Know
Who You Are: The People of God
1
Peter 2: 9-10
You
are not a people who stumble over Christ, a people who question His claims and
deity and refuse to believe Him. You are a people who believe Christ, a people
who are building your lives upon the Foundation Stone of God’s Son. You have
taken your lives and laid them upon Him; you have entrusted your whole being
into the keeping of Christ. Therefore, know who you are: you are the people of
God, the people He is building to live with Him forever and ever.
1 Know what kind of people you are (v.9)
Once you believe in God’s Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, you become very, very special to God. You become special because you trust His Son. God the Father has only one Son...
�honly one Son who has God’s perfect nature, who is holy, righteous, and pure, loving, kind and gentle just as God is.
�honly one Son who came to earth to save men by dying for them by showing them how much God loves them.
God loves His Son so much that when a person trusts His Son—really believes and trusts Him—God will do anything for that person. The person becomes very, very special to God. God takes all believers and does four wonderful things for them.
a. A chosen generation
The Greek
words actually mean a chosen or elect race. Peter takes the term from
the Old Testament where God stated the same thing about
The idea is that of a new race of people, a new species
that differs entirely from the other races upon earth. This is a shocking
statement to some people; nevertheless it is exactly what the Word of God
claims. God is actually creating a new race of people upon earth. How? How can
it be that believers from
��The
person is born again. 1 John 5:1
��The person receives a renewed mind. Romans 12:2
��The person becomes a new creature. 2 Cor. 5:17
��The person becomes a new man. Ephes. 4:24
��The person receives a new spirit. Romans 7:6
b. A royal priesthood
To a person who has never given his life to Jesus Christ, God seems far away and off in outer space someplace. God just does not seem that concerned with human life. There is no personal relationship and little, if any, fellowship and communion with God. A day by day relationship that praises and honors God and brings one’s needs to God and knows that God will meet one’s needs—all this is missing to the person who has never committed his life to Christ. God seems untouchable and unreachable and out of range of man’s day to day affairs. Without Jesus Christ a person just has no access and no closeness to God. This is the reason men have always felt the need to have priests, a body of people who would dedicate their lives to God and who would carry the needs of men before God. Men have felt the need to have a representative before God, some godly priest who could present his needs to God.
This is the glorious message of the gospel: when we receive Jesus Christ as our Savior, God creates us into a royal priesthood. God makes a royal priest out of everyone of us. He gives us open access into His presence forever and ever. We can actually approach God anytime. In fact, God expects us to live in His presence—to fellowship, commune, and walk in His presence all day every day.
Note the word “royal,” a royal priesthood. This simply means that we are priests of royalty, priests who belong to the Sovereign Majesty of the universe, the King of kings and Lord of lords. We are the priesthood of God Himself, the priests who rule and reign with Christ and who serve and worship God face to face, day by day, hour by hour and moment by moment. We are the priests who live and move and have our being in His presence, who walk and live in open communion with Him.
How many of us actually walk and live in the presence of God like this? How many know what it is to have an unbroken communion with God? How many know what it is to be praying always? May God convict our hearts and stir us to recommit our lives to prayer and communion—to praying always—to seeking an unbroken communion and fellowship with Him every moment of the twenty four hours of every day.
c. A holy nation
This is a very meaningful title for believers. Just think about it: God is building a new nation of people. He is drawing people from all over the world, people from all the nations of the world, and creating a new nation. What is the nation? It is the holy nation of God. Remember: the word “holy” means separated, set apart, and different. Any person who is willing to separate from the sin and evil of this world and set his life apart unto God, God will take that person and make him a citizen of His holy nation. This is what holy means: to be different from the world, from its sin, evil, and death. It means to be separated from the evil life of the world and set apart to the holy life of God. The person who turns to God becomes a citizen of God’s holy nation:
��He serves the Sovereign Head of God’s nation, even God Himself.
��He obeys the laws of God’s nation.
��He is dedicated to follow the customs and life-style of God’s nation.
��He speaks up for and defends the nation of God.
d. A special people
The Greek means...
�h“a people for God’s own possession” (A.T. Robertson. Word Pictures In The New Testament, Vol.6, p.98).
�h“the people to be His very own” (Charles B. Williams. The New Testament in the Language of the People. Iversen Associates, 1966).
�h“a
people saved to be His own” (William F. Beck. The New Testament in the
Language of Today.
This is a most precious thought: that God makes us His very own people, a very special possession of His. Possession has the idea of value, of worth and preciousness. We are more precious to God than all the precious gems and treasures of the world. Possession also has the idea of provision, protection, and security. We are God’s possession, His very special people; therefore, He will provide and protect us and make us secure in every sense of the word. Ephes. 1:13-14
2 Know
what your purpose is: To show His praises (v.9)
Why does God do so much for believers? There is one supreme reason:
The statement “that ye might show forth” means to speak forth; to tell out; to publish abroad; to set forth. The word “praises” means virtues, excellencies, and the supreme and eminent qualities of God (Alan Stibbs. The First Epistle General of Peter. “The Tyndale New Testament Commentaries,” p.104). The very task of the believer is to witness for God, to share the glorious message of God. What is that message? Note the verse: “the praises of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” The message that we are to share is the glorious message of salvation. God will deliver man out of darkness into the light. This is what He has done for believers. Therefore, we are to proclaim the glorious truth that God has saved us through the Light of the world, through Jesus Christ Himself. He has saved us out of the darkness of sin and death and delivered us into the light of eternity. We shall live forever. We are to praise God, proclaim the glorious message of His marvelous light or salvation.
3 Know
what has happened to you (v.10)
Two great facts about believers are covered in this verse.
a. Have become the people of
God
This is striking language. What does it mean not to be a people? Are unbelievers not a people? It means to be without purpose and significance in life; to be missing the very point of life, the very reason for living. It means God created man and gave man life. If man does not live that life, then he is not living, not in the real sense of living. He exists, but he is missing out on life, on what life really is. He is missing the very purpose, meaning, and significance of life. He shall never fulfill, satisfy, or complete the purpose of life.
But when a person comes to God’s Son, when a person enters the light of Christ, God saves him and gives him the light of life. He is given the light of life’s purpose, meaning, and significance. He becomes a member of the people of God. He fulfills, satisfies, and completes life and all that life is meant to be.
b. Have now received mercy
Before we were saved we were like everyone else: we ignored, neglected, cursed, rebelled against, and rejected God. We refused to change our lives and to cry out for the mercy of God; therefore, God could not have mercy upon us. But when we repented and turned to God, God had mercy upon us and saved us. He forgave our sin and neglect and brought us into His love and grace and gave us the glorious privilege of living with Him forever. God had mercy upon us and allowed us the glorious privilege of becoming a member of the people of God. Ephes. 2:4-9