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. 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. (1 Peter 2.9-10, NIV)
1 Peter 2 emphasises that believers should live holy lives. When we come to Christ we are a new creation, a spiritual baby craving spiritual milk; we need this ‘milk’ to grow. Just as it would be a tragedy if a child doesn’t grow into an adult, likewise, we must grow up in our relationship with Christ.
Peter compares believers to living stones, built into a spiritual house with Jesus as the cornerstone. Those who trust in Him will not be put to shame, while those who reject Him will stumble.
As you come to Him, the living Stone – rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to Him, (v4): Christ was rejected by men, so we shouldn’t be surprised to receive the same treatment. Jesus is the ‘Living Stone’, we ourselves are stones being built into a Spiritual House in which Christ is the Head; He is essential to the Building. When I was younger, I built dry stone walls in my garden. – (For those who don’t know, dry stone walling is a building technique that uses stones stacked on top of each other to create walls without mortar or cement. The stones are held in place by their interlocking shapes.) – These walls are still standing, even after sixty years. Like my dry stone wall, we must fit together in perfect harmony and unity, with Christ as our cornerstone. To be fully joined together, we must get rid of all that divides us: we are to be a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices.
A Chosen People
So many in the church no longer obey the true message of Christ. Yet we have been chosen to be different, to reflect Christ to an unbelieving world. Peter reminds believers that they are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and God's special possession. They were once in darkness but are now in God’s light, called to declare His praises.
Living Honourably Among Unbelievers
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people, (v13-15): Christians are urged to live godly lives among non-believers so that their actions bring glory to God. They should submit to authorities, showing respect and honouring everyone, including those in authority over us.
Submit yourself to the authority of the country you live in, according to the laws of the land. I obey the law in order to drive my car, if I don’t obey the ‘Highway Code’, I get punished. Sometimes we have to obey God rather than the laws of man, as is referenced in Acts 5.29. I was criticised for smuggling Bibles into communist East Europe. I risked my life and freedom to bring the Word of God to those living under repression. I believe that if any country passes such a law, banning Bibles, supressing the Christian faith in any way, or attempting to compromise the personal integrity of Church or individual believers by intimidation, we must face the age-old question of obedience to man or to God… The disciples faced this question, as did the early Church, who kept the faith alive in the catacombs of Rome – and many paid with their lives. Believers of the Persecuted Church worldwide are confronted with this same dilemma today. Our reply must be that of the disciples in Acts 5, who, when forbidden to teach or preach Jesus as the Christ, replied, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” I believe in obeying the laws of man and country – unless in doing so we disobey God. When it comes to a choice, we must obey God.
Enduring Suffering Like Christ
Peter encourages servants to submit to their masters – even unjust ones – because suffering for doing good is commendable before God. He points to Jesus as the ultimate example of patience and endurance in suffering, reminding believers that Christ bore their sins so they could live righteously.
Submit yourself to the authority of the country you live in, according to the laws of the land. I obey the law in order to drive my car, if I don’t obey the ‘Highway Code’, I get punished. Sometimes we have to obey God rather than the laws of man, as is referenced in Acts 5.29. I was criticised for smuggling Bibles into communist East Europe. I risked my life and freedom to bring the Word of God to those living under repression. I believe that if any country passes such a law, banning Bibles, supressing the Christian faith in any way, or attempting to compromise the personal integrity of Church or individual believers by intimidation, we must face the age-old question of obedience to man or to God… The disciples faced this question, as did the early Church, who kept the faith alive in the catacombs of Rome – and many paid with their lives. Believers of the Persecuted Church worldwide are confronted with this same dilemma today. Our reply must be that of the disciples in Acts 5, who, when forbidden to teach or preach Jesus as the Christ, replied, “We ought to obey God rather than men.” I believe in obeying the laws of man and country – unless in doing so we disobey God. When it comes to a choice, we must obey God.
He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; ‘by his wounds you have been healed.’ For ‘you were like sheep going astray,’ but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls, (v24-25): I have seen so many miracles of healing in my ministry, but it is the spiritual healing which is the most important, trust the Shepherd of your soul; He lovingly leads, protects, and cares for us, ensuring our spiritual well-being and bringing us into a deep, eternal relationship with God.