“Come to the Lord, the living stone rejected by people as worthless but chosen by God as valuable.” – 1 PETER 2:4 GNT
“But you are a chosen people, royal priests, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession. You were chosen to tell about the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” – 1 PETER 2:9 NCV
CHRISTIAN MESSAGE
By WARD PIMLEY
Pastor, Journalist, Author
THE APOSTLE PETER mentions “chosen” three times in our passage: the first time, He references His Son; the next two times, He references us.
- Chosen by God as valuable.
- Chosen to be royal priests/holy nation.
- Chosen to tell others the Good News.
That word “chosen” is key to understanding 1 Peter 2 because God, through His servant Peter, reminds us that He has “chosen” us.
In fact, in Genesis, Chater 1 Verse 28, God chose us to be collaborators with Him in rendering *dominion* over the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every living thing that creeps on the earth.
Genesis 1:27-28 (ESV) So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Please keep in mind that as we exegete 1 Peter 2, we can appreciate why God puts up with us, why He has redeemed us through His Son. He has *chosen* us and still *chooses* us to be in partnership with Him and in fellowship with each other.
Keep in mind, also, that in our first text verse, the apostle says that Jesus is the *living stone* chosen by God to be valuable, even though His people rejected their Messiah, even though most people even today reject the Messiah.
That word *chosen* is the key word in 1 Peter 2.
1 Peter 2 verses 1-3 (1st segment)
“So, put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.” – 1 Peter 2:1 ESV
In your identity as a follower of Jesus Christ, as a true believer that He is the Messiah, the Second Person of the Tripartite Trinity, here are some descriptions – or indicators – of how you should live. This list comes to us from God through Peter. This is God’s list, not Peter’s list. Peter was the instrument, but God was the author.
Rid yourself of:
- Malice
- Deceit
- Hypocrisy
- Envy
- Slander
Replace them with: Pure Milk of the Word – so, like a baby grows through life into an adult, you may grow in your spiritual life to become one who …
- Is a mature Christian,
- Draws confidence from his/her walk with the Lord,
- Can withstand spiritual conflict (warfare),
- Will witness in word and deed for the Lord Jesus Christ, and
- Honors Fruit of the Spirit – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
1 Peter 2 verses 4-8 (2nd segment)
“Come to the Lord, the living stone rejected by people as worthless but chosen by God as valuable.” – 1 Peter 2:4 NCV
Peter then describes believers as “living stones” who are being built – or fashioned by God – into a spiritual house. That house, or structure, features Jesus Christ as the “cornerstone,” the building block upon which the house is built and stands.
What you’ll see as a believer is that much of the world will not respect your beliefs but will consider you to be their enemy: you will be labeled a ‘hater’ or a ‘bigot’ because you believe what God tells us through His Word (the Bible), which differs from what the world teaches.
The world holds “human reason” to be the god of gods; Christians hold God’s Word to be God.
So, we believe …
- God when He said He created two genders, not 57 of them.
- Men should protect women and provide for them, and, in turn, women should respect men and encourage them for the burden of care God has placed on men.
- We should protect the lives of the unborn, considering them human, with separate DNA from their mother, and conceived with God’s blessing.
- We should share the peace and joy God has placed on our hearts instead of the rancor, self-centeredness, and striving for material gain that mars the lives of unsurrendered hearts.
You will, by your life and word, prove the world’s lie as to what is true and good and perfect versus what is not.
The Bible tells us not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. – Romans 12:2 NKJV
1 Peter 2 verses 9-10 (3rd segment)
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.” – 1 Peter 2:9-10 ESV
Peter identifies the church as a “chosen people, royal priesthood, holy nation, God’s special possession,” called out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.
This means that, as the song Amazing Grace so eloquently points out: “once we were lost but now we’re found, were blind but now we see.”
In the OT, God says that those who did not know Him (Gentiles) would come to know Him, those who were “not my people” (unbelievers) would become known as “my people,” and I will be their God.
God is both a God of “inclusion” and of “exclusion.”
- INCLUSION – His invitation is open to all to receive.
- EXCLUSION – His reward excludes those who reject Him.
When we did not know God, we were not recipients of His mercy; now, in Christ, we walk in fellowship with the Lord, and we do receive His mercy.
1 Peter 2 verses 11-12 (4th segment)
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” – 1 Peter 2:11-12 ESV
This passage calls us to recognize that we are to be *salt and light* to the world – that most of the world is populated by unbelievers. With our new identity in Christ as Christ followers, we are *called* by God to live honorable lives, reflecting God’s glory through good deeds.
Those good deeds should be delivered in love, in compassion, in humility, in good humor, in grace – not begrudgingly and not condescendingly.
That means we should not consider ourselves somehow *better* than someone else. We are *forgiven,* not *perfect*. We are simply doing our jobs as faithful servants. We are just doing what God expects of us.
In short, we are to *be Jesus* to the people we meet. We might be the only representative of Jesus many of them have seen in a long time or ever will see.
1 Peter 2 verses 13-20 (5th segment)
“Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish evildoers. For this is the will of God.” – 1 Peter 2:13 ESV
Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood (of believers). Honor the emperor. We are to be obedient to government, pay our taxes, obey the laws, educate ourselves before voting, recognize the rights of others to express themselves, and obey traffic laws.
God instituted civil government for our sakes, to maintain order and punish the unruly. We are called to respect our leaders as long as they govern wisely.
Unfortunately, most of them do not, and most countries are led by unelected strong men. Even our own leaders often veer from God’s wisdom. We are to pray for their hearts and minds, to follow the Lord’s will.
As such, we also are called to speak into the culture. As Christians, our voices should be loud whenever our leaders take us down the wrong road.
Now, there are some Christians who believe we should be silent about temporal affairs, focusing solely on spiritual matters. They believe the temporal – earthly matters – are distasteful and beneath them. We might call that the *monastery* view.
I disagree. Notice, I said “I.” My view. I am part of the Christian tradition that believes we should lead by our actions and speak into the culture, as well. Maybe we’ll call that the *involved* view.
We ought to call out the abortionists, the proponents of homosexuality, the transgenderism, and other atrocities that mar our current culture. Our forebears in the pulpit and the church members called out slavery, as the evil it was.
Slavery still is evil. We have 300,000 unclaimed migrant children that have poured into our country in recent years, and we have no idea where they are. The church, led by the pulpit, should not remain quiet.
The Lord says we are to shine a light into the dark world. How do we obey Him if we remain silent in the face of evil?
The Rev. Franklin Graham says we should pray for our country’s leaders at all levels of government – national, state, and local – as well as school boards and committees, so that we will be governed by men and women of deep faith, so those functions are not dominated by unbelievers.
1 Peter 2 verses 21-25 (6th segment)
“He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth.” – 1 Peter 2:22 ESV
“When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were straying like sheep but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” – 1 Peter 2:23-25 ESV
Peter continues his reference to Jesus Christ as a model for our behavior. The apostle described the Lord’s suffering not as a defeat for Him personally nor for the church and Christ’s mission but as a success.
A success. Let that linger a bit. Christ’s suffering for our sake was a success. It fulfilled the Father’s goal of providing a way for sinful man to enjoy fellowship with His creator.
Jesus was born in human form and lived among us to become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. He came to die on the cross. Had we not sinned and strayed from God’s will for our lives, there would have been no need for Him to suffer and die.
We caused the reason for Jesus to visit Earth in human form.
We caused the reason for Jesus to die on the cross. We put Him in the manger; we put Him before the Jewish and Roman courts, we put Him on the cross, and we put Him in the grave … yet He rose from the grave, defeating death for our benefit.
Seven hundred (700) years before Christ, the prophet Isaiah (53:5 NKJV) prophesized with these words: “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.”
CLOSING WORDS
Since we are chosen by God to be His possession, shouldn’t we be willing, also – eager, even – to fulfill (obey) His call on our lives to (1) believe in Him for our salvation and then (2) tell others about it.
We do not need to be knowledgeable about the Bible, just be prepared to give a short testimony of how God has changed our lives.
(FOR EXAMPLE: I used to have a problem with alcohol; now I’m sober. I used to have anger issues. I’m more patient now. I used to chase everything in a skirt [or flirt with every man], but now I’m focused on my wife/husband or special loved one. I used to cuss without blushing; now I’m more encouraging.)
That’s it. Then be ready to say, when prompted, “This is what God has done for me, and He can do it for you, too.”
CONCLUSION: We should pray for:
(1) the opportunity to witness,
(2) the right words to say, and
(3) willing hearts to listen.
Then, you’re done!
Let the Holy Spirit do the heavy lifting.
PRAYER
LORD GOD, we thank You for Your grace and mercy. Please forgive us when we fail to follow Your lead, when we do not act like a people chosen by God to be salt and light. Strengthen us, O Lord, to be “Jesus” to a world hungry for answers — answers that only You can give. We honor You; we praise You; we worship You. AMEN
Ward's Words | BY WARD PIMLEY 