The end of every journey provides a moment for reflection. You’ve arrived at your destination. If you’ve been on this two-month journey with us, I encourage you to take a moment and consider what you’ve learned. We have touched almost every book of the Old Testament and every book of the New Testament.

We’ve seen God create the world and work to redeem it. We’ve seen Him make promises and fulfill them. We’ve seen the tragedy of sin in people’s lives, but we’ve also seen the power of the gospel to transform those lives. We’ve seen the faithless receive judgment, and the faithful a reward. Finally, we’ve seen the hope of redemption: Christ will return!

As we close this series it’s good to remember that we’ve just scratched the surface. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul reminds his spiritual son to remain faithful by not leaving the things he has learned and had committed himself to (v. 14). He trusted the Scriptures, and Paul wants him to continue to do that. Paul reminds him that the Scriptures are “God-breathed” (v. 16), meaning that God is their source. Yes, He used people to write the words, but He made sure they wrote what He wanted them to write.

As a result, Scripture is of ultimate usefulness. Any time invested in studying God’s Word will equip the believer to teach what it says. Knowing the Bible gives us confidence to speak the truth, to challenge, and correct. It teaches us how to live righteously. Christians need to be able to do these things for others and for themselves. Attention to the Scriptures equips us. So, don’t stop now. Lean into your study of the Word of God and continue to equip yourself for every good work!

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The best stories, the ones we delight in, end well. At the end of the story, evil is vanquished and courage rewarded. The future looks bright. But on this earth, there is a pervading sadness to even the most satisfying ending. Sin mars true happiness, leaving lingering dissatisfaction.

But that is not the way the Bible ends. Since Genesis, we have watched God work out His plan to restore what was lost in the Garden of Eden. Now, in the book of Revelation, we see the result: a new heaven and a new earth! These words are meant to echo the original Creation account before the world was marred by sin. That creation was good, but not perfect. Sin was a possibility.

But this new heaven and earth will be different. They are fit for a holy city, Jerusalem, and for God to dwell among His people (v. 3). What is more, the consequences of sin, death and the mourning, crying, and pain will be gone (v. 4). They characterize the way the world used to work. God declares that the old order of things is no more when He says, “I am making everything new!” (v. 5).

Chapter 21 of Revelation describes that future reality. How would the readers in the first century have known they could trust it to come to pass? How can we, today, know and look forward to it? God declares that it is trustworthy and true (v. 5). The hope of everyone with faith in Christ for salvation rests on these words. They are true. God has committed Himself to restoring the world we live in. The work of Christ secured that future for us. This is our hope. This is our victory. The story ends the best possible way it could.

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If you live in a city, you know that road rage is real. Judging by the behavior of some drivers, that inch of space separating your car from the car in front of you was worth the price of their car and your life. To some, the penalty for not driving quickly enough is risking their lives to ride your bumper until you get the hint. When I see an instance of road rage, I wonder, Was the fight worth it?

Jude, the brother of Jesus, wrote his letter to remind Christians that, indeed, some fights are worth it, especially the fight for faith. In a world that assaults our confidence in Christ and the gospel, it is important to expend energy to keep our faith strong. This type of fight is willing to say “no” to certain things. As Titus 2:12 encourages, we are to “say ‘no’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.”

Jude’s readers were at risk because individuals had secretly infiltrated their community and were living contrary to the faith. Jude calls these people ungodly because by their behavior they were abusing God’s grace. They believed forgiveness meant they could live immoral lives (v. 4). By doing so they denied the authority of Christ! These people were a significant danger to the community. As Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians, “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Cor. 15:33). Sinful conduct could spread throughout the community.

What should Jude’s readers do? He calls them to fight for faith (v. 3). In this case it means saying “no” to ungodliness, protecting themselves and their community from those who would lead them astray. Now, that is a fight worth fighting!

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Christian fellowship is an amazing thing to behold. There is nothing quite like the experience of meeting a total stranger and finding out they are a believer in Christ. There is a bond between Christians that the Bible describes using familial language. When you meet someone who knows the Lord, you are meeting a brother or sister. Salvation unites us as a family.

In a world where Christians left their homes to preach the gospel, it was necessary for them to depend on the hospitality and welcome of other Christians. But hospitality came at a cost, and from time to time, Christians needed encouragement to be hospitable (Rom. 12:13). John wrote this letter to his friend, Gaius, encouraging him to keep up the good work. Gaius had a habit of serving brothers and sisters in Christ, even if they were strangers to him (v. 5). These men and women went on to tell others about his kindness, described by John as love (v. 6).

Recognizing that guests sometimes overstay their welcome, John encourages his friend to bid them farewell, when the time comes, in a God-honoring way (v. 6). Did John sense that showing hospitality was becoming wearisome? That’s why he reminds Gaius that these visitors went on the road for God’s Name (v. 7). They left at risk to themselves, taking no money from unbelievers, whom John describes as “pagans” (v. 7). As a result, they needed help from the family of God. Rather than call these travelers irresponsible, John reminds Gaius that it was right to help them. They are on a mission for the gospel.

As a final encouragement he reveals that when Gaius helped them, he was joining in their efforts for the gospel; he was working with them! Christians can partner with the gospel efforts of other believers by showing hospitality when necessary.

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Brands protect their reputations vigorously. They work hard to hire the best spokesperson and generally pay that person well. But if that representative does something to tarnish their image, brands will release them from their contracts just as purposefully as they hired them. Associations matter and brands understand that association with the wrong people can hurt.

In this brief second letter, John warns his readers to be on guard against people who associate with Christians but reject a core doctrine of the faith. They do not believe that Jesus Christ appeared in the flesh (v. 7). By this time, the gospel had spread widely enough, and different communities developed in different parts of the Roman world. As a result, strange teachings about Christ began to appear. One argued that Jesus Christ was not actually a flesh-and-blood human being but only appeared to be such. False teachers were spreading this doctrine as they travelled.

John feared that his readers would give in to this false teaching, and he would lose what he worked for and the reward that comes with faithfulness in Christ (v. 8). These people are deceivers (v. 7)! His advice is simple: Stick with what you have been taught. Stay with Christ who leads through His teaching. Reject Christ’s teaching, and you reject God. There are many details about the Christian life that God has not fully explained. Avoid speculation!

But what should we do with the false teachers who want to associate with us? Do not welcome them or even bring them into your home (v. 10). This may seem harsh, but the consequence of such friendship is clear. If you associate with them, you associate with their wickedness.

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As a young man I went on a caving expedition in the Adirondack mountains of New York. Along with my co-campers, I squeezed myself through narrow passages and down cracks in the rock until we came to a large room underground. At that point we all agreed to turn our lights off. I was not prepared for the depth of darkness that enveloped us. Without light, we were completely lost. If we tried to leave the cave without light, we would never have made it out.

In his first letter, John uses light and darkness to motivate Christians to love one another (v. 10). He argues that anyone who hates a fellow Christian is like someone who walks around in the dark, they are lost because they have been blinded by darkness (v. 12).

Why use such a powerful illustration? Because hating a fellow Christian is unbecoming of a person who claims to believe in Jesus Christ. Consider the incongruity of a person who claims to love Christ and yet hates those for whom Christ died. We would look askance at someone who says, “I love Jesus, but I hate others who love Jesus.” That person would be blind to the truth of the gospel. In Christ, those who have believed are family. Family members ought not hate one another. We may disagree, we may argue, we may struggle with one another, but we never hate each other.

On the other hand, anyone who loves a fellow Christian is like a person who walks around in a well-lit environment! That individual will not stumble because they can see any obstacle in their way (v. 10). Loving fellow believers should be the normal setting for Christians because we believe in the Light of the World!

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For ten years I led trips to Israel for students. Since I was serving young people, it was important for them to understand the cost of the program. I wanted no confusion about how much they had to pay and how much cash was needed for expenses. Everything was included up front. Once they paid that price, they didn’t need to bring any money with them.

Knowing his readers were facing the pain of persecution, Peter reminded them that God “has given us everything we need for a godly life” (v. 3). In the face of difficulty, it is easy for Christians to assume we are missing something…that we need more. We may even come to doubt God’s goodness and believe He is withholding something from us.

Peter reminds us that we know God’s character! This knowledge should enable us to understand how to live (v. 3). God is gloriously good and His call on our lives, even if it means difficulty, is a good thing. When we cling to His promises, our desire is for Him rather than the world (v. 4). He has forgiven our sins and cleansed them (v. 9). We will be with Him one day! Clinging to these promises takes faith. We don’t have all the benefits now, but we will, for they have already been paid for.

With faith in God and His promises established, Peter calls us to press on by growing in a series of behaviors which will make our knowledge of God productive. It’s not enough to have knowledge if it doesn’t work itself out in life. Like a person who pays for an all-inclusive trip but forgets that all their meals have been paid for, we might forget that God cleansed us from sin. We need to remember what He has promised, paid for and provided!

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When someone leaves the country of their birth and moves to a new country, they leave all that is familiar behind. They have to learn how to survive in an unfamiliar world. Often, they struggle to fit in. Their behavior signals to everyone that they “aren’t from around here.”

When the apostle Peter wrote this letter, he urged his readers to take on the perspective of spiritual “foreigners and exiles” in their daily lives (v. 11). As the young Christian community began to grow, they were out of place because their values as Christians conflicted with the values of this world. They were trying to fight sin in their lives, but the world encouraged sinful behavior. What is more, the good things they valued were hated by the world so much that they were accused of wrongdoing (v. 12)!

Peter’s exhortation is that they lean into living like people who have left the place of their birth and are living in a new home. This advice is true for us as well, living as Christ followers in a secular culture. We are to live in such a way that we do not conceal our true citizenship. People of God are to honor God by doing good, submitting to authorities, showing respect, loving other Christians, and honoring authority (vv. 12, 17). “For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people” (v. 15).

Peter warns: “[D]o not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves” (v. 16). Like an accent that lingers, our behavior identifies Christians as different. This may cause suffering in our current life, but it is the kind of behavior that God promises to reward when Christ appears (v. 12).

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