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Acts 4:1-22
Rejection hurts, doesn't it, whether it comes from the one we love, a classmate or a co-worker. Even best-selling authors know the feeling of rejection.
Ken Taylor's paraphrase of the Bible, The Living Bible was rejected 63 times. He finally self-published it. Quite unexpectedly, The Living Bible became one of the biggest bestsellers of all time.
The Diary of Anne Frank was rejected 15 times. One publisher called it "very dull."
Chicken Soup for the Soul by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen was rejected 140 times. And yet they turned it into a series of books that have made them both very, very rich.
Stephen King's disturbing work, Carrie, was rejected 30 times. Supposedly, after the final rejection, Stephen threw the manuscript in the trash and his wife fished it out.
Henry Kissinger is best remembered by his classmates as the kid nobody wanted to eat lunch with at school.
So, take heart. Rejection happens to everyone sooner or later. If we can't deal with this fact of life, we're in trouble. Because sooner or later we're all going to be rejected.
Jesus was rejected. Peter tells us in Acts 4, "The stone that [the] builders rejected has become the head cornerstone." Quoting Psalm 118:22 he wanted us to know Jesus is the fulfillment of that prophecy. "The stone . . . that was rejected has become the head cornerstone."
In Acts 3 there's a wonderful story about a lame man who was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful. Friends or family brought him there every day to beg. This was the first century equivalent of a welfare program.
When this poor man saw Peter and John about to enter the gate, he asked them for money. But Peter turned to the man and said, "Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk." Then, taking the lame man by the right hand, Peter helped him up.
Instantly the man's feet and ankles became strong, and he began walking and jumping, and praising God. People who recognized him were filled with wonder and amazement when they saw him carrying on like this. A huge crowd gathered, and Peter began preaching about the resurrected Jesus and his power to heal. This disturbed the priests and the captain of the temple guard, for many who heard the message believed what the two Apostles said. In fact, that day the number of believers grew to about five thousand.
The Sadducees were particularly disturbed by the Apostles' claim that Jesus was resurrected from the dead. The Sadducees didn't believe in resurrection from the dead. Christ's resurrection, if true, presented them with a real dilemma. It struck down one of their core beliefs. And so, they threw Peter and John in jail. The following morning, they were interrogated. "By what power or what name did you do this?" they were asked. Instead of answering their question, Peter explained that whatever they saw the disciples doing wasn't being accomplished by their own power or strength, but by the power of the risen Christ.
Peter also reminded them this act of healing was an act of kindness. Surely that should take precedence over rules and regulations. This lame man was rejoicing and praising God because God had healed him.
Finally, Peter confirmed this lame man was healed through the name of Jesus. This was the same Jesus, whom the religious leaders had crucified but, in fulfillment of scriptures, God had raised from the dead.
Peter further elaborated by repeating Psalm 112: "The stone you builders rejected . . . has become the cornerstone." He reminded them, Jesus, although temporarily humiliated, was subsequently glorified. He is now the Redeemer, and the only way to the Father was through him.
Jesus, the stone the builders rejected, is the cornerstone of our faith. I'm reminded of a beautiful contemporary worship song that was popular a few years ago: "Jesus is the Cornerstone, came for sinners to atone; Though rejected by His own, He became the Cornerstone . . .Jesus is the Cornerstone." It is on that cornerstone our faith is built.
The cornerstone or capstone isn't simply a decorative stone, it's the fundamental stone that structurally holds a building together. Visualize for a moment an old Roman archway, built from two columns of carefully carved stones. Where the two sides arch in toward each other at the top and meet in the center, there's a triangular shaped stone that sits in the middle and balances the two sides of the arch against each other. That is the capstone. If you removed that stone, the whole thing would fall to pieces. Make no mistake, Jesus is the capstone or cornerstone for all who follow him.
German theologian, Johann David Michaelis, taught that this passage from the Psalms concerning the cornerstone refers to a specific event that reportedly took place during the building of Solomon's temple. It's said that this massive temple was built in relative silence. There was no pounding of hammers. The reason there was no pounding of hammers is because the plans were so exact each stone was perfectly shaped at the quarry. When the stones arrived at the building site, each one fit perfectly into place.
But there was one huge stone that didn't seem to fit anywhere, and the builders placed it to the side. Eventually it got in the way, and workmen pushed it over the bank, and it rolled down into the Kidron Valley below. After the foundation had been laid, the time came to hoist the cornerstone into place. But the cornerstone couldn't be found. Word was sent back to the quarry, but the masons there replied it had already been delivered. Finally, it was deduced that it was the stone that had been rejected and had rolled into the valley. When it was retrieved, it slid perfectly into place, serving as the stone that held all the others in position.
"The stone you builders rejected . . . has become the cornerstone," wrote the Psalmist. Luke knew this was the perfect description of Jesus. He was rejected by the religious leaders of his day, but he was the only foundation upon which people could reliably build their lives.
Jesus is the only reliable foundation on which we can build our lives. Ellen Kennedy puts it this way. "When I began to take Jesus seriously, I began to look at a particular young woman with scorn. I felt little but contempt for her as I thought of her quick temper, her selfishness, her spiteful gossiping, and the way she took her loving family for granted. Any time she was mentioned, I could think of very little good to say.
"But one day as I was leafing through an old picture album filled with photos of her, Jesus' spirit spoke to my spirit and told me [concerning this young woman], 'I have always loved her, despite her failings, and I have forgiven her. I want you to forgive and love her, too.'
"As I gazed at the young face in the pictures, my heart was filled with compassion for the girl. Along the way in searching for life's meaning, she had made many mistakes. God gave me a gentle love for her and the ability to forgive her. That moment of healing when I decided to forgive and love her also gave me a new strength and a new freedom to love others as never before . . . because the young woman in the pictures was me."
What a beautiful testimony to the change Jesus makes in our heart. Consider the change another young woman discovered. She said, "I am the second child of my mother . . . a single mom . . . and when she gave birth to me, she decided she never wanted me, so just like Moses was placed in a basket and sent down a river, I was placed under a plum tree in front of my father's house. A lady was passing by and told my paternal grandmother that I was outside under the tree. My father came and got me, and his house was my home for 22 years. I grew up with him and my grandmother.
"Fast-forward to 24 years later, a university graduate with a second degree, the Chief Financial Officer of a major company and a well-known Christian woman who is recognized for philanthropy, I was doing well despite growing up always believing that I was my mother's reject. I reconnected with my mother at a seminar; she had sought me out because by now she had seven children, nowhere to live, no job and no food to give them. The short version is I bought her a piece of land, built a house on it, found her a job, and moved my youngest brother in with me so that I could mentor him. Today, he is a third-year law student. The statement made about Jesus being the head cornerstone, the redemptive blood of my Savior and my relationship with him was what helped me to forgive my mother and made it easy for me to become the head cornerstone in her life. She rejected me and gave me away . . . and few years later I was the one she needed."
Can you imagine being able to love and forgive like that? Only Christ can work such a change in a heart. Jesus, the stone the builders rejected, is the cornerstone of our faith and the only reliable foundation on which we can build our lives.
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Rev. Charles Eldredge is a member of Maitland Church of the Brethren. He has a Facebook page and can be contacted by email: ce1133 @verizon.net.