Living Stones (A Threefold Perspective)

I am excited about blogging and have been inspired by some good friends of mine to start.

So why the title,  Living Stones?  Taken from 1 Peter chapter 2:4-6, Peter calls the Christian a living stone and he calls the collective body of Christ living stones.  He speaks explicitly about our identity as well as our function as believers.  In relation to our identity, "chosen and precious."  In relation to our function, we are, personally and collectively, being built up, we are a priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices through Christ, who is the chief cornerstone.

Explicitly and Implicitly I believe this passage speaks to three intertwined realities that we must come to terms with.  This passage includes you, the individual, living stone; it includes "you yourselves" the people of God as a whole, and God. 

 

In verse 1, Peter says that we are to want spiritual milk so that we can grow up.  Growing up comes with proper understanding.  Calvin in Institutes of the Christian Religion book one chapter one says, "without knowledge of self there is no knowledge of God."  He goes on to say that all wisdom we posses needs to be twofold : knowledge of God and ourselves.  God's Spirit, Sacrament, his Scriptures, his creation etc, impart to us "knowledge of God."  However, other than God who or what gives us an understanding of ourselves?  Community, the other stones that support us and make up, vs. 9. a chosen race, the royal priesthood, a holy nation.   

We need a proper understanding of ourselves and it is my firm belief that this can not be done apart from others.  No man is an island unto himself and no man can see himself aright apart from community. It takes the exposing eyes of others to help our myopic predisposition.  To be able to see ourselves and God we need God's other chosen and precious stones.