Devotion 5.1.23

1 Peter 2

9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

There are events in history that are truly "disruptive events." These events are disruptive because they impact a culture, its way of doing or thinking (or both), and are not always loud or explosive. Martin Luther provided one such event over 500 years ago when he nailed the theses to the door of the cathedral in Wittenberg, Germany. What started as a simple desire to dialogue and reform by citing areas to consider for reforms in the church at that time is now referred to as "The Reformation."

After that, an even more subtle but equally significant event occurred in 1522 (the New Testament translated from Latin into German) and 1534 (the full Bible translated into German from Latin). By putting the Bible into the language of the "common man," the world was changed dramatically. Luther again was at the forefront of this. LIke most disruptors in history, Luther was not seeking such a significant role, but rather sought to dialogue with those in power to make the changes for the better through a better understanding of God's Word. Luther coupled the new translation with a new gadget called the "printing press" to supply bibles to many as opposed to few. The impact was dramatic.

For example, today's passage from 1 Peter puts the title of "priesthood" on the reader or hearer of the epistle in Peter's day. This simple passage, as Luther discovered, is declaring that we are the holders of the title of "royal priesthood," able to declare God's Word and the message of Faith Alone, Grace Alone, and Scripture Alone. That is a radical shift in Peter's day and was again in Luther's day.

With these great shifts, though, comes great responsibility. By taking the role of the priesthood, we, as those marked by God to "declare the praises of him who called you (us) out of darkness," have an obligation and responsibility to then share that good news as Peter notes.

Today, unplug and prayerfully consider what that means for each of us as we consider the responsibility of being part of the "royal priesthood of all believers." Consider the impact of such a simple truth, the disruption of that on the status quo in history, and how many have sacrificed to give us such an honor and privilege to be God's chosen people, including His Son, Christ, whose suffering, death and resurrection released us from the bondage of sin, Satan and death.

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