Do we trust or disobey? 1 Peter 2: 4-8 Introduction In Mark 13:1 we read about Jesus leaving the temple. “…one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!” Any resident or visitor in Jerusalem knew about the magnificent temple and was impressed by the stones from which it was built. The stones that remain today average about 15 feet long and 4 feet high. Some of the stones in the corner weigh up to 70 tons. Jesus said that magnificent building was not going to last. In a short time the stones would be thrown down. Peter, who was one of those who was so impressed by the magnificent stones of the temple came to understand that there was another more significant foundation. In 1 Peter 2 he writes about a Living Stone. Let’s read 1 Peter 2: 4-8: “As you come to him, the living Stone —rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him — 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” 7 Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone, ” 8 and, “A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message —which is also what they were destined for.” I. Coming to Him (4-5a) A. Jesus the Living Stone (4) Peter begins in verse 4 by saying, “As you come to him, the living Stone…” It is clear that he is talking about Jesus. He is the foundation. He is the alpha and the omega, the beginning and the end. But Jesus is rejected by men. It is very likely that when Peter said this he was thinking of a parable that Jesus had told his disciples. We find it in Mark 12. “1 He then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and went away on a journey. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed. 6 “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 7 “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard. 9 “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this scripture: “ ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone ; 11 the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes’ ?” Today we still find that Jesus is rejected by so many people. But while many people may reject Jesus, the fact is that God says something very different. In God’s eyes Jesus is the living stone. He has been raised from the dead and now lives forever. He is the source of life. He has been chosen by God. While some people say Jesus is irrelevant, The Bible says that Jesus is the only way to the Father. He is chosen and he is precious. God said “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” The point is that Jesus is the foundation. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 3:11, “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” There are many people who reject Jesus. There was a conference of atheists recently in the United States and they stated that their goal was to eradicate Christianity from American thought. It is amazing how people under the guise of intellectualism can say some really dumb things and then it is just as incredible that some members of the media report it is if they have come to some profound conclusions. We are reminded of the words of the Apostle Paul in Colossians 1 where he writes, “Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?” Jesus may be rejected by men, but he is chosen by God. A few weeks ago an email sent by a government official in Myanmar to the head of the military instructing him to get rid of all Christians in the country. Many have been killed and others are fleeing into neighbouring Thailand. In Thailand many of these Khmu people are being ministered to by our own missions agency. Right now there is a group of people from the Greendale MB Church who are helping these Khmu believers build two churches in Northern Thailand. Jesus is rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him. Peter is going to say something about the church in the next verses, but he must begin with Jesus. He is the priority. That is why our church’s mission statement says that our mission is Helping people to find and follow Jesus. Whenever we make decisions as a church that is our determining principle. The first question is never, “What do I like, or what do I prefer.” The first questions must always be, “What will help us to bring people to Jesus.” He is the one the world has rejected but he is the person that we declare to be the one who is chosen and precious. To be a Christian is to be a follower of Christ. To be the church is to be the body of Christ. He is the beginning. We are Christians because we have come to him. He is the end. He the goal toward which we strive. B. The community of living stones (5a) In verse 5 Peter goes on to say what happens to those who come to him. The Greek expression at the beginning of verse 4 carries the idea of coming to Jesus with the idea of staying and enjoying a personal relationship. When we arrived in Bangkok some weeks ago, we didn’t say to Cyndy our daughter. Well, we’ve come to Thailand—good to see you—see you later. No, there were hugs all around and we wanted to spend time with her because we have a relationship with her and she is precious to us. We come to Jesus with whom we have a relationship. We are loved by him and we also love him in return. What does Peter say about those who come to Jesus? “you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” I see two reasons why Peter calls those who come to Jesus “living stones.” The first is that we are representatives of Jesus who is the Living Stone. We see this several times in the Bible. The Bible says that Jesus is the light of the world and then calls us the light of the world because we are to carry the light just as Jesus did. Here, we are living stones in the building that God is building just as Jesus is the Living Stone. He is the Son of God, we are children of God. Being a Christian—a Christ follower—is being transformed into his image. In 1John 3:2 the Bible tells us that “now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” The other point that Peter is making here is that we are living stones who are being built into a spiritual house. We are a community. Each building stone by itself is of little value, but as the stones are built into a building they become something significant. The fact that we are living stones built into a spiritual building again tells us two very significant truths. First, we were never intended to be Christians alone. The followers of Jesus are to be part of his church. Being part of the church is not some mystical theological idea. Being part of the church involves real relationships with brothers and sisters. It involves a commitment to support and care for one another. You are not the church and I am not the church, but together we become the spiritual building that God is erecting. The other truth is that everyone who comes to Jesus is a living stone and is part of his church. One of the challenges that the church has always faced is the temptation to assume that only ‘we’ are the body of Christ. Comedian Emo Philips tells this story: In conversation with a person I had recently met, I asked, "Are you Protestant or Catholic?" My new acquaintance replied, "Protestant." I said, "Me too! What denomination?" He answered, "Baptist." "Me too!" I said. "Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?" "Northern Baptist," he replied. "Me too!" I shouted. We continued to go back and forth. Finally I asked, "Northern conservative fundamentalist Baptist, Great Lakes Region, Council of 1879 or Northern conservative fundamentalist Baptist, Great Lakes Region, Council of 1912?" He replied, "Northern conservative fundamentalist Baptist, Great Lakes Region, Council of 1912." I said, "You heretic!" Unfortunately there is too much truth in that story. Far too often Christians have not been willing to recognize others as being part of the church because there was something different about them. We may have some legitimate points of disagreement, but they are still followers of Jesus. If we go back about 60 years into our own history there were instances where a person who married someone from a different denomination would be ex-communicated because it was assumed they had married an unbeliever. I thank God that those days have long passed. I have sensed a growing appreciation for Christians of all denominations. Any believer whether they are Mennonite, Pentecostal, Anglican, Catholic or Baptist is being built into this spiritual building. They are not part of the building just because they are Mennonite Brethren or Anglican. The issue is not which church do you belong to but have you come to Jesus as your Saviour. Anyone who comes to Jesus is my brother and sister and is a living stone being built into a spiritual house. Peter says we are built into this spiritual house to be a holy priesthood. Every believer is a priest. What does that mean? Sometimes people misuse this statement to say that every believer is a leader. We shouldn’t have leaders in the church because everyone is a priest. The role of priest is not a governing role. In Israel there was a high priest and a ruling body called the Sanhedrin. These were the leaders. The priests were men who were mediators between the people and God. Only the priests could enter the temple itself and offer sacrifices for the people. Now God says that we are all priests because we all have direct access to God. We do not need to speak to God through another human priest. We don’t pray to God through some saint. The Bible tells in Hebrews 4 that Jesus is our mediator and then invites us to “… approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” As priests we also have the responsibility of bringing others to Jesus so that they too can be part of what God is building. We are mediators between God and our neighbours. The Apostle Paul expresses this idea in 2 Corinthians 5 where he refers to us as Ambassadors and indicates that we are the representatives of God. He writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: 19 that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. 20 We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” As holy priests who are mediators we are called to help connect people with God. We are priests who offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. What kind of sacrifices is Peter talking about? Clearly we no longer offer animal sacrifices as the Old Testament priests did. Let’s turn to the Bible for the answer. Pastor James has been teaching us from Romans 12 where Paul writes, “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God —this is your spiritual act of worship.” The sacrifice that we make is to offer ourselves to God. He wants all of us. In Hebrews 13: 15-16, there is another passage where the New Testament shows us how practical these sacrifices are. The Bible says, “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise —the fruit of lips that confess his name. 16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” As God’s holy priests we offer the sacrifices of our lives and the sacrifice of praise and the sacrifice of doing good and sharing our material goods. To sacrifice is to give up something for the sake of God and for the purpose of doing what he wants us to do. Being a priest does not mean we have special privileges in the church. It means that we have special responsibilities to sacrifice for the sake of accomplishing God’s mission. II. Believing in Him (5b-8) A. The fruit of trusting (5b-7a) The second part of this passage deals with believing in Jesus. First Peter writes about the fruit of trusting. Let me begin at verse 6, “For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” That is an amazing promise. The one who trusts in Jesus will never be put to shame. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter writes: In 1966, I ran for governor of Georgia and lost to avowed segregationist Lester Maddox. [My sister] Ruth drove to Plains and listened while I deplored the poor judgment and racist tendencies of my fellow Georgians and vented my anger toward God. Then Ruth quoted James 1:2. I said, "Ruth, my political life is over! It's not my goal just to grow peanuts, sell fertilizer, gin cotton, and build up a bank account. God has rejected me through the people's vote." Ruth replied, "Jimmy, you have to believe that out of this defeat can come a greater life." I responded bitterly, "There is no way I can build on such an embarrassing defeat." Patiently, Ruth explained what James was saying. When we face trials with courage, we learn to endure and pray for wisdom. Wisdom leads us to depend on things made available to all through God's love. Christ gives us courage to take a chance on something new. Ruth advised me to do something totally unrelated to my business or politics. Shortly afterward I was asked by the Baptist Brotherhood to go as a lay witness on a mission in Pennsylvania. I did, and it changed my life. Does the promise that those who trust in Jesus will never be put to shame mean that life will always be easy? Trusting God on the mountain-tops is easy. Trusting him when things seem to go wrong is another matter entirely. God is so good that most often things are going along fine and it is easy to trust Him. Who wouldn’t trust God when he gives you a job or brings a healthy baby into the family. It is not difficult to declare our faith when God lets us take a vacation with the family and we have enough money to pay the mortgage. In Thailand we saw the babies that are referred to as the “miracle babies.” They came to the orphanage together with other children who were HIV positive. But after a time of prayer, the doctors, who were completely bewildered, said that there is no longer any sign of HIV. Those that trust in Jesus will never be put to shame. But what about Phone Kow, who is a missionary who spent time in a Laotian jail. After his release he was discoved to have cancer. We prayed for him to be released from jail only for this? Didn’t Jimmy Carter pray before his defeat in Georgia? What about the Rainwaters who have faced no end of challenges on their return to Africa. Didn’t they trust Jesus? One evening, when we were still at Broadway Church, our Care Group leader led us in a discussion of painful prayers. We looked at the prayer of Jeremiah when he cried out bitterly to God because of what was happening to him. Our sharing time was one I will never forget. One after another of my brothers and sisters talked about pain and tragedy in their life. We talked about what happens when we get cancer or a child dies or gets into trouble. What happens when a friend is dying? There were tears and prayers. Was it a discouraging evening? Not at all? What I found so amazing was to listen to people share about what happened when life seemed to go terribly wrong and then hear them say that they can still trust God. They were able to affirm the words of David who said, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for you are with me. My brothers and sisters, a God who can only be trusted in good times can’t be trusted. But, a God who can be trusted in the darkest days is a God who can always be trusted. What is it that is challenging your faith today. Is God calling you to take a step that you are afraid to take? Are you going through the valley and you want to cry out in anger to God. Let me assure you that you can pour out whatever is in your heart and God will not reject you. He already knows how you feel. You can trust him to hear your passion and even your anger and still love you completely. For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” B. The result of disobeying (7b-8) That, however, is not the whole story. Verse 7 continues, “But to those who do not believe, “The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone, ” 8 and, “A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.” They stumble because they disobey the message —which is also what they were destined for.” For those who don’t believe, Jesus is not someone who is chosen and precious. He is a stumbling block. He gets in the way. Their hackles rise when his name is even mentioned. It is very important to note why it is that such people stumble. The last sentence says, “They stumble because they disobey the message —which is also what they were destined for” It is disobedience that is the problem. Some people like to say, “I can’t believe that.” That is an excuse that simply doesn’t wash. The problem is not with their intellect, it is with their will. People choose to believe that the world and everything around us is the result of chance. They can’t prove it—they accept it by faith. Or they can choose to believe that God is the Creator. The fact is that people who do not believe do not want to believe. Dr. Robert Mounce puts it well when he writes, “- "Men stumble over the message because they disobey. Disobedience--not some philosophical or intellectual difficulty with the message itself--is the root cause of the unbeliever's downfall. People stumble because they won't believe, not because they can't.” The Bible says that those who disobey are destined to stumble. People who reject Jesus will stumble by missing out on eternal life in heaven. I am not going to dwell on that this morning, but I do want to say that the consequences of disobedience and of not trusting Jesus are so ominous that I dare not continue without issuing a warning. My friend, if you have not yet come to accept that wonderful gift of life that God offers us through Jesus, please do so today. You can choose to trust or disobey. The one who trusts will never be ashamed. We will one day stand before God in confidence as his children who have been forgiven because of Jesus. But the one who disobeys is destined to fall. My friend, this warning is not because Christians are somehow better than you and you need to become like us. No, God loves you. God has offered you the gift of life through Jesus. Today he is again inviting you to choose to trust him. But it is a choice. You do have the right to choose to disobey. You don’t have the privilege of choosing the consequences. Peter’s warning here is for unbelievers, but is also true that believers who disobey also stumble. We are always faced with opportunities to trust or to disobey. Will we do what God calls us to do or will we go our own way. The one who trusts will be never be put to shame. The one who disobeys is destined to stumble. God has made the rules, now it is up to us to make our choices. I recently heard a sermon by S.M. Lockeridge who is a black preacher from the Southern USA. He preaches with a passion that us Anglo-Saxons can only dream about. I am not going to try to imitate him this morning, but I want to quote a part of his sermon. He was talking about trusting Jesus. “ He's the one who made us - it is He who made us and not we ourselves. The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork. No means of measure can define His limitless love and no far seeing telescope can bring into visibility the coast line of His shoreless supply. You can trust Him! No barrier can hinder Him from pouring out His blessing. He's enduringly strong and He's entirely sincere. He's eternally steadfast. He's immortally graceful. He's imperially powerful. He's impartially merciful. He's the greatest phenomenon that has ever crossed the horizon of this world. He's God's Son. He's the sinner's Savior. He's the centerpiece of civilization. You can trust Him! The Bible tells us that Jesus is coming back to this world. One day all of this stuff here on earth will be over. Then it will be very important whether we responded to Jesus with trust or whether we rejected him and disobeyed. If you have not yet come to Jesus, I invite you to come this morning. The Bible tells us that God will never turn away someone who comes to him. If you admit your need and ask Jesus to be your Saviour and make the decision to follow him, he will accept you. Most of us here this morning are believers. Let me ask you, What is the circumstance or the issue in your life where God is saying “trust me.” - Are you ready to turn the matter over to him. Will you trust him and let him has his way in your life. During Gladys Aylward’s harrowing journey out of war-torn Yang Chen during the Communist take-over, she faced one morning with no apparent hope of reaching safety. A 13-year old girl tried to comfort her by saying, "Don’t forget what you told us about Moses in the wilderness," to which Aylward replied, "Yes, my dear, but I am not Moses." The young girl replied, "Yes, but God is still God." - Are you ready to say, “All To Jesus I Surrender.” All to Jesus, I surrender;
 All to Him I freely give;
 I will ever love and trust Him, 
In His presence daily live.