Call to Commitment

 

Chapter 2

 

A Cornerstone with accompanying Living Stones  

1.     Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 

      2.      as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 

      3.       if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 

4.      Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 

5.      you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 

6.    Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, "BEHOLD, I LAY IN ZION A CHIEF CORNERSTONE, ELECT, PRECIOUS, AND HE WHO BELIEVES ON HIM WILL BY NO MEANS BE PUT TO SHAME." 

7.      Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, "THE STONE WHICH THE BUILDERS REJECTED HAS BECOME THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE," 

8.      and "A STONE OF STUMBLING AND A ROCK OF OFFENSE." They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. 

9.      But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 

10.  who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 

 The New Testament does not teach that Christianity is something to be added to a person’s natural, sinful existence. As in our chapter, verse 1, there must first be a laying aside, before any Christian ingredient can be added. This principle is confirmed by Paul in Ephesians 4:22 and 24: “Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man… put on the new man…”  He teaches it again to the Colossians: “You have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man…” (Col.3:9, 10). 

In Romans, Paul teaches that the principle is carried out by identifying with Christ in His burial and resurrection: “We were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead… we also should walk in newness of life” (Ro.6:4). Two verses later, he identifies the Christian with His crucifixion: Our old man was crucified with Him…”  and then with His resurrection. “If we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him” (Ro.6:6 and 8). As you can see, the doctrine of leaving the old behind and walking in a new life, abounds in the New Testament.

 So, Peter says we lay aside malice, which is depravity, or simply evil. We all understand the word deceit, but consider some of its provocative synonyms: decoy, trick, or bait. Next, he adds hypocrisy to the list. This is a word that I like to present in its literal form: Play-acting. It is a word taken from the Greek theater and plays no part in Christianity. We see no play-acting in the life of Christ in the Gospels, or displayed by the disciples in the book of Acts.   

 Envy follows as jealousy, but also spite and ill will. Finally, we have evil speaking, such as defamation or backbiting, certainly slander also, but includes  any kind of talk that will demean another’s personality.  All is to be included with every one of these characteristics of the old man. All these are eliminated from Christian practice.

 All these are put off to make room for desire for the word of God! I like the way a couple expressed it, whom we saw come to Christ through our home Bible studies: “We read the Bible voraciously!” They were like newborn babies, “desiring the pure milk of the word.” I remember a simple young man on the coast of Mexico, who broke his leg, shortly after receiving Christ. He spent two-weeks in bed, recovering and read the New Testament entirely three times, if my memory serves me correctly.

 I often tell the story of my late Navajo friend, Herman, who, because of illness, could not attend school. Therefore, he did not learn English until he was over 20-years-old and did not read or write. He was given a Bible on the night of his conversion, laid it on his bed and wept over it, because he could not read it. It was the Bible that motivated him to learn to read, so that he could learn of his Heavenly Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. A Mixtec Indian in Oaxaca had the same motivation, after surrendering to Christ. He had third grade education, but was moved to improve his reading skills so that he could study the Bible.  All these testimonies show a normal reaction, if a person is genuinely born again of the Holy Spirit.

 Peter tells us that this is the way a newborn Christian grows (2) and adds that this is the case, if he has a “taste” for the Lord Jesus. In the cases mentioned above, it is what these people experienced, having come face-to-face with Jesus Christ. They immediately received a “hunger” to know Him better through His word. No matter how or what they experienced individually, in every situation they knew a manifestation of His graciousness. Herman spoke of a peace that erased his fears. Others knew a surrender to His will that replaced fighting and tension. Others found purpose in life that filled a vacuum in them. In every case, the forgiveness of sins, released them from an awful condemnation. The Lord was gracious to them and they knew it (3)!

 In conversion, a person is brought close to Christ. Paul in Ephesians 2:12, defines our past very well, the greatest tragedy of which, is that we were “without Christ… having no hope and without God in the world.” But in the next verse, he states, “Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”  This is what Peter is writing in verse 4, and the doctrine of the two apostles is only an explanation, for that which a Christian has personally experienced in real life.

 The ways of God are always at odds with the works of man, because man’s acts are performed from his fallen state, making him an enemy of God. Therefore, the Bible is careful to present the true, heavenly things, as works of God and not man. One clear example is Hebrews 8:2. It states the Christ, our High Priest is “a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man.”

 Man, because of the same enmity, rejects the ways of God. His ways are infinitely superior to the ways of men, but man´s ways are also diametrically opposed to God´s, because, as we have already learned in the last chapter, they are corrupt. Peter is going to write now, speaking of God as an Architect, and His eternal plan, as a building. He begins with Christ, exemplified by a Living Stone. Man rejects this beautiful, precious Stone, which God has chosen. God never uses anything, or in this case, Anyone, but the best (4). The people, who will come to Christ, are drawn by the Father: “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (Jn.6:44).

 I watched our son-in-law, Lance Reagle, build various borders and walls on his family’s property with loose stones. He took care to use the right stones to fill spaces and level them. I found it to be a masterful effort, requiring great patience. People passing by remarked at the beauty of his work of art.

 There is an interesting biblical study, comparing bricks with stones. The Tower of Babel, for instance, was a brick structure, with asphalt for mortar (Gen.11:3). The Israelites were slaves in Egypt, making brick and mortar for Pharaoh (Ex.1:14). Men prefer the uniformity of bricks or perhaps, in these times, cement blocks to construct their buildings. God, on the other hand, commanded that His altars be made with unhewn stone. For man to tool the natural stones, would be to pollute them.

 The building that Peter is describing is the church. We saw that there is a Living Stone, which is uniquely the Corner Stone (6), but the building is made of many living stones. Jesus said, “On this rock I will build My church”, and the Rock, referred to Peter's confession, that Jesus was "the Christ,, the Son of the living God", and not to Peter himself. The apostle himself recognizes in this passage that Christ is the Corner Stone of the church. He is also the only Architect and a Psalm of Degrees supports His word prophetically: “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it” (Ps.127:1).

  I have tried to illustrate an attempt by men to work with living stones. “Men would like to assist Christ in the work that He said that He would do… I mean by that, building His church. The problem is that the material used is living stones. Building with stones, to begin with, is more complicated than building with bricks. You have to find exactly the right stone to be able to unite well with the stones around it, so that it fits snugly in its place. More complicated still is the fact that the stones in His church are alive, so that the human builder finds a stone and lays it, where he will. He goes to find the second stone and returns to the place, where he laid the first. It is no longer in the same place, where he put it; it has moved somewhere else. His work will soon become very frustrating, attempting to do God’s work by human wisdom and effort!”

 The church is depicted as living stones in a spiritual sense. He next describes it as a holy priesthood. In chapter one, verses 15 and 16, we learned that holiness means to be set apart. Peter is now referring to a people set apart for priesthood. Because the Christian High Priest is of the Order of Melchizedek (Heb.7:17), it follows reasonably that the entire priesthood is of the same order and every member of the church is a priest.

 See the high priest, Joshua, and the accompanying priests in Zechariah 3:8: “Hear, O Joshua, the high priest, You and your companions who sit before you, for they are a wondrous sign.” Joshua and his priestly companions are symbols; literally they are men of wonder (literal Hebrew). Our High Priest, is the Joshua of the New Testament: “You will call His name Jesus (the identical name of the Old Testament Joshua), for He shall save His people from their sins.” Christians are companions of the High Priest, a nation of priests, who ought to cause astonishment in society, no matter where they live. People should be asking, “What different kind of people are these?” The only answer is that Christ lives in them. They are ‘signs and wonders’, as it states in Isaiah 8:18 and the writer of Hebrews quotes from Isaiah in Hebrews 2:13. Thousands upon thousands of individuals have been pardoned and clothed anew with clean, festive elegance; they have been made priests and kings for God.

 There are sacrifices under the New Testament that are more vital than those of the Old, because the Order of Melchizedek is spiritual, not physical (5). As an example, I will just mention one… the sacrifice of love in Ephesians 5:2: “Walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” Jesus said that the Father’s “true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth” (Jn.4:23). Each member of the church is spiritual; his spirit is at the center of his being and is to rule over his soul and body. He is a supernatural creation!

 Jesus is a Stumbling block to the world and a Rock of offense. The people of the world are totally at fault for their unbelief, being disobedient to the gospel (8). God has proclaimed the principle from the foundation of the world and declared it through the Word made flesh: “He who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (Jn.3:18).  

 Verse 9 requires a little extra explanation, besides that, which we have already offered. A chosen generation speaks of spiritual genes, a kind of people, who are the elect of God. Then, we have already commented on the fact that the believers’ priesthood is royal, carrying the same offices of Jesus Christ and Melchizedek… that of kings and priests. Also, just as the Jews are a physical nation, so the church, in a spiritual sense, which is equally real, is a spiritual church, and a holy nation. Next, I remember the language of the King James Bible, which uses the term peculiar people instead of special people. Both terms are correct, but I think that the word peculiar better expresses those, who are out of the ordinary, the kind we have described as men or women of wonder. Because we are that kind of people, our number one purpose on earth is to proclaim the praises of Jesus Christ, because He is worthy. “You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, And have redeemed us to God by Your blood Out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth." (Rv.5:9 and 10).

 Peter proclaims again the wonderful transformation of a people, “who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”  Paul adds to the same truth, writing that you “were 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” (Eph.2:12), Just as Israel, we are now the people of God and are partakers of His rich mercy: “For as you were once disobedient to God, yet have now obtained mercy through their disobedience, even so these also have now been disobedient, that through the mercy shown you they also may obtain mercy. For God has committed them all to disobedience, that He might have mercy on all” (Ro.11:30-32). This wonderful work that brought Jew and Gentile to reside under the everlasting wings of His care and mercy, is something that made the apostle’s heart sing: “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!” (Ro.11:33).

 

Overcoming lusts and injustice

        11.     Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against                       the soul, 

12.  having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation. 

13.  Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme, 

14.  or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. 

15.  For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— 

16.  as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. 

17.  Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king. 

18.  Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. 

19.  For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. 

20.  For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. 

 Peter continues to write to sojourners and pilgrims. The good citizens of the world are too attached to its lusts, and will not receive advice about abstaining from them.  Christians are in defense of their souls and at war against the lower lusts (11).

 They live, as misfits, among Gentiles, people of other customs and languages, worshippers of false gods. The native people do not understand Christian ways and, of course, they criticize them. Peter encourages them to live the honorable life of Christ among them. They are watching the believers and ultimately, it will bring success to the gospel.

 The power of Christian conduct is due to the life of Christ in them, as human beings. Jesus expressed the divine will in His prayer to the Father in John 17:21: “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.” Read this verse again, carefully, and you will see the condition in believers that will bring unbelievers to faith. Perhaps, the worldling will not understand, what is happening before his eyes, but he is truly observing Christians living in the Father and the Son.

 Then in John 17:23, Jesus explains further: “I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me.” Again, study the petition carefully and you will see the Father manifested in the Son; you will also see the Son inhabiting the believers, uniting them to divinity. The people around them will see a phenomenon that they have never seen before. It is the reality of the Christ, the Son of God, living in human flesh and blood. This is the testimony that the world needs to see and, when they see it, many will recognize the truth of the gospel and believe.

 A day of visitation is what many of us are longing to see. Isaiah gave us God’s promise to “pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring” (Is.44:3). Read chapter 64 and see the prophet’s passionate plea for a divine visitation, beginning in verses 1-3: “Oh, that You would rend the heavens! That You would come down!”… To make Your name known to Your adversaries, that the nations may tremble at Your presence! When You did awesome things for which we did not look, You came down…” (Is.64:1). The Islanders of the Hebrides coupled these verses from Isaiah into one mighty prayer for heaven to be poured out upon earth. 

 Duncan Campbell, who witnessed the answer to their prayer, told of the revival upon the church, which in turn drew in the people of the world. They could not resist seeing the hand of God upon His people. Young people fled from dances and other places of sin. Bars closed and crowds flooded, not only church buildings, but hundreds of people gathered, without an invitation, in open fields and in the streets of towns. This is the kind of visitation, of which Peter speaks. He preached it, when God moved mightily upon Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, when 3,000 were converted and shortly afterwards, when 5,000 more believed. In Acts 3:19, he spoke of “times of refreshing… from the presence of the Lord.” (12).

 Peter called on the church to give public testimony also, by submitting to human authority. He said, “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake… to the king…, or to governors.” In this way, “by doing good you… put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (v.13-15). Paul taught the same in Romans 13, when Rome was the superior authority of the day.

 Warren Wiersbe commented: “God has established three institutions: The home, the government and the church.” Generally, government is a necessary authority in society and the alternative is anarchy. God will never give His people counsel to compromise with a government, when it acts against God. On the other hand, study how Jeremiah got the respect of Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonian Empire. Joseph was highly honored in Pharaoh’s court and so was Daniel, both in Babylon and in Persia.

 We also see that government plays its part in opposition to Christianity, and has tortured and killed Christians throughout history. Pilate was guilty of condemning Christ, but the same law that condemned Him, also imprisoned Barrabas. The law that crucified Jesus, also crucified two thieves. Paul was rescued by a Roman commander and protected from the Jews by 200 soldiers.

 While we wander through this world, we encounter many things that God meant for man’s good that can be misused and can arise against God. Peter mentions the will of God towards man’s freedom in verse 16, but liberty can be used “as a cloak for vice’, if a human being is not under the servanthood of God.

 A Christian should honor all of mankind. A. W. Tozer said that every human being is worthy of respect for the simple reason that he was created in the image of God. No matter how low he sinks or how far he strays from God, that remains a fact. He is not an animal, but is part of God’s highest creation, which none of his acts or lifestyle can erase.

 The bond of the brotherhood in God’s family is love and it is not a common love, which exists among the world’s families. The love of God is unique and perfect, the very love that reigns in the godhead and has always reigned since before the beginning of time. It is the highest form of motivation in the Christian walk, drawing the believer into obedience to God, and ruling over his relationship with other believers. It is a gift and privilege, which enriches our years on this earth, above anything experienced by common sons of Adam (17).

 Beginning in verse 17, Peter gives an order of authority, which points first to the honor due to God, then to a king. In verse 18, there is to be a godly fear from the household servants towards their masters. The Greek word for master here is despotes, and in the very next phrase, Peter shows that this means that he is to submit to the harsh, as well as the good (18).

 Christian virtue comes to the forefront in this case. Only the born-again servant can be expected to submit in this way. Many times, the Scripture points the Christian to react positively, when he is ill-treated! He is equipped to do this with supernatural ability, because Christ lives within. In verses 19 and 20, Peter gives very clear instruction towards this Christian virtue. Jesus taught it from the beginning and I want to lay Luke 6:32-36 before you in its entirety. "But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you? For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back. But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil. Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.” 

 There is no Christian credit for doing things that sinners can do. It is in the realm of human ability and reason to love, do good, and lend to friends, who will gladly return that love, those good deeds and the things that you have lent them. However, notice the new birth from God in this command to His sons: “You will be sons of the Most High. For He is kind to the unthankful and evil” (Lk.6:35). It is the nature of Christ in human beings that is manifested in these virtues. This is a wonderful teaching of the supernatural, heavenly nature in a Christian that asks for no reciprocation from men.  

 A conscience toward God is extremely sensitive, reacting to the high standards of godly living, reaching far above normal human requirements. A Christian´s conscience responds, as God would have him respond, to mistreatment and injustice, even to the extent of accepting physical beatings gracefully. This is within the realm of our calling in Christ, who demonstrated a perfect example for us. To this end, Paul testified, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Ph.4:13).

 

Christ, our Savior and our Example. 

       21.  For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that              you should follow His steps: 

22.  "WHO COMMITTED NO SIN, NOR WAS DECEIT FOUND IN HIS MOUTH"; 

23.  who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; 

24.  who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. 

25.  For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls. 

 

The final portion of this chapter points the reader directly to Christ for His perfect example. Peter´s counsel to his readers is to follow His steps (21). I reemphasize that this is only possible through the new birth, in which the resurrected life of Jesus becomes, by faith, our life. It is a new, super-natural life, created in Christ Jesus. We are called, first of all, to follow Him in His sufferings.

 In Philippians 3:7, Paul counted all the benefits that he had gained in his past life as loss… “What things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ.” and in the following verse, more strongly terms them, excrement... “I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung” (KJV). I think this is the best translation of the Greek, as it suggests that something is to be removed from a life, and it is to be replaced with the personal knowledge of Christ. For Paul, the value of knowing Christ totally eclipsed everything else. Similarly, Moses chose the reproach of Christ over the riches of Egypt’s palace (Heb.11:26). The reader, who has come to know Him, can relate to Paul and Moses in their evaluation. Absolutely nothing can compare to Jesus!

 His life was sinless and, when he lives within, He leads us in the path of righteousness for His name sake. Holiness will be the aim and goal of every Christian. His way is the way of truth and there is no way to come to Him and walk with Him, without being a lover of truth. “He that does the truth, comes to the light¨ (Jn.3:20) and, He said, “Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (Jn.18:37). Deceit is foreign to Him, and to everything that has to do with His kingdom (22).

 His trust in the Father, eliminated all need for self-defense, whether it was in defense of his reputation or simply physical defense for His life. He knew that to trust the Father was to trust perfect righteousness that could not fail. All the verbal abuse from His enemies, could not reach His inner purity. Whether in the company of the Sanhedrin, in the presence of Pilate or on the cross, He was perfectly in control of the situation and never reacted indecorously, to it (23).

 He focused on His mission, embraced the cross under the weight of our sins. S. M. Lockridge knew, as well as anyone, the Lord´s response to the thief, who taunted him to save him, and come down from the cross. Lockridge imagined the Lord saying under His breath, “No, today is Friday… but you just wait until Sunday morning!” He added, “It´s better to rise from the dead, than to come down from the cross!” The grave could not hold Him; He would rise again to give to us an eternity of righteousness. And meanwhile, His wounds would totally heal our sin and sickness (24).

 We all should freely confess our waywardness, straying ever farther from our Creator, mastered by our own ego. His love initiated our return, when we would have wandered a greater distance still from His care. He did not chase us, but His heart followed us, no matter where we roamed. Without consciousness of His unseen presence, He instigated our failure and loss, brought us to cohabit with a herd of pigs, and created a gnawing hunger within. It was He, who turned our mind to think on our Father and home, and His goodness led us to repentance. We returned, broken, to the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls (25).

He leadeth me, O blessed thought!
O words with heav’nly comfort fraught!
Whate’er I do, where’er I be
Still ’tis God’s hand that leadeth me.

 Lord, I would place my hand in Thine,
Nor ever murmur nor repine;
Content, whatever lot I see,
Since ’tis my God that leadeth me.

                              Joseph H. Gilmore, 1862