Wednesday, 16th March 2022
Rev Daniel Xi An Poon
Section One V1-10 Come Before the Lord
We are the followers of God and therefore we must speak the Word of God. Do not be afraid to talk to people about the Word of God, and do not feel ashamed. We are the royal priest, do not take this title for granted. We must have the authority from Lord and help others to grow. We are the ones being called and we must know what our assignment is. God is watching us all the time, He knows what we are doing and what we are thinking. We cannot lie and we cannot hide, and therefore we don’t need to be afraid, because as long as we are following the path of God, He will protect us to the end.
V1-3 ‘Therefore, laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.’ As the royal priest, we must learn to teach and to lift up the people following us. Do not have the attitude of the sheep, when we are being taught by our authority, do we have a thankful attitude? If we do, then we will also be willing to teach. God gave us authority to love us, to teach us, and to guide us. Can we see our authority teaching us, building us up and loving us? Taste and see the Lord is good, let go of all the worldly thinking, the old mindset, and follow God’s path of blessings.
V4-6 ‘Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture, behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.’ Do we feel ashamed of the Gospel? Or have we already conformed with the world? We must learn to enter the world but live out the glory of the Kingdom. Do not be a double-faced person, to be one person in the world and another person at church.
V7-8 ‘Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, the stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone, and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.’ We receive the Gospel by the grace of God because we are born sinners, because of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. It’s only by grace we can live under the Tree of Life!
V9-10 ‘But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvellous light; who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.’ We are the ones being called, we are God’s people, and we are destined to preach the Gospel and to testify for God! What are we doing in our lives? How many people have we brought to Christ? We must have a thankful heart and to know God’s love in our lives, then we can share our testimonies with people around us, even the people we just met!
Do we feel the love of God? Do we give thanks to God and to our authority? What are in our minds all day? Are we thinking about what to eat and what to drink? Are we thinking about where to have enjoyment? Or are we really meditating about the goodness of God? We must know our identity as the royal priest and live out this life for God!
Section Two V11-17 Humble and Obedient
V11-12 ‘Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honourable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.’ We are learning how to be God’s chosen royal priests. First, we need to cleanse our mind and our hearts, then we must let God’s Word and teaching come in. if we don’t fill our live with God then other worldly things will come in.
V13-14 ‘Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.’
V15-17 ‘For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. Honour all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.’
Section Three V18-25 Learn from Lord Jesus
What did Jesus do when He was facing attack and temptation? What did Jesus do when He face trouble and hardship? We must know Jesus, study about Jesus, and learn from Jesus, then we can live a life as the royal priests we are called to be!
彼得前书 2 – 君尊的祭司
2022年3月16日 星期三
潘锡安牧师
我们回应的神的呼召，但我们的心如何想？本章的开头是回应上一章第22节所讲的事。彼得是跟当时分散在各地的信徒说话，他们当中有“恶毒、诡诈，并假善、嫉妒和一切毁谤的话”这些属世的恶事。很多基督徒会说我们现在是新约时代，我们是君尊的祭司，但这个身份究竟意味着什么？是否代表着我们都能听到神跟我们说话，每个人都知道该怎么做，所以只把教会权柄的话当作“参考”？本章的经文教导我们真正君尊的祭司该如何做。
一、v.1-10 来到主的面前
V1 我们成为君尊的祭司了，是否愿意谦卑来到主的面前，还是理直气壮地跟神要这要那？真正君尊的祭司来到神的面前就要“除去一切的恶毒、诡诈，并假善、嫉妒和一切毁谤的话”。我们作为君尊的祭司，我们的生命究竟如何？我们在外面行善，是否内心藏着虚假、希望别人对我们好？特别是我们当中有做生意的，更要谨慎，不主动向教会的弟兄姐妹推销，以免自己的对别人的关心变成另有所图。在教会中，不要传是非，除非是要如实向上报告以帮助当事人，不然被传的话经过多人的转述就会扭曲、伤害到他人。我们也不要批评论断其他人，若看到别人有不足之处，就更要为他们祷告。
V2 我们要爱慕神的话。我们蒙召、属神的人，若不能记住神的话，只会用自己的话讲给别人听，我们就没有力量，别人也不能从我们身上看到神。我们若没有神的话，里面就没有光，前面的道路就一片黑暗。我们读了神的话，也要长大成熟，不要停留在大家都好、吃喝玩乐的表象，而要懂得用神的话彼此激励。我们既然跟从神，就是属灵的人，所以说出来的当然是属神的话。我们不是去审判别人，而是说出他们的生命，正如耶稣对井旁撒马利亚妇人所说的那样。不要以为我们蒙召就直接上天堂。耶稣再来的时候首先要审判基督徒，我们一生的言行都在神眼里，他都知道。我们若只希望别人说我们好，是不能真正得救的，要感恩自己还有能被提升的机会，好像小羊被牧羊人的杖和竿敲打才能够回到正道、得到保护和安慰。我们不要有“羊群”的心态，看见别人被权柄教导、提升会觉得他们可怜，要看到他们能被提升是将他们从跌落悬崖的危险中挽救回来。我们自己被提升的时候，不要尝试找理由去合理化我们的错误，要感恩权柄，这样我们也懂得如何去带领下面的羊。
V3 我们所尝的“主恩的滋味”是否只是神给我们物质上的祝福？真正主恩的滋味就是有本章前面两节所讲的个人的生命。我们是否感恩权柄花时间调整、提升我们？是否看见权柄对我们的爱在于他们用心帮助我们成长、以避免重蹈他们的覆辙？
V4-5 神对君尊的祭司所要的，是我们能体贴神的心意，能放下属世的行为模式和旧有思想，对准神的水位，因为“主乃活石”，是建筑我们这个家的最重要的一块基石。耶稣求父神的旨意而不是自己的旨意成就，并在十字架上说“成了”。求神帮助我们活出像耶稣这块“活石”的生命。
V6 我们是否觉得羞愧，是否害怕跟人说关于神的话？我们是否只想讲让别人舒服的话，为要让别人喜欢我们？我们要进入世界，但要活出天国的荣耀和尊荣。我们不要只想着跟别人做朋友，在人前一个样到教会又是另一幅面孔。耶稣是我们至圣的朋友，我们要将耶稣给我们的救恩看为至宝。
V7-8 世人都是罪人，活在分辨善恶树下，但神因着怜悯才让他的独生子为我们舍命，使我们得救。我们能够活在生命树的气息下，不是靠自己的努力，而是有神的恩典。
V9 这是整篇经文的精要所在。我们蒙神所召，有这尊贵身份不是让我们自以为是或自作主张，而是“要叫你们宣扬那召你们出黑暗、入奇妙光明者的美德”- 也就是去传福音、见证神。我们一生有将多少人带到耶稣这里，还是只停留在一个熟悉的小圈子里？我们若有感恩的心，就能看见生命中的见证，就可以跟人分享以致荣耀神。
V10 我们跟从神，是否真的有看见、感恩神和我们的权柄、觉得被爱？还是只想着让神给我们想要的东西？我们的知道自己的身份，生命就再不一样，因为君尊的祭司不是来到世界而是神的面前。
二、v.11-17 谦卑顺服
V11 我们不要想着自己有什么东西还没得到，而是凡事感恩。“私欲”是属世界的，“灵魂”就是属神的。在学房中的第一年我们经历生命的“大扫除”，学习从世界走到属神的地方，而第二年就学习成为神所喜悦的君尊的祭司。如果我们里面干净却没有神的话语，魔鬼会带更多的恶者进来。
V12 “好行为”是属于神国度的。神在鉴察每一个人，我们是否将天堂带下，使人在地如在天?
V13-17 我们顺服地上的权柄（“君王”），“因为神的旨意原是要你们行善”。当时有很多人想要反对罗马政府的统治，但彼得提醒信徒眼目不要放在这个不公不平的世界。我们基督徒跟从耶稣，不是去反政府或权柄，而是爱国爱民。
三、v.18-25 要效法主耶稣
我们要思想主耶稣在地上时的一言一行，特别是他在面对试探和逼迫时如何回应。我们效法耶稣，才能活出君尊祭司的身份。