A royal priesthood – 1 Peter 2:1-10
Read: 1 Peter 2:1-10
- Hugh mentioned that in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve had a twofold function which was reflected later in the priesthood and the Temple – what were these functions?
- Throughout the Old Testament the worship of God was “layered” – on the outside were the Gentiles and the women. What were the other layers? How has that changed since the coming of Christ?
- Peter was writing primarily to Gentiles – what is the significance of his use of terms such as “royal priesthood”, “chosen nation” etc.
- What does it mean in practical terms for believers to be priests?
- What do you think it means to “offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”? (verse 5). You may also like to consider such passages as Romans 12:1-2.
There are other rich terms used in this passage which would also be helpful to take a closer look at.
- The necessity of being “born again” – the theme of being born again in chapter 1, verses 3 and 23, is again taken up in chapter 2 verse 2 where Peter talks about ‘newborn infants’. What are the negative and positive things they are told to do? What do you think it means to “long for the pure spiritual milk”? Note the challenge in verse 3 – not all of Peter’s readers had been born again. Have you been? How do you know?
- You may like to compare Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in John 3:3 about being born again.
- “The cornerstone” is mentioned in verses 4 to 8. Who is the “living stone” in verse 4? What is the function of the cornerstone in building terms?
- From verses 4, 6-8, what is Peter saying about the importance of the cornerstone (and what it represents here)
- Not only are we a royal priesthood but Peter says Christians are also “a holy nation, a chosen race” (verse 9). What do you think this means, and what are the implications for us today?
Lesley Bloomfield