Immerse: Messiah - Flipbook - Page 309
2:4-16
1 Peter
297
You are coming to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of God’s
temple. He was rejected by people, but he was chosen by God for great
honor.
And you are living stones that God is building into his spiritual temple.
What’s more, you are his holy priests. Through the mediation of Jesus
Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God. As the Scriptures say,
“I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem,
chosen for great honor,
and anyone who trusts in him
will never be disgraced.”
Yes, you who trust him recognize the honor God has given him. But for
those who reject him,
“The stone that the builders rejected
has now become the cornerstone.”
And,
“He is the stone that makes people stumble,
the rock that makes them fall.”
They stumble because they do not obey God’s word, and so they meet the
fate that was planned for them.
But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal
priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show
others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his
wonderful light.
“Once you had no identity as a people;
now you are God’s people.
Once you received no mercy;
now you have received God’s mercy.”
Dear friends, I warn you as “temporary residents and foreigners” to keep
away from worldly desires that wage war against your very souls. Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they
accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and
they will give honor to God when he judges the world.
For the Lord’s sake, submit to all human authority—whether the king as
head of state, or the officials he has appointed. For the king has sent them
to punish those who do wrong and to honor those who do right.
It is God’s will that your honorable lives should silence those ignorant
people who make foolish accusations against you. For you are free, yet
