A Living Stone

DEVOTION

THE 1^ST LETTER OF PETER

A LIVING STONE

1 Peter 2:4-6

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."  

NIV

The living stone, Jesus, is indeed the chief cornerstone. However, Peter says here that men have rejected him, but not us, for we are counted as the ones who come to him. It is true many have rejected Jesus as the cornerstone of their lives. They prefer to build their lives on worthless things, worthless philosophies, worthless ideologies, worthless principles, and worthless materialism. Everything in this world will perish so why are men so consumed with the way of the world? We, however, have not been deceived by all the false security of the world, for we have come to Jesus, the living stone, precious to God. He is the cornerstone of our life for we too are living stones being built into a spiritual house, a holy temple, as a holy priesthood. We know the other scriptures that speak of Jesus being the chief cornerstone. We know the meaning of the cornerstone in the construction of a building. It is not used so much today as we have lasers and tools to determine to keep things square, but in the day of Peter, a perfectly square cornerstone was laid first and then all other stones in the foundation of the building were based from the cornerstone so the whole of the building would turn out square. Of course, they still had the math which confirmed the square once the foundation was finished, however, it was all based on that cornerstone. This is how our lives, being living stones should be based. Everything in our lives should be based on Jesus. That means everything, not just the spiritual portion of our lives, but every aspect of our lives needs to be based on the cornerstone. If it is not then we will certainly not have a life that is all squared away, to use a military term. If we are not squared away, then there is always some crisis or chaos that is causing consternation in our lives. We can be sure there will always be events occurring that could be a source for chaos or a crisis, however, if we are those living stones set in place based on the chief cornerstone, then we would remain firmly set, which is completely opposite of becoming unsettled by a crisis or some chaotic event. We are living stones, and we are being built into a spiritual temple for God. It is interesting the Greek word translated as being built, means to build up a house. This word is used in both the active and the completed sense of build. Such as a builder is building a house, in the process of completing it, or a builder has built a fine house, as in he completed it. What appears to be the application here is that as living stones we are being in the process of being made into a temple of God. On the other hand, because God is always in the present, we have been built, as far as God sees us, we are a finished temple of living stones in which he dwells. We are his royal, holy priesthood, who offer ourselves as living sacrifices who are acceptable to Him through Jesus. Because we base our entire life, every aspect of what we are as living stones, then we will never be put to shame, dishonored, as the Greek word means. This meaning carries the idea of a builder, who is using the cornerstone and fits one of the foundation stones down, but it does not appear to be as squared away as it should and it is dishonored or not used. It does not square up to the cornerstone. In our case, that is our choice, to be squared up with the cornerstone, be the temple of our God, be his holy priesthood, and offer ourselves as a living sacrifice acceptable to Him. We choose to be that type of living stone.