09/08/2023
Do we feel particularly unworthy this morning? When we rose from bed did we feel dulled by the world as if we had lost our spiritual sheen? Well, cast that feeling off because we are living stones... pieces of heaven. When we look into the mirror we should rejoice, and see ourselves as a reflection of Christ’s perfection; we should see ourselves as a reflection of the Kingdom which is to come.
You are probably asking how we could possibly be a piece of heaven. Well to answer this we must consider two questions... Of what is the kingdom of God constructed? And, what are the building blocks of glory? The answer to these two questions is: "Why I am of course!" So let’s rejoice always in our faithful transformation!
“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.”
1 Peter 2:4-5 ESV
We humble ourselves and tend to lose sight of why we have been called. People around us in the world are quick to reject us, but their eyes are blind to the spirit, and their stone is still in the quarry. We on the other hand are the building blocks of God's Holy Kingdom. Though we suffer as our Lord Jesus suffered, we find the peace and joy of God in the midst of the world’s travail. We are hewn to become holy, and Jesus is the cornerstone that aligns us as God's temple is constructed.
“built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”
Ephesians 2:20-21 ESV
Pay no attention to the rejection of this world and he who is in it. Rejoice and set your sight on the glory ahead and the promise and hope that we have through Christ our Lord. We are no more rejected than our Lord was rejected, and no more ridiculed, yes, even less so, than He, and yet we marvel at Him, and he shines as the noonday sun!
“Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: "'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes'?”
Matthew 21:42 ESV
We are meant to be rejected, and those of the world are meant to reject us in their ignorance, and disobedience, to the word. We are being perfected in our steadfast faith... take heart in your trials, and rejoice in your suffering.
“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 2:7-8 ESV
Cutting stone requires that it be sawed, hammered, and chiseled, from where it was created, from its natural place. Each block removed bears the marks of the mason, and by His hand is made to be perfectly placed. We leave the quarry by much sweat and effort, but once joined together, by the Architects vision, we rise, and become the Temple of God. Do not moan or lose heart at the chisel's sting or wince at the hammer's ringing blow. You are becoming the beauty of God's glory revealed. You are the temple which stands in heaven... you are a piece of heaven itself. Rejoice in this!
Pray for all who reject you, and show compassion to those who are the chisels by which you are being shaped. They are being continuously dulled against you and one day will be used up and discarded, but you will stand forever. Rejoice in your perfection!
“The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.”
Psalms 146:9 ESV
This morning when you rise, rejoice in this day that the Lord has made, and praise Him for your marks; your stripes, and every stroke of the hammer, and every bite of the chisel that has served to perfect you! May His will be done and the light of His glory shine upon you. Let your joy ring out, and your temple rise as the shards of past sin fall away from you.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for the pain and suffering I endure as I am perfected for your use. I thank you for the tight fit that is made as I am placed in your temple. Make me secure Father, and let no light escape between where I am and the stones around me. Never allow me to become disheartened as I am hewn into the shape you would have me take. Whether I am, a foundation stone, a threshold, or the floor on which you walk... let me celebrate your purpose for me. Lord, there are days when I need your comfort more than others; in these I desperately need your encouragement before I can go into the world. I sit in my prayer chair and cry out to you, but you are faithful and lift me up... continue to sooth me in my remorse and wipe my tears. Give me courage to face every day and the trials that come in it. Heal my wounds Father and lift me by the hand as you prepare me for your loving perfection, and in you I will rejoice with every spiritual blow that separates who you would have me be from the sin that falls away.
Rich Forbes