1 Peter – Session 2Did you know that ancient Japanese legends talk about “Hitobashira” which means human pillar? In their legends, Hitobashira is where a maiden is buried alive at the base or near some construction as a prayer to ensure the building against disasters of enemy attacks. This human pillar is where the cornerstone of the building would be located. In modern Greece, when the foundation of a new building is laid out, it is their custom to kill a cock, a ram, or a lamb and let its’ blood flow into the hollow cornerstone, under which the animal is buried afterwards. Many of the more ancient churches placed relics of the saints, especially their martyrs in this stone. In other cultures, the foundation stone often has a cavity into which is placed a time capsule containing coins and newspapers of the time plus other artifacts that were typical of the time of construction. Today, we will take about a cornerstone.

Peter starts Chapter Two talking about a newborn. When we were little, we all looked forward to growing up. We had dreams of what that could look like. Peter writes that as spiritual newborns, we too must grow in Christ. As a newborn desires milk, so too a spiritual newborn desires milk. When we see our need for God and His word, our spiritual appetite increases and we have a stronger desire to grow more Christlike.

The Living Stone1 Peter 2:1-10 “1Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. 2Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that it may grow you up in your salvation, 3now that you have tasted that the Lord is good. 4As you come to Him, the living stone – rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to Him, 5you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6For in scripture it says: See I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame. 7Now to you who believe, this is precious. But to those who do not believe, the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone, and, 8a rock that makes them fall. They stumble because they disobey the message – which is also what they were destined for. 9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into the light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.”

Peter starts off telling us how our hunger will be fed, dig into God’s word deeper. He is comparing newborn babies to born again Christians by saying that new Christians should crave spiritual food as newborn babies crave milk. You are past the appetizer now – and heading for the main course. Live on the meat so that our souls are nourished and sustained through Him.

Peter now starts talking about a stone – remember Jesus names Peter the stone (rock) upon which He will build his church. The image of stone helps us picture a firm foundation and a strength that believers can have in Christ.

Peter says in Verse 5, we are being crafted into a spiritual house. The spiritual house is the church and each of us as a believer are a stone as part of that house. Christ is the

Page Twofoundation and the cornerstone of each believer. His foundation is what we build on so that we have a sure foundation.

A cornerstone determines the orientation and design of a building, making it the most significant stone in the entire structure. Cornerstones are normally placed on the front of a building. A cornerstone is traditionally the very first stone laid for any structure. All other stones are laid in reference to this one stone. Jesus, being our cornerstone, is the basic part on which the Christian’s life exist. When our lives are anchored to him, the winds and storms of life will not destroy what Jesus has built. Rather you will be stronger, and your life will be a lighthouse to someone else that needs your strength.

Peter’s analogy of a living house emphasizes community. The members of the body cannot function without each other and stones must come together to form a building. In our self-absorbed society, it is easy to forget our reliance on other Christians is vital to our own growth. We have seen a taste of this during the pandemic. We have missed each other. That is because God designed us to be a people of community interfacing and sharing our lives with each other. There is strength in numbers.

Some people challenge us with the very high quality and strength of the way they lead their lives. Many of you saints here in our church are a challenge and an encouragement to me in seeing how you continually and faithfully live for Christ. I want my faith to be as strong as yours one day! During this pandemic, I have seen servants hearts all over our church – like building a ramp for an elderly couple in our church, coming to the church during a rain storm and putting buckets out to catch the water, or, cooking a meal for the death of a family member.

Just one stone or one wall by itself is useless. Put together many stones or many walls and you can have a beautiful structure. Peter is using this as a metaphor in talking about the church. One wall cannot stand on its’ own. One Christian would fall on their own. Here he is showing we are not an individualistic society but a culture of community. Together our individual lives are intertwined and enriched. Together much can be accomplished for the kingdom of God. Together we can encourage each other and lift each other up in stressful times. A cord of one is easily broken, but not a strand of cords.

For Jesus to keep building us, we need to crave the Word of God and desire the main course of His words. Christ doesn’t demand an animal sacrifice. Rather he asks for spiritual sacrifice of yourself. He wants us to learn obedience from the heart. To offer ourselves as a spiritual sacrifice is to follow Jesus – where you are, where you work and where you are in community. To offer spiritual sacrifices include praying, loving others, reading the bible, and, spending time in meditation with Him.

Verse 9 – you are chosen, you are a royal priesthood. He loved us enough to choose us, to want us to be with him. Many people look to their accomplishments as their self-concept. We have been chosen to show God to others – at your work or in your neighborhood.

God’s People Do Suffer1 Peter 2:11-25 “11Dear friends, I urge you as foreigners and exiles, abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits

us. 13Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority; whether to the emperor, as the

Page Threesupreme authority, 14or to governors who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. 16Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil, live as God’s slaves. 17Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor. 18Slaves, in reverent fear of God, submit yourselves to your masters, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19For it is commendable if someone bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because they are conscious of God. 20But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and endure it, this is commendable before God. 21To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. 22He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth. 23When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead he entrusted himself to who judges justly. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness, by his wounds you have been healed. 25We are like sheep going astray, but you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls"

Foreigners and exiles, yes, as believers we are. Our true loyalty is to God and living with him in heaven. Our citizenship here on earth is temporary. We are loyal to God’s way of life and his truth; as such, we are strangers in a world that would rather ignore God.

When Peter wrote these words, Christians were scattered and living among unbelieving Gentiles. Remember from our lesson last week, Christians were hated in places. Rather than brow beating someone about going to church or berating someone for making a mistake – we should live with graciousness and upright behavior. Your attitude is the Jesus some people will see and maybe even come to know the Lord. Daddy used to say, sugar is sweeter than venom. So true, kindness goes a long way. We all make mistakes. How we forgive others, is the same way God will forgive us.

Verse 13 Peter says to submit to human authority. When Peter wrote this, Nero was emperor. Nero was known as a cruel tyrant (see Who was Emperor Nero sheet). Even though the people did not worship Nero, they have to respect him as their emperor and pay taxes that were required. It is the same with Uncle Sam. Sometimes when I see how much we pay in taxes I want to run to Washington and help them manage the money more efficiently! But pay taxes we must be willing to do when we live in the US.

Christians are to live at peace with the state as long as the state allows us to live by our religious convictions. We must be responsible citizens as well as responsible Christians.

Nero started out as a good emperor, but five years into his reign he brutalizes people and put higher taxes in place and makes slaves build a new palace for him. Nero started out with the respect of his people. He was doing good deeds. Somewhere after he has his own mother killed, he becomes a selfish, vindictive, murderous individual. Even his own

political party in his palace lived day to day wondering if they made him mad today. They knew even then; they would be killed if they had upset him in any way.

This is the environment the Christians were living in. Can you imagine seeing your brother or mom burning on a stake at night to light Nero’s garden? It was frightening.

Page Four Peter was offering an oppressed people freedom – freedom in Christ, that no matter what

happened to them on earth, if they believe in Christ, they would live as free people and in a heavenly home that was wonderful. No oppression in heaven.

Charles Spurgeon once said this about all people, “even if they are beggars, honor them. They are God’s image, though marred and defiled, but because he is a man, honor him. Look down up him never with contempt, but always feel that there is an immortal spark, even within that mass of filth. Honor all men, and while we, therefore, have due respect to rank, yet a man is a man and we honor all men.”

During this time, many Christians were slaves. As such, they had to be loyal to their masters. Peter said to be loyal even in the face of unjust punishment. He knew that in the end truth would prevail and the Christians would be rewarded – if not on earth, then in heaven.

Christ never sinned and yet he suffered. We follow Jesus who knows what it is like to suffer. Our goal is to face suffering as Jesus did – with patience, calmness and confidence that God is in control.

A changed life speaks louder than any written words. A family member seeing another family member who is saved living their life for Jesus = the most effective way to influence an unsaved family member.

Jesus shows us that revenge is not the best answer. He could have called ten thousand angels to his side when he was on the cross. He prayed. He called down grace. God is trying to produce Jesus’ character in us and our daily lives.

Our social world today looks very different from what the Christians faced in Asia Minor. Socially and culturally we have the freedom to worship how we want and where we want. And yet, some of us would rather stay home instead of investing in the lives of our friends and church and commit to participation in church. One day, the freedom of worship could easily be lost in America.

We have the freedom of travel, social circles, time management and a host of other freedoms. Perhaps, then why is it hard to carve out time for Jesus, if we are indeed free to choose without repercussion of death for following Christ – especially here in the US?

I am preaching to myself here. Do the things that garner out attention today – like using media too long, marking our calendar to spend time with Jesus and idols of “things” – all pay honor to God? If not, I should examine my schedule.

Is this why Peter was exhorting us to exhibit good behavior in an unbelieving society? From Peter’s opening salutation, Peter is reminding the Christians that their life is not a

matter of historical accident – but that they have been called to be who they were at that moment in time in history. They were written into a story by God. They were written into the story in a time of chaos – they were written into a story that they were called to suffer. Their part is to suffer well. Their vocation is to suffer. This is the part they are called to play in God’s story of redemption. Peter is telling these people you might suffer here on earth at Nero’s hands, but look up, our home is in heaven.

Christ lived out his calling – that he would be born of a virgin, suffer on earth – unjustly. His calling was to come and be a substitute for us on the cross.

Peter ends this message by telling his followers, “do not retaliate”. Maybe your family members are all Christian. If so, great! Maybe your family is like mine with believers and also unbelievers. Gosh, those unbelievers can ask some hard questions. One time all

Page FiveI could respond was, “I don’t know. All I know is I once was blind, but now I see”. But as family, we long for those we love to follow Jesus so we too can live together eternally. Leave it to God. Let your faith be the difference for them. Jesus also suffered for those Christians who before their conversion had themselves been straying sheep. Praise the Lord, this is one straying sheep he brought back to the fold.

I am reminded of the funny story of a United States president visiting a nursing home. He

enteredthe facility with his entourage and was

greeted with smiles by the residents. He went from

person to person in the living area. He noticed one

woman in a wheelchair who seemed distant. He

wanted to “work the room” as he had been taught to

do in his political career. So, he approached her.

Hesmiled, patted her shoulder, and clasped her frail

hand. “Do you know who I am?” the president asked. “No,” she replied, “but if you will ask the

lady at the nurses’ station over there, well she can tell you who you are.”

We see through the scriptures how Peter changes. While he was with Jesus, he was full of zest, aggressive and loudmouthed. He is the disciple who cut off an ear of one of the arresting soldiers when trying to defend Jesus. But now, Peter is saying be humble and submit. Aggressive Peter has become a tender shepherd to the church scattered about. Time and maturity changed Peter into a “rock” for the church.

God gives us the freedom to choose how far we grow to mature levels of spiritual understanding. As a newborn needs milk every day, sometimes every hour, we should tend to our soul in feeding it with God’s word. When we pray, we should pray in Jesus name relying on Him for answers. And be strong if He says not yet, keep praying.

When we study the word of God, we should ingest what we are reading and not read just for the sake of reading. What we put into our minds will reflect coming out of our minds.

In my mind, Peter is saying you have to Walk the Walk. Transformation is a process and begins in your heart and mind. This kind of obedience will create a change in your life.

Remember – We are chosen by God! That is good news!

Clover FUMC – Where is our cornerstone located? Can you find it? Take a drive to church and look for it on the front of our building!!