Today’s Reading:
1 Peter 2:4-10
4Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5you 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. 6 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.”
7 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,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed. 9But 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; 10who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
God’s special people are the elect. These group of people are the chosen or the preferred. In Christian parlance, they are people; God, by His grace, has chosen to be qualified as righteous before Him. The Bible makes us to understand that it is a pleasant thing to be an elect of God, because He watches over His elect. He is not ashamed of them, because they are those that are making Him proud in this pervert generation.
Again, these are set apart in contrast with the rest of the world. Therefore, you need to take note that God expects your actions, etc to be in contrast to those of the world. Hence, to be chosen out of the world and set apart from the world will make the world to hate the elect (John 15: 19). As a preferred people, we must never let this hatred drive us from professing the gospel of our Lord Jesus; the One who has chosen us out of the world.
What kind of person will God choose?
1 Corinthians 1:26-29 offers the answer to this question:
God will choose the foolish. God will choose the weak.
God will choose the people regarded as nothing.
Why will God choose the foolish, the weak? He will choose weak people so that He can fill them with His power. He desires to fill the foolish with His wisdom. If you believe you are already wise, He can no longer fill you with His wisdom, so He will not use you. This is probably why we find very few academics in the service of God. The ways of God do not conform to human sense. For example, God says if you want to be rich, you must give. God says if you want your home to overflow with blessings, you must pay all your tithes. This is foolishness to the wise. If you are already strong, how can God give you strength? The Bible says He gives power to the faint, and to those that have no might, he increases strength (Isaiah 40:29). If you say you are strong because you are young, a time will come when you exhaust the energy in you. Nevertheless, they that wait upon the Lord will constantly have their strength renewed by God.
What does God expect from the chosen?
Those who are set apart by God should rely totally on Him. They must see Him as Lord. The elect must be more mindful of eternal life. At times, they suffer trials of cruel intimidation, marginalization, and poverty because they will not sell their conscience for a loaf of bread. This certainly made Jesus Christ assure us in Luke 18:7: “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?”
God expects the chosen to be humble because “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the
humble.” (1 Peter 5:5)
The chosen to pursue the path stated in Psalm 1: 1-3 and are rewarded. Psalm 1: 1-3:
1”Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of
sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law, he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.”
Beloved, are you an elect of God? These are God’s own special people. If you are not, all it takes is for you to accept Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Saviour, repent of your sins and begin to live your life as approved by Jesus Christ in the Bible. I pray that the benefits of the elect shall be your portion in Jesus’ name.
IRETI SOLOLA
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the perfect work of Redemption and thank you because you have loved us from the foundation of the world, in Jesus name.
Father, please purge me and make my life attractive for Your election, in Jesus name.
Father, please revive the church of Jesus Christ and illuminate the world for the reception of the gospel, in Jesus name.
Father, in your mercy, deliver the world from COVID 19, and restore normalcy, in Jesus name.
Father, be merciful unto Nigeria and deliver the nation from the grip of the destroyer, in Jesus name.
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