​A Living Stone And A Holy People

 
1 Peter 2:2-6
2 As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, 3 if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious. 4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 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. 6 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.”
 
God has called us to the life of building, not destroying. After Peter has instructed us to rid ourselves of evil and to grow up in our salvation, he proceeds to tell us how to do that. After using the analogy of a baby who craves for milk, he now uses an analogy which is used frequently in the New Testament to illustrate growth in one's spiritual life, or the building up of the body of Christ--the church. It is the comparison of building a house.
 
Peter's analogy is more specific than merely building a house, it is the building of God's house, a spiritual temple. The original temple was built by King Solomon under the first covenant of God with His chosen people. Under the New Covenant, the spiritual house or temple is being built by the Lord Himself. A spiritual temple requires a very specific kind of building material. It is to be built of living stones--the very lives of those who have become spiritually alive through faith in Jesus Christ.
 
And such building must begin with Jesus Christ for He alone is the foundation and cornerstone and each born-again believer who is a living stone in Christ's church…
 
I. THE LIVING FOUNDATION STONE, 4.
 
II. THE LIVING TEMPLE STONES, 5.
 
III. THE CHOICE CORNER-STONE, 6.
 
Verse 4 begins teaching on the important subject of God's living temple by referring to Jesus Christ as a "living stone." “Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious,” Peter says not only are we children in the same family, but we are stones in the same building. A physical building isn't the church--the body of believers is the church! We are the living stones.
 
Many like to be on the church on Sundays. At times we can see a crowd enjoy the parking lot, fellowship hall, and the sanctuary. Why? It's not because the grounds are anything special. It's because the fragrance of the church is left behind. This building is nothing more than a building. But because the church worships, prays, studies and fellowships with the Lord here, this place is filled with the fragrance of Jesus.
 
The church of Jesus is made up of believers who have come to Christ and founded their life upon Him. The participle's tense and voice indicate that this coming is to be a personal and continual approach. It is an intimate association of communion and fellowship between believers and their Lord. The church is made up of those who have come to Christ and who are continually coming to Christ.
 
You see…true believers who have felt the love of Christ, will want to fellowship with fellow believers, because they all beat in one heart. And that is the heart of Christ. And those who ignore to be among fellow believers will show the opposite. It will be very obvious…noticeable, when someone stays away from other believer. When that happens, you need to search your heart and see who is really there. Whether you have been made alive…a living stone or the obvious fact…you are still dead and just playing role for people to see.
 
This continual coming together, indicates they continually fellowship (abide in) with Jesus Christ, the living Stone. In 1 Peter 1:3, Peter referred to Christ as "living hope" and in vs 1:23 to the "living Word”, now he referred to Christ as "the living Stone."
 
Peter developed and explained the metaphor of the stone in the following verses. Here he said this Stone is living. It has life in itself and gives life to others. People may enter into personal, vital relationships with this "living Stone." He is the living stone because He conquered that which kills, steals and destroys --sin, death, and the grave.
 
Although Christ was rejected by men (a theme of these verses)... God had chosen Him (1:20) and sees Him as precious (1:19; 2:4, 7; Isa. 28:16).
 
1 Peter 1:19
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
 
1 Peter 2:4
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious.
 
And also, quoted from Isaiah…
 
 
 
Isaiah 28:16
16 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation,
A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; Whoever believes will not act hastily.
 
God regards Jesus as the most precious of all… yet the world still rejects Him, because the world has rejected God. Christians rejected by the world may take heart in the knowledge that they are the chosen by God.
 
II. THE LIVING TEMPLE STONES, 5
 
1 Peter 2:5
5 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.
 
Because of our connection to the Living Stone we have become living stones who are being built together into a spiritual house which is for the service and glory of God as we read in v5.
Because of the life-giving power that has flown into our life we have become alive in Christ. All spiritual life comes from Christ. Since Christ is the living Stone those who have established a relationship with become living stones also.
 
Each time someone trust Christ as Lord and Savior another stone is quarried out of the pit of sin by the Holy Spirit. These living stones are not scattered uselessly about but are gathered together so that they can be built into God's church, God's spiritual house…
 
1 Corinthians 3:16
16 Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
 
And again…
 
Ephesians 2:21
21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.
 
The church is a dwelling place… which is inhabited by the Living God. Are you connected, have you been made live, is the heart of Christ beating in your chest? “the Spirit of God dwells in you”. Are you… “being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.” Where do you belong? Are you by yourself… a lone Christian? According to the verses we had just read, there is no lone Christian. You have to be connected, or you’re not. No halfway!
 
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.
Yet it 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. Sometime God puts us right next to the very people He knows will rub on us so that He can shape us and fit us into a body, a temple polished for His glory.
 
God knows what people and what situations will shape us most effectively. Believers not only make up the church but serve in it, ministering as a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices. All believers are priests…you represent Christ.
 
1 Peter 2:9
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.
 
And also…
 
1 Peter 1:22
22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in [b]sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart.
 
Therefore, we are to become more like Jesus Christ. Not to backwards, as if there was no change in our lives.
 
What is the responsibility of a priest? Maybe the meaning of the word priest in Latin will help us. The word means "bridge-builder." Christians are to be bridge-builders. We are to reach out to God with one hand and each other with the other hand and seek to build each other up to God. This is the focus of the church which is made up of ministers or priests who are helping each other, building each other up for God.
 
We, God's holy priesthood, are to offer spiritual sacrifices that please God. These spiritual sacrifices we offer God include an obedient life (Rom. 12:1-2), praise and thanksgiving (Heb. 13:15), and the practical ministry of doing good and sharing, especially the gospel, with others (Heb. 13:16). These sacrifices are acceptable to God as we offer them through Jesus Christ for the glory of God.
 
III. THE CHOICE CORNER-STONE, 6.
 
1 Peter 2:6
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.”
Many of us may ask, "What does that mean? What is a cornerstone?" Webster's dictionary defines a cornerstone as: "A stone which lies at the corner of two walls and serves to unite them; specifically, a stone built into a corner of the foundation of an important edifice as the actual or nominal [fixed] starting point in the building."
 
A cornerstone gives direction to the rest of the foundation. It also is the support on which the rest of the building relies for strength and stability. Believers trust in Christ much as a building rests on its cornerstone. Paul writes the same definition…
 
Ephesians 2:20-22
20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
 
Jesus is (a living stone and) the chief cornerstone who seeks to be the master builder of our lives and who desires to build us, His church, together into a holy temple in the Lord. Jesus Christ has not become the chief cornerstone by accident nor by His own initiative. He has been chosen by God. Jesus is precious to God. He is His only begotten son (John 3:16) and Savior of His church who shed His precious life blood that He may redeem us for God.
 
Those living stones who build their life upon the chosen cornerstone are given a promise, they will never be put to shame. Never! will they be shamed. So, Peter encouraged his readers with a sure scriptural promise of ultimate victory for those who trust Christ.
 
Christians may sometimes be put to shame or face disappointments in life, but their trust in God is never misplaced. God will never let them down. We can safely put our confidence in Jesus because the eternal life that He promise is certain.
 
IN CLOSING:
 
The apostle Peter described Jesus as a living stone and indicated that precious in the eyes of the Father is the sacrifice of the Rock of our Salvation. Christ is the enduring stone upon which the Father has built our salvation and He is the only foundation upon which we can build a life of eternal significance…
 
1 Corinthians 3:11
11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
 
It is only as our lives are built upon His strength that we will be able to endure the harshness of life in a fallen world. Build your life upon the rock of ages if you want to build for eternity.
Matthew 7:24-27
24 “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: 25 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. 26 “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: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
 
There is only one eternal Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. There is only one eternal spiritual building, the Church of the Living God. Jesus Christ is the foundation and chief cornerstone of the Church fitting and binding God's dwelling place together. The church is totally dependent upon Christ for its eternalness and its direction and by our Lord's ministry in and through us we are being built up as we build each other up in the most holy faith.