A Chosen Generation

Q: What does the Bible say about being a chosen generation?

The Bible states that believers are a chosen generation, indicating they are selected by God for salvation and purpose. 1 Peter 2:9 reveals that believers are described as a 'chosen generation,' signifying that God has chosen them from among others for His glory and grace. This designation reflects God's sovereign grace in choosing individuals to be part of His covenant community, emphasizing the idea that salvation is not based on human merit but solely on God's sovereign will and love. The concept of being a chosen generation highlights the special relationship believers have with God, as they are called out of darkness into His marvelous light, showcasing His mercy and grace.

Q: How do we know that God's grace is sufficient?

God's grace is evidenced through His enduring mercy and the transformative power it has on believers. The sufficiency of God's grace is rooted in Scripture, particularly in 1 Peter 2:3, where it says that believers have 'tasted that the Lord is gracious.' This tasting signifies a deep experiential understanding of God's grace as not only sustaining but also transformative. The grace of God, as expressed in the gospel, provides assurance, comfort, and strength to believers as they navigate life's challenges. This grace is evident in the believer's continual coming to Christ, which demonstrates that God’s grace is not a one-time event but a daily, abiding reality in the life of every Christian.

Q: Why is Christ referred to as the chief cornerstone?

Christ is called the chief cornerstone because He is the foundational stone of the church and the cornerstone of salvation. In 1 Peter 2:6, Christ is described as the chief cornerstone, a title that underscores His foundational role in the structure of salvation and the church. The cornerstone is vital as it determines the position and strength of the entire building. As the chief cornerstone, Christ is chosen and precious in the sight of God, establishing the foundation upon which believers are built. This imagery highlights that apart from Him, there can be no true spiritual structure or growth. His resurrection and place of honor as the foundation of the church are essential for understanding both the church's identity and the believer's identity in Him.

Q: What does it mean to be a royal priesthood?

Being a royal priesthood means that believers have a special role in serving God and offering spiritual sacrifices. 1 Peter 2:9 states that believers are part of a 'royal priesthood,' which signifies their elevated status as both kings and priests in God's kingdom. This dual role encompasses the responsibility to represent God to the world and to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to Him. Unlike the Old Testament priests, who were a distinct class, the believer's priesthood is based on their relationship with Christ, the ultimate High Priest. This means that every believer has direct access to God and the privilege to serve in worship, prayer, and proclamation of the gospel. The believer’s calling as a royal priesthood emphasizes their identity in Christ and the importance of their witness in the world.

Chapter 2 of 1 Peter, it's very
clear to whom these words are written. Wherefore laying aside
all malice and all guile and hypocrisies and envies, evil
speaking, as newborn babes. The people to whom this is written
are born again. born of the Spirit of God, born
of the Word of God. They're born into the family
of God, regenerated. And there are people who desire,
like an infant desires the mother's breast and milk. These people do desire the sincere
milk of the Word. They love it. What I'm doing
right now, The people to whom this is addressed really delight
in it. This is the children's bread.
They feed on this Word. The Word comforts them. The Word
strengthens them. The Word increases their faith.
The Word prepares them for trials that are ahead. Talking tonight
in the study with two of our men are facing examinations and
doctor's appointments. And I just know that in my own
case, and I speak for them, I'm sure that there's no greater
comfort and consolation than to read the Word. It just gives
you strength, doesn't it? It gives you a good hope. And you desire that Word, that
sincere milk of the Word, you want the preacher to preach the
Word, don't you? Teach me the Word. Why? That
I may grow thereby. That I may mature, that I may
grow in faith and grace and love. I heard one of the men pray tonight,
help us to love each other more. Well, how can that be accomplished?
By the Word. That's how faith grows and love
grows and generosity and all of these things The gifts are
the gifts of God, but they grow as we study the word. And then
it says in verse 3 about these people to whom this scripture
is written, they have tasted. They've tasted the good word
of God, talked about in Hebrews 6. They have tasted that the
Lord indeed is gracious. Oh, he's been good to us, hasn't
he? Gracious, the Lord is gracious. He's merciful to all of His creation. He's gracious to His people. How gracious He is. And we've
tasted that. That's the folks to whom this
is written, those who've tasted the Lord's gracious. And watch
verse 4. There are those people who keep coming to Christ. They
keep coming to Christ. Now, there may be people who
talk about Well, I made my profession years ago. I know I'm saved.
I made my profession. I accepted Jesus as my personal
Savior and I'm saved. And they keep looking back to
some sort of experience or some sort of decision or some sort
of feeling or some event that took place so many years ago.
But I don't believe that's true of a true child of God. Yes,
I believe we have been saved. There was a time when God revealed
the gospel to us. There was a time when He spoke
to our hearts. But we not only have been saved,
we're being saved. We keep on coming to Christ.
We keep on coming to Christ. I come to Christ again. When
Mike was singing that song, thank God He included me. And I was
sitting here thinking, thank God He included me. I came to
Him all over again. I looked to Him. all over again. I believed in Him all over again. Do you understand what I'm saying?
To whom coming? To whom coming? We don't ever
cease to come to Christ. Like John Newton said one time,
Lord, if I hadn't loved you before, let me begin today. Isn't that
right? Let me begin today. To whom coming? To whom coming? You see, repentance,
true repentance, is not looked upon in this vein, I have repented. No, true repentance is a state,
it's a condition. I have repented, I am repenting,
I will repent. Faith is not an isolated act,
well, I believed in Jesus. No, I do believe. I have believed, I am believing,
and by God's grace I'm going to keep believing. And if I ever
quit believing, I never believed. Is that not right? The very evidence
that I have believed is I am believing. The very evidence
that I have come to Christ is I'm still coming to Christ. The
very evidence that I believe the Word is I'm still believing
the Word. The very evidence that I love
the Word is I'm still loving the Word. If I ever stopped loving
the Word, I never did love the Word. Now that's just so. to
whom coming, that's the people to whom this is written, as unto
a living stone. Not a dead spirit, not an old
isolated spirit, not an spirit that stays old, as a living,
coming to a living stone, a living Lord with a living, loving relationship. Oh, disallowed indeed of men. Yeah, rejected of men, chosen
of God, Christ, just talking about Christ Jesus here now.
He's appointed. He's ordained. He's chosen of
God. Chosen to be our surety. Chosen
to be our mediator. Chosen to be our foundation,
our rock. Chosen to be the chief cornerstone.
Chosen of God and precious to God. Yes, when those who built
their own temples, they rejected Him. They didn't want Him part
of their building. They cast Him aside like an old rock in
the street. disallowed indeed of men, but we recognize him
chosen of God and precious. And also, verse 5, what says,
these people to whom this is written, you also, as lively
stones," that's living stones, you're a living stone. Christ
said, because I live, you live. Paul said, I'm crucified with
Christ, nevertheless I live. Yet not I, but Christ lives in
me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by
the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for
me. I have a life that will never die. I have the life of Christ. He's my life. He's a living stone,
and I'm a living stone. That's right. You also are living
stones, and you are. He's the chief cornerstone. He's
the rock, the foundation, but you, are built up a spiritual
house. Who's building this house? Christ
is. He says, I'll build my church.
I'll build my church. And he's putting each stone in
according to his will and his purpose in his own time. You're
a living stone and you're built up a spiritual house, a holy
priesthood. You see, God doesn't dwell in
buildings made by human hands. God dwells in the church, and
that church is a building of God. It's a spiritual house,
and we are built up as living stones, a spiritual house, a
church inhabited by God, a holy priesthood. You say we offer
up spiritual sacrifices? Well, certainly we do. Ronnie
offered up spiritual sacrifices a few moments ago. Praise, prayer,
thanksgiving unto God in Christ. He offered up spiritual sacrifices.
You've been all during this service, I trust and pray we've been offering
up spiritual sacrifices. Adoration, worship, praise to
our God, because every one of you are priests. Every one of
you. And these spiritual sacrifices
of praise and prayer and gratitude and love and worship are acceptable
to God. Because we did it? No. Because
we have the special merit? No. Because we are better than
others? No. By Jesus Christ, He makes
them accepted. One of our preacher friends preached
a message one time from a scripture, talking about over in the Old
Testament, forget where it's found, but it says, to be accepted
it must be perfect. It must be perfect. Whatever
God receives or accepts must be perfect. And my prayers are
a long ways from perfect. And gifts that we give are a
long ways from being given with a perfect heart. And our works
are far from perfect. And our praise and songs, far
from perfect. And our preaching, far from perfect. But as priests of God, we offer
these spiritual sacrifices and they're accepted to God, acceptable
to God in Christ and by Christ. Isn't that right, Jim? That's
the way they're accepted. That's the way they're approved
of God. That's the way they're received
of God. Now, what's verse 6? Wherefore
it is contained in the scriptures, Behold, I lay in Zion, talking
about Christ, a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he that
believeth on him shall not be ashamed, shall not be confounded,
shall never be put to shame. Where is that in the scriptures?
It's found in Isaiah. Turn over there a minute and
let's see the context. Isaiah 28. Let's see what this
is talking about. Now back here, it says that this
chosen precious cornerstone, which is chosen of God, Christ
Jesus, was disallowed of men, disallowed of the builders, disallowed
of them, but is chosen of God and precious. And God says, ìI
lay in Zion that cornerstone.î Now look at Isaiah 28, 14. And
the same thing is given to us in the Old Testament. Verse 14,
ìWherefore, hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men, you
that rule this people which are in Jerusalem, these religious
men, these temple builders, because you said, ìWe have made a covenant
with death.î We're not afraid to die. With
hell are we out of agreement. We know this punishment and vengeance
of God, but we're not afraid. When the overflowing scourge
shall pass through, it won't come nigh us. It won't come unto
us. We've built a refuge. We have made lies our refuge.
Under falsehood have we hid ourselves. We've got a building. We built
us a refuge. We built us a hiding place. We
built us a temple. We built us a place to hide in
the time of God's wrath. But you left out the cornerstone. You left out Him. And that's
the reason He said in verse 16, Therefore thus saith the Lord,
Behold, I lay in Zion. What is Zion? The church. True
believers. They have a foundation. They
have a stone. They have a tried stone. Tried
by God, tried by men, tried by Satan, tried in every way. They
have a precious cornerstone. They have a sure foundation. Your foundation is not sure.
Theirs is. And he that believeth shall not
make haste. Now watch it. Now here's what's
going to happen to that people left off the cornerstone, left
out Christ. Verse 17. Now judgment I lay
to the line, and righteousness to the plummet. And you know
where that comes from, you men do especially, you builders.
If you ever lay brick or lay block, you've got to use a line
and you've got to use a plummet. In other words, there's got to
be a line up here on the thing that you build around there,
the frame, it gives you a straight wall. And that's your brick comes
up that straight wall. That line's got to have it. It's
got a weight on the end of it. That's a plummet. And then your
line goes across here to the other plummet so you can have
a line this way, a line this way, and a plummet
this way. That gives you a true line. They're out this way, this
way, And this way. And God's going to lay judgment
and righteousness to His plummet. Not yours, His. His line. Truth. Unbending, unyielding
truth. And your hiding place is not
going to make it. That's what he said. It won't
measure up. It's crooked. It's crooked. And he says, and the hail is
going to sweep away your refuge of lies, and the water is going
to overflow your hiding place. It's going to give way. When
God's wrath comes through and God's judgment comes through,
your place is not going to stand. But he said, I lay in Zion. Mine
is going to stand. You better than me? That's not
the issue. He's better than you and me both.
You stronger than I am? That's my face not strong. I'm
weak. He's strong. That's what I'm
saying. He's strong. He's the righteousness. He's the refuge. He's the hiding
place. They kicked him out. Let's really
look at verse 7. So to you that believe, and to
you therefore which believe, he is precious. Oh, I wish I
could. Doesn't it astound you folks
can't see this? You've treated him like a rock
in the road. You've treated him like a rolling stone. And he
has got chosen stone, the tried stone, the precious cornerstone,
the very foundation of the building. He that builds on him and trusts
in him and rests in him Never be confounded with those that
leave him out. God says, when I lay righteousness
to the line, and I know we're loving parents and grandparents. Ronnie Lewis and Martha took
their little new granddaughter a hat. You know what it said
on that hat? It said, if mama says no, ask grandma. And that's
the way we are, you know. We're easy, aren't we? You know
about that, don't you, Frank? Yeah. But God, listen to me. He can't compromise. Can't do it. Not in be God. Would you have God abdicate for
your sake? I wouldn't. So he said, I'm going
to lay it to the line and lay it to the plumbing. And there's
only one foundation going to stand, only one refuge, one building. That's Christ. And those living
stones that are built in Him. Now, to you that believe, verse
7, He's precious. I know His doctrine's precious,
but He's precious. I hear people say, I love the
doctrines of grace. I do too. But brethren, I love
Him. He's my doctrine. That Spurgeon
said, what's your favorite body of divinity? He said, there ain't
but one, that's Christ. In Him dwells all the fullness
of the Godhead bodily. He's my body of divinity. He's
my creed. He's my catechism. He's my rock. He's my hope. He's my foundation.
He's my life. He's precious. I wrote down five
reasons why He's precious. What is, something is precious.
Well, it's precious because it's so rare. There's none other. That's why
Christ is so precious. He's the only one. He's the only
one. Other foundations can no man
lay. There isn't any other foundation. There's none other name under
heaven given among men whereby we must be saved. Precious. Secondly,
he's precious because of who he is. That little granddaughter
I was talking about, she's precious because she's their granddaughter.
That's why she's precious to me too, but not like she is to
them. Their granddaughter. And I'll tell you, he's precious
because he's my God. He's my God. My God. My Lord,
Thomas said. My God. And then thirdly, he's
precious because of what he's done. who his own self, Ronnie Redd,
bare our sins in his body on the tree." That makes him precious,
Richard, because of what he's done for me. He told me a while
ago, he said, when you preached this morning on Abraham and Isaac,
he said, I believe, I remember back 14, 15 years, 16 years ago. Isn't this what you said? That's when I heard substitution.
That's when I saw substitution, when you preached that same message
15, 16 years ago. took my place and died in my
stead. I walked off the mountain because
he died on the mountain. What's that y'all saying? I should
have been crucified. That's right. I should have been
crucified. But he was crucified. That makes him precious. Fourthly,
he's precious because of where he is now. He's at the right hand of God.
And then he's precious because of how he's loved and exalted.
All right, let's read on. To you that believe he's precious,
but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders
disallowed, the same is become the head of the corner. He's
not precious to them. When they came to build their
temple, they cast him away of no use. He's offensive. He's a rock of offense. Look
at verse 8. He's a stone of stumbling. He's a rock of offense, not fit
for a place in their building. Isaiah wrote about that too.
Turn to Isaiah chapter 53. Chapter 53. You think about this. To us, to us, He is so precious,
and to them, He's so offensive. Did you know that this gospel
of substitution, this gospel of sovereign grace that's so
precious, this Redeemer that's so precious, do you know there
are religious people all around this world that that to them
is offensive? That's offensive. Substitution's
offensive. Blood's offensive. Hate it. That's why I read about it. Verse
2 of Isaiah 53, "...he shall grow up before him as a tender
plant, as a root out of a dry ground." He hath no form, no
comeliness, and when we see him, no beauty that we should desire
in him, he's despised, rejected of men, a man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief. We hear as it were our faces
from him, he's despised, and we esteem him not. Isn't that
something? To the one, he's precious. The
most precious, the most precious person in all the universe. To
another, offensive. To the one, a savor of life unto
life. Smell, sweet smell. To another,
the stink of death. Christ is precious to the one
and to the other, he's ridiculed, rejected, and considered worthless. Now watch verse 8. Watch it carefully. He's a stone
of stumbling and a rock of offense, even to them which stumble at
the word, being disobedient. Hold on now. they were appointed. What does that mean? Here are
people to whom Christ and his gospel are so precious, he's
so precious, to them he's so offensive. I read a letter written
to dear Abby years ago. Evidently a woman had heard a
preacher on radio, and she said to Abby, she said, that this
preacher actually said that Jesus Christ in his death and blood
was the only way that a person could go to heaven. She said,
if that be true, I'd just as soon not go to heaven. That's
how she hated him, so offensive. But do you know what this word
says about these people to whom he's offensive, who hate him
and reject him? He says they were appointed to
that. They were appointed to that end. What does that mean?
All right, listen to me carefully now. The scripture says, and
I'm in an area where you have to be so careful, don't just
Don't come into areas like this and just pop off now. Be very
careful what you say. Very careful. Don't make God
the author of sin. Don't charge God with any man's
condemnation. Nobody's predestinated to hell.
We're predestinated to be like Christ. No man's elected to hell. That's right. Now listen carefully
to me. This is true. The scripture says
that Pharaoh hardened his heart. Isn't that what it says? Pharaoh
hardened his heart. He hardened his heart. He would
not believe Moses. He would not believe his word.
He hardened his heart. But that same scripture says
God hardened his heart. Well, how in this world did God
harden his heart? Pharaoh and Moses were brought
up in the same house by the same mama. That's right in Egypt. Pharaoh was the son of Pharaoh's
daughter. And Moses was the son of Pharaoh's daughter. That's
right. But Moses' heart was broken. Pharaoh's heart was hardened.
How was Moses' heart broken? By God sending the means to break
it. By God setting His love and affection
on Moses and sending the means to break his heart. Pharaoh's
heart was hardened. The means were not given. How
does God... He said, I create light and I
create darkness. How does God create light? By
revealing Himself. He is light. How does God create
darkness? By not revealing Himself. And
I'll tell you this. You talk about those two women
that... It's too awful to talk about.
They picked up that little boy at school, one of them's son,
and killed him and burned his body. Last week in Lexington,
that's almost impossible to even conceive of, isn't it? You say,
well, I wouldn't do that. Hold on. Hold on there. Why wouldn't you do that? Because
God's given you the love and grace not to. The reason they
did it is they don't have the grace that God gave you. That's
right. The difference between me and
the fellow out here at Summit Penitentiary is God's grace. The material is the same. We
came from Adam. Both of us are sons of Adam.
But God loved me and gave me grace and life, and God left
him to himself, and he did what I would have done if I had been
in the same situation. Do you understand that? Pharaoh
hardened his heart. God hardened his heart. Now stay
with me. The men who crucified Christ,
it says this about them. You with wicked hands crucified
the Lord of glory. Fully responsible, they did what
they wanted to do, they did what they willed to do, they did what
they devised to do. They spit in His face and kneeled
to the cross and laughed at Him when He died. But Scripture also
said they did what God determined before to be done. Is that right? Everything they did is written
right over here in the Old Testament. And they didn't read it and then
go do it. They did it in full fear of what was written. So
they did what they wanted to do. But in doing what they wanted
to do, they did what God appointed them to do. So I can say this. Stumbling and destruction are
the appointed end of everybody who rejects refuses and denies
and will not come to Christ Jesus. That's their appointed end. But
I can also say this. Those who willingly refused to
bow to Christ and his gospel were vessels of God's wrath from
the beginning. Now read that till you turn to
Romans 9. Romans 9. Vessels of wrath from the beginning.
Pharaoh, God said, I raised you up and left you to yourself to
show my glory. I don't want to be a vessel of
wrath. I want to be a vessel of mercy. Don't you? Desperately
I want to be. And all I've got to do to be
a vessel of wrath is be left alone. That's all. I am one by birth and by nature
and by practice and by choice. But God, he showed grace. I found grace in his sight. Listen
to Romans 9 verse 21. Or verse 20. Nay, but, O man, who are you
that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to
him that formed it, Why did you make me like this? had not the
power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honor
and another unto dishonor. Same lump, a mother gives birth
to two sons, one of them named Jacob, one of them named Esau,
born at the same time with the same father. One a vessel of
honor, another one a vessel of wrath. love Jacob and hate Esau. Is that correct? That's what
the Word says now. And I know the natural flesh
just cringes. Why? Because we think too highly
of ourselves. Somebody said one time, I don't
understand how God could hate Esau. I do. I understand how
he could hate Jacob too, don't you? What I don't understand
is how he could love Jacob. There's the problem. You know
how he could love Jacob? He gave Jacob to Christ. That's
how he loved Jacob. I don't understand how I hear
these preachers say, God loves you. I'd like to ask them sometimes,
why? Why does God love me? Why does
God love me? There's nothing in me to love.
Why would God love you? Now just tell me. Why would God
love you or me? What is there about us to love?
Not long ago, a grandmother was talking to me about her grandson.
She said, he's so mean. She said, I told him the other
day. I told him, I said, son, you must be awful bad if even
your grandmother doesn't love you, and I don't even like you.
That is bad, isn't it? I can't even imagine that. She
said, I don't like him. And I told him so. You must be
terrible if even your grandmother doesn't like you. Well, God's no grandma. God loveth
the righteous. Anybody in here righteous? Well,
no. Then God doesn't love you. But if you're in Christ, you're
righteous, and God loves you. And that's the reason. That's
just so. Read on. Hath not the potter
piled the clay to make of the same lump? One vessel unto honor,
another to dishonor. Verse 22. What if God willing
to show his wrath and to make his power known, he endured with
much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction,
that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels
of mercy which he had aforeprepared unto glory." I tell you, he said,
I've loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore with loving kindness
I have drawn you." All right, look at verse 9. Now here is
a whole different story. 1 Peter 2, 9. We have been talking about those
people to whom Christ is offensive. They are disobedient. They have
disallowed the cornerstone. He is a rock of offense, a stone
of stumbling. They were appointed to this.
They are fulfilling what was written of them. from way back
yonder, but here's a new, there's a different story. But, you,
now to whom is it written, newborn babes, who desire the sincere
milk of the word, who've tasted that the Lord is gracious, who
keep coming to Christ, you are a chosen generation. To you, Christ is precious wine. To you, He's not rejected, He's
received and loved. Why? To you, He's not a rock
of offense, He's your cornerstone. Why? To you, through Christ,
God speaks peace and joy. Why? One word, but. But. God. Turn with me to Ephesians
2. Ephesians 2, but God. He made
the difference. He made the difference. The reason
was found in him, not in us. Not in us. Ephesians 2, listen. Verse 1, He quickened who were
dead in trespasses and sin, wherein in times past you walked according
to the course of this world, according to the prince of the
power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children
of disobedience. Among whom we all had our conversation
in time past, in the lust of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, we were by nature children of
wrath, even as others. But God, that's it, but God,
who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved
us, even when we were dead in sin, that quickened us to gather
with Christ. By grace you are saved, and he
hath raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly
places in Christ, that in the ages to come he might show the
exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through
Christ Jesus. For by grace are you saved through
faith, and that faith is not of yourself, it is the gift of
God. It is not of works, lest any man should boast. We are
chosen people. Jonathan Edwards said this, I'll
give you this very briefly, listen. Some interesting things about
God's choice of his people. One, he chose them from among
others of the same sort. In other words, the elect are
found among those of the same sort, children of wrath even
as others. There's no difference. He didn't choose them because
of what he saw in them. He saw no potential excellence. He chose them to make them holy. Not because they were holy, but
to make them holy. Thirdly, he not only chose them
before they were born, he chose them before the world was created.
You know what is said before the foundation of the world?
And he chose them in Christ. He chose them in Christ, and
he loved them in Christ. As those above were appointed
to wrath, we are not appointed to wrath. We are appointed to
glory. Now let me show you that. Turn
to 1 Thessalonians 5. You know, back in verse 8, it's
talked about those people that despised Christ, weren't they?
Well, God uses this word appointed in reference to you over here
in 1 Thessalonians 5. Appointed. It is appointed. That means you,
it's designated, it's set. 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 7, listen. They that sleep, sleep in the
night. They that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let
us who are of the day, light of God, be sober, serious, putting
on the breastplate of faith and love, and put on a helmet the
hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us
to wrath, He has them. But He has appointed us to obtain
salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether
we wake or sleep, we live together with Him. Wherefore, you comfort
yourselves, and edify one another, That's all so you do. You see
that? We've not been appointed to wrath.
They have. Well, until they were appointed.
But we've been appointed to obtain salvation. He chose you. You
don't have any trouble with that, do you? You're a chosen generation. Look
at this. I'll give you this quickly. You're
a royal priesthood. Royal is kingly. Priesthood. Back in the Old Testament, these
offices were separate and distinct. Moses was a king. Talk about
him being a king, a leader. But Aaron was the priest. And
the only time under the law of Moses, or before the law of Moses,
before the law of Moses, that those two, or any time in the
Old Testament, those two offices met were in Melchizedek. They hired a priest forever after
the order of Melchizedek, who was the king of Salem. and the
priest of God. And yet those two offices have
met in us. We're king-priests. He has made
us under our God kings and priests. That's right. We reign and we
come to God in Christ. Then he says, let me give you
this, a holy nation. You're a holy nation. God has
made you. You're chosen. You're a royal
priesthood. You're a holy nation. Describe people of the same nation.
People of the same nation. When I go anywhere, I take a
passport, and I'm a citizen of the USA, a nation. There are a lot of other U.S.
citizens of the USA. Well, first of all, we're of
the same country. Everybody who is a chosen generation,
a royal priest, is of the same country. We look for a heavenly
country. Abraham talked about that heavenly country. Secondly,
we all speak the same language, the language of grace. That's
right. They believe the same fundamental
doctrines and they speak the same sound words. Thirdly, they're
under the same government. Everybody, now when those people
from foreign countries come in here, they have diplomatic immunity. Now what they have, they don't
come under our laws. Don't they meet in their little
enclosure? You do. And we're everyone under
the same government. Our Lord Jesus Christ is our
Lord and King. His law governs us. And then we're under the same
government, we're governed by the same laws, and we're free
people. The Son has set us free. We're
free from any charges against us from any other government,
that's right, or any other power, Satan, principalities, whatever,
he's delivered us from all charges, set us free. All right, he says
here, in closing, you are a peculiar people. It says that word here
is purchased people, which is right, but I like special people. You are special people, a special
people unto the Lord your God. God Almighty puts a high value
upon his elect. He calls them his jewels and
says he will keep them as the apple of his eye. Now, he says,
therefore, that you should show forth the praises of him who
hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Well, we'll stop there. I could
go on. That's a great scripture, isn't
it? That's such a blessing. All right, Mike, come lead us
in a song then.

A Chosen Generation

What does the Bible say about being a chosen generation?

How do we know that God's grace is sufficient?

Why is Christ referred to as the chief cornerstone?

What does it mean to be a royal priesthood?

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A Chosen Generation

What does the Bible say about being a chosen generation?

How do we know that God's grace is sufficient?

Why is Christ referred to as the chief cornerstone?

What does it mean to be a royal priesthood?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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