The Chief Cornerstone- God Is Always In Control
When times are tough, it might seem hard to believe that God really is in control. Shane reminds us that God has a plan for everything!
The Chief Cornerstone
“Have you not even read this Scripture: ‘The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.’ This was the Lord’s doing and it is marvellous in our eyes?” Mark 12:10,11
The nation of Israel rejected the crowning stone of their kingdom. They crucified their king and regarded as worthless the finishing stone of their Temple. They buried that stone and hoped they would never see it again. But God had other plans. From the ground, the Chief Architect excavated that stone and then used it as the cornerstone of His new building project: the Church. This was the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes!
God Is Always In Control
The book of Proverbs indicates that God is always in control, even when it seems like He is not. Proverbs 16:9 says that “a man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps.” The Pharisees plotted to kill the Lord Jesus but the Lord had planned it all before the foundation of the world.
From the beginning, God knew He would use man’s cruel, narrow-minded plans to fulfill His merciful and grand designs. The envy and hatred of the leaders of Israel would be the reason they crucified Him, but it would also be the means through which He would save them. They meant it for evil, but He meant it for good. Beyond the hand of Pilate was the Sovereign hand of God, moving the chess pieces into place, to provide a checkmate against sin. The events of the crucifixion perfectly illustrate the truth found in Proverbs 21:1 which says, “the king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water; He turns it wherever He wishes.”
The Story Of Joseph And The Story Of Jesus
As a preview, God gave us the story of Joseph to foretell the story of Jesus. Prophetically, the story of Joseph’s betrayal anticipated the betrayal of Jesus. The very brother the sons of Jacob rejected became the one God used to preserve their lives! As a slave they sold him, but he returned as the king of Egypt. In the beginning, they had stripped him of his multi-coloured garment out of envy, but in the end, he “gave to all of them, to each man, changes of garments” out of his own goodness and love (Gen.45:22). Indeed the stone which the brothers rejected had become the chief cornerstone of all Egypt. This is the Lord’s doing, and it was marvellous in their eyes!
When God sent His Son into the world, He said: “They will respect my son!” (Mark 12:6). But they didn’t. Instead, they killed Him. But God will have the final word. He will overturn their verdict. Indeed He has already begun to do it. Many who had formerly hated Him, like Saul of Tarsus, now love the name they once despised, and one day, “at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth” (Phil.2:10). They will respect His Son.
No One Knew…
Psalm 2 celebrates this truth, even predicts it. It starts off with the question, “Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing?” The kings of the earth conspired together to rid themselves of the Lord’s anointed. The Pharisees, the chief priests, Herod, Pilate, all of them colluded to crucify the Lord of the universe, though they didn’t know it. In fact, “none of the rulers of this age knew, for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory,” says 1 Corinthians 2:8.
…Except God!
But He who sits “in the heavens shall laugh,” says Psalm 2:4. He laughs because His plans are unstoppable. He holds those who oppose Him in derision because His Son is unimpeachable. Just as thread cannot halt a charging train nor snowflakes melt the heat of the sun, so too, man cannot thwart the purposes of God. In fact, in trying to prevent the Lord’s plans we often times end up fulfilling them, as Proverbs 21:19 says “there are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.”
God’s Hand Is Sovereign
Of these truths the New Testament itself provides the best commentary. After the authorities released the Apostles forbidding them to no longer preach the name of Jesus, the Apostle Peter offered this prayer: “…truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done” (Acts 4:27,28). Our confidence comes from the fact that God’s hand is sovereign still.
This is the Lord’s doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes.
Do you feel like your life is spiraling out of control? Contact us at HopeStreamRadio.
Shane Johnson
Shane Johnson has been commended from Bethel-Park Bible Chapel since 1999. He resides in Brantford, Ontario with his wife Shelly and his five children.
He has his Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a minor in History. His passions are teaching children, inspiring young people, writing, music and playing soccer.
Shane is a regular contributor to our Christian internet radio station, HopeStreamRadio through his programs entitled “Christ Up Close,” “Raising Fathers,” and “Proverbs – Wisdom For Fools.“
Leave a Reply