Christ Our Living Stone

Please open your Bibles to 1 Peter chapter 2, verses 4 through 10. That was the passage that we read during our Scripture reading. This is a familiar passage to us. It is referring to Christ, who is our cornerstone. Peter is writing to the churches of Asia Minor, the churches that are spread out. He's writing from Rome, and these churches — evidently, from the tone of both 1 Peter and 2 Peter — are going through some tribulation. They're going through persecution and they're going through suffering.

And when we go through suffering, when we go through persecution, it sure helps to know — it comforts us to know — who we are in Christ. And he uses the figure of the cornerstone as a way of expressing and teaching us about the believer's union with Christ. Every single believer in Christ Jesus, when we put our faith in Christ, we are born again. We are made new, and His Spirit comes to live within us. And we're spiritually united to Christ. He takes from us all of our sin, all of our shame, our death, and He gives us His life. He gives us His righteousness. He gives us His joy. He gives us His peace. He takes our filthy robes and gives us His perfect righteousness.

So that's what we're going to be looking at this morning — ten truths about our union with Christ. Now, our congregation, we haven't necessarily been through persecutions as we read about in other countries such as Somalia and the Sudan, but we have had a lot of suffering this year, haven't we? Here in our body, though our body is small, it seems like every family has been touched this year with sickness or health issues, has been touched with death in our families. We've lost so many loved ones, brothers and sisters in Christ. And when we go through those times, it helps to know that you are the people of God. It helps to know that you are united to the most wonderful Savior imaginable.

So let's look at our union with Christ. We're going to start with 1 Peter 2:4 and then the first part of verse 5.

"Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious — you also as living stones."

United to Christ, we are made partakers of everlasting life, of eternal life. Christ is described as a living stone as opposed to a dead stone. Is not Christ the ground of all life, both physical and spiritual? Remember what Jesus told Martha when Lazarus was dead. He came several days after Lazarus's death, and of course Martha was weeping. And Jesus says in John 11:25, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

In John 17:3, in His high priestly prayer, Christ prays to the Father and says, "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent." We often think of eternal life as being something that we will one day inherit when we get to heaven. But eternal life is a present possession. It's to know God, it's to know Christ, it's a quality of life. Christ came that we may have life and may have it abundantly. And so we are united to Christ. It says, "You also as living stones."

We are living stones because we are united to the author of life. We're united to the living Savior, the firstborn from the dead, the One who died and was buried and rose again. Thus His resurrection is ours — because He lives, so shall we. It says in verse 4, "Coming to Him as a living stone, rejected indeed by men." Who rejected Christ? The Jews? The Romans? We all did, right? Every single one of our sins is what crucified Christ, what put Him on the cross. He is indeed rejected by men, but chosen and precious. God chose Him — Christ is God's elect. He chose Christ to be our Mediator. And if we are united to Christ, guess what? We are chosen. We are given the favor of God. We are elect in Him. And Christ is precious. He says, "But chosen by God and precious." The word "precious" there means to treasure, to greatly value, to esteem highly. If you look at the word itself, it actually means jewel.

Every one of you ladies who have jewelry — don't you have maybe a ring that you prize, or maybe a necklace that you prize, and perhaps it has a jewel in it? Because it's exceedingly precious. It probably means something to you because someone special gave it to you. Well, in the same way, Christ is precious. He is chosen and He is precious.

Because we are united to Him, not only are you chosen, but you are precious in God's eyes. You are a jewel in God's eyes. You are a great treasure in God's eyes — more costly than much fine gold. You are the most valuable pearl imaginable in the sight of God, because we are connected to the Cornerstone who is the living stone, who is chosen, and who is precious.

The application is this: have you come to the living stone? There is no life apart from union with the living Savior. Christ came down here, He led a life as a human being just like us, except without sin. For 30 years He perfectly obeyed the Father. Three years in His ministry, He declared the gospel of the kingdom. And at the end of His 33 years, He laid down His life as a sacrifice, as a substitute for us, so that whosoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. We can have His eternal life. We can be connected to the living stone through faith in Jesus Christ. We turn from ourselves, our sin, the world, the devil, everything — and we turn to Christ. That's the essence of faith.

Do you ever think that you are rejected by God? Sometimes we do. We foul up and we think, "I'm not worth anything to God." Remember what He says about Christ — that He is chosen, that He is precious. And what is true of Christ is true of you. Because when God looks upon the redeemed, when He looks upon His people, He doesn't see our foul-ups, He doesn't see our shortcomings, He does not see our errors. He sees the righteous perfection of our Lord Jesus Christ, in whom He is well pleased.

Secondly, we're united to Christ because we are God's dwelling place. Look in verse 5: "You also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house."

In the old covenant, the Mosaic covenant, we find beginning in Exodus 19 where the people assemble at the mountain. We see the Ten Commandments are given, followed by some 600-odd laws they must abide by. They ratify the covenant in chapter 24. Then in Exodus 25 all the way through about chapter 31, God gives Moses instructions on how to build a tabernacle — His dwelling place. Very ornate, beautiful imagery there. But even there in the tabernacle, God would dwell among His people, and yet wasn't He at great distance from them too? Could you just waltz into the tabernacle? No. Only the high priest could do that. When it became the temple, every day there were two prayer services where a selected priest would offer incense before the holy place — not into the Holy of Holies, but just outside there at the altar of incense. But only a select few could ever get there. And then once a year the high priest would go through the veil into the Holy of Holies to make atonement for the children of Israel and to offer up prayer on their behalf.

But God, for us as believers in the new covenant, makes His dwelling place with His people by being inside of us. Is it not the whole heartbeat of the New Testament — "Christ in you, the hope of glory"? We are said to be in Christ and likewise He is said to be in us. 1 John 3:24 says, "And this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another as He gave us commandment. Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us."

So we are made to be a spiritual house. We're being built up a spiritual house. Who is building this dwelling place of God? Christ. Is not Christ the one who said to Peter, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it"?

Ephesians 2:11–22 — we read Ephesians earlier this year as we preached through it, and it has a beautiful passage about God being our dwelling place, using the metaphors of a home and a temple and the household of God. This is verse 11: "Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh, who are called 'Uncircumcision' by what is called the 'Circumcision' made in the flesh by hands" — saying, you Gentiles who were far away from the people of God. Verse 12: "That at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world." That's every unbeliever. "But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one and has broken down the middle wall of separation" — in other words, wiped out the wall separating the Jews and the Gentiles — "that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were far off," meaning the Gentiles, "and to those who were near," meaning the Jews. "For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now therefore you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God," where God dwells, "having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit."

United to Christ, we are God's dwelling place. The application is this: rest on the sure foundation of Christ. Rest on His promises — that whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have everlasting life, that He will send His Spirit to come and make His home within us. You are perfectly and securely placed on Christ, and therefore He dwells within you. And when you go through trials, when you go through tribulations, you are not on your own. Christ is with you. His Spirit is making intercession within your heart.

Thirdly, united to Christ, we are made to be a holy priesthood. Look in verse 5: "You also as living stones are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."

What did the priest do in the Old Testament? They had two main duties. They were to make intercession and they were to make sacrifices. They were a mediatorial office that pointed to Christ, who is our great high priest. Because Christ is our high priest, we also are made priests. In other words, we have direct access to God. Just as the priest could go and offer up petitions before the Lord on behalf of his people, cannot we boldly enter into the very presence of God when we pray? Of course. We have been made priests to our God. That's a privilege they did not enjoy in the Old Testament — only a select few. You had to be of the tribe of who to be a priest? Levi, exactly right. We talked about this a few weeks ago when we did Psalm 110. You had to be a Levitical priest. But it doesn't matter your heritage now — every believer in Christ, everyone who is united to Christ, can go in and do business with God. Can go in and pray to God and have His ear.

Hebrews 10:19–23 says this: "Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus" — in other words, the Holy of Holies, the place where God dwells, where the high priest could only go in once a year — "we have freedom and we should have boldness to go in there anytime we want. By a new and living way which He consecrated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh. And having a high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful."

We can go before our God without any hesitancy. We can say, "God, I know I'm impure. I know I'm a sinner. I know I have failed You, but I stand in grace. I stand covered by the blood of Christ and I know that You love me." So we have boldness when we access God.

Not only because of our union with Christ are we priests before God and have access to Him, but even our ministry, even our works — what a priest would do in making sacrifices — our spiritual sacrifices are made acceptable to God because of Jesus Christ. He says here in verse 5, "to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." You might think that your service to God is small. You might think that your service to God is not noteworthy. You might think that your sacrifice to God, your obedience to Him, is mundane, normal, average.

However it is that we serve the Lord — whether it's inviting someone to church, whether it's sharing the gospel with them, whether it's being a man who leads his family in the Word of God and lays down his life for his wife, whether it's a wife who honors her husband and seeks to please him and to lead her children in the way of truth and righteousness — that seems like everyday stuff, and we're not always good at it. How many of you men, when you've tried to have a Bible study at home, have you ever felt so inadequate? You stumble and bumble and think, "I hope they're getting something from this." Well, let me tell you — because of what Christ has done, your works are precious to Him. They are anointed with the blood of Christ. He says they are made acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Don't worry about your shortcomings. Serve God with all your heart and He will bless it.

The application is: have boldness to enter into the Holy of Holies. Do not waver in doing good. Do not waver in faithfully serving Christ our King. He can take our meager works — our meager loaves and fishes — and multiply them and use them for great things for His kingdom.

Fourthly, united to Christ, we will never be disappointed because God vindicates us. We see that in verse 6.

"Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture" — he's quoting Isaiah 28:16 — "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame."

Believers are vindicated in their faith because Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, as we quoted earlier today. His character never changes. His Word doesn't change. The flower fades, the grass withers, but the word of our Lord stands forever. He will vindicate us in our faith in His promises.

Isaiah 28:16 — whenever the Bible quotes the Old Testament, it's not just a little check mark saying, "Look how much Old Testament I know." The idea is that the author is thinking about the full context of that Old Testament passage when he's quoting it. And what he's quoting here is the judgment on Ephraim and Jerusalem for their disobedience. They were disobedient to God and God says He's going to punish them. But in this passage, He says, "If they will turn to Me, then I will be their sanctuary" — literally the dwelling place of God. "If they don't turn to Me, then I will be their stumbling stone. They will be dashed upon Me." This gives us assurance that when we turn to the Lord, He accepts us.

This promise that was first made to Israel — that if they would turn to Him and believe Him and trust Him, He would be their sanctuary — is here now being applied to the church. This promise made to Israel, "If you will turn I will be your sanctuary, your dwelling place," is now made to all men, to anyone who will turn to the Lord Jesus Christ. That's why we boldly trumpet Romans 10:9–13: that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. You can take that promise to the bank. "For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, 'Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.' " He's referring to the same passage in Isaiah 28:16 that Peter is referring to. "For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. For whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Our confidence is not in our strength — that's what Ephraim had their confidence in. Our confidence is not in our political alliances — that's what Jerusalem had its confidence in. Our confidence is not in our own goodness, our own merits. Our confidence is solely in the perfect finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you put your faith and trust in that, you will not be disappointed. You will be vindicated.

The application is this: don't doubt Christ. He never changes. Don't doubt His promises. His promises are always sure. He is a tried stone. He is precious. He is a sure foundation to trust in.

Number five, united to Christ we share in His honor and esteem. We see this in verses 7 and 8.

"Therefore, to you who believe" — now this is in contrast to those who disbelieve, those who are not trusting in Him, who we see in verse 6 are put to shame, dashed, so to speak, in pieces — "Therefore to you who believe He is precious, but to those who are disobedient, 'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.' "

When we are united to Christ, we share in His honor and His esteem. And it says in verse 7, "Therefore to you who believe He is precious." The word "precious" there can be translated "honored." It can be translated "esteemed." We talked about that back in verse 4 — what we esteem highly is what we treasure, what we value. "To all men, whether Jew or Gentile, the only blessing, the only covenantal blessing that you'll ever find is in Jesus Christ." Ephesians 1:3 says that we are blessed in the heavenly places with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus. There is no blessing apart from being united to the Savior. So what do we esteem? We esteem Christ, because He is the one who is most valuable, the one from whom all blessings indeed flow.

Psalm 118:22 is quoted in the second part of verse 7: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone." This is part of the Great Hallel — the great praise psalms, Psalms 113 to 118 — traditionally recited at the end of every Passover. This is very likely what Jesus sang when He and the disciples left the upper room on the way to Gethsemane. And when Jesus was in Gethsemane, He knew that He would be rejected. So it says, "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone."

Jesus talks about this explicitly in Matthew 21. He gives the parable of a rich landowner who had a vineyard, hired it out, and lived far away. Then he sent some of his servants to require fruit of that vineyard — the servants being a metaphor for the prophets. And what did they do to his servants? Killed them. So he sent more, and they killed them. Then he says, "Okay, I'm going to send my son. Surely they will respect him." But when the vine dressers saw the son, they said among themselves, "This is the heir — come, let us kill him and seize his inheritance." They did not esteem him. They did not give him honor. So they took him and cast him out of the vineyard and killed him. Christ was crucified outside the city on Golgotha.

Verse 40: "Therefore, when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vine dressers?" Then they said to Him, "He will destroy those wicked men miserably and lease his vineyard to other vine dressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons." Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures?" And here He quotes Psalm 118:22: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes. Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it."

It's very clear He's talking about the Gentiles here — "nations" were Gentiles in Scripture. "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken, but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." Now when the chief priests and the Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. They were the builders who rejected Him. But verse 46: "But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet." There's always a remnant. The people of Israel, though their leaders were against Christ, the people understood that Christ was a prophet. He was esteemed. Who were His disciples? The Jews, right? Who were the 120 in the upper room? The Jews. Who did Jesus establish the new covenant with? The Jewish remnant, on the night before His crucifixion — "This is My body, this is the blood of the new covenant, given for you." The 3,000 who came to know Christ on Peter's preaching at Pentecost — who were they? Jewish people. The church started with the Jews. He made the new covenant with the Jews, but it expands now to all nations — to whoever will trust in Him, whoever will regard Him and esteem Him as the Christ.

Isaiah 8:14 is also quoted in verse 8. Verse 8 says, "A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense" — those who stumble at Christ, Christ will be to them a stone of stumbling, a rock of offense. The Jews in the time of Jesus were offended that the kingdom of God would be shared with the Gentiles. They found that a stumbling stone. In the context of Isaiah 8:14, Isaiah is chastising the people of Israel because they fear other nations more than they fear God. They stumble who care about what other people think rather than caring about Christ's honor and Christ's esteem.

The application is this: don't be a respecter of persons. Go to the highways and byways and invite all people into the kingdom. Whether they're your skin color, whether they have a different dialect, speak a different language, or seem like they're from a different world — if they esteem Christ, they will have salvation. Four thousand years ago, God made this promise to Abraham in Genesis 17:5: "I have made you a father of many nations." From the very beginning, when God promised Abraham that his seed would bless all the nations of the earth, that his offspring would be innumerable — from the very beginning, He had you and me in mind as well. For the whole world, whoever will trust in Jesus Christ.

Number six, united to Christ, we are God's chosen people. We find that in verse 9. "But you are a chosen generation." Let me stop right there. It says, "But." Whenever you see "but," look to the prior verse. It says, "They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed." Those who disbelieve Christ, who do not honor Him, stumble at Him — to which they were appointed. This is a verse that shows us both man's responsibility, because it's man who didn't believe and it's man who stumbled, and also God's sovereignty. It's not at all different from what we read in Acts 2:23: "Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified and put to death." God is sovereign, but man is responsible.

And then he says, "But we expect different of you." And what he does here in verses 9 and 10 is one of the most beautiful passages in all of Scripture. He takes the most splendid and the most vibrant, the most restricted titles that were only used of Israel in the Old Testament, and he now applies them in an even fuller sense to all who are united to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Verses 9 and 10 — let me read to you: "But you are a chosen generation." The word "generation" can also be translated "people" — some translations say "a chosen race," "a chosen family." This is a quote from Isaiah 43:18–21. Isaiah says, "Do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old." He's looking forward to the day when the Messiah comes and a new covenant would be made. "Behold, I will do a new thing. Now it shall spring forth. Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness and rivers in the desert." That's what Caleb read from Isaiah 40. "The beast of the field will honor Me" — "beast" in Jewish literature was shorthand for the Gentiles. "The jackals and the ostriches, because I give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert to give drink to My people, My chosen. This people I have formed for Myself. They shall declare My praise." How amazing that God would set His love on a beast like me — that's what he's saying, that we are His chosen people.

How incredible it is that God's chosen people has always been and will always be a matter of pure grace. Think about Deuteronomy 7:6 and 8. Moses is speaking to the children of Israel. It says, "For you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for Himself, a special treasure above all peoples on the face of the earth. The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people" — not because you were worthy or great — "for you were the least of all peoples. But because the Lord loves you" — simply because He set His love on you. That's grace. Grace is love and favor that is undeserved, that is unmerited.

Deuteronomy 10:15: "The Lord delighted only in your fathers, to love them. And He chose their descendants after them, you above all peoples, as it is this day." Being united to Christ, God chooses to love you. It's not that you're lovable, but He makes you lovable in Christ. He delights in you just as He delighted in the fathers. What a wonderful promise that is. Romans 5:8 tells us about this love — that God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. He takes the unlovable and makes us worthy.

In the new covenant, we have an even better relationship than the people of God in Israel did. Now we have direct access — where God was dwelling afar, now He lives inside of us. In the old covenant, the law was not inscribed on their hearts. In the new covenant, what does God say? "I will write My law on your hearts. I'll give you a heart of flesh, and I'll put My Spirit within you." What a blessing that is.

The application: because you are the people of God, boast in the Lord. Boast in nothing else but boast in the Lord. 1 Corinthians 1:26–31 says, "For you see your calling, brethren, that not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. And the base things of the world and the things which are despised God has chosen, and the things which are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, that no flesh should glory in His presence. But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, that as it is written, 'He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.' " If you're going to boast, boast in the Lord — that you are His chosen people, that He has set His love upon you, and that He delights in you.

Number seven, united to Christ, we are a royal priesthood. Look in verse 9: "You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood." Here he's quoting from Moses when the old covenant, the Mosaic covenant, is inaugurated in Exodus 19:3–6. It says, "And Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain, saying, 'Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel: "You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. Now therefore' " — this is covenantal language, the King saying, "Look, I've delivered you. Now this is what I expect of you" — " 'if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a special treasure to Me above all people, for all the earth is Mine. And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." God set His love on Israel for them to be a kingdom of priests — to be both priests and kings to Him.

Now those offices were separate. As we talked about earlier, the priest was of the tribe of Levi, and the kings came from the tribe of — Judah. But remember a few weeks ago, we looked at Psalm 110 — that Christ was of the order of Melchizedek. He was a priestly king, or a kingly priest, who reigns forever. All these offices were meant to point forward to Christ. He is our high priest and He is our King. Under the old covenant, you could never have a priest-king. It wasn't possible under the Mosaic law. But in Christ, these are combined for our redemption. He is our King who delivers us from the domain of darkness, because He is our Priest who has made sacrifice for us. We share in His access to the Father. We can come boldly to the throne of grace, and we share in His victory over sin and over the world. What does Ephesians tell us? That Christ has been exalted. He's vanquished the foes. He's at God's right hand for the benefit of — the church.

Revelation 1:4–6 says: "John, to the seven churches which are in Asia. Grace to you and peace from Him who is and who was and who is to come, from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, and from Jesus Christ" — here we see a Trinitarian statement — "the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen."

The application is: don't waste your privilege. As priests, intercede for others. Pray for the lost. And sharing in His dominion and His authority, "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you." That's how we extend His domain — we bring people into the dominion of Christ through the gospel. Live to bring every man, every woman, every boy, every girl to our King and Priest, Christ Jesus.

Number eight, united to Christ, we are a holy nation. We see that also in verse 9. "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation." We read just a minute ago in Exodus 19:6, "And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." Israel was supposed to be a nation that was consecrated to God.

Back in Exodus 19, when they are about to hear the Ten Commandments, they are commanded to go and wash themselves ceremonially, to present themselves in proper order to receive the commandments of God. After the commandments were given and all the words of the law were read — the 600-some commandments that followed — in Exodus 24, we have the ratification of the covenant: they are sprinkled with sacrificial blood, consecrated, and they bow. They make a covenant with God. They say, "We promise to do everything that You have said." How long did that last? Moses goes back up the mountain for 40 days to receive the commandments written in stone — and when he comes back, are they observing the law they had just promised, sworn on a blood oath, that they would keep? No. Because they could not consecrate themselves. You see, apart from faith in Jesus we cannot make our heart new. They focused on the external observances of the law, of the ceremonies. But Christ must circumcise the heart. He must give us a heart of flesh. He must give us a heart that's filled with His Spirit, a heart that's made new — and that's only something that the work of Christ can do.

So united to Christ, we are truly a holy nation. All believers experience the true holiness of God because we are in Christ Jesus, who is the Holy One. His blood has washed away our sins. We are made new and perfect and right before Him in love. He's given us a heart of flesh. He has put His Spirit within us. He has sealed us with His Spirit.

The application: being united to Christ, live as a holy people. We are consecrated people truly, because we have a Spirit living within us who leads and guides us into all truth. But we must make the decision daily to live according to His Spirit. What does Galatians 5:16 say? "I say then, walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh."

Number nine, united to Christ, we are His own special treasure. We see that in verse 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 and into His marvelous light." Look at that last section. "His own special people" can be translated as "His own treasured people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light."

Here again he's alluding to Exodus 19:5, which we read just a moment ago — that we be God's special people. That's what Israel was declared to be when the old covenant was inaugurated at Sinai. Here he's declaring that same word to every single believer — that we be valued, that we be His jewel, that we be His treasure, that we be His valued possession. Paul alludes here to Isaiah 43:21, which we read earlier: "This people I have formed for Myself. They shall declare My praise." The phrase "formed for Myself" literally means "His possession."

When my children were little and close in age, when we would give them a present or a reward, all the other siblings wanted the same thing. You know, maybe for a child's birthday you'd give them a special gift, and we would tell the other siblings, "This is his special gift. He doesn't have to share this gift for a while, okay? Let him enjoy that." Listen — God will not share you. You are precious to Him. You are treasured to Him. Would a man share his wife? Would a wife share her husband? No. You are the bride of Christ. He has washed you with His blood. You are dear to Him. You are valuable to Him.

1 Peter 1:18–19 says this: "Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot." Christ deemed you so precious that He went to redeem you — to redeem you from your harlotry, to redeem you from your rebellion. And what did He redeem you with? The most precious thing He had — His very life, His very blood.

United to Christ, we are His own special people. We are His. We are not our own. We are His treasure. We are made by God, and we are made to declare His praises. That's what it says in verse 9: "His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness and into His marvelous light."

We're coming up on Christmas time, all decorated here for Christmas. What a wonderful time to proclaim His praises to men. You will have Christmas parties. You may see relatives or associates that you don't see so often. What an outstanding opportunity to be witnesses for our Lord Jesus Christ. And Isaiah 9 — the passage we often quote around Christmas time, that He is "Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God" — listen to the first two verses of it. "Nevertheless the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, as when at first He lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali" — these were the farthest regions of Israel, bordering on the Gentiles — "and afterward more heavily oppressed them, by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined." Messiah came for all men. Your witness should be to all men — that Christ has come to give them hope in darkness.

Lastly, number ten — united to Christ, we are now the people of God and have obtained mercy. Look in verse 10: "Who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy."

He's not directly quoting, but he's alluding to Hosea chapters 1 and 2. Hosea the prophet is condemning the people of Israel for their rebellion and their harlotry. But he prophesies that though God has rejected them and turned them away because of their harlotry, God would restore them. He does this in chapter 1 and also in chapter 2. He says, "Once again I will embrace you, though you've gone a whoring from Me."

What Peter is doing here is taking this promise of being the chosen people of God who have obtained mercy and expanding it — not just to Israel, but to all who will trust in our Lord Jesus Christ. Paul does the exact same thing in Romans 9:24, under divine inspiration. He interprets the promises made to Israel — that if they would return, they would be restored — and actually equates the restoration of Israel with the coming in of the Gentiles. He says, "Who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy." We were not a people of God — we Gentiles don't have the prophets in our bloodline, so to speak. But what does Galatians 3 tell us? That everyone who believes in Christ is indeed a child of Abraham. We are indeed inheritors of all the promises of God. You'll find that in Galatians 3:29.

Mary echoed this in Luke 1:50 when she gives her Magnificat: "And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation." God saves all — Gentile and Jew alike — who will return to Him.

The application is simply this: be like Mary and magnify the Lord and rejoice in God our Savior. She says in her great praise, Luke 1:46–47: "And Mary said, 'My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.' " That we are the people of God, that we have found mercy — and that mercy provokes one response. That response is to magnify Him and to exalt Him. Let your lives be a testimony to His grace and to His mercy.

Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your graciousness in uniting us to Christ the Savior. We thank You, Lord, for these truths sinking into our hearts so that when we go through trials, when we go through tribulations, when we go through persecutions, we will know that we are united to the living stone. It's in Christ's name we ask these things. Amen.