The True Church Final (1 Peter 2:1-12)

Thank you for subscribing to the Shepherds Church podcast. This is our Lord's Day Sermon. We pray that as we declare the Word of God that you would be encouraged Strengthened in your faith and that you would catch a greater vision of who Christ is.

The Call to Hear and Obey the Word of the Lord

May you be blessed in the hearing of God's Word and may the Lord be with you comes from Deuteronomy 10 12 through 22 The Word of the Lord and now Israel. What does the Lord your God require of you? But to fear the Lord your God to walk in all his ways to love him to serve the Lord your God with all of your heart and with all of your soul and To keep the commandments and statutes the Lord which I am commanding you today for your good.

Behold to the Lord your God belong heaven and the heaven of heavens the earth with all that is in it yet the Lord set his heart in love on your fathers and Shows their offspring after them. You above all peoples as you are on this day circumcised therefore the foreskin of your heart and Be no longer stubborn.

For the Lord your God is God of gods and the Lord of lords the great the mighty and the awesome God Who is not partial and takes not bribe? He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow and loves the sojourner giving him food and clothing.

Love the sojourner therefore for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the Lord your God and you shall serve him and hold fast to him and by his name. You shall swear He is your praise.

He is your God who has done for you these great and terrifying things That your eyes have seen. Your fathers went down to Egypt 70 persons and now the Lord your God has made you as numerous as the stars of heaven.

The New Covenant Reading from 1 Peter 2:1-12

We turn it over to the New Covenant reading which is in first Peter chapter 2 verses 1 through 12 so put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into salvation.

If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. 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. For it stands in Scripture. Behold. I am laying in Zion a stone a cornerstone chosen and precious. And whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.

So the honor is for you who believe but for those who do not believe the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble because they disobey the word so as they were destined to do but you are a chosen race a royal priesthood a holy nation a People for his own possession so that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy beloved. I urge you as Sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh.

Which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable. So that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.

The Word of the Lord. Well, I begin with just saying what a pleasure it is to be with you this morning. What a pleasure it is for the Shepherd's Church and for Merrimack Valley Presbyterian Church to be under the same roof.

One church one Lord one body together. What a microcosm of heaven. This is one church gathered around the throne singing the praises of their King. Now my name is Kendall Kendall Langford, I'm one of the pastors at the Shepherd's Church, and I'm so thankful to be with you.

Now, maybe I give a little bit of a rough introduction on who we are. We're a three-year-old church. We're a baby as a church. We were planted in 2019 in the fall of that year and then after I fell off of a house I Made it.

Okay. Then after lockdowns and after everything else, I thought pastoral ministry was going to improve. I thought it was gonna get easier. I thought the struggles were over and in a sense they were we we got a new building.

Which we're so thankful for we tripled in size and our very our second Easter service. Our budget was healthier than it had ever been. We were declaring the Word of God with with passion conviction and vigor.

We were gaining stability as a brand-new church. That was at far outpaced even our age. And.

Then I.

Will say at that point we were reformed Baptist. I'll still preach like a Baptist if that's okay. But as many of you know God's ways are not our ways and his thoughts are not our thoughts.

And in.

2021 I hit a bit of a crossroads. I Was 37 years old at the time. Many had traversed this path and much younger than I you can't teach an old dog new tricks or at least not quickly. And as I sat. After a series on covenant theology with my Bible open.

Oh Palmer Robertson at my side. Just finished the case for covenant baptism, I realized that I was one of you. I was a Pato Baptist and I had no idea what to do with that. So I did when any reasonable person would do.

I went on the OPC website and I hit the submit an inquiry or whatever It was and ask a theological question. Somehow I was directed to dr Greg Reynolds and then eventually I got to your beloved pastor and he called me first.

He emailed me but then he called me after he got home from vacation just to tell me I wasn't crazy. And then he understood what I was going through. David has been Sort of like an Aquila for me taking me aside and teaching me like a young Apollos Deeper truth of the word.

He's been there to help me in so many different ways. Right away he offered to help us with a baptism conference so that our people also wouldn't believe that we were crazy. He invited me into a monthly prayer fellowship with other reformed believers.

He welcomed me and my family. He taught me across the table on under many breakfasts. He taught me things that I had never heard before. He introduced me to Silas who's become one of my dear friends in the ministry.

David and this church Is something that I'm so thankful for. Maybe I haven't been able to meet all of you yet, but I'm thankful for this church because this church was there and helped our church. When we were in a moment where I didn't actually know Whether what was up or down?

Today. Now we're at the end of a series. So you catch the end of the series. You catch the finale if you're not at the Shepherd's Church. This is part 12 of a 12-part series on what is the church and the reason we decided to go through that is because My theology on baptism changed.

What else do we not understand about the church? What else do we not understand about what this thing is this? Bride of Christ that gathers together in the Lord's presence who feasts at the table. What do we not understand about it?

We want to understand who we are as the bride. So for 12 weeks, we've been doing topics like tithing church government. Why do we get called to worship? What is baptism? What is communion and All of this was birthed out of the Belgic confession of faith Article 29 that wonderful reminder of what a true church is.

I read this years ago and It's been my prayer ever since that the Shepherd's Church, it's my prayer for you Mayor McValley Presbyterian Church. That we would be a true church. This is what the Belgic says.

The marks by which the true church is known are these if the pure doctrine of the gospel is preached therein if it maintains the pure administration of the sacraments as instituted by Christ. If Church discipline is exercised in chastening of sin.

In short if all things are managed according to the pure Word of God all things contrary thereto rejected and Jesus Christ as not acknowledged as the only head of the church. Hereby the true church may certainly be known for which no man has a right to separate himself.

Which I think is probably the most beautiful line in that passage. Today we're going to be closing out on what is a true church and we're going to be given a summary of that. Which if you're at the Shepherd's Church, you understand that usually means about 11 or 12 point sermon.

I Would do my best. Today what we have to cover. What is a true church and we're gonna be in the book of first Peter chapter 2. We read this passage a moment ago. I'd like to read it to you again just to remind us of what a church is.

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into your salvation. If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good and you come to him a living stone rejected by men.

But in the sight of God chosen and precious. You yourself 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 for it stands in Scripture behold, I am laying a stone or in Zion a stone a Cornerstone chosen and precious and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.

So the honor is for you who believe. But for those who do not believe the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble because they disobey the word as they were destined to do but you are a chosen race a royal priesthood a holy nation a people for God's own possession.

That you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of the darkness Into his marvelous light once you were not a people and now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy But now you have received mercy beloved.

I Urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh. Which wage war against the soul and keep your conduct among the Gentiles Honorable so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God On the day of visitation.

Let us pray Lord Jesus we beseech you this morning. We beg and plead with you that we these two congregations that are here this morning Would be true churches. Lord we live in a world full of counterfeits full of false expressions of faith.

Lord we live in a time where preaching scratches the itching ear where the sacraments are watered down if Abandoned if not abandoned altogether in church discipline is as foreign to us as Anything you could imagine.

Lord we pray. That these two congregations would not only be true churches. But were that you would sustain us by the power of your spirit that you would keep us that you would hold us. That you would keep our lampstands burning brightly in This crooked and perverted generation that we have been called to.

Lord would you allow fruit to come out of these two churches that far? Exceeds what we could ask or imagine. Lord, we pray that by the movement of your spirit that Thousands if not ten thousands and hundreds of thousands of people would come to bow the knee to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

That they would see the good works that these two churches are engaged in and as Peter says that they would glorify God. Before that great day of visitation comes. Lord we ask that you be with us and you write the word on our heart and it's in Jesus name.

We pray. Amen. There's 11 Identifiable features in this passage. I wasn't kidding. There's 11 identifiable features in this passage of what a true church is. 11 things that I would want our two churches to be known for and they begin with that we're a unified people a Unified people first Peter 2 1 so put away all malice and all deceit and all hypocrisy and all envy and all slander.

What Peter and by extension the Holy Spirit is calling us to is unity to put away slander Malice wickedness and things that bring disunity upon the church. Peter's saying in light of everything that Jesus has done for you and all of the things that he's mentioned in first Peter chapter 1 all Of the grace that's been poured out on you the ransoming love of Christ the imperishable purifying blood of Jesus the glorious Powerful resurrection that raised you from the dead and the unity that exists within the triune.

Godhead in light of all of that. Have unity with one another. Live in harmony with one another. Christ did not reconcile us from our futility so that we could go on behaving in futile ways. He did not bring us in union with Christ.

So that we could be about disunity in the body. Notice what he's saying put away All of the wickedness and slander and malice and all of those things why so that you could put on.

Christ.

Union with our Savior. Necessitates unity in the church and what you'll notice in this passage is that Peter is going to advance a Theme that's gonna weave its way through every single part of this. What Christ is.

That the church will be becoming. Because Christ has perfect unity with the Father. The church is Growing in unity with one another what Christ is. The church will be becoming. There's got to be in this church and among these two congregations people you don't like.

You would never say so out loud. There's got to be people when you swipe up on their Instagram profile. You say well look at them put that away and put on Christ. Because of that even in its smallest little seed form Poisons and destroys the church.

When you feel that envy Rising up in your heart. Judgmentalism. Maybe they deserve it. But when you feel that creeping up in your heart Do what Paul says in Romans 8 13. And put to death the misdeeds of the flesh.

So that you and your church Will live. We must put away Those things so that we may put on Christ. We must do whatever builds up the body. We must not do and mortify those things that tear down the body a church By nature of who Christ is must have unity.

That's the first thing That Peter says is a church must have unity. The second thing is that a church must be a growing people. First Peter 2 2 through 3 like newborn infants long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into salvation.

If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good Peter is not saying that growth is optional. Peter is not saying that growth is a good thing. It is actually a necessary thing because you've been connected to Jesus Christ.

Like an infant who's connected by an umbilical cord to her mother. Necessarily grows the church who is connected to Christ who is being fed by the Living Christ and nourished by Christ will grow our posture is.

Like newborns who crave? Spiritual milk. Many of you've had newborns and you notice that their entire life is oriented around the pursuit of milk.

If.

They don't get it. They will scream. They will cry and with their paper-thin nails will rip your face off. That over mastering desire for that one thing milk. Is the exact same motivation that we have as Christians?

That our entire life is oriented around the pursuit of knowing Christ. Their entire life is oriented around knowing him and having the knowledge of God. If you've tasted the sweetness of Christ, the only natural thing for you to do would be to cry out to God.

To seek him in his word. To call out to him in prayer. To be present at the Lord's gathering. To be fixated on the pure spiritual food the bread and the wine that he gives us at his table. Infants aren't worried about the stock market.

They're not worried about their 401ks their houses their cars their politics or any of the things of the world. Infants are worried about one thing. Let us be a people That are fixated on one thing and that is Jesus Christ and his gospel.

Let us be the kind of people that direct our gaze without distraction as dr. Booth was saying a moment ago. Let us be a people who fixate our minds upon the gospel. Let us be people with every faculty of our mind and every faculty of our reason.

Be given over to the knowledge of God. Just because you've memorized a catechism and just because you made it out of Leviticus in your Bible reading plan.

It's not enough.

We have to die to a finish line mentality. That we've arrived somehow. I've read the Bible through this year. Now, what do it again? I've memorized the Westminster now what go to the larger? Read the Puritans grab a systematic theology go talk to David Booth.

He's a living systematic theology whatever it is that you grab hold of grab hold of the word grab hold of prayer the means of grace and Seek after Christ with an over mastering passion. When people see you They will know that you are the kind of person that Christ is everything.

Just like we don't even have to question that an infant wants their milk. No one has to question that you want Christ above all else and When we do that collectively our churches Will have actually something to offer to the nation's.

We won't have empty words we'll have living Examples and testimonies of what Christ is doing among two groups of people. That's the second thing is that we're necessarily grow and we'll have something to offer.

The Rejected Stone and the Church's Identity in Christ

The third thing is That will be a coming and a rejected people first Peter 2 for as you come to him a Living stone rejected by men, but in the sight of God chosen and precious Peter is saying he's continuing that thought on what an infant is.

We are the ones that come to Christ. That's what we're known for but in that coming Whether that's mornings and evenings whether that's in our quiet time whether that's the Lord's Day and word and in prayer whether that's coming to Him in our pleasures or our despairs.

We are coming to the one who was rejected and What Jesus is is what the church will become. That's what Peter is trying to show us. Jesus is the one who was chosen by God and he was altogether beautiful and precious to the father.

And if there was anyone Who did not deserve to be rejected? It was Christ Jesus and Yet he was the one Who was rejected? In that true for us Who now have the Spirit of God living and dwelling in us that if we pursue him?

That it likely end in us being rejected if we begin to walk like him and talk like him and love like him and be like him and leave like him and think Like him won't we? Be rejected. Some of you know exactly what that feels like already.

Some of you know That the closer you've gotten to Christ the more alienated you've become in your family or in your marriage or among your children and in your relationships. What Jesus is? That the church will become even Walking the road towards Calvary where we take up our cross and it leads to our rejection.

Remember Jesus's son you and I become sons and daughters of God. Jesus has chosen one. We have become chosen before the foundations of the world. Jesus is precious. We've become precious in the sight of God.

Jesus is rejected. What makes us think? That the world will love us. What makes us think that they will accept us and cheer for us and like us. And why do we spend so much time trying? Look at what Jesus says in John 15 19 If you were of the world the world would love you.

But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world. Therefore The world hates you. Rejection should not be something that confuses us. In fact, we should be confused when we are overly loved.

Peter says later on in chapter 3 that this should not be something that is peculiar to us or Strange to us if we are rejected when we experience as James says trials of various kinds when we experience rejection.

Neighbors that no longer speak to us. Family members that have turned their back on us. Society that's trying to find a way to silence us. We should remember dear friends that this is normal. That this is normal our expectation often Dictates reality for us when we expect to be loved and heralded and applauded.

Any little offense that someone takes with us hurts our feelings, doesn't it? But if we accept the fact that our Lord and Savior was rejected and If we're gonna walk the same path as him that that will often lead to us being rejected.

When that comes will be like the disciples who counted it. Counted it an opportunity to praise him that they were counted worthy to suffer for the name of Christ. Rejection should not lead us to despair.

Don't cry and don't shed an abundance of tears. Don't fall into despair When you are maligned mistreated misunderstood and rejected for Christ. Now if you're rejected for other things that's your fault.

Well, you can weep over that Peter even says It's better for you to suffer for Christ and not for your own stupidity. That's a new American Kendall and Langford version. But for Christ. We follow Jesus into his victory and there's a whole paradigm for this in the Bible.

Don't we know? Three days after death he rose from the dead. Three days after old Creation is passing away new creation is rising. The first fruits are sprouting. The ground began to shake the stone was moved away.

The women were dancing the angels were singing. The men who were cowards now are emboldened lions for the gospel the powers of Satan sin and death were Changing hands so that now Jesus can stand and say all authority on heaven and earth now belong to me.

All of that comes out of death to life. We serve a God who can take dead things and make them living. We serve a God who can take darkness and turn it into light. We serve a God who can lead you Into victory out of the darkest moments you've ever walked through and that's sort of what he does.

Do not be discouraged that you're experiencing trials of various kinds dear ones. Look forward to the glory and The victory that Christ is working for those who are called according to his name. Let him lead you into pleasure and Let him take you into pain.

Because there's things that he has to teach you in both. That you would not learn if you were not there. Let him fill your heart with his acceptance of you. So that when you walk through the rejection of the world, it does not afflict you any longer.

Because God again can transform it. That is the third thing we will not only be a people who are in unity and a people who are growing but we will be a People who are largely rejected. The fourth thing is that we will be a people who are built First Peter 2 5.

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, I Bet all of us today can look around and say that it looks like the world is winning.

It looks like Satan is advancing. It looks like his kingdom is Gathering more ground, but please do not be deceived my friends. The Lord is building today. And he is building with living stones today and those living stones are men and women who call upon the name of Jesus Christ both here and all over the world and.

Over the past.

200 centuries or 20 centuries. Maybe there'll be 200. He's not building an old tabernacle like in the Old Testament made of skin. He's not building an old dusty temple in Jerusalem made out of dead rock.

He's building a living temple with living stones that's going to overtake Judah and Samaria Syria Jordan the Roman Empire. That's going to overtake Western Europe. That invaded in the first century North Africa that now has moved into every part of South America.

That is now Multiplying in places like China in Asia and although in the United Kingdom in the United States. It feels like that. The gospel is waning and that the kingdom is losing. Remember. That Jesus promised that he would build it in the gates of hell would not stand against it.

That's a promise that Jesus will not renege on. Remember that he is the one building it with living stones. If you remember in the Old Testament the book of Nehemiah Nehemiah was on the wall by himself.

He was building and you had people who were hurling rocks at him accusations at him. You had a guy named Gashmu. Who said something really important and it stopped the building of the wall their setbacks in the kingdom, right?

But the wall was built and then the temple was completed and Then the city was finished and that's just a shadow of now this heavenly temple that Christ is building. Look around you. We're in one of the darkest places in all of America in New England.

And yet here we are.

Praising Jesus Christ.

That lamp will not be snuffed out As long as Christ is still King little by little Soul by soul block by block. He is crafting something. Little church by little church. He is building something with every flying buttress and every architrave.

I looked those up. The Savior is building his cathedral that will extend from sea to shining sea and It will encompass the world. That is the fourth aspect that the nations are gonna hate us. Politicians are gonna placate us families are gonna be estranged from us.

But Christ Jesus is building something that will never be destroyed and that will last.

Forever.

Not Put to Shame, Yet a Stumbling Stone to the World

The fifth aspect of what the people of God is Is that we're unashamed. We're an unashamed kind of people verse 6 for it stands in Scripture Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone a cornerstone chosen and precious and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.

The results of Christ building in your life and the results of Christ building in faithful churches is that you will not be ashamed. Remember the passage is telling us whatever Christ has therefore the church will grow in will grow in unity because that's true of Christ.

We will be rejected because that's true of Christ. We're chosen and precious because that's true of Christ. We will also have his honor Because on the cross he took our shame.

On the cross.

He took.

All that was dead in us all the shame all the guilt all the pain all the blights all the spots all the wrinkles. And he gave us his righteousness and he gave us his holiness and he gave us his honor. So that now we're an honorable people.

No longer under the guilt of shame and sin able now to step out into the light as new creations.

It's easy.

To sometimes feel like a doormat in the shadows because your sin is afflicting you. It's easy to give into the shame. That that thing that you've prayed for a million times still is not going away. That's sin that embarrasses you.

That addiction that's gripping you that attitude. That you just naturally speak at a moment's notice and afterwards you're like I did it again. I Cut that person down all those things. That bring us shame that bring us guilt.

Have been crucified on the cross of Jesus Christ, and they're not yours to carry. You lay them down and you stand up in the victory of Jesus and you thank him for his gospel. Because you cannot be condemned.

You cannot be forsaken. You cannot be ashamed. You cannot be guilty. If you remember Romans 8 1 there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ. That stone was laid for you in Zion and you will never ever be put to shame.

Amen. That's the fifth aspect. The sixth is that we will be an offensive people Romans 2 7 or sorry 1st Peter 2 7 through 8. So the honor is for you who believe that's ours but for those who do not believe the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.

They stumble because they disobey the word as they were destined to do remember whatever Jesus is that the church will become so if Jesus is a stumbling block to the nations and if Jesus is a rock of a fence to the secular ideologies of today.

You better believe that if we cling to the truth of the gospel, we will be offensive. And we will be a stumbling block we will Be a peculiar odious people to the world who will not understand us and Who will be offended they will be offended if you believe the word.

Because they are offended at the word. This is what Peter is telling us. They're gonna ask you. What do you mean gender is fixed? What do you mean abortion is an abomination? What do you mean that sleeping with my girlfriend is not okay and that practicing for marriage isn't a good idea because we practice for everything else.

What do you mean that only men can be elders? What do you mean that there's differences in the genders? What do you mean that Jesus cares what I look at or that I must repent of my sins or that you tell someone?

That they're not good. What do you mean that I'm not good. You're obviously not good because you told me I'm not good that is Is noxious to the world who has not Christ and Our goal is not to be liked.

Our goal is not to be championed by society. Our goal is not that they would think that we're winsome. Our goal is not that they that we would be friends with the world. Jesus says that friendship with the world is enmity with God.

Our goal.

Is that we would share Christ and that he would be that stumbling block in that rock of offense. There's plenty of ways that you and I can be offensive in our own, right? But as we share Christ Honestly and authentically and truthfully it will be offensive to the world.

That's number six number seven. We're moving along a little quicker now number seven eight nine and ten. Seven begins with we're chosen people first Peter 2 9, but you were a chosen race. Isn't that good news?

That your poor decision-making didn't keep you out. That your race and gender and every other immutable characteristic that the intersectional crowd would want to subdivide you up into doesn't keep.

You out.

You're a child of God by calling. It is his power at work in you it is it gives his good pleasure it is his choice.

It's irrevocable. And it gets even better than that number eight. We're a royal people. We're not just a chosen people. We're not just slaves. Although what an unimaginable grace that would be that we went from death to life and then to slaves of Christ the greatest master.

Most loving man that's ever lived at. What a grace that would be. But he makes us a royal people. What grace it would have been if he pulled us out of the tomb and allowed us to live outside of the castle.

But he's brought us in. He's made us royal people.

Whatever Christ is that we are becoming Christ is royal. That's why when he saves us he dawns us with his royal robes. You're not a part of a dysfunctional monarchy like in Britain. You're not involved in a tyrannical Autocracy like in North Korea, you are a family member of the King of Kings.

You're a prince and princess ambassador Lord Lady Duke and Duchess in the kingdom of God. Don't let that not shock you. You were dead and Now you sit at the court with Christ. This would be like a king of Florin.

Being made king over Gilder for all my princess bride. Thanks. This would be like a Duke fan marrying a UNC fan. I'm from North Carolina. So be like David Booth coming in with the Jets jersey on. This would be like a neo-nazi being appointed to Prime Minister of Israel.

These sound like hyperbolic statements, but they actually don't go far enough. You and I had earned the deepest wrath. We were enemies of God and yet because of his exceeding love for us. We've been raised to life.

We've been called his friends. We've been made his family. We've been made his bride and that bride now has a crown. To rule as Queen. That's who you are. As a part of the Church of Christ, which means that there are no insignificant people in the kingdom.

From the tallest to the smallest from the widest to the thinnest from the smartest most erudite to to the most. Not that. Which is me saying sentences like that. You are significant if you are in Christ, do you know that?

Do you know that. That you are significant because he's significant you are precious because he is precious. Will you even give yourself permission to believe that this morning? I Don't care what you've done.

I don't care what you've said. I don't care what you have what sins you've stockpiled. If you're in Jesus Christ, you're significant in his gospel and in his love and in his grace. Believe that and accept that.

I want you to look around you. Christ owns all of this North Andover belongs to him. Chelmsford, Massachusetts belongs to him, Massachusetts as dark. It is as dark as it is is his. The United States the world belongs to Christ and if you're the bride That means that now it belongs to you.