Acts 7 : 57-58; I Peter 2: 4-8a

Depends on how you look at it

What can we say about stones?  We could talk about the different kinds of stones and rocks, where they can be found and how many millions of years it took to form them.  We could talk about how they can be used in Asian-inspired landscape.  Talking about stones spiritually, however, is an entirely different matter. But that is where the prescribed text before us is leading us to.   Now let’s assume for a moment we were only talking about one of the texts, in Acts.  Stephen, the saintly martyr is being stoned for his faith. Present is Saul who soon will be converted in the road to Damascus and will become the apostle Paul.  In this passage stones are bad, really bad. They kill Stephen who while bloodied still begs God for forgiveness for their sin of stoning him. These stones are like all the stones that people throw at each other in the Middle East where stones and rocks are everywhere.  How many of these rocks have had blood on them time and time again?  One stone may not just be able to kill two birds, but may have killed more than one person.  So in this passage stones are the instruments of evil and pain, the perpetrators of tragedy.  Clear-cut. No doubt about it.

But then there is the passage in I Peter which strikes a common theme.  Here Jesus is the stone.  So we go from literal stones to the idea of stone as a metaphor. We know Jesus is not a statue. He isn’t made of stone.  Yet he does say as in the Simon and Garfunkel Song “I am a Rock.” This is idea of faith and rock is powerful in the Bible. Moses hides in the cleft of the rock as God passes mysteriously behind him.  Jesus is the Rock of Ages. The word “Peter” means “rock” and Jesus says that “on this rock I will build my Church.”  The Roman Catholic Church of course believes that Peter was the first bishop of Rome and that all Popes are standing on his shoulder so to say.  So spiritually how should we look at rocks and stones?  Well, as you can see, it depends on how you look at it.

The same could be said of the text, friends.  We come to the text just as come to the idea of stone, with our own perspective.  Theologians and philosophers call that a “hermeneutic,” a way of understanding.  So if you open a Bible, you not just see the words, but you bring with you, your whole understanding and experiences.  If you do not know the Bible, you may think of the people who were Christians or Jews in your life who spoke to you about it.  Were they good and reasonable people or was your experience with them negative? If someone whom you have loved told you that they think religion is nonsense then you approach the Bible with that understanding.  If you come with an understanding that God is powerful and judgmental, you may approach it with caution and some nervousness.  If you come with a strong belief in God’s love that is stronger than all things, you may approach it with joy and expectation.  It’s how you look at it, you see. It’s how you look at it.  I think it is very important for you to realize with which feelings, thoughts and expectations you approach the text and to read it over a few more times.  We have just talked how there are so many events and things and people are viewed differently by different people. It’s how you look at.

So, friends, stones are different depending on how you look at them.  Do they hurt, do they support, do they make something ugly, or do they make something beautiful?  The texts of the Bible are similar.  It depends on how we approach them.  You know, sometimes people talk to me and they say: I am reading the whole Bible front to back and I always cringe a bit when they say that.  I always recommend with the Gospel of Mark which is the shortest and the one the other Gospels look to.  That tells the story of Jesus in a brief way.  Then once you have a good feel for that, go back to other Bible books but come at it from a Christian perspective. It changes how you look at it, in a good way.

Then, friends, there is life and its many moving parts. One of those moving parts of life is suffering and we talked about that last week.  How we view suffering and other parts of life depends on our philosophy.  You can look at it scientifically or medically or as an atheist or an agnostic, as a Hindu, Buddhist, Confucianist, Muslim, Jew.  It depends how you look at it. In Jesus’ you and I have been giving a way of looking at life that is all about love, faith, and joy and hope.  He is the cornerstone of our lives.   Jesus through that text that talks about Him as a stone, gives us a whole new perspective on life.  This is what it means or at least should mean to approach life as Christian, hopefully and compassionately. May God help us to succeed.