March 6, 2023

1 Peter 2:1-10 (HCSB)
1 So rid yourselves of all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. 2 Like newborn infants, desire the unadulterated spiritual milk, so that you may grow by it in [your] salvation,  3 since you have tasted that the Lord is good. 4 Coming to Him, a living stone-rejected by men but chosen and valuable to God- 5 you yourselves, as living stones, are being built into a spiritual house for a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For it stands in Scripture: Look! I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and valuable cornerstone, and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame! 7 So the honor is for you who believe; but for the unbelieving, The stone that the builders rejected- this One has become the cornerstone, and 8 A stone that causes men to stumble, and a rock that trips them up. They stumble by disobeying the message; they were destined for this. 9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His possession, so that you may proclaim the praises of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Mackenzie Tomes
I love how this section of scripture begins. I’m a mother of three, so I can relate to anything that has to do with raising children pretty easily. Here, Peter gives a metaphor of how believers in Christ should be like newborn infants. What is a newborn like? One thing is common between all babies; they have to eat! In the same way that a baby yearns for milk, we, as believers in Christ, should desire pure spiritual milk. Peter encourages us to remove those things which hinder us and replace them with those which will promote growth in our Christian lives. This growth is a process that begins by believing in the cornerstone of our faith, Jesus. After this confession, we have the amazing privilege and responsibility of priesthood! What does this mean? For one thing, believers enjoy unlimited access to God! We can come to Him at any time. We also share in His work by participating in ministry opportunities. All believers (not just those in the official role of ministry) should make “spiritual sacrifices” to God and share praises “of the One who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” I am so thankful He called me into the light.