THE CHIEF CORNERSTONE
1 Peter 2:4-8; Ps. 118:22, "The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the Corner." Eph. 2:20, "And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief Cornerstone."
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: Preacher Personality
1. A woman who lived next door to a preacher was puzzled by his personality change. At home he was shy, quiet and retiring, but when she attended his church he preached like a house-on-fire and ran back and forth waving his arms. It was as if he were two different people.
2. One day she asked him about the dramatic transformation that came over him when he preached. “Ah,” he said, “That’s my altar ego.”
B. TEXT
1 Peter 2:4-8, "4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in Him will never be put to shame" (Isa. 28:18). 7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone,” (Ps. 118:22) 8 and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall" (Isa. 8:14).
C. THESIS
1. As humans, we do not know what tomorrow will hold. Many things are “up in the air” – uncertain: our jobs, our family life, our friends, our future.
2. But the main question is: “What are you depending on? Where do you derive your strength? When things go wrong, what do you try to hold onto to support yourself?
3. You can’t depend on the government, or human justice, or money, or on people; all will fail you. But there IS one foundation that will never fail you – Jesus Christ! Let Him be your Cornerstone & Capstone and you shall never be ashamed or helpless. He will be your strength!
4. The title of this message is “The Chief Cornerstone.”
I. PURPOSE OF THE CORNERSTONE
A. BEGINNING OF THE BUILDING
1. The cornerstone is a large stone laid at the base of a building, against, and around which, the rest of the structure is built. These stones, in some ancient buildings, were as much as twenty feet long and eight feet thick. Jesus is the Alpha, the Beginning of all things, including the Church.
2. WESTMINSTER ABBEY ILLUSTRATION
a. Even good things don't last forever. Westminster Abbey was 450 years old when the caretakers noticed that the oak timbers holding up the roof were nearly at the end of their useful life. Parliament worried how they would ever find timbers of that size at any cost.
b. Then the superintendent of the building received a telephone call from the Royal Forest Manager. He asked if they were ready for his trees yet? He had been expecting a call for the last decade and decided to see if the oak trees, planted when Westminster was built, were needed on schedule.
c. The parliamentary planners were amazed. The necessary trees had been in possession of the government from the very day when the building was completed so many centuries before. And so, the trees were cut, milled and the Abbey roof restored like new again. I have wondered if they planted a new set of trees for the 25th Century?
d. In a like manner, the amazing God, our Lord, provided a sprout from the root of Jesse millennia before the New Covenant Church was founded. He who is the Chief Cornerstone of His Church, the Bride of Christ - Jesus of Nazareth – will never fail to be there when we need Him!
B. UNSHAKABLE STABILITY
1. The cornerstone, being massive, is unmovable; all the other stone-blocks derive their stability from it. Peter said that the Jews rejected Jesus, but Christ became the cornerstone in spite of them.
2. Without Him there would be no church because it wouldn’t be able to stand. IN JESUS CHRIST WE ARE UNSHAKABLE!
C. UNIFIES THE STRUCTURE
1. In Ephesians 2:19-22, Paul tells us that Christ is He who joins the whole building/ Body together. The Cornerstone connects two walls of the building and is the stabilizer. Christ, as the Chief Cornerstone, units the Jews and Gentiles into one people.
2. In Rev. 7:9, John saw the Church in Heaven, as being “from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.” Isn’t it wonderful that in Christ there are no racial or economic distinctions!
II. CHARACTERISTICS OF THIS STONE
A. IS A CHOSEN STONE
1. Sadly, though Jesus was chosen by God to be the Eternal Cornerstone -- when He came to His own, they rejected him! Isaiah says, “He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him” (53:2).
2. But, “if God be for you, who can be against you?” God chose Jesus before the foundation of the world (Rev. 13:8, 1 Peter 1:20). God’s plans cannot be thwarted!
B. IS A LIVING STONE
How interesting to imagine a Stone that is actually alive! In God’s throneroom in Heaven, the throne is alive (an angel, Col. 1:16, Greek).
C. HE’S A TRIED STONE
1. God says, "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts [in Him] will never be dismayed” Isa. 28:18.
2. Foundation stones are worthless if they break apart, so stonemasons routinely strike a cornerstone with a sledgehammer to see if it will crack. (The same thing is done with forged bells).
3. Because Christ endured the most rigorous testing, we are confident that His love for us will never fail, because when He faced the worst, and could have escaped (calling 12 legions of angels), He steadfastly held to His course as our Redeemer. He will never fail us!
D. HE’S A PRECIOUS STONE
1. The word “precious” means “unique, valuable, essential.” Jesus is unique because He’s one of a kind; there’s no one like Him. He’s not made of granite, marble, or other stones – He has great intrinsic value because He’s God's ONLY Son. He’s essential because “without the shedding of blood there is no redemption” Heb. 9:22. There’s no atoning sacrifice for sin but Him.
2. His eternity, His Deity, His glory and His amazing love for us endear Him to us as the ‘Fairest Among 10,000’, the ‘Bright & Morning Star’, the ‘Lily of the Valley,’ and the Lover of our Souls. Who else ever loved us like Jesus?
E. HE MAKES BELIEVERS PRECIOUS & CHOSEN
1. People often base their self-concept on their accomplishments. But all WE need to make to be precious & chosen by God is to have JESUS in us. Remember that your value comes from being one of God’s children, not from what you can achieve. You have worth because Jesus died for you.
2. When we’re united with Christ, we also join in His priestly work of reconciling God and people; we get to assist Him in His office as High Priest. We’re honored to play a part in it!
F. HE’S A ROCK WHICH JUDGES “causes men to stumble…fall” V.8.
III. WE’RE LIVING STONES IN HIM
A. WE’VE BECOME LIVING STONES
1. 1 Pet. 2:5 says, "you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”
2. Because of Jesus’ life-giving power has flowed into us (we’re alive in Christ), we have life derived from Him. We’re being built into God's spiritual house (1 Cor. 3:16; Eph. 2:21) or Cathedral. We will be God’s dwelling place (Eph. 2:22), inhabited by the Living God.
B. THE ROCK QUARRY OF LIFE
1. This life is like a rock quarry, which explains why we feel like we're being chipped and chiseled. God also places us next to other believers who constantly rub against one another, which is aggravating because we are living stones.
2. Yet this is the process God uses to knock off our rough edges and grind smooth our imperfections. It takes the church and its ministry to remake us into greater and greater Christ-likeness.
3. God knows what people and what situations will shape us most effectively. So if I try to get rid of one chisel (person) God is using, God will have to get a bigger chisel!
4. Bill Gothard told of a teenager refused correction from his parents & in his rebellion decided to join the Marine Corps! (big chisel!)
C. A HOLY PRIESTHOOD, SACRIFICES
1. Believers not only make up the church but serve in it, ministering as a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices. All believers are priests (1 Peter 2:9; Heb. 4:16; Rev. 1:6) and we need no mediator to approach God other than Jesus Christ. Our priestly service requires holiness (1 Peter 1:16, 22) requiring us to become more like Jesus.
2. Priests “bridge the gap” between God and those further away. We pray for them and explain to them who God is.
3. We also offer up spiritual sacrifices to God: a broken & CONTRITE HEART (Ps. 51:16-17) & OBEDIENCE (1 Sam. 15:22);
4. PRAYER & PRAISE “Let my prayer be set before You as incense, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice” Ps. 141:2. “Offer unto God thanksgiving…Whoso offers praise glorifies Me” Ps. 50:14,23;
5. TO DO GOOD & SHARE WITH OTHERS. “And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” Heb. 13:15-16.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. British sculptor Sir Jacob Epstein was once visited in his studio by the eminent author and fellow Briton, George Bernard Shaw. Noticing a huge block of stone standing in one corner Shaw asked what it was for. “I don’t know yet. I’m still making plans,” replied Epstein. Shaw was astounded. “You mean you plan your work? Why, I change my mind several times a day!”
2. The sculptor replied, “That’s all very well with a four-ounce manuscript, but not with a four-ton block of stone!”
3. We’re living stones that God is fashioning into exactly the right shape in the body of Christ. God, of course, is more like the sculptor, who meticulously plans what he shall carve in each of our lives.
B. THE MOST ENDURING STONE
1. MARBLE used to be the most popular stone, but today it is GRANITE by far. There are a few reasons for this. Marble deteriorates from acids that are prevalent in rain. Marble is also very soft and can be scratched with a metal object. But another stone has been discovered that’s harder than granite – QUARTZITE. It’s denser than granite, since it’s made of quartz and is much more resistant to chemical/physical weathering. It can last almost forever.
2. But there’s another Stone that WILL LAST FOREVER – the Chief Cornerstone – Jesus Christ. You can build your life on Him, and a billion years from today, He will still be the same!
C. THE CALL
1. What is God wanting to do with you? What part do you play in the overall building of God? Are you alive in Christ? Are you functioning in the body?
2. PRAYER
[Some thoughts were gleaned from Dennis Davidson]
