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The Spirit of Prophecy Volume 3
Jesus Christ. Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I
lay in Sion a chief corner-stone, 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 offense, even to them which stumble
at the word, being disobedient; whereunto also they were appointed.”
In revealing to the Jews their doom for rejecting the Son of God
and making of him a stumbling-block, Jesus also addresses all those
who are impenitent and do not accept him as their Redeemer. The
fate of the unbelieving Jews will be theirs. The only safety is to build
upon the right foundation. Millions are today building their hopes and
prospects upon foundations that have not been tested and proven; they
will soon totter and fall, bearing with them the flimsy structures built
upon them.
Jesus had passively borne the abuse of sinners, just as the rejected
stone had borne the abuse of the workmen who stumbled over it. But
the time was to come when they would see him exalted, even as the
despised and rejected stone was made the head of the corner. Then the
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rejectors of Christ were to be punished for their iniquity. The city and
temple of the Jews were to be destroyed. The stone was to fall upon
them by which all their glory would be broken and scattered as the
dust which the wind driveth away.
Jesus has set before us the only true foundation upon which we
may securely build. It is broad enough for all and strong enough to
sustain the weight and burden of the whole world. To fall upon this
stone and be broken is to give up our self-righteousness and to go to
Christ with the humility of a child, repenting of our transgressions and
believing in his forgiving love. All who build upon this foundation,
which is Christ, become living stones by connection with Him, the
chief corner-stone. Many persons are hewn, polished and beautified
by their own endeavors, but they never will become “living stones”
because they are not connected with Christ. When the rain falls, and
the tempest rages, and the floods come they will fall in ruin because
they are not riveted to the eternal rock, the chief corner-stone, Christ
Jesus.
The stones were not prepared for their respective places just as
they were about to be laid in the wall of the temple; all the fitting