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Post by Josh on Oct 28, 2007 15:51:42 GMT -8
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." 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," 8and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a 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, 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.
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.
Post your comments/ questions/ and discussion starters on 1 Peter 2:4-12 as replies here.
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Post by michelle on Oct 28, 2007 19:56:55 GMT -8
My first thought about this is how often Peter uses the word "stone". Considering he is the rock that church is built on, it's such a high honor for him to bestow on fellow believers. While Jesus is the foundation Stone, we are all stones is the building.
This makes me think of the house we built in Mexico. The house was made of cinderblocks and without every single cinderblock, there would have been no way to finish the house. But even more importantly, without a foundation we could not have laid cinderblocks. If we had, the would have come apart with any shift in the dirt and eventually the entire structure would have crumbled. We are all stones in His kingdom and we are all precious stones.
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Post by Josh on Nov 4, 2007 16:59:13 GMT -8
Michelle, I now consider you the resident expert on making connections between the life of Peter and the writings of Peter.
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Post by Josh on Nov 4, 2007 17:15:28 GMT -8
So, I'm reading a book Marcus recommended to me entitled "Resident Aliens" by Stanley Haeurwas and William Willimon.
I'm on chapter three now and it's one of those rare books that [so far] I've loved and hated. Well, hate's too strong a word. Let's say I've disagreed with much of it and strongly resonated with the rest. Not a lot of neutral ground. So, it's been a good read so far (even if it is at a snail's pace what with that pesky thing called life going on all around me)
It's a timely read because we're studying 1 Peter, which, of course, empahsizes this whole "aliens and strangers" motif.
Here's a quote or two from the chapter I'm on that I thought fit on the subject at hand:
"The Church exists today as resident aliens, an adventurous colony in an age of unbelief. As a society of unbelief, Western culture is devoid of a sense of journey, of adventure, because it lacks belief in much more than the cultivation of an ever-shrinking horizon of self-preservation and self-expression."
The authors argue that our nation has moved into a post-Christian phase, and that this is a good thing for the Church. For instance, whereas it used to take courage to be an atheist, now it is becoming increasingly couragous to live a life dedicated to Christ. The Church is able to focus on going on the offensive, rather than fighting a losing defensive struggle.
The Church is a "colony on the move, like Jesus' first disciples, breathlessly trying to keep up with Jesus. It is an adventure with many unknowns, internal arguments over which turn to take in the road, conversations along the way, visits to strange places, introductions and farewells, and much looking back and taking stock.
When we are baptized... we jump on a moving train... We become part of a journey that began long before we got here and shall continue long after we are gone"
Stanley Hauerwas and William Willimon in Resident Aliens
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Post by michelle on Nov 4, 2007 19:24:02 GMT -8
Uh oh, what have I gotten myself into??
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Post by rose on Nov 4, 2007 20:51:28 GMT -8
This section of the passage struck a chord with me. The idea of abstaining from things that you know aren't beneficial (or could be disastrous) is such a foreign concept in our culture. You are looked upon as bizarre when you abstain from the things that "normal" people take part of every single day. But that's exactly why we are aliens and strangers. We aren't supposed to "fit" into the culture, we are supposed to stand a part and be different. As Josh mentioned two Sundays ago, sometimes we aren't exactly sure what we're supposed to do to really stand out, to really seem different from those who aren't believers in Jesus. But I also know that people watch you more closely when they know you are a Christian and we need to be mindful of that when we're out in the world and making our choices. We are Christ's ambassadors to the world and we need to shine His light.
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Post by Josh on Nov 5, 2007 20:32:54 GMT -8
I know, it's pretty amazing how the word abstain has come to be seen in such a bad light, as unhealthy, unnatural, as if it were natural to follow every urge we happen to feel at any given moment.
Animals typically know when to stop eating (or when they need to eat). Trees instinctively know how to look for water with their roots. Trees never get "bad urges", but the reality is that people do. People cannot live merely by their instincts as animals and plants certainly can.
My NIB commentary focuses on how Peter stresses that we are a community of faith, not merely individual followers of Christ:
"In a nation committed to individualism and a time devoted to consumerism, American go church shopping, "What can I get out of it?" they ask. This is far from the God who calls us to be a people, who speak to us far more often than to me. Perhaps the renewal of the church will come when we begin the "Our Father..." remembering the absolutely essential plural of the pronoun."
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Post by Josh on Nov 9, 2007 21:42:48 GMT -8
Here's the first part of the teaching for Sunday. Responses? A Chip off the Old Block1 Peter 2:4-6 “As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— you 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. For 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."” I love New Testament imagery for the Jesus and His Church—the body, the temple, the bride, the net, the pearl of great price. Here we have another excellent metaphor, one especially appropriate for Peter to use. Peter is, after all, Simon’s nickname, meaning ‘rock’, as Michelle points out. Jesus said He would build His Church on the rock, probably meaning that Peter would the foundational apostle of the new movement. But Peter here sees that he himself is just a chip off the old block so to speak. Why use stone as a metaphor? It’s firm, unshakable, dependable. What limitations does stone have as a metaphor for Christ? Well, Christ is not static and God is not cold (NIB). That’s why Peter gives us a strange twist on the metaphor—he says Jesus (and the Church) are called to be “living stones”. The stone metaphor tradition has a deep foundation in the Old Testament. Peter interweaves these passages to make his point: Psalm 118:22, Isaiah 8:14 and 28:16. But not all of these passage speak of a sure foundation. Others speak of the Messiah in less positive terms: 1 Peter 2:7-8 “Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone," and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.”Stones have other qualities that are not quite so pleasant, but that nonetheless reflect Christ: they are able to crush, they can cause people to trip. And Jesus can at the same time be a firm foundation for some and a stumbling block for others. Though in many ways the gospel message brings people together in peace and harmony (Mal. 5:6) at the same time, it is also divisive by it’s very nature. Even Jesus said: "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn " 'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law - a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' Matthew 10:34-36Later Peter will reflect more on what this means for Christians, but I’ll give you a sneak peek: opposition and suffering. More on StonesAnyway, we are stones, chips off the old block. Again, there’s this theme that we are called to be imitators of Christ: holy as He is holy, rocks as He is a rock. Now, here’s the cool thing about seeing ourselves as stones. One small stone by itself doesn’t amount to much, but put all those stones together and you can have a building… a building that can withstand the elements and withstand even the test of time.
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Post by michelle on Nov 10, 2007 15:02:53 GMT -8
Stones have other qualities that are not quite so pleasant, but that nonetheless reflect Christ: they are able to crush, they can cause people to trip. And Jesus can at the same time be a firm foundation for some and a stumbling block for others. And being that we too are stones, we also have those qualities. We can either be stumbling blocks for people or we can be what they see that will help them to build on a relationship with Christ.
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Post by Josh on Nov 10, 2007 20:11:47 GMT -8
I've heard it said that "the message of the cross is offense enough, let's not add to it unneccesarily"
So, as a follow-up question, in which ways should the Church, with the message of the gospel, be a stumbling block and in which ways shouldn't we?
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Post by Josh on Nov 11, 2007 18:55:31 GMT -8
A Royal Priesthood
What else are we? Peter says:
1 Peter 2:9-10
”But 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. Once 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.”
A royal priesthood. This is huge because Peter is saying to a largely non-Jewish audience (and ex-pagans to boot) that they are the fulfillment of all the hopes and dreams of Israel down through the ages of the Patriarchs and Prophets. Jews and Gentiles together (as Paul elsewhere stresses) are now the people of God. One of the biggest hopes of the Old Testament, going all the way back to Abraham, was that God would bless all the peoples of the earth through Israel. Later, in the time of Moses is was said that Israel would be a nation of prophets to the world (Exodus 19:4-6).
But by the time of Christ, these dreams had not yet been fulfilled. Then came Christ, who founded His church. It is only through the Christian message that God would make plain to the whole world the true Israel, made not of a people of physical ancestry, but of a spiritual people, both Jews and Gentiles. God would take people living in darkness and bring them into the marvelous light of His new Kingdom. (Isaiah 9:2)
So, if we’re priests, what does that mean? What is a priest supposed to do? Two interrelated things (in the Old Testament): represent the people to God and intercede on behalf of the people before God.
Who’s the ultimate priest? Hebrews says Jesus is our High Priest— the one and only forever. But we are called to be priests as well. Why are we needed to be intercessors and representatives if Jesus is the “only mediator between God and man” ? (1 Tim. 2:5) I think the answer is that the power of Jesus is most often displayed through us, the Church, His hands and feet in the world. We have no power in ourselves to stand between God and others, but Christ has given us His authority to act as His agents in the world.
That’s a wonderful idea. But do we live our lives like it’s true? I want to challenge you to list a few ways in which each of us can truly be priests after the manner of our High Priest?
I Urge You
At the end of this section, Peter gets practical on us again (and gives us a bit of a hint on how to live out our priesthood):
1 Peter 2:11-12
“Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live 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.”
It’s probably apparent by now that Peter loves to alternate between affirmation and exhortation (NIB commentary). In order for our lives to be changed by becoming the people of God, we need both words of hope and promise and a kick in the butt, basically.
Again, in this exhortation, being the Christian community means that we stand out as strangers in many ways from the world and we are at war with desires within and spiritual forces without. All this Peter has said already, but he finishes with something new: we have an opportunity to bring glory to God by our transactions among those who are still in the Kingdom of the world.
Being God’s chosen people doesn’t mean we don’t associate with the people of the world. On the contrary, it is our calling, just as we see in Christ’s example, to go out and live our lives in close proximity to those who need Him most. (Matthew 9:10-11, Luke 7:34, 1 Cor. 5:9-13). That’s why we are called to be a community- not to be insular, but to be God’s continued way of “loving the world” through Christ (John 3:16)
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aimee
Advanced Member
Posts: 136
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Post by aimee on Nov 14, 2007 20:11:29 GMT -8
"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, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. " 1Peter 2:8-9 Lately I have been coming across this theme that we are God's children because he has chosen us. Not by something we did, or because we chose him, but because he chose us and gave us the option to obey and follow him. Some other verses that mention this are: 1John 4:19 "We love because he first loved us." Matthew 11:27 "All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." Luke 10:22 "All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." John 15:16 "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you." Romans 9:14-33 13Just as it is written: "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated."
14What then shall we say? Is God unjust? Not at all! 15For he says to Moses, "I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion." 16It does not, therefore, depend on man's desire or effort, but on God's mercy. 17For the Scripture says to Pharaoh: "I raised you up for this very purpose, that I might display my power in you and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth."[c] 18Therefore God has mercy on whom he wants to have mercy, and he hardens whom he wants to harden.
19One of you will say to me: "Then why does God still blame us? For who resists his will?" 20But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? "Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, 'Why did you make me like this?' "[d] 21Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for noble purposes and some for common use?
22What if God, choosing to show his wrath and make his power known, bore with great patience the objects of his wrath—prepared for destruction? 23What if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of his mercy, whom he prepared in advance for glory— 24even us, whom he also called, not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles? 25As he says in Hosea: "I will call them 'my people' who are not my people; and I will call her 'my loved one' who is not my loved one,"[e] 26and, "It will happen that in the very place where it was said to them, 'You are not my people,' they will be called 'sons of the living God.' "[f]
27Isaiah cries out concerning Israel: "Though the number of the Israelites be like the sand by the sea, only the remnant will be saved. 28For the Lord will carry out his sentence on earth with speed and finality."[g]
29It is just as Isaiah said previously: "Unless the Lord Almighty had left us descendants, we would have become like Sodom, we would have been like Gomorrah."[h]
30What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; 31but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. 32Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the "stumbling stone." 33As it is written: "See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame."
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