THE LIVING STONE. 1st Peter 2:4 There are a number of ways our Lord is presented as the Living One. He is the "Living Water" that springs up into eternal life, quenching the thirst of one who finds the world and all it offers does not satisfy. He referred to Himself as the "Living Bread" which came down from heaven that sustains and strengthens the life of those who eat of that bread. He is the "Living Way" that gives us direct access to God, our heavenly Father. That way was opened by His suffering, death, and resurrection, which made possible the removal of sin. Reconciliation to God is now possible when one steps through the "Door" to "The Way, the Truth and the Life."
As the "Living Stone," our Lord is identified as the One whom all Israelis would know as the One who brought life-giving water to their ancestors during their journey to the promised land through the wilderness. He was rejected by men but chosen by God, and is precious to Him and to us who believe. He was the prepared Stone when "the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world." The coming of Christ was no afterthought by God. Believers have come to Him and continually do so, just as those in Old Testament times came with their offerings and worship. He is the Living Stone in contrast to the dead stones of the Jewish temple.
Unbelievers attempt to build a temple for God from the "stones" they think they can cut out by themselves. The "Chief Corner Stone," the "Living Stone has already been prepared and laid in place for the spiritual temple God is erecting. The church is a living temple to which every believer is added as a "living stone" built upon the foundation of "the apostles and prophets." Like Christ was chosen, so are we to be placed in this spiritual house. The picture Peter is portraying is that of a building composed of many parts that are "fitly framed together." It takes more than one piece to make a wall. None of us is independent from other living stones. The unity of the community is not well accepted in modern society and modern church life. People want to think they can come or go as they please, especially if they are in a large fellowship. Believers are dependent on each other for safety, testimony, and worship. Each one's participation enhances the value of the whole.
Peter uses several Old Testament texts familiar to Jewish believers to help them see how they apply to the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus referred to Himself as the Stone from the prophecy of Psalm 118. Two texts in Isaiah, 8:14; 28:16, are also used by Peter to identify the Lord Jesus Christ as the Stone that was rejected by men but chosen by God. Jews thought Israel was composed of living stones, so Peter explains that the church, which is the body of Christ, is made of “living stones (believers)” which are added to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Living Stone.
One stone does not make a wall, a house, or a temple. Each stone is made to fit with the others, and together they form a beautiful temple, the dwelling place of God. The Lord Jesus Christ is the foundation, the Chief Cornerstone, who was rejected by the “builders,” those who were supposed to be the experts. They rejected Him, but God chose Him.
We who are believers are connected to God continually through the Living Stone. This stone is not a rock in this context, but rather a stone cut at the quarry, prepared and fit to be the Chief Cornerstone of a temple. Our Lord Jesus is the Living Stone in contrast to the dead stones of the temple of the Jews, and He is alive forevermore. A spiritual house is being built by God. The Lord Jesus was rejected by men; we will be rejected by men. He was chosen by God and is precious; we have been chosen by God and are precious to Him. Christians are living stones in the church, placed there by Him. Sometimes it is good for us to remember the “hole of the pit from which we have been digged, and the rock from which we have been hewn.”
A very unusual analogy makes me stop and think. What is the “Living Stone” God chose to bring me so that I might see beyond what is normal to men and see what He has chosen and what is precious to Him? To men, a stone is a hard, inanimate thing. Yet to me, there’s a song I sing about a “Living Stone,” because this Stone is a Person who gives life to what’s dead, and this Living Stone is not just the foundation; it’s also the Head.
This Stone is the Lord on which the house of God is built. Everyone who comes in faith has felt the life of the Stone. We came past the scorners and mockers, and found the Living Stone was warm to the touch. Life from that Stone brought life from Him to me. The Stone that men rejected was a Stone that can see, hear, touch, taste, and give life to dead stones in a quarry. And that “Living Stone” is also “Living bread” that came from heaven, and it is also “Living Water” and the “Living Way” God has given. I have come to this Stone, or better, God brought me to it – And I find that, by that Living Stone, there’s a place where I fit. The life that is in that Stone is the life that is in me – So the spiritual house I’m a part of will last eternally.