Thanks for that message. That's a pretty good sermon right there. We could probably just have the benediction go home, couldn't we? It's not going to happen. You know that. I just like to ask that question. I'm going to take this opportunity this morning. There we bring new folks into the official membership here. And we'll do it again in a few months if you're attending here regularly and waiting for somebody to come up and urge you to join. We really don't do that. We want to have you. We're glad to have you here as members. But if you're part of this body on regular basis is where you receive the the ministries of the word and worship and so forth. And you ought to make it official. But we'll wait till God puts it on your heart to do that. We'll do inquires again in a few months. But I'd like to say the opportunity and we bring new folks into the church to examine what is it these people have done? What have they asked themselves? What have I done? What have they joined? When they joined a church. Some nice civic social institution that happens to have its meanings on Sunday mornings. A bunch of good people who get together in here. A good man tell them to be more good. What have they done? We go through inquirers. We look for really just two things. One is a credible profession of faith. How do they come to know Jesus? And then they sign that membership covenant. But we take those four Wednesdays, two hours each time for a lot of reasons. And one of them is that we want them to understand more of what it is the church is all about. And so I take one night and we really got rushed this past time because it was a great group. But they ask a lot of questions, great questions. So we didn't leave a lot of time for church history. But I want to just point out a couple of things about the church. As we went through church history really from Abraham on to the covenants. To the newer testament to Jesus's Ecclesiastes called out once his church. We got to the Reformation. I told them there are really two driving forces, two driving motivations behind the Reformation. There are a lot, but two main ones. One is the doctorate justification by faith that we are made right in God's eyes. We are made acceptable in God's eyes by the grace of God through faith in Christ alone. Not through anything we do, no good work of ours. But by the grace of God through faith in Christ alone, the doctrine of justification by faith. And the second doctrine, it really drove and impelled the reformers with this doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. The priesthood of all believers. See the church at that time, how to allow or even encourage the mentality of two classes of Christians. There were the officials of the church and the priests, and then there was everybody else. So you had a two-tiered system of Christians, sort of like professionals and amateurs. It was pretty easy for the church to do that. For one thing, almost everybody was illiterate. These were coming out of the dark ages. Almost nobody could read, so it couldn't read a Bible. And even if they could read, they didn't have Bibles in their own language. Then the only Bibles that were around were in Latin. And nobody read Latin back then anymore than we do today. And so there weren't all the, you know, today you can get a Bible for left-handed people who were polyester and bow on Thursdays. I mean, there's a Bible for everybody. And I've contributed a lot of those, so I'm not being in front of them. But they didn't have that back then, so they couldn't read their Bibles. And so it was easy for people to be led into this sort of a superstitious hierarchy of professionals and amateurs. The people who are officially part of the church, the priests, and the other clerics, and then everybody else. It still happens today, though. People make distinctions between pastors and missionaries and other professional Christians, and then everybody else, professionals and amateurs. I hear often, and not as a put down, but as sort of an understood dichotomy. Well, that's the pastor's job. Only the pastor can do that. You know, and in the PCA, we have two offices, elders and deacons. And amongst our elders, we simply divide between teaching elders and ruling elders. My official title is I'm a teaching elder. You know, there are very few things that only teaching elders can do. We are to administer the sacraments. So when a baby gets baptized, which is a great joy in the life of the church, when we receive the Lord's Supper, and celebrate the Lord's Supper, the teaching elder is ordinarily the only one who is charged with being able to do that. Other than that, there's not a lot. I do weddings, but you know, that's a legal thing. You want to do weddings? Go become a noted republic. If you're a ship captain, you can do a wedding too. So that's really a legal thing that I'm entitled to do by virtue of the fact that I'm a teaching elder in a PCA. After that, there's not a lot of other things that only I can do. Preaching, the other elders can do that, when I'm out in Neil and Bill preach. Praying, you can pray, there are people who believe that my prayer sort of had a pipeline to God faster than yours. I wish it were the case. I wish it were the case. You all would act a lot better if my prayers had a straight pipeline to God. I doesn't hear or receive my prayers any more than yours just because I'm a pastor. Sharing your faith, some of you are a lot more effective than I am, but we're all called to a tithing. You can tithe, not just for pastors and elders and deacons to do. How about funerals? Do you know that anybody can do a funeral? Anybody. You can do a funeral for your loved one if you want to. That time ever comes and you're asked to do a talk to me. I'll show you how. It's really not that hard to do. So where did this distinction come from between professionals and amateurs? Well, it was a nice slide of hand by the church at that time. And I kind of understand why they did it. Sometimes kind of envy them that. Why should I give money to the church because on the pastor and I say so? But that would be nice. Why should we build you that three story mansion on the beach because on the pastor and I say so? Why should we buy you that midlife crisis convertible Mustang because on the pastor and I say so? I'd like to be able to pull some. Why should we give you those season tickets that literally box set the marlins because on the pastor and I say so? I'd like to be able to pull that off. So why don't I? Because the Bible does not give me any grounds to do that. Let's read from 1 Peter chapter 2 verses 9 through 12. So I'm page 1888 of your Bible in front of you. If you have your own Bible, please read along with me. But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, now you are the people of God. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers in the world to abstain from sinful desires which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. Will you pray with me?
My father, I'm very grateful this morning for the privilege we have to work to worship together. I'm grateful for these people who have made an official profession of faith and membership and desire to be part of this church. And father, I'm very grateful that you called me to be a pastor. You know, from my heart to yours, if I were you, I wouldn't have done that. I would have found somebody a whole lot more qualified. But you called me to be a pastor. It's my great privilege in life and I ask you that you would annoy me now to preach your word to your people. And anyone here who is not yet part of your people, and I ask you to annoy me to preach for you're on in your glory, sir, for the building up of the body of Christ, this body and your body around the world. And for the advance of your kingdom, into the kingdom of this world, I make my prayer in Jesus' name. Amen. You remember the school assignments you have where you're supposed to do an investigative report on something and you're supposed to answer the who, what, when, where, why those kind of questions? This passage presents itself in that way. So I want to ask those questions about the people of God. Who are we? Well, first of all, Peter says, and he ought to know, Peter says, we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God. If you know your body, so isn't that a radical departure from the Older Testament? Not so much, not so much. Peter hears this echoing Exodus, chapter 19 and verse 6, where God says, two Moses and through Moses, 1400 years BC, you will be for me, a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. That's the whole sermon right there. In fact, that's a whole series of sermons right there. So let's unpack it a bit. First of all, we are a chosen people, a chosen people. The doctrine of unconditional election runs throughout the scriptures, ladies and gentlemen. You go back to Noah. God chose Noah out of the world to be saved in his family. Noah had three sons, ham, shaman, japheth, and God chose shem to be the forerunner of God's people, the people of Israel. One of them was Abraham. Back then he was Abram. God chose Abram out of all the peoples of the earth to follow him and give to him a promised land. Abram had two sons. The first born was Ishmael. He was not the child of the promise. The second born son, Isaac. Isaac was the child of the promise. Isaac had two sons. Jacob and Issa. They were twins. Issa was the first born in the ancient Near East. He should have been the chosen, anointed child, but he wasn't. For God's purposes, the younger of the twins, Jacob becomes God's man, God's chosen one. Jacob has twelve sons. Everybody can name them all in order. Raise your hands. I can't either. But you know, they were Ruben and Gad and Simeon and Lenin and McCartney. And a whole bunch of others. I can't get them all right. One of them was Judah. Judah is nothing special. You can read by his blessing in Exodus. I mean Genesis 48, 49, 50. Judah is nothing special. And yet God puts his hand on Judah to be blessed amongst all people because from him would come a Messiah. One that Micah refers to as one who would go forth to be ruined in Israel. While his going force are from long ago from the days of eternity from the tribe of Judah would come one who would be the Messiah. Jesus, who is known as the Lion of the tribe of Judah. If you know your Chronicles of Narnia, you know he's represented Jesus. He's represented in Narnia as a lion named Aslan. I've seen the trailers for the voyage of the non-trender. I can't wait for December. It's going to be great. My favorite of the Chronicles, the voyage of the non-trender. Aslan, the Christ figure, is the lion. We are a chosen people who are chosen by God unconditionally, unconditionally, and then into the newer covenant. We have the older covenant and then we have the new covenant. And God takes his people. He takes the corporation multinational. And first, we're chosen from the Jews who are scattered all over the Mediterranean based and all over the Roman Empire. And they come back to Jerusalem for the day of Pentecost. God begins to speak to them, anointed by the Holy Spirit that disciples began to speak to them. In tongues that were not known to them but were known to God's people from all over the Mediterranean based and all over the ancient Near East. And then, first of the ministry of Peter, and then especially the ministry of Paul, God begins to move his people. He moved out amongst his people and called the Gentiles to himself. Once you were no people, now you're the people of God. Once you had not received mercy, now you have received mercy. We are a chosen nation, unconditionally, but chosen we are. Paul puts it this way in the letter to the Ephesians. Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. We paused just a moment, let the impact of that just wash over us. If you know Christ as Lord and Savior, you were chosen not for anything in you. You were chosen before the foundations of the world, before you had drawn your first breath, before you were gleaming your daddy's eyes, before your grandparents were born, before any of us were yet to be. God chose us not because of what he sees in us, but in spite of what he sees in us. And that's why we talk about his election being unconditional, in spite of who we are, sinners before holy God. We're chosen people. We are a royal priesthood. A royal priesthood. This, ladies and gentlemen, brothers and sisters, friends, this is one of the most neglected doctrines in all the Bible. It's one of the most misunderstood, and this one may be very hard for some of you who erased another traditions that had a set aside group of people, a separate classification of Christians that were called priests. It's in the Older Testament. The Nation of Israel had a special priesthood drawn from the tribe of Levi, the descendants of Levi were the priests and they had a hierarchy that were headed by one man, the high priest. First it was Aaron, and then it was through Aaron's sons, and they had very elaborate rules and regulations and ceremonies that were to be observed. They culminated every year in the day of Atomic Yom Kippur, when the one man, the high priest, was to go into the sanctuary, into the Holy of Holies, before the very arc of the covenant, was to offer sacrifice for the people. One man, one day, one celebration, one observance for all the people, and then the New Testament teaches here and in other passages, the priesthood of all believers, that all Christians are priests before the Lord God. Under the Old Covenant, one special nation, the Nation of Israel, one special class, the Levites, one specialized vocation, the priesthood, one man, the high priest, specialized rules and regulations and stipulations and ceremonies. Repeated time after time, year after year in the Book of Hebrews tells us they never ever atone for sins, never. But under the New Covenant, one man, one sacrifice, given once for all, and after this he said it is finished. And now, all of his people, if you know Christ, you are beckoned, you are entreated, you are urged to enter into the Holy of Holies anytime, 24-7. The curtains have been torn from the top to the bottom, we all have open and free and bold access, confident access, into the very throne room of grace. A new and living way opened for us through the curtain that is his body. We don't need a special class of priests anymore, because we are a kingdom of priests. We are a royal priesthood, we are a holy nation. If you know Jesus is Lord, you don't need to go to anybody else for confession, you can go to Jesus himself anytime you want to. You are a priest before the Lord, and this sacrifice that we offer, it's not bulls and goats, it's just everything we have, everything we are. Everything, our minds, our hearts, our wills, our emotions, our intellects, our hands and our feet, everything we have, everything we own, everything we possess, everything we are offered as a living and holy sacrifice, pleasing and acceptable to our God. I know it's difficult for many of you. This is one of the great truths that drove the Reformation. We dare not forget who we are, because he's paid too high a price for us to ever forget that we are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation of people belonging to God. As I urge our inquires to get hold of this truth for Vinnie and Eddie and Sharon and Wayne and Diana and Trish, I would urge all of us to remember, we need all of us folks, we need all hands on deck. It's not a spectator sport. This is a participatory thing and we need all of us with all of our gifts and our callings and our energies and our talents. We need all of us to come together for the glory of God and for the building up the body of Christ, this body, candle presbyterian church and the body of Christ beyond one Sunday afternoon, when I get home on Sundays, that's when my Sabbath begins. I really let down and relax and try to spend what time I can with what energy I have left with the kids and with Heidi. So Sunday afternoon, this has been a few years, I go out to my van to get something I've forgotten. Anybody here know how to drive a stick shift? Remember when you learned, remember to coordinate your left foot on the clutch and your right foot on the brake and the accelerator, hopefully not all at the same time, and getting that stick going. Remember how hard it was? I learned to do that in a hilly part of Birmingham and I can remember the holy terror trying to get that clutch disengaged and the first gear going up the hill. Why do I mention that? Because as I'm going to my van, I see it the 4 way stop at the end of our street. We're flat as a pancake here in Miami. The young lady in a Jeep in SUV learning to drive a stick shift. How did I know? She was good 25, 30 yards away from me because I'd hear that clutch disengaged and I'd see that Jeep move forward with a screech and alerts and a stop and the engine died and that thing would rock. And I did just what you're doing. I kind of chuckled three, four, six, seven times and finally whoever seemed to try to get out of the car, walked around swap places where they drove off. I'm asking for a smoke about it because I learned how to drive a clutch with a clutch a long time ago and then I did what I'm doing right here. I tried to move my wheelchair and it wouldn't move. It would move. It would move in big sweeping circles to my left counter clockwise and it wouldn't go back the other way. So all it was going to do is move me in a great big circle. Oh, you laughed. Imagine if you got up and all you could do is turn into circles. This guy's judgment on me for laughing at a young lady learning how to drive a clutch with a clutch. You know what was wrong? One piece in my wheelchair wouldn't work. One piece in the right hand motor wouldn't work. One piece out of a machine that's got hundreds, maybe thousands of parts. This is a $15,000 piece of equipment I'm sitting on. And one piece and the whole thing ground to a halt for the application impaired. You're a piece. It's got hundreds of pieces and we need every single one of you. We need every single one of us because if you're not engaged in the life and health and the movement of this church in the body of Christ, you may be the thing that helps us grind to a halt. Thank you, brother. How did I do you? You're not the only spare parts folks. The only spare Christians got didn't call you for decoration. This is a participatory event folks. The body of Christ. We need every one of you. Rick Warren has said so well, you don't judge the strength of an army by how many people reading in the mess hall. You judge the strength of an army by how many people are able when equipped and fighting and on the front lines taking the fight to the enemy. We need you. Every single one of you. If you're sitting at home hearing this on the internet and you're not part of a local church, you have hereby been served noticed. You need to be a part of the body of Christ. Not sitting at home, not watching the guys on TV. That's for when you're sick or immobilized or can't get out. You need to be a part of the body of Christ. We need you. Who are we? We're a chosen people. We're a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God. Let's not forget. That's who we are. What are we here for? What's our purpose? I remember hearing Oz Guinness, a great, great speaker if you have a chance to hear him. I remember hearing Oz Guinness talk about sitting with a very wealthy man one time. People in and out of his office is telling them all what to do or to go, what to accomplish. He said to Dr. Guinness, I hire people to do what I don't like to do. The one thing I have not been able to hire someone to do and hereby end to cry. I haven't been able to hire someone to find a purpose for my life. I inquire as no one you should know, the first question of us, Mr. Short of Catechism, what is the chief in the man? What is our purpose? Our purpose is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. That you may, Peter says, declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Paul goes on to say the letter of the Ephesians, verse 11, in him we were also chosen having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything and conformity with the purpose of his will in order that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ. When you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, having believed you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit who was a deposit, guarantee our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession to the praise of his glory. That's what our worship services are for, ladies and gentlemen. Our purpose and worship is to honor God, to glorify him first and foremost, and to encourage one another onto holiness, all we say and do in here. And the reading and the preaching of the Word of God and the singing of his praises and our prayers and our offerings and our one another and our fellowshiping, we're here to glorify God first and foremost, to encourage one another on, to holiness, to love him good deeds, and then to also advance God's kingdom and the kingdoms of this world through evangelism. You notice the worship is first for God and then for us. The question you ought to ask, when you leave this place, the question ought to be on your minds and hearts as you drive home, isn't whether or not you like to preach or what he had to say, of course you do. The question isn't whether you like the music and sing, of course you do. The question is, did you give your utmost for his highest? Did you leave it all on the playing field of worship? Did you give it all you had to worship God? Your question ought to be, Father, will you please with the offering I made today, offering I gave up to you of worship, then you can have roast preacher for lunch. That's okay. The question on your hearts and minds ought to be, did you give your utmost for his highest? I have in my computer about 11 or 12 pages of worship definitions. If you want to have and tell me, I'll email some of them to you. One of my favorites is very shortened from Eugene Peterson. He says, worship is the strategy by which we interrupt our preoccupation with ourselves and attend to the presence of God. Let's not forget what we're here for. Who are we, we're a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God? What are we here for? That you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. That's who, and that's what, why? Why would we do that? Because once we were not a people, and now we are the people of God, once we had not received mercy, now we have received mercy. If you don't know the reference for that, go back and re-hosea one, two, and three, one of those marvelous love stories in all of history and all of literature, one of those marvelous love stories ever. Once you were no people, now you are a people, the people of God, once you had not received mercy, now you have received mercy. Two of the most beautiful words in the world, but now, but now you are his people, now you have received mercy. Our motivation is mercy, if you have this mistaken notion about the people God caused to himself, we're good and we're holy and we're better, we're not, you're not and you know it, and I know it too. God caused us not because of who we are, not because of who we are, but in spite of who, and what we are. God did not look at us and say you know he is just so cool I could not and spend eternity without him in my family, I got to have him. He did not look at her and say she is so wonderful, so marvelous, I would be miserable forever if I don't ever with me. No, that says you're a bunch of sinners, you're falling short of my glory. But I call you to myself in spite of who you are, in spite of what you are. The late great Dr. James Boyce used to love to say you have received mercy, make it widely known. Our motivation, ladies and gentlemen, is mercy. Jesus said it's the sick who need a doctor, not those who are well. I haven't come to call those who are well. I have not come to call those who think they have no need of God's grace, but those who do. You know, Prince Harry is, of course you do. He's here in the States for a few days as I speak throughout the first pitch at a twins and met scheme yesterday. He's been making the rounds of a lot of things. He's raised the money for his charity, for AIDS or to benefit AIDS orphans. He spent a time with our military. Harry earned a reputation in younger days for being rebellious and leading the tabloid press to label him as a wild child. Smoking pies, underage drinking. He was clashed physically with paparazzi outside of nightclubs and he has been photographed at a party once wearing a Nazi insignia. Here is a wild child. So because of all that, is he therefore disqualified from being a royalty? Did his father, the man who will be king someday, probably, Prince Charles, did he say therefore because of the way you behave and the way you act, you're out of your son. You are no longer fit to be a prince. You're no longer royalty. They do that. No. Here is a wild child. And yet, that's the royal family still allows him to be part of the royal family. What have you done? You think disqualifies you from being part of God's family? You haven't done it. You haven't done it neither by God says, yeah, you acted in ways that are disgraceful, but you're still royalty. You're still made in my image. I sent my son to shed his blood, redeem you. Regardless of how you act, you're part of the royal family. Now let's act like it. Let's act like it. The gospel is about mercy. God demonstrates His own love toward us and that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us, not for the good, not for the righteous, but for sinners. And then He makes it simple. To the prophet Micah, He has showed you, oh man, what is good? What does the Lord require of you? To act justly, to love mercy, to walk humbly with your God. Let's not forget why we do this. If you receive mercy, make it widely known. That's who we are. That's what we are. That's why we do what we do. Now how do we do it? Peter breaks it down for us. In verse 11, dear friends, I urge you as aliens and strangers in the world abstains from simple desires which war against your soul, lives such good lives among the pagans. Although they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day He visits us. Let me just ask, have we done anything today, this week, this month, this year? Have we done anything at all? Simply because we profess Jesus is Lord. Have we acted any differently because of Christians? So I said, oh, you're being legalistic. Can't you give us do's and don'ts? No, I'm not. No, I'm not. If I was a legalist, I'd give you my list of do's and don'ts. That said, you got to do that. I'm not doing that. I'm asking on the basis of God's word. Have you acted any differently? Has it cost you anything at all? Well, we're here, can't listen to you. That's good. How about when you're not here? Have we done anything at all that we wouldn't have done except for the simple fact that we belong to Jesus? If you haven't, if I were to ask you that next Sunday or the Sunday, wouldn't you like to be able to say yes? Talk us cheap folks. We got to live the life. We're chosen people. We're a royal priest. We're a holy nation. We're no people. Now we are people. We haven't received mercy. Now we have received mercy. There was a time when I sort of thought of being a Christian as if you humanity is a great big, great, big stadium full of billions of billions of people. And over in the corner of that stadium, there's a little section marked redeemed. And you were wandering around that stadium meeting people, reading books, having experiences. And one day you wandered over that section marked redeem. You said, I want to sit here. I want to be here. In your experience like mine, you may have felt that way. Well, in that way, folks, the one that way. Because when you enter that section, you found it's not just a bunch of unmarked seats just sit wherever you want. Instead, you've been taken by the hand, taken to a banquet table where there's a card there, a name card there with your name on it. You've been expected to sit at the table with the king and his people. And your name is written on that card. And there's written in blood. The blood of the Son of God, the king, who calls us to be part of his people. Let's pray together. Close on a specific prayer for church. This church and God's people all over the world. Lord God, we thank you for the church as imperfect as blemish as it is. The church is not a building. There's some total of Christians all over the world of which we here at Kendall Presbyterian about a small part of the church where the bride of Christ, Lord, help us to treat her with respect. Do our part to keep her pure. The church is the body of Christ. Help us do our part to keep her fit and ready to do our Lord's bidding. The church is the sheep of your pasture. Help us keep her well-tended and cared for. The church is the children of our Heavenly Father. Help us to love one another with our whole hearts. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of the church, part of your church. Help us be faithful today as a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to you that we may declare your praises. The one who has called us out of darkness and your wonderful light. In the name of Jesus, the one who is the head of the church, Amen. Amen. Thank you for being here today. Now see the Lord's benediction. Now go in the love of God the Father, the grace and mercy of God the Son, the fellowship and companionship of God the Holy Spirit, and live the life, Amen.