Falling on the Stone

And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." (Matthew 21:43-44)

I've been discussing the importance of brokenness over the past couple of weeks. Brokenness and the Cross go hand in hand. Through brokenness and the Cross, the spirit is released and we connect with God through the Holy Spirit. We become one with Him. It is through the Cross that we enter into Christ - God's true expression of love. Over time, as we carry our crosses daily, He increases and we decrease (John 3:30). Through the carrying of our crosses daily, we are reduced to His love and walk in that love (Ephesians 5:1-2). His light, His fruit manifest themselves in us and through us. In a word, we shine.

This morning I was meditating and came upon some Scripture that discussed brokenness. The particular verse was from Matthew Chapter 21. Just to provide a little context of the Scripture, the Lord is battling the religious leaders. They are questioning him on various matters, as they typically did. And, as always, the Spirit is pouring through Jesus. The Lord is speaking in parables about the Pharisees and the Pharisees realize this. After Jesus tells the parable of the landowner who planted a vineyard, he asked the Pharisees point blank:

"Have you never read in the Scriptures:

'The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone.
This was the LORD's doing,
And it is marvelous in our eyes'"?
(Matthew 21:42)

As it is recorded in the Scriptures, Jesus didn't give the Pharisees a chance to answer the question. The Lord carried right on and said:

"Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." (Matthew 21:43-44)

"Whoever falls on this stone will be broken."

What a magnificent piece of Scripture! It goes right to the heart of what I've been blogging on recently. Falling on the stone is a metaphor, of course. What the Spirit is saying through Jesus is saying is that those who come to Him via the Cross will be broken. And through the process of being broken via the Cross, we will find the narrow path that leads to eternal life.

Note that the alternative to being broken by falling on the stone is to have the stone fall on us and be ground into powder. We become dust in the wind. No Light and no Life.

If we read the next verse, we find the priests and Pharisees very upset by what the Spirit is saying through Jesus.

"Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them. But when they sought to lay hands on Him, they feared the multitudes, because they took Him for a prophet." (Matthew 21:45-46)

I find it interesting that the priests and Pharisees refused to be broken via the Cross. But this explains why they could not see or hear the Lord. They were blind. The eyes of their hearts were completely shut. This is precisely why Jesus told His disciples to let go of the priests and the Pharisees. The Lord said:

"Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch." (Matthew 15:14)

Oh, how religion can blind a person! Hearts become filled and cluttered with meaningless things. These things block the very thing that a religious person claims to possess - an intimate relationship with God. If you want to see how the Lord feels about blind, religious leaders, have a look at the verses in Matthew 23. There can be no mistaking what the Lord thinks. It's as clear as day.

Paul was a Pharisee at one time in his life. He was, as he states in his letter to the Philippians "a Hebrew of the Hebrews" (Philippians 3:5). Paul counted his former religion and status as a Pharisee as "rubbish" (Philippians 3:8). How beautiful! His view of everything changed - COMPLETELY when he saw Christ. He knew Christ (and longed to know Him more deeply). He valued the Cross. He only desired to know Him and the power of His resurrection (Philippians 3:10). Paul realized that he could do all things through Christ (Philippians 3:13).

ALL THINGS, THROUGH CHRIST.

Christ through us. That's what the Cross is - it's the place where we die and the Spirit lives in us and works through us. The Cross delivers eternal life - a Spirit-filled life with Fruit (Galatians 5:22-23). Beyond the Cross is Christ. Entrance into Him is only through the Cross.

The Pharisee Saul of Tarsus fell on the stone and was broken. He became Saint Paul. How lovely!

Here's something from T. Austin-Sparks that resonates with today's message:

"In the divide between the two creations there is planted the Cross of Christ. The Cross has a death side and a life side; death to the old, life to the new. The recognition and acceptance of the Cross in this twofold meaning is God's only way to the new creation. To the believer who receives Him by faith the Holy Spirit is given as the inward intelligent power for witnessing to the Cross against the one and for the other. Hence the immeasurably great importance of a life governed by the Holy Spirit at all points and in all things. Only that which, by the Spirit, is immediately out from God will survive or get through. All else must perish with the creation which God has placed under condemnation.

It is not what is done for God that will last, but what is done by God.

The measure of spiritual value is determined by the measure in which God promotes it, not the measure of human activities according to human judgments and energies in the name of God."

Source: A New Creation

May you fall on the stone and be broken, so that you may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings.

Agape,

Steve