The Stone that the Builders Rejected

“As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture:

‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone,

    a cornerstone chosen and precious,

and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.’

So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe,

‘The stone that the builders rejected

    has become the cornerstone,’

and

‘A stone of stumbling,

    and a rock of offense.

They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do” (1 Peter 2:4-8 ESV).

As you, you who are coming (present active) to Christ by continuous God-given faith in him… not just one time in your life where now you think you “got saved,” and now all your sins are forgiven, and heaven is guaranteed you when you die, and it can’t be taken away from you, but regardless of how you live. For this involves daily denial of self and dying with Christ to sin and walking in obedience to his commands in holy living, by faith in Him. And it requires that we remain steadfast in such faith to the very end.

[Matt 7:21-23; Matt 24:9-14; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14,24; Rom 12:1-2; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-17; 1 Pet 2:24; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6,24-25; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 3:6,14-15; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15] 

As you are coming to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious… He is our true foundation stone on whom our lives are being built, we who are like living stones within his spiritual building, his church. He is also God, the second person of our triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – who left his home in heaven to come to the earth and to take on human form and to die on a cross to save us out of our lives of slavery to sin and to empower us to live holy lives, pleasing to God.

Although when he lived on this earth he was God incarnate, fully God and yet fully man, and he was the promised seed of Abraham, the Christ they long awaited, his own people rejected him and refused to honor him for who he was. In so doing, Jesus said that they also rejected God the Father, and that Abraham was not their father, and God was not their Father, but the devil was their father, for they chose to follow him instead of follow Christ (see John 8:18-19,38-47).

And they hated Jesus, and so they plotted evil against him, and ultimately they had him put to death on a cross, even though he was sinless and he had done no wrong. But God the Father raised Jesus from the dead on the third day, just as Jesus said would happen, and then Jesus showed himself to many people for about 40 days before he ascended back to the Father in heaven. And after that he sent his Holy Spirit to indwell his followers to be “Christ in us,” and with us who submit to his purpose for our lives.

…you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ… We are Christ’s body, his church, his temple in whom his Spirit dwells. Christ is now our mediator between us and God the Father, and by faith in Jesus Christ we can go directly into the presence of God. We need no human mediators between us and God. And we make our own sacrifices to God which are the sacrifices of broken and contrite hearts (Psalms 51:17).

But this is not a one-time thing. This is the process of sanctification in our lives, and of us walking in fellowship with and in obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ, by his grace, by God-given faith, in his power and strength and wisdom, as our walk of faith, one day and one step at a time. We are in the process of growing to maturity in our walks of faith in the Lord, obeying him day by day and moment by moment, surrendering our lives to him and submitting to his will and purpose for our lives (Romans 12:1-2).

And whoever believing in him (present active, not past tense only) will not be put to shame. And believing in him means we daily deny self, and we daily die to sin, and we daily walk in obedience to our Lord and to his commands (New Covenant) in living holy lives, pleasing to him. But for those who will not surrender their lives to him, but who are continuing in deliberate and habitual sin, out of disobedience to him, they will not inherit eternal life with God regardless of what faith they profess with their lips.

[See noted Scriptures above]

For Our Nation  

An Original Work / September 11, 2012

Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Trust Him with your life today.

Make Him your Lord and your Savior.

Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.

He will forgive you of your sin;

Cleanse your heart, made new within.

Men betraying: Our trust fraying.

On our knees to God we’re praying,

Seeking God to give us answers

That are only found in Him.

God is sovereign over all things.

Nothing from His mind escaping.

He has all things under His command,

And will work all for good.

Jesus Christ is gently calling

You to follow Him in all ways.

Men deceiving: We’re believing

In our Lord, and interceding

For our nation and its people

To obey their God today.

He is our hope for our future.

For our wounds He offers suture.

He is all we need for this life.

Trust Him with your life today.

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