Identity of a Christian - Part 11
1 Peter 2:1-10
Romans 5:6-10
“6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.
8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”
Those who chose to reject Him do so against sound wisdom. They reject the love of God that is working to bring them to repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. They intentionally turn away from His drawing of their souls. They hurt themselves now and for all eternity.
Those who stumble are those who are disobedient. Often we find that disobedience and unbelief go hand in hand in the Bible. The disobedient person is disobedient because he or she does not believe the teaching given. It is important to note that just because they do not believe it, that does not make it wrong teaching. It simply means they do not believe it. In order for a person to disobey something, what they disobey needs to be stated. God has declared in His word: “Ye must be born again.” That is not a suggestion that can be taken or left. That is a command that must be believed and followed if a person wants the blessings of God’s forgiveness of sins and receiving a new nature.
Those spoken of in I Peter 2:8 are disobedient to God’s drawing upon their souls. They reject His truth. A disobedient person who persists in that path, will eventually become hardened in that position. In the Old Testament we have the example of the Pharaoh of Egypt during the time of Moses. God called upon Moses to go and tell this king to let the nation of Israel go. As a means of persuasion, God gave Moses the ability to do some specific signs in the presence of the Pharaoh. After Moses fulfilled God’s command in giving the first several signs, Pharaoh’s magicians duplicated each sign as Moses gave it. However, there were some differences in their duplication of the signs. The very first sign, the turning of the staff into a serpent, was duplicated by Pharaoh’s magicians. However, Aaron’s rod swallowed up the magicians rods. God showed Pharaoh that it was not wise to resist or to disobey Him. However, Pharaoh continued to disobey and eventually came to the place where he had to prove himself greater than God. We know this was a foolish choice and it ended with Pharaoh’s own firstborn son being slain by God and then Pharaoh’s army drawing in the Red Sea and Pharaoh himself also drowning in that same Red Sea. A very foolish choice to make.