The Burdensome Stone
Like many children, I used to collect rocks. What began as a fun pastime of picking up ‘the pretty ones’ became an endeavor in my teen years to catalogue the various types of rock around my hometown. I found pumice from a centuries old bed of volcanic rock in the Tularosa Basin; I found obsidian which had been formed into arrows by Native Americans a century earlier; I found quartz both raw and shaped into beads from a time before my own. Sandstone proved plentiful as did pyrite.
I must say that this collection was far more easily accepted by my mother than my catalogue of insects in the area, but that’s an entirely different story!
What I learned from my collection was that different cultures are affected uniquely by the minerals in their area. While one civilization could be tortured or simply erased by a volcanic eruption that formed the pumice, my father used the dark rock to landscape parts of our yard due to the scarcity of water in the desert.
Likewise, different stones were used for different purposes. While our society has learned to use graphite for writing utensils, still another created hunting tools from obsidian and objects of adornment from the quartz.
I must say that this collection was far more easily accepted by my mother than my catalogue of insects in the area, but that’s an entirely different story!
What I learned from my collection was that different cultures are affected uniquely by the minerals in their area. While one civilization could be tortured or simply erased by a volcanic eruption that formed the pumice, my father used the dark rock to landscape parts of our yard due to the scarcity of water in the desert.
Likewise, different stones were used for different purposes. While our society has learned to use graphite for writing utensils, still another created hunting tools from obsidian and objects of adornment from the quartz.
These are, of course, simple observations, but in my reminiscence last night about this past hobby, I began to ponder just how stones are referenced in scripture.
Stones in the Bible
My first thought was that Jesus is called the chief cornerstone in Ephesians 2:20. In this passage, we find that our faith is built upon the foundation established by the teachings of the apostles and that Jesus served as the chief cornerstone.
What does this mean? Just what is a cornerstone anyway?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a cornerstone is:
* A stone that forms the base of a corner of a building, joining two walls. Jesus was that cornerstone; He was essentially the missing link between Old Testament prophecy and New Testament fulfillment. He connected the two ‘walls’ of the Bible, if you will!
*A cornerstone is also an important quality or feature on which a particular thing depends or is based. Essentially, it is the beginning structure of a building, from which all other points are measured!
Stones in the Bible
My first thought was that Jesus is called the chief cornerstone in Ephesians 2:20. In this passage, we find that our faith is built upon the foundation established by the teachings of the apostles and that Jesus served as the chief cornerstone.
What does this mean? Just what is a cornerstone anyway?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, a cornerstone is:
* A stone that forms the base of a corner of a building, joining two walls. Jesus was that cornerstone; He was essentially the missing link between Old Testament prophecy and New Testament fulfillment. He connected the two ‘walls’ of the Bible, if you will!
*A cornerstone is also an important quality or feature on which a particular thing depends or is based. Essentially, it is the beginning structure of a building, from which all other points are measured!
So, according to Ephesians 2:20, the teachings by Peter and the others are sound doctrine and are in alignment with the Words of Jesus! He is the cornerstone—the beginning concept, the beginning foundation—from which the teachings of the disciples and apostles were measured.
”And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.
Note, Peter…and his subsequent revelation are referenced by Jesus in the same type of construction vocabulary:
”And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17-19).
Continuing this construction jargon, Jesus is said to be “set at nought” of the builders.
Acts 4:10-12 states, Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Likewise, in Isaiah 8:13-15, we find that Jehovah is a stone of offense:
“Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.”
We see that Jesus is the fulfillment in flesh of Jehovah God, as the same description is given to Him in I Peter 2:8:
“Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.”
Why would Jesus be rejected by the builders, a type of the religious leaders of that day and age?
It’s quite simple. Builders would not want a stone that could not be sculpted or hewn into the shape they wanted. Jesus was just such a stone.
He could not be shaped and influenced to fit their preconceived ideas—nor can he be altered to fit ours in this modern age. He was His own man…actually, His own deity.
For the child of God, he cannot be shaped into one little corner of our lives, tucked neatly where He won’t be too obtrusive. Instead, He must be our cornerstone if He is to be anything. He is the stone against which everything in our lives must be measured. He is the foundation we build upon.
A Godly Structure on Fire?
I Corinthians 3:10 cautions us, “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.”
Now, notice the remaining passage in verses 11-13:
“ For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.”
The passage continues, revealing that the way in which we choose to build upon the foundation we are given will be tried by fire.
We often take this to mean that our structure will be tried by hell fire; however, those who live for God are not going to taste hell so that reading cannot be scriptural.
To understand the type of fire we will each be tested with, allow me to divert your attention for a moment to another stone mentioned in scripture: the burdensome stone.
Jerusalem is called the “burdensome stone.”
I’m sure that none of us strive to acquire such a label as burdensome, but I believe that Jerusalem is called this because the world isn’t quite sure what to do about this stone!
A little history:
* Jerusalem is the only city in history to sustain forty different sieges .
* Her walls and her buildings have been partially destroyed thirty times.
* Jerusalem has been rebuilt from mere ashes five times.
* She has served under foreign leadership twenty-six times.
* Jerusalem has survived countless wars and a Holocaust in the past century alone!
So why would a city with so many issues be considered so great?
Look at her history. She has definitely weathered the storm. No matter what trials came her way, her people got back up and rebuilt their lives. Her story is one of survival.
So many times, we label people who face a lot of trauma as having ‘a lot of baggage.’ Quite simply, we do that because in relationships, we don’t want to deal with the emotional scars these people sometimes have.
Unfortunately, the term has made many who have faced such hardships as divorce, deaths in their families, and hard times to feel ashamed that they have ‘baggage.’
Note: This mindset is contrary to scripture. Rather than saying that Jerusalem and its people have baggage, both are viewed as strong survivors!
Jerusalem is seldom referred to as the victim or as one who just can’t get its life together. Instead, here are just some of the titles used in reference to this great city:
* City of David – The city is named for a man known to be “after God’s own heart.”
* City of God – God is not ashamed to label this city as His! Whatever you have done in your past, God will never be ashamed to call you His own if you will seek His Will in your life!
* City of the Great King
* Holy City – Does this mean it has never made a mistake? Hardly. But whenever its inhabitants have failed, they turned their faces to God in repentance. They make up a holy city!
* The Faithful City – Once again, we could remind God that Jerusalem often fell to idol worship but the fact that the city and its inhabitants keep returning to Jehovah makes it a faithful city. Believe me, as a human you will not always make the right decisions…but it is how we finish the race that matters!
* City of Truth
* City of Righteousness
* Perfection of Beauty
* Throne of the Lord
Notice that despite its failures, Jerusalem is called all of these things in God’s eternal Word!
Back to Us Being Tried By Fire
Since we know that the righteous shall not taste the fires of hell, just what fire is going to test the structure we have built on the foundation of Jesus Christ?
Just like Jerusalem, we are each going to face trials in our lives. Not once or twice, but many times.
Facing temptations and trials does not, however, mean that we are weak people who have “baggage.” Instead, these trials by fire are testing our alignment with our foundation!
Are we truly submitted to God so that we have faith and assurance in His protecting hand? Or are we emotionally bedraggled by trials?
When temptation or even hardship comes our way, do we quickly walk out the church doors, ready to throw in the towel? Or do we draw closer to God, seeking His divine strength in place of our own?
Essentially, do you really believe what you say you believe? And in the midst of the fire or even in the midst of the ashes left of your life, do you have what it takes to live it?
Often, we may feel that we walk all alone, but God is always in control.
Job proclaimed, “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:8-10).
Note, one method for refining gold is by placing it in the fire.
Like in the case with Hezekiah, the Bible says that “God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart” (II Chronicles 32:31).
I Peter 1: 7 says to rejoice through hardship, “that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”
Yes, we are refined by going through the fires of life, which prove our structure of faith! That doesn’t mean that God is out of touch with us though.
Hebrews 4:15 tells us that “we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities.”
How can this be? It isn’t the same as when we haphazardly tell someone who is hurting, “I know how you feel.” God truly does know the feelings of our infirmities!
In Isaiah 53:5, we find the “chastisement of our peace was upon him.”
In Matthew 8:17, it says that Jesus on the cross “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”
Like Jerusalem, We Are the Unforgotten Stone
We may find the fiery trials in our life often seem more than we can bear…but, like Jerusalem, we can be an undying city!
How? Because like that great city, we have a God who is not content that we should fall and be forgotten…a relic of the past.
He is a sustaining God who will not suffer His people, His church, His covenant with each one of us to be forsaken!
Can we indeed be likened to the great city of Jerusalem, the burdensome stone that has never been forsaken but always rose from the ashes of adversity?
Indeed, yes. For in I Peter 2:2-6, we are told:
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.”
If we hold onto the faith through the fire, we will not be confounded.
What does confounded mean? Consulting our friendly Merriam-Webster dictionary again, we find that this passage means that if we hold on:
* we will not be confused, perplexed, or mislead
* we will not be made worse
* we will not be forsaken
* we will not have cause to be ashamed
* and, finally, we will not be damned.
A Stone Going Through the Fire
If you are indeed going through the fire as Job did, be reminded that God sees you as holy, as a survivor, and as His own.
Draw strength from Psalms 139:
Just like Jerusalem, we are each going to face trials in our lives. Not once or twice, but many times.
Facing temptations and trials does not, however, mean that we are weak people who have “baggage.” Instead, these trials by fire are testing our alignment with our foundation!
Are we truly submitted to God so that we have faith and assurance in His protecting hand? Or are we emotionally bedraggled by trials?
When temptation or even hardship comes our way, do we quickly walk out the church doors, ready to throw in the towel? Or do we draw closer to God, seeking His divine strength in place of our own?
Essentially, do you really believe what you say you believe? And in the midst of the fire or even in the midst of the ashes left of your life, do you have what it takes to live it?
Often, we may feel that we walk all alone, but God is always in control.
Job proclaimed, “Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him: But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:8-10).
Note, one method for refining gold is by placing it in the fire.
Like in the case with Hezekiah, the Bible says that “God left him, to try him, that he might know all that was in his heart” (II Chronicles 32:31).
I Peter 1: 7 says to rejoice through hardship, “that the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ.”
Yes, we are refined by going through the fires of life, which prove our structure of faith! That doesn’t mean that God is out of touch with us though.
Hebrews 4:15 tells us that “we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities.”
How can this be? It isn’t the same as when we haphazardly tell someone who is hurting, “I know how you feel.” God truly does know the feelings of our infirmities!
In Isaiah 53:5, we find the “chastisement of our peace was upon him.”
In Matthew 8:17, it says that Jesus on the cross “Himself took our infirmities, and bare our sicknesses.”
Like Jerusalem, We Are the Unforgotten Stone
We may find the fiery trials in our life often seem more than we can bear…but, like Jerusalem, we can be an undying city!
How? Because like that great city, we have a God who is not content that we should fall and be forgotten…a relic of the past.
He is a sustaining God who will not suffer His people, His church, His covenant with each one of us to be forsaken!
Can we indeed be likened to the great city of Jerusalem, the burdensome stone that has never been forsaken but always rose from the ashes of adversity?
Indeed, yes. For in I Peter 2:2-6, we are told:
“As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby: If so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.”
If we hold onto the faith through the fire, we will not be confounded.
What does confounded mean? Consulting our friendly Merriam-Webster dictionary again, we find that this passage means that if we hold on:
* we will not be confused, perplexed, or mislead
* we will not be made worse
* we will not be forsaken
* we will not have cause to be ashamed
* and, finally, we will not be damned.
A Stone Going Through the Fire
If you are indeed going through the fire as Job did, be reminded that God sees you as holy, as a survivor, and as His own.
Draw strength from Psalms 139:
”1O lord, thou hast searched me, and known me.
2Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
4For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.
5Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
7Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
9If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
11If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
12Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
13For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
14I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
15My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.
17How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!”
2Thou knowest my downsitting and mine uprising, thou understandest my thought afar off.
3Thou compassest my path and my lying down, and art acquainted with all my ways.
4For there is not a word in my tongue, but, lo, O LORD, thou knowest it altogether.
5Thou hast beset me behind and before, and laid thine hand upon me.
6Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
7Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence?
8If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there.
9If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
10Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me.
11If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me.
12Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.
13For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb.
14I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.
15My substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret, and curiously wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
16Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them.
17How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!”
