"Who do you think you are?"
1 Peter 2:4-10
Sometimes I wonder if God is experiencing an identity crisis. (Illustrate from Morgan Freemans line in the movie “Deep Impact” – “Pray to god, whom ever that may be for you.”
Morgan Freeman’s god suffered from an identity crisis. I wonder if you suffer from an identity crisis. Do you know who you are?
As we read 1 Peter 2 we find that God certainly knows who we are. But just who do you think you are?
This passage from the bible begins by urging us to “Come to Jesus Christ.”
I want to put it to you tonight that everyone who comes to Jesus Christ will discover who they really are.
1. Acceptable (vv 4-5)
First, only when we come to Jesus do we discover that we are acceptable.
Peter says that those who come to Jesus Christ are “living stones [who] are being built into a spiritual house.” In other words, it’s no longer acceptable for God to dwell in temples made of dead, lifeless bricks and mortar. God chooses to dwell in “living houses,” people. God now chooses to dwell in the temple that is the living body of the believer.
1 Cor 3:16 tells us that believers are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? Further on in that same letter it says that the believers body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? (1 Cor 6:19). The book of Acts tells us that the Most High does not live in houses made by men (7:48).
Back in 1 Peter 2 it tells us that people who come to Jesus are like “Living stones.” The image is like that of a raw stone that has been cut and shaped to fit perfectly into a wall (Ill – limestone blocks in garden walls). When we come to Jesus he shapes us into people who are acceptable. When we come to him he knocks off the rough edges and makes us acceptable to God.
And people who come to Jesus are “Living” stones. This reminds us that being a Christian is not a dead-boring life – if it is for you then you’ve missed the point. Being a Christian is about living life the way God intended it to be – and that’s exciting.
The passage continues by saying that people who come to Jesus are living stones who – “are being built into a spiritual house.” It’s pointing to the church. What’s being said is that the church is a spiritual house built by God and its members are the stones of that building. So when we come to Jesus, we become part of his community – the church.
The point is this. When we come to Jesus he comes to us in the form of the church. The church is God’s gift to us. The church is the place where Jesus wants to express His acceptance of us.
Who do you think you are?
When we come to Jesus we find that we can be acceptable – People who can be acceptable to God. And the sign of His acceptance is found when we become part of the community that calls itself “church.”
2. Valuable (vv 6-7)
We may experience rejection in all sorts of places – home, work, or school – but Jesus says that we can be acceptable. And He says that because to Him we are valuable.
What Peter is saying here is that like Jesus, those who come to Him will be rejected by the world but are extremely valued by God.
The Good News Bible puts this verse like this, “This stone is of great value to you who believe” (GNB). It’s talking about Jesus. Jesus is precious to us because of who he makes us. Our value to God is linked to Jesus.
And the link is this. God values those who come to Christ because they were expensive to purchase. – they cost God the life of His one and only Son. In other words, those who come to Christ are as valuable to God as His only Son.
When we come to Jesus and become His, our value is connected to His value. Do you think God values His own Son? I think so. Yet he values you enough to have given the life of His Son for you.
Let me try and put this plainly. In the beginning God created humanity in His own image – Genesis tells us that we were created in the image and likeness of God. So as individuals we must have worth and value to God, because he created us to be like Himself. But after the fall that image was spoiled because our holiness – which was part of God’s image in us - was taken from us.
Jesus Christ is the answer to that deficiency. When we come to Him our holy status is restored. When we come to believe in Christ God takes what is valuable to Him and restores its true value.
And we can do that daily. We can come to Jesus and be restored each time we seek His forgiveness.
Who do you think you are?
When we come to Jesus we discover our true worth – we are valuable to God.
3. Capable (vv 8-9)
Now if you’re normal, you will have traveled through times when you don’t feel all that valuable to God.
Perhaps you have never given Him the time of day. Perhaps you do follow him but have let him down. This next point will help you.
VV 8-9 tell us that people who come to Jesus are capable.
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From these verses we see that we are capable of two things – accepting Jesus and rejecting Him.
At first glance it looks like people who stumble and fall are destined for hell, and that God has destined this to happen.
However, these verses say nothing about a lack of hope for those who stumble and fall. It leaves open the possibility of turning back to Jesus.
The whole passage is written about how people are now. It’s talking about how people stand at this point in time – people who are yet to come to Christ. It doesn’t say anything about whether they will come to Christ in the future or not.
But we all have to make a choice to either accept or reject Jesus – not only at the point of conversion, but also throughout our lives. And we are capable of making that choice.
And look what happens to those who choose to come to Christ. Look at how they are described.
They become a “chosen people, a royal priesthood, a people belonging to God.” And the reason for this is to increase our capabilities.
The reason for this is so that we may “declare the praises (i.e. goodness) of him who has called us out of darkness into his wonderful light.” Being “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a people belonging to God,” enables us to be God’s voice, hands, and feet to this generation.
God has a message of hope, joy and peace that he wants this generation to hear – and he knows that only those who come to Jesus are capable of carrying this message.
We should come to Jesus because only when we do, do we realize our true capabilities.
4. Forgivable (v10)
Finally, v10 probably gives us our clearest statement on who we are. In this verse he draws a clear distinction between those who come to Jesus and those who don’t.
Those who come to Christ used to be no-bodies. Now they are the people of God no less!! Now they are somebody’s.
Those who come to Christ were once unforgiven. Now they have been given the highest privilege in the universe – now those who come to Jesus are God’s own people. Those who come to Jesus are forgivable.
It may seem like a contradiction – to come to Jesus we must give up control of our lives and hand it over to Jesus. But controlling our lives makes us somebody in this world – to give that up would seem to make us a nobody – a follower not a leader.
But only by becoming followers of Jesus can we receive true forgiveness. And only when we have received forgiveness can we become the people of God – only when we have been forgiven can we become a somebody – a forgivable child of God.
This happens not because of anything we have done, not because we deserve it. It happens because those who come to Jesus receive His mercy.
God is loving, forgiving, restoring God who really likes to take people that are not His and make them His people – to take people who don’t feel like they fit in – and make them to fit in to his family.
If we want to know God – to become a somebody – to fit in – then we need to remember that we are forgivable and that we need God’s forgiveness.
1 John 1:9 has this great promise, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”
We can be forgiven and purified. We must take God at his word. He has promised forgiveness to those who come to him.
Have you received that forgiveness tonight? One famous psychologist once said, “If I could convince my patients that they are forgiven then 75% of them would be healed.” I wonder if you need God’s healing forgiveness tonight.
You know, forgiveness has to be received for it to be effective. Imagine if John Howard said “Sorry” to our aboriginal people, and then they turned around and said – “That’s not good enough, we don’t accept your apology.” We would be back in square one. Nothing would have been achieved. When God offers us forgiveness, we have to accept it for it to be effective.
Who do you think you are? The bible says you are forgivable. Nothing you have done can change that. But to be forgiven you must receive God’s promise of forgiveness.
CONCLUSION
We started by asking, “Who do you think you are?”
Well? Who are you?
The connection I want you to make tonight is that when we come to Jesus we are acceptable, valuable, capable and forgivable.
