1Putting away therefore all wickedness, all deceit, hypocrisies, envies, and all evil speaking, 2as newborn babies, long for the pure spiritual milk, that with it you may grow, 3if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 4Come to him, a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God, precious. 5You also as living stones are built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6Because it is contained in Scripture,
“Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, chosen and precious.
He who believes in him will not be disappointed.”
7For you who believe therefore is the honor, but for those who are disobedient,
“The stone which the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone,”
8and,
“a stumbling stone and a rock of offense.”
For they stumble at the word, being disobedient, to which also they were appointed. 9But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 10In the past, you were not a people, but now are God’s people, who had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy.
11Beloved, I beg you as foreigners and pilgrims to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, 12having good behavior among the nations, so in that of which they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good works and glorify God in the day of visitation.
13Therefore subject yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether to the king, as supreme, 14or to governors, as sent by him for vengeance on evildoers and for praise to those who do well. 15For this is the will of God, that by well-doing you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. 16Live as free people, yet not using your freedom for a cloak of wickedness, but as bondservants of God.
17Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
18Servants, be in subjection to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the wicked. 19For it is commendable if someone endures pain, suffering unjustly, because of conscience toward God. 20For what glory is it if, when you sin, you patiently endure beating? But if when you do well, you patiently endure suffering, this is commendable with God. 21For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example, that you should follow his steps, 22who didn’t sin, “neither was deceit found in his mouth.” 23When he was cursed, he didn’t curse back. When he suffered, he didn’t threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously. 24He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live to righteousness. You were healed by his wounds. 25For you were going astray like sheep; but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
The lies and accusations made against Paul were unending. When we read verse five of this chapter, it sounds like Paul is a gang leader or a member of the mafia. He is described as a “plague and an instigator of insurrections”. His accusers lied and said he had tried to profane the temple. We, too, will have people make lies and accusations against us. These originate in the mind of the enemy. He is the accuser. The word “Satan” literally means the accuser. And what does he accuse us of? He says, “You’re a phony because if you were really a Christian, you’d be a much better person. You’re part of the problem. You’re not nearly good enough to show up at a church. You’re a mess. Your life is a shipwreck.”
Likewise, as you serve the Lord, you may find some who once loved you and supported you now accuse you of all kinds of nonsensical things. This can happen for many different reasons. Often, those people are disappointed that you can’t solve all of their problems. They have something they cannot fix, so they “blame the preacher.” They may be jealous or envious of your mission. Perhaps they’ve wrongly put you on a pedestal, and now you don’t measure up to their ideal. You might have hurt them with something you said or did. That’s when you make a sincere apology. Whether the apology is accepted is between them and God. The fact is that none of us is perfect. If you spend any time outside of yourself helping others, you’ll end up being falsely accused by someone of something.
Jesus says, “Come as you are, my child. You are mine. I’ve paid for every sin you’ve ever committed, and I will wipe away every tear that you have shed. You were that one lost sheep that I found, and you are safe in my arms.” Believer, don’t be sidetracked by the lies of those who accuse you. It is often the case that you are engaged in spiritual warfare and just don’t realize it. In those times, put on the whole armor of God today and stand. Stand in the knowledge that you are a child of the King. The Apostle Peter is speaking to every believer when he says, “9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, that you may proclaim the excellence of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” (1 Peter 2:9) Reader, think about that. Meditate on that. Walk in that truth today and be thankful.