It can be really easy to be known as a Christian – and it can be really easy to be known as a Christian and not live like one. If we’re not careful, we can drift away. We can forget how valuable our faith is and how glorious Jesus is.
Chances are, people aren’t going to be persecuted if they say “I’m a Christian” – so it’s easy to say it and not live it. The danger is subtle, but it’s still dangerous. It’s hard for us to be “sober-minded,” not because of persecution, but because we get so drowsy with entertainment. It’s hard to hope fully in the grace of God because there are a lot of really great lesser things we can put our hope in.
Maybe you’ve professed faith in Christ, but have found it difficult to follow through. Maybe you’re finding it hard to be a Christian right now. If this is so, you need to remember who you are:
“But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession …”
– 1 Peter 2:9
You Are a Part of a Chosen Race
When it’s hard to be a Christian, remember that you are a part of “a chosen race.”
According to the US Census Bureau, there are five official races that people can choose: white, African American, American Indian, Asian and Pacific Islander. Those are the general categories of races. But God calls His people from all of those races, and creates a new race.
When you become a Christian, you don’t lose your racial distinctiveness – you become a part of a new, transcendent race that’s made of every race. It’s not defined by ancestry or skin color, but chosen-ness. It’s defined by the fact that God chose you.
You Are a Part of a Royal Priesthood
When it’s hard to be a Christian, the next thing Peter writes is that you are a part of “a royal priesthood.” This biblical sense of priesthood brings to mind two things:
- Access. Just like the Israelite priest in the Old Testament, a Christian is granted access to God. Through Jesus Christ, you can access God – you can hear from His Word and talk to Him in prayer.
- Sacrifice. Also, just like the Old Testament priest, we have sacrificial duties to perform as Christians. But they’re not animal sacrifices – instead we are “to present [our] bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God” (Romans 12:1).
You Are a Part of a Holy Nation
When it’s hard to be a Christian, remember that you are a part of “a holy nation.” This is similar to the “chosen race” idea, but this has more to do with citizenship rather than kinship.
God is pulling together a nation from all nations. Elsewhere in the Bible it’s called “the kingdom of God,” and it will be an eternal kingdom. It’s not defined by land or government, but by holiness. You are holy – set apart for God’s specific purpose.
You’ll find that you have a deeper patriotic camaraderie with a fellow Christian from Mexico or the Middle East than you do with a non-Christian from your own neighborhood. This is because of your shared citizenship in God’s kingdom.
You Are a Part of a People for God’s Own Possession
When it’s hard to be a Christian, remember that you are a part of “a people for [God’s] own possession.”
Of course, God possesses everything. What’s different about this is that Christians recognize that ownership and celebrate it. As it says earlier in 1 Peter, “you were ransomed [bought back] from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers … with the precious blood of Christ” (1:18-19).
When your love for other Christians cools, remember that you’re all part of a chosen race. When deceit, hypocrisy, envy or something else sets into your life, remember that you’re a royal priesthood. And when you lose taste for God’s Word or find that you’ve begun to build your life on something other than Jesus Christ, remember that you’re a holy nation and a people for God’s own possession.
Discussion Starters
- What are the dangers you face as a Christian? How might they vary from those faced by other Christians?
- Do you find it hard to live as a Christian?
- What does it mean to you that you are part of a chosen race? A royal priesthood? A holy nation? A people for God’s own possession?
