"You Are A Living Stone"...That Jesus Is Helping You Build His House!

1 Peter 2:4-10 New International Version

The Living Stone and a Chosen People 4 As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5 you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house[a] 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.”[b] 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 cornerstone,”[c]

8 and,

“A stone that causes people to stumble

and a rock that makes them fall.”[d]They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

9 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. 10 Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

Saturday - September 17

In the Old Testament a priest’s job was to do the work of the Temple publicly. They would make sacrifices and carry out all the other religious traditions and rituals in public on behalf of the rest of the people. The Apostle Peter says that Jesus has made every person who is baptized a priest in the “royal priesthood” of God. Following Jesus is not a private affair. You are a priest at your child’s soccer match, when you go to the dentist, or when you go out to eat. Everywhere you go you are living publicly on behalf of Jesus. You are a “living stone” that Jesus is using to build His house. Let us ask God to help us publicly be priests who give forgiveness, mercy and love wherever we go.