We are All Missionaries and Priests

1 Peter 2:9-12

    9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
    11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, 12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

We who are in Christ by grace are both stones of the spiritual temple for God to dwell in and priests of the Most High King living and serving in it.  Together we are His people, a spiritual Israel of chosen ones who have been called out of the deep darkness of sin into the marvelous shekinah glory of inapproachable light. We are called out to speak out all the wondrous things God has done in His Son, praising Him for this gospel and calling others to admit their treason of sin against their maker that they may have eyes and hearts opened to hear, believe, turn, and join us in Christ by His mercy and justifying grace.  For those of us who know Him thus already, we should continue to implore each other to avoid further sin, having been forgiven and cleansed from it for salvation.  We are now aliens and wanderers in this world because we await our heavenly country, but we must war against the ungodly desires and actions in this life to prepare for eternity.  Our behavior should reflect Christ as we leave little to nothing for those still in the darkness to leverage against us, but rather we should do the good works we were created and predetermined to do (Ephesians 2:10) to give glory to the God working in us.  Our testimony is in our yielding to Christ in loving obedience that He might be seen living in and through each of us.  Let us glorify our Lord and bring the praise due Him by sayin ‘no’ to sin and ‘yes’ to Jesus for we are all missionaries and priests to our great God and Savior.