1 Peter Chapter 2

• The approximate year is still somewhere between AD64 and AD66, and Peter is still in Rome and continues his letter to those Christians scattered throughout the Mediterranean world. Although we have his letters divided into chapters, making it easier for us to study in small doses, the writers of the Biblical letters did not write them that way.

His letter continues:

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 by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

• He begins with the word "Therefore", telling us he's continuing his thought from chapter 1, verse 23, where he tells his readers they should rid themselves of things that are impure and perishable and concentrate on those things that shall endure.

• Then he goes on to compare born again Christians to newborn babies by explaining that new Christians should crave spiritual food the same as newborns hunger for nourishment.

• All children have a common goal—to grow up—to be like mom or dad or big brother or sister, or maybe their only goal is to acquire freedom by obtaining a driver’s license. Whatever their reason, all children aspire to grow up. When we are born again into God’s family, we become spiritual newborns and will yearn to grow.

• Christians journeying through this world toward their home in heaven need to constantly feed on God’s Word for nourishment, guidance, and strength. This is the only way to experience the closeness of the Lord as he leads you by being gracious, kind, loving, and helpful, standing by you every step of the way.

• It is sad to realize there are some who never do grow because they don’t receive the nourishment needed. As newborn Christians, our spiritual appetite will increase as we see our need for God’s Word and begin to feed upon it. As more mature Christians, it is our duty to see that newborn Christians receive the nourishment they need to grow in their spiritual life.

• Our first "taste" of the Lord's goodness should encourage us to hunger for more. By studying His Word, we grow closer to Him, satisfying this craving.

4As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men 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." (Isaiah 28:16) 7Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone (or cornerstone), (Psalm 118:22)" 8and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall."(Isaiah 8:14) They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

• "Living Stone" refers to Christ. He is a "life-giving" Stone. Jesus is referred to in many ways in the New Testament, many of which refer to "Living": Living Water (John 4:10-14); Living Bread (John 6:51); Living Way (Hebrews 10:20).

• Jesus was rejected by men, but exalted by God.

• When describing the church as God’s spiritual house, Peter again uses Old Testament scriptures which would be familiar to his Jewish Christian readers. These readers would have understood the living stones to be Israel. Peter uses a metaphor of a stone, representing Christ as the stone rejected by builders. Yet this stone (Jesus) became the cornerstone of a new building, one composed of living stones (Christians). He portrays the church as a living, spiritual house with Jesus as the foundation and cornerstone and each believer as a stone. By using this “stone” image, applying it to Christ, Peter is attempting to illustrate to his Jewish readers that the church does not cancel the Jewish heritage, but fulfills it.

• The "house of the Lord" is made up of Christians who have been made "alive" by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit which was sent by Jesus Christ, the original Living Stone.

• Paul often refered to the “body of Christ” with Christ as the head and each believer as a member (Ephesians 4:15), but Peter uses architectural terms rather than biological ones. This seems appropriate since Jesus named him the “Rock”.

• As members of the "holy priesthood", believers should: (a) reflect God's holiness - representing God before men; (b) make spiritual sacrifices by keeping their bodies pure, making offerings of money and material goods, praising God, and doing good deeds; and (c) pray for others - interceding for their fellow man before God.

• A cornerstone determined the design and orientation of a building, making it the most significant stone in the entire structure.

• Paul’s image of the “body of Christ” and Peter’s analogy of a living house both emphasize community. The members of the body cannot function without each other, and the stones of a building must come together to create that building, or they are worthless stones. In our self-absorbed society, it is easy to forget our reliance on other Christians is vital to our growth.

I want to stress here: "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:25

Please use this Bible study in ADDITION to meeting together with other Christians whenever you can.

• Jesus, as the cornerstone, is the most important part of the church. Peter repeats Isaiah’s words “the stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.” When people reject Christ or refuse to believe that He is who He says He is, they stumble and fall. Rather than recognizing Him as the treasure He is, they trip over Him.

• Picture two people walking along a pathway and they come across a stone. The first man pays no attention and trips over it, falling to the ground. The second stoops to examine the stone and realizes it is a precious gem.

• Unbelief is destined to result in eternal destruction.

9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful 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.

• In Old Testament times, people did not approach God directly. A priest acted as an mediator between God and sinful humans. With Christ’s death and resurrection, all of that changed. The veil of the temple was torn so we may come directly into God’s presence. We are given the privilege of praying directly to God, through Jesus, rather than needing a priest to pray for us. But with that honor comes responsibility. As Christians, we are each “priests”, which means it is our duty to join in the priestly work of reconciling God and man by bringing others to Christ.

11Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which 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.

• As believers, our real home is with God, therefore we are aliens and strangers in this world. We will often feel like strangers in a world which prefers to ignore God. We should remain seperate from the corruption and not yield to the world's destructive sinful desires.

• Peter’s readers were scattered among unbelieving Gentiles inclined to believe and spread lies about Christians. In Matthew 5:16, Jesus taught that if your actions are above reproach, even hostile people will end up praising God. Gracious and upright behavior on the part of Christians might show the lies and rumors to be false and may win some of those critics to the Lord. The Greek word used here which is translated as "see" actually refers to a careful evaluation over a period of time. Nonbelievers are constantly observing believers and evaluating their actions.

• When you come across people who misunderstand Christianity, show them Christ by the way you respond to them and live your life. Your actions could be what changes them so they may come to praise God with you one day.

13Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme 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 men. 16Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 17Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

• In summary, Peter is telling his readers to be good citizens as far as possible, yielding to the earthly government officials under which they live; be law-abiding and obedient to promote the good name of Christianity, even if the government is headed by such as Nero.

• See Romans 13:1-2. Disobeying government authority is indirectly disobeying God.

• The Roman empire was under Nero at this time. He was a notoriously cruel tyrant. Peter is not telling them to compromise their beliefs, but in most aspects of daily life, it was possible and desirable for Christians to live according to the law of the land. We are commanded to cooperate with our rulers as far as conscience will allow, so the Lord’s Good News and His people will be respected. If we are persecuted, it should be because we are obeying God, not because we have broken some moral or civil laws.

18Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh. 19For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is 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 you 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. 22"He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth." (Isaiah 53:9) 23When they hurled their insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats. Instead, He entrusted Himself to Him who judges justly. 24He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed. 25For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.

• There were many Christians who were slaves in the first century church. Peter is telling them to be good slaves, even to brutal masters, and to endure, without resentment, any suffering wrongfully doled out. Similarly, we should submit to our employers, whether they are considerate or callous. In doing so, we may win them to Christ by our good example. Both Jesus and Paul gave similar advice. (Matthew 5:47; Luke 6:32-36; Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:22-25)

• Peter is writing about suffering as a result of doing good. Christ never sinned, yet He suffered so we could be set free. When we follow Christ’s example and live for others, we might also suffer. Our goal should be to face suffering as He did—with patience, calmness, and confidence that God is in control of our future. Verse 23 shows examples of how Jesus silently submitted to being mistreated.

• We can see evidence of how the years have changed Peter. When he was with Jesus, he was full of enthusiasm, aggressive, and loudmouthed. This was the disciple who sliced off an ear of one of the arresting soldiers when trying to defend Jesus. Now using words such as humble and submit, he tells his readers to be submissive to every government authority. Gruff Peter has become a tender shepherd, heeding Jesus’s command to him to “Feed my sheep.” (John 21:17). Time and maturity has changed Peter and turned him into the “Rock” for which Jesus named him years earlier.

• God gives us the freedom to choose whether or not we grow to more mature levels of spiritual understanding. But if we will make growth as His child a daily priority, one day we will find that we have grown to levels of understanding and practice that seemed impossible dreams to us at one time.

• A stone is solid and reliable, yet lifeless, insensitive, and unresponsive. But the LIVING STONE is alive, tender, and lovingly responsive.

• When we study the Word of God, we shouldn’t merely be looking for biblical information. We should be seeking Jesus.
  When we pray, we shouldn’t merely be "saying our prayers." We should be praying in Jesus’s name and seeking His will.
  When we worship, we shouldn’t merely be singing songs, we should be singing to the Lord Himself.
  When we go forth in ministry, we shouldn’t merely be carrying out a task. We should be looking to the Lord for guidance while desiring to please and honor Him.

1 Peter - Chapter 3 COMING JULY 1ST

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