1 Peter 1:1-3:7 - The Rock

There is no one in the Story that I identify with more than Peter. He's brazen, doesn't really have much of a filter, intense, passionate, and lets be honest, impulsive. When I read about Peter, the way he acts, speaks, and responds to things, I often find myself shaking my head and thinking, yep, that's probably what I would've done.

So of course, I love reading the letters from Peter. It's like reading something from a brother from another mother from another time.

Today there is so much that could be commented on, way too much to cover in a short{ish} blog and so I had to pick something. And I'm going to pick rocks. Well, to be more specific, a rock, nay, the Rock.

No, not the wonderful wrestler with the fanny pack pictured to the right. Nor the movie, as much as I'd like to write a bunch of the wonders that is Nicolas Cage.

A Quick Look Back To Matthew

To get started we are actually gonna go backwards, LOST style, and bring to memory a conversation between Peter and Jesus that is recorded in Matthew 16:13-20. Jesus and the disciples are travelling to Caesarea Philippi when Jesus asks them a question, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"

The disciples answer that some people say that Jesus is John the Baptist, others Elijah, and other say Jeremiah or one of the other prophets.

I imagine this conversation happening as they walk along a road and at this point Jesus stopping, with the disciples following along now coming to a halt. Then I imagine Jesus turning to face all of them that he was travelling with to ask the most important question that these disciples would ever answer, "But who do YOU say that I am?"

Peter blurts out, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Jesus replies to Peter saying, "Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it..."

Some quick notes:

1. Simon has his name changed to Peter, in greek the word is Petros which means stone
2. The rock the church will be built on isn't Peter himself, the greek word is different, it's Petra, which is more like a large boulder or even a cliff, think more like some of the big rocks you'd see in Red River Gorge
3. So the rock the church will be built on is this confession, this truth that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
4. Lastly, Jesus WILL build his church, period. Nothing will stop it. The gates of hell cannot prevail against it, though they may rage at it's building. Also, note that gates are defensive structures, so what does that say about the role of the church?

Now Back to Our Regularly Scheduled Programming

So let us finally turn to the actual reading for today. Given this exchange before between Peter and Jesus is it any surprise that we read what we do in 1 Peter 2:4-10?

Here is what Peter says in 1 Peter 2:4-5:

As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

 Peter is saying come to Jesus, the living stone, the one rejected and crucified but resurrected. And we too are like living stones when we come to him and are being built up into a spiritual house. At first you may think, what in the world are you talking about Peter? A spiritual house? But think about this, the people of Israel had at one time seen the presence of God living among them in the temple. When the first temple was destroyed and the second temple built (the one that existed during Jesus' time) there is no record of the presence of God filling it again. It is however recorded that the people of Israel missed the former glory of the first temple, and were looking forward to the day when the Lord would fill the temple again.

So back to Peter, we are the living stones being built into a spiritual house, a temple. And no longer would there be priests and not priests, people who could offer sacrifices and those that could not. Now all would be priests, all would offer spiritual sacrifices accepted to God through who? Jesus!

Peter then includes quotes from two Old Testament books and he quotes them to make sure we know that these both point to Jesus as the cornerstone of this spiritual house. Jesus is the cornerstone, chosen and precious. Whoever believes in him will never be put to shame. This stone that the builders rejected has been laid as the cornerstone, the very stone that hold together the entire foundation.

And so here it is, the question comes back, who is this Jesus? This Jesus who isn't some spiritual buddha man, some nice person, some moral thought, nor a mere teacher, but this cornerstone who existed in time and space, God in the flesh, who was crucified, who's tomb was empty, who was seen again by many, this Jesus comes and asks each of us a question.

Who do you say that I am?

This question changes everything. There is no neutral ground, you can't be Switzerland. Either Jesus will be a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense or he will be the living stone, the cornerstone of the spiritual house of which you are a part of.

And if the latter is true then you are a chosen people, set aside to be a royal order of priests, a holy nation, a people for his own possession. In other letters it is said that not only are you his people, but even more, you were adopted into his family. You are sons and daughters of God. What an incredibly undeserved gift, this gift of grace! But why?

So that you may proclaim the wondrous acts of the One who called you out of darkness into shimmering light. Once you were not a people; but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy, but no you have received it. We have been lavished with grace not to keep it to ourselves and say, well that's nice, I got this nice hope to put in my back pocket.

No, this grace that is lavished on us by Jesus is not meant to be kept to ourselves, it's a gift that is meant to be shared. The same message that we received, the good news of a God who came down to rescue his people and offers forgiveness, is the same message that we are to extend to others.

So who do you say that Jesus is?