Stones

We are stones. Deep huh?

Darren Utley taught Foundation last night, and we went through 1 Peter 2:4-8, talking about Christ as our cornerstone, and how we are all being built up as a spiritual house in Christ. That means what we do in our own individual stones affects the stones around us, and that is a responsibility that we must take seriously.

Peter says that we're being built up to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices. To the first century Jews, this probably sounded a little crazy, as they had been subject to the Old Testament system of sacrifices for hundreds of years, and they had never been allowed to offer up their own sacrifices. The priests were the mediators between the people and God, and therefore were the ones who were responsible for offering the sacrifices. Only the high priest could enter that most holy place in the temple where the physical presence of God resided.

Peter's telling them that because of the work of Christ on the cross, we now have that most holy place within each of us, and that the very presence of God is within us by his Spirit!

I appreciated Darren's transparency and humility as he talked about the implications that this truth has for us as we battle daily with sin. When we sin and disobey God, we are defiling the very presence of God that dwells within us, but at the same time, we have immediate access to a guaranteed and instant forgiveness; all we need to do is confess and repent. Darren shared that he struggled with this sometimes because we all have those sins in our lives that we are continually repeating and battling, and when we commit the same sin for what seems like the billionth time, there is a sense of shame and guilt that can keep us from confessing.

How silly we are as humans, to be walking around with the most holy place, the very presence of God, in us, and think that we can hide or keep our sins from God when we are too embarrassed to confess! How silly to not tightly grasp hold of the promise of forgiveness when we confess, and the knowledge that...

For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. -Psalm 103:11-13

So keep your stone pure, be mindful of the stones around you, especially our cornerstone of Jesus Christ, and the very presence of God within us because of Christ's death on the cross!
When you fail, own up to it, take responsibility, and come boldly before the throne of grace, and claim the blessed sacrifice of Christ as payment for your sin, confess, and be forgiven!