The Point of Origin
Today was like a “real” day of work for me. I started with a breakfast meeting with about 75 professionals serving seniors. I then had a meeting with some officers from Northern Colorado Rehab Hospital, then I had a LEAP Steering Committee meeting and then after checking some email, I headed off to a chiropractor appointment.
After coming home to take care of some business emails, it was about 5:00 p.m. Boy, an 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. day is kind of normal. It is good to “return to action” and feel good about it. At least for one day.
BIBLE VERSE FOR TODAY…. “Because of these things, this is what the Lord God says: “I will put a stone in the ground in Jerusalem, a tested stone. Everything will be built on this important and precious rock. Anyone who trusts in it will never be disappointed. I will use justice as a measuring line and goodness as the standard.” Isaiah 28:16,17 NCV
The Lord has more than one way to establish a people who will commit their lives to Him and follow Him faithfully and completely. Isaiah is prophesying what will prove to be a few short years before the captivity of Israel. We can see the hardness of the hearts of the people and their rebellious attitude.
The prophet says,“..they make fun of the Lord’s prophet…” (Isa. 26:10 NCV) The people refused the Lord’s invitation and intervention, God said to them, “Here is a place of rest; let the tired people come and rest. This is the place of peace.” But the people would not listen.“ (Isa. 26:12 NCV) We see the people lived in self-made delusion, the leaders said, “When terrible punishment passes by, it won’t hurt us. Our lies will keep us safe, and our tricks will hide us.” (Isa. 26:15 NCV)
This is what lead the Lord’s prophet to declare, “because of these things…” Because of treating the prophets with contempt, because they refused the Lord’s offer for rest, because they relied on their own deception to protect them, the Lord said, “I am putting down a “new marker.” A cornerstone, a “tried stone, a precious stone, a sure foundation…” (Isa. 28:16 NKJV) Like an ark of safety those who want to be “saved” from the coming destruction will run to this stone.
The corner stone was the point from which all else found its origin. It was the solid foundation that gave strength to the entire structure. It was the signal of a new start, a fresh beginning. The imagery continues with justice and goodness as the “measuring line and standard” for this building. This point of origin and this new building would serve as a testimony and judgment against the lies, contempt and arrogance that the people had displayed against the Lord. It would be a demarcation between those who trust in man and those who trust in the Lord.
Several hundred years later Peter would refer back to these words of the prophet. He wrote to first century believers, “As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him—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. 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.” (1 Peter 2:4-6 NIV)
Peter makes it clear that Christ is the true cornerstone, the foundation for a life, the point of origin for all that is just and good. And the promise is that, “the one who trusts in Him will never be put to shame.” You can experience shame when your lies are exposed, when your false foundations crumble, when your source of trust crashes around your head. But when you place your trust and confidence in the Lord you are part of a spiritual building that stands the test and assaults of time.
If you need a fresh start or a recalibration or just an “alignment” check. Look to the cornerstone. When you find your life in Christ you will find that you are where you need to be.