THE CHURCH; THE PRIESTHOOD OF ALL BELIEVERS
John 15:1-5
I Peter 2:9
Colossians 2:6
Galatians 2:20
THE CHURCH; CHRISTIANS LIVING AS GOD'S PEOPLE
Romans 12:1
I Peter 2:5
I Corinthians 6:20
Ephesians 4:17-24
Colossians 3:10
I John 3:3
I Thessalonians 4:3a
Romans 6:22
THE CHURCH; CARRYING OUT GOD'S MISSION
Ephesians 2:8-10
Matthew 5:13-16
Acts 26:22-23
THE CHURCH; THE PRIESTHOOD OF ALL BELIEVERS
John 15:1-5
"I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. {2} "Every branch in Me that does not bear
fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.
{3} "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you. {4} "Abide in Me, and
I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you
unless you abide in Me. {5} "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him,
he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
Jesus here speaks concerning the life of all believers. We who are Christians are joined with
Christ through out baptism. What is His will is now our will. In Christ, we now live our lives
to His glory.
I Peter 2:9
But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's
OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of
darkness into His marvelous light;
In this passage we see that in Christ all Christians are chosen by God to be kings and priests in
His kingdom. All Christians are to be proclaiming God's praises in this world which does not
know God.
Colossians 2:6
Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him,
The Christians life is one marked by the character of Christ. What we received we received
freely. The way we life our life is to be marked by thanksgiving to God.
Galatians 2:20
"I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life
which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for
me.
In Christ our life of sin and death is taken away and a new life is given to us. Christ takes our
life sin away and replaces it with His life. The life we now life we live in Christ, or rather Christ
lives in us.
THE CHURCH; CHRISTIANS LIVING AS GOD'S PEOPLE
Romans 12:1
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy
sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
The Christians has been redeemed by the mercy of God. God paid the ultimate price for our
forgiveness and in loving response to His grace toward us we now live our lives as an offering to
Him.
I Peter 2:5
You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up
spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
As living stones of God we offer up spiritual sacrifices which are acceptable to God through Jesus
Christ our Lord. The sacrifice we offer is ourselves to His glory.
I Corinthians 6:20
For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
The Christian's life is to be one lived to the glory of God. The reason for such a life is because
of the price God paid to free us from our sins.
Ephesians 4:17-24
So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also
walk, in the futility of their mind, {18} being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life
of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart; {19} and
they, having become callous, have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind
of impurity with greediness. {20} But you did not learn Christ in this way, {21} if indeed you have
heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, {22} that, in reference to your
former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts
of deceit, {23} and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, {24} and put on the new self,
which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
With faith in Christ comes also a whole new understanding of what life is all about. The Christian
seeks to live a life which is one of holiness and righteousness.
Colossians 3:10
. . . and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image
of the One who created him--
In Christ the image which was lost through the fall has been restored. As redeemed children of
God we now seek live our lives in the image of God.
I John 3:3
And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
Purity is a goal for all Christians. To seek a pure and holy life is pleasing to God for it is His will
for His people. While we will never obtain this perfectly in this life, we can, by God's help,
become purer than we are.
I Thessalonians 4:3a
For this is the will of God, your sanctification; that is, that you abstain from sexual immorality;
God's will for us as His people is that we abstain from all sin and live for Him. The Christian
is enabled through the power of the Holy Spirit to discover what sin is present in his life and then
by God's grace abstain from it.
Romans 6:22
But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in
sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life.
God has set us free from our bondage to sin and has made us His own possession. As those who
have been bought by the blood of Jesus upon the cross, we now seek a fruitful and God pleasing
life.
THE CHURCH; CARRYING OUT GOD'S MISSION
Ephesians 2:8-10
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; {9}
not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. {10} For we are His workmanship, created in
Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
Having been saved purely by the grace and work of God, He now gives us purpose and meaning
for our lives. He has prepared us by the Gospel to shine His light into the world.
Matthew 5:13-16
"You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again?
It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. {14}
"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; {15} "nor does anyone light a
lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
{16} "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify
your Father who is in heaven.
God's people on earth stand out as different. We serve to preserve, as salt, that which would
quickly decay. We stand as a beacon in the midst of the darkness. Christ chooses to use us as
His humble servants to shine His light into the world. The goal and purpose of which is to glorify
God in heaven.
Acts 26:22-23
"So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, stating
nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place; {23} that the Christ was to
suffer, and that by reason of His resurrection from the dead He would be the first to proclaim light
both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles."
The apostle Paul understood that the greatest privilege and responsibility he had as a Christians
was to share the Gospel with others.