Stone Washed

Read 1 Peter 2:4-10

There are many metaphors for the name Jesus. Jesus is the bread of life,  Jesus is the light of the world, Jesus is the living water, Jesus is the lamb, and Jesus is the vine just to name a few.

But there is one that had not particularly resonated with me until now.

Jesus is the stone.

“Come to the Lord Jesus, the “stone” that lives. The people of the world did not want this stone, but he was the stone God chose, and he was precious.” 1 Peter 2:4

There are so many words that Peter could have used for Jesus within this metaphor. Jesus was the perfect stone, the sinless stone, the rarest stone, the most valuable stone, or the unblemished stone. But those aren’t the words that Peter used.

Peter described Jesus as the stone that the world did not want, but that God chose. According to this verse, the most precious thing about Jesus was not his perfection or his sinlessness. The thing that gave him value that the world was blind to was the fact that he was chosen by God.

If this verse were written about me words like perfect, sinless, and unblemished would have no place. I am nothing compared to the wonder of Jesus. My experience is nothing compared to the brutality of his rejection by the world. And even with the knowledge of how this world treated Jesus, who I love, I still find myself entangled with things of this world.

But despite my unworthiness to sit at His feet, I am invited to do just that. If this verse were written about me the only redeemable description that could be given is that I, too, am chosen. The thing that made Jesus precious in the sight of God is what makes me precious in His sight, too. What makes us precious is that we are chosen by God, “a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession. In the past, we had never received mercy, but now we have received God’s mercy.” 1 Peter 2:9-10. Despite our imperfections, despite our sinfulness, despite the fact that we often don’t choose Him, He chooses us.

Jesus is the stone that the church is built upon.

Jesus is the stone that my life is built upon.

Jesus is the stone that was buried but unearthed so that we, too, may be living stones.

I am chosen because Jesus is the stone, Jesus is the stone that washes away my sin.

What is your favorite metaphor for Jesus? What imagery resonates with you the most? I’d love to know what speaks to your heart.