I Peter 2:4-10

1. Christ the "living stone" - 2:4
1. a stone
1. pictures His invincible strength and everlasting duration
2. teaches the believer that He is their protection and security, the foundation on which they are built
2. a living stone
1. He has eternal life in Himself
2. He is the giver of life to all His people
3. notice how different His reputation and respect are between God and man
1. disallowed of men
1. to reject because of examination
2. He was rejected and is still being rejected by man
3. men dislike Him, oppose Him and refuse Him just like the Bible says they will
4. shows how ungrateful man really is
2. chosen of God, and precious
1. the One whom God delighted in
2. a most honorable and worthy person
3. chosen to be the Lord of the universe, head of the church, Savior of man, and Judge of the world
4. precious in His nature, office and service
4. we are obligated to come to this person [to whom coming]
1. not by physical movement, but by faith
2. Jesus Christ is the foundation-stone of all our hopes and happiness
3. He communicates the true knowledge of God
4. by Him we have access to the Father
5. through Him we are made partakers of all spiritual blessings
6. those who want mercy form God must come to Him
2. the believers are "lively stones" 2:5
1. the Christian church is made of a much nobler material than the Jewish temple
1. it is a living temple, made with living parts
1. Christ, the foundation, is a living stone
2. Christians are lively stones
3. together these make up a spiritual house
4. this house is daily built up, and every part of it is improving
2. there are priest for this spiritual house [a holy priesthood]
1. these do not offer the bloody sacrifices of animals
2. they offer a much better and more acceptable sacrifice
3. they do not have an alter on which to present their offering, because they offer "spiritual sacrifices"
2. all true believers have been partakers of the eternal life that is in Christ
1. He is called a living stone, and we are call lively or living stones
2. we are no longer dead in our trespasses and sins, but alive to God
3. all true Christians are a part of the holy priesthood
1. they are all select persons, sacred to God
2. they are well endowed with spiritual gifts and graces
3. the service of the priest was to bring people to God
4. the holy priesthood must offer up spiritual sacrifices [to offer up]
1. body, soul and affection
2. prayers, praises and alms
5. the sacrifices of the best men are not acceptable to God, but through Jesus Christ [acceptable...by Jesus]
3. proof of this teaching is in the OT - 2:6 (Ps. 118:22, Isaiah 8:14, 28:16)
1. important matters of the faith depend entirely on Scripture
1. we should never be guilty of believing something just because someone said it
2. Jesus often appealed to OT Scripture (in teaching and defeating the devil)
3. the Word of God is the only rule God has given us
4. it is a perfect and sufficient rule
5. it is an clear and certain rule
2. Scripture concerning Jesus Christ require our strictest attention [behold]
1. this demand of attention shows us the importance and excellency of the matter
2. it also reveals our dullness and inability to see what is really significant
3. Jesus Christ is the chief corner stone that God has laid for His spiritual building [I lay in Zion]
1. it is a celebrated fact
2. the setting up of any man as the head of the church is an arrogant presumption
3. Christ only is the foundation and head of the church of the living God
4. faith in Jesus is the only way to prevent frustration, disappointment and shame [shall not be confounded]
4. application of this teaching- 2:7-8
1. to the believer He is precious - 7
1. Christ is the crown and honor of a Christian
2. He is the one who we boast and glory in forever
2. disobedient people have no true faith - 7
1. by disobedient, he means those that are unpersuadable or unbelieving
2. these may have some right notions, but they have no solid faith
3. those that ought to be builders of the church, are often the worst enemies of Christ and the church
1. in the OT the false prophets did the most mischief
2. in the NT the greatest opposition came from the scribes and Pharisees, who pretended to be builders of God’s kingdom
3. God will carry on His work, in spite of the pretended friends and the opposition of His worst enemies
4. the unbeliever does not realize the true value of what they rejected [is made the head of the corner]
5. Jesus has becomes the cause of the unbelievers ruin - 8
1. "stumbling" means a cause for falling
2. "offense" means a trap, that which leads to ruin, a cause for stumbling
3. Jesus is the Savior of some, and to others He is the cause of their sin and destruction
1. He is not the author of their sin, but only the occasion for it
2. their own unbelief makes them stumble at Him; therefore, He is become their Judge and Destroyer
6. those that are unpersuadable stumble at the Word
1. they are offended with Christ, His doctrine, and the purity of His precepts
2. they do not like the idea of trusting only Him for their justification
3. they do not want to be justified by faith, but rather by the works of the law
4. God has appointed everlasting destruction to all that stumble at the Word [appointed]
5. those who receive Christ are highly privileged - 2:9
1. all true Christians are a chosen generation
1. a people that is distinct from the common world
1. of another spirit, principle, and practice
2. this is something we never could be, if we had not been chosen in Christ to be such
3. this is accomplished by the indwelling Holy Spirit, that sanctifies us
2. this speaks to us of the grace of God
1. God did not choose Israel because they were a great people, but because He loved them
2. God has chosen us purely on the bases of His love and grace
2. all true believers are a part of the royal priesthood
1. they are royal in their relationship to God and Christ
1. they have power with God
2. they have power over themselves
3. they have power over all their spiritual enemies
2. they are a royal priesthood, separated from sin and sinners, and consecrated to God
3. the officers of the church are "pastor" and "deacon", but every believer is a priest
3. all Christians make up one holy nation
1. notice that it does not say church
2. we have been set apart to belong exclusively to God
3. our citizenship is in heaven; therefore, we obey heaven’s laws and seek to please heaven’s Lord
4. Israel forgot that she was a holy nation and broke down the walls of separation which made her special
4. all true Christians are a peculiar people (a people acquired or purchased in a unique manner)
5. why has God done all these things for His children? [show forth the praises of him]
1. "show forth" means to tell, declare, make widely known
2. God has done all this so that the believer can proclaim the excellencies of God
3. this includes all that God is and all that He has done
4. all that God has done for the believer has been done for God’s glory
5. so that God receives praise, and not man
6. to always remain thankful for what God has done, frequently look back on what we were - 2:10
1. the people of God are the most valuable people in the world, all the rest are worth little
2. to become one of God’s people is a very great mercy, and it is obtainable