Introduction

A. To persevere means to bear up under some sort of pressure that is being applied from without.

B. Peter knew that the church would need a strong reserve of inner strength to survive the troublesome times ahead.

I. Why do we need perseverance?

A. Troublesome times are coming for all of us (2 Timothy 3:12).

B. We must endure to be saved (Matthew 10:22; 24:12-13).

C. We must persevere if we wish to bring forth fruit for the Master (Luke 8:14-15).

D. We must endure to receive the promised reward (Luke 22:28-30; Romans 2:7; James 1:2; Hebrews 10:32-39).

II. How do we build perseverance?

A. We must pursue it (1 Timothy 6:11; 2 Peter 1:5).

B. We acquire patience through study (Romans 15:4-5).

C. Patience is one of the fruits of genuine love (1 Corinthians 13:7-8).

D. We have examples of perseverance in the prophets (James 5:11), the apostles (2 Corinthians 1:3-7), our brethren who have suffered (2 Thessalonians 1:4-9), and of course Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3).

E. We can persevere more easily when we consider the advantages of our suffering (Hebrews 12:4-11; Romans 5:3-4).

Conclusion

A. We need to persevere until the job is finished (Philippians 1:25).

B. Through it all we must persist in the law of liberty (James 1:25) if we wish to receive the blessings God has in store for us.