1 Peter 2:4-8

1 Peter 2:4–8 KJV (WS)

4 To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, 5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. 6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. 7 Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, 8 And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.

Introduction

Peter moves from a food analogy to a construction analogy.

There are three features to this passage.

Believers, Jesus, and unbelievers.

Jesus is at the center of the passage.

Peter uses construction lingo to illustrate the difference it makes in how we relate to Jesus.

In verse 6, Peter refers to Jesus as the chief corner stone.

This a quote Psalm 118:22 “22 The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.”

The cornerstone is the most significant stone of the entire structure.

The corner stone is the stone that lays at the corner of two walls to unite them.

The cornerstone sets determines the nature of the rest of the building.

Jesus is a unique corner stone in that He is a living stone.

Stones are dead.

We even say “stone-dead”.

This makes the paradox of the living stones all the greater.

The fact that Jesus is a living stone points to a couple of things.

The living nature of his building.

This affects us as we will see in a moment.

It also points to the fact that Jesus is the resurrected Lord.

With such a unique cornerstone, you would think that Jesus would have been universally accepted.

He was actually rejected by the builders.

Disallowed in vs 1 = rejected

That passage from Psalms must have really stuck with Peter.

This is the second time he has quoted it in the Bible.

He quoted it at Pentecost in Acts 4:11 “11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner.”

It is a well established fact that Jesus came unto his own and his own received him not.

The Jewish leaders should have been first in line to submit to Jesus.

Instead they rejected him as their messiah.

This Sunday is Palm Sunday.

Jesus rode into Jerusalem to the acclaim of all the people.

The priests should have met him outside of the Temple and submitted to his rule.

They didn’t.

Instead they plotted for his death.

Man tested the cornerstone in their judgment.

It didn’t pass their test.

They rejected this stone.

But, that couldn’t change the fact that He was chosen by God.

We are meant to contrast man’s inspection of Jesus with God’s.

Peter says that God viewed Jesus as precious.

Man’s will could not change the fact that Jesus was elected to be the cornerstone of a new house.

He would be set up by God and this would cause a horrible conflict for those who rejected him.

He is a stumbling block for unbelievers.

Jesus has never been the kind of Messiah that men expect him to be, that’s why they stumble over him

The emphasis in this last verse in the passage is that they are appointed to stumble, not that they are appointed to disbelief/disobedience.

Their unbelief and disobedience means that they will stumble over Jesus.

rock of offense = stone lying in the road.

The stone is of immense size.

One author says that the stone of stumbling/rock of offence is the equivalent of having a cliff face dropped into the the middle of the road.

Stumble is not a trip.

It’s a car crash.

It leads to total destruction.

So, what happens to those that believe, because unbelief sounds like a horrible deal.

The living stones.

Jesus is a living stone and he makes it possible for us to be living stones too.

Peter does not exhort us to be living stones; he tells us that we are living stones.

We are not like living stones.

Because there is nothing in creation called a living stone.

We are living stones through the life given to us by Jesus.

Believers are here to stay.

The very first phrase in the passage is a strike against the thought that you could lose your salvation.

To whom coming, means that we draw near with the intention to stay.

Believers are the house and the priests.

The house

This isn’t just any house.

This is God’s house.

This house is God’s dwelling place on this earth.

It is built with the living stones which are the believers of the world.

At any point in history, the house is complete and God dwells in it.

Yet the house is always getting bigger.

We do not lie about loosely.

We make up a spiritual house.

House = oikos, not temple or sanctuary.

In temples and sanctuaries, there are areas that are not as much a part of the building.

In a oikos, you have a singular structure.

We are not just the house, we are also…

The priests

All who come to Christ find themselves incorporated into a priesthood.

Our lives should be lived as though we are priests in a temple.

It is a privilege to serve as a priest.

Think of Zecharias.

Only select Jews could be priests; all Christians are priests.

Peter mentions specifically the privilege of offering spiritual sacrifices.

Any sacrifice that we perform for His glory is a service to God.

OT priests’ main task was offering sacrifices for sin.

This is no longer necessary.

NT priests offer the spiritual sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving

They shall not be confounded.

Those that believe in Christ will not be ashamed.

Confounded = rush away because of shame.

They see the corner stone as precious.

Jesus means everything to believers and unbelievers alike.

To us, though, he is wondrous.

Application

No one can be neutral towards Jesus.

He is either our cornerstone or our stumbling block.

We are priests in the same temple; we are stones in the same building.

The OT had a house; the NT we are the house.

The OT approached God through priests; the NT we are the priests.

What have you done with the chief cornerstone?

Have you believed in him for salvation and for your life?