1 Peter 2:9 – But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
But you are a chosen generation! I have always been moved by this verse in 1 Peter. It is as if Peter looked through the portals of time and knew God’s people would need reminding of who they are. So he does just that by saying, “But you are a chosen generation…”
It is implied and validated in the remainder of this verse that we are not chosen by just anyone, but by God. What would it feel like to be chosen by Bill Gates to be a recipient of some of his wealth? It would be amazing! What would it feel like to be chosen by Oprah to work on her staff? It would be pretty exciting! Or what would it be like to be chosen to be in ministry with your favorite evangelist? For me, it would be mind-blowing. And yet, when we think of being chosen by God, it doesn’t provide us with the same level of excitement. And in truth, it shouldn’t! We should be even more excited, amazed, dazed, or our minds blown to understand what it means to be chosen by God!
As a people chosen by God, we have the benefit of His protection. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds His people. His provision is something we can also have. He said that He would supply all of our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. We have access to inhabit His kingdom and the ability to reach His throne. And lastly, it also suggests that we, as God’s chosen, are to share in the blessings of God’s chosen people, the Israelites. This is echoed in Galatians by Paul when he states that we are blessed with faithful Abraham.
This being chosen also means that we are to share in the privileged status of Christ Jesus. Again, Galatians 3 states that we are heirs and joint heirs with Christ. And in the same chapter of Galatians, we are told that the blessing of Abraham comes upon us as a result of what Jesus accomplished on Calvary. And if that isn’t enough, John 1 states that those of us who have believed in Jesus and received Him were given the right to become children of God. Are you grasping the scope of being chosen yet?
Now, put chosen with generation, and you get an even richer viewpoint of what Peter is stating. You are a chosen generation, or race. Just as God chose the Israelites to be His people, He has chosen you, us, who have been redeemed by the Blood of Jesus, to be His. We belong to Him. We didn’t just choose Him, but He chose us to be His. We are as special to Him as the Jewish nation is to Him. Any reader of the Bible can see that He was fully engaged in the lives of the Israelites. As believers today, we can count on the fact that He is fully engaged in our lives, also.
God provided the children of Israel with deliverance from Egypt in a magnanimous way. He not only performed miracles on their behalf, but He also told them to “borrow” from the Egyptians. (They were never going to get back what was borrowed). Then, when they arrived at the Red Sea, He provided an even greater miracle by parting the waters and drowning the Egyptians. He provided them with His glory to guide them, and we are welcome to experience His glory today!
Our spiritual deliverance pays eternal dividends and opens the pathway for earthly deliverances. When God steps into your situation and brings deliverance, people take note of the faithfulness of God. When He restores a marriage, people know that He can restore their marriage also. When He delivers you from drugs or alcohol, it gives hope to the person struggling in this area and can result in their deliverance. Anything that God did for Israel, He can and will do for us on a greater scale because our covenant is built on the Blood of Jesus and not on bulls and goats.
It’s overwhelming to the natural mind the scope of being chosen by God, but it is true. The devil wants you to be afraid of embracing God, to believe He is out to get you, to keep things from you, to stifle your life, or is waiting to reject you when you sin; but nothing could be further from the truth!! God Himself has chosen you to be His out of the depths of His great love for you! His hands are stretched out still. Open your heart today and dare to believe that you, as a believer, belong to Him because you are chosen! Wonderful Jesus!!
Wonderful Jesus! 