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"And coming to Him as a
living Stone which has been rejected by men, but is
choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as
living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house."
1 Peter 2:4-5
"Unless the Lord
builds the house, the weary builders toil in vain."
Psalm 127:1
One day Jesus asked His disciples who the people thought
He was. They told Him that some believed that He was
Elijah and others that He was a Prophet. When Jesus
asked them who they believed Him to be Peter quickly
said, -"You are the Christ,
the Son of the living God!" Jesus
blessed Peter saying that only the Father could have
given him that revelation. Jesus went on to say that it
was upon the "Rock" of that truth that He would build
His Church.
As we see in our first text, Jesus is the great Corner
Stone which the builders rejected, and in our second
text that the Lord Himself must build the House. The
building material for this great spiritual Temple are
the saints who are living stones. Jesus was rejected as
the foundational Stone of the faith by the Jewish
leaders of His day, but those of us whom He has called
into His light have not been rejected but are specially
chosen stones for the Temple of His presence. He
prepares and places every chosen stone where He wants it
and according to His plans.
God planned the birth of the first-fruits, His saints.
Ephesians 1 says that they were chosen in Christ before
the foundation of the world and were predestined to be
brought near as sons through Christ Jesus.
God alone chooses the living stones for the building of
His Holy Dwelling, and God alone rejects dead stones
unworthy of His presence, -"Rebekah,
when she had conceived twins by one man, our father
Isaac; for though the twins were not yet born and had
not done anything good or bad, so that God’s purpose
according to His choice would stand, not because of
(their) works but because of Him who calls, it was said
to her, ‘The older will serve the younger.’" (Rom.9) Notice
that the choice of Jacob was made before the twins were
born - and that choice was made to fulfill God’s
predetermined purpose.
Jesus said that no one can come to Him unless the
Father draws him and promises, -"All
that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one
who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. . .This
is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has
given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last
day." (Jo.6)
Not everyone who claims to be a Christian is.
As God sows the seed of truth which produces sons
bearing good fruit, the devil sows his seeds which bring
forth offspring which are barren of good fruit. As the
wheat bear grain, the tares bears nothing. In the
parable of the wheat and tares Jesus prophesied that the
fruitful and the unfruitful would grow together until
the end of the age when the holy angels will gather the
tares to be cast into the fire.
God is looking for good fruit for His Harvest - for
choice stones for His Temple. "They
went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if
they had been of us, they would have remained with us;
but they went out, so that it would be shown that they
all are not of us. (1 Jo.2) There
are many Pastors trying to build God’s House for Him,
but only God knows the living stones of His choice and
He alone must build His House.
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