1 Peter 2

Bottom line

You are called to purity, humility, and conformity with Christ

Opening Line

What comes to mind when you think of a priest?

Introduction

Now I realize that is a loaded question. Some of you think of some of the media coverage of coverups that have happened in the past. Some of you may think about the recent discovery of the mass graves at the residential schools. You may even think about priests in scripture who acted less then ideally during their time.

For me, I remember a few interesting individuals that wore the mantle of priest. Unfortunately, for many people, the idea of a priest does not bring to mind the most pleasant of thoughts.

Yet the priesthood is a major analogy for Peter in this chapter, and it is important for you to understand that Peter is seeing the priesthood in light of what it is meant to be. The priests of the Old Testament were to be the workers of the Temple, and they were to be God’s representatives to the people. Now with that understanding, what are some words that come to mind for someone who carriest that kind of responsibility?

Main Point

You are called to be priests in our community and everything that entails.

Why it matters

Our towns, our province, and our nation needs God’s people to step into the role they are called to walk in. This isn’t something that only a few people are called to walk in. Peter is going to remind you that as a believer, you are now that representative. Paul calls you an ambassador for the kingdom of heaven. Everything that is wrong in our society is not going to be fixed by the government or by the social media warriors. Our society needs a move of God, and in order for that move to happen, God’s people need to be the priests that you are called to be.

We are in 1 Peter 2 this morning. I am going to skip around again this morning for the sake of time, but after the message, I am going to open it up for questions. If you did the reading before hand, or had a question from chapter 1 that I didn’t answer, I will open the floor for any and all questions before I turn it to the tables for discussion.

Scripture

1 Peter 2:1–3 NLT

So get rid of all evil behavior. Be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech. Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment, now that you have had a taste of the Lord’s kindness.

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This is simply a continuation of chapter 1, but with an important point. You cannot have both evil behavior and a hunger for spiritual nourishment in your life. If you continue to tolerate deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, or unkind speech in your life, do not expect your spiritual hunger to grow. These things will “fill you up” and rob you of your desire to get into God’s word and His presence.

1 Peter 2:4–5 NLT

You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great honor. And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple. What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.

1 Peter 2:9 NLT

But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.

1 Peter 2:11–12 NLT

Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.

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Look at the things that Peter uses to describe you as the church. He starts by pointing out that the church is not a building, it is the people. He uses the analogy of a building to drive this home. Jesus is the cornerstone, the immovable foundation stone that set the whole rest of the building. Upon the foundation of Christ, each of you is being strategically placed to build a living temple. You are the church, you are the temple.

This is why it often feels like you are being hammered and chiseled over the course of life. Our time on earth is the quarry, the place that the stones of the temple are being refined. As your faith is being worked out, you are realizing more and more the salvation you received through Christ’s sacrifice.

You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation. These are the same words that God spoke over Israel, Peter now speaks over the church. You are set apart for great things because you are no longer residents of this world. Your citizenship is in heaven. As such, you are now representatives, ambassadors, or priests to the world. As representatives of heaven, what is the first characteristic that comes with that?

Purity

This is what Peter has been talking about all the way through. Keep away from worldly desires, get rid of evil behavior, be holy as your Father in heaven is holy. In fact, live such good lives, stay away from the stains of the world to such a degree that if someone tries to suggest you did something otherwise, they would found to be foolish.

If you ever wondered why the church encourages purity so much, this is it. You are part of the nation of priests, and the impurity of the world is not proper for this people. AND, when you allow impurity to take root in your life, it slowly robs you of your desire to pursue God and destroys your soul.

1 Peter 2:13–17 NLT

For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as head of state, or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right. It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant people who make foolish accusations against you. For you are free, yet you are God’s slaves, so don’t use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Respect everyone, and love the family of believers. Fear God, and respect the king.

The second trait of priests:

Humility

Submit to all human authority for the Lord’s sake. Fear God and respect the king.

Remember, Peter is writing this to a people group who are being actively hunted by their emporer. The accusations that Peter is referencing are the crazy things that Nero is saying about the believers. Yet in the midst of everything and the hardship that the government is putting them through, Peter tells them to respect this authority.

Why? Because you are citizens of heaven, temporary residents and foreigners. You hail to a higher authority, the authority above all other authorities. The King of kings and the Lord of lords. Your King and Lord is the one who allows the people of this world to have authority. What does your King tell you to do? Honor the authority that He has established, but the trust the greater authority from above. Fear God, trust Him first, and respect the authority He has established. You are called to be humble… even when it hurts.

1 Peter 2:18–21 NLT

You who are slaves must submit to your masters with all respect. Do what they tell you—not only if they are kind and reasonable, but even if they are cruel. For God is pleased when, conscious of his will, you patiently endure unjust treatment. Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you. For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.

The third quality of being a priest

Conforming with Christ

Paul says in Romans 12 that you are not to conform to the ways of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. What does the renewal of your mind lead to? Conforming with Christ. Which is where we left off last week. You are called to be imitators of Jesus, especially when it comes to enduring hardship for doing the right thing. Did Jesus endure hardship for doing the right thing? YES. He died on a cross for sins He never committed. He was opposed by the very religious leaders who should have championed His arrival. Everytime He did a miracle or something good, He was criticized because He violated some weird tradition.

BUT, if you conform to the ways of Christ and do what is right, you will please your heavenly Father, and your reward will be great in heaven. This is what it means to fear God; to seek His approval above the approval of people. To fear His disapproval more then the disapproval of people.

Transition to Application

Be pure, be humble, and conform to the ways of Christ. These are all great ideas, but how in the world do you put this into practice?

Main To Do

It is simple. Less of your phone, more of His Word. I was out at camp for most of the week, and I set out to leave my phone behind as much as I could, and I have to say, I couldn’t believe how freeing it was. I would wake up, open my bible, journal, take my bible to chapel. I would have normally taken my tablet because this is way more convenient then all of this. But it was the most refreshing week I’ve ever had.

Yet, within minutes of coming home, I went instantly into media consumption mode. It is a bad habit to break!

Why it matters

It is important to get this balance right. If you can tip the scales in favor of time and energy into God’s word, you will find yourself hearing God’s voice more clearly, the Word will come alive for you more readily, and you will begin to see the world differently. You will see your family and friends through the eyes of Christ, and that will change what you talk about and where your time and effort goes.

If you get this balance wrong, then the alogorithms of your phone will fill you up with everything it thinks you should be looking at. Everything from the notifications you get to the YouTube videos that are suggested to the games you play. All of it is targeted, trying to fill your mind that junk so that there is no room for what really matters. If you think I’m overstating it, I dare you to prove me wrong. I dare you for this week to make the switch. However much time you would typically spend in this Bible, spend it on your phone, and whatever you would typically spend on your phone, spend in the Bible. Latest stats says that for the younger generations, that would be about 8 hours a day. Do that for a week and tell me you don’t see that world differently.

Closing Line

You are called to be a nation of priests. The world needs the church to step into this calling, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.

Ask the Pastor!

Discussion Questions

1. What stood out from the chapter or the message?

2. What does being part of a priesthood mean to you?

3. What are some ways you can get the phone - Bible balance right?