Living Out Your Salvation: Action Motivated by Praise (Part 2) - 1 Peter 2:9-10

0:42Well, last time we looked at the cursed destiny of unbelievers, and that is outlined for us there in verses 7 through 8. The precious value of coming to Christ and receiving life from Him and being built up as a spiritual house is for those who believe. And who are those who believe, but those who are coming to Him, those who come to Him and keep coming to Him? That's the idea. But there are those who disbelieve. And instead of receiving life from Christ, Christ becomes that very cornerstone upon which they are. Outside of. They are not being built upon the cornerstone. In fact, the cornerstone becomes a block of stumbling and a rock of crushing.

1:42And they stumble. Why do they stumble? Because they are disobedient to the word. And to this doom they were appointed. They are appointed to the stumbling because they are disobedient to his word. Exhortation there, don't be an unbeliever, but be a believer. Then verse 9, Peter shifts gear. But you, going from the realm of the unbelievers to the realm of the believers, let me tell you what's true about you. But you, you are very different. What I'm going to say really contrasts with what I've just said about the unbeliever. You are very different. You're a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of God's own possession. So that. So that there's a reason. Who you are drives what you are to do. You are to be a proclaimer.

2:38Verse 10, for you. Because. So you can actually circle those three words. Verse 9, but. And in the second part of verse 9, so that. In verse 9, verse 10, 4. You are a people. So that you may proclaim. Because you have received mercy. Have you ever noticed that sometimes you say things to close friends that you would not say in a wider audience? You know, I noticed that when the coach comes off the field and he speaks to the media, he says things that he doesn't say that he'd say in the locker room, right? You can imagine sometimes you see the coach come off the playing field and he's very careful in the words he chooses. But I guarantee you, once he gets into that locker room, he lets it out and he talks to them coach to team. Well, that's what Peter is doing here. You know, Jesus said some things to his disciples that he didn't say to the crowds. And Peter is saying something to this body of believers right here that he's not saying to the whole world.

3:53They are being pelted, they are being persecuted, and it's because they are identified with Christ that they are being persecuted. And so Peter wants to strengthen them and to fortify them. So it's like he takes them into the locker room and he says, I want to talk to you directly. And I'm going to say some things that I wouldn't say to the wider audience. And this is what Peter is doing. He's talking directly to believers. He's trying to encourage them and to strengthen them to strand firm in the true grace. And it's very important to understand the context in which these words are. Words are given because he is not trying to present a case for Christianity to a skeptical world. He is not trying to explain God's penal system to the American Bar Association.

4:42What he is doing is he is trying to encourage them. He is speaking directly to them as a father speaks to his son, as a coach to his team, as a teacher to his students. And that is the way this text comes to us this morning. It starts out: let me tell you who you are. Let me tell you what you are to do, and let me tell you why you and only you can do it. And that's what Peter does. So let's just walk through this ourselves. First of all, Peter tells us this is who you are. He's speaking directly to Christians, and that's how I'm going to lay it out this morning, speaking directly to you. This is who you are. Look at verse 9: four descriptions of believers. You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possessions. And who's he speaking to? He's speaking to believers. And who are believers? Those who have put their faith and trust in Christ. And in Peter's words, those who are coming to him. In verse 4, they come to him as a living stone. They are coming, presently coming. That is their characteristic and disposition of life. They trust Christ, and they keep trusting Christ and they come to Christ. And when they fail, they keep coming to Christ. They acknowledge their failure and they keep coming.

6:00And when they're concerned about their inability to come to Christ, they come to him with that. And they keep coming. That's the faithful. That's the picture of a believer. And this is what he says about them. He says, I want you to know something. First of all, you are a chosen race, a chosen race. Literally, you are a kind, a chosen one, a chosen kind. And this chosenness pervades the whole book. In verse 2, 4, the chosen one is Christ, the choice one. That word is spoken of the choice stone. In verse 6, the choice cornerstone. Just as Christ Himself is choice, so are the believers in Christ choice.

6:50As the living and cornerstone is choice, so are the living stones that are being built up. The king and the kingdom, choice, selected, precious, valuable. And that's the first thing he wants you all to know. Make sure you know this about yourself. Choice. Electos. And Peter purposely uses Old Testament descriptions that were used to refer to Israel. As Old Testament, Israel was. Chosen to grace and mercy, so the New Testament believer is chosen to be a recipient of God's grace and his mercy.

7:41You remember in Exodus chapter 33, right after this golden calf incident, Moses goes to God and he says, God, show me your glory. I want to know that I have found favor in your sight. Now show me your glory. And this is what God says: he says, I myself will make my goodness pass before you. You're going to see it. And will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. But I want you to know something, Moses. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion. The first thing you need to know about me, Peter, is I am the one who dispenses my grace and who dispenses my compassion, and that issue is within me. And you need to know that about me.

8:41And then in Exodus 34, 6, then the Lord passed by in front of him, and the Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth, who keeps loving kindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression, and sin, yet he He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. Saying, look, Moses, yeah, you're going to see my glory. I am gracious, I am kind, I am compassionate to the infinite degree, but by no means do I let the guilty go unpunished. And that's how he reveals himself to Moses.

9:22And now he is speaking to what's important in all of this: who is he gracious to? Who is he showing his mercy? Who has his favor? And what Peter is saying right here: you who are coming to Christ are now in that favor. The New Testament believer, chosen to be a recipient of his grace, chosen to be a recipient of his mercy. And that's how Peter starts to encourage you guys. I want you to start out by understanding your status.

9:57And act in God and on God's side has fashioned you for his grace and his mercy. Deep thought. But he goes on. It's throughout. As Old Testament Israel was chosen to belong to God, so the New Testament believer has been chosen by God to belong to him. And Deuteronomy 7:6, for you are a holy people to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his own possession. Of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. Wow.

10:35And Peter is using this to say, this is you. You are his possession. You belong to him. But not only were they chosen to grace and mercy, chosen to belong, but they were also chosen to know him. And in language that was again spoken of Old Testament Israel, Peter uses to speak about the New Testament believers. In Isaiah 43, 10 says, You are my witnesses, declares the Lord, and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before there was no God formed, and there will be none after me. In other words, you are chosen to be his witnesses. But understand, in order to be his witness, guess what? You need to know him. You can't witness to that which you don't know. And so God has chosen you to know him so that you can make him known, to know him, to delight in him, to receive his mercy, to receive his grace, so you can testify to the glorious grace and goodness and mercy of God.

11:48But Peter takes it a step further, more definitive than all that has been spoken about Old Testament Israel, and he applies it to the New Testament believer. But then. In 1 Peter 1, what does he say? The first words out of his mouth. I'm writing to you, elect ones, you chosen ones. Three things in chapter 1 and verse 1. You are chosen. You are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God. That is the forelove, the four predetermined relationship. It speaks of a relationship that God has set in love, not just abstract knowledge of knowing what may happen down the road. No, the king was selected and his kingdom has been selected. And this is what Peter is telling those in the locker room. Understand this. Get your mind around this truth. If you will ever let this one sink in, it will provide that foundation for your life that you are secure in Christ. And you can go and build your life upon this.

12:55And nothing will ever change that. But he goes on to even say there are three things. According to the love of God, you are chosen. According to the sanctifying work of the Spirit, why? That is, he's the setting apart, the work of the Spirit to set you apart. Why? To obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood. You see, the whole ministry of the Trinity right there, the love of the Father, the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit to obey Jesus Christ, and the sacrificial sprinkling and cleansing. Christ, all involved in your salvation. And so this is the salvation that has come to you. And then Peter goes on to say, now live that salvation out. You were chosen to obey. You were chosen to be cleansed by the blood of a new and superior covenant. So how should we live in light of this truth? Well, first of all, humility. This unconditional election of God is one of the most pride-destroying doctrines in Scripture.

14:05It takes us to the end of ourselves. And in your prayers, it takes you to the end of your ability to even praise someone to heaven. God, you must save. This doctrine takes man to the very end of himself. But not only that, rest. Here is the foundation of rest for your soul. That one day you'll wake up and understand this truth: that God set his love on you long before you ever set your love upon him. And when that realization comes to your soul, it will provide a rest.

14:43Do you think you just happened to be here today? If you will look back over the history of your life, you will see the sovereign and gracious and merciful hand of God working in your life, even when you are not a believer. How should we live? Humble. Rest. And obedience. Obedience. Yes, I can obey. I can. An excitement. He has laid the world out for you. An excitement. I am a kind chosen by him. Beautiful. But he's not done there. That's number one. Look at this next description, verse 9. A royal priesthood, but you are a royal priesthood. Royal. That is something that belongs to the king. Royalty. That which is owned by the king. So if you are royal, if this is royal, if my clicker is a royal clicker, that means it's directly owned by the king, right?

15:57But you are royal. That is, no one stands above those who are designated as royal. No one stands above you. You belong direct, directly owned by the king. But then look, you're a priesthood. A priesthood is that which stands in the presence of God. No one stands between those designated as priests. So as the royalty speaks, no one stands above. Priesthood speaks of no one stands between. You have immediate access to God. And just as the Levitical priesthood could not begin until Aaron was anointed, consecrated, and appropriate sacrifice was accepted by God, so the New Testament believers' priesthood could not begin until Christ's sacrifice was accepted, till Christ was exalted, and the Holy Spirit had poured Himself out into the hearts of Christ's people, thus sanctifying them, sanctifying them to obey Christ. So a priest is one who comes near, and a royal priest is one who belongs to the king. And so we have this exhortation in Hebrews 10: let us draw near with a sincere heart and full assurance of faith.

17:20We are a royal priesthood. And when you take these two words together, it implies that it is the king's desire that we have immediate and direct contact with God. What a blessed privilege. It is Christ's desire that you and I, as his people, have immediate and direct contact with God. You are a royal priesthood. So, how should we live? Well, we should live our lives in his presence. And we should offer up the spiritual sacrifices that we've already talked about in chapter 2 and verse 5. Just a few. Verses up. You are a priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices.

18:08But there's another statement he gives here. You are a holy nation. Not only are you a chosen race, a royal priesthood, but you are a holy nation. The word ethnos, word we get ethnic from, ethnic group. You are an ethnic group. Though you are one nation, though you are from many nations, you form one ethnic group. And that is a holy ethnic group. You see, and the distinction here is the holiness, not the nationality, not your bloodline, not your class, not your structure or your status, but the holiness.

18:56Set apart. One ethnic group that has been set apart. And this implies a holy calling. And it implies that we walk in a holy manner, not so that we can be holy, but because we are holy and that we already are set apart, so let's go live that way. And what this implies is that we as the church, both individual and corporate, need to stop trying to be like other nations. We are a holy nation. I mean, this was Israel's problem. They mimicked the nations and so brought themselves under God's wrath.

19:41I mean, and throughout this book, verse 11, chapter 1, and chapter 2, verse 11, we're spoken of as foreigners, foreigners, outsiders. We're not to be the mainstream, whether it's in music, whether it's in entertainment, whether it's in morality, whether it's in priorities, whatever it is. We are not to imitate the world's systems. It's the contrast that's important. It's the contrast that God wants the world to see in you, not your similarities. They've got that down. It's the contrast.

20:26And it's a shame when God's people feel like they have to be like the world. Because you are a holy nation. You are totally different, of a totally different nature, totally different kind. But there's a fourth. Not only are you a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, but you are a people for God's own possession. You are God's treasured ones in the earth. And when you read the end of the book, all of earth is gone. All of heaven gone. A new heavens and a new earth. But you remain. The treasures of the earth. The whole human experience as we know it. There's one thing that is coming out. His people.

21:26Like Old Testament Israel. Believers were chosen to be a special people. They were chosen to be a special people. They were not chosen because they are a special people. You were chosen so that you could be a special people and that he has made provision for you to be that special people. Deuteronomy 4:20, God looks down and he had spoken about the iron furnace that his people Israel were under. And he says, I have taken you out from the iron furnace. I have brought you out of this affliction to be a special possession of my own. You are a people. And Deuteronomy 7, 6, a holy people, chosen so that you will be a people for my own possession of all the people on the face of the earth. You want to know who God's people are? Those who are coming to Christ. That's what Peter is saying. Those who are coming to Christ, you are a special category of people. This is what God wants.

22:30This is what he's going to take. These are his treasures. These are his jewels. Those who are coming to Christ. So we are a special people. Therefore, let us live as a special people. Not so that we can become his special people, but because we are his special people. So, friends, believers in Jesus Christ, this is who you are. You are a chosen race. You are a royal priesthood. You are a holy nation. You are a people for God's own possession. Now, why has God made you all these? For what purpose has He done this? Well, let's go to the next.

23:16This is who you are. Now, this is what you are to do. Look at so that. Verse 9: so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. That's what you are to do. First of all, I want you to see who the you are and to make special attention and note that you is in the plural. You are a chosen race collectively. You are a royal priesthood collectively. You are a holy nation. You are a people. All this speaks of the plurality.

23:52There's certainly an individual component, but there is a corporate component that is what is expressly being stressed. Here. You, as a corporate entity, you as a corporate race, as a corporate priesthood, you as a corporate nation, you as a corporate people, what are you to do? You are to proclaim. And the word for proclaim means publish. You are to be in the publishing business. That's what the church is. You are in the publishing business. That is to make known. That is to effectively announce. That is what you are to do. You are to effectively announce and proclaim.

24:30We are to proclaim. Think about that. As an entity, that's our job. As our collective body here, we are to publish. We are to proclaim. Not just from the pulpit, but in every way. It's an organization. It's an institution that serves, and all of us will serve in different ways, in different capacities, but it's to publish, to make known, to make known what? His excellencies. Literally, his excelling, his radiant excellencies, his excelling virtues. We are to be publishers by word, by deed, by organization, by function. That is why our individual character is very important. That is why the corporate direction that we do is very important. It's all to be geared for this purpose of publishing.

25:25Publishing His moral excellencies. And that's especially important in a world that has slandered his name. The great devil of old, the very name means slanderer. Slanderer. That's what the word devil means. It's one who slanders. And we are to be those who declare the truth by word, by deed, by our lives. We're to be living monuments to the truth that Satan is a liar and that God is true. Isaiah 43, 201, God says this, the people whom I formed for myself will declare my praise. I have fashioned a people for myself, and they will declare my praise. So we are to proclaim those excellencies of him. But there's a specific one, specific category that's in view here. Look at verse 9. Specifically, those associated with his act of calling you out of darkness into his marvelous light. We are to proclaim those excellencies of him who has called us out of darkness. Now, darkness is that emblem of ignorance, that emblem of sin, that emblem of misery used throughout the scripture. You were once. In a state of ignorance, a state of sin, a state of misery, apart from God, contrasting that with light, understanding, clarity, goodness, righteousness, and blessedness. You once walked in the darkness, now you are in the favorable light, the blessed light, and you are to proclaim him from that perspective. And as a side note, here, it's important to know it's not the degree of your darkness that's important here. It's not the degree of how dark you were.

27:39What's important is that you are able to be aware of your darkness up against His incredible light. So you don't have to be a Hellion or have been a notorious Hellion. You're all Hellions, but it's like you don't have to be a notorious Hellion to be aware of your darkened nature. You have to look at the perfection, the moral perfection, the moral beauty of Christ. And up against that, you will see your own tendencies to depravity.

28:13So, what are we to do? Verse 9: so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Why? Why? I'll tell you why. God wants there to be a living witness to his name. In this world that slanders his name, he wants there to be a living witness to his name. His heart is for the world to know him accurately. And so what he has done is he has left one association of people whose prime objective it is to publish his excellencies. That's us. You are to publish the moral excellencies of God.

28:59And it's because of who you are, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession. It's because of what you are or who you are that we are to proclaim our great function for our lives comes out, and that is to publish abroad by word and deed his glories. Good question to ask as you're looking at this text. Who is his target audience? Who does God want these deeds done? Who does he want his moral excellencies and his great virtues proclaimed to? To believers or to unbelievers?

29:36Yes. Both. Everybody needs to see God's moral excellencies on display. So whether it's in the body or outside the body, you be a mirror. Listen, the reality is more people read Christians than they do their Bibles. And a true Christian is a most powerful witness to Christ. The truth. A brilliant exposition. When you live out your Christianity, when you live out the biblical principles of Scripture, you become a mirror. You become that word incarnate, if I may be so bold. You show in a way that cannot be shown otherwise. When you show by your living example a principle in Scripture, it preaches. It proclaims, it publishes.

30:37It's one thing to talk about the holiness of God. It's another thing to demonstrate it. It's one thing to talk about God's mercy. It's another thing to demonstrate it. That's what preaches. It's one thing to talk about God's grace. It's another thing for you to be gracious in all of your dealings. That preaches. That proclaims. You see, our whole life is to be a living manifestation of the excellencies of God. This is how we praise Him.

31:10We are to mirror the glorious ways of our King. He has done this so that we can keep up the memory of God's wonderful goodness on the earth. That's this institution's task, to keep up the memory of God's wonderful goodness. In the earth. How do we do that? Well, I'll give you a few suggestions. First of all, we keep up the memory of God's wonderful goodness in the earth by giving Him credit and thanks for His involvement in our lives, whether it's at home, whether it's in family, whether it's in our personal lives, whether it's in work, whatever it is. We are a people giving thanks. And that keeps His memory alive and well. Also, we keep up the memory of God's wonderful goodness by always being ready to vindicate His government, by making Him known to those who are ignorant of His ways, by mirroring His character, by a consistent life of obedience and virtue. And it's important to note that even our very best mirroring is but a shadow of His glory. So, no matter how incredible you embody His excelling excellencies, it'll be just a shadow of the reality. You are but a mirror.

32:35You see, Peter has declared to us the dignity and the glorious purpose for the Christian life. You who are Christians, you have an incredible, incredible purpose. You have an incredible, dignified task, and that is keeping up the memory of God's wonderful goodness in the earth, and you do so throughout. Acts of kindness, through acts of forgiving, through acts of mercy, through acts of grace, through a living testimony. So, let's live it. That's what we're here for. And what, there isn't a higher life to be called to than to keep up the good memory of our good God in the earth.

33:30So, you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. That's who you are. That's what you are to do. Now, Peter goes on to say why you can do it, why you, and really only you can do this. Look at verse 10. For you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God. You had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

34:07You were once not a people. Now you are the people of God. He's hearkening back to the language of Hosea. You remember the book of Hosea, the Old Testament prophet? It's a book that graphically portrays Israel's spiritual adultery to God through a very graphic example, through the faithful husband of Hosea. And the prostitute, unfaithful wife of Gomer. And this is what the book of Hosea is about. In fact, when you get into chapter 1, Gomer is so unfaithful that one of their children is actually named Lo Ami, which means, you are not my child. Wow.

34:54And the Lord said, Name this one not my child, for you are not my people, and I am not your God. Yet he says in the same statement, yet the number of the sons of Israel will be like the sand of the seas, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it is said to them, you are not my people, it will be said to them, you are sons of the living God. And then in Hosea 2:23, he says it again, I will be faithful.

35:28I will sow her for myself in the land. I will also have compassion on her who had not obtained compassion. And I will say to those who are not my people, you are my people. And they will say, you are my God. So God, Peter is referring back to this episode in Hosea, and he's applying it to this body, this New Testament body of believers. And he's saying, this is true of you, where it was once said that you are not his people. Now it is said, you are my people. Now, Peter's audience had not been unfaithful to a specific covenant, not like Israel, not like national Israel had been, but they were once outside of that covenant. They were once outside of that favor and outside of that blessing. And it was true to say, you are not my people, but now you are the people of God.

36:26And what he is saying here is, look, bring it back to the context here. Their earthly rejection, and that's what they were experiencing. They were being persecuted, rejected by society because of the name of Christ. Life had become difficult for them because of the name of Christ. And what Peter is saying is that your earthly rejection is just that. It's earthly. It's not heavenly. What you're experiencing and what you are going through right now is no reflection from heaven that you are outside of God's favor. In fact, this thing that they were going through was described as a fiery ordeal.

37:09And yet what Peter is saying, look, guys, friends, what you experience is not a rejection from heaven. It's impossible. You are the people of God. And then he goes on to say, you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. You know what mercy is? Mercy is not giving a person what they deserve. Mercy is letting people take the course of their own sin and receive the consequences of their own doing. Let them receive what they deserve.

37:47And you and I are all at one time compelled by the fallen, Adamic, fleshly desires. And if they were allowed to run their course, the momentum would pick up and strengthen, and we would become a monster. And then we would receive his judgment. God, mercy is to not give a person what they deserve. Think about it. God wants his mercy declared. And if you think about it, to someone who's in darkness, any and all of God's attributes can be very unsettling, right? He's morally perfect. We who live in darkness cannot really appreciate that. In fact, it's a little bit scary. God is powerful. God is holy. God is just, and that kind of stuff will scare you if you're in darkness. You know, the sun, the moon, and the stars, they can declare so much about God. They can declare his power. They can. Declare his wisdom. And then there's the cherubim. And then there's the servant that can cry night and day, holy, holy, holy. He dwells in unapproachable light. And to those who are in darkness, that is frightening.

39:17And there are so many other mind-numbing attributes about God that the world and the created order can attest to. However, we can witness to God's mercy. We can testify that God is powerful, but He uses that power to restore, to give life. We can say that He gives power to the weak. We can say that God is not a divorce-minded God that is content to let you go, but He uses His power to bring you back, to heal, to forgive, and to make a way that your forgiveness is just and right.

40:05You see, we can tell the world that you do not have to run from the God of the Bible. We can say, His government is good, I have tasted it, it is good, His morality is right, it is best for you. His king is perfect in all His ways. We can say this because we have received His mercy, He is not unapproachable. Go to Him as I have come to Him, so you can. Turn around and say, go to him and keep coming to him.

40:35We are to show his mercy. But you know what? Showing mercy is difficult for us. Though we have received mercy, and though all of us would readily say, you know, we've gotten far more than we ever deserved, yet it's hard for us to translate that into showing mercy for others. Because by very nature, a person, you can only show mercy to those who are completely unworthy of it. They are deserving the due consequences of their lifestyle, of their pattern. And many of those who need mercy are ungrateful. Many of those are contentious. Many of them are a mess.

41:19But it's only to those you can show mercy. You see, we are inclined to give and to love those who are lovable. We are inclined to give and to love those who are deserving or who could pay us back. Right? And we should. If somebody has shown you kindness, you should show kindness in return for sure. If your parents have blessed you, you should bless your parents. And even if they haven't, and vice versa. But we are so entrenched in a people that love to do good to those who are lovable. But to those that are unlovable, it moves us beyond our. Zone.

42:02You see, God is good to those who just need mercy. He doesn't give people what they deserve. And he sacrificially gives himself to those who don't deserve anything from him. Yet he has mercy. And so I'm going to give you a homework assignment. I want you to go out this week and to show mercy to someone. Break through the ice of this, okay? It's really important that you learn the disposition of what showing mercy means because Jesus says, this is what I desire. Go and learn what this means. I desire mercy and not sacrifice. And Jesus said, Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. It's very important that you learn the skill of showing mercy.

42:53And that is to go out and to show mercy to somebody. That is, give or do something very generously or something very sacrificially to someone who doesn't deserve it at all. Train yourself in this. Take that homework assignment. Take it to heart. You see, once you and I were bound on the course of the momentum of our fleshly desire. And God looked down with mercy. We didn't deserve anything. We were even ungrateful. We were all of the above. But God.

43:30Showed mercy. And this is how you declare his mercy, is by showing mercy. And that is how you praise him. Be a people of mercy. You have received mercy, so you can go do this. Not because they deserve it, but because you have received mercy. Let me just reread the text. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light. For you were once not a people, but now you are the people of God. You had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we see the glorious truth, the mercy. We see who we are. Father, let this settle in who you have called us to be, who we are, and what we are to do. Father, and do help us to be a merciful people.

44:48Having received your mercy, help us proclaim your moral excellencies by showing mercy. And let it be with the words. I do this because I am one who has received mercy. Father, just pray that you would have your way in our lives this morning. Show us the things that need to be given over. Show us where our obedience is imperfect, lacking, and way off the mark. May you have your way in us, and we thank you for your wonderful, forgiving, gracious, and sustaining mercy in our lives. In Jesus' name, amen.