Christ the Cornerstone

"He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matt. 16:15–19 KJV, emphasis mine).

In every stone building, there’s going to be one stone that is most important. This particular stone is the stone that is laid first, and it is to ensure that the building is properly aligned and stable. It is the rock upon which the weight of the entire structure rests. This is the cornerstone. All throughout Scripture we both see and hear of this concept of Jesus being the Chief Cornerstone. It’s important for us to realize that all alignment and stability, for both the individual believer and the body of Christ as a whole, will require being firmly built upon Jesus Himself, and all that He taught.

I think it’s important for us to realize that God took responsibility for providing for our foundation. We now must have the proper response and be sure to build upon it. I think it’s imperative to establish early on that while we may love our favorite teacher, preacher, and pastor, Jesus alone is meant to serve as our foundation. This is one of the primary themes that the Holy Spirit wants to champion again. In a generation of DIY, we’ve sought to find spiritual supplements that could replace what otherwise should be gained through our uncompromising commitment to becoming disciples of Jesus. Jesus, that firm foundation provided by the Father, is the base upon which we shall build.

There are three things that we must investigate deeper in order to build an unshakable foundation:

(1) We must know who Jesus is for ourselves. Jesus says to Peter, flesh and blood has not revealed this unto you. We too must allow God to inscribe in our hearts who Jesus was, is, and is always meant to be.

(2) The revelation of Jesus and who He is positions us to be a force on the earth, in whom hell cannot prevail against.

(3) The keys of the kingdom will be carried by those who know Jesus intimately, and who follow His teachings, unwaveringly.

Jesus was/is the Cornerstone and the Word of God made flesh. It’s also important to know that He is the express image of what the Father desires to see at work in the life of all His people. We learn from the Apostle Paul in Romans 8:29 (KJV), “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.” It’s not enough to believe that Jesus was a prophet, there’s a particular body of knowledge the Lord is wanting His children to learn and know surrounding Jesus as the Cornerstone.

The primary point of this chapter in Reading Red: The Gospel According to Jesus is that we would not become as those builders that felt they could build without the resources that God has provided. Jesus must remain the most integral part of every area of the believer’s life, as well every entity, and nation. When we ascribe to anything other than Jesus as our primary focus, we’ve drifted into idolatry and have set ourselves up for failure. I say idolatry, not necessarily in our devotion, but in an unhealthy confidence that we could build in our own strength and merits, without Jesus.

Questions:

(1) How do we ensure that our personal lives are aligned with what God desires from us?

(2) Is there an area of your life that’s unstable, due to lacking Scriptural references for it?

(3) What does John 8:31–32 mean to you?

Transformative Prayer:

Father help me to fix my eyes upon Jesus. He is the author and the finisher of our faith. I understand that when I’m focused, I arise; but when my attention drifts, I fall. Give me wisdom to build my life upon the solid rock of Jesus Christ, the firm foundation, tested and true. By doing so, I will live a life in which the gates of hell shall not prevail against, in Jesus’ name, amen.