Chosen People

"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."
1 Peter 2:9

We have learned that we have been given position in Christ. He has granted that we should be given free access to God. Over and over, the Bible affirms this truth. This scripture is another affirmation to us and we should not take it lightly. We find here, the great truth of how God sees us. And we also see our responsibility as the chosen people of God.
    Just look at the things God says about us. We are chosen, we are royalty, we are holy, we belong to God. These are amazing things. All this has been given us. We are not just a mass of humanity running around on a planet. We are loved by God. He has chosen us who have believed, to be his. Many people own things. Farmers and ranchers may own cattle or sheep or other animals. Those animals could say that they belong to the farmer. But animals have no spirits, no souls. All they care about is that they are fed. If not for fences, many of them would wander off in search of greener pastures. We are not like animals. Yes, God feeds us. But he also cares for us and gives us free wills to choose to love him or not. Imagine if the farmer allowed all the animals to live in his house, help themselves to his food, sit on his furniture, and enjoy all the comforts of his home. We laugh. It is ludicrous to think of such a thing. But this is exactly what God has done for us. We have been made in his image and he has ransomed us from death. He has given us a place in his home, living in the Spirit, enjoying the wonders of the kingdom of God.
    God only asks us to do two things for him. First, we are to give him praise. We are to declare his praise. This is easy to do when we are in church with others who are praising him. It's easy to do when we're in our cars by ourselves, singing to the music. But it is different when we are among those who don't believe. This is where we should declare the praise of God. I recently heard a sports announcer calling a tennis match at Wimbledon. He was speaking about the weather and its affect on the matches. He commented, "It's Jesus who is responsible anyway. And nobody refers to him as Jesus anymore. But it is Jesus, for he is worthy." This was a declaration, a praise that went out not only to God, but to all who would listen. We must thank God for all that he has done for us. In the same way that we teach our children to say "thank you," so we need to thank our God. He has delivered us from darkness and brought us into his kingdom of light. What greater thing is there? Thank him regularly.
    We must understand that we are precious to God. He loves us, takes care of us, and has invited us into his home. He has brought us from the kingdom of darkness into his kingdom. He has saved us from destruction. Our responsibility is simple. We are to declare his praises. We are to thank him for his goodness. We thank him for saving our lives. It is a wonderful thing to be chosen. We have not been left out. Praising and thanking God is what chosen people do. Let's take the joy of the chosen and respond with praise!