BUILT ON THE CORNERSTONE
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on November 7, 2018 under AM Bible Study |
AM Bible Study Group: November 7, 2018 from 1 Peter 2:4-8a
Theme: We are being built together upon Jesus Christ into a holy temple unto God.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
Upon what is your life being built? Or to put the question another way, “What is your cornerstone?”
In our day, a cornerstone in a modern building is usually only symbolic. But in ancient times, a cornerstone was the most important element in the whole structure. Builders would carefully select one large stone that would determine the position, structure, and stability of the whole building. All the other stones would be placed in reference to it.
The Bible tells us a great deal about building on the right spiritual ‘cornerstone’. In Isaiah 28:14-16, for example, it teaches us it is God alone who lays the true cornerstone for life. Men may reject this stone; but as Psalm 118:22-23 teaches us, God nevertheless exalts its value. And as Isaiah 8:12-15 shows us, all people are tested and judged on the basis of what they do with the stone that God sets. And as that passage in Isaiah 8 shows us, the true ‘cornerstone’ is a Person.
The apostle Peter drew heavily from those Old Testament passages when he wrote to his believing Jewish brethren who had placed their faith on that cornerstone—Jesus Christ. They had been suffering for their faith and they may have wondered if they had been built upon the correct cornerstone; but he wanted to assure them that they had. He spoke to them in 1 Peter 2:3 about having tasted and seen that the Lord is good; and told them;
Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,
“Behold, I lay in Zion
A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient,
“The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone,”
and
“A stone of stumbling
And a rock of offense” (1 Peter 2:4-8a).
* * * * * * * * * * *
Consider the things that Peter told them in this passage about this cornerstone. First, notice that it is …
1. THE STONE THAT WAS GIVEN BY GOD (v. 4).
He speaks of his believing friends in this way: “Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious …” And here, we’re told certain things about our Lord.
First, we’re told that He is a “stone”. A stone is something solid and unmovable—something strong and reliable—something that does not change. Peter himself was called a stone once (Matthew 16:16-18; where he was called Petros). But the word that Peter used in our passage this morning is a different word (lithos). It speaks of a stone that has been worked and prepared and beautified for a special use. And that’s what our Lord is. He is our God-appointed, specially prepared “stone”. He will not change with the times. He is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is perfectly prepared for our needs. We can build our whole eternity upon Him.
Second, notice what kind of stone we’re told that He is. He is not an inanimate stone as would ordinarily be used in a building. Rather, our Lord is a ‘living’ stone. He is personal. He never changes; but He Himself is relational and compassionate to those who are needy and who love Him. His ‘living’ character is shown to us in His resurrection. He was dead, but now is alive forever more; and He is able to give life to all who are connected to Him and who build their lives upon Him.
Thirdly, we’re told that He is a stone rejected by men. He came as God’s promised cornerstone; but men rejected Him. He came to His own, but His own did not receive Him. They did not want Him. And yet, that didn’t change anything with regard to God’s purpose; because we’re told, fourthly, that Jesus was still a stone “chosen by God and precious”. He’s the only stone given by God upon which to build a life that is pleasing to Him.
Now; just as a cornerstone is the basis of a solid structure, this is also true of our Lord. Peter goes on to tell us about …
2. THE TEMPLE WHICH IS BEING BUILT ON THIS STONE (v. 5).
Peter spoke of “coming” to Jesus as to a “living stone”; and the word translated “coming” is put in the present tense of the verb—suggesting that many are continually coming to Him. More and more are coming to this ‘living stone’ every day; and so he writes, “you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
Notice what Peter says we, who are coming to Him, are in an individual sense. Like our Lord, we are “living stones”. Our function as stones, however, is not like His. Only He is the cornerstone. Instead, we are the building material—the individual stones—that are being built up upon Him. I’m not the building all by myself, and neither are you. We are ‘living stones’ together; each one put in place in reference to our Lord by the Holy Spirit, and active in the lives we are enabled to be alive by Him.
And notice also what it is that we’re being built up to be. We’re not just any old building, but rather are something special—something holy. We’re a “spiritual house”—a holy temple. Because it’s spiritual, it is, therefore, something made by the Holy Spirit—not made by human hands. And as spiritual, it’s built for spiritual purposes. This world has nothing to do with the formation or function of it; nor can the world even understand it or relate to it.
Furthermore, as living stones of a spiritual house, notice also what it is for which we’ve been constituted together. We are built for “a holy priesthood”. We who are the living stones of the temple are also the priests who serve in it! We are not a priesthood that sets itself apart for God’s use on our own initiative; but rather are set up by God as a “holy’ priesthood for His holy purposes.
And finally, notice what it is our privilege to do together. We are called to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. The sacrifices we offer aren’t like the ones in the Old Testament priesthood. Those sacrifices were offered—and their bloodshed—as an Old Testament picture of what Jesus has now fully accomplished for us. Our sacrifices now are praise and worship, and the offerings of thanks, and the doing of good works and acts of service—both to one another and to others who are in need. Our sacrifices are made acceptable to God through the one sacrifice of Jesus on our behalf.
Our having been joined together to one another into this holy temple is what it means to be united and properly built upon Christ the cornerstone. No one who is truly built upon Christ is their own, individual, ‘one-brick temple’. To be truly joined to Jesus Christ means to be united to the whole church of which He serves as the cornerstone.
Now; not everyone loves either this cornerstone or His people. The believing Jewish Christians to whom Peter was writing, in fact, were suffering persecution because of their attachment to this cornerstone. And so, Peter goes back to some Old Testament passages in verses 6-8 and reminds his readers of …
3. THE WAYS THIS STONE WOULD IMPACT WORLD (VV. 6-8a).
First, Peter shows us that Jesus impacts this world by being the only foundation stone in it which has been laid by God. He quotes Isaiah 26:18 and says, “Behold, I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious …” The world may search for another, and the people of this world may vainly try to build their lives upon anything else but Jesus Christ. But as Paul once wrote with respect to his ministry, “According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 3:10-11). We need to remind people that there is no other!
Second, Peter shows us that Jesus is a stone authorized by God and trustworthy to all who believe. Peter quoted that Isaiah 28 passage to show that Jesus is “a chief cornerstone, elect, precious …” He is ‘elect’ because He is the only one that God has authoritatively chosen, and He is precious because He alone is trustworthy for the task. And for this reason, Peter could affirm from Isaiah 28, “And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.” In the original language, this is put in an emphatic way—as if to say that they will “in no way, no how” ever be disappointed who trust in Him. The other things that we may try to build our lives upon will let us down. But Jesus will never fail us. Paul was sitting in prison for his faith—facing execution; and yet, he was able to say, “For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that He is able to keep what I have committed to Him until that Day” (2 Timothy 1:12).
Third, Peter shows us that Jesus is a stone rejected by ‘the builders’. He quotes from Psalm 118:22 and says, “Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone …’” The ‘builders’ were the religious leaders of the Jewish people in Jesus’ day—the scribes and Pharisees and priests. When their God-appointed cornerstone came to them, however, they didn’t want Him. Jesus once quoted this very same Old Testament passage to them—applying it to Himself; and then went on to tell them, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder” (Matthew 21:43-44; perhaps also with reference to Daniel 2:35, 44).
But fourthly, Peter tells us that this stone—rejected by men—is a stone exalted in God’s gracious purposes. As Psalm 118:22 tells us, “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone …” This was declared to the whole world by the fact that Jesus was raised from the dead in victory (Romans 1:4). And now, the whole world can plainly see that Jesus is indeed the cornerstone from God! As Paul wrote; “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:19-22).
And note, finally, how Peter shows us that our Lord is now a stone that declares the hearts of all people. The true nature and destiny of each woman and each man is identified by what they do with Him. People may cast Him away; but they can’t really be freed of His impact upon them. He is, as it says in Isaiah 8:14, “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense.” As Jesus Himself once put it at the end of His Sermon on The Mount; “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall” (Matthew 7:24-27).
* * * * * * * * * * *
“What, then, is your cornerstone?” What an important question that is! Peter closes this portion of his letter by speaking of those who reject this stone and try to build upon another; saying, “They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed” (v. 8b). But may it never be that any of us are appointed for such stumbling!
Let’s make sure that we believe everything that the Old Testament has told us about Jesus. Let’s confidently build our whole life and our whole hope for eternity upon Him—His virgin birth, His sinless life, His sacrificial death, His burial, His resurrection unto life, and His ministry for us at the right hand in glory, and His promised return in glory. Those who believe on Him are built up upon Him into a holy temple for the worship of God.
And no one who is built on this cornerstone will ever—by any means—end up disappointed!
EA
