us for the work we’ve done here. The word fear there means “showing proper respect and reverence”. You need to have a solemn understanding that each and every action that you take in this life will be noted. You will have to answer for it all on some level.
- (Mark 9:41) The Bible says that even someone who gives a glass of water to someone else in the name of Jesus, that will be accounted unto him.
- (Luke 12:7) The Bible says that God knows the number of hairs on our head.
What is the point of us knowing all of this? It’s so that we know that God is detail-oriented. You may be able to slip things by man, but you can’t slip them by God. He knows you to well. He cares about you too much. He knows the work that we do in this life for His glory, and he knows the work that we selfishly do for our own glory. And he will judge both types of work equally and fairly.
If you look at your life now, what’s the breakdown? What are you doing for self and what are you doing for God your heavenly Father. Is 95% of your day reserved for you and 5% for God? 60%/40%? 50%/50%? We should be sold out to God. It should be 100% God.
Sam, how in the world am I supposed to do that?
You have to align your work with God’s work. When you are living holy as He is holy, revering and respecting Him, you will find that the work you are doing for yourself is in your heavenly Father’s Will. When you are obedient to His instruction, as laid out in His Word, you will find that you spend more and more of your time in this life trying to emulate Him, rather than trying to pursue your own goals and dreams.
Before Boy Scouts was what it is today, I was in Cub Scouts and Dad was one of the pack leaders. One of our assignments one week was to learn how to somersault. I think it was for some sort of obstacle training course all the Cub scouts were going to have to do together. Part of the course involved somersaulting. I still remember Dad out in the front yard, showing me how to place my hands and tuck my head. He then proceeded to do one somersault, after not having done it himself in years. I still remember him laid out in the yard on his back afterward for a solid 3 minutes, no doubt undergoing some form of vertigo as his world spun. To my recollection, he hasn’t done a somersault since. Still, I did my best afterward to follow his lead and replicate it
I’ve always looked up to my father. Growing up, Dad was the man who could do it all.
- Dad could shoot and clean a gun better than anyone I knew, so when I got my first gun I practiced and practiced, emulating what I’d seen him do, trying to replicate it.
- Dad could do all the maintenance on our vehicles. Oil changes, tire changes, spark plug replacement, etc. When I got old enough I went from watching him to doing myself, trying to copy.
- Dad could set up tents and start fires and run the generator when the power went out. All things that he taught me.
What’s the point Sam?
Whether it was somersaulting, or guns, or tires, or fires, I went from trying to figure it on my own to following the model that my father had already set for me. The instructions that he laid out and demonstrated. More of my time was spent asking:
- How did Dad do this?
- Let me remember what Dad said.
- Hmmm. Dad showed me this. Instead of me just wandering aimlessly trying to figure it out with books or YouTube, in my head I was rehearsing the actions and truths that Dad had taught me himself.
The same goes for our heavenly Father. When all of my time is spent wondering how to best emulate HIM, based on the lessons he has taught me in his WORD, then my heart will be aligned with his, my words and actions will be aligned with His, and there won’t be a difference between what I’m doing for me and what I’m doing for God. It’ll be the same goal. I will be passing the time that I have here on this earth in reverent respect and fear of Him, seeking to follow and obey his precepts, knowing that I will give an account for it one day.
Verse 18 - God redeems us through Jesus
18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 1 Peter 1:18
We can see here that there was some bad influence passed down from the fathers of these Christians that Peter was writing to. These men had errantly taught falsehoods regarding the price of redemption to their children. Evidently, these believers may have been under the impression that physical gold and silver could atone for their mistakes. They believed that these monetary items could redeem them from their sin. They were looking towards corruptible items for redemption.
Corruptible things are things that can be corrupted.
19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: Matthew 6:19
Moth and rust speak of the processes of nature. Thieves speak of the processes of man. These are the two primary means that things here on Earth are destroyed by. Can you be redeemed by things that can be destroyed by other men or things that can be destroyed by nature?
It amazes me how sometimes people hoard things that can be stolen away from them by nature and other people.
- A man can steal your money.
- A flood can destroy your house.
- On this earth we have this thing called time and it can destroy your beauty.
- Sickness can destroy your health.
- Man can steal your praise, taking credit for your work.
- Man can steal your happiness, ruining your family or your job.
None of these things can redeem you, but God can. God doesn’t redeem you because you’re rich, beautiful, healthy, sick, poor, popular, lonely. He doesn’t redeem you because you wear certain clothes, drive a certain car, have certain friends, or go to certain places.
The treasure by which we are redeemed isn’t something that can be destroyed by processes of nature or man. The sacrifice of God’s only son, Jesus, is a treasure above all of that. Man tried to destroy him when they crucified him. Then they tried to use nature to seal his body in a dark cave behind a heavy boulder. It didn’t work did it?
I want us to think about the phrase “by the tradition of your fathers”.
Fathers have a responsibility to pass on this truth to their kids. As goes the father, so goes the home. If Dad is chasing after the corruptible things it only stands to the rest of the family will too. This was the tradition of the fathers in verse 18. There kids were looking for all these other things to redeem them.
Men, do you understand this responsibility? The traditions that you set will perpetuate in your family. The lust and ignorance that you show in your own life will affect your spouse, children, and your family. How do I know this? Because kids take note. Kids remember things.
I wrote a piece about some things I took note regarding my own Dad here
There is a cost for redemption. Our heavenly Father paid this cost for us, sending Jesus to die in our place.
Verse 19
19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 1 Peter 1:19
You see the word but there? As we saw earlier, when we see that we know to look at the previous verse. We are not redeemed by the corruptible things, we are redeemed by the precious blood of Christ.
Jesus died for each of us. On our own, we are unable to achieve forgiveness for our sins. The Bible says that our righteousness apart from God is as filthy rags. We simply can’t come to God, apart from the blood of Jesus in our lives, and be seen as clean. There’s nothing you can do in your own power.
So stop trying.
Accept that Jesus is the son of God. Believe that He died for your sins and that He rose again on the third day. Ask Him to take up residence in your heart and forgive you of your sins, change your life to follow Him , and choose to live each day honoring and serving Him.
If you have any questions, please reach out.