Christ the Cornerstone
1 Peter 2:4-8
Transcript
Well, good morning. We're in First Peter. It'll be page 657. If your Bible looks like this, if your Bible doesn't look like this, it may be on page 657, but probably is not. But we are in, we're just walking verse by verse through the book of First Peter.
If you do not own a Bible, grab one of these, take it home with you. If you don't have a Bible with you, use this one today. But if you own one, leave it for someone else to take later who doesn't own one. But that's our gift to you this morning. We're walking verse by verse through the letter of First Peter. It's a letter written by the Apostle Peter to a group of churches in what is modern day Turkey, just kind of explaining to them what it looks like to live as Christians in a context, in a culture that is not Christian.
It doesn't have Christian values, doesn't have Christian beliefs, is not Christian. And so he's writing into that context to try to explain to them what it looks like to be faithful, to follow Jesus in the midst of a culture that's really not going to be favorable to it. When I was in, I played football in high school and I was decent. I wasn't terrible. I was decent and ended up being recruited to play football in college by several smaller schools, mostly schools I think that wanted to increase their team's GPA overall because that was really what I had going for me was grades more than football, I think.
But I ended up going to Presbyterian College and playing football there. And the original coach that recruited me, or the head coach at that time, his name was Tommy Spangler. And he was a very intense and angry person. And he liked defense and he oversaw the defense and was very good at defense, didn't care much about offense. And he was amazing when it came to figuring out a defense. To the point that when I was a freshman there and he was explaining the defense, we would have different blitz packages and they would change depending on where.
It would be a whole different thing. Same play. It would be called like, you know, our bomb blitz. And then if they just moved a little bit, he would change the whole thing. And I remember sitting in practice thinking, are all these older guys just nodding along like they know what he's talking about? Or do they actually know what he's talking about?
And he was very good at defense. And he, I mean, to the point, borderline genius. But he did not know how to talk to humans. So he had that not going for him. And I remember when I got there, I first learned way more colorful ways to use expletives that I had never even entered into a whole world of colorful ways to use language to harm people's souls that I had never, ever entered into before. And he was a very intense, very angry guy.
And the way he coached what he wanted out of his players was aggression and effort. That's basically it. If you were kind of angry and you tried hard, he would find a spot for you. And I fit perfectly into that realm. With him as head coach and all you needed was anger and aggression and effort, I was on that team. Like I could do that.
I could show up early to things. I could try to harm people. That was about all I had going for me. And then after my freshman year, we got a new head coach. And so when a head coach comes in, everything changes. Everything flows out of, off of the head coach.
And so this head coach is terrible. He wanted you to be good at football. And so I no longer fit well into the system. He wanted you to be like fast and athletic. And I no longer had a spot. I was like, oh, this is going to, this is terrible.
Because he came in and he was just a whole different setup. And the whole team changed. And what we found was after that first year, you either had guys that fit well under this coach or fit well under this coach. They either liked the way it was or they liked the way it was now. They liked what had been or they liked what was going on currently. And there wasn't a lot of wiggle room.
It was either you were in the new system or you were in the old system. You fit in the new system. You fit in the old system. And the head coach made all of the difference. And here's what we're going to see that Peter says as we read this passage today. He says that Jesus is the difference maker for all of history.
That he is the, what he's going to use the word is cornerstone. But he is what comes in and changes everything. And you either fit or you don't. You're either in the system or you're out of the system. And it's all based off of Jesus. And so as we read through today, we're going to see very clearly how divisive Jesus is.
And how everything flows off of and builds out of and out from him. So I'm going to pray and then we're going to hop into 1 Peter chapter 2. God, we thank you for the opportunity we have to study your word. And we pray, Lord, that your Holy Spirit would change us. Would lead us to believe. To trust fully in you.
And that as Christians, you would build us into your servants, your people. And that you would genuinely be our cornerstone for all of life. We love you and we praise you in Jesus' name. Amen. So Peter's going to start off in this section we're reading today.
Talking about what happens when you become a Christian. What it looks like for Christians when you come to Jesus. And then he's going to go into Jesus being the cornerstone. And kind of explain how divisive that is. So verse 4.
As you come to him. So Peter's writing to the church. He's talking to Christians. As you come to him. That's Jesus. A living stone.
Rejected by men. But in the sight of God. Chosen and precious. There he's referring to the cross. That Jesus came in. And he's just using living stone as imagery.
Jesus came into history. And was rejected by men. Came in as king. As God. Declared he was king and God. And men rejected him.
Didn't want him. And sent him to the cross. And that in that same moment. Of absolute rejection by men. God accepted his sacrifice on our behalf. That in the punishment that was placed on him for sin.
God chose him. He's precious to God. And he is definitive in history. As the. Savior and king. That he's.
Rejected by men. But chosen and precious. So as you come to him. Verse five. 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.
Okay. So he just used three images there. From the Old Testament. Try to implant in our brains. What it looks like when we come to Jesus. So the three images are.
Spiritual house. Which he's talking about. The temple. Because he then links it to priests. And sacrifices. So in the Old Testament.
They had the temple. Which was the. The image and presence of God. In some ways. It's like it was. Not the image and presence of God.
Because God. Put his image on humans. But. When the temple was created. It was this. Sign.
This place. In Jerusalem. That showed. The active work. And presence of God. That that was where God.
Interacted. And chose to place the spirit. And interact with humans. Was in the temple. And so in the temple. You had.
The whole temple was holy. And only priests could go into certain parts of it. And then. There was. The holy of holies. And when you went into the holy of holies.
You had to tie a rope around yourself. Because it was possible. That God would kill you. If you went in. In an unholy way. In an unrepentant way.
And they would need to be able to get you out. That's why you had a rope tied around you. So that they could pull you out. Because no one would be able to go in and get you. Which just seems like a scary Job. All right.
You ready to go in? Yeah. All right. Tie the rope around you. Because we're not coming in after you. If he strikes you dead.
Like maybe you should wear a bell. So that we know. If you're still walking around in there. Like. Give two tugs. If you don't tug back.
We'll go ahead and start pulling you out. It just. So there was. There was the temple. Which was the active presence of God. Where he was.
Choosing to place his spirit into work. And then there were the priests. Who were the people of God. That were specifically to go before. God. On behalf of the people.
To serve. On behalf of the people. And the priest. Did not get an inheritance. And the inheritance was land. They didn't get any land.
Their inheritance was God. So their hope wasn't in land. It was in God. And so the priests. Would go before. God.
On behalf of people. And then the sacrifices. That they offered. Were to atone for people's sin. That they would. Kill.
Lambs. And bulls. And goats. And doves. On a regular basis. To cover the sin.
Of the people. And to. Bridge the gap. Between God. And man. And so.
Ultimately. We see in the New Testament. That Jesus is the absolute fulfillment. Of the temple. He is God's image and presence. Active work on earth.
He's the absolute fulfillment. Of the priests. Who were to go between God. And man. And he's the absolute fulfillment. Of the sacrifice.
Where he was perfect. And spotless. And died on our behalf. But. What Peter says. Is that in.
Some ways. When we come to God. When we come to Jesus. We are built up. Into the temple. Into the priests.
And into the sacrifices. So what that means is. Now the church. Is the active work. Of God on earth. The image.
And presence. His work. On earth. And. We're the priests. So we.
We get to go before God. On behalf of those around us. We get to go before God. On behalf of our co-workers. On behalf of our neighbors. On behalf of our city.
We get to. Go before God. And plead with him. To work on their behalf. That we get to sacrifice. For them.
And then it says. Offering spiritual sacrifices. Through Jesus Christ. Acceptable sacrifices. Through Jesus Christ. And that's honestly.
As Peter's going to. Talk about this. It's really all the other stuff. He's talking about. It's going to be. Suffering.
On behalf of other people. It's going to be. Being obedient. When we don't want to be. Following after Jesus. In so many ways.
It's. It's. It's. Really our entire lives. Poured out. For Jesus.
And for the good of those around us. And so Peter says. That when you come to Jesus. That's what he does. He builds you up. Into the spiritual house.
He makes you into this people. And so. That's why. We don't call this church. First of all. The word church.
Is the translation of the word. Ekklesia. Which means gathering. Or assembly. So. But we don't call this church.
Like when people say. Let's go to church. That actually doesn't make sense. That's why we don't have a temple. There's no one set place. Where God is active on earth anymore.
Because. He's. His spirit has come into his church. Into his people. That we are built up. Into the temple.
Into the priests. To offer sacrifices. So you don't go to church. We are the church. We are the. The people of God.
Built up into his active presence on earth. So you can't miss church. When people say. Yeah. I'm really busy. I'm not going to be able to do church for a while.
That sentence is completely incoherent. If you are a Christian. It doesn't make any sense. It would be like looking at my wife. And being like. Yeah.
I'm super busy. I'm not going to be able to do family for a while. I'm not going to be able to. People for a while. It's like. What are you talking about?
That doesn't make any sense. But we've been built into. His people. Into the church. That's why when people say. How good is it to be in the house of the Lord?
He doesn't have a house anymore. It's just people. We're not in his house. This place isn't holy. That's why we honestly don't mind meeting in a school. We like this school.
Because it actually is a nice auditorium. And it's not super expensive. But we can meet anywhere. As God's people. It doesn't have to be fancy. It doesn't have to be nice.
It doesn't have to be a sanctuary. It's not a holy place. Because his spirit has come into us. And made us into the church. So. Peter says.
This is what happens to believers. When you come to Jesus. And then he keeps going. Verse 6. For it stands in scripture. Now he's going to refer to.
Isaiah. Psalm. A Psalm. And Isaiah again. Behold. I am laying in Zion a stone.
Zion is another word used for Jerusalem. This is God speaking. Behold. I am laying in Zion a stone. A cornerstone. Chosen.
And precious. And whoever believes in him. Will not be put to shame. 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.
So Peter very clearly says. Jesus is the cornerstone. And the two options. Are believe. Not believe. Those are the two options.
When it comes to Jesus. You either believe. Or you don't believe. Everybody in this room. Fits into one of those categories. You believe.
Or you don't believe. And then he is going to talk about. What it looks like. Specifically for those who believe. And for those who don't believe. And so he says that he is the cornerstone.
Now we don't use cornerstones anymore. The way they use cornerstones. If you look at certain buildings. There will be like a decorative cornerstone. That will be like. Built by the women of Edgefield South Carolina.
It is good. But that cornerstone wasn't actually useful. They had to like. Stick it in there later. The way they use cornerstones though. Was when they were building a building.
They would pick. The best stone. That was the most square. That was the largest. And best. And they would set it.
And once it was set. Everything else was built off of it. So the cornerstone. Was the most important stone. Because the rest of your building. Was built off of your cornerstone.
That you would set the cornerstone. And then every. All of your lines. Traced off. And went back to the cornerstone. So when he says that Jesus has been set in history as the cornerstone.
For those who believe. So behold I am laying in Zion a stone. A cornerstone chosen and precious. Chosen and precious. And whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. As Christians.
Here is what it means for us to set Jesus as the cornerstone. To believe in Jesus as the cornerstone. So if he is. The way the building is constructed. Here is how this works. What do you fall back on.
When things get out of whack. What do you run back to. To reline everything up. Because if he is the cornerstone. And you are building a building. And you get over here.
And suddenly things don't line up anymore. You trace your way back to the cornerstone. Because that is where everything is lined up with. And then you reset it based off of the cornerstone. So for a Christian.
Where do you run? Where do you run when life gets tough? What do you turn to. When everything seems like it is falling apart? Is it Jesus? Is it something else?
That is one of the ways to think about Jesus as the cornerstone. When everything goes poorly. Do you just try to control the situation? No matter how that works. Do you just try to regain your sense of. I am okay.
I have my hands on the wheel. We are alright. If I can just kind of manipulate. Maybe I have to lie a little bit. Maybe I will have to do some things. I am not really comfortable with.
But I got to regain a sense of control. You just. When there is conflict. When there is difficulty. You just go power. You go flash bang grenade.
Is that you? You throw plates at your house? This is a safe place. You can raise your hand. I am just kidding. It is a safe place.
But don't raise your hand. Talk about it with your group. If you are a plate thrower. But what do you do? What do you lean into? Some of you when life gets tough.
It is just going to be Netflix. Netflix and Cheetos. Napping. Like that is your go to. I am going to watch Daredevil. And drink a half a bottle of Z-Qual.
And hope everything is good in the morning. What do you run back to? Because if Jesus is the cornerstone. He is where we turn back. He is where we run. To reset our life.
The other way that you can think about Jesus as a cornerstone. Is how do you move forward? So if he is the cornerstone. You build off of him. How do you move forward? So for Christians we would say.
Okay Jesus is king. He is God. He is everything. We know that he is revealed to us through his word. So I am going to study scripture.
And I am going to begin to see what my values. My priorities ought to be. How I ought to view the world. How I ought to understand purpose. Then I am going to think about what kind of major I should have.
Then I am going to think about what kind of Job I should get. Then I am going to think about what marriage ought to look like. Then I am going to think about how I ought to raise children. And when things get out of whack. I am just going to work back through the process. Back to Jesus.
Back to how things are set up. That is what it means for Christians who believe in Jesus as a cornerstone. Is that we set our lives off of him. And here is what is beautiful about that. Whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. It will not go badly for us.
In the long run. Peter is not going to say it will not go badly for us in the short run. He is actually going to talk a lot about how we will suffer. And things will go badly for us here. But that ultimately.
We won't be put to shame. That Jesus stepped in to save us. To rescue us. To make us his. That he died on our behalf. And that if we trust him.
He is the cornerstone. He is the foundation. And it will work out. That we will be rescued. That things will be okay. Okay.
But then he says this. So the honor is for you who believe. But for those who do not believe. So mostly on Sundays. We are talking to church family. We are talking to Christians.
Because the Bible mostly talks to Christians. And we believe that we all grow. As we study the gospel. As we grow in our understanding of who Jesus is. And what he has done. So we don't as a church family do a whole lot of.
Come be a Christian. Here is what it looks like to be a Christian. Because honestly they are very similar. It is always the gospel that moves us forward. So if you are not a Christian.
You need to hear the gospel. And if you are a Christian. You need to hear the gospel. But as Peter is walking through this. He splits it up. And very clearly says.
This is for those who believe. This is for those who don't believe. So for those who do not believe. The stone that the builders rejected. Has become the cornerstone. So builders being humans.
Didn't like Jesus. Didn't want him to be the cornerstone. Didn't want everything to be built off of him. Didn't think that was a good idea. And so they rejected him. And then God.
Because he is God. And can do what he wants. Made him the cornerstone. And said he sits in history as the cornerstone. That all of life is built off of. It says this.
So he is 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. Jesus is offensive.
We've said this before. Most of our culture. Maybe some of you in here today. You know two things about Jesus. That he was the nicest person ever. That if you met Jesus.
He would hug you. Y'all would laugh together. He was just wonderful. And you know that he was brutally murdered. By people who hate him. And those aren't super coherent thought processes.
Because it's not like. You know that lady lives down the street. She's a grandmother to like 12 kids. She's got a lot of enemies. People hate her. And I think it's because.
She gave him oatmeal raisin cookies. And they thought they were chocolate chip. Good enough reason to kill anybody. No. Those aren't really coherent. There's not a.
There's not a. Super nice. And. People hate you. Want to murder you. They don't really go together.
There weren't people just walking around. Being like. I am so ticked off at Mother Teresa right now. Don't even get me started. Hugging orphans. It's going down.
Oh my goodness. Like it doesn't happen. Jesus was offensive. And he is offensive. To all cultures. In all times.
In all places. Always. There will always be. In any culture. Acceptance of some things. That the Bible says.
Acceptance of some things. That Jesus is about. And rejection. And offense at others. And I'll give you an example. In our culture.
In the U.S. of A. If we talk about. God is loving. Amen. God's gracious. He forgives you.
Hallelujah. He died for you. Yeah he did. That sounds good. He's humble. Yes.
He forgives. Everything. Yes. And he's a judge. That sits over top of sin. That sits over top of all history.
And you are declared guilty. Because you fall short. Whoa. And he sends people to hell. Hmm. I don't like that.
That doesn't sound super good to me. But if you move that. If you move this personal God. Who's gracious and loving and forgiving. And Judges sin. And has wrath for sinners.
And sends people to hell. To the Middle East. They have the opposite problem. God's a judge. Yeah he is. God is wrathful.
Yes he is. God destroys people. Yes. God will crush his enemies. Yes. God will send people to hell.
Yes. God is gracious. Loving. Humble. Personal. And he came and died for you.
No. That's nonsense. That's incoherent. Why would he forgive. Those who don't deserve it. Why would he love.
And redeem those who haven't earned it. This is ridiculous. And he's not personal. And he's not loving like that. And he wouldn't die like that. And it's ridiculous for you to think.
That the great creator of the earth. Would humble himself to the point of death. It's nonsense. See that's offensive. In the Middle East. At all points.
Jesus is going to offend your culture. In some ways. And so today. We're going to take. Just a second. To look at three ways.
That I think he is specifically offensive. To us as Americans. Three ways that Jesus is offensive. Now he's offensive in these ways. To other cultures as well. But we're Americans.
All but one of us. That I'm aware of. And. We're going to look at. Ways that he is offensive. Specifically to us.
In our western culture. Jesus is offensive. Because he claims supremacy. Jesus says that he is the king. Of everything. You see some of us are going to believe this.
And some of us are going to not believe it. And stumble. Some of us are going to believe. And build our lives off of it. And some of us are going to not believe. And stumble over it.
Be offended by it. That's how it works. And Jesus proclaims that he is supreme. That all other gods. All other philosophies. All other thought processes.
Bow before him. And that ultimately. His enemies will be his footstool. You walk into a king's chamber. And there is a former king. Bent over.
On all fours. And the king props his feet. On his back. The king with his feet. On his back. Is the one in charge.
That's how it works. And Jesus eventually. Will have his enemies. Be his footstool. He is supreme. And our culture likes to say.
No, no, no. All views of God are equal. We're all like blind men. Trying to describe an elephant. Y'all heard this before? Religion is like a bunch of blind men.
Trying to describe an elephant. So one guy is holding the trunk. And he says. An elephant is like a snake. And one guy is pushing on the side of the elephant. And he says.
An elephant is like a great big wall. And one guy is holding the elephant's tail. And he says. An elephant is furry and small. Like a mouse. And he doesn't smell so good.
But the truth is. When we say stuff like that. What we have assumed. Whoever argues this. Is true about religion. What they have assumed is.
The only way you can tell that story. Is if you are not blind. And you can see the elephant. And so their complaint. That they're levying against religion. Is that it claims to see spiritual reality.
And the way that they do that. Is by claiming to see spiritual reality. See we don't like the idea. That somebody has. A hold on truth. That is real.
And that is supreme. And Jesus steps into our culture. And says. I don't care. I am the king of everything. I rule and I reign.
Over everything. And all knees will bow to me. And all tongues will proclaim. That I am king. And that is how it is going to work. And that ultimately.
I will return. And everything will submit. To my authority. Fully and forever. And our culture doesn't like that. And we will either.
Believe it. And build our lives off of that truth. Or we will not believe it. Be offended by it. And stumble over it. Jesus is offensive to our culture.
Specifically. And that he Judges sin. So our culture will get on board. With the statement. That we are all human. And we all make mistakes.
But then we start getting into this. But. There is no real objective. Right and wrong. Like you have got to choose for yourself. You have got to figure out for you.
What is right and wrong. You have got to look. And decide for you. What is right and wrong. And that different. Who is to say.
What is right and wrong. But even in that. We would. All of us in this room. If you have genuinely sat. And answered the question.
Do I believe. That there are things. That are actually. That people are doing. In this world. That they should actually stop.
Regardless of whether or not. They think it is right or wrong. That there are things going on. Currently in this world. That people should stop. Or be stopped.
Whether they think it is right or wrong. That Boko Haram should be stopped. That the Nigerian girls. Should be returned. That ISIS should be stopped. That child soldiers.
Should be like. There are certain things. That we will look. And say sex slavery. And trafficking. Should be stopped.
And we will look. And say I don't care. If they think it is okay. I don't care. Like. So we admit.
That there is an objective reality. And here is what Jesus does. He steps in and says. That the objective reality. Belongs to him. That the objective ruling.
Belongs to him. And that he Judges us. Based off of it. And that all of us. Fall short. That Gandhi.
And Mother Teresa. Fall short. And will be judged. And will be held accountable. For their failings. Will be held accountable.
For. All the bad things. That they did. All the times they lied. Stole. Cheated.
Whether they were. Mostly good in life. They will be held accountable. For where they fell short. All the good things. That they did not do.
That they should have done. And all of the times. That they did good things. With messed up motives. All the times. That we were generous.
Just because we wanted people. To think we were generous. All the times. That we were. Really gracious. To somebody.
Because we really just wanted them. To like us. Had nothing to do with generosity. Had nothing to do with graciousness. Had nothing to do with kindness. It was just about us.
And that ultimately. Jesus sits as judge. Over all of that. There's a video now. Out by Stephen Fry. Who's a British actor.
And he was asked. I think. Some along the lines of. What would he do. If he met God. God.
And he goes into a three to five minute. Tirade. Probably the best way to describe it. And in that. He sits in judgment over God. And says.
I would. I would take him to task over. This. And this. And this. And this.
And if he is real. I have no desire to believe in him. Because of. The things I see in the world. That I dislike. And our culture.
Does that quite often. We say. Well if there is a God. Then this is messed up. And if Jesus is a God. Then he shouldn't do this.
And this isn't okay. And what we have done. Is elevated ourself. To the judgment seat. And we've. Lowered God.
And we've lowered Jesus below us. And we get to pass judgment on him. And so people will say stuff like. Who does Jesus think he is to judge me. Who are you to judge him. Honestly.
Any person in this room. If we were going to choose. Who got to be judged. Just based off of name recognition alone. I think Jesus wins. Time magazine.
Man of the millennium. If we got to pick judge. Probably not you. I mean sure. You're super smart. You did eighth grade twice.
And you don't really know how to do your family budget. And you should be judge and king over the world. But. But Jesus. Shouldn't. And our culture doesn't like.
That he's going to roll up one day. And everything's going to be based off of what he says is right. And what he says is true. And what he says is good. And honestly. We are either going to believe.
And build our life off of him. Or we're going to not believe. Stumble. And be offended. Another way that Jesus is. Specifically offensive to our culture.
Is the exclusivity of the cross. So we hear quite often. That. Always lead to God. That everything you believe is just as valid as someone else's belief. And that all gods are basically equal.
That all God. All belief in God. All gods are the same. Which honestly. If we brought an imam up here. A rabbi up here.
And a Buddhist monk up here. We would all heartily disagree. That all gods are equal and the same. Buddhists don't believe in a personal God. An imam wouldn't believe that God would die. A rabbi is not going to believe that God is Jesus.
Or that Jesus is God. We're not going to agree. That all gods are basically the same. And here's what's really funny about that statement as well. What you are saying is. Your view of spiritual reality.
To say that there is one spiritual reality. And to push that onto other people. Isn't true. Isn't okay. And the way I know that. Is by saying that my view of spiritual reality.
Is true and okay. Your definitive view of spiritual reality. That you push onto other people. Isn't okay. But my definitive view of spiritual reality is.
Does that make sense? That you're making a definitive statement about spiritual reality. When you say that all gods are the same. The same way that Jesus makes a definitive statement about spiritual reality. When he says he is the only God and king forever. And so as long as we'll agree that we're all on the same page.
That we have an exclusive belief on the spiritual reality. And I think we're okay. And here's what Jesus is going to do. Here's what he says. Here's what the Bible definitively declares. Only Jesus can rescue you.
Only Jesus can redeem you. Only Jesus can make you okay. Only Jesus can sacrifice for you. Only Jesus can pay for your sin. Not your morals. Not your goodness.
Not your philosophy. Not your niceness. Not your ability to be intelligent. Jesus. Through the cross. And only through the cross.
Jesus can rescue and redeem you. Jesus and only Jesus is the cornerstone of all of history in the world. And we're either going to believe that and build our lives off of him. Or we're going to stumble and be offended by him. The band's going to come back up. And we're going to sing and make much of Jesus who is.
Our cornerstone. And for Christians in this room. Realize that Jesus is building you into his active work on earth. That you have a purpose. That you have a purpose. Because he's making us into his active presence and work on earth for the good of those around us.
That we get to be a new priest. Who get to serve not on our behalf but on the behalf of others. And that we get to pour our lives out in sacrifices. For the good of those around us. That you're in your job. In your neighborhood.
In this city. In your community group. For the good of those around you. And for every person. In this room. Who does not believe.
I'd like to ask you to believe. Not know. Not have all the answers. Not see everything. But believe.
Place your hope in Jesus. Jesus. And here's why. He is supreme. He is the ruling. Reigning.
King of the universe. Creator of all things. That all things bow to him. That all things belong to him. That he is supreme. Above all thought processes.
All philosophies. And all gods. That is true. You are broken. You do fall short. You have not lived up.
To the objective standards. Of the ruling. Reigning king of the universe. And you will be judged. And found guilty. You don't even live up.
To your own. Really small standards. That you set for yourself. And the ruling. Reigning king of the universe. Has higher ones.
And you have lived your life. In rebellion. In defiance. In pride. And selfishness. Elevating yourself above him.
It is true. He is the definitive. Cornerstone. Of the universe. And. The ruling.
Reigning. Supreme king. Of all things. Humbled himself. And became a human. Lived.
And. The way you never could have lived. Not in defiance. Not in pride. Not in rebellion. In kindness.
And grace. And love. And acceptance. And then he took. All of your pride. All of your rebellion.
All of your defiance. All of your lust. All of your greed. All of your selfishness. All of your shame. All of your guilt.
All of your guilt. Onto himself. And he died for it. and through that sacrifice we can be made right before God through that sacrifice we can stand before the ruling reigning king of the universe and be made okay and be declared innocent and holy and blameless we can have our account swapped with Jesus's and every person in this room will believe and not be put to shame or will stumble in disobedience and be destroyed this passage doesn't talk about it but I think it's helpful for us to know this every single one of us when God designed the world we're designed to exist for eternity and through our rebellion we brought death into the world but ultimately our souls will live on and on and on and on and on forever and those who place their trust and their hope in Jesus not their intelligence not their morality not their goodness not their philosophy not their ability not themselves but in Jesus will be welcomed because he's paid for our debt and we'll spend eternity living on and on and on in his family in his kingdom in his grace and his love and his forgiveness will swallow us in joy and hope forever because of the cross because of the death and because of the resurrection that forever sealed this for us through Jesus and those of us who are offended by Jesus and stumble over him will pay the due penalty of our rebellion of our pride of our selfishness of our self-sufficiency in eternity in hell eternity in a what the bible describes as a lake of fire where the fire is not quenched and the internal torment never stops and we will live there on and on and on and on and on and on Jesus is the cornerstone of history and for christians we want everyone to know that and everyone to spend eternity with him if you are a christian in the room you have been built into a new temple a new active presence of God on earth where you are a priest who no longer has an inheritance here but God is your inheritance and you exist for the good of those around you to sacrifice for their good because every single one of your neighbors every single one of your co-workers every single person in our city will either believe in him and not be put to shame or will stumble and fall over him and be offended by him and when the bible talks about cornerstone in other places it says it will be crushed by him that his enemies will be his footstool that all of us will be judged by the supreme king of the universe who has done enough to rescue us who has absolutely redeemed and saved us and that is the point of history is to worship and follow God for his glory and for the good of those around us as christians that we might believe in him and see everyone else around us believe it matters it's real he is supreme he is the judge and he did save us if we believe and if you're in this room you can be saved not by your morality not by your goodness but you can be saved from your sin and from the ruling reigning king of the universe who will have wrath on those in rebellion if you believe if you trust in what Jesus has already done for you on the cross and that is true for every person in this room and every person you will ever see every person you will ever work with every person you will ever live near that is true and ultimately our days are fleeting it will be over we will face the cornerstone and the king of the universe and either be saved by his absolute grace and sacrifice on our behalf or stumble over him in our offense at him where we have been sat in judgment over him in our pride and self-sufficiency and be crushed and I'd like to ask you if you're in this room believe trust Jesus no other God no other thing in this world that you can chase after forgives you loves you and died for you as Jesus has and if you're in this room and you're a christian realize that you're being built up to be God's active presence on earth for the good of those around you to sacrifice your life for his glory for their good because it's all at the end of the day God we pray that you'd help us believe that you through your holy spirit would give us faith and Lord that because this church exists because our community groups exist that less people in our city will be offended less people in our neighborhoods less friends that we know and love and less family members will stumble and be offended will stumble and be crushed and that Lord more and more and more people will believe in the sacrifice and the atonement that's already been given freely for them and we praise you that you did die on a cross instead of crushing us that you Jesus was crushed for us that you've given us a way of hope and that he rose from the grave forever sealing that hope for us that it is sure and secure as sure and secure as he lives now before you interceding on our behalf and so God we pray that you'd help us believe and set our lives around you in Jesus name amen