Teacher’ s Notes for FIRST PETER Chapter TWO 1. Besides the obvious obedience, what should the hearing of the gospel cause one to do? (Verse 1). It should cause one to lay aside all malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and all evil speaking. a. Notice that Peter has just said “ the word of God endures forever,” and that it is the word spoken in the gospel message (1 Peter 1:25). When one obeys that message they are born into God’ s spiritual family. One may be very old physically, but only a baby spiritually. b. Have you ever seen a little tiny baby filled with these sinful things? Of course not! c. Have you ever seen a newborn baby who could speak? Again, of course not! How, then, could a baby be guilty of evil speaking. d. This is Peter’ s way of speaking of the new birth and its results. Jesus, in John 3:3; John 3:5 told Nicodemus, and us, that one must be born of water and the Spirit in order to enter God’ s kingdom. We then become spiritual babies in God’ s spiritual family. Now notice the process by which this takes place: Ψ Before new life can begin a seed must be planted. This is true whether one is speaking of plant or animal life. It is also true whether one is speaking of physical or spiritual. Ψ Luke 8:11 tells us the spiritual seed is the word of God, which Peter said endures forever (1 Peter 1:25). Ψ This seed is planted in the hearts of human beings through the preaching of the gospel. Ψ When one HEARS the message, they have received the seed. Ψ They believe the message and repent, determined to turn away from all sinful actions and thoughts, thus laying aside all these sinful things Peter mentions in 1 Peter 2:1. Ψ They are buried with Christ into His death, and raised out of the water of baptism to walk in a new life freed from sin (Romans 6:3-4). BORN OF THE WATER (born out of the water of baptism) AND BORN OF THE SPIRIT (all sins forgiven, changed from a sinner to a child of God), JUST AS JE-SUS SAID IN John 3:1-36. e. Now Peter says they are like newborn babies who desire their mother’ s milk which will help them grow (1 Peter 2:2). We will pick this thought up again in question # 4. 2. Define the word “ malice.” Funk & Wagnall’ s Standard Desk Dictionary defines it as, “ 1. An intention or desire to injure another; specific ill will; spite. 2. A will-fully formed design to do another an injury.” a. Does malicious injury necessarily have to be physical? NO! Could it come about by way of deceit? (Deceiving another into believing something that might cause them harm). How about speaking evil things about someone? All of these fall under the definition of malice. 3. Of the evils of verse one, which do newborn babies possess? NONE! 4. How does verses one and two relate to Matthew 18:3? In Matthew 18:3 Jesus said, “ Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.” a. Little children are born pure and innocent. They must be taught every single thing which they eventually come to believe. i. Even those vile, sinful things are learned from observing and listening to others, usually adults. Or if they pick things up from other kids at school or even day care, those kids learned it from their parents or someone they know. ii. I have actually witnessed parents coaching little toddlers to talk dirty of do things which they will regret later. Certainly not training up their children in the ways they should go, as we are instructed in Ephesians 6:4. iii. So, we should strive to rid ourselves of our old habits and be as innocent as a little baby who has just been born. 5. To what is Jesus referred, and how does that relate to the church? (Verse 4). A living stone. a. Look at Ephesians 2:20-22. “ Having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, … in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, … in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” b. Now turn to 1 Corinthians 3:11 : “ For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” c. That just naturally leads us into a little side trip : i. The church, in 1 Peter 2:5, is called a “ spiritual house.” In comparison to a physical house it is said in Ephesians 2:20-22 the apostles and prophets comprise the foundation with Jesus as the chief cornerstone. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 3:11, says Christ is the only foundation upon which this spiritual house may be built. How do we correlate these two verses without having a contradiction? The simple answer is that the apostles and prophets in the early church spoke the doctrine of Christ, and it is their teaching upon which the church is built. ii. One must then show how their teachings were the exact same as that of Christ. To do this, I go to John 14:25-26 where Jesus, speaking to the apostles said, “These things I have spoken to you while being present with you.” Jesus is about to leave them and ascend back to His place in heaven and would no longer be with them in the flesh. iii. What to do? Verse 26: Help is on its way! “ But the helper (K.J.V. has Comforter) the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I have said to you.” iv. To see exactly to whom this promise was given one must read the entire context of the passage. It begins in John 13:1 in that upper room where Jesus and His apostles were gathered for what we sometimes call “ The Last Supper,” and goes through John 17:1-26 where Jesus prays just before crossing the brook Kidron going to Gethsemane (see John 18:1). v. Notice two things, in John 14:26, that the Holy Spirit would do for the apostles: Ψ First, He will teach you all things. What things? Look at John 16:12. “ I still have many things to say to you, but you’ re not ready to hear them yet.” Jesus has been with them for about three and one-half years, there would be more to His teachings than they had heard up to this time. In Verse 13 Jesus tells them, “ However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth…” #Son 1:1-17 in John 14:26, the Holy Spirit would in-spire them to speak all that Jesus had not had not said to them while here because they were not ready spiritually to receive it. Ψ Secondly, He would give them a miraculous memory in order that they would recall all those things Jesus had spoken while He was present with them (John 14:25). vi. From John fourteen and sixteen direct your mind to Acts 2:1-4 where the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles and they began to speak “ as the Spirit gave them utterance” (verse 4). vii. From this point onward, through the New Testament, through the power of the Holy Spirit, they are remembering, speaking and writing, all that Christ had said to them while with them on earth. Also, He is guiding them into all the other things the Lord wants us to know in order to be with Him in that eternal inheritance we read about in 1 Peter 1:3-4. viii. Peter has also informed us that God, “ by His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” (2 Peter 1:2). “ All things that pertain to life and godliness” is exactly what Jesus promised the apostles they would receive from the Holy Spirit when He came upon them (John 14:25-26; John 16:12-15). ix. So we see the relationship of Jesus to the church (question # 5) is that He, or His teachings through the apostles and prophets of the early church, is the whole of the foundation upon which this spiritual house is built. He is the living tone, the rock upon which the wise man builds (Matthew 7:24-27). x. But notice the superstructure in verse 5, the spiritual house built upon this foundation is also built of living stones. Each individual person who obeys the gospel of Christ is a living stone in the superstructure of this spiritual house of God, the church.6. To those who reject Christ, what does he become? (Verse 8). A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. a. Rejecting His word they stumble into Satan’ s domain. i. Jesus said, “ He who rejects Me, and does not receive My word has that which judges him. The word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day” (John 12:48). ii. There are a lot of things being fabricated on the television programs which lead honest people away from God. Rejecting the teachings found in Scripture, an ad for an upcoming program on the History Channel stated “ new evidence showing the inaccuracies of the Bible.” iii. I am very skeptical of much of the programming of the History Channel and National Geographic, as they are pushing their agendas of evolution and will mislead in many areas to discredit God’ s Holy Word. Far too many people today are ready to accept those things as truth without ever picking up and reading their Bible to see what God has said. The wisdom of the world has always opposed the wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:18 f). We must continue to “ Try the spirits whether they be of God” (1 John 4:1). 7. Symbolically, what does a person who obeys the gospel become? (Verse 5.) A living stone built upon that foundation spoken of above. 8. What is the nature of our sacrifices? (Verse 5). They are spiritual. a. Under the Old Testament the sacrifices were physical, living animals, which could never take away the sins of the people (Hebrews 10:1-4). b. By what means are our sacrifices to be presented to God? By way of living the Christian life before God and our fellow men. i. Look at Romans 12:1-2 : “ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. … And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” ii. We prove the acceptable, and perfect will of God to an unbelieving world by living faithful Christian lives. Anything less is unacceptable to Him. 9. “ But YOU are a CHOSEN , a ROYAL , a HOLY NATION, His own SPECIAL PEOPLE, that you may proclaim the PRAISES of HIM who CALLED you out of into His LIGHT.” (Verse 9). a. Verse five says we are living stones in a spiritual house, but we are much more than that: Ψ We are a chosen people. Chosen of God through Jesus Christ to receive all the benefits of Heaven at the last day. Ψ We are a royal priesthood. Authorized by the great God and Creator of the universe to offer spiritual sacrifices to Him. But notice that word “ royal.” If you are a child of God, you are royalty! You’ re not of the priestly descendants of the high priest Aaron, but you are a priest (present tense) under the great High Priest, Jesus (see Hebrews 7:11-19). Ψ We are a holy nation. Set apart from all the world to honor and serve the King of kings and Lord of lords. Ψ We are God’ s own special people. Just as we look at our children and grandchildren as special to us, God looks at His children as special to Him. Look at Romans 8:12-17 : “ Therefore, brethren, we are debtors-not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. … For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. … For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the sons of God. … For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, Abba, Father. … The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. … And if children, then heirs-heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if in-deed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.” If there is one thing an adopted child should know it is that he or she was not an accident. They were chosen! It is no accident that God has chosen you to be His own special child. And, through the new birth of water and the Spirit, has adopted you into His family to be “ joint heirs” with His only begotten Son. b. In this light, look at 1 Peter 2:10 : “ who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.” Before you became a child of God, you really were without a permanent place to call home. You were just another lost soul among billions of lost souls. I don’ t believe the place where the lost are going at death could be called home. But notice what verse ten says of the faithful: “ but are now the people of God,” (notice that very closely). You were not a people before you became a part of Christ’ s spiritual house (verse 5). What could we substitute for “ people of God?” a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a special people. 10. What do the lusts of the flesh do? (Verse 11). They war against the soul. (See Romans 7:13-25; James 1:13-16). 11. How did Jesus word the thought of verse 12? In Matthew Five He began by saying His disciples were to be like a preservative (salt, verse 13). Then he likened us to a lighted city set on a hill to be seen of man (verse 14). Then, He warned us not to hide our light (verse 15), but rather “ let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works (that they, by your good works which they observe, 1 Peter 2:12) and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Verse 16). a. Still, we must realize that some people are going to speak against us, calling us evildoers, no matter what we do or say. These are foolish people who, in their ignorance, couldn’ t care less whether they are truthful or not. 12. How do we put to silence the ignorance of foolish men? (Verse 15). By doing good.a. The context shows that by doing good ourselves, and observing the laws of the land, we will receive praise from our neighbors who are good citizens. The foolish and ignorant will continue to speak evil of you, but no one will believe them. i. Although as Christians we have been “ translated out of darkness and into the kingdom of God’ s dear Son” (Colossians 1:13), we still live in this physical world and live under some government. ii. Paul, writing to Christians at Rome, said the governing officials are ordained of God, and we are to be in subjection to them (Romans 13:1-7). iii. Of course, this observing the law of the land must be qualified by saying that when laws of the land contradict and oppose the spiritual laws of God, we must obey God, even if it means imprisonment of worse (cf. Acts 4:19; Acts 5:29; Revelation 2:10). 13. What does Peter describe as being commendable before God? (Verse 19). If because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. a. Why would that be commendable before God? “ For to this were you called, be-cause Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps” (verse 21). i. Jesus suffered for us while He Himself was perfectly innocent; to follow His steps would mean to suffer wrongfully as He did, and that is commendable to our Father. ii. Do you recall how Jesus began the Sermon on the Mount? He began with the “ beatitudes,” (Matthew 5:3-12). In verses 11 and 12 He said, “ Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. … Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted (who?) the prophets who were before you.” That puts us in some pretty-good company. 14. Give six things that Describe Christ. (Verses 23-24). That probably should read six things Christ did or did not do. Ψ 1. He committed no sin. Ψ 2. No deceit (or guile) was found in His mouth. Ψ 3. He did not revile in return. Ψ 4. He did not threaten. Ψ 5. He committed Himself to the will of God. Ψ 6. He bore our sins on the tree. a. In following in Christ’ s steps can we be that perfect? We cannot live above temptation as Christ did. We will all make mistakes. However, we must strive to be as near like Christ as we can be. So, consider these YES or NO questions: Ψ Can we live without using bad language? YES Ψ Do we have to strike back when we are reviled? NO Ψ Must we threaten revenge against those who do us wrong? NO Ψ Can we commit ourselves to Him who judges righteously? YESb. We cannot bear the sins of others on the tree as Christ did, however, how did Paul say we can fulfill the law of Christ? “ Bear one another’ s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). i. And, although we cannot live without making mistakes as our Lord did, we still are promised that as long as we are doing our best to live for God Christ’ s blood continues to cleanse us of all sin (1 John 1:7). “ If we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with an-other, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, cleanses us of all sin.” Therefore, in God’ s sight we have no sins against us therefore, we are perfect in our Father’ s sight. “…and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more” (Hebrews 8:12 b KJV). ii. “ There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:1). iii. If we are walking according to the Spirit, what are we doing? Following His steps! (1 Peter 2:21). 15. Why did Christ bear our sins on the cross? (Verse 24). That we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness. a. Is that not what we have been saying under questions number 13 and 14? We live for righteousness while doing all those things mentioned. 16. When did we, like sheep, go astray? When we reached the age of knowing right from wrong, usually called, “ the age of accountability.”