New Identity

1 Peter 2:9-10
9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

This section on the believers’ relationship with Christ, the living stone, concludes with two verses that must rank among the most important in the entire New Testament. In matchless, rhythmic, poetic phrases, Peter proclaims the majestic new identity of reborn Christian men, women, and children, and then in just 14 words (in Greek), tells us the new meaning of our whole existence.

Suffering is ubiquitous to the human experience and Christians are not immune. Unfortunately, suffering Christians can become doubting Christians. We begin to wonder if God knows what He’s doing and if He actually loves us. We doubt God’s power, fearing that our troubles are beyond His ability to change. Peter wants his suffering brothers and sisters to know that their feelings of fear and doubt do not change God’s character or power. Instead, he wants them to remember who they are as they bear their new identity in Christ.

Peter uses four eloquent phrases to describe God’s people:
·  a chosen people—God reached down into your life at your baptism and brought you into His kingdom. He chose you; not the other way around. Spend a moment on that one – the God of the universe picked you as His own. Nothing you suffer in life can undo that truth.
·  a royal priesthood—God has elevated you into membership in His priesthood. You are called to minister in the lives of the people around you with His love, grace, and forgiveness. You have purpose. And as a member of that royal priesthood, you have free access to God through prayer and Sacrament.
·  a holy nation—God has placed you into a nation of believers. You are not an island unto yourself but are instead a part of the greater whole. You now serve under the King of Kings in His glorious monarchy. A more appropriate term may be His glorious Theocracy.
·  a people belonging to God—God has connected you to Himself and you have a home with Him forever. We are God’s possessions, not as slaves, but as children. We belong to God.

This is all pretty amazing but is also rather easy to forget when we are in the midst of the struggle. These words remind us with strength and beauty what Christ has won for us by His suffering, death, and resurrection. Glorify the Lord by claiming your new identity with joy.

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