Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, A tried stone…”
Isaiah 28:16
Rocks differ from one another in color, hardness, and composition. However, even the same variety of rock from the same quarry can vary in quality. Unseen hairline cracks within a big block of stone can eventually break it apart once it is part of a load-bearing wall. For that reason, the huge building blocks that were to be used in the Temple were shaped in one place and then transported many miles to the construction site. The movement over dirt roads would jostle and vibrate the heavy stones enough that the inferior building material would never survive the journey. Each block that made it through this testing was considered a tried stone.
When Christ came to this world 2,000 years ago, He didn’t arrive untested. Many times before, God had physically manifested Himself to His people. The second person of the Trinity was in the burning bush before Moses, appeared as the Commander of the LORD’s army to Joshua, and protected Shadrach and crew in the fiery furnace as the Son of God.
Before the Jewish leaders rejected Him as their Messiah, He demonstrated His power and authority to them. He did things that only the LORD’s Anointed could do; the lame walked, the blind could see, and the dead came to life again (Matthew 11:5). But it wasn’t just His works that proved that He was the Christ. Other witnesses that testified of the Son of God were John the Baptist, God the Father, and scripture itself (John 5:36-47).
The Lord Jesus became the cornerstone and sure foundation of the assembly of God’s people. He came not just stating His claim, but proving to those who had ears to hear that He was the precious and Tried Stone that Isaiah prophesied would come.
May 24
