The Sunday Sermonette – A Firm Foundation.

The Temple Mount’s Southern Wall, the Great Pyramid, the Parthenon, Norte Dame Cathedral, and the Lincoln Memorial—what do these monuments have in common? They each began with a cornerstone. This stone guaranteed the alignment of the edifices of these magnificent buildings.

      Since days of old, builders have used cornerstones in their building projects. It was the key stone, usually placed at the corner of a structure, to guide the laborers in their work creating a sure foundation. The cornerstone was usually the most solid, the most perfect of any in the construction process. Once set in place, it determined every measurement in the remaining structure; everything was aligned with it.

     The Good Book describes Jesus as a cornerstone—the cornerstone on which His church would be built. In the Book of Isaiah, there are many references to the coming Messiah. In several places, He is referred to as the cornerstone: “So this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation.’” Jesus is that cornerstone. And He is our standard of measurement and alignment with Him and His church.

     In the New Testament, the apostle Paul continues the cornerstone metaphor. Speaking to the Ephesian Christians, he said, “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. In Him, the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.” 

     If Jesus is the church’s cornerstone, its standard of measurement and alignment, shouldn’t we, as Christians, measure and align His words to our lives? Jesus stated, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” To make everyone feel good about themselves, shouldn’t we revise His words to say, “All religions are the way, the truth, and the life: no men cometh unto the Father, but by those religions.” I think not, because that would negate Jesus’ agonizing death on the cross and make his miraculous resurrection unnecessary.   

     Unfortunately, not everyone is in alignment with the cornerstone, especially some who hold high offices in the hallowed halls of Christendom. Some accept and adhere to Christ and His church; some don’t. As it states in the Book of Mark: “Have you not even read this Scripture: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.’” 

     Why do some people reject God’s perfect, chosen cornerstone? The answer? They choose to build something different from what God and Jesus are building. Like those who attempted to build the tower of Babel, they rebel against God to chase their own building projects, trying to find their own perfect cornerstone.

     But rejecting God’s perfect cornerstone comes with a price. And that price is judgement, which is promised to all those who reject the one and only eternal cornerstone, Jesus. Lest we forget Matthew 21:44: “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken, but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.”

     Ponder this and go forth.