His Precious Stones

Verse of the day: Exodus 39:8-9 And he made the breastplate, artistically woven like the workmanship of the ephod, of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet thread, and of fine woven linen. 9 They made the breastplate square by doubling it; a span was its length and a span its width when doubled.

In the breastplate, we have two beautiful pictures. We have the Tribes of Israel, as one, in Christ, and for us today, a picture of the church united in Christ. The breastplate was made of gold that held twelve gems (v. 12-14), each one with the individual name of the Twelve Tribes. Romans 12:5 reads, “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.” 1 Corinthians 12:27 put it this way, “Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually.” Like the Tribes of Israel, we are each individually in Christ, but make up one body, the church. Although we may be part of a local church, we all together make up the body of Christianity. Therefore, as one body, we must seek to be unified in Christ, both locally and over all, and not allow the silliness that divides us hinder the work that needs to be accomplished in proclaiming the Gospel message. Along with this picture of unity, we see a picture of the finished product that God desires, not just for Israel, but for His church as well. A gem, in its natural state is rough and not as glamorous, shiny, or valuable, as the finished product. It must go through a refining process to become a precious stone. The Apostle Peter, when we read the Gospels, was a gem in the rough. Jesus, upon meeting Peter, called him a stone/rock (John 1:42). However, Peter was far from that when he first met Jesus. He was more like hardened clay with some very rough, sharp, edges. Eventually we read that Peter becomes a great preacher and servant to God (Acts 2:14-42). Later, when Peter writes his epistle, he writes in 1 Peter 2:4-5, “Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” The process for creating and processing precious stones is one of combining elements, heat, pressure, cutting, grinding, water flow, and careful observation so that the gem is not ruined. This is a process that the Lord puts us through called sanctification. The Holy Spirit works in us, using the Word of God, and many of the trials and circumstances God allows us to go through in order to transform us from clay to a precious stone that makes up the body of Christ. The process is one that is both individual and corporate. It begins with us being first in Christ, where He then begins to work in us to make us more like Himself; while at that same time, He uses us within the local church to help us refine one another. As individuals, He will use our personal struggles with sin, persecution as we publicly proclaim Him, attacks from our enemy the devil, and the pains and sorrows of life, to mold us and shape us. Just as the gem cutter carefully cuts the rough edges, grinds the gem to shape it, and uses flowing water to keep the gem from overheating and cracking, the Holy Spirit, our Living Water, is with us and sees us through this painful, yet glorious, process, so that we come out as the precious stones God desires us to be. As if dealing with our own issues is not enough, God puts us in the midst of other Christians going through the same process, and calls us to get along, encourage each other, and be united in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:10; Ephesians 4:11-13; 1 Peter 3:8; Hebrew 10:24-25). If this does not test our Christianity, I do not know what will. The process can be discouraging at time, and we can easily lose sight of what the ultimate goal is in this process. However, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 reminds us, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. 17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 18 while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.” We are all precious in the sight of God, and His desire is that we, as His children, grow in our knowledge of Him, grow in our intimacy with Him, grow in our walk with Him, and become more like Him. As born again believers, we are not to remain as individuals who are still hardened clay in the rough, but cooperate with Him in the process of being transformed into the precious stones that make up the church, the body of Christ; for in Him, the Rock and Foundation of our faith, we are held together (2 Corinthians 1:21-22).

Today, God extends an invitation to you to accept His gift of salvation (Rom 6:23). Will you accept it? Anyone who calls on Jesus, by faith, in repentance, confessing your sins, will receive eternal life. Do not put off calling on Him, and receive Him and His gift of salvation today (Rom 10:13).