Being Chosen

Being Chosen

1 Peter 2:9-10

Online Sermon: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567

I remember when I was a young boy, I often got up early Saturday morning to go to the lake to play hockey. A crowd of youth would quickly form and prepare the ice for what would be some rather rough but exhilarating time of skating, passing the puck, checking, and rooting one another on to what hopefully would be a glorious victory. Once the ice was ready the two best players were assigned captains whose first task was to take turns picking members for their teams. I dreaded this greatly for who wanted to pick the one who skated like a drunken sailor stepping off a Tilt-A-Whirl spinning at warp speed? When a captain picks a person to be on their team, do they not choose the most skilled person first? For example, if one was to choose a person to join one’s baseball team would not one jump at the chance to get a person that has the baseball skills of Babe Ruth or Ty Cobb? If one was to choose a person to join one’s football team would not one first, choose a person that has the football skills of Jerry Rice or Jim Brown? If one was to choose a player to join one’s hockey team would not one’s first pick be the person who plays hockey like Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux? And if one was to choose a person to join one’s Texas Scramble team would not one first choose a person that plays golf like Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, or our very own Mike Fahey? The reason why people get picked to be added to groups is usually because they have something special of value to add to the group.

The way in which God chooses people to be part of His kingdom servants is not based on their human abilities or status. God chose an occasional drunk man Noah to build an ark. God chose the 100-year-old man Abraham to become the father of a great nation. God chose a conniver and supper-controller Jacob to be called Israel. God chose a shepherd boy, adulterer, and murderer to be king of Israel. God chose a fear-driven wimp Gideon to lead His army. God chose the prostitute Rahab to provide refuge for the Israelite spies scouting Jericho and to be part of Jesus’ lineage. God chose a tax collector of Rome Matthew to be one of His twelve disciples. God chose a small boy to provide the five loaves and two fish used in the feeding of the 5,000. God chose a persecutor of His very own Son Paul to be an apostle and spread the Good News to the Gentiles! To be a kingdom servant and do great things in Jesus’ name does not require human but divine abilities. In writing to the church of Corinth Apostle Paul said, “not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth” when chosen by God to serve in His kingdom. “God chose the foolish things of this world to shame the wise; God choose the weak things of this world to shame the strong” (1 Corinthians 1:26-27). When we Christians were called from darkness into His glorious light (1 Peter 2:9) we were lost, entangled in sin, and without divine help incapable of becoming saved (Matthew 19:16-26). God chose us before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) not because of our merits, public status, or genealogy but out of His pleasure and by our faith in the atoning sacrifice of His Son (Ephesians 1:4-6; John 3:16) we became not just members but heirs of His kingdom (Romans 8:17). It was only upon our conversion that we were given the spiritual gifts needed to perform the divine tasks He has assigned to us (1 Corinthians 12)! This was done so that no one could boast, and no one left out for all have been baptized by one Spirit and form a single body or team, each playing a position of equal value!

How we Were Chosen

To the Christians scattered across Asia Minor who felt like aliens and foreigners in a strange land Peter reminded them that their identity was not determined by their culture but in having been chosen by God as a royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9a). While we are tempted to view Peter’s words as a call for “individual piety” taken in its proper historical context he is actually referring to the “community of believers, the church, rather than individuals. The phrase “chosen race,” drawn from Isaiah 43:20 and Exodus 19:6, signifies that the “church is the true Israel, the rightful heir of all the privileges pertaining to the Old Testament promises made to it.” For example, the dwelling place of God is no longer in the Jerusalem temple but in the hearts of the believer. The priesthood who alone had access to God were no longer limited to the physical descendants of Abraham but of those who had the same faith that he did. Those who have been called out of the darkness into the light form a “spiritual house” not due to the “ethic identity nor geographical boundaries but rather based on their allegiance to their heavenly King, Jesus Christ, who is truly King of Kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16). Peter reassures both the Christians of Asia Minor as well as those today that despite being persecuted for righteousness sake we are to rejoice for it was none other than the Creator and sustainer of all life, our Lord, Savior, and King who chose us to be forever part of His glorious family. Imagine what it would have meant to those living in Asia Minor amongst the Romans who constantly looked down at them to be elevated to the status of royalty as ones who would one day rule by Jesus’ side as priests with full access and membership to God as His very own children! And unlike the being on a team where lack of performance means not being selected or kicked off the team, Christians are sealed by the very Spirit of God and as such are rest assured that their status as external heirs in God’s kingdom team will never be revoked (Ephesians 1:13-14)! So, while our allegiance to the Lord brings persecution let us rejoice that we have every spiritual blessing possible (Ephesians 1:3) in He who purchased us at the price of His very life (1 Corinthians 6:19)!