A Spiritual House

1 Peter: Chosen • Sermon • Submitted a year ago

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1 Peter 2:4-8 “4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” 7 So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.”

As I read this passage, I am struck by the change in tone from the previous verses in chapter two

When we last visited 1 Peter, we read verse 1-3

And in those verses, we have metaphors that include babies being born and nourished by their mother’s milk

Peter gives us a picture of the new birth.

And just like Jesus told Nicodemus, it is like being born again.

Peter re-enforces his theme that he introduced in chapter 1, verse 3 where he says, “He (Christ) has caused us to be born again into a living hope”

And he continues that theme in the opening verses of chapter 2.

Just like newborn babies have a new life, a new beginning, and they desire the nourishing milk that only their mother can give them,

So, you too have received a new birth.

And it’s at this point that you must put away malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and all slander. That belongs to the old life.

That is in the realm of living for self and trying to control your own life and live the way that makes you happy

But now, you have tasted the goodness of the LORD, so in your new birth, you should be longing for the nourishment and the life that He gives and you should drink deeply of it

In order to grow up into salvation. To mature and be strenghtened

So that is the metaphor that we read in the opening verses

Remember, a metaphor is a figure of speech that provides us with a word picture to enforce a point or a picture in our mind

Example: The snow was a white blanket on the ground

You are to be “Like” newborn babies (simile, not metaphor)

And now a new metaphor, The picture of a stone

Peter switches his language abruptly and says, “As you come to Him (Christ), a living stone, rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious”

In fact, Peter uses 3 different passages to make his point in this passage.

The first passage that Peter uses is Isaiah 28:16 “16 therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’”

Peter quotes this passage in verse 6 of our passage

The second passage that Peter uses comes from Psalm 118:22 “22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”

Peter quotes that verse in 2:7

And the third OT passage that Peter uses comes from Isaiah 8:14 “14 And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

And Peter refers to that passage in 2:8

So Peter is building this picture for us of Jesus being a stone

Why does Peter abruptly change his tone and start using this picture

Well, I don’t know exactly, but doubtless he is remembering a story that Jesus told in Mark 12:1-11.

You can turn there if you like. I’m not going to read the whole thing…we are familiar with the story

But Jesus tells the story of a landowner who planted a vineyard, leased it to some tenants, and went into another country

And when it was time to harvest the fruit, he began to send servants to receive some of the fruit

But the tenants did not accept the servants.

And every servant that the landowner sent, the tenants beat and/or killed

And finally the landowner sent his son, saying, “If I send my son, surely they will listen to him. They will respect him”.

But the tenants said, “Hey, this is the heir. If we kill him, the vineyard will be ours”

And they took the son of the landowner and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard

And Jesus asks His listeners, “What do you think is going to happen to the tenants?”

And He answers his own question by saying, “The landowner will come and destroy the tenants, and give the vineyard to others”

I presume to others who will be more faithful

And then, in order to interpret this story, Jesus turns to the OT, and says, “Haven’t you read this Scripture?”

Mark 12:10-11 “10 ... “ ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; 11 this was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?””

This is a direct quote from Psalm 118:22-23.

So, again, why does Peter employ this language of a stone that has been rejected?

what do we know about 1 Peter

He is writing to those who he sees as being elect exiles

A relatively small but special, chosen people

A people living among the “gentiles” who are living according to the flesh

But who are called to live differently. A life that is special and holy

A people who are going to suffer mockery and persecution because they live differently. People have always mocked and persecuted those who are different

In fact, Peter addresses this again in chapter 4

1 Peter 4:3-4 “3 For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. 4 With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you;”

The gentiles are surprised when you don’t join them in living according to the flesh

And their response is to malign you, or to mock you

And Peter is

A Spiritual House

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