First Epistle of Peter
CHRIST THE LIVING STONE
Scripture Reading: 1 Peter 2:4 (KJV)
Verses 4 to 8 take up the subject of Christ, the stone. In this verse He is introduced as the living stone, to whom we must come.
"To whom coming"
How important it is to come to Christ. There is no salvation apart from a personal contact with Him. He says, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
The story is told of a man came who went door to door selling needles and pins and other notions. An elderly lady always bought something from him and as he left he would give me a little paper-back Bible. One day he came again and left her another little Bible. She said to him, "You always give me one of these Bibles and I have been reading them. I noticed it says a lot about the Son of God, but they never say anything about His mother." When she said that, he then said something that touched her deeply. He said, "The Lord Jesus said, Come unto me, but He never said, Go to my mother." This aroused her curiosity; so began reading her Bible even more. She could indeed find where Christ said, "Come unto me, " but she could never find where He said, "Go to my mother." The day soon came when she did come to Christ and was saved.
However, this coming to Him is in the present tense, not the past. We are not to come to Him only for salvation, but we are to come to Him continually for all things at all times. We should be in constant touch with Him. For a Christian all blessings flow from coming to Christ.
Perhaps one of the greatest needs for Christians today, is to come to Christ in confession. So many Christians find that fellowship with the Lord is not what it once was. Sin has gotten in between. That fellowship will not be restored until sin is confessed. Confession should be a definite thing too.
The specific sin that has broken the fellowship should be confessed to Him. Not simply "Lord, I have sinned," but "Lord forgive me for this definite sin," whatever the sin may be.
"a living stone"
Peter seems to like this word "living." This is the third time he has used it in this epistle. He first writes of our "living hope" in verse 3 of Chapter 1; then of the "living Word" in Chapter 1 verse 23; and now the "living stone." In his famous confession in Matthew 16:16 he says, "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." It is a wonderful thing to realize to the full that the Lord Jesus is living.
Dr. Harrison wrote: "I came from a small family. There were two of us children. My sister was much younger than I when mother became ill. The doctor came into her hospital room, shook his head and told us that mother's chances to recover were very slight. When the doctor was gone, I remember turning my face to the wall and praying to the Lord something after this fashion, 'O Lord, let mother live, not for my sake, but for the sake of my sister, that she may not grow up without a mother's care.' Mother did not live and never saw her daughter married to a fine young man. God's will be done."
"Because I live, you shall live also" (John 14:19). A living stone is something unknown in nature. All stones are dead. But our Savior is a living stone. In every way, He is above that which is natural.
It is interesting to note that Peter here calls Christ the stone. Because of Matthew 16:18, many have taught that Peter is the rock on which the church is built. Here is the verse. "And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church." Christ gave Peter this new name, and it confessedly means "rock." In the Greek "Peter" is "Petros." However, when Christ says, "Upon this rock I will build my church" He uses a different word for "rock." It is "petra" which means a massive rock. No doubt, with the latter, He meant Himself. He, as it were, says, "Peter you are a rock, but on this great rock (pointing to Himself) I will build my church."
In our portion in 1 Peter, Peter says Christ is the "living stone" and then in verse 5 he says, in Him we are all "living stones." Then in verses 6, 7 and 8 he reaffirms the truth of Christ being the stone. Peter himself is here careful to say, as it were, "Not I, but Christ is the rock on which to build."
Paul also tells us that Christ is the rock when he says in 1 Corinthians 3:11, "For other foundation can no man lay that that is laid, which if Jesus Christ." To build on Peter is certainly to build on another foundation besides Christ.
Jacob is the first one to speak of the Lord as a stone or a rock, in the Scripture. In Genesis 49:24, we read, "But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob, from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel." From then on, we have it often in the Word. (Note especially Deut. 32).
There are at least three things about a stone or rock that are symbolic of our Lord Jesus. First, we think of a rock as everlasting. We speak of the "Rock of Ages." Surely our Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. We can trust in something that endures.
A rock also speaks of strength. What is stronger than a giant rock? How hard to move it is, and once rolling, who can resist its power? It speaks of the power of our Lord Jesus. Oh, the folly of resisting Him. He says, "All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth" (Matt. 28:18).
A rock has mighty upholding power. Giant granite pillars can indefinitely hold up tons of weight. Great buildings have their foundations set upon the rock. We read of the Lord Jesus "upholding all things by the word of his power" (Heb. 1:3). He tells us in John 10:28, that we are held in His hand. How safe we are upheld by such a mighty one. We need never fear.
"Disallowed indeed of men"
This is a reference to Psalm 118:22, which is quoted at length in verse 7. The word "disallowed" means to test and to disapprove. Christ was tried by man and condemned. It all shows how perverse is the nature of man. Christ, the Son of God, came into this world, lived a perfect life, doing only good to the needy, but they cried out for His blood and hung Him on a Roman gibbet.
He was not only rejected and despised by the Jews, but He is rejected and despised by millions today, and for the same reason. Why did the Jews reject Him? He showed them their sin and their guilt, and they hated Him for it. He is hated for the same reason today.
"but chosen of God and precious."
How different are God's thoughts of Christ, than man's. Man gave Him a cross; God gave Him a throne. He was chosen of God, to be the Savior of sinners. He has been chosen of God to sit on the throne of heaven.
"and precious."
He is most precious to the Father. At His baptism and at the transfiguration He said, "This is my beloved Son." In Ephesians 5:2 we read, "And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling saviour." One would have thought that a stench would have risen up into the nostrils of God as wicked men crucified His Son. But God saw an obedient Son willing to be a sacrifice for the poor sinner, and it was all very precious to Him.
How precious He should be to us too. To think that He was willing to go through all that shame, and derision, and suffering for us. How we ought to love Him for it. How we ought to serve Him.
