to the Lord. Okay, now fear is a correct reaction to something that is frightening. It would seem odd if someone did not respond with fear when they were confronted with what is fearsome. And that is exactly what Peter says godly women will not experience. He said in verse 6, just as Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. What? What in the world is Peter talking about here? What else are women frightened by except those things that they fear? I mean, what else is anybody afraid of? Is Peter teaching here that a woman being afraid of what is frightening, like sounds in the night or a burglar breaking in, that being afraid of those things is unbelief and sinful? Is that what he's talking about? Now in context, Peter is talking here only about the kind of frightening fear that believing women of the first century experienced, especially those women who were being forced into being refugees for the Gospel's sake. At the very beginning of this inspired letter from the Apostle Peter, it tells us who he is writing it to. He said, to the scattered aliens. So this entire epistle was written to those who have become aliens because of the divine call of God on their lives and those who have become scattered because of the intense persecution experienced at the hands of the Roman Emperor Nero during the second half of the first century. And among those refugees who have lost all of their worldly possessions because of the hatred of the Roman government and the Jews against the Christians were women. Now through verse 6 of chapter 3, the apostle has addressed three different groups of people. He has addressed all believers. And secondly, he has addressed household slaves who were saved. And now he's addressed women, especially wives who were saved. And in verse 7, he will address the believing husbands. Now specifically, Peter is continuing to show us what biblical holiness or progressive sanctification looks like. And he began this discussion back in the beginning of chapter 2 when he said, Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the Word, so that by it, the Word that you're longing for, you may grow in respect to salvation, if you have tasted the kindness of the Lord. And everything he has said since then is telling us what growing in respect to salvation looks like in the real world where genuine believers are confronted with sin and temptation and unbelievers in persecution all day long. So here in the beginning of chapter 3, Simon Peter is now dealing with Christian wives and how their relationship with their husbands is related to their sanctification. So it begins this chapter by saying, in the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of the wives as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. And then he tells them that their attention should not be focused on their outward self, self-made beauty with various hairstyles or the wearing of opulent jewelry or colorful gowns, but godly women should place their focus on the kind of spirit or demeanor that pleases God. Let's read what he said. Your adornment must not be merely external, braiding the hair, wearing the gold jewelry, or putting on dresses, but let it be the hidden person of the heart. Look what he said next. with the imperishable quality of what? A gentle and quiet spirit which is what? Precious in the sight of God. So right there it tells women how to please God. Right? So unlike what modern feminism teaches, what actually honors God and what allows for the woman to be in right standing with God and what produces the fullness of joy in women is something that Peter calls the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit which is precious in the sight of God. And now in verses 5 and 6, Peter gives Christian wives a very precise example of what this godly quality, a gentle and quiet spirit which is precious in the sight of God, looks like. For he said, for in this way, in former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands, just as Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. So what Peter is saying is that at the very core of all godly women, cemented in their soul, lies a simple but steadfast hope in God. And it is from the rock-solid security that flows out from this steadfast hope that wives fear nothing that is frightening, particularly submitting to a husband who does not follow Jesus. Peter was moved along by God the Holy Spirit to say that godly women adorn their souls with a very peculiar beauty. not weak, voiceless servanthood or ugly power, but a flowering combination of both Christ-like humility and lion-like courage that the world simply cannot explain, and one that puts those who do not follow in this to shame. The lost and fallen world simply cannot produce women like this. This beauty and strength is not of this world, and neither does it originate from inside any of the daughters of Eve. Strength and beauty like this is external to the human. It originates from God and is a gift to the woman who embraces it. And with their souls beautified by God, Christian women display Jesus in such a way that unbelievers may be one to Christ even without a single word being spoken. In the same way, you wives being submissive to your own husbands so that even if any of them, any of the husbands are disobedient Word, the Word of God, they may be won without a word from you by the behavior of their wives as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Now, back in 1 Peter 2, verses 13-17, the apostle admonishes all genuine believers to be subject to every human institution. He said, submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, are to governors as sent by Him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God, that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the King. This is my problem with the modern effort to change the nation by adopting the techniques of civil disobedience, protest marches, writing letters, boycotting, all this other stuff. My problem is, what it says here, and again, I'm trying to understand how the Bible, what it says, but how does it look like when what it said is actually being obeyed. Here's what it says. For such is the will of God that by doing right, you may what? Silence the ignorance of foolish men. The way to change people is by us doing right. Not adopting their tactics. Huh? We're testifying that we don't really believe that God has any power when we resort to man-made techniques that was originated by Mahatma Gandhi who was a racist and a Hindu and he wasn't even saved. It's amazing that we honor such a man like that. He then addressed those household slaves who had become believers by the grace of God and told them that simply being set free from the evil institution of slavery was not nearly as important as being set free to obey the law of love brought forth by Jesus Christ. Here's what he told slaves in verses 18 through 20. Servants, be submissive to your masters with all respect. That's hard enough! Right? Now he just adds to it. Not only to those who are good and gentle, but also to those who are unreasonable. Now why in the world would we do that? For this finds favor. If, for the sake of conscience toward God, a person bears up under sorrows when suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if when you sin and are harshly treated, you endure it with patience? But if when you do what is right and suffer for it, you patiently endure it, this finds favor with God. That is speaking in tongues. That makes no sense to the natural mind. Amen. This is foreign language to us. Absolutely. And then Peter returns to address the issue of godly submission with all believers by saying in verse 21a, For you have been... What? He's called for this. What purpose? To suffer unjustly for doing what is right. He's promoting us to get hurt. Now, you may not believe the Bible's the Word of God. You may say, that's why I don't believe the Bible. Stuff like this. I believe the Bible's the Word of God. I believe it's inspired. And it's telling me I'm called to suffer unjustly. That's what it says. Huh? Now we must notice that Peter does not use concepts like duty, or obligation, or even responsibility to be the catalyst, or the origination, or the power behind the command to submit. No, unlike many in the modern church, Peter does not promote the notion that we need to obey the Lord because it's the right thing to do. And Peter doesn't promote that notion because Jesus didn't promote it either. Nowhere in all the New Testament does any writer teach that we are to obey simply because we are told to. That idea is foreign to the New Covenant. At best, it is an old covenant mentality, but it isn't found anywhere in the New. Instead, we see a religion that is filled with divine promises and heavenly rewards. that we are told repeatedly to believe in and to trust and to work toward. For example, the force or the power behind the command to put aside all malice, all deceit, all hypocrisy, envy and slander is twofold. Here's the first one. Like newborn babies, here's the command, long for the pure milk of the Word. How do you do that? Number two, if you have what? Tasted. The kindness of the Lord. Things that would not be normally associated with labor or duty or obligation or responsibility. So unlike what the world teaches, the Bible teaches that putting aside various sins has more to do with longing and tasting than they do with willpower or effort. And the same is true with Peter asking what on the surface appears to be harsh or mean or unloving or even cruel, asking slaves to obey their masters even when their masters treat them terribly. The power behind the command, the force behind the apostolic instruction is also twofold. He said, if for the sake of conscience toward God, and secondly, this finds favor with God. Why are you doing that? Because I want to find favor with God. That's my goal. To earn favor with God by my actions, not to be saved, but to obey Him. Did he just say we have to work to earn? Judge it. Judge it. See if the Bible teaches it. After you're not earning salvation, you can't do that. Not earning righteousness, can't do that. Can't do that. Obedience. Obedience. Amen. What's the catalyst for you to obey? Because I love Jesus. Well, then you get all the glory. You get all the glory. What's the power behind your ability to obey? Because it's the right thing to do. Well, aren't you special? You've got a lot of willpower. It is the right thing to do. How can God get glory through that? He can't. It's got to be something else. Hallelujah. That's why I don't get invited to Christmas parties. So once again, suffering as a Christian has much more to do with our conscience toward God and our confidence that obeying God yields great rewards than it does with simply being brave or courageous. I would suggest to you that Jesus didn't hang on the cross because He was brave. The Bible doesn't teach that. He hung on the cross for the joy that was set before Him. That He wanted to earn and that He wanted to obtain. Amen. That's Christianity. That's biblical Christianity. And the reason it sounds odd to us is because we haven't been taught right for so many years. Judge it for yourself. Is it in the book? If it's in the book, we can trust the book. John McArthur just really burned this into my soul a couple weeks ago. You can trust the Bible. Trust the Bible. Praise the Lord. Okay, here we go. And that means that the suffering of believers that the New Testament talks about is not the weak and sinful path of a conscientious objector. Christianity does not promote passivism like you see it in those deceived by false religions. No, Christians suffer because Peter said You have been called for this purpose. And then Peter gave us the very best example of someone who was not guilty of any sin and who didn't deserve any mistreatment, and yet who was treated horribly. Look at 21b-24. Since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps. Huh? Not a doctrine for you to believe, but an example for you to obey, for you to follow. Right? What was the example? Here it is. Who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in his mouth. And look at here. And while being reviled, he did not revile in return. While suffering, he uttered no threats. That's automatic to me. You come up to me and slap me. My hand comes up just like that. I don't even think. Because my first inclination is to defend myself and to strike back at those who strike against me. Right? You know why that is? Because I'm fallen. He didn't do that. And here's the thing. I'm a sinner and I'm guilty of all kinds of stuff. He was innocent of everything and he was revived. Huh? This is what Peter is teaching. Maybe we shouldn't have gotten into Peter. Maybe we ought to go back to Leviticus. And what did Peter say was the power behind why Jesus could act this way? Because he was brave? Because he was courageous? Because he had an elevated sense of duty or obligation? No. Peter said that Jesus kept entrusting himself to him who judges righteously. That's not being a conscientious objector. That's not pacifism. He believed that God was going to send them all to hell if they didn't repent. He believed that God was going to damn them for doing what they did to him. And he knew that God was the great adjudicator of all evils and Jesus was content to let God do that. He didn't strike back on his own accord. And Peter tells you and me to follow in that step. Jesus was not a conscientious objector. Jesus was not a pacifist. Jesus trusted God. Jesus believed God. Jesus knew who God was and believed that God would judge righteously. Okay, Brother Blair, that was Jesus. What about me? How am I supposed to obey this stuff? I'm not brave or courageous. So what am I supposed to do when I suffer injustice? Well, the very same way we got saved. The Apostle Paul said in 2 Corinthians 3.18, But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being what? Transformed into what? The same image that we see from glory to glory, just as from the Lord the Spirit. So as we see Jesus, as we behold the risen Christ in His magnificent glory, as we fix our eyes on Jesus, the things of this fallen world will become strangely dim, and we will first love what we see, and then we will be transformed into the very same image. And Peter said the same thing. He just used different words. How can we do all that we are commanded here? By beholding the Lamb of God. Here's what Peter said. and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. For by His wounds you were healed." So even though we are weak, He is strong. Even though we are afraid, Jesus is not. Even though we are incapable, Jesus was very capable. And so as we look at Jesus, We believe God. As we behold the risen Christ, we trust God and we have confidence that God is well able to deliver us from all harm. But if not, if it is not God's will at that time to deliver us, then we entrust our souls to the God who has promised to adjudicate all injustices at the day of judgment and to reward the faithful. But because we are fickle, because we are weak, because we are inconsistent, Peter said this in verse 25, for you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the shepherd and guardian of your souls. So likewise, Peter is not telling wives to submit to their husbands because they're supposed to, or because I said so, or because it's the right thing to do, or because that is the culture of the first century. None of that is true. Now, it is the right thing to do, but simply being right is not the power behind the command. because then it would be dependent on human willpower and human effort to accomplish. No. We must get it into our minds that the very same way we were saved in the first place is the way we obey after we are saved by the grace of God and through the gift of faith. Our God is not honored and we will not receive the fullness of joy. And God has established a divine order of male leadership and female support. And the miracle of the new birth has transformed our natures so that first of all we may behold the risen Lamb and be gifted to see that God is the best and the most beautiful and the most glorious and the wisest and the kindest and the most important being in the universe. And this seeing produces an admiration and an awe and a reverential respect for God, which in turn produces an unquenchable love for God. And so we do not originate our love for God because we are fallen. Loving God is not normal. It isn't natural. It is foreign to the sons and daughters of Adam. Love for God does not come from any internal decision or act of our will. We lost that ability in the fall. So God must gift us with a love for Himself. As the Apostle John put it in 1 John 4.19, we love, and the context of that is we love God and the things of the Spirit of God. Why? Because He first loved us. So our love for God is a gift from God. But God is not finished yet because the second byproduct of the new birth is that we are given both the will or the desire and the power or the ability to be able to believe and to trust that what God has said is the most satisfying and the most fulfilling and the most contented way to live our lives on this earth and to understand that the commands of God are actually the pathway to the fullness of joy. Here is how the Apostle Paul put it in Philippians 2, 12b and 13. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling for or because it is God who is at work in you both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Which illustrates the amazing and miraculous cooperation between those who are already saved and God the Spirit in their progressive sanctification. The reality is that submission is the calling of all believers because all believers are called to submit to something or someone else. And no submission is easy. Therefore, all submission has to be a conscious act of our will, yes, but it is a will that has become overwhelmed with a love for God. And that love for God has been gifted by God through the miracle of the new birth. And the new birth, is where God sovereignly gives us new spiritual life, so that we first see the Lord in His beauty, and secondly, we begin to love what we see, and thirdly, we are changed into what we see. And all of this is granted by grace and through faith to unworthy sinners. And it is with all this in mind that Peter then tells wives to be submissive to their husbands, even to the husbands who are unbelieving. And then Peter says this in verse 5, For in this way, in former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands. In this way. In what way? Holy women who hoped in God lived in the way that Peter describes in verses 3 and 4. Your adornment must not be merely external, braiding the hair, wearing gold jewelry, 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 in that way. In the way of an imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit. Why? Because that way is precious in the sight of God. Now I would like for us to just gaze for a few minutes at the powerful portrait of womanhood that Peter paints for us in these words. Because what we see here is very deep and very strong Roots of womanhood that lie underneath the fruit of this godly submission. And it is the roots that make the submission to be the strong and beautiful thing that it is. Look again at verse 5. For in this way, in former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands. The deepest root of Christian womanhood mentioned here is a hope in God. He said holy women who hoped in God. A Christian woman does not put her hope in her husband, or even in getting a husband. She does not put her hope in her own external beauty. A godly and holy woman puts her hope in the promises of God. Here's how the wisest man in all the world described a woman like this in Proverbs 31, 25-31. Strength and dignity are her clothing. And she smiles at the future. She opens her mouth in wisdom and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and bless her, her husband also, and he praises her saying, many daughters have done nobly, but you excel them all. Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised. and give her the product of her hands and let her works praise her in the gates. All of this is true because a godly and holy woman hopes in God. She looks away from the troubles and miseries and obstacles of this life that seem to make the future bleak and she focuses her attention on the sovereign power and love of God who rules in heaven and does on earth whatever He pleases. She knows her Bible. She knows her theology of the sovereignty of God and she knows His promises that He will be with her and help her and strengthen her no matter what. This is the deep unshakable root of Christian womanhood. And Peter makes it explicit in verse 5. He's not talking about just any woman. He's not talking about women with unshakable... He's talking about women with unshakable biblical roots in the sovereign goodness of God. Holy women who hope in God. But the next thing to see about Christian womanhood after hope in God is the fearlessness that it produces in these women. So verse 5 said that the holy women of old hoped in God. And then verse 6 gives Sarah, Abraham's wife, as an example. And then refers to all other Christian women as her daughters. Look at verse 6. And you will become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. So this portrait of Christian womanhood is marked first by an unshakable hope in God. And then what grows out of that hope is resolute fearlessness. The godly and holy woman who hopes in God does not fear the future. Solomon says she smiles at the future. In other words, she laughs at the future. The presence of hope in the invincible sovereignty of God drives out all fear. Or to say it more carefully and realistically, the daughters of Sarah fight the anxiety that rises in their hearts. They wage war on fear and they defeat it with hope in the promises of God. Now you might think this is pretty tough for you to try to accomplish. I'm just suggesting it was even tougher for these women who were refugees when Peter told them this in the first century. Mature Christian women know that following Jesus Christ will mean suffering. But they believe promises like 1 Peter 3.14, but even if you should suffer for the sake of righteousness, you are blessed. And 1 Peter 4, 19, Therefore those also who suffer according to the will of God will do something. They shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right. This is what godly, holy, Christian women do. They entrust their souls to a faithful Creator. They hope in God. And the result is they triumph over fear. But then Peter brings up a very strange Old Testament example of what all this godly submission in believing wives looks like. He brings up Sarah. Sarah? Really? The wife who told her husband to go and be intimate with her slave because there was no way in the world she could ever bury him a son? The woman who laughed at God's promises? That Sarah? Are you kidding? Yeah, he said Sarah. Why her? Why not some other woman? Why did Peter bring up Sarah when talking about a wife's submission to her husband? Even if the husband is disobedient to the Word. Well, let's look at what Moses wrote about this woman named Sarah. First let's look at Genesis 12 10 through 16. Now there was a famine in the land so Abram went down to Egypt to sojourn there for the famine was severe in the land. It came about when he came near to Egypt that he sent to Sarai his wife. See now I know that you are a beautiful woman and when the Egyptians see you they will say this is his wife and they will kill me but they will let you live. Please say that you are my sister so that it may go well with me. because of you and that I may live on account of you it came about when Abram came to Egypt the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful Pharaoh's officials saw her and praised her to Pharaoh and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house not for prayer meeting not for fellowship she was going to be gang-raped all night long that's what happened that's what this is about And who suggested this to her? Her husband. Why? To save my life. Right? Therefore, he treated Abram well for her sake and gave him sheep and oxen and donkeys and male and female servants and female donkeys and camels. I mean, boom time prosperity, right? Must be of God. Here, Abram tells his wife to say that she's his sister, not because he was interested in being technically correct, but simply to save his own life. Now, keep in mind what Pharaoh had planned for Sarah. Remember that Pharaoh was the unquestioned dictator of Egypt. His word was absolute. No one could dispute him. People lived or died at Pharaoh's command. He could take what he wanted, when he wanted, how he wanted at any time. And he wanted Sarah. And Abraham knew that. And he also knew that Pharaoh would have him killed in order to take his wife because evidently Sarah was a very beautiful woman. And so to protect himself, Abraham told her to say that she was his sister. And that would keep the man of God safe. What about Sarah? What about her well-being? What about Abraham's solemn duty and responsibility and joy to honor and love and protect and provide for his wife? Is the wife required to sacrifice herself for the benefit of her husband because the hand of God is on his life? Does the fact that God chose Abraham allow for him to endanger his wife so that he could be spared? Is that the way a biblical marriage works? Does the anointing that God has graciously placed on Abraham allow for him to be saved at the expense of his wife? Is that what the Bible teaches? No. Just the opposite. Abraham and every other husband is required to sacrifice himself. for the benefit of his wife. Every husband, saved or lost, like Abraham, is called on by God to resist the temptation to protect himself so that he may love and honor and cherish his wife. Because God has called every husband to love his wife sacrificially, and Abraham knew that. And so how should we understand this? Were things different, perhaps, under the era before the Old Covenant came about? Did marriage work differently back then? Nope. So what should we say here? Well, to start with, we need to say that Abraham was wrong. And he is proving here to be a coward in a self-centered oath who loved himself a whole lot more than he loved his wife. And we should then also say that Abraham was a wicked sinner who was knowingly and purposefully rebelling against the command of God to love and cherish his wife for the basis of all reasons in order to save his own life. And I tried to think of as many terms as I could to insult Abraham here. So did I do good? Okay. Wait a minute, Brother Blair. Are you saying that the great man of God, Abraham, was a coward and a sinner? That's exactly what I'm saying. Along with being a very lousy husband. But if that's true, then how does he then become the father of faith? Abraham became the father of faith for two reasons. Number one, the grace of God. And number two, his wife. God chose a wicked rebel to be the father of faith and that is the sovereign grace of God. God exercises His own divine prerogative to choose whomever He wishes and to use them however He desires. And God moving on unworthy sinners to save them and use them for His glory is called the grace of God. And everybody in this room this morning has experienced this amazing grace and it ought to absolutely leave us speechless. But the means by which the grace of God flowed to Abraham and was appropriated to Abraham was his wife. Exactly how does that work? Well, remember what Peter said to us. Look at 1 Peter 3, 1 and 2 again. In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands, so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be what? Won. How? Without a word. How? By the behavior of the wives as they what? Observe your chaste and respectful behavior. This is not something you tell your husband you've got. This is something you show your husband, you've got. So tell me what Sarah's response was to the betrayal of her husband. What does the Word of God reveal to us that Sarah said when she realized that her husband was allowing a wicked king to abuse her all night long so that he could go free? What does the Bible tell you she said? Nothing! Not a single word. Sarah demonstrated her rock solid trust in God by hoping. that as she submitted to the authority of her husband that God would move and intervene and prevent sin and abuse from taking place and that God would change her husband. What an amazing woman! What faith! What hope! So what happened? Look at Genesis 12, 17-20. But the Lord struck Pharaoh in his house with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife. Then Pharaoh called Abram and said, What is this you have done to me? Why did you not tell me she was your wife? Why did you say she is my sister so that I took her from my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go. Pharaoh commanded his men concerning him and they escorted him away with his wife and all that belonged to him. What a coincidence that God just decided to step in at this point and prevent all that was supposed to happen that night. What a coincidence, right? So here God sovereignly intervened to protect Sarah from a horrible experience, and we praise God for that. But now at this point, many would say, yeah, but I bet Sarah gave Abraham an earful when they got home. And since she can't trust the guy, I bet she never would follow Abraham again. Well, if you bet that way, you lose. Look at the next verse in the Bible. So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, he and his wife and all that belonged to him and lot with him. Here we see Sarah submitting once again to her husband's authority and leaving Egypt and going to the Negev. Wait a minute, Brother Blair, are you saying that was okay? Are you saying that all wives have to just stand there and say nothing while their husbands betray them? No. What I'm saying is that the Apostle Peter was moved along by God the Holy Spirit to command believing wives that they should submit to the authority of their husbands even when their husbands are disobedient to the word of God because when the husbands observe your chaste and respectful behavior they may be one. That's what I'm saying. And when Peter racked his mind to come up with an example of what that submission looked like he used Sarah. But then Peter said, Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. So please, those of you that's coming here, do not go out here and tell people, man, if you go to that church, the pastor makes you obey your husband even when your husband is wrong. No, here's what I want you to say. The Holy Bible commands me to trust God more than I trust my husband, and the pastor of the Covenant of Peace Church believes the Bible is true. That's what you say. Because I didn't write this. I had nothing to do with what it says. But that is what it says. So what do we do? How is an educated and technologically advanced woman in the 21st century supposed to become a woman like this? Well, I would start by eliminating every teacher in your life that instructs contrary to what Peter says here. I would not feed on feminist or egalitarian indoctrination. And I would feed on the Word of God. Secondly, I would become a person of prayer and call out to God to help you become obedient to the infallible Word of God. Okay, Brother Blair, I think I got it. But that was real hard. That was a hard lesson. And I'm so glad you got it because it's about to get a whole lot worse. Abraham betraying Sarah down in Egypt would have been bad enough. But it wasn't long until Abram did the very same thing again a second time. Look at Genesis 20, verses 1 and 2. Now Abraham journeyed from there toward the land of the Negev and settled between Kadesh and Shur. Then he journeyed in Gerar. And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, here's my sister. So Abimelech, king of Gerar, sent and took Sarah. Same song, second verse. Akin? Being thrown to the wolves the first time was bad enough, but this? This is intolerable. No self-respecting woman would tolerate her husband acting this way. Female abuse is at an all-time high, Brother Blair. So why are you promoting women being weak and teaching them to allow themselves to be used like this? Why every marriage counselor in town would recommend immediate divorce over betrayal like this? I guarantee you they would. But what does the inerrant scriptures tell us? In the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands, so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, they may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives, as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external, braiding the hair or 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. For in this way, In former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands just as Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. So the Bible does not tell us that Sarah was weak. Peter says she was strong in faith and that she hoped in God and that she was fearless. And Peter uses Sarah as a living example of a real woman who suffered real harm, who actually possessed a quality about her that was both imperishable and that was precious in the sight of God. Yeah, but look what being submissive got Sarah. Abraham just betrayed her again. Yeah, but read what happened next. Read Genesis 20, 3-7. But God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night and said to him, Behold, you are a dead man because of the woman whom you have taken, for she is married. Now Abimelech had not come near her and said, Lord, will you slay a nation even though blameless? Did he not himself say to me, she is my sister? And she herself said, he is my brother? Here we go. Classic defense, right? In the integrity of my heart, look at this guy, and the innocence of my hands, I have taken this woman to gang rape her all night long. Really? Wow. Then God said to him in the dream, Yeah, I know that in the integrity of your heart you have done this, and I also kept you from sinning against me. Therefore, I did not let you touch her. I don't know. Let's call it sovereignty. now therefore restore the man's wife for he is a prophet and he will pray for you and you will live but if you do not restore her know what you know that you will surely die and all who are yours so two different times with two different Kings the Pharaoh of Egypt and the king of Gerar Abraham between betrayed his wife and subjected her to being abused in order to save his own skin what a no-good lowlife man but a no-good, low-life man who had the hand of God on his life and who became the father of faith. I want you to listen to how the Apostle Paul describes Abraham in Romans 4, verses 1 through 3. After he did all this wickedness, here's how Paul describes him. What shall we say then that Abraham, our forefather, according to the flesh, is found? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the scripture say? Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as... Wow. How about Galatians 3, 6 through 9? Even so Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Therefore be sure, that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. The scripture foreseeing that God will justify the Gentiles by faith preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham saying all the nations will be blessed in you so then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham the believer. So when the Apostle Paul wanted to give an Old Testament example of what justification by faith alone looked like he skipped right over Moses and went straight to Abraham. This is why all those messianic groups that you see popping up all over the place, they call themselves messianic. You familiar with them? Okay, that's a false advertising. Messianic Jews are Jews who get saved and believe Jesus is the Messiah. Gentiles who abandon Christianity and go back under the law are just deceived. And that's what these people are. And they hate Paul. And they hate Galatians. And they hate Romans. And they hate the book of Hebrews. Because in there it talks about all this kind of stuff. It irritates them. Because Moses, Moses, Moses, Moses, Moses, Moses. Because Moses gave the law. And Paul didn't use Moses as an example. He used Abraham. And this just infuriates them. It infuriates Jews. Go talk to a Jew about salvation. First thing he'll bring up is Moses. And start talking about Abraham. You see smoke coming out of his ears. It's amazing. So, and then look in John 8, verse 56, look what Jesus said. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and he saw it and was glad. What happened? How did this lousy, no good weakling who repeatedly betrayed his wife become Abraham the believer? And somebody who rejoiced at seeing Jesus? I mean, there are people here today who would not even associate with a man who repeatedly betrayed his wife like this, and rightly so. And yet the Apostle Paul uses this same man as the perfect example of saving faith. So what happened? I know, it was the covenant in Genesis 17. There it is. Abraham must have changed after he was circumcised, right? Wrong! His second betrayal came after God made the covenant with him. Was it the fact that Abraham had received great and unthinkable promises from God? Nope. Abraham was changed in the very same way we are changed today. By grace and through the gift of faith. But what did God use as the means of that grace? For example, Jesus promised that the church would be here when He comes back. And that Jesus is going to present the Christian church to Himself as the crowning jewel of all that he did and said and accomplished and is while he was here on earth and in heaven as our intercessor. So he's going to give himself a present when he comes back. He's going to present to himself the church in all of her glory without any spot or without any blemish. Now, I don't know what your eschatology is. I'm just telling you it's hard for me to understand that and think about circling the wagons and just hanging on because everything's getting worse and we're just going to hang on and hope that Jesus rescues us before we all die. I just can't get that out of these verses. He said that the very gates of Hades itself would not prevail against the church. Okay, that's triumph and that is victory. Jesus said that the gates of Hades would not prevail against the church. That is a solemn promise from a God who cannot lie. The means by which that promise is fulfilled are frail and fallible men whom God periodically raises up who are specially chosen, specially gifted, specially anointed to call the church to repentance and who lead the way to keep the church on track. So yes, the majestic grace of God happened to Abraham. But the means of that grace was that he saw, he observed, he witnessed the chaste and respectful behavior of his wife even when he was disobedient to the Word and wanting. Abraham knew he had sinned, but instead of his wife giving him what he deserved, Sarah displayed the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God, and Abraham could not stay the same. Now how do we know that Sarah actually did that? Because Peter uses her as the example for all new covenant wives to emulate. He said, Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord, and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. But on what basis did Abraham deserve his wife to submit to him? He did not deserve it. So on what basis did she submit to her husband? The Bible says Sarah hoped in God. Sarah was a godly woman who believed that God was the great adjudicator of all evils, and that ultimately God will right all wrongs, He will comfort all the oppressed, and He will judge all things righteously. Sarah loved God more than she loved Abraham. Sarah trusted God more than she trusted Abraham. And Sarah knew that she needed to talk to God about her husband, her sinful husband, more than she talked to her sinful husband about God. But, Brother Blair, I mean, I believe the Bible and all, but this is ridiculous. You're saying that wives just need to take it and keep their mouths shut? Have you ever met my husband? How am I supposed to submit myself to him? What guarantees do I have that he will not simply use my submission to walk over me and keep on abusing me? Go on and say it. Amen, brother. Now, there's a lot of things I could say in answering those questions. I think they're very good questions. But suffice it to say that I didn't write this. I'm not the one who told wives to be like this. The God who made women to be the weaker vessel in the first place wrote this. The God who loves women more than anybody else wrote this. The God who cares that women find salvation and experience the fullness of joy more than anybody else wrote this. But we might want to listen to someone else about this subject. Because there are a lot of voices out there that seem to be saying a lot of things about this subject. For example, we might want to listen to Melinda Gates, the wife of Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and the CEO of the Gates Foundation, the organization that just gave $375 million for population control in Africa. She said, quote, a woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman, unquote. Which sounds great, unless you're a poor African black unborn woman who has been targeted for abortion. Or we could listen to that paradigm of virtue and morality, the pop singer Beyonce, who said, quote, we need to shape our own perception of how we view ourselves. We need to step up as women and take the lead, unquote. Or we might want to follow the conservative icon and author, Ayn Rand, who said, quote, the question is not who's going to let women. It's who's going to stop us. Or we might want to become a disciple of that great theologian, Oprah Winfrey, who said, quote, think like a queen. A queen is not afraid to fail. Failure is another stepping stone to greatness. Or we might want to buy into the logic of Gloria Steinem, who said, quote, women don't need a husband or children, they need a job and a career. Or we could listen to the Apostle Peter, who spoke infallibly in Scripture and said, in the same way, you wives, be submissive to your own husbands, so that even if any of them are disobedient to the word, They may be won without a word by the behavior of their wives as they observe your chaste and respectful behavior. Your adornment must not be merely external, braiding the hair, 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. For in this way, in former times, the holy women also who hoped in God used to adorn themselves being submissive to their own husbands. is Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord and you have become her children if you do what is right without being frightened by any fear. What was Sarah's response to her husband's betrayal? Peter said Sarah obeyed Abraham calling him Lord. What was the cause of her ability to do this in the face of repeated betrayals? Her own strength? Her own integrity? No. Sarah was a holy woman who hoped in God. Sarah possessed the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit which is precious in the sight of God. Sarah had a chaste and respectful behavior. Sarah's attention was not on her hair, her jewelry, or clothing. But her focus was on the hidden person of the heart. And Abraham was one. You see, back in the garden before the fall, God made a divine decree in Genesis 2.18. It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make him a helper suitable for him. And so unlike any other creation of God, women have the power to change things. They make ugly things beautiful. They make hard things soft. They make wicked men to be believers of God. There is not a man in this room who has not been wonderfully affected by the touch of a woman. And I have never met the godly man who does not know beyond any shadow of a doubt that his walk with God and his success in the gospel can be directly tied in with the help of his godly wife. And Peter said that the daughters of Sarah fight against the anxiety that rises in their hearts about their husbands and about their children and about the future with unshakeable hope in the promises of God. And a woman like that not only changes her husband, she changes the world. Amen. Let's pray.