Sunday, May 6, 2007
1st Peter 2:2-10
Senior Pastor
Let me remind you that we are in the middle of a sermon series I am calling Joining the Resurrection Conspiracy. And by resurrection conspiracy I am referring to those who are ready and willing to carry the message of the resurrection out into the world, that is to other people. I am using conspiracy in the sense of those who are breathing together, which is the literal meaning of the word. That is a group working closely with one another.
I mean to suggest that those who join the resurrection conspiracy are those ready to work closely together to spread the news and power of the resurrection. We are using this letter called First Peter to remind us of some of those early witnesses or conspirators who did just that. They lived in a society that did not value that message. They worked together to spread the message of the Gospel anyway. Due to their efforts, the message did indeed spread.
But you can hear the tension in this scripture as the author invites people to come to Christ even though he was rejected by mortals, yet chosen and precious in God’s sight. (v. 4) Can’t you hear that tension that Christ is everything to us and precious in God’s sight, yet he is rejected by mortals, that is by human society. It is so important that we stay clear in our thinking about what is valuable because we too live in a society that chooses different values and rejects in many ways those things we hold dear in the Christian community.
Bishop
Hayes serves as the Bishop for all Oklahoma United Methodists. Recently
he shared the story of an Indian tribe who lived beside a
swift, dangerous river. To fall
in, quite literally, could me death as the strong current would likely sweep
you away.
One day another tribe attacked. The defenders found themselves backed up
against the treacherous river. They were greatly outnumbered. Their only chance for escape was to cross
through that current. Such a crossing
would surely mean death for the children, the elderly, the weak and ill and
perhaps even many of the strong.
But cross that river they must, so the
leaders of the tribe devised a plan.
The logical thing, the reasonable thing, the expedient thing, the
sensible thing was to leave the weak behind. That was the rational solution--but
they could not do it.
Instead, they chose to include
everyone. They decided the strong would
pick up the weaker ones and put them on their shoulders. Thus the young
children, the elderly, and those ill or wounded were carried on the backs of
the stronger tribe members. They could
not be sure that this would work, but they decided they must try.
With great fear, they waded into the
rapid water--and they were greatly surprised.
Astonished might be a better description as they discovered the extra
weight on their shoulders stabilized them as they encountered the current. They reached safety across the river. Because they valued so highly all tribe
members and those relationships, they had all been saved. We not only tolerate things that society
rejects, but we find the truth that, at times, those very things are what save
us. This stone, to use the images of
our scripture, that the builders rejected, has become the cornerstone. It is not only that Jesus is okay, but Jesus
has become the cornerstone—the stone by which all others are aligned.
First Peter says it this way, To
you who believe, he is precious; but for those who do not believe…[it is]a
stone that makes them stumble. (v.7 & 8) First Peter says God sees things differently
and once we come to believe that God is at work in Christ we too will see the
world differently. Even if we are
rejected or our values are rejected by the world, God says I do not see you
that way. And to describe how God sees
us, First Peter draws on a number of images from the Hebrew Scriptures to
describe us.
In verse 9 he says, you are a
chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people. Now we could spend hours studying the
background of these phrases, but for our purposes this morning let me simply
say that he wants us to understand that God sees us as precious and quite
valuable – not only individuals but the whole community. Notice the images are all collective -- chosen
race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people. He wants us to hear this good news that
God has chosen us and sees us as a people set apart for a special purpose.
And
what is that purpose? He goes on in
verse 9 to tell us that we are set apart, in order that you may proclaim
the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. We are set apart, as Christians, to proclaim
the mighty acts of God in Christ. To
shine the light bright in what might otherwise be a very dark world.
How
do we do that? In so many ways through
our First Church community. Currently
we are building a Habitat house, we are preparing to go to Alaska, we are
making kits to send to disaster areas.
But even closer to home we are teaching our children in Sunday School
the great themes of scripture and in choir to sing praises to our God. We
provide Sunday School for our youth and our adults where they learn of the
mighty acts of God. We offer Bible
studies and prayer groups and care ministries.
We offer our money every week so that it might be used to support all
these ministries and many others in which we cannot be personally involved, but
our fellow United Methodists are hard at work to proclaim the mighty acts of
God.
But I also thought of
my own home church, First Church in Okmulgee, Oklahoma. Because they proclaimed the mighty acts
of God in their everyday lives, I discerned a call into ministry. If we had time I could rattle off the names
of dozens of people who were faithful Sunday School teachers and VBS workers
that helped me, youth sponsors and camp workers who cared about me, preachers
who mentored me, adults in that congregation who encouraged me simply by the
lives they lived all around me so that I might know the mighty acts of him who
calls you out of darkness into his marvelous light. They were the chosen race, the royal priesthood, the holy nation,
God’s own people to me so that I came to know the mighty love of God alive in
my life.
To be a part of such a
work is a holy calling. It’s
God’s own work in the world and he invites us to be a part of it, right here
and right now. Let’s make sure we are
an active part of the resurrection conspiracy in Enid, Oklahoma.
1st
Peter 2:2-10
…Joining
the Resurrection ____________________
…tension…
was rejected by mortals, yet chosen and precious
in __________ sight. (v. 4)
It
is so important that we stay clear in our thinking about
what
is ________________
…an
Indian tribe who lived beside a swift… __________.
To you who believe, he is precious; but
for those who do not
believe…[it is]a stone that makes them
______________. (v.7-8)
…you are a chosen race, a royal
priesthood, a holy nation,
God’s ______ people.
…that God has chosen us and sees us as a
people set apart
for a special _______________.
…in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who
called you out of darkness into his marvelous __________.
(v. 9)
Because
they proclaimed the mighty acts of God in their
________________
lives…
To
be a part of such a work is a ________ calling.
Kid’s question: Name one image from our scripture text today
that describes us?