Seeking for the help of the Lord, I direct your prayerful attention to 1 Peter chapter 2 and reading through our text verses 4 through to 8. This is our ninth sermon in the series of the epistles of Peter. the stone and stones. It is in this portion that is our text that the apostle is seeking to set forth Christ as the living stone and his people in him. So reading from verse four, 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 and 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 cornerstone, 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 are appointed.

1 Peter 2, verses 4 through 8. is the theme right through those verses is Christ and his people as a stone. Of course we are looking for how Peter is strengthening his brethren and also feeding them. And this is specifically a real strengthening portion.

It is showing that wonderful relationship that our Lord has with his people. And it's used in the metaphor, the illustration of a building. We have the picture of Christ as being the foundation stone, as being the top stone, his people as living stones built up in him. So it's one building. And it is all knit together, God's people all joined together in that building. And also the Lord Jesus Christ as well, integral in that building and all built on him. It's a beautiful picture to realize it in this way.

Paul, when he writes to the Corinthians, he does a similar thing. But he doesn't use a building, he uses a body. And he pictures Christ being the head, and we the members of that body. The arms, the legs, the finger, all parts of that same body. And again, the picture is that oneness with Christ and his people. So close, when we think of these two ways, these two illustrations, how close that is.

You hurt one member of the body and the whole members. The head feels it. It is one. It's one person. You look at a person, you don't see a whole lot of different members. You see one person. And so when you see Christ, you see Christ and his church. When you see a building, you see one building. You don't see, well, here's the foundation, and here's the top stone, and here's the structure of it.

You see one building. And so it is in these illustrations, we could go on, we think of our Lord in John 15 with the type of the vine, I am the vine, ye are the branches. The branch cannot bear fruit of itself except it abide in the vine. Neither can you except ye abide in me. And again, it's that oneness, that joining together with the Lord Jesus Christ. So this is the, the main way that Peter is strengthening his brethren here.

And another thing that is going through this portion is a very big difference between God's people and those who are not, those that are of the world, those even of the religious world, and God's people in how they view Christ. how they are looking at Christ. And it is very important that this is highlighted in this way. Otherwise, we might think, well, with so many religious people, so much of the world not accepting Christ, not seeing him, not seeing a beauty in him, that perhaps it is us that is the mistaken one and not seeing what others see. But Peter is very clear in this. in making a very big distinction.

And in fact, the two points that I want to bring forth this evening is firstly the four descriptions of Christ, the stone. And of those four, there'll be three of those that make a real contrast, or even identifying him as the stone, is how the world reacts to him, how those that are not his, will react to him.

So our first point then, the four descriptions of Christ, the stone that are in the verses here of our text. And then secondly, a description of God's people as lively stones or living stones in him. Now just two main points, but the first one divided into four. The first one is a living stone. In verse four, to whom coming as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious.

The Lord Jesus Christ is a living stone. Now it's very interesting as well with this. Remember, the Lord used the occasion of Peter's name. Cephas, a stone. Upon this rock I'll build my church. The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Of course, the Roman Catholics will say, well, that was meaning Peter, and that the building of the church is on Peter.

But Peter is very clear that that is not so, and he dwells very much on it here, not pointing to himself, but pointing to Christ, and pointing to those scriptures that even in Isaiah 750 years before or in the Psalms a thousand years before had spoken of Christ as the stone and how the world would reject him and not see him as the true Christ. And so in the living stone Peter is setting forth our Lord Jesus Christ. Right at the start there's maybe a metaphor, maybe a metaphor, a picture of a stone which is lifeless, it's hard, it's cold. But Peter says, no, here, though I'm using this type of a stone, And the illustration of a building, this is a living stone, something which immediately we know this is an illustration. You cannot get a stone in a natural way and say that stone is living. It's not. It's a piece of stone. It is not alive.

But when speaking of Christ, it is alive. He is a living stone. The Lord Jesus Christ. is the eternal God made manifest in the flesh, who was then crucified, died and rose again from the dead. An empty tomb, a risen saviour, a living saviour. This, the whole gospel, the whole seal of salvation was that he is not dead but alive. He's not in the tomb, he is risen. He is not on the cross as portrayed so often in the Roman Catholic Church with a figure upon a cross. He is not on the cross. He is not in the tomb. He is in heaven. He is not dead. He is alive.

And that is the message of the gospel, the message that Peter would set forth. They saw him after he rose from the dead. He spoke with them. He commissioned Peter. feed my sheep, feed my lambs, after he had risen from the dead. And so Peter would say, we have a living stone. Our Saviour, our Redeemer is alive in heaven. And all that he is and his people built upon him and built in him, he is alive and not dead. What a blessed truth.

We think of Paul, how he takes the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 15, and he says, there's an error amongst you. Remember, every true church shall have those which will have errors, vital errors. The Lord says, they must needs have heresies among you that they which are approved be made manifest. And you think, Is that the only way that God's people, those that know the truth, discern the truth, can be brought out of the woodwork and be made to speak? Is that there's heresies in a church? What about the office bearers, the elders, or deacons, or the church members? But here is this insignificant one despised, but they pick up this is an error, and they speak about it, they can't keep silent. The Lord says, that's why there needs to be errors in the church.

And so Paul, when he discerned in the Corinthian church that there were those that said there was no resurrection of the dead. And remember, with the Thessalonians, pay the problem, the resurrection is past already. And so he had to deal with that one. But they came from that error, beautiful truth, the certainty of the resurrection, not only of Christ, but of all of his people, how it is brought about.

It's a beautiful chapter. We need to remember this, we need to remember with our Lord, many of the teachings of our Lord sprung forth from either people questioning him or trying to lay baits for him all errors that were around that he saw, and he addressed them, and with Peter, with Paul as well, that often the truth is set forth against a background of error. We need to remember that more in the ministry and think, well, this is the theme of our sermons, this is the theme of the message, We don't preach about everything that is not being attacked, but preach about what is being attacked and where the devil is most active. Need to remember that. I need to remember that.

And we find here that Peter, he says, coming unto Christ as a living stone. And he says, disallowed indeed of men. What a different view, a different view of Christ that men have and that God has. Disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious. Again, we need to remember this all the time because in front of us are men. And we hear them with our ears, and we see them, and we see the disallowance of Christ as the one name given among men whereby we must be saved. We read in the Psalms, they only consult to cast him down from his excellency, and that is the world. But then we read that in his temple, everyone does speak of his glory. a very different way of viewing the Lord in the world and in the church, in his temple, and here a different way by men and different with God.

Here on the surface as viewed, men are saying, no, disallow him. But God is saying, no, I have chosen him. He is my beloved Son, He is the appointed Saviour, Redeemer, and He is precious. There's none like Him, there's none other name given among men whereby we must be saved. It's a thing to remember, isn't it?

As soon as we hear men taking the name of the Lord in vain, despising Him, pulling Him down, discrediting Him, speaking against the Lord. May this come to mind, but chosen of God and precious to God, He views them very differently. And really it follows through to God's people as well, because The world esteems them not.

It ridicules them, despises them. You have that in John 9 with the Jews. Despise the man that was born blind, that had his eyes opened. We are Moses' disciple, thou art his disciple. They cast him out. And yet in God's sight, he was blessed and he was favoured, and they were not. God sees not us, man sees. God sees righteously and according to his word.

And so this first illustration of our Lord Jesus Christ as a living stone, I would remember that we have a God that lives, who says, because I live, you shall live also. who lives after the power of an endless life as a great high priest, not like the high priest that had to die. One that makes intercession for his people in heaven. One that truly knows and understands. One that has life that he is able and does give to his people. I am come that they might have life. that they might have it more abundantly.

So this is the first stone that Peter would strengthen his brethren with, is viewing the Lord Jesus Christ as a living stone, thinking of this overall building that is being built. Then we jump down to verse six, where we have the Lord as the chief corner stone.

This is going back to Isaiah 28 and verse 16. Isaiah, of course, 750 years before our Lord Jesus Christ. We have therefore thus saith the Lord God, Be cold, I lay in Zion, For a foundation, a stone, a tried stone, A precious cornerstone, a sure foundation, He that believeth shall not make haste. And this is what Peter is referencing, he's bringing forth the Old Testament.

This is why also we read in our reading from Ephesians, Ephesians chapter two and verse 20, we have and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone, in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth into an holy temple in the Lord, in whom ye also are builded together for inhabitation of God through the Spirit." Here is the picture, the building, and Christ there, the chief corner stone, the foundation stone. We have in all the scriptures the things concerning the Lord, They're spoken of by the prophets, they're spoken of by the apostles, they're all pointing to Christ. But Christ himself is that cornerstone.

He unites all together. We think of the Mount of Transfiguration, and there we have Moses and Elijah and the Lord Jesus. Then a cloud covered them, this is my beloved son in whom I am well pleased. And afterwards then was Jesus only. The Lord Jesus Christ fulfills the prophecies set forth by Elijah, and he also fulfills the law set forth by Moses.

He came not to destroy the law, but to fulfill. And he comes to fulfill the prophecies right through the scriptures. He unites these things. He brings these things together as the great anti-type. And he also brings together, as Paul writes to the Ephesians, the Jew and the Gentile as well, brought to be one.

Ye that sometime were far off are made nigh by the blood of Jesus Christ. Also, as the Lord sets forth in John 10, where he says, in the type of himself being the shepherd, are the sheep I have which have not of this fold, them also I must bring. Not of the fold of the Jews, but the fold of the Gentiles, he was going to bring them. There shall be one fold and one shepherd.

Another illustration of that oneness or relationship between Christ and his people. That is very strengthening for the people of God. We are not on our own. We are not on our own. The Lord is with us and we're joined with him, united with him. He keeps all things together. And so in this verse, we have, behold, I lay in Sion. Not Peter, but God himself has laid this stone. We sung of it in our first hymn. And that stone, what is said of it is elect.

That is, Christ was appointed from before the foundation of the world, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. He is the eternal God and always, as much as God's people were elect and chosen, they were chosen in Him. And He also is elect, appointed for that very end to be their Saviour, their Redeemer, the foundation of all of their hope and to bring the whole church together. Our Lord says in his intercessory prayer in John 17, Father, I will that they whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory. Another place that they may be one even as we are one is a bringing together.

Also in this verse, not only elect, but precious, and this is mentioned several times in our text. We think especially verse 4, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious, and for the people of God. This is the mark for them, that unto you which believe, he is precious. Our view of the Lord will be different than by nature. And this is what Peter is here highlighting, how the world or how the unregenerate view Christ and how his people view Christ. The one work that God does, the Holy Spirit does, is to make Christ precious.

To be those times when he's especially felt to be precious. I know there'll be many times that we may feel so hard, so cold, so far off, we will question, do we feel Him precious at all? But do we know those, like the hymn writer says, sweet the moments which in blessing, which before the cross I spend. Those times when He is precious, and we know that He has brought that into our soul to make us feel like that. Most of the time, a lot of time, we may with our intellect say we know He is precious and one thing needful. But if we've ever known those times when the heart has been full of the love of God and the preciousness of Christ, we know that that doesn't abide with us all the time. We're not in the feeling sense of it. all the time.

Lord's dear servant, over in New Zealand once, I asked him concerning assurance. And he spun on his heel to me, he said, assurance, you got assurance? He said, don't look for it 10 minutes later. I knew what he meant. It doesn't mean that one moment we believe and next we don't.

One moment we think we're Lord's people and next not. But the sweet feeling of that assurance where the doubts, the fears are taken away and we feel so clearly and believe that we shall be with the Lord in heaven. The Lord is our God and he's very precious to us. Those are sweet, precious times. Once the Lord has given us those, given us even a taste of it, remember the previous verse here, if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious. Those tastes will make us want more and to see more of the Lord Jesus Christ and make him more and more precious. But then there's a final word here under this type of the Lord as a chief cornerstone.

He that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Believeth on him, rests on him, builds their heavenly hopes upon him, shall not be confounded. He shall own them, he knows them, and that foundation won't give way. Our hopes of heaven are built upon Christ. alone. Imreiter says, if ever my poor soul be saved, tis Christ must be the way. And that is the one name given among men whereby we must be saved. And Peter is saying, you build your hopes on that name. You build your hopes on this foundation. You won't be confounded. You won't be confounded. May that be then with us, that we view Christ as the one that we build our hopes for heaven upon.

The chief cornerstone. But then we have the stone which the builders disallowed, verse seven. 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." The head of the corner. I just want to look at verse 7. We'll do verse 8 as a separate heading. The builders. In one sense, the Jews. They were building.

They were the nation that the Lord came to. And they, as it were, looked at Christ, viewed Christ. Is he this stone? Is he that which is set forth in the scriptures? And they looked at him and they said, no, that is not him. Our Lord reminded them in the portion that we read there in our reading in Matthew 21, our Lord reminded them of what was said in the Psalms. And if we go back to the Psalms and read it there in Psalm 118, we have there in verse 22, the stone which the builders refused is become the headstone of the corner. This is the Lord's doing. It is marvelous in our eyes."

Headstone of the corner. So he's gone from the chief cornerstone or the foundation stone to now the headstone. I always remember years ago, 1988, when I was over here on holiday and visited a dear friend in Clapham, Mr. Allen. His son is in Bethesda at the moment. He's just turned 90. But I knew his father, and his father showed me a picture of the top stone of a stone building.

And the stone that was put on top of the wall had a special design to it. So it overlapped the wall and had a lip on it. So water running down that stone would have to then turn around and go up before it could run down the wall. So what it did, the water just dropped off clear of the wall instead of running down the wall. But that lip, that piece that was hanging down that was on that special stone, was very fragile. It was very thin.

The grain of that stone had to be in the right direction to give it its strength. The problem came when you come to the cornerstone, because what direction do you make the grain? Do you make it suit one corner or the other corner? The lip's got to go in two different ways.

So he said what was done was to put a very fine grain stone on, a stone that had a different look and grain than all of the other stones. And he said, the picture that is set here is the Jews as builders saw that stone, and they said, that's not the right one. That's not the right grain. They didn't understand the design of the designer. They didn't understand why it had to be as it was. And this is how the Jews, they viewed Christ And they disallowed him. They said, this is not what we expected. We are not going to use him. We're not going to point to him. We're not going to lay our hopes upon him.

And of course, the Jews still look. They still look for the Christ. They still look for him to come. But we're told here, and we're told in the Psalms, that that same one that was rejected is made the head of the corner. And what a seal it is. The divinity of Christ, the reality of Christ, Jesus of Nazareth being the true Christ by the very rejection of the Jews. In the Jews rejecting him, put their seal upon the scriptures, and gives Peter this, to strengthen the brethren by what the Jews did to our Lord.

We have also in Zechariah a picture, a similar way, Zechariah chapter four and verse seven. Thou art thou, O great mountain, before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain. and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings crying grace, grace unto him. We have also in Isaiah, in Isaiah 41 and verse 4, who hath wrought and done it, calling the generations from the beginning, I the Lord, the first and with the last, I am He. Some would view Zechariah and say, what is set forth there as the topstone is the last one of God's people that is called by grace and placed in that building. And in one sense, that that is true. But when you look at that in Isaiah, the Lord said, He is with. I am the first and with the last. And I love the illustration a couple of years ago when our granddaughter was running in a marathon down in Salisbury. And of course, there was many that were running. She got quite a high place.

But of course, someone had to be the last. And that poor child that was going to be the last. But they weren't on their own. Some of those that had been standing, marking out the way, joined that child. And they ran the last. And I saw that. I thought, and with the last. The last one is brought home to glory. The last one that was called, the Lord is with them. They're not on their own.

And it was a beautiful illustration. And when you picture the building, you picture the Lord as the foundation stone. His people that are built up in him, and then at last, there's the top stone put upon it. And we're built up in him. We're in Christ. He is below us. He is above us. We are part of that building. And he seals the beginning and the ending.

And so it's a beautiful picture with that top stone. Again, Peter strengthening the people of God Will this building be completed? Yes, it will. Why will it? Because the foundation on which it's built is also the top stone. He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it unto the day of Jesus Christ. And that applies to all of God's people, applies to the whole temple, the whole building of the one church of God which is built up in him.

And it's all highlighted here with the builders, and they are disallowing this stone. But then we have, forcefully, a stone of stumbling. So in verse 8, 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. It's a most solemn passage, isn't it? An appointment. Appointed to stumble, appointed to destruction.

But how is it seen? It's seen that they're stumbling at the Word of God, they're stumbling at the doctrine of Christ, and they're disobedient to what the Gospel teaches. We see this especially in the case when our Lord was teaching in John 6, and teaching of himself as the manna, and except you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of Man, you have no life in you. They said, this isn't a hard saying. Who can hear it? They stumbled at that saying. They also stumbled at him.

They said, is not this Jesus? the son of Joseph, the carpenter's son, whose brethren that we know, we know them, James and Joseph, Simon, Judas, his sisters, they are all with us. They were stumbling at that, as recorded in Matthew. Many times through our Lord's teaching, they could not Not say that they saw the grace, they heard that grace in his lips, they saw the miracles, they saw what he did that none other man did, and yet they had things that stumbled them. Things that they could not understand.

Now really it's a warning to us. We can have things that stumble us as well. Things that we can't understand. things that would trip us up, things that it seems that the adversaries of the church or of Christ, they use to discredit the word, maybe contradictions in the word. Often think of that.

Now, it was highlighted to us over in Australia, when my dear one, in a very hot day, she saw the wind blowing, a nice north wind, Oh, open the windows. Get a nice breeze, nice cool breeze in. And I just smiled out the window. And the gust of hot air from the equator came through. Proved the scriptures wrong, didn't it? Cold suck cometh out of the north? No, it doesn't. Not in Australia. That's hot. And I thought, if that can be so easily explained, by just moving to the northern hemisphere, and you've corrected that, how many other things that seem to be contradictions can easily be explained in the word of God? And think of this, those that stumble. May this always be a warning to us. Don't let the devil trip us up, or our own ignorance, or what we don't understand stumble us, when in other ways the truth is so clear and so precious to us.

The Apostle Paul speaks of what our Lord Jesus Christ was to the Jews and to the Greeks. And he uses that same illustration in 1 Corinthians 1 and verse 23. He says the Jews, they require a sign. And the Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness. But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ, the power of God, and the wisdom of God."

How easy it is to fall under this. and maybe be like those that stumble. But what a solemn appointment, that here they have the word of God, here they have Christ, here they have him set forth as the cornerstone, the foundation to build their hopes for heaven upon, to rest upon his teaching, his doctrine, his sacrifice, his offering, his intercession in heaven, He is electing love and mercy, but there's something that stumbles, whereunto thou also appointed.

So may we view these four points, some of them, three of them, highlighted by how the Jews viewed Christ and how they're disobedient and those appointed to destruction viewed him. and we view him as precious. Christ is the, the stone, the one stone. But then in our second point, we have in verse five a description of God's people, of God's people as lively stones, as lively stones. Verse five, ye also as lively stones are built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

Now, when I looked at this, I thought, well, what is set forth here, as were repeated again and again, living, living, living. Christ is living. His people are living. They're quickened into life. We read in one place that better is a living dog than a dead lion. And the difference is life. We can be a lion, but if we're dead, it's better to be a living dog. And the Lord says that I am come that they might have life. The setting forth of baptism is buried with him by baptism into death and risen again in newness of life, identifying with Christ as living. And so with the building as well, a living building.

It's a beautiful type with Solomon and the temple, how that in the quarry all of the stones were shaped. And this is another illustration Mr. Allen showed me, the front of a building. All different stones, all different shapes, and every stone had a number on. And as an engineer, of course, doing things in materials of metal or something very defined. We're very used to having a drawing for every part and every metal part. The idea to have a drawing for a stone and a shape for that stone, a place for it to go, it was remarkable, me, to see it. I thought, well, you just have a stone fitted.

You just fitted it in there and took another one and just build it up like that. But no, he said, there's a design. And you think with Solomon's Temple, a design and drawing so accurate that there was no sound of hammering. There was no sound of pushing.

Now, sometimes we made something to fit in a wall. Did an air conditioner once in Australia. Had the hole in the wall. When I got this air conditioner up to push it in, it was such a tight fit. I had to push and bang. It wasn't just slotted in nicely at all.

And when I think of that temple, how exact that must have been. And you see the Lord's people fashioned here below, placed in his church, and especially placed above, and all made to measure. I go to prepare a place for you, a place for you as a stone, a living stone in my temple, in my building, and that building be as the temple was, all overlaid with gold, all precious, all lovely, and all of the Lord's building and the Lord's design, fashioned in the quarry, and then set where God would have us to be. Paul, when he writes to the Corinthians again, he uses this illustration in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 18.

And this is where he speaks of not a building, but as a body. And he says, if the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? But now hath God set the members, everyone in the body, as it hath pleased him. And you might say, with the picture of the church, everyone in the building. as it hath pleased him.

And there's joining together as well. You think of those stones side by side. Nearby shall all men know that ye are my disciples indeed, in that ye love one another. We know that we pass from death unto life because we love the brethren. We know here below the church is not perfect. And the troubles and trials, they might strain that.

But this is how the Lord has pictured it and built up here a spiritual house. God's people are quickened into spiritual life. It's not to be pictured as a literal, physical house, but a spiritual house, spiritually discerned and spiritually joined one to another. And as our bodies being a tabernacle that the Holy Spirit dwells in, and the whole church of God, you think how the Lord refers to the church, my church. And it is the Lord's table. It is the Lord's day. The Lord's people. All the time it is the Lord's. It doesn't belong to man. It doesn't belong to us in the pastorate or in the ministry. We are servants. It is the Lord's house. It is the Lord's.

And so here we have why it is these lively or living stones or living people built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood. All God's children are now priests because the Old Testament, the high priest, the priest, They offer the sacrifices, but now every believer is spirit indwelled, and they offer up those sacrifices of praise unto God in the fruit of their lips. They show forth the praises of Him that called them out of nature's darkness and into His marvellous light. All their prayers, all their taking up the cross, their serving of Him, healing up their bodies, laying down their lives for the brethren like the Lord Jesus Christ did. These are spiritual sacrifices, not as dead stones, but as lively stones, acceptable to God, not in ourselves, but by Jesus Christ, accepted in Him. That's why all what we do, All our prayers, all offered in His name, all done in His name, and that's acceptable unto God. What an encouraging passage, what an encouraging picture of this building.

May we be part of it and desire that we might be part of it and that we might be of those that show forth the Lord's praise and honour and glory, and are not put off or not discouraged by how the world may view Christ, disallow him, despise him and reject him. But think of this passage and even more. Think how precious he is and what a wonderful thing that the Lord should make us think different and to view him differently. Who maketh thee to differ?

For all he says, I am what I am. by the grace of God. And Peter, you would testify of how the Lord had prayed for him, restored him, strengthened him, and so would strengthen others also in the Lord Jesus Christ, this stone and the stones built up in him. May the Lord bless us to know and to feel that we are the Lord's and he is ours. He is our foundation and we are built up in Him and placed in Him by His work, not by ours. He builds His house and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. May the Lord add His blessing. Amen.