Transcript

If you would, please open your Bibles to First Peter, chapter three, verses one through seven, first Peter, chapter three and verses one through seven. As you know, if you’ve been with us before, and we dealt with First Peter for quite some time, the whole theme of First Peter is found in chapter 5 and verse 12, and that is to stand firm in the true grace of God, for the glory of God.

That was the whole reason the Holy Spirit inspired Peter to write this letter. Now, he inspired him to write the letter because of the fact that Peter knew that there was a storm coming. And in every chapter of this letter, you hear about that storm. I’ll read a few of those in just a moment.

But we’ve been through a few storms recently, have we not? It’s amazing, the power of the wind from the heavens. And we’ve witnessed that. Well, Peter talks about the fact that in this life you have storms, and if you’re not ready, you won’t stand firm in the true grace of God and you will not bring glory to God.

And so what he writes about here is that you better be ready for the storms. Now, it’s not only that we have to be ready for the storms. What have we seen before? You have to do it with joy. You have to. Like one of those surfers, you have to be running out to the storm and rejoicing.

I know that when that last blow came through, don’t believe where I was. I just walked out at my front porch and out into the. Into the wind. And my wife was saying, come back in. But I just wanted to see it. And it was blowing and it was really blowing.

And I thought to myself, what a mighty God who walks upon the clouds and walks upon the wind. And so if you look at this, you’ll see that he talks about that we need to rejoice in the midst of the storm and stand firm. First Peter 1:6, he says, in this you greatly rejoice.

That’s what we were doing just a few moments ago, was it not? I don’t know about you, but I was worshiping during that song service. That was awesome. Greatly rejoice, even though now, for a little while if necessary, you’ve been distressed by various trials. So we’re not only to rejoice, we’re to greatly rejoice.

You see it again in chapter 4 and verses 12 through 14. He says, Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come upon you to test you as though some strange thing were happening to you. Verse 13. But rejoice in as much as you participate in the sufferings of Christ so that you may be overjoyed when.

When his glory is revealed. So we’re not only to stand firm in the true grace of God, but we’re to stand firm triumphantly in the true grace of God if we’re to bring glory to God. Now, we’ve seen that there are seven strategies that will allow you to do this, and I’m just going to briefly run through them.

We’re not going to spend any time with them because we’ve dealt with them before. I’ve got to get to my text. But first of all, presuppose the waves of persecution. You won’t stand firm if you’re not expecting the storm to come in this life. You’ll have tribulations and trials and difficulties.

If you think that you’re just going to waltz through life, you’re wrong. I don’t care how many years you spent time with the Lord and for how many years you’ve walked with the Lord, there’s always coming another short storm in this life. You got to be ready for it.

Pray for the resources of God. When I was walking up to this pulpit, you know the thought that was going through my mind? Who is sufficient for these things?

I thought to myself, of all people, to be standing before people to preach. The last person I would choose would be me. Who is sufficient for this? Paul thought the same thing. But you know what the way to stand is on your knees. That’s why he starts out in 1, 1 and 2.

And he says, the sentence goes from Peter, an apostle. He says, may grace and peace be. Be multiplied to you. It’s a prayer every moment of every day. We need him, and if we’re not on our knees, we won’t stand. And the third strategy that he gives 1, 3 through 12 is praise the triune God.

When you’re in a praising disposition, you are not thinking about the world and the things of this world. You’re thinking about him and what a great God we serve. But that’s what happened. I don’t know if it happened for you, but that’s what happened for me. During the worship service of singing this morning, the focus upon him makes you realize, what do I have to be concerned about?

We serve a great and mighty God. I’m gonna stay with him. You see, the world’s always teasing you, always putting these little things before you, making you think you’re missing out on something. Isn’t that what happened with Eve? The devil’s Always there with his slithering tongue to tell you that you’re missing out on real life.

And listen, you’re not missing out on real life if it’s in Christ. The problem is we’re not focused on what we have in Christ. And he tells us in 13 through 12, you remember how he says it? Blessed God. It’s not blessed be. There’s no verb. Blessed God and father of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, who caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There’s your Easter message.

Praise the triune God. Number four. Put your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you. If you got your hope anywhere else but on the grace that is to be brought to you, you don’t have any hope at any point. You trust in your flesh. You’re done.

I’m done. You on your very best day is as a filthy rag. And listen, if you’ve not come to understand that,

hopefully you’ll come to know him today. You on your very best day. This religion of works that I keep hearing and seeing is. It’s such a tragedy. Jesus plus

Jesus plus nothing. It’s all him from beginning to end. If at any point my righteousness comes into the equation, I’m gonna spend eternity separated from God in a place called hell. And you hear these people talk about, well, God does his part and then I’ll do my part. I’m telling you, there’s only one part you better be leaning on, and that part is Jesus Christ and his grace that’s to be brought to you.

And then you need to passionately love one another. Listen, the world is attacking us. Yes, there’s been sort of a peace treaty, so to speak, because of the new administration. But it was getting hot and heavy there for a while and it may soon turn around and go that direction again when it gets hot and heavy.

If you’re gonna stand firm and he’s talking to the church, you need to love each other. Listen, in war, so many people are casualties because of friendly fire. It’s amazing to me, since we know that we’re saved by grace and none of us are worthy, how we take pot shots at each other.

That’s not how you’re going to stand firm. If you begin to divide, you’ll fall and be conquered. Stimulate one another to love and to good works. Practice God glorifying. Excellent behavior. 211 through 5 11. The previous one was 122 through 210. For those taking notes. Practice God glorifying. Excellent Behavior.

That’s where we are in 211 through 5 11. And then he closes it out by saying, pay your respects in 512 through 14. The reason why I always give you the seven strategies is because if you just put five out of the seven, it won’t work.

You know, that’s the thing, the false hope that people give people. They say if you just be anxious for nothing. Wait a minute, there’s more written in that letter.

If you’re going to experience God working in your life, it’s going to be that you’re applying all these things that he’s laid out. So if you want to stand firm and do it triumphantly, with great joy, those are the seven strategies. Now, in our previous studies, which we’ve had a lot of different studies on this, what we basically looked at, just to give you an outline, is that we’re looking at, we looked at civil government, how that you are to glorify, bring others to glorify God in the day of visitation.

If you’re going to do that and be a lighthouse, you need to fulfill your role as a wife, that is in 31 through 6 and then in 3 7, then you need to fulfill your role as a husband in the 1 through 6. What we saw previously was this.

We saw that first of all, since there’s a role of the wife. And under that a, there’s the evangelical missiology. And that’s found in chapter three in verses one through four, the evangelical missiology. And then in verses five and six is the evangelical model. And that’s where we are in this text.

And what we’re looking at is how that we’re going to bring others to glorify God in, in the day of visitation. And isn’t that an Easter message? Because everything that Jesus did, He did to glorify the Father. And if we are to do as he did, we need to follow his instructions and bring others to glorify God in the day of visitation.

And wives, if you’ve got lost husbands or you’ve got a husband who say, but he’s. It’s hard to believe, but he might be mule headed and stubborn.

I know it’s hard to believe, but this is the way he says that he can turn or she can turn them. God will do it if she acts in this way. Now we saw in the previous study, the main thing is that she needs to submit. Remember what we saw then it’s present passive.

Who is it, ladies that you’re supposed to submit to? You say, well, in the text. It says your husbands. Well, do you know that’s in. The indirect object, that’s indirectly, you know who you’re submitting to. The one who ordained the role. That’s why it’s in the passage. Your focus has always got to be upon him.

Cause if you get your focus on a husband like me or the husband that you’re sitting beside out there, you’re gonna find that we have weaknesses and there’s some things about us that, just to be frank, are annoying.

And you’re saying, I’ve got to submit to him. And some of you, you have an IQ much greater than your husband. And you’ve got a quicker mind than your husband. And you’re saying I’ve gotta submit to him. No, you submit to God. And by submitting to God and doing the things he tells you to do, indirectly you are submitted unto him.

But God is going to use it to bring them to glorify God in the day of visitation. And we said if you do that, he gives you the directions. After laying this out, the role of the wife A the evangelical missiology. It involves godly behavior. That’s in verses one and two.

Godly behavior. Notice those two verses. He keeps talking about the behavior. What was that godly behavior that you’re supposed to do? Chaste and respectful. I won’t repeat it, won’t go through it again. But chaste and respectful godly behavior. And then he says not only should they do a God ordained godly behavior, but he also talks about underneath that.

He says they’re not only God ordained actions one and two, but there’s the God ordained adornments. We’re going to talk about how ladies you are to dress

now. I think that’s a pretty appropriate thing, right? A week before Easter. Do y’all remember how it was when you were growing up in the 50s, 60s and 70s? What happened when it got close to Easter Sunday? I don’t know about in your house, but in our house it meant you got a new suit.

And if you didn’t get new shoes, at least they got polished. Y’all remember that we went to McCann’s. Y’all remember McCann’s over in Florence and we got those suits. You remember what they were? I remember one time wearing a plaid double breasted suit. I thought I was a peacock.

That thing that came across almost like Dick Tracy.

Plaid too. I mean ugly plaid. The ugliest thing you can think about.

Or the seer sucker. We don’t get to see very much of that, but I would like to see that come back sometime around here. But my favorite of all was the polyester leisure suit. Y’all remember the polyester leisure suit? You young people missed out. It was usually sky blue.

And once again, how we thought that was nice in the 60s and 70s, I have no idea. But today, when people dress up and they come to church, sometimes they’re wearing what I call a puddle waiter. You know how in the modern, how the fashions have done, you know, their pants are up like this, this far ahead,

and then their coat is pulled so tight, I’m thinking, my goodness, if I wore something like that, people would leave.

So we need to talk about how you dress. Because how you dress, according to Peter, your adornment can bring others either to glorify God in the day of visitation or go the opposite direction. But let’s talk about how you dress next Sunday.

Look at verses 3 and 4. Peter says, your adornment must not be merely external. Braiding the hair and wearing gold jewelry or putting on dresses, but let it be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.

Now, before I get into the details of this text, I want to talk something about the grammar here. First of all, when he says, your adornment must not be, that verb is a present, active imperative. This is not a suggestion. This is God’s command. This is what he’s commanded for women to do.

So we need to get that clear. Second, the translation. There’s not an out here for you ladies. There’s no merely in the text. So you can take and mark through. That’s an interpretation, it’s an added thought, but it’s not actually in the Greek text. Just take your pen and go.

Not there. So it really reads this way. Your adornment must not be external. Now, the third thought, and we’ve talked about the tense, the translation, but the third thought is the timeless principle. Looking at the grammar, if you want to look at the sentence that’s here, and this determines what the whole thought is in, in this text is, follow the subject, verb and direct object.

Here’s the way it reads. Your adornment must be external. Must not be external, but let it be the hidden person. That’s the timeless principle of the text. So his emphasis here, if you would put it in this way, would be something like this. You need to be an exterior decorator and an interior decorator with a greater emphasis on the interior.

If you wanna bring others to glorify God in the day of visitation, if you want them to honor God. Now, you need to spend more time on the internal. And Peter. These are not my topics. These are Peter’s topics. But I agree with Peter because Peter agrees with God.

And if you don’t like the topics that he’s gonna deal with here, talk to God. Here’s what he says. And I’m just gonna put it in general, and we’re gonna come back to details. He says, ladies, you want to see your lost husband brought to Christ? Here’s the adornment you need to put on.

And this needs to be the focus. You need to spend more time on your heart than your hair. Where do I get that? In the text? Peter writes, let not your adornment be the braiding of hair. You’re gonna see three negatives talking about the exterior, and then you’re gonna see three positives talking about the interior decoration that you’re supposed to do.

Ladies like to do exterior decorating. Interior decorator. He’s gonna put the emphasis on the latter. These are all in the negative. You need to spend more time on your godliness than your gold jewelry. Peter writes, let not your adornment be wearing gold jewelry. Third, you need not spend more time in devotion.

You need to spend more time in devotion rather than on your dresses. Peter writes, let not your adornment be putting on dresses. Now, he moves from the exterior with a contrasting conjunction, but. And he’s going to move to the positive things that you need to do. But in contrast, this is what you ought to be.

And maybe they, the Beatles need to give their royalties to God. Since he’s gonna talk about let it be, he says, here, you need not spend more time, or you need to spend more time on your chastity rather than your charm. Because he says, but let it be the hidden person of the heart.

You need to spend more time on your virtue rather than your vanity. But let it be with the imperishable quality of gentle and quiet spirit. And then finally, you need to spend more time on what is precious in the sight of God than what is popular in the sight of the godless cause.

He says, but let it be that which is precious in the sight of God. Hence, the main emphasis here is that ladies, in dressing, it needs to start with the heart, the interior. And so I need to give you a couple of verses of scripture that emphasize how that the Bible always works out on the inside.

That’s why Jesus said in one passage, he says instead of trimming the leaves and the branches and working on all the outside things, he Said, the ax needs to be laid to the root.

It needs to be the inside. That changes, and it will manifest itself in an outside change. So with that being said, Proverbs 11:22. And I want you to get the picture in your mind of Solomon writing as a ring of gold in a swine’s snout. You got that picture?

So is a beautiful woman who likes discretion. That word discretion basically carries with the idea that, in other words, they say the tongue, you know, if you’re tasting something before you eat,

has the idea that she lacks testing. And in this particular context, she doesn’t test things by the word, she tests things by her desires. When you do that, you. You’re like a pig with a gold ring in its nose. You can put lipstick on a pig, but it’s still a pig.

You can take the pig out of the pig pen,

or you can take the pig out of the pig pen, but you can’t take the pig pen out of the pig. It has to be a heart change.

We’re not about moral morality. There’s a lot of religions about morality. I’m not here to talk to you about, hey, your hemline and your neckline. Not yet.

But what I am saying is that I want to work on your heart first. And if your heart is right, then all that other stuff will take care of itself. That’s what Peter is talking about here. So in Proverbs 11:22, he gives that another internal aspect is found in Proverbs 31.

The Proverbs 31, woman. There, of course, charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. You want to be a woman who brings glory to God? Fear God more than anybody else. You see, if Eve had had that when she came upon the serpent, and if she feared him God more than anyone else, she wouldn’t have listened.

Listen to him.

You’ve got to learn to fear God more than anyone. No matter what the fashions are or the fashions are not, that doesn’t determine what you do. So I want to give you some exam questions. I used to be a professor, so I’ve got a number of exam questions to ask to the ladies.

Number one. Exam question one. If you were to calculate the amount of time you spend on your heart spiritually in comparison to the time you spend on your hair physically, including hair care products, washing, beauty shop visits with cutting, curling hair extensions, blow drying and combing, which would amount to more.

Mind you, I nor Peter am saying you shouldn’t spend time on your hair. The point is, where are you spending the most time? Considering the amount of time that you spend, which feature would be most prominent, A heart of gold or the hair of goldilocks?

Question number two. If you were to calculate the amount of time, thought and money you spend on godliness in comparison to the amount of time, thought and money you spend on gold jewelry, which would amount to more, your godliness or your godliness?

Question number three. If you were to calculate the amount of time, thought and money spent in devotion in comparison to the amount of time, thought and money you spend on dresses, which would amount to more. Once again, Peter’s not against you wearing dresses. It’s where you’re putting the main emphasis.

A follow up question to that would be in the way you dress. Are you more interested in attracting others to your looks or to your Lord?

Would people describe how you dress as she’s dressed to kill or to turn heads?

Do you know where that comes from? It doesn’t come from Proverbs 31, it comes from Proverbs 6. Proverbs 6:20, 26 reads this way, my son, observe the commandment of your Father. Do not forsake the teaching of your mother. Bind them continually on your heart. Tie them around your neck.

These are important, and when you awake they will talk to you. The Word of God. For the commandment is a lamp, and a teaching is light and reproofs for discipline are the way of life. In other words, the Word of God. If you tie them on your frontals, and if you have them in your mind and in your heart, he says, the Holy Spirit will bring them up when that occasion comes, when you need it, and it will guide you like a light, and it’ll keep you away from evil and direct you in the right direction.

But then he says, here’s why you need to do all this. Verse 24. To keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulteress. Do not desire her beauty in your heart, nor let her capture you with her eyelids, even if they look like tarantulas.

For on an account of a harlot, listen. One is reduced to a loaf of bread, and an adulteress hunts for the precious life. Darrell hall and John Oates wrote a song called Man Eater. You thought you’d never hear that from this pulpit. Oh, here she comes. She’s a man eater.

The picture in that text of Proverbs 6 is of that. She’s a lioness. She’s seeking a precious life.

When people look at the way you’re dressed and say, she’s dressed to kill, you know what that is?

I have four precious grandsons.

One day we were sitting in the upstairs room and we were playing on our switches. I bought a switch so that I could play with my grandsons online. I don’t get to see them as much, so I want to have an influence. So they play Switch, so I play Nintendo Switch.

And so I’m playing this. And then we bought headphones for them so we could talk to each other.

And one day we were playing and one of my grandkids, my grandson, said, papa, I saw something inappropriate.

I said, oh, you did? What was it? He said? He pointed to the TV that was on mute with a ball game on, and it had a commercial. And there came a lady that was left nothing to the imagination. And I said to him, yes, I see her.

And I told him, you’re going to say, well, I don’t know if I’d have told him what you told him. Well, that’s okay. I said, it’s all right to notice the opposite sex.

In fact, God created you to notice. And we don’t need to make it ugly for our young men.

It’s okay to notice. But I told him there are two types of women.

There’s the man eater, which that is what she is. And then there’s the Proverbs 31, woman. And that’s who is for you.

Now, ladies, when you decide to put on something,

remember always that the eye that you might be trying to catch it may be a little 10 year old. And the Bible says concerning that, that he who causes one of these precious little ones to stumble, it would have been better for them had they been had a millstone tied around their neck and cast into the sea.

How you dress

is important so that you bring others to glorify God in the day of visitation.

Now, question four. If you were waiting on me to give you a standard, a hemline and a neckline, I’m going to.

But it’s not gonna be what you think. It’s gonna be what Peter thinks and what God sets forth. And here’s the standard. The more spiritual you are on the inside, the less you’ll draw attention to the flesh on the outside. And the more spiritual you are on the inside, the more both your inside and your outside will draw attention to Christ.

So here’s the test or the question. If a man were to look at the way you’re dressed, would your outward appearance point to Christ or would it point to you?

Exam question number five. If you were to calculate the amount of time, thought and money you spend on what is precious in the sight of God in comparison to the amount of time, thought and money you spend on what is popular in the sight of the godless, which would amount to more.

Another way of putting this would be, whose eye are you trying to catch?

The way to catch God’s eye is to show more faith. The way to catch man’s eye is to show more flesh. Who are you seeking to please?

So now the exam is over. Praise God. But we haven’t said a word about what you’re supposed to put on.

I still got time.

What does he say that you ought to put on? You want to be a true superwoman. We talk about the true church. You want to be a true superwoman. He says, this is God’s designer cloth line for bringing glory to him and others to Christ. Here they are, two pieces of garments, the adornment of gentleness and the adornment of a quiet spirit.

Now, before I get to all the details in regard to what those mean, let me give a few general words here. First of all, if you would notice that Peter refers to what wives were to be inwardly to their husbands. But he doesn’t say a thing about these lost husbands here.

You know why? Because lost people are being and doing exactly what lost people are.

The problem is not with the lost.

We are the light of the world.

The problem is the way the church is adorning herself.

That’s why you don’t see anything here where God talks about what the husband should, should not do. No, if we were what need to be, then God would use it to bring Himself, glory and others to faith. Second, notice what he says about these adornments. He refers to these adornments as imperishable.

Wouldn’t you like to have clothes that never wore out? They never go out of fashion. Guys, y’all remember the time when we had those clown ties? They came way out to here. You know, you’ve probably still got them in your closet. You’re praying that the fashion goes back around and the big ties start again so you don’t have to buy another tie.

And then they went smaller, and then they got to the little skinny ties. Well, you know what? The things that he’s going to be talking about here, they don’t ever go out of style and they don’t ever perish. He says here. Robert Layton, a Puritan, wrote this concerning gentleness.

He says, when death strips you of your nearest garment, your flesh, all the others which were but loose upper garments above it must be put off too. If no other clothing be provided for it. For the body was but borrowed, then it is made bare of all but spiritual ornaments.

And this of gentleness. And a quiet spirit among them remain or incorruptible. They neither wear out nor. Nor go out of fashion, but are still the better for the wearing and shall last throughout eternity. And shine there in full luster to the glory of God. If you’ll put on gentleness, it’ll do you well, not only in this life, but in the life to come.

It’ll still be there because it’s a supernatural. Natural fruit, gentleness, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness.

Well, third, Peter describes these ornaments as being precious.

You know, that’s really important. What God is looking for in you are these two adornments. And he finds them to be very. The word means valuable or precious. And when he sees them, you get his favor. Now, how important is that? How many of you have ever saved one person in your life?

Even one? I haven’t. The only one who has the power to do that is God Almighty through the power of the Holy Spirit. And if you don’t have his favor, you don’t have any.

And basically, what he’s telling these wives, he says, you know what? This is what I consider precious gentleness.

And so let’s look at what gentleness carries with it. He says that we ought to let there be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable quality of a gentle spirit. That term, basically, I’ve used when I dealt with the fruit of the Spirit before, I gave it a definition.

There’s six S’s of gentleness, but I’ll just read the definition. Gentleness is a supernatural grace. It’s not natural. That reflects Christ. The word literally means to stoop down like he stooped, even to the point of death. It’s sacrificial to meet the needs of others. It’s selfless without a heavy hand.

It’s self control. It’s power under control. According to the truth of God’s word, it’s scriptural. Now, a quicker way of remembering this is just to say this. I can give you in one word what gentleness is. It is Christlikeness. What did the Bible say in Matthew 11:28 30 about the heart of Christ?

Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden. Here’s his appeal. Invitation, invitation I would give to you today.

Come on to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am

gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves. Ladies, if you put on gentleness, just as Christ put on gentleness, you’re going to manifest Christ. And if Christ is lifted up, what’s going to happen? He’ll grant you his favor and he’ll draw all men unto himself.

You see how important it is how you dress? Are you dressing with gentleness? Listen to what Scripture has to say in regard to gentleness and evangelism. In Proverbs 15, 1, 2 and 4, it says, A gentle word turns away wrath. But A harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable.

A soothing tongue is a tree of life. Did you know how important gentleness was? Now, I don’t know if some of you who are married ever get into fights. Of course we haven’t, because I’m a spiritual guy and I preach and teach. And

sometimes we do have fights,

and sometimes I don’t act the way I ought to.

And the tendency is for you to say, yeah, and that’s why I didn’t act the way I was.

It is at that point you get to show grace, stand firm in true grace. Not all these other times when everybody’s saying just the right thing. Honey, sugar, baby. But when he’s not acting that way and you have that feathery gentleness in your response,

he says, what that will do? It’ll turn away wrath. It’s soothing. A tongue is a tree of life. Proverbs 25 puts it this way. It says, for by forbearance, by this gentleness, a ruler may be persuaded, and a soft tongue breaks the bone. I’m going to tell you, when Senray does that to me, and she responds not in kind, but in gentleness,

I’m like,

what a jerk I am.

It breaks that stubborn neck and that hard head.

Titus talks about this in Titus 2:10 and 11. I’m not going to read all these verses for time’s sake. It’s talked about again in second Timothy 2, 24, 26. It says, the Lord’s bondservant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach. And then jumping just right ahead, it says, if perhaps God may grant the one they’re dealing with, kind to all, with gentleness, correcting those who are in opposition.

If perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth. Do you know how important gentleness is?

You want to see your lost husband come to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You want to be used of God in a mighty way. Put on gentleness and then a quiet spirit.

Quiet spirit basically means a peaceful disposition. It’s used in another place in 1 Peter. Excuse me, 1st Timothy, chapter 2 and verse 2. It’s the opposite of being agitated. It is the opposite of being usurping. It is the opposite of being chaotic.

You know, a lot of people feel like that at the fall, that husband and wife, Adam and Eve, there wasn’t a leadership head.

It was because of the fall that the man had leadership. In fact, they’ll go to some places, like Genesis 3:16 to the woman he said, I will gratefully multiply your pain in childbirth. In pain you shall bring forth children, yet your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.

And they think, ah, before then he didn’t rule over no. First Timothy 2, 11 and 12 says, A woman hears that word, must quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. But I do not allow woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. Now here it is, verse 13 of 1st Timothy 2.

For it was Adam who was first created, and then Eve. It was before the fall,

you see that you think that being subordinated is a prison.

If Christ had not subordinated himself unto the Father

and done the will of the Father, do you know where we would be today

if he’d have said no? In the garden of Gethsemane. If he’d have said no when he came to the cross, if he would have said no at any point when they were putting the crowns upon his head and they were ripping his flesh apart, if he would not have subordinated himself unto the Father’s will, do you know where we would be right now?

Lost. Without hope.

Ladies, he’s put you in the primary position

because by your subordination to your husband, you’re subordinating yourself to your Lord. And God says, when you do that, I’m going to use it to win them

whether they’re lost or whether they’re just saved. Stubborn, not acting like Christian men sometimes.

Now, final thing, and then I’m going to quit because I determined I’m going to get to the end of this so I can deal with the men.

So the evangelical model, it’s found in verses 5 and 6. Some of you are probably thinking to yourself, and I think this is why God had Peter write these verses. Are you trying to put upon us this old fashioned, antiquated idea of fashion with those questions you asked earlier?

Well, you know who God sets as a fashion model. Listen to what he says. Before there was Chip and Joe, there was Abraham and Sarah. Listen what he says. For in this way, in former times, that means a long time ago, four or five thousand years, the holy women also who hoped in God.

That means those who were saved used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands, just as Sarah obeyed. And by the way, the name Sarah means princess. Just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord. She was his princess, he was her Lord. And you become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear.

The fashion model we have to follow means you got to go back to the future

and find out what God says to do what he sets forth here in First Peter, chapter three, and verses one through six. And if you’ll do that,

he will use you to bring others to glorify God in the day of visitation.

And in the end, isn’t that what it’s all about? We started with the glory of God, and we end with his glory. Let us pray. Our Heavenly Father, thank you for this morning. Thank you for your word, Father. May it be.