A Temple of Living Stones.

Opening:

It is a beautiful thing to open the Word of God together on the Lord’s Day.

Introduction of the Passage:

This morning we will be in 1 Peter 2:4-6. In the previous verses in this letter we saw Peter reveal the beauty and wonder of salvation and call us into holy living. This really is the theme of this letter. Peter wrote this letter to the church as a whole. This is why many call this one of the “Catholic Epistles.” That means it is a letter written to the church as a whole. So while it was written to a first century audience, it has clear application to us as well. You see, we are part of the very same church this was written to. We may be 2000 years removed, but we are still the same church, founded on the foundation of Christ, our cornerstone.

Reading of the Passage:

So with this in mind, would you stand with me for the reading of God’s Word. 1 Peter 2:4–6 “4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 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. 6 For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.””

These are the very Words of God. Let’s pray and commit this time to our Lord.

Prayer:

Our Father, we praise you this morning and thank you for the blessing of you Word and this time together. We ask that you would use it for your glory and our edification. Open our hearts to hear your Word. Build you Church, Lord. We ask this in Jesus name, amen.

Text Idea:

In this text, Peter is using a lot of Old Testament imagery. Specifically, he calls the church the temple of God and priests to God. The idea of this text is that as we come to Christ, who is the living cornerstone of the church, we are built up as living stones into the temple of God and into priests of God who offer spiritual sacrifices to God, through Christ.

Sermon Idea:

This was true of the first century church made of Jews and gentiles and it is true of us as well. As we come to Christ, the living Cornerstone of the Church, we are built up as living stones into the temple of God and into priests offering spiritual sacrifices to God, through Christ.

Interrogative:

And Peter really answers two questions here. Peter opens by saying, “As you come to Him...” Well, two questions on this. Who do we come to? And what happens as we come to Him? This is what Peter is answering.

Transition:

So, first, Who do we come to?

Point 1: Who Do We Come To?

1 Peter 2:4 “4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious,” 1 Peter 2:6 “6 For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.””

Explanation: Christ, the Living Stone.

Peter is here quoting from three different Old Testament prophesies. The Old Testament prophesied that God would raise up a cornerstone. And Jesus Himself quoted these as well.

Matthew 21:42 “42 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’?”

Peter is calling back these words of Jesus and quoting from Isaiah and the Psalms.

Isaiah 28:16 “16 therefore thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’”

Psalm 118:22–24 “22 The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. 23 This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. 24 This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”

Isaiah 8:14 “14 And he will become a sanctuary and a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Jesus claimed to be the fulfilment of this. And Peter is affirming this. Peter is saying that Jesus is this stone. He is the cornerstone that was rejected by the builders, but precious in the sight of God.

Jesus and Peter and the Old Testament authors are using this imagery of how the ancients would build foundations. Foundations were not poured concrete. They were stone. Stone masons would find ideal stones and cut them into shape to lay a firm foundation. And the cornerstone was the first stone. It was placed in a corner and all the other stones would be laid against it. So the cornerstone was the most pivotal stone of the entire foundation.

Jesus is the cornerstone. And notice, Jesus is not a dead stone. Jesus is a living stone. The foundation stone is not dead. The foundation stone is alive.

Argumentation:

And this really is the central point. Christ is not a dead foundation. Christ is the living stone that was rejected by men but chosen by God. Christ is alive. This is the central point of our faith. Christ has conquered death. The stone that died has risen and is alive from now until forever and aye. Christ is alive, right now. He is risen and He is alive. This is the central message of the church. Christ is alive. Our Lord is not dead. We cannot speak of Him in the past tense. It is fundamentally flawed to say “Jesus was.” Beloved, Jesus is. Our Lord is alive. He is the living Stone.

Transition:

He is the living foundation. But the living foundation of what? Well this moves us to our next question. Peter says “as you come to Him, the living cornerstone who is Jesus Christ.” But...

Point 2: What Happens When We Come to Him?

1 Peter 2:4–5 “4 As you come to him... 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.”

Explanation:

What happens as we come to Christ? We are built up. This first act of coming to Jesus is when we are saved. God calls us, brings us to life, and we come to Him. But this phrase has an ongoing idea. The Christian continues to come to Him. Again and again. We are always coming to Christ. This is sanctification, which Peter has already dealt with. So as we come to Him, we are continually built up. But built up into what? Well, Peter gives us two things we are being built up into. First, as we come to Him, we are built up into the Temple of God.

Sub-point 1: The Temple of God.

1 Peter 2:5 “5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house...”

Explanation:

As we come to Christ, the living stone, He makes us into living stones. We are brought to life in Him and are now living. We are the living stones crying out in worship to our Lord. But we are not unshaped. The great Stone Worker shapes us and places us. This is what Paul addresses in Ephesians 2:19–21 “19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.”

We are the household of God. The foundation of this house is Christ and the Apostles. Christ is the Cornerstone. The Apostles were laid as the foundation against Christ. And now, together with all believers, we are being built into the Holy Temple of the Lord.

The imagery here is hard to miss. This is a direct comparison with the Old Testament tabernacle and later temple. But this is not just a comparison. Peter and Paul are not here just saying “you know, in a way, the church of all believers is sort of similar to the Temple.” No, they are saying the Church made of all believers IS the Holy Temple. The Old Testament temple was a prophetic type pointing ahead to the true Temple. The true Holy Temple, the Bride of Christ, the Church. The Church is the true Temple that the Old Testament types pointed to.

In Ezekiel 43:6-7,God gives Ezekiel a vision of a coming temple. A new Temple where God would dwell among His people forever. A true and new temple.

And in Ezekiel 47:1-12 God gives a vision of water flowing down from out of the this temple. It starts as a trickle, then becomes ankle deep, then it becomes knee deep, then it became a river that could not be crossed.

I believe this is exactly what Paul and Peter are talking about. Christ is the living cornerstone of this new Temple, and it is made of the living stones of all believers. The earthly temple in the Old Testament was a prophetic shadow of this new temple of the Church.

Argumentation:

And this Temple is being built by Christ as we come to Him. As we come to Christ, confess our sins, repent, and grow in holiness, we can see Jesus as the true Carpenter chiseling us and fitting us into place in this new spiritual Temple. He is the master craftsman. He is the one who builds the Church. As it says in the Scriptures Ephesians 2:10 “10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” We are the workmanship of Christ.

And this is good news. Because it says in Psalm 127:1 “1 Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain...”

Christ is the architect of the church. He is the foundation. He is the builder. And this is good news because no one else can lay a foundation other than the foundation of Christ. This is what Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3:10–11 “10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

But sadly, we so often attempt to disobey God in this. If we are not careful, we can attempt to build the church in our own strength and our own ways. God is the one who does the Work. The church cannot be built under the power or authority of men. If you have been following along in the To the Word Bible reading challenge I gave last week, you will have read 1 Corinthians. This is exactly what Paul was dealing with in the church in Corinth.

He opens by saying this in 1 Corinthians 1:12–13 “12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”

The church in Corinth was splitting into factions. One person would say, “Oh but I follow Paul. Paul is my authority.” And the other would reply, “Yeah but I follow Apollos! He is my authority.” Paul continues in 1 Corinthians 3:6–9 “6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 9 For we are God’s fellow workers. You are God’s field, God’s building.”

This is where he continues, 1 Corinthians 3:10–11 “10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

And later in 1 Corinthians 3:16–17 “16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? 17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple.”

You see, the church is not built by men. This Temple of living stones is built by Christ. All men do is plant, and water and labor in the work of building. But it God who gives the growth and does the building. The church is not built upon men, or tradition, or anything other than Christ.

The church cannot be built on gimmicks or personality. It cannot be built on gimmicks. In church culture we are so tempted to attempt to build the church and grow the church under our own creativity or ideas. This does not mean creativity is a bad thing. Creativity is a good thing. But we must recognize creativity is not what builds the church. Christ builds the church. Faithfulness to Christ is the church growth model. And we cannot get this mixed up. Our creativity is good as long as it is bound to faithfulness to God’s commands.

The church is also not built on personalities. It is not about “Apollos did this” or “Paul did that.” It’s not about the church leaders. It is about Christ. This is not about me. This church is not built on me. It’s not about me. It is about Christ. I do not build the church. Christ does.

You see, the church was struggling with these two things. They were placing their identity on the personalities of people and gimmicks. They were focused on weather or not they were aligned with this person or that person. And they were also condoning sin in order to be appealing to the world. You can almost hear the meetings. “Well, we cannot preach about sexual immorality. That would offend people.” And this devolved into them actually condoning and being proud of the sexual immorality in their midst.

And we say the same thing nowadays too. It is so easy to build a church identity around a single person. In essence that is saying, “Well, we follow Apollos.” And it is a huge temptation in the church in our culture to be open and affirming of sin. This is an evil gimmick. So many churches hang out the banner of being “open and affirming.” Likely many do this in an attempt to be “loving.” But that is not love. It is not love to affirm sin. And it is horrific to build the church on anything other than Christ and His Word.

You see, we must not get off on this. We do not build the church. Christ does. There are no gimmicks, no personalities that build the church. Christ does. And our one job as a church is to be faithful to Him. True success is faithfulness to God. That is the true marker of success for anything, but especially for a church. Our goal is not seeking blessing. God will bless faithfulness, but the blessing is not the goal. The goal is not to have every pew filled. That would be a blessing. But that is not our goal. Our goal is not monetary giving. That is a blessing, but it is not our goal.

The goal of the church is to say, “Christ is our foundation. We will be faithful to Him, come what may.” And in times of blessing, praise God. And in times of adversity, praise God. Our goal is to be faithful. True success is faithful to God. He will build the church. We are His. To paraphrase the Heidelberg, “Our only comfort in life and death is that we belong body and soul to Jesus Christ our Lord.” Come what may, we will be faithful to Christ. Though the masses of the world turn against us, we will be faithful to Christ. Though the weight of church culture come against us, we will be faithful to Christ. Though the weight of government oppression and even imprisonment be cast against us, we will be faithful to Christ. Here we stand, we can do no other. God help us, amen.

Transition:

But we are not just being built into a temple of living stones. As we come to Christ, our Foundation, we are also being built into the priests of God.

Sub-point 2: The Priests of God.

1 Peter 2:5 “5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up… to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

Explanation:

You see, in the Old Testament practice, the priests were set aside. They were a class unto themselves. The people could not approach God on their own. They needed an intermediary to stand in their place before God and make sacrifices. Ultimately this is fulfilled in Christ. The entire book of Hebrews labors the point that Christ is our high priest who offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice to God on our behalf. But in Him, we are all now priests. We can all come before God in Christ. And the Old Testament prophesied this coming day. Exodus 19:6 “6 and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you shall speak to the people of Israel.””

This is fulfilled in Christ and the church. We now have full access to God. We have been reconciled through the blood of Christ. No longer are we in various classes of closeness to God. Every believer has full access to the Father. The dividing wall of hostility has been broken down. I do not stand before you as a priest who comes to God on your behalf. No, beloved, we are on equal ground before God. Christ has torn down the curtain and we all come into the holy of holies. This is what the author of Hebrews labored to say. When we gather together on the Lord’s Day, we are entering into the holy of holies together. We are caught up into God’s throne-room right now on this holy day.

And there are no second class citizens in the Kingdom. We are equal. And here we offer sacrifices to God. All of us. No believer is excluded from this. But what sacrifices do we offer? The atoning sacrifice has been paid. Christ paid for our sins. We no longer sacrifice for our sins. So what sacrifice is it that we make? Well, in the Old Testament practice there were various kinds of sacrifice. There were the atoning sacrifices to pay for sin, but those have passed away in Christ. But there were also the sacrifices of praise or thanksgiving.

And these sacrifices can be placed into three categories. The giving of self, the giving of praise, and the giving of money. We see all three of these in the New Testament, still in practice.

First, the sacrifice of self.

Romans 12:1 “1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Remember the Heidelberg. We confess that we are not our own, but belong both in body and soul belong to Christ Jesus our Lord. In a sense, we sacrifice ourselves to God. We confess that we are not our own. Our own will, our own desire, our own plans are sacrificed. We belong to God. This is why again and again we see the phrase, “if the Lord wills” used in Scripture. We do not seek to please ourselves. We seek to please God in our bodies and souls. I will do this if the Lord wills. I will go here if the Lord wills. God has the ultimate authority to tell us what to do. That is our confession. My own will is meaningless.

Second, the sacrifice of praise.

Hebrews 13:15 “15 Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name.” We do this through what we say and what we sing. Our words are a sacrifice to God. Our song is a sacrifice to God. This is why, in our words and song we must always ask, “does this glorify God.” Our opinions or thoughts do not matter. Does this glorify God? And this is clearly seen on the Lord’s Day. But it extends to every corner of our lives. When you are at home, do your words honor God? Are you singing His praise? We sacrifice our words to God in praise.

Thirsd, the sacrifice of money.

Philippians 4:18 “18 I have received full payment, and more. I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent, a fragrant offering, a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God.” Paul is here speaking of the money the Philippian church sent him. They funded his ministry and it is called a sacrifice acceptable and pleasing to God. Giving of money, time, or other physical gifts to further the work of the ministry is a sacrifice that God is pleased with. Are you giving to the work of God? God is pleased with it when we do. It is a fragrant sacrifice to God.

Argumentation:

You see, we are all priests to God. The dividing wall of classes has been broken down. We now all have access into the holy of holies. And we all are commanded to offer acceptable sacrifices through Christ. And that is key. If we do these things on our own, under our own power, or with sinful motivations, God will not accept them. They will be a stench in His nostrils. But through Christ our gifts are acceptable.

So I challenge you, are living as a priest to God? Are you making sacrifices to God out of thankfulness and joy for what Christ has done for you? Do not grudgingly do these things. Do them with joy! Think of how much God has blessed you! God has given us life and salvation in Christ. Christ has built the church of living stones. Christ has united us with the Father. Christ has made us all priests before God. In response to this, offer you lives. Give of yourself. Offer your words and your songs in praise. Offer your time, money, and resources to further the ministry. This is our sacrifice acceptable to God in Christ.

Transition:

I pray you see the beauty of this passage.

Conclusion:

As we come to Christ, the living Cornerstone of the Church, we are built up as living stones into the temple of God and into priests who offer spiritual sacrifices to God, through Christ.

Visualization:

Christ is alive! He is our living foundation. We are His church. We are His priests.

Reiteration:

Do not miss that. Christ is our living foundation. The church has one foundation, Jesus Christ our Lord. We belong to Him. We are His temple. We are His priests. We belong both in body and soul to Jesus Christ our Lord.

Application:

As we come to Him, He builds us and grows us. So I beg of you, come to Christ.

Action 1: Come to Christ.

Come to Him daily. Come to Him hourly. But how do we come to Him? Three ways.

First, we come to Christ in salvation. This is the first coming to Christ. As I often say, I cannot see your hearts. So I ask you this, have you come to Christ? Are you trusting in Him? Have you repented of your sins and trusted in Him for salvation? There is hope in nothing else but Jesus. There is no other way to find forgiveness and salvation. We must trust in Him. If you are not trusting in Christ, I implore you to trust in Him now.

But second, after coming to Christ in salvation, we come to Him privately. We are all priests before God in Christ. So we come to Him daily in our lives. We do this in prayer, praise, and study of God’s Word. Each Christian must worship God everyday of their lives. I commend you to spend time in prayer each day. Pray and bring your needs to Christ. Pray and bring your praise to Him. Look at all the blessings God has given you and thank Him for those blessings. Do this as a family. But we also meet with Christ in His Word. God speaks to us through the Scriptures. I challenge you to spend daily time in the Word of God. Join us in reading the Scriptures daily. I challenged you to join us in the To the Word Bible reading challenge. That is on the table in the lobby. I challenge you to spend time as a family in the Word. Nothing is more beneficial for your family than meeting with Christ together in prayer, praise, and study of the Word of God.

So we come to Christ first in salvation, second privately as a family, and third we come to Christ corporately as a church. Primarily we do this on the Lord’s day. I pray you see this gathering as coming to Christ. As we gather, we are coming into the presence of God. We are coming together into the throne room of God, the holy of holies. We are coming to meet with Him. We do this through prayer together, through praise together, through studying the Word together, through giving to God in the offering, and through the Sacraments of the baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

As we come to Christ, we are built up as the true Temple of God and as priests to God making acceptable sacrifices to Him through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Appeal:

My prayer for you all, and for this church is that it would be faithful to Christ above all, and that we would always come to Him and be built into His church to be ever more faithful. Christ promised to build His church, and the gates of Hell would crumble before her. We are His church. And we grow before Christ through Word and water, bread and wine. Amen. Let us come to Christ now in prayer.

Closing Prayer:

Oh Lord, we thank you so much for this time in your Word and in worship. I pray this time was an acceptable sacrifice to you. I pray it was a fragrant offering to you. Lord, I ask for this body of believers. Would you build us up as living stones and as priests before you. Lord, I ask that you would hold us fast to Christ. May we prioritize faithfulness to you over all else. May we never seek a foundation other than that which is laid. Make us a faithful people, Lord. We long to glorify your name. We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.

Offering:

Offertory Prayer:

Oh Lord, I thank you for this time to worship you in giving. May it be an acceptable sacrifice to you through Jesus Christ. We ask you to bless this offering and use it for your glory. May it further your work. We ask this in Jesus name, amen.

Benediction:

2 Thessalonians 3:16 “16 Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.”

2 Thessalonians 3:18 “18 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all.”

Amen.