Coram Deo Church — Bremerton, WA

Understanding the text The world is full of false and empty gospels that offer vain hope and strength. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ is able to save, sustain, and transform us because it is the truth. The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ are objective historical events, and therefore have genuine power. As Christians, we must be on guard against false hopes and false gospels. As a c...

Understanding the text Peter has exhorted us to obey Christ and resist sin. We are to endure suffering while witnessing to the world of the saving power of God. This isn’t a solo project. Rather it’s a team effort and requires that we exercise humility towards one another. Elders are to oversee the Church of Christ. They are to serve the body through teaching, preaching, prayer, and practical care...

Understanding the text Christ promised His Church that suffering, opposition, and difficulty in the world would be the normal experience, not the exception. However, not all suffering is the same. Peter makes an important distinction between two fundamentally different causes of suffering. The first is the kind of suffering that comes from wrongdoing. We are warned against this kind of suffering....

Understanding the text In a sense, each Christian has two lives. The first is the life that they lived pre-conversion. This life was dominated by the desires of the flesh and characterized by selfishness, indulgence, and empty idolatry. But at the point of conversion, that life ends and a new life begins. This new life comes to us by the power of God and frees us from our old desires, giving us a...

Understanding the text Christ’s atoning death on our behalf gives us the love and humility to serve and suffer for the sake of others. But it is Christ’s triumphant resurrection from death that gives us the courage to face and endure opposition, persecution, and suffering. We are called to follow Him in both courage and humility. Peter reminds us of Noah who faithfully preached the gospel with lov...

Understanding the text Unfortunately, many Christians approach the Church with a consumer mentality. Once a local church fails to provide the desired goods, they move on to another church, which only perpetuates Christian immaturity. Peter sees the Church very differently. Because of our objective unity in Christ, we can not give up on each other. Rather we are to imitate Christ with “sympathy, br...

Understanding the text In the previous text, we learned that all authority is given by God and therefore, Christians can and should submit to authority. In this text, the principle of submission and authority is applied to marriage. Wives are exhorted to submit to their husbands. Peter assumes that some women had become Christians while their spouses had not yet converted. Rather than focusing on...

Understanding the text The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ means that He and He alone is Lord. The Father has given Him all authority in heaven and on earth (Matthew 28:18). As Abraham Kuyper famously said, “ ...there is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” This supremacy, which Christ has over all...

Understanding the text How we live is an expression of what we are. In other words, what we do and how we act flows out of who and what we are. This text is full of identity words. Peter uses rich Old Testament words like “chosen race,” “royal priesthood,” and “holy nation” to describe every Christian’s identity. He then connects these identity words with our conduct as he urges us to live holy li...

Understanding the text Difficulties and trials can have an intoxicating effect on us. They can lead us to see God and the world through a myopic and self-centered lens. It’s as if we forget everything except the truth that we are hurting. Faith in Jesus does not ignore the difficulties of life, but it does provide a biblical context for thinking about it. By remembering that in spite of our suffer...

Understanding the text Nothing challenges our faith like the ongoing experience of “various trials” (1 Peter 1:6). But these trials also present us with great opportunities to grow in our faith in ways that ease and comfort cannot. Peter knows the Church was experiencing difficulties and wanted to encourage them. But how do you do that? What is it that encourages and empowers Christians to endure...

Discipleship Questions 1. How has prayer made a difference in your life? 2. How would you assess your own prayer life? Where is it strong? Where does it need to grow? 3. Read 1 Timothy 2:1-2. Take a moment to pray for those who occupy positions of authority in your life.

Discipleship Questions 1. Read Romans 8:32. How does the Gospel give us confidence that God will meet our daily needs? 2. In what ways has God provided you with strength and stability? 3. How does God give us hope for the future? Apart from God, what hope is there for the future?

On August 26, 2019, Pastor Jon Needham was invited to speak on the topic of biblical sexuality at a gathering for Thrive Kitsap; a group of young adults from different local churches that meets regularly for Bible study, prayer and fellowship. This recording contains the teaching time and also a lengthy Q&A session at the end.

Discipleship Questions 1. When was a time that you remember experiencing God's glory through His creation? 2. Read Psalm 19:7-14. David lists a number of ways that God interacts with His people through His word, (e.g. the law of the LORD, the testimony of the LORD, etc.), and the outcomes that should accompany those interactions. What are the outcomes that are mentioned? How have you experienced t...

1. How would you describe David's response to God in verses 1-3? In what ways can you identify with his response? 2. What attributes of God does David celebrate in the first 30 verses of this Psalm? 3. What is the connection between David's theology and his confidence seen in verses 29-30? How can the truth of who God is give you greater confidence and joy?