Second Sunday after the Epiphany

Message: “Come and See: Love Forms a People”

Scripture: Exodus 19:3–6; 1 Peter 2:9–10

Good morning, church.

Today I want to keep one simple phrase in front of us:

Come and see.

Sometimes we think faith is mostly about ideas we agree with, or rules we follow.
But the Bible often begins with an invitation. Come close. Come near. Stay long enough to notice what God is doing.

And these two readings, Exodus 19 and 1 Peter 2, show us something bigger than personal comfort.

Yes, God loves individuals. God heals individuals. God carries individuals.
But God’s love does not stop there.

God’s love forms a people.

Not a club. Not a brand. Not a group of religious consumers.
A people held together by mercy, shaped by a calling, and sent to be a blessing.

So, come and see.

1) Come and see what comes first: grace

Exodus 19 begins with God reminding Israel of their story:

“You have seen what I did… how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”

That picture, eagles’ wings, is not only poetry. It is theology.

God is saying, “You did not save yourselves. I carried you.”

And notice the order.

God does not begin with, “Here are the rules.”
God begins with, “Here is what I have already done for you.”

That is a gospel pattern.

God does not say, “Obey me so I can love you.”
God says, “I have loved you. Now learn to live inside that love.”

So if you came today tired, discouraged, or spiritually behind, hear this clearly:

Your faith is not held together by your performance.
It is held together by God’s mercy.

And God says, “I brought you to myself.”

Not only out of trouble, but into relationship. Into belonging. Into covenant.

2) Come and see what covenant means: God makes “we”

Then God says:

“If you will indeed listen to my voice and keep my covenant,
you shall be my treasured possession…
and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”

When God says “covenant,” God is not talking about a cold contract.
Covenant is love with commitment. Love with a promise. Love that creates shared life.

Covenant is how God turns a crowd into a people.

And we have to hear the next line carefully.

Right after calling them “treasured,” God says:

“Indeed, the whole earth is mine.”

That sentence matters because it protects us from misunderstanding “chosen.”

God is not saying, “I love you and I do not care about anyone else.”
God is saying, “The whole earth is mine. My heart is for the world.”

So why does God draw a people close?

Not so they can feel superior, but so God’s love can become visible through a real community.

In other words, God chooses a people so the world can see what God is like.

3) Come and see what “chosen” really means: chosen for others

Now we come to the key phrase:

“a kingdom of priests.”

A priest is someone who stands in the middle.

A priest helps people bring their burdens to God, sometimes with words, sometimes with silence, sometimes with tears.
A priest also helps people taste God’s mercy in real life, through presence, through care, through truth, through forgiveness.

So when God calls Israel a “kingdom of priests,” God is saying:

“I am choosing you for others. I am forming you to be a bridge.”

This is the deeper meaning of being chosen:

Chosen does not mean “better than.”
Chosen means “for.”

For blessing.
For service.
For witness.
For mercy to reach places it has not reached yet.

That means being God’s people is not a private label. It is a public calling.

4) Come and see what “holy” means: set apart for love

God also says, “a holy nation.”

“Holy” can sound like “perfect” or “untouchable.”
But in the Bible, holy means “set apart.” It means belonging to God’s purpose.

Holiness is not about being above people.
Holiness is about being different for the sake of love.

A holy people is not a people who never struggle.
A holy people is a people who keeps returning to God’s mercy, and letting God reshape their habits.

And that reshaping does not happen in isolation.

You cannot learn patience by yourself.
You cannot learn forgiveness by yourself.
You cannot learn truthful love by yourself.

You learn those things in community, where love becomes practice, not just an idea.

So God is not only saving us from sin. God is teaching us how to live a new kind of life, together.

5) Come and see who you are in Christ: Peter speaks Exodus over the church

Now fast forward to 1 Peter.

Peter is writing to Christians who are scattered and pressured, people trying to hold onto faith in a hard world.
And he says:

“You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people…”

That is Exodus language.

Peter is saying, “In Christ, God is still doing the same thing. God is forming a priestly people.”

Then Peter gives the purpose:

“so that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.”

That word “proclaim” is not only about talking.
It is also about living in a way that points to God.

A church proclaims when our life together says something true:

Mercy is real.
Grace can rebuild people.
Forgiveness is possible.
Love can cross divides.

Then Peter adds a line that makes everything personal and humbling:

“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.”

That is the foundation.

We are not a people because we are impressive.
We are not a people because we match perfectly.
We are a people because mercy found us.

So the emotional tone of the church should not be pride. It should be gratitude.
And the posture of the church should not be guarded and closed. It should be open and welcoming, because mercy makes room.

6) Come and see what the church is for: a living sign of God’s light

Here is a deeper theological point, said simply:

God forms the church so the church can become a living sign of God’s light.

Not a perfect sign.
Not a flawless family.

A real community where someone can say, “I can see what God’s mercy looks like. I can feel it.”

That is why worship matters. That is why prayer matters. Not just as habits, but because they form us into a people who can carry mercy into the world.

And often, the sending is not far away first.

Often it is across the room.
Across a misunderstanding.
Across an awkward silence.
Across a difference.

Praxis Moment: Come and see, across a difference

So here is the practice for this week. Simple, realistic, and brave.

This week, build one small bridge.

Reach out to one person you do not usually talk with.
Not because they are a project.
Not because you need to fix them.
Just because mercy makes room.

It could be someone older or younger.
Someone new.
Someone you have avoided because you did not know what to say.

And you do not need a speech.

Try one simple sentence:

“Hi, how are you doing, really?”
or
“What has been heavy lately?”
or
“What has been good lately?”

Then listen. Do not rush.

And when the conversation ends, you can say:

“Thank you for sharing that. I’m glad we talked.”

That is priestly work.
That is what it means to be chosen for others.
That is how love forms a people, one conversation at a time.

Closing

Church, come and see.

Come and see what God has done. God carried you.
Come and see what God is doing. God is forming a people held together by mercy.
Come and see what God can do through us. God can make our church a place where love feels real.

So may God’s mercy meet you again today.
And may God shape us into a priestly people, bridges of grace in a divided world.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.