No Chips
1 Peter 2:7 …but it is said for those without faith, The very stone which the builders put on one side, was made the chief stone of the building; 8 And, A stone of falling, a rock of trouble; the word is the cause of their fall, because they go against it, and this was the purpose of God. 9 But you are a special people, a holy nation, priests and kings, a people given up completely to God, so that you may make clear the virtues of him who took you out of the dark into the light of heaven. (BBE)
Referring to the Spanish church from yesterday’s posting, the church that has been under construction since 1882, every single stone has a specific purpose, and any one left out will compromise the integrity of the completed work. I mentioned that there were still many stones yet set aside on the ground waiting to be placed in their designed spot. It would seem that they are really not all that special until they are functioning in the purpose for which they were designed as part of an incredibly amazing architectural and artistic structure.
While each stone is indeed important and essential, if long ago, at the time the first stones were being placed, a certain stone, the cornerstone, was somehow not appreciated and just set aside, all the rest of the stones may get placed, but the structure’s foundation would always be compromised. It could have been that everything else looked beautiful, with every room, every spiral, and the completed roof in place, but no matter how impressive in appearance and visually representative of a church, it would not have been able to stand. Without that essential foundational element, however, the construction would most likely have not come even close to completion, as very little stability is possible without an even and established foundation.
It would seem that there are many structures that are attempting to look like the temple of the Holy Spirit, but have somehow become less than appreciative of the Word of God, setting to the side the very part that makes it possible. Rather than allowing what might not seem right in their initial view to be securely placed and begin to change how everything else is seen, they attempt to leave what the architect had to say completely out of their building’s construction. Like the dad attempting to put the toy together without the instructions, everything will at some point have to be taken apart to include that most important part that didn’t look like anything at first. Attempting to look the part is not enough and just being passionately impressed by the Designer will be of little worth if what He has said is ignored.
I’m sure this has always been an issue for some who have wanted to have salvation and live in the promises but have disallowed the significance of the Word’s placement in the foundation of their lifestyle. In our present day, though, there seems to be a great many who let the very answer to their life become an offense and reason for dissension and separation. Wanting to just take the love, forgiveness, understanding and goodness of God, they set aside what He has said about purity and holiness with regard to their choice of consumption, entertainment, social, and sexual practices. It may be possible to set up a façade and conduct some services, but wherever the cornerstone has been set aside, there can be no hope of a long standing structure. Just attempting to use a chip off the block will also never provide the integrity that only comes with the whole Word, where everything else gets placed around it and on top of it rather than somewhere else.
There is a securing of structures today that will require the whole stone in foundations. Rather than getting put off by its form and trying to chip it off to look like we might want it to look like, there will be such freedom, beauty, functionality, and stability when it is embraced in its entirety and made to be the honored and preserved center of every other portion of our structure. Great relief, confidence and peace will be found in allowing the Word to be what only He can be, and just rising up strong and secure upon Him.
Isaiah 28:16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.