Thoughts for the Day

So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth … were at that time without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ….

So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also embers of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling-place for God.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I noticed when walking my son’s little dog that one of their neighbour’s low garden walls was looking decidedly wobbly. It appeared that the front wall had separated from the side wall and the two didn’t join one another, consequently the whole wall was falling forward onto the pavement. There was apparently no corner stone!

In ancient times the cornerstone was the principal stone placed at the corner of a building, ensuring it was stable and straight, so in the Bible it serves as an image for strength and foundation and applies to God's work in establishing and saving His people. In Isaiah 28.16 the prophet says:

‘therefore thus says the Lord God,
See, I am laying in Zion a foundation stone,
a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation.’

In the Gospels, Jesus Himself refers to His own ministry as the corner stone, using Isaiah's words (Matthew 21.42), and in today’s reading the letter to the Ephesians emphasizes the foundational role of Christ as the cornerstone in the life of the Church. With the help of the Holy Spirit the Church and we Christians, through faith, are also being drawn into a dwelling place for God.

Lord Jesus Christ,
may we never forget
that You are the cornerstone
of the Church,
and bring stability and strength
to our worship, work and mission,
through the power of the Spirit.
Amen.