Outline: Building Your Life Upon the Rock

Text: 1 Peter 2:4-8

Introduction:

One of the most successful advertising campaigns for Chevrolet lasted from 1992-2004.  They produced a series of commercials for their pickup trucks entitled- Like a Rock

Bob Seger sang the now famous words:

Like a Rock, I was strong as I could be, Like a rock, nothing ever got to me, like a rock.

The premise of the commercial was to make us believe you could depend upon their trucks- as long as you were driving on of their vehicles, nothing could go wrong.

I passed by a junk yard the other day and saw three Chevrolet pickups that were rusted and piled on top of each other. Even though Chevrolet build a good truck, their product was not indestructible.

There are very few things in life that last; therefore, we must make sure what we build our life upon will be strong and secure.  Many build their life on:

Money, Fame, Position and Recognition, Leisure, Even on religion

But these things are like the Chevrolet trucks- piled up destroyed on the side of life’s highway

We must build our life on the Rock!

If there is any confusion as to what the Rock is we can confirm that it is JESUS CHRIST!

He is the Rock of Israel

He is the Rock of Salvation

He is the Rock of Refuge

He is the Rock of Ages

He is the Rock of Offense

He is the Chief Cornerstone

1. The Characteristics of this Rock (v4)

A. He is the Approachable Rock

• To whom coming- you can come to Him
• You can approach the Lord Jesus Christ- He can be found
• Psalmist said, Lead me to the Rock that is Higher than I- He is our refuge from the storm

B. He is the Authentic Rock

• It seems somewhat of a paradox to call the Lord a Living Stone- what does that mean?
• Consider the false gods made of rock and stone- they are dead, they are not real
• He is the Living, Authentic Savior that cannot be destroyed
• Story of David Livingstone- Granite will crumble but this is Livingstone

C. He is the Abhorred Rock

• To reject, refuse, to examine and despise
• Isaiah said he would be a man of sorrows, He came unto His own and His own received Him not- He is still abhorred today; but to those who believe- HE IS PRECIOUS!
• Consider that Moses struck the rock twice- because of His disobedience the rock was smitten

D. He is the Appointed Rock

• Chosen of God- to select for oneself
• God chose Christ for Himself- no other substitute would work
• Indeed He is precious- valuable- consider what men have endured for the pursuit of diamonds and gold.
• How much more precious is Christ, the Living Stone?

2. The Companions of the Rock (v5-6)

There is no doubt that Peter had some thoughts in mind when he penned down these words

Perhaps he considered his calling when Christ changed his name from Simon to Peter

(Petros- a little stone, a little rock)

More than likely he considered Matthew 16 when he proclaimed Christ as the true and living Rock, and Jesus said- Thou art Peter, and upon this Rock I will build my church

This is what Peter is saying in this passage- “When you build upon the rock, you too become lively stones- or stones like Christ Jesus- the little stones (petros) of the larger stone (petra)”

God is building His temple not like the one in Jerusalem with material that can be destroyed, but rather with living material- with people that are redeemed.

A. Consider the Habitation of these Stones

• It seems strange that we are called lively stones but this is a reference to the temple
• God is not building a temple with material that is dead
• The people of God are the temple of God
• God meets us wherever we are!

B. Consider the Holiness of these Stones

• We are a holy priesthood
• We can make intercession for ourselves
• This is an act of worship as we gain entrance into the Holy Place of God

C. Consider the Honor of these Stones

• Peter quoted from Isaiah 28:16
• We should not be confounded- we should not be put to shame or disgraced
• You can either believe, fall upon the rock and be broken
• Or disbelief, and have the rock fall upon you and be crushed, or confounded

3. The Contrariness to this Rock (v7-8)

Not everyone will build their lives upon the Rock of Jesus-

A. Some Who Dismiss the Rock

• Peter is quoting from Psalm 118- The cornerstone is the chief stone of the building- it is the stone from which all other stones are measured and lined, the cornerstone keeps the building in proportion and alignment.
• In 1 Kings 6:7 Solomon built a house of stone for the Lord- the temple, he built it in the location of the threshingfloor of Ornan the Jubisite.  6:7
• “And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe [nor] any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.”

The stones were to be hewn and cut from the quarry so that once it arrived at the temple location there would be no sound of ax or hammer

J. Vernon McGee states, “At the beginning of the project a very large stone came from the quarry, but the builders could not put it in its proper place, it was not the beautiful stone so they dismissed it and cast it to the side.  After many days of walking over the stone someone heaved it back down the hill during the construction process.  Once all the other stones had been put into place word came from the mountain that they were in need of the cornerstone.  From the quarry they told them the cornerstone was the first stone they sent up- it was then they realized that was the stone they pushed off the hill.  With frustration and despisement they hauled the stone back up the hill and found it did fit properly into the temple.

There are some today who still dismiss Him and will never have any stability in life because their “temple” is missing the foundational piece- the Cornerstone.

B. Some Who Will Disobey

• Ultimately they have failed to hear and heed the Word of God
• “whereunto they also were appointed” literally, they are bound to fail if they dismiss the cornerstone.