HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN?

2 Peter 1:13, “And I consider it right, as long as I am in this earthly dwelling, to stir you up by way of reminder.”

This past Sunday we celebrated Veteran’s Day at church.  We had our Veteran’s from all the branches of the Armed Forces come to the front of the church so we could recognize them.  Recognizing our Veteran’s is important lest we forget their sacrifices made in ensuring our freedom. 

There is One who has intervened in our lives to grant to us an even greater freedom.  Peter wrote to those believers that he might “stir (them) up by way of reminder” (2 Peter 1:13).  What did he want to remind them of?  The work of Christ through which they had received “purification from (their) former sins” (2 Pet. 1:8).  Through Christ’s work on the cross the believer has been saved from sin—it’s penalty, it’s power--and one day--it’s very presence.  His work on the cross, through which we’ve been saved, is the One Thing we dare not forget. 

Peter’s concern was that these believers would be“applying all diligence” (2 Pet. 1:5) to their growth in Christ (2 Pet. 1:5-7).  To do otherwise would render one “blind and short-sighted” (2 Pet. 1:9) to the very purpose for which Christ died.  His work on the cross was to save us from sin in every respect.  This salvation, rooted in His cross work, represents an escape from “the corruption that is in the world by lust” in order that we might “become partakers of the divine nature” (2 Pet. 1:4).

It is good to be reminded of what Christ has done for us!  We need to ongoingly think about it, sing about it, and confidently speak to others about it.  We regularly celebrate communion “in remembrance” of Him for this very purpose.  The Apostle Paul admonished Timothy, recognized this tendency we have to forget: “Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead” (2 Tim. 2:8). 

Have you forgotten that day when you first trusted in Jesus?  Have you forgotten how the burden of sin’s guilt was lifted from your soul?  Have you forgotten how that Spirit-imparted joy filled your heart?  These things were but “first-fruits” of the work that God began in you.  Peter wanted to “stir them up by way of reminder” of these things.  These matters are of “first importance” (1 Cor. 15:3-4). An elderly John Newton (that ex-slave trader turned pastor; and writer of the hymn “Amazing Grace”) was quoted as saying “my memory is nearly gone, but these two things I remember: that I am a great sinner and Christ is a Great Savior!”  God tie a yellow ribbon as a “forget-me-not” around my heart lest I fail to remember the One Thing I dare not forget! 

Lest I forget Gethsemane,
Lest I forget Thine agony;
Lest I forget Thy love for me,
Lead me to Calvary.

Pastor Jerry