Title: The Forsaken Precious Stone
Contents
abandoned precious stone
A Rejected Precious Stone
1 Peter 2:1-9 (Psalm 31:1-5)
June 5, 2011 Graduation Sunday Sermon
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In the text, there are several symbols through which we can look into the depth of the Christian faith, and among them, the stone is at the center.
When I was a kid, I had a friend named Lee Dol-seok, who used the word stone repeatedly because stone is a Chinese character for stone. Because of his name, this friend was teased by being called 2dol, Doldol, Ssangdol, etc.
I wouldn't have been so teased if I had known that the Bible uses stones as such precious symbols, but I didn't know that at the time. So, I am going to start by repenting (?) about my childhood when I was ignoring stones while preaching today's text. Hey, I call the eldest son of the house Samdol (Samuel), but the stone is important.
The stone that appears in today's text is unique, but it has two paradoxical characteristics. The first is that they have been abandoned, and the second is that they have an indispensable and precious value.
“A precious stone that has been rejected but indispensable” - This was the Christology of the Early Church, and being rejected is associated with the cross, and becoming precious is associated with the resurrection. Although we were abandoned on the cross, through the resurrection, we have become an indispensable cornerstone of our faith.
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Christology, that is, how Jesus was a Christian, was the most sensitive and important issue in the early church. It was of course important to organize who Jesus, the subject of faith, was, but at the same time, it contained the identity of who they were.
In other words, Christians who believed in the Lord of the Cross and Resurrection were like abandoned stones, but in the end they had the identity of being as precious as foundation stones.
What did it mean for them to have this identity of faith in their reality? It shows that they were living in a reality where they were not accepted and rejected by the world. Like an abandoned stone, being rejected is hard for anyone to accept.
Socially, humans were originally supposed to live together and live by interdependence. In primitive times, isolation made it difficult to survive and lack the ability to defend itself, which meant death.
So I have a strong fear of being rejected psychologically. They want to attract the attention of others, they want to be recognized, they want to be successful and they want to be the object of envy.
But the Lord tells us to go the narrow way. Because of social isolation and psychological fear, the world is drawn to the attention and popularity of many people, but he says we shouldn't.
Why should Christians be rejected and rejected like stones? Why should you be wary of catching up with popularity?
Christians are followers of the truth, and in order to follow the truth, they must not be afraid of being rejected by the world.
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In a world where we can't stand being abandoned even for a moment, we know that the message of being a “stone of the forsaken” is by no means lighthearted. But what do I do? The Bible tells us so.
This path can only be taken by those who have confidence in the truth, and to follow the path of truth is not to live with one's own foolishness, but to go on the path to receive God's approval.
Even if they are abandoned by the world, they silently follow the path of truth that God approves, and such people are precious and indispensable in the world.
Because these people who follow the truth can find a way for the world to prosper together. It is as if Christ was rejected by the world, but the world learns through him how to live well together.
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India's Mahatma Gandhi is one of the most respected historical figures in the world. However, he tried to open a way for his people, the Indians, to live together with the British, who was an occupying power, but he was persecuted by the British and abandoned by his compatriots.
By the time they left the British colony, there was a serious confrontation between Muslims and Hindus among the Indians.
Although he was so abandoned, his nonviolent resistance movement and the spirit of reconciliation have long had a profound influence on the democratization and independence of many countries around the world, and have become the pride of Indians. He was abandoned, but he was a precious stone.
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Students graduating today will continue to learn valuable in college and society, and I sincerely hope that they will be able to learn the path of truth that will receive God's approval no matter what path they take.
Wherever you learn anything, if you pray and do your best as a Christian, it will be the way to the truth, and then you will live in communication with God rather than clinging to receiving approval from others.
This path cannot be learned overnight. Valuable things are never built overnight, they are created slowly. If you are persistent in serving the Lord and learning diligently, you will surely become an indispensable and valuable person in the house of God.
I sincerely hope that all of us who participate in this worship service today will become precious stones in the house of God, regardless of the world's evaluation.
May the Lord's blessing be with you in your future.