Hebrews 13 here tonight, Hebrews chapter 13. There's one other final thought I wanted to bring to us here tonight, verse 20 and 21. I didn't have time to develop, so I kind of quickly went over it on the Lord's Day, and so I just want to mention a few things here, Hebrews 13, verse 20 and 21, as we finish up our study on Hebrews here tonight. Hebrews 13, notice verse 20, Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever, Amen. I've mentioned this before, and of course this is something that I constantly am focused on because I try to Try to minimize perfectionism, as they commonly refer to it. some call it OCD, there's different names that they give for this. But perfectionism is, as I've said, is a work of the flesh, trying to be perfect, trying to reach perfection in the energy and power of the flesh. But I want you to notice here the statement again, verse 20, leading into verse 21, now the God of peace, as we consider then what He's praying about here, verse 21, make you perfect, every good work to do His will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in His sight through Jesus Christ." Now, I want to point out here first of all there are commands, I've brought this before, but There's commands in Scripture. The one that I focus on the most is Matthew 5, 48, where it says, Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Of course the Father then is the standard for our perfection. But not only that, but I want you to notice again verse 20, the beginning of verse 20 going into verse 21. beginning of verse 20, now the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus. So, the God of peace is the one who makes us perfect. So, when you think about that statement there are several references even as I mentioned briefly on the Lord's Day there are several references to the God of peace. I believe there are titles that the Bible emphasizes as far as God is concerned. Romans 15.33, now the God of peace be with you all. Amen. Romans 16, 20, this is an interesting promise. The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. Someday, Satan is gonna be in, well, first of all, he's gonna be locked up for a thousand years, but then he's gonna be in hell, the lake of fire forever and ever. He is not going to be bothering us for all of eternity, thank God. But the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. 2 Corinthians 13, 11, Finally, brethren, farewell, be perfect. There's that command again. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace. And notice the God of love and peace shall be with you. So as we are striving for commands, obeying these commands, be of good comfort, be perfect, be of one mind, live in peace, and so on. The God of love and peace, notice, we will sense His presence with us. Philippians 4, 9 says, those things which ye have both learned and received and heard and seen in me do. And notice, the God of peace shall be with you. So as we understand this, one reason why we lose out and miss out on God's peace in many cases is because we're not living the way we should. Even as we understand what Paul says there, things that we have learned, received, heard, and seen in Paul, doing those things notice the God of peace will be with us. And finally 1 Thessalonians 5, 23, And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly, or entirely, and I pray God your whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. I want you to think about the reality of that statement in 1 Thessalonians 5.23 as we think about what to command here is this prayer request in Hebrews 13, the very God of peace sanctify you. So, again as we think about sanctification being set apart unto God from the world and so on. But the emphasis there is sanctified wholly in our whole spirit, and soul, and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now, why is the God of peace necessary as far as it just not a command, you know, be perfect? Why is it that we need the God of Peace in order for us to obey this command? Well, I believe the answer is found in verse 20 it says, again, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that Great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant. You notice the statement, the power of God in raising Jesus from the dead. I don't know about you, but I don't have that kind of power. We have that kind of power available to us because of the Holy Spirit, you shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you. But I want you to think about this, the God of peace has the power to bring from the dead our Lord Jesus, and of course He's going to bring us from the dead as well. As we think about that power of God, notice with me Galatians 3 verses 1-3, we've seen this before. Galatians 3 verses 1-3, This is where Paul emphasizes the foolishness of the Galatian believers trying to do things in the energy of the flesh. O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you. Now let me ask you, how many of these Galatian believers were in Jerusalem when Jesus died on the cross? I want you to think about the statement, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth crucified among you. I believe that goes back to chapter 2 verse 20, I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth in me. the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me." I believe what he is talking about here is as Paul was living the crucified life before them he says, here is the crucified life, again, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you. This only would I learn of you, received ye the Spirit by the works of the law? by the hearing of faith. So, obviously the works of the law are similar to the works of the flesh even as we see in Galatians 5, or the hearing of faith. Are ye so foolish having begun in the spirit? Are ye now, notice, now made perfect by the flesh. So, what the Holy Spirit started in them are we going to finish it ourselves in the flesh? That's why we need again God's power as we think about the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep. So as we think about God making us perfect in every good work to do His will, He's working in us things that are pleasing to Him. It's amazing that God commands us to do things, but yet He also enables us to obey. Notice Philippians chapter one. Philippians chapter one, verse six. So look at it in chapter one, notice verse six, being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ. What God has started, he's going to finish, but yet he needs willing participants. Unless we are willingly yielding to God's working, we're not going to see all that God wants for us in our lives. Chapter two then, verse 12, wherefore, my beloved, As ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you, both to will and to do of his good pleasure. I want you to notice here, as you put verses 12 and 13 together, we work out what God works in. That's the divine human cooperative, as it's been called. God is working in us, but at the same time, we also have a responsibility to yield to his working as we work out. Notice again, as I've often said, that does not say work for your own salvation with fear and trembling, work out. So we work out what God has been working in us. we consider that. So again, the God of peace wants to do all these things, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. Now as far as understanding what perfection is, I want for us to remind ourselves again of this. I've mentioned these definitions before, but the English word for comes from a Latin word, to complete or to carry to the end. What we are talking about as far as perfection is not sinless perfection in this lifetime. Not one of us is going to achieve that in this lifetime. Someday we are going to be like Christ and so then we will be sinlessly perfect in God's presence. I want you to consider what we are talking about here is we are speaking of being finished, complete, not defective. I want you to think about the opposite of perfect is a defect. No, defect, perfect. So you think about the statement, we're finished, we're complete, we're not defective in our character. So let me ask you, what is still lacking in your character before God? I have to ask myself, what is lacking in my character before God? What is not like Jesus Christ? That's what God wants to make perfect in us. Another part of this definition of being perfect, fully informed, completely skilled. The examples that Webster's 1828 Dictionary gives, men perfect in the use of arms. I would never claim to be perfect in the use of arms. I've used one occasionally throughout my lifetime. In fact, we moved to town before we moved off to the farm when I was nine years old. So I did not have an opportunity to go hunt for pheasant with my dad and grandpa. So I missed out on all those things. So every fall, they went hunting on the property there. So as you think about being perfect in the use of arms as an example, fully informed and completely skilled. men perfect in discipline, that's another example that he gives. Also complete in moral excellencies. So as I said a moment ago, nothing lacking in our moral character before God. Now that's a high command, where God says be perfect and walk before me in that way, manifesting perfection. But how does God make us perfect? This is what I want to kind of finish up on, this is the area where we did not get to on the Lord's Day. Trust me, James chapter one, just a page over here. James chapter one, verses two through four. This first one, we don't like, so we'll get it out of the way right from the start. Trials. God uses trials to perfect us. Think about that. It says here in James 1, verses 2 through 4, my brethren counted all joy when ye fall into diverse or various temptations. And again, the word temptations is not just temptation to sin. Temptations also speaks of trials. Because again, Abraham was not tempted to sin, but God was testing Abraham's faith, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. but let, notice, allow patients to have her perfect work, that she may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. Notice that idea of being complete there, perfect and entire, wanting or lacking nothing, again, in our character. Being perfect, perfect what is lacking in our character. Also, just a short ways over here, 1 Peter chapter five, chapter 5. I want you to notice here another title of God in verse 10, but we'll look at verses 8-10. And I want you to see here again how God perfects what is lacking in our character. Verse 8 of 1 Peter 5, be sober, be vigilant because your adversary the devil as a roaring lion walketh about seeking whom he may devour, whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. Now notice verse 10, but the God of all grace also related to the God of peace, of course God of peace, God of grace who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus after that ye have suffered a while. Guess what we have to suffer a while. We are at least going to suffer until the end of this life and we are glorified. But notice after we have suffered a while make you perfect establish, strengthen, settle you. One other related to these trials here, 2 Corinthians 12, related to this God of all grace. Familiar passage, but I want you to see this in relation to what Paul was told as far as his thorn in the flesh, his affliction. So again, how does God make us perfect? first of all through trials. And again, this is the statement, you know, he says, he wants, he's been pleading with God to remove this thorn in the flesh. Verse seven, lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, or three times, that it might depart from me. And again, God's famous answer here, He said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee, for my strength is made, notice, perfect in weakness. God is not going to use us in a greater way until we understand that we are weak, that we have infirmities and so on. Most gladly, therefore, this is not most of our, This is not our responsibility in most cases. Most gladly, therefore, I rather glory in my infirmities that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore, I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, notice, when I am weak, then am I strong. We need to learn the strength of weakness. When we understand this, again, the God of all grace is going to give us the grace that we need. My grace is sufficient for thee. I also want you to consider the teaching of the word of God. Ephesians chapter four, Ephesians chapter four, Colossians 128 also gives us this idea. But Ephesians chapter four, He gave some, verse 11, apostles, and some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors, and teachers. Notice, for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity of the faith, and notice, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, notice, unto a perfect man, lacking nothing in our character as we saw in James chapter 1, unto the measure of the stature and the fullness of Christ. That we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the slight of men and cunning craftiness whereby they lie in wait to deceive. speaking the truth in love may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body fitly joined together, and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working and the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love." Again, verse 13, coming to the knowledge of the Son of God, the full knowledge of knowing Jesus Christ personally in a relationship unto a perfect man, measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. That's our measuring as far as our perfection. Guess what? I'm not there yet. Also prayer. Let me read for you Colossians 4.12 as far as prayer is a big key in perfection as well as being made perfect by the Lord. who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always laboring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God." That's one of the verses we emphasize in our Will of God series. As we think about the verse again in 1 Thessalonians 5.23 that I quoted a while ago, I pray God, your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless. But it's very interesting as far as prayer also 1 Thessalonians 3.10 says, night and day praying exceedingly that we might see your face and second of all might perfect that which is lacking in your faith. That's one of the things I pray about our church that the Lord would help us perfect what is lacking in our faith through the teaching of the Word of God. I want you to notice one other thing here, Romans 12. familiar verses, but I want you to see this as far as another way in which God makes us perfect. He wants to transform and renew our minds so that we can arrive where God wants us in His perfect will. It says here verse 1, I beseech you therefore brethren by the mercies of God that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service. Notice verse 2, be not conformed to this world. The word conformed there speaks of not allowing the world to shape you into its mold. We shouldn't be looking like the world. We shouldn't be acting like the world. Our philosophy should be different than the world. Be not conformed to this world, but notice, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Ephesians 4.23 talks about being renewed in the spirit of our mind. Notice that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect, notice, will of God. This very clearly relates to what we have seen back in Hebrews 13. So, again the result is as our mind is renewed, transformed, then we're going to prove what God's good and acceptable and perfect will is. As we go back to Hebrews 13, I want you to notice here at the end here at verse 21, notice how God's work of perfection is going to express itself. So, how do we know if we're arriving closer and closer to what God wants to do in our lives? Notice as we think about the God of peace, verse 21, make you perfect. Here's how we evaluate this, in every good work to do His will. Notice as we do good works we are understanding more and more if we are following His will. Notice to do His will, how do we know His will? Obviously the Word of God. The Bible is going to tell us. how we know God's will is, what God's will is. Notice, working in you that which is well-pleasing in His sight. Our desire should be to please Him. That should be our desire. Most of the time, though, it's all about me. We are selfish creatures. As we are less and less selfish, and we're more and more about Him, guess what? It's going to be to His glory, to Him be glory forever and ever. Amen. Now as we think about that glory as we close I want you to notice a couple of passages in Ephesians. Ephesians chapter 1. Ephesians chapter 1 notice verse 3. to be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ." God has given us everything we need to live the Christian life. That's what 2 Peter 1 even says, "'According as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, notice that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestinated us unto salvation.'" No, no, no, no. Again, I like to emphasize predestination is not about salvation, it's about what is produced after salvation, after faith in Christ. Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself according to the good pleasure of His will, Hebrews 13, 21, to the praise of the glory of His grace wherein He hath made us accepted in the Beloved. We are accepted in Jesus Christ. He talks in verse 7 about redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace, wherein He hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence. But again, drop down for the sake of time, verse 12, that we should be to the praise of His glory who first trusted in Christ. Chapter 3, verses 20 and 21 as we close. Ephesians 3, verse 20. Him, that God of peace that we saw back in Hebrews 13, unto Him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, unto Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. As I pile this together, this is my prayer request as I've been studying this passage and be my prayer tonight for us. The God of peace make you perfect in every good work to do his will. It's all about his will, not my will. In fact, my will is selfish, self-centered as I've already emphasized. But then ultimately working in you, that which is well-pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ for his glory forever and ever. Amen. Lord, I pray that you'd help us. As we think about this passage and closing out of our study of Hebrews here tonight. Lord, I pray that you'd help us to keep our focus on you. And I just praise you for being the God of peace here tonight. And Lord, I praise you also for having the power, the power to raise Jesus Christ from the dead, the power to help us live the Christian life. Holy Spirit of God, that you'd help us to put this to practice. And Lord, I pray that we would be more and more perfect like Thee in performing Thy will in every good work. I pray in Jesus' name, amen.