Who Is This God?
A Sermon on 1 Peter 2:9
Originally preached April 22, 1962
Scripture
9But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
Sermon Description
What is the greatest problem in the world? In this sermon on 1 Peter 2:9 titled “Who Is This God?” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches that it is not how to stop war, or end famine, but it is how a holy God can forgive sinners. This is the great enigma of human existence, for all are born in sin and in a fallen state wholly opposed to God and His righteous law. God must punish sin because he is holy and just. How can this be resolved? Dr. Lloyd-Jones brings forth the great hope because God sent his only Son, Jesus Christ, to die a sinner’s death so that the law might be fulfilled. Sinners can be saved because of what God has done in Christ Jesus by repenting of their sins and believing in Christ. All who believe are given a new nature that seeks God and desires holiness. Christ is the head of a new humanity that is being perfected and brought to completion as the Holy Spirit enlightens their minds and grants them eyes of faith to see God’s truth. This is the result of God pouring out His love and grace on undeserving sinners, making them new creatures in Christ Jesus.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon text comes from 1 Peter 2:9 which describes Christians as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a peculiar people.
- The sermon was delivered on Easter Sunday to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Without the resurrection, there would be no Christian church or faith.
- The resurrection demonstrates the power and glory of God. It is one of the "wonderful works of God."
- The meaning and significance of the resurrection is that it displays the character and attributes of God. It shows his grace, mercy, kindness, wisdom, love, and power.
- God's grace is shown in that he sent Jesus to save sinful and rebellious humanity even though we deserve punishment. Grace is God's favor to the undeserving.
- God's mercy, pity, and kindness are shown in that he saw our misery in sin and had compassion on us. He felt sorry for us and sent Jesus to save us.
- God's wisdom is shown in devising a way to forgive sins while remaining just. Sending Jesus to live a sinless life, defeat the devil, and die for our sins was the only solution.
- God's love is shown in sacrificing his own Son to save us from our sins and reconcile us to himself.
- God's power is shown in raising Jesus from the dead, defeating death itself. This gives us hope that God can raise us from death as well.
- God calls us out of darkness into light, regenerating us and making us new creations in Christ. This demonstrates his power to change and transform lives.
- Christians show forth God's praises by what he has done in them, is doing in them, and will continue to do in them. We grow in Christ and are kept by God's power.
- If we are not praising God for all he has done, we do not truly know him and are not truly Christians. We must turn to him in faith to be saved.
Other Sermons
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.