We are reading from the book of first Peter, last post we finished Chapter 1. Peter had just encouraged the reader of the letter to love one another. He explained that we were born again, not with a perishable seed, but with an imperishable or permanent seed. This rebirth is through the living and enduring Word of God. Peter reminded us of Isaiah 40:6-8, which compared the beauty of the flowers, the grass and the field, to our temporary human state, but contrasted that beauty with the enduring and permanent Word of the Lord, an even greater and eternal beauty. We were reminded to offer our lives to the Lord, to dedicate ourselves to the pursuit of God’s Glory. The phrase, “be holy because I am holy” is often interpreted as, “be perfect because God is” but when we understand humanity and Godliness, the command to be holy because God is Holy should be read more like this: because God is perfect and righteous and Holy, we should be set apart, consecrated and dedicated to him. So now we can continue to Chapter 2.
2 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
Chapter 2 verse 1 could be its own sermon. Because we are set apart for God, because we are like the grass and temporary, we should pursue the things that are permanent, like the Word of God, like God’s Kingdom. What does that mean? Last month I talked about the different kinds of things people do to give God Glory. How we are gifted differently, and have different motivations, but all our actions should in some way be to Glorify God. We should be able to look at any of our actions, any of our decisions, any of the things we do with our time, any of our passions and in some way, be able to say we are glorifying God in whatever it is we’re doing. Now Peter is explaining what living for God’s Glory doesn’t look like. We shouldn’t live with Malice in our hearts. What’s malice? It’s the desire to cause pain, injury or distress to another. Having ill-will towards someone else. Malice doesn’t care whatever caused the feelings ill will. It doesn’t matter whether someone treated you fairly or unfairly, whether or not your anger is justified in any way, you can still have malice towards them and you’re wrong when you harbor that feeling. We can mistake malice with the desire for justice. If some evildoer is out there, we want to see them get what they deserve. In our minds, what we think they deserve. We want to see the human trafficker get caught and lose the same freedom they’ve been denying their victim. We want to see an abusive person themselves get abused. A proud person get humiliated. While that sounds like justice, we always have our own certain idea about what degree of suffering is fair and right. The problem is we can’t understand fair and right apart from God’s wisdom. Much of the old testament outlines examples of what is fair and right when laws are broken. What’s the proper degree of retribution or penalty for a certain offense? It’s a hard question because we don’t know other peoples’ hearts. We aren’t called to judge. When we desire to take God’s role of making things right and put justice in our own hands, we actually are engaging in a form of idolatry. We are grasping onto the sin of desiring equalty with God, instead of humility. Jesus didn’t desire that equality with God, instead he made himself a servant, humble and obedient to the point of death on a cross. Because God’s justice was poured out on Him, Jesus didn’t seek justice for sinners. He couldn’t seek justice because that justice would mean more pain for him. Christ sought mercy instead of malice. We should throw off all malice towards other sinners. We have been given mercy and forgiveness from God, so we can extend that mercy and forgiveness toward people who have wronged us. Malice has no place in our hearts. We don’t use that word much anymore, but it was common earlier in history. Abe Lincoln’s second inaugural address was given to a newly reunited country that suffered such great losses. For the past 4 years, the country had been battling itself and both sides had shed enormous amounts of blood at the hands of the other side. Throughout history, the winner of war took the spoils and punished the loser until the desire for vengeance was quenched, or the loser would rise up and fight back. Lincoln took a more biblical approach and encouraged Americans “With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds.” There was to be no more ill will, no more penalties to be paid. The former enemy was to be treated with charity and love, and those who had been tasked with making war were now tasked with binding up the nation’s wounds. If Americans had fought for peace as zealously as they had fought for war, the country would have been saved from a great deal of heartache, pain and suffering. When we are angry at people, or want justice done, we should remind ourselves that God is the ultimate Judge and He will right those wrongs. If we don’t put aside our anger, then Malice will begin to pollute our hearts and diminish our capacity to worship God by our love, charity and forgiveness toward our fellow humans. We lose opportunities to be come peacemakers both with others and internally.
Peter says we should also rid ourselves of deceit. We should be people who are honest with each other, we shouldn’t lie, or even mislead people towards falsehood. This is the 9th commandment, do not bear false witness. We should rid ourselves of Hypocrisy. There is no place for saying one thing and doing another. Hypocrisy is like lying with our actions. Or pretending that our actions are in sync with our words. It’s another form of false witness.
Peter says we should rid ourselves of envy. This commandment is not new, with the 10th commandment God told us not to covet each others things. He also warns us not to slander each other. When we speak ill of others, or spread information that makes others look bad, we are misusing the voice that God gave us. Instead of using our voices to praise God and build up his church, we are using our voices to hurt or harm somebody who was created in God’s image.
We should desire to grow in our salvation. In many fields of study, growing in maturity or leveling up involves grasping advanced or complex concepts. Not so in our spiritual walk. We should crave pure spiritual milk. To advance in Christianity, we need to reaffirm the simple truth that we are sinners. We were enslaved to sin, we couldn’t free ourselves. We were dead in our sins, and we needed to be raised from our dead state. Jesus raised us from the dead like Lazarus. God Called us and predestined us to be part of his elect family. We were made friends, and the penalty of our sins was paid for by Jesus Christ on the cross. He died for our sins, and came back to life to prove his divinity and to give us a living hope that we have an eternal home in God’s presence. The more you think about the pure spiritual milk of the Gospel, the more grateful you become. The more humble you are when you understand how little you bring to the entire relationship with God. What a great but undeserved gift! What amazing grace! How beautifully unfair this whole thing is. The closer I look at myself, at my words and my deeds, at my heart motivations, the more shocking it is that God would send his beloved Son to die for such a normally ungrateful and self centered person like me! When you taste pure spiritual milk you realize how good God is, how unworthy we are, and how sacrificial His divine love is towards us!
4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Peter compares Jesus to a living stone, rejected by humans but chosen by God, and precious to Him. Recall when Peter was called by Jesus, his name was Simon. Jesus said you will be Petros (which means rock) and on this petra (rock) I will build my church. Even the gates of Hell will not overcome it. While this connection is very unique to Peter, it’s not just something that peter made up. The comparison of Jesus to a living stone also recalls a number of Old testament references. He will describe them in verses 6-8, so we will get there. But to compare someone to a stone might sound harsh or not entirely complimentary. Remember to the Jews, they placed a large emphasis on their temple, and the materials used for each part. Stones are a strong unchangeing powerful foundation, they are invulnerable and represent protection security, and everlasting invincibility. Jesus is chosen by God to be a cornerstone and a foundation of a new and better temple. He isn’t a lifeless piece of rock, but he is living. And His temple is different than the Temple that the Jews would know. In NIV it says we are also living stones, to be built in to a spiritual House. There’s a footnote that translates this better as a Temple of the Spirit. We are being built into a temple of the spirit. The Temple for the Jews was a marvelous physical building, but Jesus is the cornerstone of a living breathing temple, and we are also a part of it. We aren’t just components of a building, we have a role! And that role is significant, it’s not a minor part. Our role as Christians is to be a priesthood. So we are charged with a divine and Godly role, to understand God, to intercede between Humankind and God. Priests needed to be experts on the Law and Scripture, but they also served as an intercessory role, that means Priests needed to represent God to the people and pray for those people to God. Franky spoke last week about being a salt and a light to the earth. This is another way of saying the same thing. We go out in the world and represent Our Heavenly father. This intercessory or ambassador representative role is what a priesthood should do! When people are distant from God, it’s our job to exhort them and train them in the knowledge of God, we are to intercede and pray to God for them. These things we do as a priesthood are spiritual sacrifices, they don’t save us, but we are called to do them to share God’s light to a dark world. Sometimes people confuse this. Our good deeds don’t make us acceptable to God. We are made acceptable to God Through Jesus Christ only. And our Good, but imperfect deeds are also made Perfect through Christ. Peter says our spiritual sacrifices are acceptable to God through Jesus. We are a royal priesthood, and we are living stones. Again,this comparison is frequently attributed to Peter, but in the Old Testament, the comparison has described the Messiah as a stone in Isaiah 28:16 and Isaiah 8:14. Peter will quote those verses here.
6 For in Scripture it says:“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone,and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”[b]
Peter has already described Jesus as a living stone, Chosen by God and Precious to Him, it made sense, and now we read that those same two adjectives Chosen and Precious were how the Cornerstone was described in Isaiah. God says, “see I lay a stone in Zion, it’s chosen and precious. These are words that describe how God views Jesus. The Messiah was chosen and is seen as precious. Because we identify with the Son, in God’s eyes, we are also chosen and precious. God has chosen you! You are his precious child. You were an enemy, but God loves you and you are precious to Him! This is how imputation works. The way God looks at His only Begotten son, is now how he looks at his Elect. He Calls this stone a precious cornerstone, and in Isaiah, it says the precious cornerstone is for a sure foundation. Our faith needs to have a sure foundation, like a building that relies on an unmoving unchanging foundation, the structure of our faith needs to be built upon Christ. He will not change, he will make us sure, give us surety, assurance. Jesus kind of described this in Matthew 7, everyone who hears my words and ignores them is like someone who builds his house on sand, anyone who does what Jesus says and follows his instruction builds their house on rock. When our faith is in Christ alone, and Jesus is the cornerstone of our belief, we will not be disappointed. Nobody who puts their trust and hope in Jesus will be put to shame. Like the builders Jesus described in Matthew 7, there will be rain and wind. We might face hardships, we might face persecution, but we have no expectation for shame before God. If you put your trust in Christ, and build your faith on the foundation of the cornerstone, you will be exalted by God, you were a sinner, but Jesus took your shame.
7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,“The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”
Jesus is chosen by God and Precious to him. Because we believe, Jesus is precious to us as well. Peter then quotes Psalm 118, which says Open for me the Gates of the righteous, this is the Gate of the Lord, through which the righteous may enter, I will give you thanks, for you answered me, you have become my salvation. When Jesus calls himself the Gate, all who enter must enter through me, people who knew scripture would think of Psalm 118. By saying to God, You have become my salvation, scripture foretells an incarnation, or at least a time where God himself comes to save us. The next line is, The stone the builders have rejected has become the cornerstone. We understand here that God’s salvation is not universal, This cornerstone is faced with rejection by builders. The rejection is synonymous with disbelief. Peter then quotes another passage from Isaiah, 8:14
8 and, “A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.”[d] They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.
This passage in Isaiah explains that God should be regarded as Holy, he is worthy of our reverent fear. The presence of God is a holy place, but for both Israel and Judah the Lord will be a stone that causes them to stumble. For many of the people of Jerusalem, He will be a trap and a snare. Peter explains that the Messiah, who is a form of the Lord Almighty himself, will be rejected by many in Judah and Israel, a trap or snare for many in Jerusalem. He will cause them to stumble. How do people stumble on the rock? They are disobedient towards the message. The message is hard to come to terms with. The message is that we are not good enough. Our works aren’t enough for God. We are not holy enough, we are not righteous enough. We are enslaved to sin. God Desires Mercy not sacrifice. God desires that we rest from the doctrine of purification by works, and put to death our pride, and receive faith to believe salvation by grace, through his Son. We enter the gate as righteous, but that righteousness is not ours. We look perfect and acceptable, but it’s not anything we’ve done. That’s a tough message to hear. Especially for priests, Levites, Teachers of Law. Those who reject this message disbelieve it and disobey the teaching of it. Their human pride and faith in self blinds them to the truth, and sadly they are destined for the disobedience. But that is not the elect. Let’s finish on Verses 9-10
9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
We aren’t destined for rejecting God’s word, We aren’t destined for disobedience. We were chosen. We were chosen to be forgiven, and adopted into a royal family. Not just friends of god, but Sons and Daughters. We aren’t just coming along for the ride, we’ve been given jobs to do, good works to show the world God’s Glory. These things we do don’t make us right before God, these works don’t save us. As we said before, they are actually made acceptable through Jesus Christ. But we have been called to do good works, We are a priesthood, so we represent God to people, and people to God. Because of what Jesus did for us, we share Jesus’s status as chosen and precious. Once we were dead, we were blind, we were in darkness. Now? We are God’s special possession. This is what God had desired of his people from the beginning. You will be My People, and I will be Your God. This is the first commandment. Let’s walk together. I will Be your God, and You will be my people! You will declare the praises of God and be a worshipper in spirit and in truth. That relationship couldn’t fully be achieved in the Old Covenant. It was to be a wonderful relationship, until our human desires alienated us from our Creator. The Old Covenant had temporary purification for sin, But God had plans for a Permanent salvation a New Covenant through his Son. Once we were not a people, but under the New Covenant, we are now permanently justified – a righteous people. A People of God, at one point we had not received mercy, but now we have received mercy. As a people of God, we have a new identity , a new role, a holy purpose. Christians will look different than others. In the second half of chapter two he expands on how we should look, so we will talk more about that next time!