The Stone The Builders Rejected…

Acts 4:11
Jesus is
“‘the stone you builders rejected,
which has become the cornerstone.’

This is one of the many texts that refer to this saying, that the stone the builders rejected turned out to be the most precious and important stone in the construction. Psalm 118:22 tells us of the stone the builders rejected turning out to be the most important stone. In Matthew 21:42 Jesus cites this same saying about the rejected stone turning out to be the most critical stone. 1 Peter 2:7 refers to that same stone that was rejected and then later on it became the most important stone. The difference is that in our text today the stone is identified. Jesus is the stone the builders rejected.

Many times we wish were that stone. We wish that our enemies who rejected us wrongly or rightly will one day find us so important and relevant, that this saying would come true. While it is true that many times in life, the person you hurt most and reject, become the person you will embarrassingly seek their help when you are most helpless, I believe this is the doing of God to teach us a lesson.

That means one day in life, each and every one of us will be embarrassed to discover the stone we rejected is now very critical for our lives. We will feel the shame of having been proud and arrogant. But also in life, by God’s doing, those who rejected and hurt us unfairly will need us one way or the other. Fairness is critical in life because someday the stone we rejected will be our only way out. Patience is also required since you who are rejected will soon be too important to ignore. The stone the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.

While all these about us the rejected and rejectors is true, this text is not about us. This text is about Jesus. This text tells us that Jesus is the stone. If you reject Jesus, you will discover someday that He is the chief cornerstone. Jesus is the stone the builders rejected.

Builders are building experts. With all their expertise, they misjudged this particular stone. There is no discipline on earth that is so sophisticated and advanced that it can properly assess the value of Jesus. Jesus must be accepted by faith. Experts, even religious and theological experts always underestimate Jesus. Experts are fellow human beings we look up to for direction and advice. Yet experts underestimate Jesus always. They, directly and indirectly, reject Jesus.

Finance experts will address a financial situation without praying, because to them clearly, Jesus can’t do much around here. Education experts will emphasize everything except prayers. When you are in a political crisis, politicians will pull out theories of political science and argue on which theory works. They will hardly think of praying about it. In their minds is the question, what can Jesus do? That is a rejection of Jesus in building a political situation. Human experts believe there is a lot you can do and only use prayer as a formality at the beginning and at the end. Jesus becomes the rejected stone.

Those who pray before meetings and after meetings hardly believe that God can indeed solve that situation. Those who pray hardly wait to hear from God for His response. Prayer becomes a requirement since they are people of faith, but they do not really believe God can solve their problems. They pray and then rush to fully depend on human effort. Jesus becomes the stone they rejected as builders.

Later on when everything else fails in life and no theory works. No human intervention works. The people turn to God in prayer and weeping. All eyes on God. Then God acts and saves them. The stone the builders rejected becomes the most important stone.

A young girl will depend on her beauty and streetwise in the dating scene. She will be armed with knowledge and appearance. Prayer will never be there or only superficial until years pass by and it is clearly too late and she runs to prayers. She now trusts no more in knowledge and beauty. She pleads with God to provide a man for marriage. The stone of faith in Jesus that she had rejected becomes the chief building stone in her relationships.

We go into marriage, parenting, studies, business, employment, and leadership with so much faith in ourselves that we hardly believe in God. Until when we totally fail and all tricks in the book have been used to no avail, then we turn to the stone we rejected. The stone the builders rejected ends up being the chief cornerstone.

Our rejection of Jesus as a building stone in our lives is never a direct obvious thing. We reject Jesus with sophistication. We can do routine prayers that we do not believe in. We can be indifferent when religious leaders are leading worship, praying, and emphasizing how God can help us. We are indifferent because we do not believe it but we are just respectful. We also show our lack of faith in God by being anxious to end the prayer moment and rush to applying ourselves to solving our issues. God who can read our hearts knows that we are rejecting Jesus in this building process. But as time goes by and all our best efforts fail, it dawns on us that God can do something. The stone the builders rejected becomes the chief cornerstone.

Nothing is impossible with God. We must totally trust Him. God can solve financial problems if we pray. Yes just prayer to God can resolve what the best financial experts can’t. God can resolve health issues. God can resolve family wrangles. God can resolve what you think is a gone and irredeemable case. God can solve legal issues. God can improve your academic performance. God can give you a relationship that you will enjoy. God can give you happiness. But do we believe enough to trust God, or we rush through prayer and go for human efforts without faith in God? It is sad for you to wait for sometimes then turn to God when all else has failed. The stone the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.

Dear God, teach me to trust you. As I do my best as I should, may I trust you to save me. Help me to make You the chief cornerstone in all my problems and pursuits in life. I invite You to be the chief cornerstone of my life, my finances, my health, my relationships, my job, my businesses, and all my pursuits in Jesus’ name, Amen!

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