Living Stones

As you come to him, the living Stone – rejected by human beings but chosen by God and precious to him – you also, like living stones are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:4,5

It seems a subtle detail, but I think it matters a great deal. I’m referring to the fact that Peter reminds us that Jesus is a “living” Stone and we are “living” stones. Although Peter knew Jesus had ascended into heaven and he was present when Jesus disappeared, he knew that the vitality of His relationship with Jesus had not changed. Likewise, Peter knew the teachings of Jesus are not static. They are as dynamic as our relationship with the living Savior. Earlier in this passage Peter taught us that our development as followers of Jesus depends on the nourishment we receive from the Word of God. Like "newborn babies" we are to crave the nourishment that God's Word provides. Studying the Bible is important. But, “how” we read the Bible is very important. God’s word is alive. Eugene Peterson highlights the difference. Peterson writes that we must transition from reading the Word of God as a kind of reading that is “dead” to a way of reading that is “alive”. He compares reading the Bible to being with a “company of friends who are listening to, accompanying and following Jesus alive”. We need to recover the fact that Almighty God is speaking to us. When we do so, God’s master design is evident in our lives. The living Word impacts our lives. We, as living stones are shaped into the likeness of Jesus.