April 20, 2008

Join the Royal Priesthood

by Rev. Dr. Jim Carlson
1 Peter 2:2-10

Opening Illustration - A Japanese high school pleaded for a regional game to be abandoned after surrendering 66 runs in less than two innings, local media reported on Thursday.

The coach of Kawamoto technical high school threw in the towel to spare his pitcher's arm with his team losing 66-0 with just one batter out in the bottom of the second.

The hapless hurler had already sent down over 250 pitches, allowing 26 runs in the first inning and 40 in the second before Kawamoto asked for mercy. What does the coach say to his players to pick them up?

How Christians ought to conduct themselves in the world. How they should understand themselves in relation to who they used to be.

Looks like epistle; probably sermon.

Written to people in provinces of Turkey. Gentile Christians suffering some kind of harassment.

Author urges them to hang in there. Reassures them that Christ will return.

Author is trying to help them understand themselves as God’s people during their suffering.

People who suffer harassment today would usually protest or try to replace government officials.

Author tells people not to raise a ruckus. Since Jesus is coming back soon, the best protest is to live a blameless life.

Author compares the situation of the readers to the people of Israel during the exile.

Israel was the laughingstock of the region – their God couldn’t keep them from being invaded.

OT describes Israel as a rejected cornerstone.

Churches in Turkey are being rejected, but God will vindicate them and make them the cornerstone on which God’s new kingdom will be built.

People will misunderstand the, as gentile nations misunderstood Israel.

Author reminds churches of OT images – Israel as world’s priesthood. Christians play a similar role; they help others connect with God.

Church continues to be God’s priesthood on earth. Do we see ourselves that way?

Imagine one day of your life where you played the role of priest in every situation. How would you act? What would you say? What situations would you avoid?

Three things this passage teaches us about the church as a priesthood.

First – we don’t play the role of priests who are unsure that what we stand for is real.

We will encounter skepticism – but we can’t let that stop us from pointing to God.

Christian religion is not make believe – we live out our calling with the assurance that there is divine truth behind what we’re saying and doing.

Church has to avoid trying to reassure itself of its own legitimacy by increasing its marketing share.

Legitimacy is from God, not from revenues or acceptance.

Second – We didn’t invent this stuff. This priesthood began with Jesus, who was also rejected. And it was passed down to us through the centuries.

We are simply building on a foundation we inherited. Like bricks in a house.

Cannot view ourselves in isolation from other Christians or our heritage.

Third – The priesthood we operate in does not exercise political power over society. Our best defense against criticism is to do the right thing.

Church’s reputation has been damaged. Used to be trusted.

If we want the world to see us as God’s priesthood, we have to act like it.

We don’t look like a priesthood if pastors like Ted Haggard who condemn gay people are soliciting male prostitutes and doing drugs.

We don’t look like a priesthood when people like Jimmy Swaggart condemn immorality in the U.S. while simultaneously cheating on his wife.

We don’t look like a priesthood when people are afraid to take their children to church because the church until recently has ignored the damage caused by pedophile priests.

We don’t look like a priesthood when pastors stand up in front of large crowds and project their images on TV and then proceed to tell people that if they follow the teachings of the Bible faithfully they will undoubtedly become rich. My Bible says “blessed are the poor.”

As a Royal Priesthood, we have to live as people who have been shown mercy and reconciled to God. IF we don’t, people will see us as just another outdated group of folks who are unaware of our hypocrisy.

Final Illustration – Betty Clark – represented the priesthood well. She will always be remembered and revered for her persistence, her passion, and her steady approach to life.

Betty was a rock. She was strong, faithful, unwavering, positive, and inspiring. She had the kind of faith in God that we all wish we could have. And that faith transformed her into a person whose life reflected God’s own nature as love itself.

Everyone you ask speaks glowingly of her. I was privileged to know her for only a few years toward the end of her life. But when I saw her, I knew what a godly person looks like.

Every day we have the choice of how we’re going to represent God.

Some people don’t feel adequate to represent God. If you’re part of the church, in some peoples’ minds you represent God.

Being part of a priesthood doesn’t mean you have to be perfect. It doesn’t mean you don’t have doubts. It doesn’t require us to re-invent ourselves.

Being part of a priesthood means pointing to God as perfect, despite our own imperfections and shortcomings.

Pointing to God requires us to live a life of integrity, to conduct ourselves as holy people.

Live your life in such a way that when people criticize Christians as hypocrites who are out of touch with the world, others will look at your life and find those remarks impossible to believe.