1)Listen to Podcast here
2)GG Questions 06/10/2018
Living Hope: Living Stones 1 Peter 2:1-12
1. Close Reading: After praying for God to enlighten your mind, read through 1 Peter 2:1-12 a couple times, slowly. Look for these three things: LIGHTBULB – something that shines from the passage, draws your attention; QUESTION MARK – something difficult to understand; ARROW – a personal application. Share the results of your study with your group.
2. Spiritual Milk (2:1-3): 1 Peter 2 continues the themes of 1:22-25. In light of a believer’s “new birth” (1:23), they are called to nurse on the right milk. The “milk” that believers need here is the Word of God (1:23, 25) – the Bible. Would you say that you “long for” (2:2) the word of God as Peter describes? How can a Christian develop an appetite for God’s Word such that you “grow up into salvation” (2:2; cf. Psa. 119)?
3. Living Stones (2:4-10): The Jews were called to be a holy nation (Exod. 19:5-6), a place for other nations to COME AND SEE what God was like. As the church, however, we are called to GO AND TELL the Good News to all the world (1 Pet. 2:9). Too many churches/Christians adopt the Old Testament understanding of our calling. Christians are not merely to have an alternate lifestyle of holiness, but we are to be on a rescue mission with Jesus in this world, helping others connect to the “spiritual house” (2:5) Jesus is building by faith. How can we as a congregation of living stones proclaim the greatness of Jesus (2:9) outside the walls of the church this week?
4. Behind Enemy Lines (2:11-12): Peter calls believers to STAND OUT in this life and not FIT IN such that those around them who do not know Christ will eventually be impacted by the testimony of their lives. Just as the physical Temple (2:5) in Jesus day was a picture of God’s glory for all to see, so the lives of Christians are a public testimony to our God. In what ways is God challenging you today through this passage to live a more “distinctive” life for Him?
