Identity in Christ pt4

So once again, I want to go back to 1 Corinthians 6:11. “This is who you were…”

And when you were like that, before Jesus saved you, that way of life had an impact on you, but also on others.

That’s the reason why in Christian culture, we often get excited when someone who is famous for their depravity becomes a follower of Jesus. We know they now have the capacity to make an impact from Jesus, in the same way they made an impact for sin.

(Sadly we are often too quick to embrace a new “mascot” because for every Reverend Run there is a matching Kanye West)

And that’s what I want to talk about today, this dual calling that exists in the life of a Christian. That’s another name for us- called.

So turn with me to 1 Peter 2:1-10.

The first thing I want you to notice is this is not a letter addressed to some famous person. It is sent to a broad audience. And the calling and actions outlined are for everyone.

That is the one thing I am always frustrated with in the American church, especially, we always seem to look for the superheroes and not the super faithful.

You may not be on TV or have a large social media following, but someone is looking at you as you follow Jesus. And your calling is to be faithful to Him so that someone else can follow you to Him.

Peter then starts this section reminding the church where their source of power is- it is in their desire for Jesus.

They should hunger for Jesus like a newborn craves milk. They only want and need one thing for sustenance. And they recognize the substitutes.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (2) Longing for the Pure Milk (2:1–3)

We should observe, however, that the central command in this paragraph is the injunction to long for the “pure spiritual milk”

1, 2 Peter, Jude (2) Longing for the Pure Milk (2:1–3)

The metaphor does convey that believers are dependent upon God for their lives.

Peter’s purpose was to say that all believers should be like infants in this sense—they should “crave” (epipothēsate) the “pure spiritual milk.” The word “crave” is a strong one, used of the ardent desire believers should have for God in the Old Testament (LXX

We will so often, when we struggle, lean into substitutes for what Jesus has given us- wanting what others have and doing what ever we need to do to secure it, thinking that somehow we are missing out. That’s the lie the enemy uses to pull us away from our calling.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (2) Longing for the Pure Milk (2:1–3)

Peter signals thereby that no sin is to be tolerated in the community, that sin is to be rejected comprehensively. The first sin named could refer to wickedness in general, but the NIV rightly renders it “malice” (kakian) since the latter fits better with the social slant of these verses. Ill-will toward one another destroys the harmony befitting the community of believers

Verse 3 further emphasizes this point. When we have experienced the goodness and satisfaction of God, we long for it again and again. Like a meal that we remember because it was unlike anything else we had ever tasted.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (2) Longing for the Pure Milk (2:1–3)

Believers should long for the Lord if indeed they have tasted or experienced his kindness. To see a reference to the eucharist reads the text too literally. Longing to grow spiritually comes from a taste of the beauty of the Lord, an experience of his kindness and goodness. Those who pursue God ardently have tasted his sweetness

But when we heed His calling, we have the opportunity to become something we would never have dreamed of.

Look at verses 4-8.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

resurrection. Peter probably drew this theme from

When we heed the calling (come to Him) and our lives are connected to His, we become a part of something bigger. A House that He is building with an unshakable foundation! And to be able to serve in that house.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

The life of Christ functions as a pattern for the Petrine Christians, for they too are despised by many, but they are chosen and honored in God’s sight, destined for vindication after suffering

Priests served. They offered sacrifices to God on behalf of the people. to be called to be a priest, is a call to serve. And Jesus gives us the example, by serving us first, so we take His example and we repeat it in the spaces He gives to us.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

we should not be surprised that believers are both priests and the temple. They are God’s dwelling place by the Spirit and his new priesthood. No internal contradiction is involved since Peter did not refer to believers as priests serving in a literal temple. The spiritual nature of the house does not draw our attention to its immateriality but to a temple inhabited by the Holy Spirit

Church, every one of you has a space you are called to. And that space may change over time, but you are accountable for what you do with your space.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

All of God’s people are now his priests. Despite the emphasis on the corporate priesthood, what Peter said applies by implication to individuals as well. That is, all believers have direct access to God by virtue of the cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ. We must avoid, however, focusing on the individual, for Protestants are prone to individualize the text in a way that blunts or even denies its corporate emphasis

Everyone’s space is different. You may even have more than one space where God plants you. But every follower of Jesus has a space.

And what Peter is assuring the people of here in this passage is that Jesus is as much in that space as He is in this space. He is the foundation. The cornerstone. He is what we build on.

And people who enter into our spaces may disagree with who He is or who He has called us to be, but His statement to them is He is going to be stumbled over, but He is NOT moving.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

Those who disbelieve stumble over the stone, who is Christ. They stumble over Christ because they refuse to believe in him and obey him. People who stumble and disobey are responsible for their refusal to trust in Christ, and yet God has appointed, without himself being morally responsible

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

Their stumbling over the cornerstone is not accidental, as humans often trip unintentionally while walking. In this instance humans stumble because of rebellion, because they do not want to submit to God’s lordship

You do not have to lay down your faith in certain spaces, but how you live out that faith MATTERS in spaces where Jesus is more stumbling block than cornerstone.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

The parallel with 2:9, where the royal priesthood proclaims God’s wonders, suggests to some that this is the primary function of the priesthood (see commentary on 2:9 for further discussion). The priestly calling of the church is understood from 2:9 to be evangelistic, a praising of God’s name so that people from all over the world will join in worshiping him

Go with me to verses 9-12.

Since we are called to a lot of spaces where Jesus is seen as intrusive or controversial how we live matters.

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

Peter also replicated the exact words of

When we look at the first part of verse 9 we can get really puffed up, but the second half is the calling. We are all these things, again, for a reason. To make much of Jesus. And to invite people to experience what we have experienced (v10)

1, 2 Peter, Jude (3) The Living Stone and Living Stones (2:4–10)

We also have noted previously (see the commentary on 1:15) that the calling described here is effectual. Just as God’s word creates light, so God’s call creates faith. Calling is not a mere invitation but is performative, so that the words God speaks become a reality. The beauty and glory of the new life is conveyed by the image of light in contrast to darkness. Hence, Peter identified the light as “wonderful”

So what we do in these spaces matters. Look at verse 11- sojourners and strangers- we are GUESTS in these spaces. And we have to decide what kind of guests we are going to be.

1, 2 Peter, Jude 1. The Christian Life as a Battle and Witness (2:11–12)

Peter now exhorts believers (parakalō) to live a certain way as aliens and strangers. Exhortations to godly living are often communicated in the New Testament with the verb “I urge” (cf.

We are either going to portray Jesus in a way that is in line with the culture, or we are going to show them a different way.

1, 2 Peter, Jude 1. The Christian Life as a Battle and Witness (2:11–12)

Peter’s hope was that unbelievers will be compelled to admit that the lifestyle of believers is morally beautiful, and this admission will bring them to saving faith so that God will be glorified on the day of judgment

This is the real struggle in the American church today. Do you want to serve or rule? Which one did Jesus call us to do?

Jesus came to serve, and to one day rule. He calls us to serve until He rules.

So look at verse 12- “honorable”- worthy of acclaim. In other words, people should talk about our actions in such a way that they are surprised in a good way. They should defend us in rooms we will never enter.

1, 2 Peter, Jude 1. The Christian Life as a Battle and Witness (2:11–12)

Unbelievers viewed Christians with suspicion and hostility because the latter did not conform to their way of life (4:3–4). Since believers did not honor the typical gods of the community, they were naturally viewed as subversive and evil in that social context.

Peter did not summon believers to a verbal campaign of self-defense or to the writing of tracts in which they defend their morality. He enjoined believers to pursue virtue and goodness, so that their goodness would be apparent to all in society

We need more people who are called to this way of life- leaving behind sin to serve others sacrificially in the spaces Jesus has called them to for the purpose of making Him known.

Forgiven. New Creation. Child. Called. A people with a purpose beyond themselves and a Kingdom of priests who serve the world where they are guests for a season.