Thursday March 11, 2021

Today’s Reading: 1 Peter 2:1-9

…you yourselves, as living stones, a spiritual house, are being built to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:5

Reflection: God builds His Church. From spiritual infancy, He nourishes each believer with the Truth of His Word, which is pure and good. Newborn babies do not have to be told that they need milk. They inherently desire it, and feed upon it constantly. This is how God begins His Work in every newborn Christian: He feeds them by His Truth, that they would be nourished and grow. But this is just the beginning of His Work.

The Apostle Peter writes that followers of Christ are made to be living stones which together form the Lord’s Church. Living stones? How can stones be alive? God takes the unliving to be born of the Spirit, in order that each new life would cry out praise to God. And so we are each born and grown in faith. And we are put together to build His Church around the Cornerstone – our Foundation and guiding Feature, God’s Son Jesus Christ. A Christian is not designed to be alone with God. He or she has been called into a framework of faith far grander, stronger, and more beautiful. For while it is one person’s joy to be a representative of the Lord, it is Christ’s pleasure to see the scope of His Church united, set apart for His Purpose together as a race, a priesthood, a nation, a people that glorify Him. One by one, each precious soul is brought together under His Headship to reflect His marvelous Light. We are made to be in God’s Church. Throughout the ages, God has been building His Church, living stone upon living stone around His only begotten Son as a testament of His Goodness and Grace.

Prayer: Father, only You can take what is dead and bring it to life. Only You can bring life into that which has no life. Your Power and Might is unmatched, Lord, and You are Wonderful. Thank You for setting me apart for fellowship with You. Thank You for by Your Salvation welcoming me into Your beloved Church. It is humbling to do Your work and follow Your direction. It is a great blessing to know communion with You and Your people. Please teach me how to live alongside my brothers and sisters in Christ. Show me how to love not only those who do not know You, but also those who do know You. Help me to live by the Love You’ve first shown to me. In Jesus’ Precious Name I pray, AMEN.

NOTE: Our “Thru the Bible in a Year” Reading Plan (which was made available through Biblestudytools.com) is temporarily unavailable online due to unknown reasons. For now, we are utilizing the web source Bible Gateway for online access to Scripture.

For today’s Bible Reading, we recommend 1 Peter 2, Jeremiah 33, and Psalm 135. May God’s Word richly bless you!