The Regular Guys Bible Study
The Regular Guys Bible Study podcast -- RGBS -- is a podcast for regular guys by regular guys (not theologians) studying the Bible together. It's brought to you by a couple of goofy guys who just want to study the Bible together and show you that anyone can read and study the Bible. In fact, you SHOULD read and study the Bible yourself. We're here to show you how we do it, and, hopefully, we can have some fun along the way.
The Regular Guys Bible Study
1 Peter 2:1-12
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What if embracing ancient wisdom could revolutionize your daily life? Join us on the Regular Guys Bible Study Podcast as we unravel the depth of 1 Peter 2:1-12. We kick off with a heartfelt discussion on shedding negative traits like malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander, while exploring the metaphor of believers as living stones in a spiritual house with Jesus as the cornerstone. Our conversation takes a deep dive into the nuanced phrasing of the text, probing the significance of terms like "beloved" and the transformative call to be a chosen race, a royal priesthood, and a holy nation tasked with proclaiming God's excellencies.
This episode also delves into the concept of spiritual sacrifices, emphasizing that physical sacrifices are now obsolete due to Jesus Christ's ultimate sacrifice. We explore what it means to die to oneself daily and take up one's cross for Christ, referencing Isaiah 28:16 and Psalm 118:22 to highlight the cornerstone metaphor for Jesus and its implications for those who reject Him. As we candidly reflect on the struggles of living an honorable life and our own personal shortcomings, we encourage listeners to continue reading 1 Peter 2 for our next session. Thanks for joining us, and we can't wait to continue our journey together.
You are listening to the Regular Guys Bible Study Podcast, the Bible study for regular guys by regular guys. We are your hosts, ken and Steve, and we are just regular guys studying the Bible together, not theologians. Really good, steve gosh, that was pathetic. I didn't do anything. We all heard you doing that little. It was you.
Speaker 2You're the pathetic one.
Speaker 1All right, steve, how are you doing?
Speaker 2Kind of tired, but I'm okay.
Speaker 1You seem to be at work a long time today. What were you doing Catching up?
Speaker 2after vacation. You seem to be at work a long time today. What were you doing? Catching?
Speaker 1up after vacation.
Speaker 2You know, you can catch up at home, I think, beth just threw out the catch up.
Speaker 1I like the dramatic pause while you thought of what funny thing can I say, oh man, all right, steve. Well, we are on second Peter today. We are, and I don't think we're going to get through the whole thing. In fact I don't think we should even try. I think we should try to get through the first half.
Speaker 2So we'll go from 1 through 12.
Speaker 1Yes, so we are going to read first. Yeah, read and discuss 1 Peter, 1 through 12. If you haven't read it, as always, pause and go read it, because you will be much better off if you read it first. Oh, zoom just said, my internet is unstable I you had dropped out for a second.
Speaker 2Oh, oh let's hope this turns out okay let's hope it works out this.
Speaker 1Uh, we are doing one of our rare remote recording sessions and we'll just see what happens?
Speaker 2Let's hope it's medium rare.
Speaker 1All right.
Speaker 2That is tasty, I prefer medium rare.
Speaker 1Yeah, yeah, all right. So we are looking for a tasty podcast, juicy. All right, steve. Tasty podcast um. Juicy all right, steve um. Why don't you know what I need to turn on my do not disturb thing I already did yeah, I did not.
Speaker 2Okay, well, you're playing with that, I'll go ahead and read why don't you start reading?
Speaker 1So, hey, okay, stop right there. What do we say about? So Needle and a thread? No, we say what's it so for?
Speaker 2No, I don't think we do.
Speaker 1Oh well, okay. The truth is, though, when it says so, it's the same as saying, therefore, right, because he just said something and that's why he says so.
Speaker 2And he was talking about them being called to be holy.
Speaker 1Yes, but not just being called to be holy. But, yes, you're right, but it's also about we're only here for a little while. Right, we are like grass that withers and flowers that fade, but the word of the Lord remains forever. All right Now, and because of that so.
Speaker 2So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into salvation, if indeed you have tasted that. The Lord is good as you come to him. A living stone, rejected by men but in the sight of God, chosen and precious, you yourselves, like living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone, chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. So the honor is for you who believe.
Speaker 2But for those who do not believe, the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense. They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession. That you may proclaim the excellencies of him, who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy. All right, thanks, steve, they speak against you as evildoers. They may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.
Speaker 1All right, Thanks, Steve. I have a question. You know you said beloved in that sentence. Do you believe that people who haven't gone to church their whole life say beloved or beloved?
Speaker 2I don't know.
Speaker 1I don't either.
Speaker 2I bet most people would say beloved.
Speaker 1I think so too, and sort of like we would say blessed is the name of the Lord instead of blessed is the name of the Lord.
Speaker 2Is that because we're familiar a little with King James Version?
Speaker 1Maybe I think for me it's from growing up in a Baptist church and that's how it was said. But I just sorry it's a sidetrack, but I just noticed you said beloved and that's how I read it too Beloved.
Speaker 2Okay, all right, so I have a question.
Speaker 1Yeah, Steve.
Speaker 2But I want you to read the first sentence, or the first verse of the chapter. That's what my question is going to be about.
Speaker 1Okay, so put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.
Speaker 2So hypocrisy and envy, we can keep some of it.
Speaker 1You know what I think, you know, I did notice this, but I kind of think it's all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy and envy and all slander.
Speaker 2Yeah, because hypocrisy is kind of like deceit. Maybe I don't see envy as deceit.
Speaker 1You know, I don't really understand why he put, why all is there? A couple of times.
Speaker 2Three times Three times all is there and of times Three times. Three times all is there and then two times it's not.
Speaker 1I'm going to look at the New International Version and see what that says. Therefore, rid yourself of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. Yeah, so same here. You know, it says all malice and all deceit. And then it says hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. Um, you know what that could say? Um, that kind of reads in the niv like all malice and all deceit and then kind of describes some of that hypocrisy, envy and slander of every kind. I don't know, I don't like it.
Speaker 2Yeah, I don't really understand if there's really a distinction here or not. I suspect there's not.
Speaker 1Yeah, I think it's, let's see. Okay, here's why, steve, this makes a lot of sense if you think about it All malice, what is malice?
Speaker 2Isn't that a spice in your spice drawer? What? I don't know that's like mace or something.
Speaker 1No, mace is what you spray in the bad guy's eyes when they come running at you.
Speaker 2Malice, I think, is anger. It's just bad stuff, right.
Speaker 1It's just evil. So it's a very generic word. So all malice and then deceit, Deceit can be multiple ways of lying. I mean it can be lying, it can be just not telling the whole truth. You know deceit, which can be multiple things, and then hypocrisy. You know deceit, which can be multiple things.
Speaker 2And then hypocrisy, you know what. Right now I'm sitting on deceit.
Speaker 1Should I put it away?
Speaker 2I'd have to stand up.
Speaker 1That's a different kind of seat. We're not talking about seats, we're talking about d seats. So that's why I'm standing by the way I'm at my standing desk. Um, all right, hypocrisy is hypocrisy and envy. Those are the two things he doesn't say all about. Right? Are there multiple types of hypocrisy and envy?
Speaker 2I don't know.
Speaker 1So I think he's using that because we have all malice. Malice covers a lot of things. All deceit, that covers several things. Hypocrisy and envy are maybe one thing, and then slander. I would think slander is one thing. Darn it, I don't know, steve.
Speaker 2There's one thing, darn it. I don't know, steve, you want to know what the strong definitions of these words are. Sure, so from malice we have badness, ie depravity, malignity, trouble, evil, maliciousness, naughtiness, wickedness. For deceit we have something, probably meaning to decoy a trick, wile or wily, I guess.
Speaker 1Wily.
Speaker 2Craft, deceit, guile sub. How can you use deceit in the same definition of deceit? That's just stupid Hypocrisy. We have acting under a feigned part. Deceit, condemnation, dissimulation, okay, envy Ill will, jealousy, slander, backbiting.
Speaker 1Evil defamation. Okay, um, you know what I defamated several times today, actually that's a different word no, I, I, I went number two, steve, defamate you slandered yourself oh, it's defecate. Okay, I'm just as stupid as steve listening to me, logical humor is the best.
Speaker 1Okay, all right, we have really stayed on this one verse a long time, but no, not, not really. We are defining the stuff, the things, way too long. But let me ask you this, steve this is a commandment. We are being commanded to put away all of these things. Have you put away all these things?
Speaker 2I will be honest and say no, I will be honest I don't think it's possible.
Speaker 1I will be honest and say for the most part, but no I agree, there are still times that I might talk about somebody and yeah it's sort of slanderous.
Speaker 2Yeah, and there are still times I'm occasional, occasionally envious of someone like me not you I can be a hypocrite at times.
Speaker 1Um you can, I can, yes, you steve um, so I can definitely be a hypocrite yeah, I know, believe me, um, no, um. So anyway, we're being asked to put away those, are told not put away all these things, and then he gives us another commandment. What is the next commandment?
Speaker 2Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk that by it you may grow up into salvation.
Speaker 1All right. So what does that mean? All right? So what does that mean? Long for pure spiritual milk, mama, mama, I'm hungry. Mama, hey, hold on, I think somebody's hungry. Oh, it was you. Oh gosh, this is horrible Steve.
Speaker 2But you know it is, this is not a good episode.
Speaker 1Just turn it off now. No, don't turn it off, because it's not about whether Steve and I are funny or not. It's about the Word of God. So babies.
Speaker 2They cry for food when they're hungry. And he's telling us to cry for, I guess, spiritual wisdom.
Speaker 1Man, that was pretty, pretty good there, steve. So you're right Babies and you don't even have you know never experienced the crying for milk.
Speaker 2Oh, believe me, I'm one of those people that, because I don't have kids, I hear every single one of them crying in a restaurant or a theater or a plane, and it drives me insane. That's funny, whereas those of you that have had 16 of them are used to it.
Speaker 1That's funny. Yes, I was on a plane not too long ago and there was a baby crying right next to me and right across the aisle the person was so irritated by the baby crying and I thought it was funny that this person was so irritated by this baby crying. It's like, yeah, sister, baby crying, who cares? Um, all right, so like, a baby longs for that milk and let's like they must have it. If you've ever seen an like, if you're watching, uh, baby hungry, baby porn, um, when those babies latch on to the nipple man, it's like, oh, yes, I'm sorry but it's true.
Speaker 2I don't know, is there such a thing as you just said? I don't know, because there's something extremely wrong with that?
Speaker 1No, no, look. Well, okay, the truth is there. Probably is because there's a lot of sick people out there, but it was. I was just looking at one right now.
Speaker 1I was just joking about, um, seeing my child, um, you know, it's like so hungry and then it's like, oh, they finally get it and they're like, just like, their eyes are like just bulging out, it's like going like oh, this is so good, um, so, um. We should be like that. That's how we should be about the word of god oh, the word of god, okay, gosh ah, that by it you may grow up into salvation.
Speaker 1So it's food. It's food, it's nourishment, and it says if indeed you have tasted that, the Lord is good. So if we really think that God is good and that and later it talks about believing that Jesus is the son of God and is raised from the dead, if we believe, if we really believe in that, then we will really thirst after knowing God and just craving that spiritual milk, as they say here All right, let they say here All right, let's move on. Man, I don't even know where to go with that.
Speaker 2All right.
Speaker 1Yeah, let's move on. Okay, do you have any notes on this section, steve?
Speaker 2I do.
Speaker 1Okay, so this is where we talk about the stone that the builders rejected.
Speaker 2In Isaiah 28, 16, it says Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. Whoever believes will not be in haste. From somewhere in verse 6.
Speaker 1Will not be in haste. What does that mean?
Speaker 2Yeah, that part I don't quite get Will not be in a hurry.
Speaker 1That's strange.
Speaker 2Okay To hurry, figuratively to be eager with excitement or enjoyment. Okay, quickly, I don't know, does that make sense?
Speaker 1Say the verse again.
Speaker 2Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone of a sure foundation. I actually like that better yeah.
Speaker 1So you know, oftentimes when you see quotes in the New Testament, they are slightly different. Why that is? Well, I've heard that one reason that is is because they are translating the Old is in Hebrew, the Old Testament's in Hebrew, and this is in Greek Testament's in Hebrew and this is in Greek, and so you know it's translated into the same meaning, and so you might say that this is. You know, peter is saying that's what that meant when he quotes.
Speaker 2And it's closer to a modern language, so it might be easier for us to understand.
Speaker 1Right, okay. So the very first verse of this section says, as you come to him, a living stone, rejected by men, but in the sight of God chosen and precious. What is this? Why does it say a living stone?
Speaker 2It's referring to Jesus.
Speaker 1Okay, right. So it's not just a rock, we're talking about a living person, as this stone, it's the rock of ages, the rock of ages, the rock of ages. Yes, I don't know where that comes from, but I it's somewhere in the bible from an old hymn I know but, I believe that comes from a verse, probably um.
Speaker 1So anyway, we're talking about jesus as you come to him, a living stone rejected by men. So that was jesus rejected by men, um, but in the sight of god, chosen and precious, uh, you yourselves like living stones, so us, like living, are being built as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. So later on it kind of makes more sense because it calls Jesus the cornerstone, right? I mean you read that. Jesus is the cornerstone, chosen and precious.
Speaker 2Which starts the foundation, so that the rest of the building can be built.
Speaker 1Right, so we are bricks or stones Houses um or stones house, and we are also stones, but, but jesus is the cornerstone that holds us together or gives us strength.
Understanding Spiritual Sacrifices and Chosen Races
Speaker 2You might say yep, I think that's accurate. But what are spiritual sacrifices? Because we're supposed to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1Okay, do you have an answer.
Speaker 2No, I asked the question. Okay, you were supposed to have the answer.
Speaker 1All right. Well, I wish I had asked the question first and then I could act like you are an idiot.
Speaker 2Instead, you get to act like I am the idiot Just because I beat you to it. Yep.
Speaker 1Okay, so this is why I think it says that, first of all, first of all, we no longer have to offer physical sacrifices, right, because Jesus is the last physical sacrifice. His blood was the penultimate sacrifice for our sin, right.
Speaker 2Penultimate. What is penultimate? The second to last? I think you mean ultimate.
Speaker 1Ultimate. Why did I say penultimate? Then steve because he's coming back maybe not sure, sacrificed again or left, I think so I told you, steve, I get to be the idiot this time you yes, this time. Okay so all right. So he is the ultimate sacrifice. So that means the physical sacrifices are done. What are spiritual sacrifices?
Speaker 2I think that's what you asked. That's the question I asked, and so. I do like your explanation so far except for the second-to-last sacrifice.
Speaker 1So first of all, you know, I would think….
Speaker 2You broke up there a little, all right. Well, if you're going to do that, I'm going to come up with what I think.
Speaker 1A spiritual sacrifice could be Okay, but let me just tell you what I was doing, though, Steve, because it's from a Seinfeld thing. They asked George who his favorite poet is, and he says Slavin. So that's what I was doing was it was a seinfeld joke, gosh you watch way too much seinfeld chris would have gotten it yeah, but it's not funny and my kids would have gotten it gosh. Okay, all right. You know what? If you think you know, go ahead and I can tell you how wrong you are.
Speaker 2I think we are supposed to die to ourselves daily and that could be a spiritual sacrifice man, if you were holding that mic, you could drop it right now.
Speaker 1I actually did not hear that really I heard it. I didn't hear it here.
Speaker 2Huh, that's weird all right, so you must like that answer that's a really good answer.
Speaker 1Um, you know, paul says to um, take up your cross daily, which is the same thing. Right, you take up your cross daily. So that means you are putting yourself. It's the same thing you just said, really. But we sacrifice ourselves for the sake of Christ. Yep, all right, that's a good Christ.
Speaker 2Yep.
Speaker 1All right, that's a good answer.
Speaker 2Yay.
Speaker 1All right. So then he says this quote from Scripture that you just read when did you say it was Isaiah 28, 16. Okay, and then he says all right, right, so he talks about christ there. Um, just again. It says behold, I lay in zion a stone, a cornerstone, chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. And then it says so the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe. And then another quote the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. So I don't really understand how that is like against those who do not believe.
Speaker 2The stone that the builders rejected those are the ones who didn't believe has become the cornerstone. Oh, the stone of stumbling in a rock of offense comes next.
Speaker 1That makes sense. Okay, I know why. It's because the builders these are the builders right, they're building this building and they tossed this stone aside because it wasn't good enough for the building and now they keep tripping over it. But now they're tripping over it and it actually is the cornerstone of that building, even though they tossed it aside.
Speaker 2Yep, I think you're on to something there.
Speaker 1All right, and just so you in case you don't know, these are the Jews who have rejected Christ, and really anyone. Peter, though, is really talking about the Jews who rejected Christ, I believe.
Speaker 2But he's talking to Jews that have accepted Christ. Right, right. Do you want me to read where that snippet comes from? Yes, I do so. It's Psalm 118, verse 22, but I think it's better to start at 19. Open to me the gates of righteousness that I may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord. The righteous shall enter through it. I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the day.
Speaker 1This is the day that the Lord has made that the.
Speaker 2Lord has, I will rejoice.
Speaker 1It's too low for me. I'm a tenor. Sorry, Steve.
Speaker 2I thought you were like a fiver or a sixer, never a tenor.
Speaker 1Oh yeah, the master gave me the ten talents. All right, moving on. And then I buried him because I know he's a harsh master we should uh speed it up a little here, I think all right. So, um, they stumble. It says they stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. So, um, you know, we sometimes we like to give the jews a hard time because they didn't believe, but the truth is that's what they were destined to do.
Speaker 2Also, that's what they were there for Yep.
Speaker 1All right, so why don't we go on to the next section or the next paragraph? That is and I'll reread that paragraph it says but you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God's people. Once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
Speaker 2So that first verse there where it does the chosen race, royal priesthood, holy nation. There is reference after reference of where all that comes from, but I'm not going to read them all. Yeah.
Speaker 1There's lots of Old Testament stuff.
Speaker 2Mm-hmm.
Speaker 1So, all right, let's talk about a chosen race, because that sounds racist. Who is he talking about here?
Speaker 2Children of Abraham.
Speaker 1Okay, what does that mean?
Speaker 2The Jewish people.
Speaker 1All right. So he's saying you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession. Does that really mean I'm just going to say it here Steve, a skin color?
Speaker 2I don't think so. It's more about genealogy.
Speaker 1Okay. Is it about genealogy or any converted Jew?
Speaker 2Well, it is that too.
Speaker 1Because there were ways to become a Jew without being part of the genealogy which now you can do it by accepting christ yes, that's right. So the chosen race, the I think this is Go ahead.
Speaker 2No go ahead. I was going to say I think this is talking about the Jewish people prior to Christ's coming and I'll be honest, I think they were given a bum deal Because if you look at their history, the stuff they went through because they disobeyed which I'm pretty sure they were destined to do, I mean sometimes I wonder if it wasn't better to not be the chosen race. I mean they certainly had periods of blessing, but for some reason the whole world hates Jews and I don't quite get it.
Speaker 1That is true.
Speaker 2And the only answer I can come up with is the devil made them do it. It doesn't make a lot of sense that the whole world or so many around the world would hate certain people.
Speaker 1Yeah, I don't quite understand that.
Speaker 2Okay, what else, Steve? Well, have you ever wondered what sort of darkness you would be in now if you hadn't been called out of it?
Speaker 1No, I haven't. I guess I should Let me think about this. You know what? I don't even know, if I can, I've been so far removed from that.
Speaker 2So I can think back to past decisions. You know you could choose this or that and I can envision where some of those, if I'd gone the other way, would have been super bad. But there's also other decisions I made that I was protected from bad things even though I was making the wrong decision.
Speaker 1All right. Well, steve, when I think back about this, now that you have jarred my memory, you know when I was in junior high and hopefully some of my junior high friends are listening to this but when I was in junior high, some of my friends started smoking pot and drinking wild turkey before school in our little circle that we met in before school.
Speaker 2How do you get through the day? That sounds horrible.
Speaker 1And you know, I ended up distancing myself from that friend group and I would say God called me out of that friend group and if I had stayed in there, there's no way I wouldn't have started doing those things. So I don't know, I could be in a pretty bad place. Yeah, regardless.
Speaker 2All sorts of different things could have happened. You could have gotten in a car accident because of drunk driving or overdosed on something I don't know. I could be homeless.
Speaker 1You could be living on the street right now, but you know what. You know what else. I could be a CEO of a big company and lost so lost that it doesn't matter.
Speaker 2Right.
Speaker 1So, regardless of what would have happened there, it's darkness.
Speaker 2You bring up a good point, though that you can still have a lot of darkness even though you're successful by the world's standards.
Speaker 1Yeah, I've heard some pretty horrible things about the CEO men's club. Very seedy.
Speaker 2All right, let's see. That's all I had.
Honesty in Bible Study Discussion
Speaker 1All right. Then it says the very last paragraph beloved, I urge you, as sojourners and exiles, to abstain from passions of the flesh which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the gentiles honorable, okay, uh, so let me speak against you as evildoers. They may see your good deeds and glorify god in the day of visitation. Um, it's kind of kind of a recap of how he started this right, just like live a good life. When people see you live in your life, let them man. This dude's pretty awesome, so that's how we should do it we should.
Speaker 2I don't know that I always do that all that well, hmm, well you know, what I think. Most people think of me as somewhat honorable, but I'm sure there are times where I do things or say things that are not.
Speaker 1Yeah, yeah, yeah, me too, all right, well, oh, shoot, our Zoom is running out of time.
Speaker 2We are out of time, but we're at the end of the section, so I think it's okay, all right.
Speaker 1Well, I think that's it, guys, read the rest of 1 Peter 2 for next time. All right, see you then, yep.
Speaker 2See you guys.
Speaker 1Bye the Regular Guys. Bible Study is a Chasm LLC production. All rights reserved.