On What Are You Building Your Life?

Hope Herald

If you are a Christian, this should be a pretty easy question to answer. Jesus tells us that we must abide in Him (John 15:4) and Paul tells us that we must give ourselves fully to the work of God (1 Corinthians 15:58).

We are to build our lives on Jesus, but what does that mean?

Crushed by the Stone

In Matthew 21:33-41, Jesus told the Parable of the Tenants. In this parable, he explained that a man owned a vineyard and rented the space for others to use. However, the tenants refused to pay the owner. He sent representatives and they did not listen. Eventually, he sent his son who was killed by the tenants. Jesus then asked the people, what should the master do? To this, they responded that the master would put out these “wretches” to a miserable death and that the master would then let a different group of tenants harvest the fruit.

After telling this parable, Jesus referenced Psalm 118:122, which reads, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.”

Jesus then explained the meaning of this reference in relation to the parable. Versus 43-44 tells us:

⁴³ Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people producing its fruits. ⁴⁴ And the one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.

The Stone that the religious leaders had rejected became the One who would crush them. Their rejection of Jesus meant that they would be broken into pieces, cast out because of their failure to accept Him.

Jesus, Your Cornerstone

The religious leaders rejected Jesus. They refused to see Him for who He was, instead wanting to have their own power and control. They simply did not want to be ruled by God.

For the believer, Jesus has become the Cornerstone. Instead of being crushed by the Stone, the believer is now rooted in the perfect foundation.

Ephesians 2:19-22 explains our position thanks to our Cornerstone:

¹⁹ Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, ²¹ in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, ²² in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

This idea is reiterated in 1 Peter 2:4-6, which reads:

⁴ As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, ⁵ you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For it stands in Scripture:
“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

Jesus was rejected by the religious leaders, but is accepted by His followers. As a result, He has become the chief Cornerstone upon which God’s holy temple continues to grow.

So, What Is a Cornerstone?

This is an amazing testimony to who Jesus is and what he means to the believer. However, you may have read these verses many times before. wondering “What exactly is a cornerstone?”

If you said that it was the stone at the corner of a building, you would be right. However, based on that definition, every building would have four cornerstones. After all, every rectangular shaped building has four corners to it. Therefore, there would be four cornerstones. This would seem to make them that less of a big deal.

To make this clear, we must understand that there is a difference between a cornerstone and the cornerstone. For thousands of years, the cornerstone was the most essential point where any building began. It was referred to as the “principal stone,” because this is where all of the work associated with the building began. Every measurement, every angle, and every trajectory was made based off that one stone.

The cornerstone was the largest stone of all. It was made with the most solid material and was carefully constructed to ensure that it was so strong that it could support the vast majority of the building’s weight during the early part of the construction.

This cornerstone also became the foundation upon which the entire intricacy of the building was made. All stones going out and up were always placed in relation to this stone. It had to be perfectly laid. If it was incorrectly angled in any way, the structural integrity of the building would be compromised. In other words, everything about this cornerstone had to be perfect.

Truthfully, there is no better word that describes Jesus than as our Cornerstone. Some chose to reject that Cornerstone, finding themselves lost and off course. However, one who has accepted Jesus is in perfect alignment to the structure He is building.

We Are the Perfect Temple of God

In 1 Corinthians 6:19, Paul asks if we are aware that we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. This is true. God is indwelling inside every believer.

However, you must also consider that you are part of an even bigger temple – the one that is built off our Cornerstone. We read Ephesians 2:22, which told us that we are being built together for a dwelling place of God. Each time that a person accepts Jesus as Lord, another stone is laid in the greatest temple of all – the body of Christ.

We know that this temple is perfect. That every stone (believer) is perfectly positioned because the chief Cornerstone is strong, stable, properly aligned, and complete. Thus, every new believer is positioned with God because of the perfect life of Jesus.

Brothers and sisters, if you look through the Bible, you are going to find many examples of how we can find confidence, rest, peace, and mercy in Jesus. The reason we know this to be true is because our Cornerstone is stronger than anything, ready to endure every bit of weight to hold up His temple. He is properly positioned to align all the rest of us to Him, so we can abide in Him. We are structurally sound and ready to endure anything, because of our Cornerstone.

Built on the Rock

Hope CDA is also built on the foundation that Jesus has laid. We take that foundation literally, as we provide incredible services for those looking to remodel, renovate, or build a new kitchen, bathroom, or any other structure on their property. Our skilled group of guys can turn your home project into a masterpiece. In the last year, we have remodeled bathrooms and kitchens, built garages and chicken coops, rebuilt walkways and porches, replaced windows, siding, gutters, and doors, and constructed sheds, just to name a few things.

We are like the “Paw Patrol” of the construction world, as no project is too small or too big for us at Hope CDA. For your project, contact our Enterprise Manager, Jamie Williams (319-560-0984).

It’s Twitter Time!

Despite my continual requests for an explanation and reinstatement of my disabled account, Facebook is providing no response. While I will ask others to post to the Hope CDA Facebook account, most of my personal additions to social media will now appear in Twitter. The Hope CDA twitter account is: @HopeCDAcr. Follow us there to keep up to date on the newest information and images.

Tuesday Night Encouragement at Hope CDA

This Tuesday is going to be a very special Encouragement Night. This Tuesday we hear testimonies from our graduates, as Cory Clubb, Eric Mullinex, and Luke Cloudman will share their testimonies. There may be an additional graduate or two. This is always an exceptional night, as these men share how God is still working in their lives. Come join us at 6:00 p.m.