A Bible-believing evangelical church in the village of Wellington, near Hereford and Leominster.

Thought for the Day – 106

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Preached during the morning service on 5 July 2020 by .


Sermon Notes

E V A N G E L I C A L WELLINGTON CHAPEL

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
DAY 106

1 Peter 1:18-19 — ‘You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like
silver or gold … but with the precious blood of Christ.’

Recommended reading: 1 Peter 1

Yesterday morning we began looking into Peter’s two letters, giving special
attention to the word ‘precious.’ We saw how precious Jesus is to those who
believe. This morning we will consider two more occasions when Peter uses the
word ‘precious’.

2. His blood is precious.

A diamond can give some people a great deal of pleasure, but it can be lost or
stolen and give them much grief. Despite its beauty, it is corruptible.
Blood, however, is not only important to God, it is vital for man.
God’s plan of redemption began with the taking of an animal’s life to clothe
Adam and Eve following their fall into sin. Blood was shed so that they would
become acceptable in the sight of God.
To our first parents, blood meant life, forgiveness and hope. It was a sign of
God’s pardon for sin. The Bible reminds us that, ‘without the shedding of blood,
there is no forgiveness of sin.’
Throughout the Old Testament, the blood of millions of bulls, goats and lambs
were shed to satisfy God’s anger over the sins of His people Israel. But this was a
continuous process with no end in sight. Sin had to be dealt with because God is
holy.
The great hymn-writer, Isaac Watts put it so clearly when he wrote:
Not all the blood of beasts, on Jewish altars slain,
could give the guilty conscience peace or wash away the stain.
But Christ, the Heavenly Lamb, takes all our sins away;
a sacrifice of nobler name, and richer blood than they.
At the appropriate time, God stepped into history and sent His only begotten
Son. Instead of an animal being the victim for our sin, Jesus Christ became our
sacrifice so that our sin would be forgiven.
The sacrifice of Himself, was a one and only sacrifice, never to be repeated again.
On the cross Jesus endured the full anger of God so that we might be spared.
It is the blood of Jesus that cleanses from all sin; it gives us hope of eternal life.

3. Your faith is precious.

In 2 Peter 1:1, the apostle is writing ‘to those who have obtained like precious
faith.’ This faith only comes because of the work that God, His Son and the Holy
Spirit have done for us.
With faith in Him, we can look ahead because of what has been accomplished in
the past.
Author, Derek Bingham wrote, ‘Faith can believe in advance what can only make
sense in reverse.’ Old Testament believers looked ahead with faith to what
one day would happen. Christians look back with thanksgiving at what has
happened.
Our faith is precious this morning because it is centred on Jesus. Faith never
goes beyond Christ, neither does it ever stop short of Christ.
In that great eleventh chapter of Hebrews, we have the roll of honour of the
faithful. It begins by reminding us that, ‘Faith is the substance of things hoped
for, the evidence of things not seen.’
A W Tozer wrote, ‘Faith sees the invisible, but it does not see the non-existent.’
When we read 1 Peter 1:7, the apostle talks about faith being genuine. Let us
ensure that it is so. We don’t want anything fake about the faith of the Christian;
it has to be real and clearly evident in our daily living.

I could not do without you,
O Saviour of the lost,
whose precious blood redeemed me
at such tremendous cost;
your righteousness, your pardon,
your precious blood must be
my only hope and comfort,
my glory and my plea.

I could not do without you,
I cannot stand alone,
I have no strength or goodness,
no wisdom of my own;
but you, beloved Saviour,
are with me hour by hour,
and as I lean upon you
my weakness will be power.

I could not do without you:
no other friend can read
my spirit’s strange, deep longings,
interpreting its need;
no other heart could enter
each dim recess of mine,
and soothe and hush and calm it
but, Lord, your heart divine.

I could not do without you:
the years are flying fast,
and soon in solemn loneness
death’s river must be passed;
but you will never leave me,
and though the waves roll high,
I know you will be near me
and whisper, ‘It is I.’

Frances R Havergal, 1836-79
© in this version Praise Trust
CCLI – 1050955

Pastor: Kristian Dimond 01432 830002 07810 442523 pastor@wellingtonec.org.uk
Elders: John Roberts 01432 830100 jokaroberts@gmail.com
Keith Weber 01568 611251 07436 005561 keith.smallprint@gmail.com
Wellington Evangelical Chapel, Wellington, Hereford HR4 8AX www.wellingtonec.org.uk Reg Charity No 233810
THE THOUGHT FOR THE DAY IS PREPARED BY JOHN ROBERTS