Chip Off the Ol’ Block

April 22, 2013

⁴As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— ⁵you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶For in Scripture it says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”

⁷Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe,

“The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone,”

⁸and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”

They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

⁹But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

April 21, 2013
1 Peter 2:4-9, Chip Off the Ol’ Block
Pastor Patti Ricotta, Brewster Baptist Church
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Last week was a time of unforgettable pain and grief. We were attacked in an evil act of terror right in our own back yard, and though the perpetrators are no longer a threat, the healing is only just beginning.

Also our fellow citizens in West Texas are suffering beyond comprehension from the explosion that rained down death and destruction in their lives. Our passage today has a great many important things to teach us. But after the events of this week, the statement in this passage that stood out to me the most is verse 6: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”

Of course, Peter is saying that Jesus is that Cornerstone. And he tells us that if we reject Jesus—if we turn to any other foundation as we build our lives, we will fall and be crushed. But the part of the verse that forced me to think and pray this week is the part that says, “The one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” The word “shame” can also mean “dismay” or “disappoint.” So the one who trusts in Jesus as his or her Cornerstone will never be put to shame, never be dismayed, or never be disappointed.

Is that statement too simplistic for a world that has had to face the events of this week?

Let me get back to that question in a bit because there are so many other questions going around in the minds of frightened, hurting, broken, and angry people. Events like these inevitable evoke all kinds of other questions, like, “If God is All-powerful and All-loving why would he allow____?” (You can fill in the blank with the question that’s been in your own mind about last week.)

But…there are no easy answers. Life is not simple; it is incredible complex. And, nightmares like the events of last week cannot be dealt with simply. But, neither can many of the situations that some of us are facing right here, and right now. We can’t just say, “Oh, if you would just follow these three spiritual principles—Or, if you discipline yourself to do these 10 steps to godliness

all your depression will go away;
your child will return to you
you’ll get out of debt;
your heart will be filled with forgiveness,
you’ll be healed of your disease…
and the unimaginable horrors we face in this life will all stop.”

If I were to give you some linear approach or simplistic answer to these deeply complex issues, especially this week, my words would be trite and a waste of your time at best and self-righteous of me at worst.

I have to confess that I was working on one sermon, but in the wake of what’s happened in Boston and West Texas, I couldn’t make my notes say anything worth speaking about…or listening to. The sermon I had been planning seemed anemic in the face of so many unanswerable questions.

So I prayed and prayed. And, here’s what I do know, and it goes back to my earlier question about whether or not it is just too simplistic to believe—I mean really believe—that Jesus is the only Cornerstone, the only foundation worthy of our trust and our lives.

What I know is that the word of God is true and trustworthy. It is as true and trustworthy now as when it was written ages ago. And the events of this week, or any week, cannot nullify the statement that the one who trusts in Jesus Christ as his or her Cornerstone will never be put to shame.

So, after praying and thinking and listening and asking God to show me, teach me, tell me what he wants us to know in light of all the unanswerable questions that have been fueled by the events of last week, this is what I think God wants us to know:

When we can’t find the answer to life’s incomprehensible problems, there is something we can do, and we can do it well.

We can live out the gospel before each other and before the world.

Let me say that again: The only thing we can try to do in the face of unimaginable misery, pain and suffering is to live out the good news before one another and before a world searching for meaning in the mayhem. In the event of unspeakable terror, anguish, fear and anger, we who are connected to the Cornerstone of Life can become a holy, royal priesthood, holding out life to others through sacrificial acts of love.

If we stand before each other and the world and live out—really LIVE OUT—the good news of forgiveness and grace and unconditional love through Jesus—though the unanswerable questions may never go away completely, they just may lose their death grip on the heart of the questioner.

If we can do that, if we can live out the good news before each other and before the world…God will do the rest! And this passage can help us learn what it means to live out the gospel because it gives us the foundational truths that will anchor us and show us the way.

In our passage, Jesus is identified as the Cornerstone of salvation. And he isn’t just any kind of stone, he is The Living Stone; capital “L,” capital “S.” And as Christians who are being conformed to his image, we become living stones; little “l,” little “s.”

As living stones, it is as if we’ve been “quarried” from the same stone as the Living Cornerstone. We are chips off the ol’ block, so to speak. So whatever it means that Jesus is the Living Cornerstone, we are meant to share in those qualities.

In the passage Pastor Mary read from Ephesians (2:20), in our passage in 1 Peter (2: 6,7) and in Psalm 118:22, Acts 4:11, Matt. 21:42, Mark 12:10, Luke 20:17 the Bible tells us that God has chosen a Cornerstone that was rejected by the builders, but precious to God. That chosen Cornerstone is the foundation of our faith, and salvation is found only in him. All eight biblical cornerstone references point to Jesus as the sole source of our salvation.

Eight references spanning the Old Testament and the New Testament tell us that there is something very important in this Cornerstone image. So, I thought it would be important to understand just what the purpose and properties of a cornerstone were in ancient architecture. How might Isaiah, the psalmist, and the 1^st century writers have understood the cornerstone image—and so, how should we?

I read an article by an archaeology named L. Bouke van der Meer from Leiden University in the Netherlands. It was about the purpose of cornerstones (“Travertine Cornerstones in Ostia Antica: Old Block“) ^{^[1]} in an ancient ruin site from a late 1^st century/early 2^nd century city in Italy. I was so intrigued by his research that I decided to write to him and ask about cornerstones in the Roman Empire. He was kind enough to write me back. I have pictures from the site showing the cornerstones in Ostia Antica.

I thought they would give us an idea of what 1^st century Christians might have pictured when they listened to Peter. I’ve also gleaned information from other archeologist.

As I tell you about what I learned from the research of Dr. van der Meer’s and others, think of Jesus as your very own cornerstone. Think about the building attached to the cornerstone as the life you are trying to build for yourself, with each brick representing the different facets of your life.

Also, think about Jesus as the Cornerstone of the entire church, both here at BBC and across the world. And think about yourself as one stone in the spiritual house God is building (1 Pet.2:5).

Photos from http://www.ostia-antica.org/dict/topics/travertine/travertine.htm

Dr. van der Meer said that these large white cornerstones were used in both ordinary neighborhood homes and important city buildings. He and others taught me that the cornerstone was the first stone to be set in a building. It was important for several reasons.

All the other stones in the building were aligned in reference to it.
The cornerstone determined the position and the stability of the entire structure.
It brought two walls together into meaningful relationship, uniting the divergent walls in strength.
The cornerstone not only stabilized the building, but provided protection for the entire structure.
These stronger stones could withstand accidents of traffic better than regular building stones. If smaller, weaker stones had been placed in these corners, the entire building would be compromised.
The cornerstone had to be able to take the worst abuse to protect all the other stones in the building.

Dr. van der Meer also found that these stones were probably uses as boundary markers, to show the beginning or ending of paths to be traveled.

And very interestingly, they may also have been used as warning signals.
There were no street lights in the 1^st and 2^nd centuries, so these bright stones sort of glowed in the dark, showing the way for those who were walking in the darkness and trying to get safely home.
When someone walking in darkness saw the cornerstone, they could easily find their way.

This makes it clear to me that God inspired the image of Jesus as The Cornerstone of our salvation because it was so easy to understand. Jesus, the Living Cornerstone, was chosen by God. But now, as in Bible times, he is rejected by those who are building their lives on a lesser foundation.

But!

When we put him first in our lives, all other things begin to line up in reference to him in power and purpose
When he determines the position of our lives we have stability and strength
Staying connected to Jesus, unites us in meaningful relationship with other believers, even when we are in a different parts of the world.
Even though life crashes into us and horrible things happen, like what we’ve experienced last week, Jesus is there to absorb the brunt of the pain. He not only helps us through the pain we suffer now, but he absorbed the ultimate pain of death, making it possible for us to have peace with God.
Like the white travertine stones that glow in the dark, Jesus shows us the way out of darkness into his wonderful light (1 Peter 2:9)

Is that what Jesus is to you? Is Jesus your cornerstone? Or, is he just one of the stones we are using to build our lives, but not really the cornerstone. He’s important. He’s a big stone, but not the sole center, the foundation of our lives. Maybe sometimes he’s the cornerstone, and sometimes we shove him over and put something else in his place.

As I was writing this message, and got to this very line, I knew I had to ask, “God, do I do that? Do I slip you in and slip you out? Are you always my cornerstone?” I got a picture in my mind of God leaning in and looking over his glasses at me saying, “Really? Do you have to ask?” Our sweet, gentle, and often humorous Lord pointed out a couple of things that are trying to wedge their way into the all-important position of 1^st Place in my life.

What about you? Is something trying to wedge its way into the Cornerstone’s position in your life? Is something already there? What are some of the things that might take the all-important place of the Cornerstone: wealth, status, image, appearance, false religions, careers, grades, relationships, children, grandchildren, spouses?

If we are going to live out the gospel before each other and before the world in a way that helps to quell the pain of unanswerable questions, we have to be intentional about keeping Jesus in the Cornerstone position of our lives. Right?

So far we’ve talked about the nature of the Living Cornerstone in the spiritual house of God, but Peter also talks about the nature of the house itself.

Remember that verse 5 says, “You also, like living stones are being built into a spiritual house.”

The word “you” is plural. We, like living stones, are constantly being built by God into his spiritual house. He is using us as the building material.

Remember before I said that we are like “chips off the ol’ block, because we are quarried from the same “likeness” as Christ. Well the chips have to be shaped so they fit together.

Peter’s audience may well have had a picture of this very temple in their minds when they heard him speaking of God’s spiritual house. See how perfectly these stones fit together.

See how tightly these stones fit together.

They had to be submitted to chisel and hammer to fit that securely.

All the rough edges of the stones in this wall had to be smoothed so that the stones would create a sturdy, strong wall.

I wonder what my rough edges are. What are the parts of your personality, my personality; your character, my character that rub other living stones the wrong way and keep us from fitting together to build a strong, united spiritual house here at BBC?

I certainly don’t mean to say that stones have to be identical to make a sturdy wall. There is room in God’s spiritual house for every shape, every color, and every size of stone. Even the little stones (like children) help make the wall sturdy. What would happen if those littlest stones were removed from the wall? What would happen if any stone was removed? The entire wall would become unstable. Every living stone is necessary.

Notice that Peter is not talking about living stones that are in a heap or stacked in a pallet. They are all in a wall and exposed to one another and to the Living Cornerstone—every one of them. With Christ at the corner of the building he can “see” every stone. None is hiding from him in the middle of a pile, and none is hiding from the other living stones. A strong spiritual house benefits when the living stones are visible to one another.

When I see how you are living out the gospel before others, and before the world you inspire me to do the same! You give me courage to push myself beyond my comfort zone. You give me ideas for how I might serve better based on how God is shaping me into a living stone.

Conclusion:

Last week, in the wake of death and destruction, I had two long conversations men who were questioning God. One of them couldn’t understand the nature of God. “I was told my whole life growing up that God punishes people when they do wrong, and I’ve done some pretty wrong things.” He said. “But now, all of a sudden, they tell me that God is love. I don’t buy that! How can God be punishing for years and years, and then just switch, like that.” Then he looked right at me and said, “Which is it?” At that moment, I turned in my mind to my very effective “default” prayer for times like this. I’ll share it with you and you may certainly borrow it if you like. It goes:

HELP ME GOD! HELP ME GOD! HELP ME GOD!

😉

All I could do was try to tell him about the love of God, and do my best to live out that gospel before him in word and deed. As one who bears the image of the God whose love he questioned, I tried to show him as much love as I could.

The second conversation I had was with a young man who questioned why a good God would let an 8 year old be ripped from his family, and a 26 year old police officer be assassinated with his whole life ahead of him. The young man pelted me with one unanswerable question after another. The only thing I could do, as one who bears the image of the God whose goodness he questioned, was show him as much goodness as I could.

In both conversations, I know God was with us, and even though I didn’t have all the answers, I believe that my meager spiritual offering was a sacrifice acceptable to God through Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:5).

With the events of last week tearing open the heart of a nation, I’m sure many of you have had or will have similar difficult conversations. But be assured that as we live out the gospel with more and more discernment and vigilance and purpose, we will show the world that instead of shame, we can receive assurance; our dismay can be turned to delight; and disappointments can be received as precious stepping stones to our development.

May you find this week that you are a living stone inseparably connected to other living stones and to The Living Cornerstone, Jesus Christ. Let’s pray.

Dear Lord Jesus, We do come to you the Living Cornerstone from which we, as living stones, have been quarried. May we truly be like you, chips off the ol’ block. Help us to keep you as the foundational Cornerstone of our lives. We know that when we put you first, you set our direction in the ways that are right for each one, and which will build your spiritual house. Being connected to you makes it possible for all the other parts of our lives to come in alignment the way you intend. Lord, as you build your spiritual house here at Brewster Baptist, teach us how to stay inseparably connected to you and to each other so we become a sturdy house, capable of growing and spreading your love and power to a world suffering from the instability of being disconnected from you. Help us to become more and more capable of living out the gospel before each other and the world. Amen

[1] Travertine Cornerstones in Ostia Antica: Old Block

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