Christ Is Our Cornerstone.

Bible Passage: 1 Peter 2:6-7
Pastor: Pastor Schlicht
Sermon Date:  May 7, 2023

Here we are on Confirmation Day. You’ve made it! No more of my essay quizzes, no more Christ-light discussions, no more “What Does This Mean…” At least not in the classroom. You will apply those things and all that you learned at Eastside every day for the rest of your life.  You see, the whole purpose of our catechism classes and Christian education at Eastside is firmly set into place with the promises you make today. This is not the end of your growth in Christ, it is the establishment of your faith and your place in our congregation. The apostle Peter called us living stones set upon the cornerstone of Christ in our 2nd lesson today, and in many ways I like to think of confirmation like the process of quarrying stones. Chipping off the rough parts, defining the edges, measuring your faith against Scripture so that by God’s Spirit you are formed into a stone which will fit wherever he places you in his kingdom. And ultimately confirmed in Christian faith forever, securely centered and mortared to Christ our cornerstone.

The metaphor of Christ as the cornerstone is used throughout Scripture. It first appears in Psalm 118 (our Psalm today). It has echoes in both Isaiah 28:16 and Zechariah 10:4. Then in three of the Gospels Jesus brings it up and refers to himself as the cornerstone. Next, the apostle Peter talks about Jesus as the cornerstone in his defense before the Sanhedrin in Acts 4:11 (You heard that in our first lesson). Then Christ as cornerstone appears again in an important passage in Ephesians written by the apostle Paul, and then finally Peter quotes Isaiah and Psalm 118 again here in chapter 2 of his inspired letter: 6 For it says in Scripture: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who believes in him will certainly not be put to shame.’  (Is 28:16) 7 Therefore, for you who believe, this is an honor. But for those who do not believe: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’ (Ps 118:22) 

So there’s no doubt that God wants us to see that Christ is our Cornerstone. But…”What does this mean?” (Oh no, there’s that phrase again!) What does it mean that Christ is our cornerstone, and why is that so important to grasp? Well in ancient masonry, the cornerstone was the first stone laid in the foundation of a building, often a very large block, from which all other stones maintained both their stability and their orientation. This stone had to be squared perfectly and set very carefully because it determined the levels of all the other stones in every direction. Once in place, the rest of the building would conform to the angles and size of the cornerstone. In addition, if the cornerstone were to be removed, the entire structure would collapse. Needless to say, the cornerstone was something chosen carefully and very precious to the builders who laid it down.

Now let’s apply this to Jesus. As the ancient cornerstone provided defined measurements for the other stones, so Jesus defines who we are! He defines our reality. He is not one block in our schedule. He is the Cornerstone of our entire life! He is the Way. He sets the angle of our direction and aligns our purpose. He is the Truth. He defines what is right and wrong and what is deception or lies.  He is the Life, the “living stone”, the Risen Savior, who gives us eternal life, the Easter lens through which we filter everything. He is the Cornerstone of our worldview—our past, present, and future. Everything that you are and you will be is measured and centered on Christ, by God’s grace.

This is all good news, but there’s one thing that’s hard to hear in these verses. It’s that the Cornerstone is often rejected. ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’  There are a lot of people who build their lives today with no reference to the cornerstone. Jesus once was talking to the self-righteous Pharisees and he told them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in the sight of others, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly admired by people is revolting in God’s sight.” (Luke 16:15). If the things people highly admire are revolting to God, is it any wonder that the One who is precious in his sight is rejected by people as worthless? 

My dear confirmands, you know that the world does not value Christ. You will be greatly tempted to reject him or his teachings as you leave the halls of middle school. We talked a lot about making sure you have your armor on as Christians, didn’t we? Because when you step into the world as a Christian you are in a battle, not against people but against the devil and the forces of darkness who like to wear masks of worldly power and influence. There will be a lot of influential and charming people who will reject Christ and tell you that there is no need for him. There are a lot of people who will tell you that you can build your life without Jesus and be just fine. But measure that back to your cornerstone and see where that leads eternally. As Peter said to the Sanhedrin, “Jesus is the only name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

The truth is that you cannot reject Jesus without consequence. He isn’t an option. He is the way, the truth, the life. And no one comes to the Father except through him! Those are his Words! In fact, in Matthew 21 when Jesus talks about himself as the cornerstone he said, “Anyone who falls on this stone will be shattered, and anyone on whom it falls will be crushed.” (Mat 21:44) If someone chooses to reject Christ they will be shattered and crushed eternally in hell. Jesus would not have died on the cross if God had other options. But in love he gave his life for you and he opens his arms to all people. 

There’s a book called the Mishnah. It’s a book of all the Jewish traditions that the rabbis wrote down. And it speaks about why stones would be rejected in the building of Solomon’s temple. “The stones both of the ascent and of the altar were taken from the valley of Bet Kerem. They dug into virgin soil and brought from there whole stones on which no iron had been lifted, since iron disqualifies by mere touch…If one of them received a flaw, it was disqualified, but the rest were not.” (Mishnah Middot 2) So why did the builders reject stones? They were rejected as they were scarred by iron tools. The temple stones could not have any cracks or flaws, and how much more so the cornerstone! I think how meaningful, that Christ was the stone who was rejected, the one who was scarred by iron, who was mutilated and killed with iron upon the cross. And yet he is the stone which has become the cornerstone. Christ is perfect, he was sinless and spotless spiritually. And he gave that life to you. He took all the faults and scars from your sin and gave you his perfect righteousness. ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’ Thank God that Christ is our Cornerstone! 

When our peer pressure, social media, and the swirling emotions of teenage years try to pull you out of alignment with God. When secular ideologies try to redefine reality, return again and again to your Cornerstone. Measure against Christ and remember that he is the way, the truth, and the life! And he never changes. Remember the demonstrated love of God in Christ on the cross.

[Western Stone Image] The stone pictured here is part of the “Master Course” of stones located under the Western Wall (or Wailing Wall) of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. It is only accessible by a tunnel dug by archaeologists while excavating down to the very street which existed in the days of Jesus. This road went from the city center of Jerusalem into the temple complex and would have been walked by Jesus. The largest of the stones, called the “Western Stone” weighs approximately 570 tons and is 44 feet long, 10 feet high and 16 feet deep.  Compare this to the largest stone in the Great Pyramid which only weighs 11 tons. To this day, archaeologists have no idea how they moved it! It is a marvel of ancient construction. When the Romans destroyed the temple around 70 A.D., they also went out of their way to pull down the walls of Jerusalem. They wanted to destroy the people’s spirits and hopes by turning over every single stone. Painstakingly, they toppled over walls of stone, but there was one they couldn’t budge. The Western Stone. It has now become a testament for strength and stability. 

My dear confirmands, Jesus is your Western Stone. He is your solid rock. Christ is our cornerstone. The world is changing fast. Your future will bring things you can neither expect nor control. But no matter how things change, your cornerstone remains. No matter how uncertain the news may be, God’s Word is always true. And no matter how the Devil may rage, Christ holds your soul securely. No army can turn him over. Listen to the words of your Heavenly Father again: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who believes in him will certainly not be put to shame.’ Amen.