by Scott Sheridan
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
In 1 Peter 2:4-5, the inspired apostle writes, “Coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Just as Jesus is, we are to be. Jesus is a living stone, Peter says “you also.
Christians are living stones, rejected by men, and are the household of God. Paul told Timothy the same, “but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth” (emphasis added). Peter says we are being built to be a house for a holy priesthood. Who is this priesthood? Peter must have known we’d ask that question, because he answers it for us 1 Peter 1:9: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” We are that priesthood!
Christians are all of these and more. However, let us never lose sight of Who we belong to. We are being built up into these things, but it is God that is doing the building. Not me. Not you. We must never forget that we were bought with a price, we are not our own (1 Corinthians 6:19ff). The Church is not ours to do with what we want.
We must remember that we are part of God’s building and not our own. So, as we look around we could ask, “What are we building, anyway?” I thought I would use a little of this space and let you see what we’re building.
The Scriptures teach us that the Church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:20-22). We have the writings of these apostles and prophets in the Bible and can build upon what they teach us.
First of all, we, as God’s people, need to make sure we know God’s Bible. His Word is how we acquire faith (Romans 10:17). His Word tells us the directions we must take as we travel the road of life. His Word tells us how to have salvation and how to please Him.
Second, as we read the book of Acts, we see many things that the early Church did that we need to ensure we are doing. When the Church began, it wasn’t too long before it was being persecuted. Instead of shriveling up, it grew like crazy. It grew so much that in Acts 17, when Paul and Silas went into Thessalonica a mob formed outside Jason’s house and they dragged him out and said, “These men who have upset the world have come here also; and Jason has welcomed them, and they all act contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus” (Acts 17:6-7). I just wonder how much we are upsetting the world. As I look at the early church, I see a method of evangelizing that is not done much in the church today. They did not use programs and gimmicks to lure people into a building hoping that something might happen that would make them want to stay to find out more.
As a matter of fact, they weren’t allowed to have buildings set aside to meet in. The persecutions were such that if a person openly “invited someone to church” they could quite possibly lose their life. Beginning with the Emperor Nero, Christianity became an illegal faith. So how did the church grow so rapidly? It grew because each Christian would teach the Gospel to the people they knew. We must become re-committed to being at the meetings in which we study the Word. If we want to be like the early church and grow so much we upset the world, we must teach, teach, and teach. Needless to say, that brings us right back to being a people of His book. There is certainly nothing wrong with inviting people to visit our local church body. Offering an invitation is no longer life-threatening. But the point is, we must teach people, and teach them well. That is the ONLY way we will truly grow the way the Bible tells us to.
Third, they did not compromise the Truth. Even when someone had part of the truth but did not believe it all, they did not say, “good enough,” instead they taught them more accurately (Acts 18:24-26). Many Christians gave up their life for their faith. Why? Because they had been taught and were convinced of the truth. Jesus and the apostles stressed purity of doctrine and purity of life. That should be the same things we stress. It is very easy in our day and time, because of the proliferation of denominations and the modern teaching of tolerance, to leave people alone as long as we think they’re close to the truth. I don’t mean to sound unkind, but we must remember that Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’” (Matthew 7:21-23). A person is not saved because “we think he’s close enough.” A person is saved when God’s Word says he is. Listen to Jesus again, “If anyone hears My sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day” (John 12:47 & 48).
Fourth, God’s church has a godly leadership. I would like to challenge the men of every congregation to step up and be willing to go the extra lengths to becoming God’s leader. It’s possible that some might say, “I’m not qualified to be any kind of leader.” Right now, you may not be, but leadership takes training. You can become a leader. In Ezekiel 22:30 God was looking for a man to stand in the gap. “I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me.” God is still looking for those who will stand in the gap. If you’re willing to step into that gap, the time to do so is now.
Together, with God’s guidance, we can build the church to be like the one we read about in the New Testament. But it takes a determination to build. It takes commitment to be accountable to God’s Word. What are we building? The household of God. Can we do it? As sure as Jesus is alive, yes, we can!
Some of the comments you hear on TV, social media, radio, etc., centers around this thought, “God saved President Trump’s life.” If that is true, why didn’t God save the life of Corey Comperatore — the fireman who was assassinated by the rogue gunman? When I hear the statement, “God saved Trump’s life/turned his head” my mind immediately goes to the wife and children of Comperatore and the other injured victims. What must they think? Was President Trump’s life more important than their injured or lost lives? No, of course not.
Let us look at the subject of interpreting providence, and what do we mean by providence? Providence is that which is directly influenced and affected by the hand of God. There are three reasons why events happen. 1) God causes them. 2) Nature affects them. 3) The freewill choices of people. All events can be categorized under these three causes.
So, after January 20, 2025, we are in anticipation of many things we have been promised by the incoming president. Reducing prices and inflation. Closing our borders. Rolling back DEI, LGBTQ. On transgender rights he would end “boys in girls’ sports,” a practice he insists, is widespread. But his policies go well beyond standard applause lines from his rally speeches. Among other ideas, Trump would roll back the Biden administration’s policy of extending Title IX civil rights protections to transgender students, and he would ask Congress to require that only two genders can be recognized at birth. Reductions in burdensome regulations. Targeting the elimination of the federal involvement in our nation’s education. Eliminating the green new deal. Improving the defense of our country.
Sounds great, doesn’t it? Well, as much as these things sound good and make us feel better about the direction of our country they are not enough. While the new administration may be able to improve our physical life, our society still has a spiritual problem. As described in Romans 1:21-32 “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their reasonings, and their senseless hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and they exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible mankind, of birds, four-footed animals, and crawling creatures.
Christian apologists have long said that the three greatest miracles of the Christian faith are the creation of the universe, the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and His bodily resurrection from the dead. To these a fourth awesome miracle could be added—fulfilled Bible prophecy.