1 Peter 2:1-12 - Living Stones - God's Nation

In Matthew 16:3 Jesus gives the answer to why He gave Peter a new name (Petros) (as recorded in each of the Gospels (Matthew 10:2, Mark 3:16, and Luke 6:14).  Here’s what Jesus says to Peter, “You are blessed, Simon son of John, because my Father in heaven has revealed this to you. You did not learn this from any human being.  Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it.  And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you forbid on earth will be forbidden in heaven, and whatever you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven” (Matthew 16:17-19).

        Nothing.  Nothing will conquer God’s church.  And Jesus appoints Peter with the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Peter is Jesus’ friend and his disciple.  We see Peter on fire for God in the Book of Acts.  He, and the other apostles, all in their unique ways are totally committed to building the Kingdom of God.  There is no obstacle, not even the mighty Roman Empire, that can stand in the way of the growth of God’s eternal people.

        In Acts, God told Peter that the old way had been replaced by the new Way (Acts 10 and Peter’s vision about the blanket and God calling animals clean to eat).  And it was to Peter that God said, “Feed my sheep” as He explained to Peter the call on his earthly life (John 21:17).

This very same Peter, the holder of the keys, feeds us indeed.  He feeds us what those who trust Jesus must crave, pure spiritual milk.  Every day we need nourishment.  Just as Jesus fed Peter on the beach in John 21 (after the resurrection), Jesus feeds us today with His living word.

So, what’s this great mystery that Peter solves for us, the very message the prophets yearned to hear (1:10)?  It is the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is Peter’s message that we are new people - cleansed from our sins when we trust and obey the truth of the risen Christ (1:22).

        And Peter explains to us that we, God’s people, must now act differently because of who we are in Christ.  I dare say we don’t hear this same message preached as much as we should.  We hear tickling messages that we are all okay just as we are -  soft soap, preached by prosperity preachers who fly first class.  To them, the Gospel is just a way to get worldy power.

Peter says we are to love each other deeply with all our hearts (1:22).  We are new creatures - eternal creatures - fed and watered by the living word of God (1:23).

Peter’s message is that God is the Master Builder (2:5) and the Foundation of His nation.  And that each believer in Christ is part of God’s living spiritual temple (2:5).

        You sometimes hear false teachers today say that dysfunction and division must increase and things must get worse and worse until Christ returns.  I believe they fail to understand the magnitude of what God is building.  And what God has done to date.  God will indeed return, but He will do so when He decides to create a new heaven and a new earth for all those called by His name.

        Peter’s message is much different than the modern doom and gloom artists.  Peter’s message is a message of hope and growth.  Peter’s message is the truth that God is building.  Right now.  God’s standard is one of unity and love as He perfectly builds His temple.  God expects us to obey His standard, not shrug off our responsibility.

In fact over the last 2,000 years, despite sin and all of the strife and war and disease and plagues and stock market crashes and rise and fall of nations, God’s Kingdom, His people, and His spiritual temple are forcefully growing - just as God planned it to grow.

Peter’s message is that every believer has a role to play in showing others the goodness of God and calling people out of darkness - dysfunction, greed, and disunity - and into God’s wonderful Kingdom of Light.

Peter tells us that unlink those who reject the Cornerstone (Jesus Christ), we are a chosen people, God’s holy priests, God’s holy nation, and God’s prized possession (2:9).  Did you hear that?  Christians are God’s nation.

Some false teachers say God favors some countries today more than others and that he favors citizens of one over the other.  Nonsense.  Of course, God blesses those who do good, but God’s nation, His people, are only who Peter tells us they are in this chapter.  Peter says there is only one people of God: those new creations that have their identity in Jesus Christ and that know like the apostles did, that they are only temporary residents and foreigners in this land.  We are engaged in a spiritual battle here on earth for our very souls (2:11).  Yes, it sounds ominous because it is.  But it is also a message that we can trust our Father as Peter did.

As Jesus said, they will know we are Christians by our love (John 13:35).  It's not by how big our mansion is or how we sue each other to get what we want.  It’s by our deep and sincere love for each other.  Our unity and our rejection of worldly, evil behavior.  That’s what shows others the goodness of God.

Lord Jesus, thank you for the Cross.  May we honor you by how we speak and act today.  May we get rid of all evil behavior.  Help us to be done with all deceit, hypocrisy, jealousy, and all unkind speech.  Amen.

Natural Bridge - a great "rock" to see in Virginia.