Hempfield UMC

Conduct yourselves honorably among the Gentiles, so that when they slander you as evildoers, they will observe your good works and will glorify God on the day he visits. (1 Peter 2:12) Pastor John’s Notes: Our witness to the world takes more than mere words. We must demonstrate the truth of the gospel in our actions. In fact, our actions should come first. Even though our behavior might be blameless and our intentions noble, people will still oppose us. Still…

Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul. (1 Peter 2:11) Pastor John’s Notes: As members of the church, the body of Christ, we are to live in a new and different way. We are to become a holy people. Holiness is the word we use to define the character of God, and because we are now the people of God, we are to take on the characteristics…

Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:10) Pastor John’s Notes: Peter is inviting us to think back to the time when we were not members of God’s household. He wants us to remember what it was like not to have received the mercy of God. So let’s consider this for a moment. Without the mercy of God, we carry the burden…

For it stands in Scripture: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and honored cornerstone, and the one who believes in him will never be put to shame.” So honor will come to you who believe; but for the unbelieving, “The stone that the builders rejected—this one has become the cornerstone,”  and “A stone to stumble over, and a rock to trip over.” They stumble because they disobey the word; they were destined for this. But you are…