Built on Christ
We have all sorts of names for groups of animals. No doubt you’ve heard of a flock of sheep, a herd of cattle, or even a gaggle of geese. But some names may surprise you. A group of crows is called a murder. How about a congregation of alligators, or a crash of rhinoceroses? Have you heard of a building of rooks (Eurasian crows)?
Building, in fact, is one of the names in the Bible for believers in Jesus. “You are . . . God’s building,” wrote the apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 3:9). There are other names for believers as well: “the flock” (Acts 20:28), “the body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 12:27), “brothers and sisters” (1 Thessalonians 2:14), and more.
The building metaphor recurs in 1 Peter 2:5, as Peter tells the church, “You also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house.” Then, in verse 6, Peter quotes Isaiah 28:16, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone.” Jesus is the very foundation of His building.
We may have the sense that it’s our job to build the church, but Jesus said, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). We’re chosen by God to “declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). As we declare those praises, we become instruments in His hands as He does His good work.
By Bill Crowder - Daily Bread Ministries
1 Peter 2:4–10 (NIV):
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 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.”
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,”
8 and,
“A stone that causes people to stumble
and a rock that makes them fall.”
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.
