You are what you read
Christ is the living cornerstone!
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.
“Jesus is that precious stone, the most important part of the temple. He was chosen to fill that role. And the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame. There will never be a reason for the one who trusts in Christ to regret their choice. Christ will always be faithful to keep those who have trusted in him.
Jesus as the Rejected Stone
The point of this story is that this stone, rejected by the builders, has become the key part of the building. The New Testament references make clear that Jesus is this capstone that was rejected. The structure being built, according to Ephesians, was a holy temple to the Lord; the Church. Without Jesus the temple will fall apart. It cannot exist apart from him.
Only when Jesus is the cornerstone will the building be straight and true. Only then will it rise to become a holy temple to the Lord.
A Stumbling Stone
The idea of Jesus being a stumbling stone seems strange. We are instructed not to become a stumbling stone for anyone else (Luke 17:1-2, 1 Cor. 10:32). And Jesus himself, in Luke 7:23, says “Blessed is anyone who does not stumble on account of me.” So what does this passage mean that talks about Jesus being a stumbling stone, a rock that makes people fall?
And then comes the passage that Peter is quoting. Israel was rejecting the holiness of God and the protection he could provide. They stumbled and fell because they refused to trust in God. But they did not just stumble. God made them stumble. Since they refused to trust him, he would ensure that they fell in the coming battles (2 Thess 2:10-12).
They looked to other nations to deliver them rather than trusting in God.
Jesus is a stumbling stone to the Greek who looks for wisdom and to the Jew who looks for signs (1 Cor. 1:22-23). All too often we trust in just about anything before we will trust in God. And that leads to Jesus becoming a stumbling stone for us.
A Call to Action
What is your life built around? What is the cornerstone of the church you are a part of? If the answer is not Jesus, then you are heading in the wrong direction. Align your life, and your relationship with God, around Jesus as the cornerstone. If he is your cornerstone, you have no reason to be ashamed. If he is not, then you are stumbling around in the dark.“
Citation: https://aclayjar.net/2019/03/jesus-as-cornerstone/