1 Peter 2:9-10
⁹ But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: ¹⁰ Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.
TRANSCRIPT
Our text for this morning’s message is taken from 1 Peter, chapter 2, verse 9 and 10. Allow me to read for you, “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.” The Lord bless the reading of His holy and sacred Word.
About five hundred years ago, on 31st October 1517, it was a very special day in the history of the Christian church, when Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of the Castle Church at Wittenberg in order to protest against the Roman church. It is called the Day of the Reformation. It is sad that many Christians today are ignorant of the significance of this day. Before the reformation, the people were living in spiritual darkness and deception. Their faiths were based on the superstitions and traditions of the Roman church. God used Martin Luther to be the key figure of the reformation. He was actually a Catholic monk, but he came to know the truth and he opposed the false teachings of the Roman church.
There were also other reformers like William Tyndall, John Huss, John Wycliffe and so forth. In those days, the people were forbidden to read and study the Scriptures on their own. The Roman church would teach the Word through the priest and the Scriptures were read in Latin, a language that the people did not understand. Apart from the sixty-six books, they also added the Apocrypha writings onto the Holy Bible. So, for centuries the people were deprived of the doctrine of grace. The question that has always been on the minds of the reformers was this, ‘How can a man be saved?’
Perhaps you have been a believer for ten, twenty or thirty years, or you are still an unbeliever. I believe at some point in time, you might have asked this most pertinent question, ‘How can I be saved?’ The Roman church says, ‘Believe in Christ, believe also in the church, believe also in the sacraments, believe also in the traditions and do all the necessary works that the church has prescribed to do in order to earn your salvation.’
Can a man be saved by faith alone through Christ, or can he be saved by believing in Jesus Christ plus all these works? It was the spirit of God that opened the eyes of Martin Luther when he read Romans 1, verse 17, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” There’s no other way a person can be justified before God but only by faith. Today we want to consider 1 Peter, chapter 2, verse 9-10, the title of our message is ‘The Chosen People of God’.
I. The description of the believer
Our first point is ‘The description of the believer’. Let us begin with 1 Peter, chapter 2, verse 9, ”But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people” – here the Bible uses four different ways to describe the believer: a chosen generation; a royal priesthood; a holy nation; and a peculiar people. Notice the word ‘but’, there was a contrast to those who had rejected Christ, those who had considered Jesus as a stone of stumbling, rock of offence, those who were enemies of Christ. They believed that by their own good works, by their noble lives, they could save themselves and enter into Heaven.
In verse 8 we were told that they were appointed by God unto condemnation because of their unbelief. The word ‘appointed’ can mean ordained, which means God was not caught by surprise that they would reject the Lord Jesus Christ, that they would persecute the Christians. Nothing happens by chance or coincidence; nothing happens outside the sovereign will and purpose of the Almighty God. So, the word ‘but’ was very significant, it introduces the Christians as a different set of people with a different set of motivations, aspirations, and goals. They not only believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, but they also considered him as precious in their lives.
Firstly, they were called a “chosen generation”. The word ‘generation’ has sometimes been translated as a race, but this word ‘generation’ is very unique because it speaks of being generated, coming out from a source, and that source is none other than God Himself. In other words, as Christians, we are a race. A generation produced from the source that is God Himself. We are Christians because we have been chosen by God, or we have been elected by God before the foundation of the world. In fact, Jesus Himself said this in John 15, verse 16, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you”. So, it is not because we are wise, clever, intellectual and smart, that is why we have become Christians and are able to enjoy all the heavenly blessings. There are even some people who think that it is as if God is looking down some telescope into the future and He sees who will eventually choose him and based on that, He has elected them.
My friends, if that is the case, then the credit goes to man for his faith because he is able to seek God. If that is the case, then salvation is a human work and glory goes to man. The truth is that salvation is entirely and totally God’s choice. If we are left on our own, none of us in this room will choose God because the Bible says very clearly in Romans 3, verse 11, “There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.”
Secondly, we are called a “royal priesthood”. The word ‘royal’ means kingly, or sovereignty. A priest is someone who offers sacrifices, a king is someone who rules. When you put these two words together, it is so remarkable. What a spiritual privilege to be a king and to be a priest. Revelation 1, verse 6 says, because of Jesus Christ, He “hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; therefore to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever.” It is all because of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the ultimate King, the Prophet, with a capital P, and a great High Priest.
As believers, we serve as priests who can enter into the presence of God to offer spiritual sacrifices, like our prayers, our worships, our services, our offerings. And one day we will serve as Kings together with Christ in his millennial Kingdom. When the reformers came out of the Roman church, and were known as Protestants amongst all the other truths, they stood for three very important doctrines. Firstly, justification by faith alone, which means what Christ hath done for us through his suffering and death on the cross, is necessary and sufficient for our salvation. Man has no part in the redemptive work for Jesus had paid it all. Secondly, the authority and sufficiency of the Scriptures, the people can now read and study the Scriptures and be saved by God’s grace. Thirdly, the universal priesthood of believers. This is the doctrine that Christ, our Mediator, has reconciled us to God. So, we do not need the priest, the pope, or any other human mediator to present us before God on our behalf. The Apostle Peter says, ‘We are a royal priesthood’.
My friends, can you ever fathom this spiritual privilege? In the eyes of God, we are a royal priesthood. We do not need to go into the confession box to speak to the priest and then through the priest, he will represent us before God. We, ourselves, go straight into the presence of God, as Hebrews 4, verse 16 tells us, “Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” Not just ‘we come unto the throne of grace’. The author of Hebrews says, ‘we come boldly’, and God wants us to come. Of course, there are spiritual benefits for pastors, ministers, and elders to pray for us because they are able to understand the Word of God, to discern and pray for us according to God’s will. But, the point is we do not need human mediator. There’s no one between us and the Lord, because we are priests. There’s no one above us but the Lord because we are kings. We are a royal priesthood.
Thirdly, we are called an "holy nation”. The word ‘nation’ simply means a people, and the word ‘holy’ means separated, set apart. Oftentimes it is translated as a saint. Almost sixty-one times in the New Testament, it has been translated as a saint, or saints. So, if you are a true believer, you are a saint because Jesus Christ has set you apart onto Himself. The Roman church believes that they have the power to canonise a person to be a saint, but the church has no such power. No organisation, denomination, or society or government has such authority. Only God Himself has the power to set someone aside to be a saint unto Himself.
You see, the Roman church has very strange ideas about saints. According to their understanding, a saint is someone who was dead, and was in heaven. Most of the time, they had been martyred or they have done many good works during their lifetime, and they must be responsible for at least one confirmed miracle. Then the Roman church would canonise that person to be a saint, so they have Saint Theresa, Saint Nicholas, Saint Anne, and so forth. They were all dead. But, if you read through the Bible, for example when Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, he said in 1 Corinthians, 1 verse 2, let me read for you, “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints” and when he wrote to the church at Ephesus, he said in Ephesians 1, verse 1, “to the saints which are at Ephesus”.
It’d be foolish for us to think that Paul was writing to a group of dead saints in Corinth or Ephesus, right. He was simply writing to the believers who were called saints. So, the believers are called saints set apart, separated unto God which means we no longer belong to Satan. We are no longer victims of the bondage of sin, we have entered into a new relationship with God because of our union with Jesus Christ.
Most of us here are migrants, and we come from different countries. Some of us could trace our roots to Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Scotland and so forth. Physically, we may be residing in Australia, but our hearts may be lingering in our home nation. We are always thinking of home, we are always thinking of going home. Now, that should also be the heart of every believer, because our true citizenship is in heaven. As the song says, ‘This world is not my home, I’m just a passing through, my treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blues’. My friends, do you have this kind of feelings toward this temporal life, or do you live as if this is the only life you have? Then it would be most tragic, because this life will soon be over, whether you have another ten, twenty or thirty years, the Bible says it is like a vapour that appeareth for a little while, and then vanishes away.
Fourthly, we are called a “peculiar people”. The dictionary would often define this word ‘peculiar’ as strange and weird. But, the Biblical meaning is different, it means to possess something through a purchase. In the eyes of the world, yes Christians may seem to be strange and weird, but in God’s perspective, we are special. A peculiar people, bought with a price, with the precious blood of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. As 1 Corinthians 6, verse 20 says, “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” We belong to the Almighty God.
Some years ago, when I was serving in the Christian ministry in Singapore, one day we tried to send a container to a third-world country. Basically, it was a container filled with furniture items to help the poor Christians over there. As the container arrived in the third-world country, it was detained by the customs authorities. They had no reason to detain our container, but simply because they want us to pay some money, to bribe them. But as Christians, we do not want to have anything to do with corruption, so we refused. The customs officer said, ‘Well, the amount is really very, very small.’ Indeed, the amount is really very small, but our reply was, ‘It doesn’t matter if the amount was really small, it is against our Christian principles.’ Finally, he released our container and he said this, ‘You Christians are really strange and weird.’
Perhaps you have been named as someone who is strange in your workplace, or you have been classified as strange in your business dealings, or your children have been called weird in the school because you have behaved differently to the rest of the world. It doesn’t matter, because in the eyes of the world you will always be regarded as strange and weird, but in the eyes of God, you are special. You are a peculiar people, bought by the blood of Jesus Christ. So, it is truly a blessing to be called a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, but with these amazing blessings also comes the responsibility.
II. The responsibility of the believer
So, this brings us to our second point, ‘The responsibility of the believer’. Look at the second part of verse 9, as well as verse 10, “that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.” If our life is separated from the world, then our motivation must also be different from the world. My friends, what motivates us to worship and serve God, what motivates us when we know that if we live our lives for Jesus, there would be persecutions, rejections, hostilities, injustice and all sorts of trials? What motivates us not to compromise our integrities and principles, no matter how the world may seduce and tempt us? We will still remain firm and true to our Christian faith. What is our motivation? Our motivation is simply based on the fact that we are the chosen people of God.
There was a time when we were living in spiritual darkness, we were walking according to the prince of the power of the air, that is Satan. We were walking according to the cause of this world, we walking as the children of God’s wrath. The word ‘darkness’ speak of two things, ignorance and immorality. There’s an intellectual darkness and there’s also a moral darkness. Let me explain. Intellectual darkness means we cannot comprehend the truth, moral darkness means we cannot comprehend righteousness. We do not know what is right, even if we know what is right, we cannot do what is right. We are heading toward hell and yet, we think everything seems to be alright. We know we cannot be living forever on this Earth, yet we are still building our earthly treasures. We will want to accumulate more and more. We know that one day we will die, yet we do not want to think about where we will go for all eternity.
We were living in intellectual and moral darkness, but it was God who had called us out this spiritual darkness and he (Peter) speaks of the election of God. It was an effectual call by God Himself that ends with our salvation. He called us, out of darkness into His marvellous light. So, we are no longer ignorant, we not only know what is right, we are now capable of doing what is right because we have God’s truth, we have Christ’s righteousness, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling in us, we have the precious Word of God.
“Which were in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy” (1 Peter 2:10). What does it mean “in time past, were not a people, but are now the people of God”? You see, we are Gentiles, by nature we were not the people of God. The Israelites, the Jews, were the people of God, but because of their unbelief and the rejection of the Messiah, they have forfeited this privilege of belonging to God. Israel has been set aside by God, and this setting aside of Israel has become a blessing for the Gentiles. Until Israel finally turns to the Messiah in faith, that will come one day, the Gospel door has been open to us, the Gentiles. Those who have embraced Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour are now the people of God, that is what it means.
That is why Romans 9, verse 25 says this, “As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved. And it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people; there shall they be called the children of the living God.” So in God’s sovereign plan, the rejection of Israel, the setting aside of Israel has become a blessing for the Gentiles. We, who were not the people of God in time past, are now the people of God by His grace and mercy, by His sovereign plan.
The word ‘mercy’ basically means pity of compassion. It is God withholding His just punishment for our sins. That is the idea. You see, God has every right to strike us dead the very moment we sin against Him. He has every right to consume us the very instant we reject him. But, by His mercy He did not do that. There was a time in the past when we had not obtained His mercy, so in a sense, God was withholding His judgment in the future, if nothing was done one day we will have to stand before God and face the penalty of our sins, be sent into eternal hell. But by His mercy, we obtained it. God forgave us of our sins, and that was only by virtue of what our Lord Jesus had done on the cross of Calvary. By His mercy, you and I are saved.
But what is God’s purpose for saving us, what is God’s purpose making us a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, “that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light” (2 Peter 2:9b). So you and I must bring glory and honour to the One who has saved us. In other words, we are to declare the praises of our Saviour, we are to advertise or publish the praises of Christ, so to speak.
Supposing you are chosen to be an ambassador of the President of the United States, it would be an honour, right, to represent one of the most powerful men on Earth, and one of the most powerful nations, if not the most powerful nation on Earth. You would proudly declare the power and abilities of that nation. But do you realise that as Christians, we are the ambassadors of the all-powerful God? We are to be representatives of the all-powerful God. 2 Corinthians 5, verse 20 says this, “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ,” we are to declare to the world the power and abilities of Jesus Christ to save sinners from eternal damnation to reconcile sinners to God, to transport them out of darkness into His marvellous light. We are to tell the world His power, we are to tell the world His abilities, we are to tell the world of His love, grace and mercy. The question is, ‘Are we good ambassadors for Christ?’
We have twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty five days a year, in the final analysis, how much of our time has been spent in declaring the Gospel of Christ with our unbelieving family members, friends, relatives, colleagues? How much of those times are spent all for ourselves, for our own enjoyment and how much how those times are spent praising our Lord Jesus Christ? In the final analysis, all these will be revealed.
Have you ever asked yourself this question, ‘Why did God not just save me, and take me to heaven immediately? After all, heaven is a better place. Why did God allow me to continue living on the face of this Earth, sustaining my life, preserving me when I am sick, I recover from my sickness. Why did God continue to let me live? Why not take me home?’ As Christians, as the chosen people of God, what is the purpose of our lives on this Earth? Most of us who quote Westminster Shorter Catechism question number 1, ‘What is the chief end of man?’ The chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Indeed, that is the purpose of our lives, the question is, ‘Have we really glorified our God as we live?’ There’s only one way we should live as the chosen people of God. We are on the Lord’s side, we must live and die fighting in the Lord’s army. Share the Gospel, and save the souls of man and women, no matter what circumstances we may face. Trust in God, sing praises of Christ wherever we go. This is God’s sovereign purpose for you and for me.
A story was told of a soldier in the army of Alexander the Great. One day, the soldier committed a crime and was brought before this world conqueror for court martial. The Emperor listened to the charges and evidence and then he turn to the solder and asked, ‘What is your name?’ The soldier replied, ‘Alexander.’ Again, the Emperor questioned, ‘What is your name?” The soldier answered a second time, ‘Alexander.’ With a cry of rage, the great Emperor said, ‘I say, what is your name?’ And when the soldier answered for the third time, ‘Alexander,’ the Emperor angrily replied, ‘You say your name is Alexander, and you are found guilty of this crime. Now you must face the penalty. Either you change your conduct or you change your name, for no man can bear the name Alexander, my name, and do the things that you have done.’
My friends, Alexander was just a mere human being and yet he [was] esteemed so highly. How much more when there is one living and true God whom you and I bear His name? His name is Jesus Christ. Have we lived our lives bringing honour or dishonour to His name? Can you imagine one day, if the Lord were to say to us, ‘Never use this name ever again, never call yourself a Christian’, that would be most devastating, God forbids. We are the chosen people of God. It is a blessing to be called a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, special in the eyes of God. Called out of darkness and now we are in God’s marvellous light.
Did you know the reformers, the moment they were taken out from the deception of the Roman church, when they were in God’s marvellous light, they were all prepared to fight and die for the Lord? They were all willing to fight and die for Christ. Likewise, you and I are now in God’s marvellous light, we must live for Christ. We must live up to the professions that we say we are Christians, and we must always, through our lives, show forth the praises of Him. The One who died on the Christ, who shed His precious blood. The One who said, ‘It is finished’, who was buried and on the third day He rose again from the dead and He says to us, ‘Because I live, you shall live also.’ From now onwards, we live our lives singing praises of the One who saved us, our Lord Jesus Christ. All glory and praises to His name. Let us pray.
Our Father in heaven, we thank Thee for this time that we can even consider this portion of scriptures in 1 Peter chapter 2, verses 9 and 10. Indeed, it is such a blessing as believers to be described as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood. We do not need the priest, the pope or any other human mediator. We are priests and kings, we go to our God on our own, we go straight into His presence and offer our spiritual sacrifices, our prayers, our worship, our services, our offerings to glorify Him. We are an holy nation and a peculiar people, special in the eye of God. The world may call us strange and weird, but in God’s eyes, we are special, we have been bought by the price of His only begotten Son’s blood. We are eternally grateful.
With these blessing and privileges comes the responsibilities. We, who have been transported out of darkness into His marvellous light. How should we live our lives? We must always live to glorify Him, to sing praises of the name of our Saviour, to tell the world that Jesus is powerful, He has the ability to save sinners from eternal damnation, to reconcile them to God and to transport them out of spiritual darkness and into His marvellous light. This is the message we bring to the world, there may be consequences, there may be persecutions, adversities that we will face, but we are willing to live and die fighting in the Lord’s army, just like the reformers who fought a good fight of faith. We give Thee thanks and we pray all this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
SERMON OUTLINE
THE BOOK OF 1 PETERThe Blessed ResurrectionThe Blessed Resurrection1 Peter 1:1-5
Message 1: Make Sure Your SalvationMessage 1: Make Sure Your Salvation1 Peter 1:1-9
The Essential Truths of Our SalvationThe Essential Truths of Our Salvation1 Peter 1:3-5
The Blessings of SalvationThe Blessings of Salvation1 Peter 1:3-9
Message 3: Using The Right BibleMessage 3: Using The Right Bible1 Peter 1:13-2:3
Message 2: Are You Growing In Your Spiritual Life?Message 2: Are You Growing In Your Spiritual Life?1 Peter 2:1-12
The Chosen People of GodThe Chosen People of God1 Peter 2:9-10
Message 4: Submission To AuthoritiesMessage 4: Submission To Authorities1 Peter 2:9-25
Message 5: Be Prepared To SufferMessage 5: Be Prepared To Suffer1 Peter 3:8-18
Suffer For Righteousness’ SakeSuffer For Righteousness’ Sake1 Peter 3:13-17
Living in the End TimesLiving in the End Times1 Peter 4:7-11
Message 6: Be Indoctrinated With God’s WordMessage 6: Be Indoctrinated With God’s Word1 Peter 5:1-4
Message 7: Know Your EnemyMessage 7: Know Your Enemy1 Peter 5:1-11
Be Sober and VigilantBe Sober and Vigilant1 Peter 5:8-9
Our Confidence in Times of SufferingOur Confidence in Times of Suffering1 Peter 5:10-11
The Christian’s Confidence in Time of SufferingThe Christian’s Confidence in Time of Suffering1 Peter 5:10-11
