“The Stone The Builders Rejected Has Become The Cornerstone”

Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.

As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you 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. For 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.”

Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and, “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.

But 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. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

1 Peter 2:1-10

Scripture gives us a glimpse of a huge throng of people, united by their faith in Jesus Christ: “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation…that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

This is not an image of the privileged few, but of the ransomed many from “every tribe and language and penalty and nation.” Today we are scattered across the globe, where may feel isolated and suffer for their allegiance to Jesus. But through the lens of God’s Word we see a huge panorama shot of our brothers and sisters in faith standing together to honor the One who redeemed us and made us His own.

Let’s join together in praise to the One who brought us out of the darkness and into the light!

What praises do you have to give to God?

Our Daily Bread – January 25, 2019