The Gospel of John The Spirit of Truth
And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you into the age. The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you.
1 Peter The God of Grace will Mend Us
Moreover, the God of all grace, the one who called you into His eternal glory in Christ, after having suffered for a little while, Himself will mend, establish, strengthen, ground you.
Vigilant (γρηγορέω)
In 1 Peter 5:8, we are instructed to be watchful because our adversary, the Devil, roars around seeking whom he may swallow up. Vigilant (γρηγορέω) means to watch; be on alert for danger.
On his way to Jerusalem, Paul takes the opportunity to stop in Ephesus to encourage the Pastors to shepherd the flock of God while taking heed for themselves, Acts 20:28. When he is gone, he is aware that savage wolves will come in among them, Acts 20:39. Even some of their own will draw away disciples after themselves, rejecting the truth and seeking the glory of men, Acts 20:30. Therefore, they are to be on alert, for Paul has warned them of the dangers for the past three years, Acts 20:31. This assembly listened to Paul’s instruction. They tested those who claimed to be apostles and were not, finding them liars. They kept watch in their work, hard labor, and patience, not bearing things that were wrong. However, in doing so, they lost their love for the brethren, Revelation 2:4. We are to remain on guard for false teachers while being cautious not to fall into the same trap as the saints in Ephesus and lose our love for fellow saints.
After rebuking and exhorting the saints of Corinth, Paul encourages them to be vigilant and stand firm in the faith. Rather than being carnal, they are to do all things out from love, 1 Corinthians 16:13. They are to welcome those who are doing the work of the Lord and pay attention to the dangers of false apostles, who had infiltrated their assemblies and caused a lot of spiritual damage. Still today, their impact is felt among many assemblies that are focused on emotional content, which leads to divisions, envy, and strife. They do not grow Spiritually because they are not watching out for the dangers of this world and are tossed around by every wind of teaching by the trickery of men to deceive them. In the same way, those of the reformed or covenant assemblies today are warned to be watchful, for many claim to follow Jesus. Yet they reject the truth of the gospel and are, therefore, dead. Strengthen the things that remain and do not defile yourselves with the false doctrine from these types of assemblies, Revelation 3:1.
We are sons of the light; therefore, let us not sleep. Instead, we are to be watchful with a clear mind, having on the breastplate of faith and love and the helmet of salvation for God has not appointed us unto any quality of wrath, but to possess salvation, 1 Thessalonians 5:6-9. As we are being watchful for danger from those who bring false doctrine and seek to gain disciples unto themselves, let us lay hold of eternal life, casting off the things of darkness while putting on the new man, and walk as those who are of the day.
Laying Hold of Eternal Life
Godliness with contentment is great gain. Yet, some seek to deceive the saints by teaching that financial gain is a means of godliness. This false doctrine is also known as the prosperity gospel. The fondness of money is a root of all wrong, and those who follow after it will stray from the faith in their greed, 1 Timothy 6:3-10. Therefore, we are to put away the fondness of money and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and objectivity of mind, 1 Timothy 6:11, for in doing so, we will take hold of eternal life, 1 Timothy 6:12. Those who are rich in this present age are not to be high minded, trusting in uncertain riches; rather, they are to do good works, being rich in proper works, generous, fellowshipping, so that they store up for themselves a proper foundation for the time to come, taking hold of eternal life, 1 Timothy 6:17-19, for those who determine to be wealthy fall into temptation and a snare, leading them into many harmful and foolish desires, 1 Timothy 6:5.
A person who continues a lifestyle of sin after being saved is not taking hold of eternal life. We are to lay aside the things of the old man and put on the new, Colossians 3:9-10, while abstaining from fleshly desires that war against our soul (emotions), 1 Peter 2:11. Although sin does not take away the salvation of the one who is saved, for nothing can separate us from the love of God, Romans 8:39, it still needs to be dealt with. One who is clean only needs to wash his feet, John 13:10. Unfortunately, many saints walk around with filthy feet because they continue to walk in the darkness, not doing the truth. A saint who maintains a lifestyle of sin is shortsighted, forgetting he has been washed from his old sins, 2 Peter 2:9, and has no fellowship with God, for the one who walks in the darkness does not share anything in common with Him, 1 John 1:5-6.
Laying hold of eternal life involves using what God has given to us in salvation to live out the life we now have in Christ. When a person believes that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day according to the Scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, the Holy Spirit washes and regenerates him, Titus 3:5, immerses him into the body of the Christ, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Christ indwells him, Colossians 1:27, and God the Father gives him all things pertaining to life and godliness, 2 Peter 1:3. Therefore, laying hold of eternal life is not seeking to gain it, for in Christ we already have it, 1 John 5:12. When a Christian lives a lifestyle of a lush, he is not walking in the truth. The truth is the doctrine by which we have victory over our sin nature (Romans 6:4-6, 11,13), for drunkenness is a work of the flesh, Galatians 5:21. The Christian who curses all the time does not recognize he is under attack from demons, for rotten communication comes from Satan, nor does he understand the proper use of the armor from God, Ephesians 6:10-18. The Christian who follows after the latest fads of the world system does not realize that he has been crucified in Christ to the world, Galatians 6:14. The love of the Father is not in the world for its desires are the lust of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of biological life, 1 John 2:16. Rather, he is allowing the world system to rock him to sleep, 1 John5:19. This type of person has not taken hold of eternal life. God has given us all things pertaining to life and godliness; let us lay aside the things of the old man, fight the good fight, and take hold of eternal life, 1 Timothy 6:12.