Loving The Brethren-7 Series

LOVING THE BRETHREN-VII—1Peter 1:22—2:12

Attention:

Doll Money

There was once a man & woman who had been married for more than 65 years. They had grown old together. They had shared everything.

They had talked about everything. They had kept no secrets from each other except that the little old woman had a shoe box in the top of her closet that she had cautioned her husband never to open or ask her about. For all of these years, he had never thought about the box, but one day the little old woman got very sick & the doctor said she would not recover.

In trying to sort out their affairs, the little old man took down the shoe box & took it to his wife's bedside. She agreed that it was time that he should know what was in the box. When he opened it, he found two crocheted dolls & a stack of money totaling $25,000. He asked her about the contents. “When we were to be married,” she said, “my grandmother told me the secret of a happy marriage was to never argue...to be angry, but to not let sin control the situation.

So she told me that if I ever got angry with you, I should just “keep quiet about it & crochet a doll.” The little old man was so moved; he had to fight back tears, because only two precious dolls were in the box! She had only been angry with him two times in all those years of living & loving. He almost burst with happiness.

“Honey,” he said, "that explains the dolls, but what about all of this money? Where did it come from?"

“Oh,” she said, “that's the money I made from selling the dolls.”

Sometimes it’s a real challenge to love!...even those to whom we are closest & dearest.

That’s why we need this word of encouragement to Love our brothers & sisters in Christ!...

So far in our study of 1Peter we have examined the fact that

Christians are...CONSIDERED ALIEN(:1-2)...

We’ve examined...WHAT’s So GREAT About GOD—(:3-12)

And discovered God’s means of...UNLEASHING Your SPIRITUAL VITALITY/Vigor—(:13-21)

Today we will continue applying the above truths toward LOVING THE BRETHREN(1:22—2:12).

Peter exhorted the aliens to love their brothers & sisters in Christ as they were also loved by God.

Christians are to love as they are loved by God.

How are Christians to live out God’s love?

14 encounters thru which Christians are to live-out God’s love.

We had previously found that

God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...

1. CLEANSING(:22a)“Purified”

2. OBEDIENCE(:22b)“Obeying”

3. SINCERITY(:22c)“Sincere”

4. INTENTION & DEPTH(:22d)“Fervently with a pure heart”

5. REBIRTH(:23a)

6. GROWTH POTENTIAL(:23b)

7. THE INVINCIBLE WORD(24-25a)

8. THE INESCAPABLE / AVAILABLE WORD(:25b)

9. AFFIRMATIVE ACTION(2:1a)

10. UNADULTERATED SUITABLE SUSTENANCE(2:2)

11. The FLAVOR Of GRACE(2:3)

12. APPROACHING(2:4-5)

13. CONSTRUCTION(2:6-8)

14—God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...

PROCLAMATION(2:9-12)...

14a—God’s love is lived out thru an encounter with...

PROCLAMATION(2:9)

Explanation:(2:9)

2:9—“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;”

“But you are a chosen generation”

In contrast to the “disobedient” of :8, believers are “a chosen generation”. Our progeny(the church/believers) make up an entire & especially separate “generation” in God’s scheme of things. This is to the exclusion of all others. Believers are His “generation.” We are born of God’s desire. Believers are only such at God’s choice, thru His manner & method...particularly thru Faith in Christ!

“Chosen”(See :4; :6—“Elect”)—eklektov—Adj.—Picked out, chosen—1a3) Choice, select, i.e. The best of its kind or class, excellence preeminent: applied to certain individual Christians. Strong—Select; by implication--Favorite.

?English=‘Eclectic’...to choose using a particular standard(as of faith).

“Generation/Race”—genov—Noun Neuter—1) Kindred—1a) Offspring, 1b) Family, 1c) Stock, tribe, nation—1c1) i.e. Nationality or descent from a particular people, 1d) The aggregate of many individuals of the same nature, kind, sort. Strong—“Kin”(abstract or concrete, literal or figurative, individual or collective).

“But you are... a royal priesthood”

We are also “a royal priesthood”—Believers represent a kingly priesthood.

This presents Christians as...

1)A “Priesthood”—Believers as the ‘Entrusted’ representatives & mediators of & for the King & His Kingdom.

2) “Royal”—The ‘Actual sovereignty’ of the King, with believers as property & emissaries of the King & His Kingdom. Not chosen by others, but chosen by the One God & King of all! Of the Royal line of the King.

“Royal”—basileiov—Adj.—Royal, kingly, regal. Strong—Kingly(in nature). Used 1X.

“Priesthood”—ierateuma—Noun Neuter—1) The office of a priest; 2) The order or body of priests. Strong—The priestly fraternity, i.e. Sacerdotal order(figuratively). Used 2X.

“But you are... a holy nation”

Believers are also “a holy nation”:

1) “Nation”—Believers are bound together as a structured, recognizable, organized, societal, cultural, unified people with inalienable rights to existence & thus the right to represent these to other nations. There are no ‘national’ or ‘politically’ derived(of men’s fleshly cronyisms) boundaries to this “nation.” They are worldwide, being determined by individual adherence to Christ.