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The Cornerstone from Refreshing Hope Ministries on Vimeo.

After Jesus made a whip of cords and drove the money changers out of the temple in Jerusalem, He had an interesting conversation with the Jewish leaders. They asked for a sign, and He told them this:

(John 2:18–21 NKJV)  So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?" Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?" But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

The temple was the center of Judaism, where they believed the presence of God dwelt in an inner room called the Holy of Holies. The chief priests controlled access to the Lord and made a tidy profit from it. They banned people like tax collectors from even entering their temple.

The high priest sold franchises for the currency exchange stalls. Because the temple didn't accept foreign money for donations, they would exchange your money for an exorbitant fee. They also inspected the animals brought by the people, and had the authority to tag yours as blemished, then sell you an "approved" one. Yes, being the middle man was profitable. And one of the perks was that you could excommunicate your enemies if they complained.

Yet, the Lord had something else in mind: God was going to build a temple that wasn't made with hands, and in doing so, He would remove the middle man.

(Isaiah 28:16 NKJV)  Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: "Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;

A cornerstone was the first stone block of a building, often set during a "groundbreaking" ceremony. It had to be perfect, squared, level, and true, for every other building block would be aligned with it. Once the Cornerstone was set, the building could get underway.

Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone God chose for His new temple. A temple made without hands. Remember the vision of the statue that represented coming kingdoms God gave Nebuchadnezzar in the book of Daniel?

(Daniel 2:31–34 NKJV)  "You, O king, were watching; and behold, a great image! This great image, whose splendor was excellent, stood before you; and its form was awesome. This image's head was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet partly of iron and partly of clay. You watched while a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces.

The head of Gold represented the kingdom of Babylon under Nebuchadnezzar. He would be replaced by the Medo-Persian empire, the chest, and arms of silver. The belly and thighs of bronze represented the kingdom of Greece under Alexander the Great.

The legs of iron symbolized the Roman empire, and the feet, the Roman empire divided. Each kingdom replaced the one before it. The stone cut without hands that replaced those earthly kingdoms was the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Jesus Christ was the Cornerstone of a new temple that God would build, and we are building blocks in His plan. We have to align ourselves with the Cornerstone to be a part of what God is building. There is no other foundation. There is no other "way." We are becoming the house of God. The Apostle Paul wrote this:

(Ephesians 2:19–22 NKJV)  Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

It's great to gather with other believers in a building, but that structure is not the temple of the Lord anymore. You are. There is no more middle man who can excommunicate you, for Christ lives inside of you, the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). The Most-High doesn't dwell in temples made with hands (Acts 7:48). In the book of Revelation, when John was describing the new Jerusalem he saw, he wrote this:

(Revelation 21:3 NKJV)  And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.

(Revelation 21:22 NKJV)  But I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.

Key takeaways:

* Jesus Christ is the Cornerstone of the church, and we are building blocks that need to align with Him in order to be a part of His house.

* There is no more middle man between the Lord and us, for His Holy Spirit dwells within each of us.

* We don't need anyone's approval on Earth to be saved, but good teachers are a treasure.

* God doesn't meet with us only in a church building. He will meet with You in the workplace or in a grocery store just as quickly.

* When you align with the Cornerstone, you are building your life on a solid, level, and true foundation that will stand the test of time. Without Him, you are making a house of sticks on a pile of sand that will come crashing down with the first gust of wind. 

You can pray this with me if you like:

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I choose You! I want to align myself with the Cornerstone You have set. Show me how to get in tune with You and what You are doing on Earth today. In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen!