1 Peter 2:9

This Saturday Scripture will be a lot shorter than normal. While you're reading this, I am in the woods with my scholarship organization, probably rafting or caving. Therefore, I didn't think about scheduling out my Saturday Scripture earlier in the week, so this one will be shorter. I will probably add it to Quick Thoughts as well!

Scripture:

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.

What it Says:

Yes, this is one verse. I told you it'd be shorter this week! In this verse, Peter is writing to new believers, showing them that they can truly cast off the chains of sin and telling them why that's the case.

The one thing that I want to focus on is the first portion of the verse "chosen race". This type of wording is one that a Calvinist could use to bolster their view of the Word. (Just a disclaimer, I am no more Arminian than I am Calvinist. I take scripture as God's Word and believe that both camps have good ideas.)

What it Means:

The Calvinist might say that the wording shows that God chooses us and that we do not choose Him, but that would be adding on to the text. When we look at the analogy of Jesus and the Church to marriage, then we can see this idea fall away pretty quickly. When two people get married, it wasn't that one of them chose to do so, both did. By the same token, when we get saved, the scripture clearly states that we are chosen by God, but nowhere does it show that we also did not choose Him.

When some people restrict scripture to talking about a single free choice agent, they are simply adding onto or taking away from the Word where it doesn't need any help. I won't be getting into the discussion of libertarian free will, determinism, indeterminism, etc. today, but I may at some point look at those ideas.

How We Should Respond:

This isn't the end all be all to every Calvinist argument, and of course, there are arguments against Arminianism as well, but this study was for the purpose of remembering that God's Word does not need any help in what it's doing.

We have to be careful how we're "interpreting" scripture to make sure that we aren't already reading it from a certain perspective other than it being God's Word. We shouldn't read it through the lens of Calvinism or Arminianism, denomination, or any area where differing ideas can lead to the addition to, or removal of, meaning from the text.

This can be difficult. The Bible is challenging for everyone, so yes, even the wisest and most mature Christians can wrestle with certain scriptures because of a personal conviction.

Let me know if you liked this topic and would like more Saturday Scriptures to be focused on Biblical doctrine!