The Living Stone and a Holy People – 1 Peter 2

Joy:  You’re listening to the Lifting Her Voice podcast, Episode #224.  Today we’ll read 1 Peter chapter 2 together: Peter tells us about the living stone and a holy people; a call to good works; and suffering unjustly. 

Welcome to the Lifting Her Voice podcast.  I’m your host, Joy Miller, and I invite you to grab your Bible and join me as we simply read God’s word together.  Some things require discipline and sometimes that’s just not easy to muster by yourself, no matter how badly you want to do it or how much you know you should.  It’s just easier to do it with a friend.  So refill your coffee or tea, get comfortable in your favorite chair and follow along as I read aloud.  I’m so glad you’re here!

Welcome

My husband and I drove the 30 miles to town today to do the weekly shopping and get some last-minute ingredients for our Thanksgiving dinner.  It was a beautiful morning, crisp and cool, and the trees along the Merced River were finally turning the beautiful colors of yellow, orange and red.  Fall has been late in coming to our corner of the world this year.

Our first stop was Costco and, in addition to shopping for groceries, we decided to check out the flat screen TVs.  Gosh, I guess they are all flat-screen today, aren’t they?  That just goes to show how much things have changed during my life.

When I was growing up, a TV set was a boxy piece of furniture and usually had a 19 or 21 inch screen.  The first TV I remember had a black-and-white picture and an antenna for bringing in that signal.  When I was 8, we got our first color TV and my world changed forever.  Until that moment, I never knew  Gilligan’s polo shirt was red.

In 2007, we bought a 55” plasma TV that was very-high tech at the time.  It has served us well over the years but recently, the sound has begun to go out on it.  And that is why we found ourselves staring at the rows and rows of hi-definition LED panels at Costco today.

We both agreed that we do not need the latest and greatest model.  After all, anything we get will be light years ahead of what we have.  And we did manage to find one with a gorgeous display that makes our old TV hang its virtual head in shame.   

Garbage In, Garbage Out

We stood there for a time, quietly admiring the display of colorful and far-away landscapes.  Then my husband said, “You know, the picture won’t look nearly as good when we get it home because everything we watch is on Netflix or Amazon.  And an internet signal doesn’t support that kind of hi-definition picture.”  (You see, we don’t have cable and have no intention of getting it.)  He said, “Remember, garbage in, garbage out.”

He was right, you know.  And this principle doesn’t just apply to a television set.  People are the same way.  What we take in really matters and has a lot to do with what comes out of us.  If we fill our minds non-stop with a bunch of garbage every day, we should not be surprised when that garbage manifests itself in our thoughts and our speech.  In both Matthew 12:34 and Luke 6:45, Jesus tells us, “…out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.”

That’s why it’s so important to spend time in the word every day; to fill our thoughts with something good and pure and holy.  Listening to our pastors preach every Sunday, communing with like-minded Christians, and attending a Bible study class, all help to produce a kind of heart-abundance that will flow out of us in God-pleasing ways.      

How do you keep the abundance of your heart in line with Christ?  Share your thoughts with me at Lifting Her Voice.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.  And, oh by the way…we tested our TV with a CD last night.  The problem appears to be a Fire Stick that needs replacing.  We won’t be getting that new TV just yet.  

1 Peter Chapter 2

The Living Stone and a Holy People

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow up into your salvation, if you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone — rejected by people but chosen and honored by God —  you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture:

See, I lay a stone in Zion,

a chosen and honored cornerstone,

and the one who believes in him

will never be put to shame.

So honor will come to you who believe; but for the unbelieving,

The stone that the builders rejected —

this one has become the cornerstone,

and

A stone to stumble over,

and a rock to trip over.

They stumble because they disobey the word; they were destined for this.

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the one who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

A Call to Good Works

Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul. Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that when they slander you as evildoers, they will observe your good works and will glorify God on the day he visits.

Submit to every human authority because of the Lord, whether to the emperor as the supreme authority or to governors as those sent out by him to punish those who do what is evil and to praise those who do what is good. For it is God’s will that you silence the ignorance of foolish people by doing good. Submit as free people, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but as God’s slaves. Honor everyone. Love the brothers and sisters. Fear God. Honor the emperor.

Submission of Slaves to Masters

Household slaves, submit to your masters with all reverence not only to the good and gentle ones but also to the cruel. For it brings favor if, because of a consciousness of God, someone endures grief from suffering unjustly. For what credit is there if when you do wrong and are beaten, you endure it? But when you do what is good and suffer, if you endure it, this brings favor with God.

For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. He did not commit sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth; when he was insulted, he did not insult in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten but entrusted himself to the one who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree; so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but you have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

Closing Thoughts

In this chapter, Peter quotes Psalm 188 verse 22 which describes the coming Christ as the cornerstone, the one the builders rejected.  The builders were the Jews, and they accepted the prophecy of a coming Christ and honored Him as the Messiah, the savior of their people.

But Jesus was not the Messiah they were hoping for.  What they wanted was a warrior-king who would throw off the shackles of the overbearing Roman Empire and re-establish Israel as a great nation.  What they got was a messiah who promised them trials and suffering in this world in exchange for eternity with Him in Heaven.

So, they had Him crucified on a cross.  He raised Himself from the dead three days later and was witnessed by many before ascending to Heaven.  And He promises eternal life to those who believe in Him, to the gratitude of Christians everywhere.

Peter describes us as “…a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession…”  and reminds his readers of the mercy we have received because of our faith in Christ.  He also exhorts us to conduct ourselves honorably among non-believers.  After all, what kind of witness are we to the world if we present ourselves as saints on Sundays, but live like hellions Monday through Saturday?  

Of all the criticisms we Christians face, the label of hypocrisy is at the top of the list, perhaps with good reason.  So, it is imperative we should conduct ourselves as Christ would have us do, to model Christian attitudes and behavior to others who are curious about our faith.  Sometimes it really is about attraction rather than promotion.  

Commendable

Finally, Peter tells household slaves to obey their masters, whether they are treated fairly or not.  Verse 19 has stuck with me since I memorized it a couple of years ago.  My favorite version is the NIV where it says, “For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God.”  Commendable…I like that.  And the ESV is touching too.  “For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly.”  Peter urges slaves – and us – to endure their suffering, as Christ suffered and endured for them.  Let’s pray.      

Prayer

Precious Father, thank You for Peter and his no-nonsense approach to presenting Your word to us.  Thank You for Your son Jesus Christ, who took on our sin and suffered and died for us, that we might live for all eternity with You.  Help us to be good examples of Christian living, presenting ourselves worthy to be called a people for His possession.  Amen.

Thank you for joining me here today.  I pray God will grow in you what has been planted and watered here.  In this time of unprecedented struggle worldwide, we can look to God for guidance and comfort.  Be sensitive to those in your circle of influence who need a word of encouragement and invite them to join us.  If you like this show, it would be great if you give it a five-star review.  Don’t forget to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.  See you right here tomorrow.  Be well!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Christian Standard Bible(r), Copyright (c) 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible(r) and CSB(r) are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.