Well turn to 1st Peter chapter
2 and I want to look at the second half of the chapter. Now you
might think that there's an awful lot of detail from verse 11 down
to verse 25 and I know that many preachers would take weeks and
weeks and weeks over every verse but you know there's a lot of
detail in there, a lot of detail and really the key thing is not
the outworking of the detail and how you outwork it The key
thing is the motivation. The key thing is the motivation.
So, I want to look at this. I want to look at the blessings
and the privileges that we reminded ourselves of when we were together
two weeks ago last time. And then look at what is the
cause of them? What is at the root of those
things? So, the blessings and the privileges.
The Word of God. Paul writes to the Ephesians
in chapter 1 and verse 3 in those amazing verses of sovereign grace. He writes there that God's people
are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. You hear so many preachers and
no you're not. You're there by the skin of your
teeth and oh there's such a burden on you to do so many things so
that you might get the odd little blessing and that you might just
about survive the day of judgment come that judgment seat of Christ
that's the tone that is preached but the Word of God says His
people are blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ and we saw them in the first half of 1 Peter chapter
2 let me remind you I don't want to re-preach the message we had
two weeks ago but it's important to dwell on these things and
have them in your minds first of all the new birth He gives
us a new birth. As newborn babes, He says, desire
the sincere milk of the Word. The new birth. Does it ever occur
to you that all around are people who are left to their own devices?
God in His justice, we don't understand it now but we will,
God in His justice leaves so many to their own devices. It's His justice and He leaves
people just as good as you and me by nature, just as bad as
you and me by nature, to their own devices. But His people,
His Word tells us, He calls out and gives a new birth and puts
a new man inside. And as we say so often, the first
question we'll ask when we get to glory is, why me? Why me deserving
of all of this? Why me? And He makes His people
out of all of humanity, out of all the stones that are lying
around, out of which you could build a temple. Out of all of
those stones, He makes His people living stones, eternal life,
spiritual life. and builds them into the temple
of God. Because Paul says, don't you
know that you are the temple of God? 2 Corinthians chapter
6 and verse 16. Don't you know, you people, you
are the temple. What is the temple? The temple
is the building in which God dwells. It was pictured in the
Old Testament regime of Israel in Jerusalem. There was the tabernacle
in the wilderness first of all, and then there was the temple
in Jerusalem. And it was where God dwelt symbolically. and the
symbolism was acted out in reality, physical reality the sacrifices
and the priest going into the Holy of Holies built out of purpose-made
stones from the quarry and brought together to make that temple
and Paul in Ephesians chapter 2 verses 20 to 22 and now Peter
says you are living stones built into the temple of God and what
is the temple of God today? Well, each one of us individually,
as believers, know you not that you are the temple of the living
God, but as the church, we're the temple of the living God,
the place where God dwells on earth, the kingdom of God, where
He is King. Everyone in His allotted place,
every one of those living stones fitted into His allotted place,
in the right place, a place of God's choosing, the place of
God's purpose, forming that church. And although there are so many
schisms, there's a hymn that we sometimes sing, glorious things
of thee are spoken, and one of the verses talks about by schisms
rent asunder, by heresies distressed. And so it is. There's falsehood
all around. The flesh gets the upper hand
all around, or so it would seem. But God keeps his people and
he has his bride. He does. He keeps his people.
He has a bride for all eternity and it's built out of living
stones, the temple of the living God. And he makes his people
priests. Oh, do you know, so many think
that there's a certain class of people have special access
into the presence of God, have a special audience with God. The people in this world who
think that the man who has the most access into the presence
of God is the Pope in Rome. And oh, how deluded. I don't
know how many they reckon, a billion people around the world? Follow
that complete delusion that that one fallible man in Rome has
access into the presence of God. But the Word of God, if they
would only read it, and if they would only believe it, and if
they would only practice it, tells us here, you are a holy
priesthood. Who? All of his people. All of
his believing people. All whom he has brought to new
life in the Lord Jesus Christ are a holy priesthood. And what
do priests have? They have access into the presence
of God. with no need for a man or woman
for that matter to intercede for them because there is one
mediator between God and men the man Christ Jesus he is the
one mediator 1 Timothy 2 verse 5 he is that one mediator and
in him all of his people each one of them has access how do
we have access? what is it that we go in with?
what did the high priest go in with on the day of atonement?
or he would be struck dead if he didn't he went in with the
blood of a perfect sacrifice Symbolical perfect sacrifice
that had to shed its blood. And with that blood on the Day
of Atonement, according to the prescription that God had laid
down, he was able to go into the Holy of Holies. And if any
attempted to go any other way, if any attempted to go by any
other priesthood, if any attempted to go in any other authority,
they were struck dead and consumed. You read about it in the books
of Moses again and again. You read about Saul, the king. in 1 Samuel 13 attempting to
do the job of the priest that God had only given to the priests
of God and how the condemnation of God came down upon him and
upon his kingdom for taking that authority to himself but in the
Lord Jesus Christ you and I if we are believers have that authority
to go and we have the price paid we have the means by which we
can go it's in verse 19 of chapter 1 but with the precious blood
of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. That's
the blood that we take. That's the price of the sin offering
that we take into the Holy of Holies. And oh, how He accepts
that offering. A sweet-smelling savor. You know
that? The sacrifice. When it was burned
on the altar was a sweet-smelling savor. That lovely smell of roast
meat, you know, of the fat. You know that smell? I don't
know if you've got some meat cooking in the oven but you'll
open the front door when you get home and there's that lovely
smell of the roast. That sweet-smelling savor. It's
speaking of the efficacy of the sacrifice of Christ in the nostrils
of God for His justice. Seeing His Son paying the price
for the sins of His people. Sweet smelling savour. And therefore
we're able to enter. As Hebrews 10.19 says, having
therefore brethren boldness to enter into the holiest by the
blood of Jesus. And it's only the objects of
grace that have that. as 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse
9 says, that He gave us in Christ before the beginning of time. Before the beginning of time.
Salvation in Christ before the beginning of time. And He makes
His people not only living stones and priests and gives them a
new birth but He makes them special people, distinctly called out
from the hopelessness that is this life all around us, isn't
it? What is it? How does the Word of God describe
it? Ephesians 2 verse 12 talks about
those who do not know these things. He says they're without Christ.
Oh, what a thing to be without. You know, the crisis in our economy,
people without a pension, or people without this, or people
without that. There are all these things that you're without. Ah,
but the enormity of this, to be without Christ, being aliens
from the Commonwealth of Israel. and strangers from the covenants
of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. And
yet to his people he's shown mercy. They were not a people,
but he's made them a people. They had not known mercy, but
he's called them in mercy. They have obtained mercy. Verse
10 of chapter 2, that you were in past not a people, but are
now the people of God, which had not obtained mercy, but now
have obtained mercy. What tremendous blessings. Surely,
language cannot describe it. Our emotions cannot rise to it.
The blessings of being in the Lord Jesus Christ. None of us
knows the future. None of us does. Only God knows
the future. Only He knows what will happen
to us. Only He knows what will befall us tomorrow, or the next
day, or in a year's time, or ten years. Only He knows those
things. And there are those who think,
I've got everything. If only I can have this experience.
If only I can have this money. If only I can have this house.
If only I can go to these places. If only I can do these things.
Then my soul will be satisfied. Then my soul will be satisfied.
And like that rich fool who gathered all those things to himself,
he said to himself, Soul, you've done so well. Eat, drink and
be merry. Build bigger barns to put all
of your goods in because now you're going to have a really,
really long happy life. And God said to him, Thou fool.
Thou fool. This night, your soul shall be
required of you because of all the things you can possess in
this life, money, position, fame, fortune, of all of the things
that you can possess, the one thing you cannot possess is your
own soul. You have no control over it.
You have no control over when it's required. Just think, I
don't want to play on this, but just think of that tragic case
of Jade Goody, that young woman who thought she'd achieved everything. from a hopeless background, she
became a star of all the Hello! magazines and all of these things,
star of television, known by everybody in the country, with
nothing to commend her in terms of talent, she couldn't sing,
she couldn't tell jokes, she couldn't do tricks, she had nothing
going for her, but she was given all that fame and fortune and
everything that went with it. And look what happened. Look
what happened. She had no control over that
one thing that none of us has any control over. and that's
our soul and when God will require it. We're just like the flower
of the field. We see them at the moment in
the height of their beauty coming into full flower. You know the
little seed grows and it flourishes and it matures and it comes into
the fullness of its height and the days go by and if it's a
rose it doesn't take more than two or three days and it begins
to fade and the seeds come and the petals drop off and it fades
and it dies. But God has saved His people
in the Lord Jesus Christ. He's saved those that He chose
in the Lord Jesus Christ. He's called them out of darkness
into His marvelous light. And what an immeasurable blessing
this is. What a difference. Why me again? Why me? Everything else, Paul
counted as dung compared with it. He counted it as absolute
rubbish. The stuff that you chuck on the midden, as they say in
the north of England. The stuff that you just turf out and use
to fertilize the garden. He counted it all as done for
the excellence of the knowledge of Christ. Philippians 3. The
excellence of the knowledge of Christ. All of his ambition could
be summed up in this. All of his ambition. Have an
ambition to be good at all sorts of things. To be great at your
education. To grow strong and big and be mature in the world
and to do right things. Have an ambition. You must have
an ambition. But above all, have this ambition. To be found in
Christ at the end. To be found in Him. Not having
my own righteousness which is from the law, from what I do.
But that which is through faith in Jesus Christ and faith in
His faithfulness. Confident assurance in Him of
eternal acceptance. These things are so important.
We're so richly blessed as the people of God, but what is the
cause? I thought back about the message two weeks ago when we
looked at those things, and then I thought, I missed something
out. I did. I missed something out. What's
the cause of it? Why? Why such blessing? Why such tremendous blessing?
What was God's motive in so blessing a people? So exceptionally, so
distinctly blessing a people? Well look in verse 11 of chapter
2 of 1 Peter where Peter addresses the people that he's writing
to as dearly beloved, dearly beloved. Now no doubt that's
coming from the heart of Peter to fellow believers. Love the
brethren and he loves them. He loves these people as his
brethren. We don't know how much contact
he had with them but he loved them as brethren, as brothers
and sisters in Christ. But surely what he's referring
to also is, why did he dearly love them? He loved them because
God had first loved them. Because they were the objects
of the love of God. It was God's love which was the
motive for all of this blessing. All whom God so blesses with
the new birth as living stones, as priests, as special people,
all of them are objects of His love. You know the verse that
we read earlier on, it's so well known but it's worth meditating
on. Turn to it, Jeremiah chapter
31 speaking in the midst of judgment and of despair of God calling
out a people from this sinful world for his own glory and it's
pictured in Israel going into Babylon and then being brought
back again and it's pictured as Israel the nation but it really
means the Israel of God all the people of God and verse 3 is
such a precious verse And this is what God says to every one
of his believing children. The Lord hath appeared of old
unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting
love. Do you know that? Daniel, I have
loved thee. Marguerite, I have loved thee
with an everlasting love. Michael, I have loved thee with
an everlasting love. I have loved thee with an everlasting
love. Therefore, with loving kindness,
I have drawn thee. Why did he call you? Why did
he put that new birth in? Why did he call you out of this
lost and fallen world? With an everlasting love I have
loved thee. Therefore with loving kindness
I have drawn thee. Oh, the love of God. He says,
Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated. God says that. God says
that in several places. It's quoted in Romans 9.13. Jacob,
the apple of his eye, His special people. Jacob have I loved. And
God is sovereign. God who is sovereign by definition,
God who is sovereign makes the choice. Ephesians 2 verse 4 tells
us this, but God who is rich in mercy. We've already seen
have obtained mercy. We hadn't obtained mercy but
have now obtained mercy. God who is rich in mercy for
His great love wherewith He loved us. He's rich in mercy. For His great love, wherewith
He hath loved us, even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened
us, made us alive together with Christ. By grace ye are saved,
and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ Jesus." If you're in Christ, in the eternal reckoning
of God, the deal is done. You're there now in Christ. You're
there with Him in Christ. And God commends His love to
us. in that while we were sinners,
Romans 5.8, God commends His love to us. What sort of love
is it? Ah, when He gave me, when He did some special things for
me, then I loved Him. No. No. God commends His love
to us in this, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died
for us. He chose us in Christ. He placed
us in Christ. For the reckoning of His justice
for all time, He placed the people He chose in Christ. We lived
in Christ. We died in Christ. We rose with
Him in Christ. We're seated together with Him
in heavenly places in Christ at such cost. What did it cost? It's as if God is infinitely
rich and it cost Him nothing. It was tremendous cost. It cost
the life of His dear Son. It caused Him to for Christ to
have to come to this earth and take upon Him our flesh in the
likeness of sinful flesh and to live in the place of His people
and to die in the place of His people and to rise again in the
place of His people with them in Him at great cost born of
a woman born under the law to redeem those who are under the
law and then as a spotless lamb look at verse 24 of the chapter
1 Peter chapter 2 who His own self bear our sins in his own
body on the tree, on that cross of wood, that shameful death. Why is it shameful? It says in
the Old Testament, in the books of Moses, it says, cursed is
everyone that hangeth on a tree. And Christ has borne that curse
for us. He's borne it. He bare our sins in his own body. He was loaded with the sins of
his people. And so the Psalms, as we saw
a few months ago, as you read the Psalms and the Psalmist is
talking about my sins, Yes, they're the Psalms of the writers of
the Psalms, David predominantly. He's talking about his sins,
but you know, you've missed the point if you don't see that they're
the sins of Christ. Not that Christ was ever a sinner,
but that He was made sin on the cross. He made Him, who knew
no sin, to be sin for us. He bore our sins in His own body
on the tree, and bearing those sins, the judgment of God was
poured out on that sin in Him on the cross, and He bore it.
and he poured out his lifeblood unto death to pay the penalty,
to pay the sin debt, to pay the price of the justice of God for
those sins. Oh, the great riches that there
are in the Lord Jesus Christ. And look again right at the end
of the chapter, that you should live unto righteousness by whose
stripes, by the stripes of Christ you were healed. For you were
a sheep going astray, but are now returned unto the shepherd
and bishop. of your souls." He's speaking
of Christ. He's speaking of Isaiah 53. You
know the verses in Isaiah 53 verses 4-6. Surely He hath borne
our griefs. Written 800 or more years before
Christ came. He has borne our griefs and carried
our sorrows. Yet we did esteem Him stricken.
Those griefs and sorrows were for our sins. That was our shame
for our sins, but He bore it in our place. Yet we did esteem
Him stricken. Smitten of God. the justice of
God for those sins, and afflicted. He was wounded for our transgressions. Why was He punished? Why did
He bear the stripes of punishment? It was for our transgressions,
the transgressions of His people. He was bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement which brings
our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed. All
we like sheep. You see, there it is. For you
were like sheep going astray, all we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his
own way, his own natural sin tendency way. And the Lord has
laid on him, our substitute, the iniquity of us all, all of
his people. He bore the sins of all of his
people through all time. The reason why I wanted to spend
so long on that is because that is the foundation of the exhortation
that Peter gives. You see, he says, dearly beloved,
I beseech you, I beseech you, I give a friendly exhortation
to you, I give a friendly exhortation as an elder, as an apostle, not
as a pope, but as a fellow believer with the same trials and afflictions
that you have, but I give you a friendly exhortation And I
give that exhortation to the new man that is in. You see,
so many appeal to the flesh to reform itself, to be kind to
one another, to do all of these other things. And always it fails,
for the flesh is weak. There is no strength in the flesh
to do those things which are necessary to be right with God.
Don't ever for one moment think that in this life there's a process
going on of sanctification which improves the flesh. The flesh
doesn't improve. Flesh is flesh right to the death.
But we grow in grace and the knowledge of our God and Savior,
Jesus Christ. We grow in grace. The new man
grows. The new man feeds on the milk
of the Word as newborn babes desiring the milk of the Word.
The new babe feeds on those things, on the good things of God and
grows. There is a new man there, if
you are born again of God, to whom it is worth appealing. What's
the point of appealing to a dead man? He's dead. You're dead in
trespasses and sins outside of Christ. says Ephesians chapter
2. There's no point appealing to
that, for it will never reform itself. It will never improve
itself. Ah, but there's a new man who
desires the sincere milk of the Word of God. To him, it is worth
beseeching and exhorting and encouraging. And what does he
do? He encourages them to do certain things. Now I want you
to look at verse 11. Verse 11. Dearly beloved, because
of where you are, because of where you are, because of what
God has done for you, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims."
Strangers and pilgrims. You are strangers and pilgrims
in this world, if you're in the Lord Jesus Christ. You're not
citizens of this world anymore, in one sense. In a spiritual
sense, you're not citizens of this world anymore. Do you know,
it's interesting to compare with Ephesians chapter 2 and verse
19, where he says, talking about your position within the kingdom
of God, He says, you are no more strangers and foreigners, which
you were when you were outside of the kingdom of God. You were
strangers and foreigners to the kingdom of God when you were
outside of it. But now that you're in the kingdom of God, you are
fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God.
But from this perspective, verse 11, I beseech you as strangers
and pilgrims from the perspective of the world. You're now, if
you're in Christ, The world that you live in, you're a foreigner,
spiritually speaking, in that world. You're a foreigner. You speak a language that the
world doesn't understand. You have thoughts that the world
doesn't have. You have thoughts of God that
they don't see. You see things within the borders
of the kingdom of God that they cannot see. You're strangers
and pilgrims. You're on a journey. You're not
settled here. You're on a journey to an eternal city. you're looking
as in Hebrews 11 as those as those patriarchs looked and as
Abraham looked for a city who has foundations whose maker and
builder is God that's where you're headed you're pilgrims on a journey
somewhere else and he beseeches you therefore while you're here
while you're here live lives that reflect the glory of that
God who has called you that reflect the grace and the goodness and
the mercy of God appealing to the new man you see he first
says abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul choice
again I know some don't like thinking of this but it's true
God has given us minds God has given us wills to exercise they're
not free they're entirely in his sovereign purpose but he
says abstain from fleshly lusts because those lusts are always
there with you those fleshly lusts are always there The man
or the woman who claims that they'd never experienced fleshly
lusts is a hypocrite or a liar. It's not true. You, all of us,
in the flesh, there are fleshly lusts and they war against the
soul. I am as it were, says Song of Solomon 6.13, a camp of two
armies in conflict. And Galatians 5.17 says this,
the spirit wrestles with the flesh and the flesh with the
spirit and the two are contrary to one another. There's a war
going on within. Peter says, if you are the children
of God, he appeals to that new man. Abstain from fleshly lusts. Make positive choices to steer
away from them. And as you go through this world,
though you're citizens of a heavenly kingdom, nevertheless, physically,
you're citizens of a physical kingdom. And as those citizens
of a physical kingdom, as Christ said when they tried to trick
him about paying taxes to Caesar, whose image is on the coin? Caesar's, right. well pay to
Caesar that which is Caesar's and to God that which is God's
and so it is live as good citizens in this life as you walk through
this world live as good citizens here have honest dealings verse
12 having your conversation honest among the Gentiles those who
are born again of the Spirit of God in all of your dealings
with the world in all of your trade with the world in every
interaction that you have with the world Be honest in it. Not just the words you speak,
but the way you act. Don't try to cheat somebody.
Don't try to get one over on somebody else. Don't try to twist
somebody and get them to do something for you that is entirely to your
benefit. Be fair. Be honest, he says. And he's speaking to those who
are born again of the Spirit of God. Those who have a new
nature within. Have honest dealings with the
world. Because you see, even if they speak as you as evildoers,
as the world will, because the world hates the message that
we preach, and you know what the message is that they hate.
They love the idea. They love the idea that it's
up to everybody to decide their own eternal fate and therefore
some can choose to choose yes and some can choose to choose
no. They love that idea. That's a very acceptable gospel.
But if you preach what I've preached this morning about the sovereign
grace of God and the particular redemption and the choice that
he made before the beginning of time and the outworking of
that choice now the world and religion especially will speak
against you as evil doers but one thing's for sure that abstaining
from fleshly lusts that honest conversation and dealing will
be good works which they shall see and they will glorify God
we have to say this for those people we hate their doctrine
but you can't deny the fact that they deal honestly they will
never swindle you They will never seek to get one over on you.
They glorify God in the day of visitation. Then verses 13 and
14. He says, Submit yourselves to
every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake. Why should you do
it? Submit yourself to every... Well,
who are they? Who are these people that put
themselves in charge over me? Why should I obey them and do
those things? Submit yourselves to every ordinance
of man for the Lord's sake. do it as if it's the Lord that's
asking you to do these things, to obey these laws to work in
this way do it for the Lord's sake whether it be to the king
as supreme or unto governors as unto them that are sent by
him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of them that
do well for so is the will of God that with well-doing ye may
put to silence the ignorance of foolish men those who are
the true children of God those who are destined for eternity
Those who have a confidence of eternal life are those who live
in this life as no threat to society, as honest people. Honest
people who cause no threat of hostility or violence to the
society in which we live. That's the testimony of this
book. This book has stayed the same
down 2,000 years since these words were written almost. This
has stayed the same. Men and women have distorted
it down history. There's been a terrible, terrible
history of unjust violence in the name of religion. But these
words were always there, and these words always remain the
same. Be good citizens as the people of God. And then in verses
17 to 20, honor all men, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor
the king, servants, be subject to your masters with all fear,
not only to the good and the gentle, but also to the froward,
the harsh, the difficult to handle the ones who are unfair do your
job properly for this is thankworthy if a man for conscience toward
God endure grief suffering wrongly he says what glory is it if you
get a pat on the back when you do well but when you suffer for
it unjustly and take it patiently this is acceptable with God live
as people who show respect and honor this is what he's saying
live as people who show respect and honor and bear injustice
patiently yes there's injustice all around but bear it patiently
and how should you follow verse 21 looking unto Christ as an
example for here unto you are called because Christ also suffered
for us leaving us an example leaving us an example that you
should follow his steps looking unto Jesus as Hebrews 12 2 says
the author and finisher of our faith following his example that
you should follow in his steps he did no sin neither was any
guile in his mouth and yet despite being utterly unjustly accused
when he was reviled reviled not again when he suffered he threatened
not but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously
for the salvation of his people you see he says in verse 16 those
who are called by Christ come into the liberty of Christ they're
free in Christ verse 16 as free but not using your liberty for
a cloak of maliciousness but as the servants of God in the
Lord Jesus Christ you are free from the law you are not under
law but under grace you are free from it but don't use that as
licentiousness don't use that liberty as a cloak of maliciousness
to live as you want live as good citizens, doing all of these
things to reflect the glory and the grace of God who has been
so gloriously gracious to His people. It's a call to those
who are free to use their liberty to the praise of the glory of
His grace. That's what it says in Ephesians
1.6. Just turn over there. Ephesians 1.6. He's called out
a people. He's gloriously called them out.
Ephesians 1. and verse six well let's start
at verse two grace be to you and peace from God our Father
and the Lord Jesus Christ blessed be the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings
in heavenly places in Christ according as he has chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world for a purpose that
we should be holy and without blame before him in love having
predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
Himself according to the good pleasure of His will for He is
God, He is sovereign to the praise of the glory of His grace wherein
He hath made us accepted in the Beloved and all of these things
are done chapter 2 verse 10 for we are His workmanship created
in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained
that we should walk in them what a place of privilege and blessing
is ours beyond measure therefore what people should we be in this
world in this life