“The stone that the builders rejected has become the Cornerstone. This is what the Lord has done and it is wonderful in our eyes?” (Matthew 21:42)
What is the cornerstone of your life? If someone asked you, “What is the puzzle piece in your life– the thing that people need to see for your life to make sense,” what would you say?
The Jews might answer God or the Messiah, but then Jesus entered Jerusalem humbly, riding on a donkey. They praised him, of course, until they discovered that he is nothing like what they expected. He is not the military ruler and king who will overthrow the Romans. Jesus even dies on a Roman cross. Double trouble!
We too are in danger when we have an expectation of God that is different from how God reveals himself. We are especially in danger if we are too stubborn to change our conceptions of God to match him. Does your idea of God include extravagance—a king riding a chariot– or humility—a king riding a donkey? Would you expect Jesus to let you be comfortable or does he confront your idols, the way he overturned tables of money changers in the temple? The Jews were repelled by the actual Jesus, and we may be tempted to do the same. They made money their cornerstone when only Jesus is.
Our God desires no other lovers in your life. Yes, you can love your spouse and kids, but God wants to be first in your heart– the source and authority in your life of joy. God has loved you deeper than anyone else has, showing that He is good and knows what is good! Similarly, Jesus is the cornerstone, and there is no other. He deserves your worship and devotion.
When you love Jesus as Jesus loved you, this love will overflow to loving people. Do not reject this cornerstone. When you believe and entrust your life to Jesus, God reveals “the path of life,” and in his presence, there is abundant joy and eternal pleasures (Ps. 16:9). Look to him, the cornerstone, Jesus! When he is your joy, you will see what the Lord has done and see it is wonderful.