Tuesday, September 29, 2026

Zodiac stars speak of Christ and His Church

Zodiac stars speak of Christ and His Church

The star signs are not there for your daily guidance by astrologers, but for telling God's story in the heavens.


1. Fortune telling makes people think about themselves

2. Babylon is where astrology started

3. People think that astrology is very plausible

4. Simple tests which show that horoscopes are a fraud

5. The Zodiac speaks about Christ and the church

6. The first 3 star signs tell of the life of Jesus

7. The next 4 star signs are the church losing the truth

8. The ram represents Luther teaching salvation by faith

9. The bull was Wesley preaching holiness and outreach

10. The twins were Pentecost and the revealing of Scripture

11. The crab at the end time holds onto Spirit and Truth

12. The Lion of Judah is the Second Coming of Jesus


1. Fortune telling makes people think about themselves

People love to read and speak about themselves more than any other topic.

That is why mobile phones gave birth to "selfies".

By pretending to know their futures, astrologers fascinate the majority of people with their horoscopes which they call "Your stars foretell".

Look at this typical astrology post on a website.

"In my opinion, Donald Trump is going to lose the 2016 presidential election in America".

It was dated May 2016. It was also completely wrong.

A Washington Post interview with an astrologer had Hillary Clinton as the inevitable winner because her stars showed that "the party that is in power will stay in power". But her party was swept out of power in both the Senate and Congress.

Jeane Dixon, a famous astrologer, predicted that World War 3 would break out in October 1958. Obviously wrong.

Astronomers Roger Culver and Philip Iayna checked 3011 astrology predictions by well-known astrologers and found that only 10% turned out to actually happen.

This is much the same as what would happen if one just took lucky guesses.

Marriages based on astrological compatibility have the same percentage of divorces as other marriages.

Yet despite all their prediction failures, astrology still has countless millions of devotees worldwide. Why?

Around 2000 years before Christ the Babylonian astrologers developed a popular system of fortune-telling from the stars because they correctly guessed that people are most interested in hearing about themselves.

Don't tell people the truth, tell them what they want to hear about themselves.

This is the secret to mind manipulation and thought control.

That is the basis of brainwashing.

Individuals have been captivated by these predictions ever since. Why?

Too many people are simply obsessed with themselves.

This is obvious from the flood tide of "selfies" on social media.

Today the section in newspapers and magazines devoted to "Your Stars Foretell" remains possibly the most widely read piece of literature around the world.

Try finding a newspaper or magazine that does not have a Zodiac prediction.

Human imagination has really been influenced by the cleverness of these Babylonian mysteries.

Predicting the future is a mystery that intrigues and fascinates us humans, and the Babylonian star sign influence has taken the lead in this field.


2. Babylon is where astrology started

In Revelation Chapter 17, God exposes the main enemy of Christianity, and the only name that is mentioned is Mystery Babylon.


Thus the mysteries of ancient Babylon live on today.


 REVELATION 17:5 And upon her forehead was a   name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT,   THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS   OF THE EARTH. 

The prophet Daniel saw a vision of the four Gentile kingdoms, represented as a man, that would capture and develop the pagan religious beliefs of the Old Testament days. Then they would transform them when the solid iron in the legs became bits of iron in the feet, and subtly infuse them into the New Testament church.

A woman symbolizes a church.

II CORINTHIANS 11:2 For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. 


Daniel begins his vision with the head of gold referring to the kingdom of Babylon. Today this area is called Iraq.

The head is where ideas are born. Modern-day Iraq was the territory where the most convincing pagan religion began.

Nimrod, the great rebel against God, established the first religious and political kingdom on earth in this area.


GENESIS 10:9 He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD.

:10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.


In men's minds, Nimrod's opinions came before God's.

They listened to his human leadership first. What God said was not as important. So human leadership developed and spread man-made religious ideas as men tried to save themselves from hell by their own works.

"Babel" means "the Gate of the gods" as it was a great tower that rose towards heaven. God stopped the building and changed their languages so that they could not understand each other. So Babel gained a new meaning, "confusion" or "babble". This is God's opinion of man-made religious ideas.

So the religion that human wisdom and leadership called the Gateway of the gods, was called confusion by God.

Sargon set up the next kingdom around 2300 BC in that area, with Babylon just one of the cities.

Hammurabi (1792 - 1758 BC) set up the ext kingdom with Babylon as the capital.

Then Nebuchadnezzar in 604 BC became the golden head of Babylon's greatest age.

So political power had fluctuated in this area.

But the Babylonian priesthood, with their jobs at stake due to political uncertainty where power could be lost, fought to establish a continuous form of centralized pagan religion that had started with Nimrod.

Centralized means one man is in charge as a dictator.

This organized religion had one purpose, to enslave and control the thinking of people by their conformity to the ideas of the Babylonian priesthood. These religious and ceremonial ideas so captured the imagination of the people that the Babylonian priesthood maintained its influence over the people despite all the political fluctuations. Nebuchadnezzar's fame gained this priesthood even more prestige and reverence.

When the greatest Roman ruler Julius Caesar bribed his way to be elected as Pontifex Maximus (highest priest or Pontiff) of the Babylonian mysteries in 63 BC, this Babylonian religious influence then spread all over the Roman empire. This empire was symbolized as the legs of iron in Daniel's Gentile image. The pagan title of Pontiff passed from the pagan Roman Caesars, who did not want it when they became Christians, to the Roman Pope between AD 382 and AD 450. By AD 450 the Bishop of Rome, Leo I, claimed the title of Pontiff as belonging only to the Roman bishop. The mysteries of Babylon had thus entered the Christian church. The Babylonian priesthood were promoted to high positions in the Roman Catholic church. The bits of iron in the feet of the image refer to the Babylonian mysteries that the Roman church absorbed from pagan Rome and modified with Christian names.

The apostle John, in the Book of Revelation, then picks up the history of these Babylonian mysteries as they spread throughout the church during the New Testament dispensation of the 7 church ages that have lasted 2000 years.

One of the Babylonian mysteries that infiltrated the church is the predicting of personal futures based on the stars -- as if the stars already have your future written out in them.

Star charts reduce Christians to believe in a form of superstition. Christians thus seek guidance from astrologers rather than from the Bible and the Holy Spirit.

Altogether, this is a very neat trick to derail a Christian's faith. No person is supposed to come between the believer and God.


3. People think that astrology is very plausible

Why is astrology so plausible?

Because it is brilliantly vague and ambiguous, as it tells you what you want to hear about yourself.

It is a subtle playoff between some mild criticisms of yourself, which are off-set by character strengths that flatter you.

Look at this typical framework that many astrologers work from. Its effectiveness is that it can apply to almost anyone.

"Some of your aspirations tend to be pretty unrealistic. At times you are extroverted, affable, sociable, while at other times you are introverted, wary and reserved. You have found it unwise to be too frank in revealing yourself to others. You pride yourself on being an independent thinker and do not accept others' opinions without satisfactory proof. You prefer a certain amount of change and variety, and become dissatisfied when hemmed in by restrictions and limitations. At times you have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing. Disciplined and controlled on the outside, you tend to be worrisome and insecure on the inside. . . While you have some personality weaknesses, you are generally able to compensate for them. You have a great deal of unused capacity which you have not turned to your advantage. You have a tendency to be critical of yourself. You have a strong need for other people to like you and for them to admire you."

It all sounds clever and informative.

But it says a lot of words without actually telling you anything.

A few bad points are mentioned (that's okay as no one is perfect and it makes it sound like an honest assessment) and then there are some positive points that leave one with a nice feel-good factor. These compliments make us want to hear more, so we will read next week's version too when it becomes available. (We all love compliments).


Welcome to astrology. It is a very subtle manipulation of our thinking processes.

Notice what was said. "At times you are extroverted...and introverted". That covers everyone.

"You have serious doubts as to whether you have made the right decision or done the right thing". That brilliantly covers anything that may go wrong. You simply made a bad choice. Big deal. All our mistakes are bad choices.

I don't need the stars to tell me that.

"You have a great deal of unused capacity which you have not turned to your advantage." That explains anything that went right. You have this great capacity to succeed that you do not usually use, but this was your lucky week as you obviously began to use your hidden capacity.

If nothing went right, you just were not using your capacity.

Notice what a delightfully vague word "capacity" is. It can mean anything. It is a word that cannot be defined.

"You prefer a certain amount of change nd variety." For most of the time, our routines of life just carry on. But some good and some bad things will always happen to us. This is covered by the vague "certain amount". That can cover small changes or big changes without being specific. So they are saying that some change will occur in your life, which may be good or bad, and the change may be big or small. That cleverly covers anything that happens to you.

"A strong need for others to like you". This is true for almost anyone. We all prefer to be liked.

Astrologers rephrase these basic ideas in many different ways. But please notice that we have actually learned nothing of value. There is just this vague idea that somehow, mysteriously, the stars are guiding me.


4. Simple tests which show that horoscopes are a fraud

But submit astrology to a simple test.

Ask a friend to cut out the 12 predictions for the week from any newspaper or magazine. Cut off the headings "Leo", "Taurus" etc. Now look at all twelve and decide which one best describes your week, either the past week or follow them day by day as the future week unfolds. It is very seldom that you will pick the right star sign.

A second test. Buy a number of different newspapers and magazines for that week. Look up your star sign in each one and note all the differences in them.

Worse still, get a Chinese horoscope and see how different that is to the western horoscopes.

Then the Indian horoscopes are worked out with even different rules.

A major problem is the southern hemisphere where all the signs are six months out of step. Aires the Spring sign in the north happens in the time of autumn in the southern hemisphere. So in the southern hemisphere, they also use the northern star signs which makes no sense. Leo is claimed to be a dominant mid-summer sign in the north while the south freezes in mid-winter.

A big error in astrology is the problem of different babies born at exactly the same time in the same place, but yet they have completely different futures. The star signs can't cope with that because they focus on when you are born, not who you are. This is the same logic that makes racial judgements fail. It focuses on the colour of your skin, not who you are.

Twins present a similar problem. They are born close together in time at the same place but can have completely different futures.

If a baby is born in a hospital, the gravitational pull of the building is about 500000 times stronger than the pull of the planet Mars on the baby.

The doctor who is present at the birth, just by being there, exerts a gravitational pull that is about six times greater than the gravitational pull exerted by the planet Mars on the baby.

So claiming that the position of a planet, like Mars, at the moment of your birth determines your future, has no scientific credibility.

When a tsunami or some disaster claims many lives, check each of the unfortunate victim's horoscopes and you will find they did not all predict a disaster at the same time. An example is the atom bombs that killed tens of thousands in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

But there is an even bigger problem.

The sun spins on its axis and this makes its equator bulge. This bulge exerts a slight force on the earth that makes the earth slowly wobble like a spinning top. About every 2000 years the earth wobbles its way through a Zodiac sign. Around 2000 BC the spring sign was Aires the Ram. This was about the time of Abraham when God provided a ram as a sacrifice instead of his son Isaac. This was when the Babylonians set up their star sign system.

2000 years later would be the time of Jesus. The earth had then wobbled through to the spring sign of the Fish. Jesus called fishermen like Peter, James, and John in order to make them fishers of men, so that they could bring souls to repentance.

We are now about 2000 years later and the earth has wobbled into the spring sign of Aquarius, the water carrier who is pictured as pouring out the water from a container. This symbolizes the people rejecting the true Word of God, the King James Bible. (That is why no prophecies or parables about the end-time church say anything good about the church).

What this means is that all the star signs hve shifted two positions since the Babylonians set up their star sign system. If you are born on, say, 23 March, then you are no longer today born under Aires the Ram but you are Aquarius. But the star charts stay with the original Babylonian star signs of 4000 years ago. This means that they are irrelevant today.

Thus the star charts are seriously flawed. Therefore is it any wonder that so many astrology predictions are wrong?


5. The Zodiac speaks about Christ and the church

Astrology has given such bad press to the stars that Christians are even scared to think that the stars can tell us anything good.

Yet a star guided wise men to Christ.

This is the secret.

The stars will not tell us about ourselves but they will tell us about Christ.

The New Testament tells us about the first Coming of Jesus who was born of a virgin, weighed up against the murderer Barabbas, and crucified to remove our sins, as sin is the sting of death that sends us to hell.

Then follows the history of the church through seven ages or stages. The early church had the truth, but accepted human leadership and lost the truth in the Dark Ages. God began to restore the truth of salvation, holiness and outreach, and the baptism of the Holy Ghost. Then comes the final full restoration back to the beliefs of the first church when the end-time prophet reveals the mysteries of Scripture. The church ages end when Christ as the Lion of Judah carries out His Second Coming to catch away His church into Heaven.

This is the Gospel plan, so this process must be laid out in the stars of the Zodiac.

What is the Zodiac?

The sun seems to follow a path or orbit through the sky during the day. At night we see the stars that form a background to the sun's path. All of those stars are divided up into twelve groups called constellations. The Babylonians then gave each of the constellations a name. We start with Virgo the Virgin and end with Leo the Lion. These two constellations of stars are next to each other, representing the First Coming and the Second Coming of Jesus.





Because astrologers have spread so much error concerning the stars, can we assume that God wants to use the stars to tell us something?


PSALM 19:1 ...The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.

:4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. 

 In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, 

:5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.

The sun represents Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who as the Bridegroom is going forth to claim as His bride the true church that He has guided through the 2000 years of church history.

A tabernacle speaks of a venue where events happen.

6. The first 3 star signs tell of the life of Jesus 

So the background stars, in their twelve constellations, describe the order of events in which God's great salvation plan will unfold.

Let us look at the order of these Zodiac signs.





At His First Coming, Jesus was born of the virgin Mary.


ISAIAH 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.


The scales represent justice where the crowd had to weigh up and choose between Jesus (bringer of eternal Life) and the murderer Barabbus (bringer of death). They chose death.

DANIEL 5:27 TEKEL; Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.

The Jews were found wanting as they rejected their Messiah. Their temple would be destroyed, and they would be driven from Israel for about 1800 years.



The Romans crucified Jesus on the cross where He paid the penalty for our sins.

The sting of death is sin. If we die in sin we go to hell. So Jesus removed the sting of death because we are forgiven of our sins, if we repent, and thus we can go to Heaven. Calvary is represented by the scorpion, infamous for its painful sting.


I CORINTHIANS 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?


7. The next 4 star signs are the church losing the truth

Revelation Chapter 6 does a brief survey of the rise of that antchrist spirit in the church.

Judas, the biggest human enemy of truth, was one of the disciples. Satan does his greatest harm from within the church when he gets into the leaders.

A bowman starts his ride. He has a bow but no mention of an arrow. This is a bluffer. So religious deception, telling us things that are different from the Bible, is how Satan entered the church.


REVELATION 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer

After the year AD 312 the Roman Emperor Constantine set up the Roman Catholic church as the first denominational church with his political support. The church introduced many beliefs that are not in the Bible. Opponents of the church were subject to persecution, exile, confiscation of their  property, and eventually torture and death. Then around AD 960 Pope Nicholas I was crowned, to make him equal with the kings. By AD 1315 this crown had grown to be the famous triple crown of the Pope. Roman Catholicism conquered Europe in the Dark Ages, and has since spread worldwide.

The goat symbolizes the struggle for church leadership. A goat is the wrong leader for the sheep. No human is the head of the church, only Jesus claims this position.

EPHESIANS 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church:

At first, Christians were in small communities, and were often scattered by fierce persecutions of the Roman emperors.

They depended entirely on God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

But as time passed, human leadership took over the churches. Man-made doctrines crept in. Bishops became head of the church instead of Christ, even although the word "bishop" just means the office of an elder.

As time went by the churches began to so elevate human leaders, that they then claimed that each city must have a Bishop to be in charge. Human leadership was then a mixed bag. Sometimes very good men were the leaders, but all too often men focused on power, money, fame, and political advancement. The whole concept of human leadership just opened the doors to the goats as "Career Christianity" saw ambitious men lead the church further and further away from Scriptural beliefs and the example of the early New Testament church.

Just listen to Pope Francis and his endless criticisms of the attitudes of the cardinals in the Vatican. Human leadership tends to dictatorship and corruption.

No pastor was ever in charge of a New Testament church. The moment a pastor takes control, the example of the early church is broken. Then God no longer leads that church.


 


The water carrier is pictured as a person who is pouring out the water. Effectively he holds an empty container.


In AD 325 Constantine established the Roman Catholic church as the official church and forced the bishops who were present to accept beliefs that were not actually written in Scripture. Bible truth was discarded. He did this by introducing the unscriptural "Trinity", "Father and Son are of the same essence" (whatever that means), and "Good Friday".


Water symbolizes the Spirit of God and the Word of God. There was very little of God's Spirit or His Word left in the church which gained power by compromising with political goals and embracing pagan beliefs. Christian charity and truth were poured out and lost, so much so, that although in AD 302 the church was being persecuted, nevertheless a hundred years later the church was doing the persecution.


As denominational Christianity moved away from Scripture, (priests are called "Father", and they are not allowed to marry) so the standards dropped and the water of the Word got poured out as man-made doctrines took over.


MATTHEW 23:9 And call no man your father upon the earth:


I TIMOTHY 4:1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;


I TIMOTHY 4:3 Forbidding to marry,


In those dismal times Church-goers viciously fought and exterminated opponents, and the Bible was withheld from the people. Only the priests could read the few Latin Bibles that were available. Europe was sliding into a cold, dark, superstitious, and dirty squalor. The Light of God's Word was going out. People were empty vessels with almost no knowledge of the Bible. The church combined with politics to establish a tyranny of prince, pope, and priest. People believed they could buy forgiveness for their sins. These were called indulgences. So much money was collected from the sales of indulgences that the Sistine Chapel and Saint Peters Church were built in the Vatican.

The fish was a symbol of the early church when it was persecuted and suppressed. The fish lives out of sight under the water. In the early church, the Roman emperors persecuted the Christians for about 250 years.

But then it got far worse as the Roman Catholic church began to persecute Christians who disagreed with them. This lasted about 1100 years and included the Dark Ages when the Roman Catholic church launched numerous persecutions against their opponents, and set up the terrible Spanish Inquisition. Tens of millions of non-Catholics were persecuted and murdered.

Bible truth got buried in the dirt of the Dark Ages, and it seemed that the true church destroyed. But just as a hidden fish can rise to the surface again, so hidden believers survived the awful Dark Ages, and truth was resurrected up in the glorious Reformation of Martin Luther.

JONAH 1:17 Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.


This was the darkest hour for Jonah, buried under water out of sight. But then the fish brought him up to the surface again.

The ram represents Luther teaching salvation by faith

The ram: When Balaam in the Old Testament wanted to commune with God he knew that the procedure was to offer up rams and bulls.

NUMBERS 23:29 And Balaam said unto Balak, Build me here seven altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

After the truth was lost in the Dark Ages the church needed to get back to God’s Bible ways. The ram represents the first Reformers like Martin Luther who told the people to repent and accept Jesus as their Saviour. The ram butts with its head. Luther, the fearless monk, butted his head against the massive Catholic church and won.

The bull was Wesley preaching holiness and outreach

Then the Bull follows. This is a strong animal. John Wesley restored holiness and did evangelical outreach which prepared the way for that golden missionary age of brotherly love that took the Gospel around the world. Holiness, outreach and missionary work, and brotherly love for the lost -- these are the attributes which make Christianity strong.

The twins were Pentecost and the revealing of Scripture

Twins: In 1906 the Pentecostal movement in America restored the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the return of the supernatural gifts. Jesus is supposed to be the head of the church, but human leadership soon took over the Pentecostal movement. The word "pastor" is only mentioned once in the New Testament, but somehow this ministry usurped the place of Jesus as the head of the church. So the Holy Spirit and human leadership fight for control of the church.

Pentecost restored the gifts of the Spirit. This was a great move.

But there is another twin movement that must also happen.

Another restoration is also needed -- the restoration of the doctrinal truths of the early apostolic church. So God must send a prophet to restore us back to the New Testament church.

MATTHEW 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.

altars, and prepare me here seven bullocks and seven rams.

After the truth was lost in the Dark Ages the church needed to get back to God’s Bible ways. The ram represents the first Reformers like Martin Luther who told the people to repent and accept Jesus as their Saviour. The ram butts with its head. Luther, the fearless monk, butted his head against the massive Catholic church and won.

The bull was Wesley preaching holiness and outreach

Then the Bull follows. This is a strong animal. John Wesley restored holiness and did evangelical outreach which prepared the way for that golden missionary age of brotherly love that took the Gospel around the world. Holiness, outreach and missionary work, and brotherly love for the lost -- these are the attributes which make Christianity strong.

The twins were Pentecost and the revealing of Scripture

Twins: In 1906 the Pentecostal movement in America restored the baptism of the Holy Ghost with the return of the supernatural gifts. Jesus is supposed to be the head of the church, but human leadership soon took over the Pentecostal movement. The word "pastor" is only mentioned once in the New Testament, but somehow this ministry usurped the place of Jesus as the head of the church. So the Holy Spirit and human leadership fight for control of the church.

Pentecost restored the gifts of the Spirit. This was a great move.

But there is another twin movement that must also happen.

Another restoration is also needed -- the restoration of the doctrinal truths of the early apostolic church. So God must send a prophet to restore us back to the New Testament church.

MATTHEW 17:11 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things.

John the Baptist introduced water baptism and the Messiah to the Jews. John the Baptist did not restore the Jews to anything. So the Elias that this verse refers to cannot be John the Baptist.

Here Jesus speaks of another prophet who will restore the church back to the New Testament beliefs. The apostles laid out the truths of the New Testament and most of these truths were lost in the Dark Ages. Now they have to be restored.

JOHN 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

The twin movements: Pentecost restoring the spiritual gifts, and a prophetic ministry restoring people back to the truths of the apostles.

The crab at the end time holds onto Spirit and Truth

Cancer the Crab: Cancer has suddenly become a major illness and cause of death in these last days.

A crab lives on land and in water, which is where the mighty Angel stands in Revelation Chapter 10 when He comes down to raise the dead that were buried either on land or under the sea.

A crab walks sideways which is different. At the end-time Christians must dress modestly and follow the Bible in order to walk differently from other people.

A crab has a hard shell that protects it, so Christians today need a tough spiritual shell to protect them, as they have many insults thrown at them if they follow Scripture and ignore unscriptural denominational traditions like Christmas (an unscriptural word) on 25 December (an unscriptural date) with a Christmas tree (that had nothing to do with a stable in Bethlehem), and the fact that nowhere in the Bible were we asked to celebrate or remember the birth of Jesus.

The only birthday mentioned in the New Testament was for Herod when he murdered John the Baptist.

The wise men went into a house, not a stable, and saw a young Child, not a baby. There was no mention of Joseph.

MATTHEW 2:11 And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother

So the wise men were not at His birth. They found Him in a house two years later.

Thus their presents never went to the Baby in the manger.

But this truth destroys the whole money-making racket of buying presents for children (and adults) as birthday gifts.

If you admit this you will really be attacked.

So a crab has two strong pincers for holding onto the Spirit and the truth, despite the errors and the opposition of the denominations (another unscriptural word) and churches.

But God is turning to the Jews and closing the Door on the Gentiles.

Only a crab, walking sideways, can get through the narrow opening that is still left.

The Lion of Judah is the Second Coming of Jesus

Our time is running out, and the next step is the return of the Lion of Judah for those who believe and follow the Bible.

God asks Job a deep question.

JOB 38:32 Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?

"Mazzaroth" is a Hebrew word that refers to the Zodiac.

Can you answer the first question? God is asking Job, can you create constellations of stars in the sky that predict 2000 years of human history?

Then can you bring the events to pass that will fulfill what these stars predict?

And in the process that happens, can you pay the price for sin, and then guide the church, with all their mistakes, through seven church ages?

In the first church age the apostles wrote the Word which is the Seed of eternal life.

This seed, like a mealie or corn seed, was buried in the dirt of the Dark Ages and then the Reformation, like leaves shooting up, reveals the truth of salvation by faith. The pollen then blows over the field in the missionary age and then a Pentecostal husk forms. But the husk tends to pull away from the seed as it forms. The final seed is only harvested when it looks identical to the original seed that was first planted.

Arcturus is the constellation of stars that is called the Bear Keeper.

Russia is the great bear.

The Holy Spirit as the Bear Keeper uses circumstances, like not enough money, to keep Russia under control.

To "let" is an old English word that means prevent.

II THESSALONIANS 2:7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.

The Holy Spirit prevents Russia from doing too much harm. But when the Holy Spirit leaves the earth by catching up the saints to meet the Lord in the air, then all restraints on Russia will be removed. A flood tide of violent horror will be unleashed by Russia who, as the king of the North, unites with all the Muslim Arab hordes to attack Israel.

I THESSALONIANS 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

In 2022 Russian President Putin viciously invaded Ukraine causing much pointless death and destruction.

A sign that the Russian bear is getting restless.

So God not only predicts, He also brings things to pass exactly as predicted.

No wonder the Bible says God's thoughts are much higher than our thoughts.

 

Sunday, September 27, 2026

1 Peter 2:6 ... Jesus Christ is a rock of offense ...

 1 Peter 2:6 (NIV) For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”

 King James Version (KJV 1900)

 1 Peter 2:6 Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded.

Isaiah 28:16 So this is what the Lord GOD says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; the one who believes will never be shaken.

Romans 9:33 as it is written: “See, I lay in Zion a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense; and the one who believes in Him will never be put to shame.”

Psalm 118:22 The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.

1 Peter 2:6 (KJV) reads, "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded."

This verse is found within the context of Peter's first epistle, where he is addressing the early Christian community in Asia Minor. In this particular passage, Peter is drawing on Old Testament scripture to emphasize the significance of Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of the church.

The setting of this verse is significant for understanding its full meaning. The early Christian community was facing persecution and opposition from both Jewish authorities and the Roman government. Peter's letter was intended to encourage and strengthen the believers in the face of these challenges. By referencing the Old Testament and connecting it to the significance of Christ, Peter is reinforcing the foundation of their faith and encouraging them to remain steadfast in their belief.

The verse begins with "Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture," indicating that Peter is drawing on a specific Old Testament passage to make his point. This phrase highlights the continuity and fulfillment of the Old Testament in the person of Jesus Christ. It also underscores the authority and relevance of the Old Testament scriptures for the Christian community.

The quotation itself is from Isaiah 28:16, which reads, "Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Sion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste." In this passage, the prophet Isaiah is speaking of a future day when God will establish a sure and trustworthy foundation in Zion. Peter's use of this passage is significant because it emphasizes the continuity between the prophecy in Isaiah and its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.

Peter describes Jesus as "a chief corner stone, elect, precious." The image of a cornerstone is a powerful metaphor for Christ's role in the church. In ancient construction, the cornerstone was the principal stone placed at the corner of a building, from which all other stones were aligned. It was essential for the stability and integrity of the entire structure. By identifying Jesus as the chief cornerstone, Peter is emphasizing his central and foundational role in the church. Jesus is the unifying and stabilizing force that holds the church together.

The terms "elect" and "precious" further underscore the significance of Jesus. "Elect" conveys the idea of being chosen or selected, indicating Jesus' unique and special status. "Precious" emphasizes the value and worth of Jesus, highlighting his incomparable significance. These descriptors serve to exalt and elevate Jesus as the preeminent figure in the Christian faith.

The verse concludes with the promise, "and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded." This statement assures believers that their faith in Jesus will not lead to disappointment or shame. Those who put their trust in him will not be put to shame. This promise speaks to the confidence and assurance that believers can have in Christ as their foundation and cornerstone. Even in the face of persecution and opposition, they can trust in the unshakable security that comes from their relationship with Jesus.

One of the key themes in this verse is the significance of Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of the church. Peter's use of Old Testament prophecy to point to Jesus as the fulfillment of God's plan underscores the continuity and coherence of God's redemptive work. This verse also emphasizes the importance of faith in Jesus as the source of stability and assurance for believers. It speaks to the enduring significance of Christ as the foundation of the Christian faith and the unifying force that holds the church together.

In conclusion, 1 Peter 2:6 draws on Old Testament prophecy to highlight the centrality and importance of Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of the church. This verse serves to exalt and elevate Jesus as the preeminent figure in the Christian faith and to provide assurance and confidence to believers in the face of opposition. Peter's use of Old Testament scripture and his emphasis on the unshakable foundation provided by Jesus underscores the continuity and coherence of God's redemptive plan throughout history. This verse continues to serve as a source of encouragement and strength for believers, reminding them of the unchanging and secure foundation they have in Christ.

"Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded." - 1 Peter 2:6

1 Peter 2:6

  This post is about Christ the cornerstone and stumbling block. We're studying through a book of the Bible, the book of first Peter in the New Testament. if you'd find your bible and open it to 1st Peter , We'll begin.  We're starting with first Peter chapter 2 and verse 6.

 We're going to start reading at verse 4 since it blends right in with today's lesson. It says in first Peter chapter 2 verse 4 to whom and that's talking about the Lord Jesus, that pronoun, means Jesus coming as into a living stone. So Jesus is a living stone disallowed indeed of men but chosen of God and precious. You also as living stones or lively stones are built up into a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. Okay then verse 6, wherefore also it is contained in the scripture , behold I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious and he that believes in him shall not be confounded. Verse 7, unto you therefore which believe, he is precious but unto them which are disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same has become the head of the corner. Verse 8 and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense even to those who stumble at the word being disobedient whereunto they were appointed.

 Let's pray

Father, in the name of Lord Jesus Christ , as we worship you in your word in this lesson we ask for open minds and open hearts we ask that you might teach us from your Word that we might see the Lord Jesus high and lifted up we might see him as that stone upon which our lives are built and upon which you're building your church and that our faith in his word is of paramount importance that we believe what you've said and that we believe all that you command us to do Lord give us faith give us repentance make us live before you in Jesus' name. Amen. 

Well first Peter chapter 2 verse 6, God has made Jesus the chief cornerstone. Wherefore it is contained in scripture it says behold I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious and he that believes in him shall not be confounded. In verse 5 of this chapter 2, the believers are set forth as living stones and in verse 4, Jesus is set forth as a living stone that is the foundation stone. So we have an analogy of building here. It is all about our salvation. It is all about what God is doing, is he is building his church, he is making a spiritual temple and he is making that spiritual temple in heaven but he laid the foundation for it here on earth. And he is building it here on earth. It is made up of saved people, all of us together who are saved, are being fashioned by God as a holy temple where he is going to live forever. This is  extraordinary. This is amazing. God is making a house in heaven for himself out of us believers now the temple that was made on earth according to God's instructions was fashioned after this way. They would cut the stones out at the quarry and they would shape them and put them in the shape that exact shape that they needed. Then they would transport those stones to Jerusalem to the place they were   going to be set in place and place them there. And there were no tools used in Jerusalem to cut the stones or to shape the stones. You find this in first Kings chapter 6 verse 7 it says and the house that is the temple of God when it was being built was built of stone made ready before it was brought there so that neither hammer nor action or tool or of iron was heard in the house while it was being built so it was built according to God's instructions. He gave exact instructions about how big it was to be, what the shape was to be, what it was to look like. And they constructed this thing at a distance, at the quarry. And then they brought the stones there and they built it there and right now there's a correspondence to what God is doing. We're going to be a temple in heaven for God. And on earth he is cutting us out, saving us and shaping us by sanctifying us making us holy by the things that we go through and fitting us for that temple that's in heaven to be placed there as a holy temple for the Lord wherefore it says or for it stands in other words this comes directly out of the scripture where apostle Peter is quoting from the scripture of the Old Testament, God told us ahead of time by prophecy how he was going to do this and how he was going to make this temple and how it was going to transpire what he would do to do it. It's in book of  Isaiah 28 :16 among other places. Isaiah 28 :16, 700 years before the time of Christ . I mean I can't tell you what's going to happen tomorrow.  700 years before it happened, God told exactly what was going to be done therefore thus says the Lord God behold I lay on Zion for a foundation, a stone, a tried stone. And Jesus Christ was tried. A precious cornerstone, he was precious to God, a sure foundation. Nothing can move him as the foundation for the church, he that believes on Him , shall not make haste. Well, we don't use that kind of language anymore. But in other words, this is a firm foundation. This is steady. This is going to last. You can trust it. You can put all your eggs in that basket. You can believe in it. You can commit yourself to it. That is the Lord Jesus, he is the foundation for the church. This is how the temple in heaven is made without hands. He says, behold , in verse six : it's contained in the scripture behold in other words wonder at this thing this is fantastic. Can you imagine this is the way God builds a temple in heaven is in Jerusalem at Zion at that hill, that is there, God causes his own son to suffer and die at the hands of the wicked religious leaders of the time the chief priests and the scribes and the pharisees those people hated him and they were out to get him from the beginning of his ministry and they sent their best lawyers to confound him and ask him questions to catch him up and anything that he would say that they could find that would be wrong and he could say to them which of you can convince me of sin? Nothing that he did was improper or wrong or violated God's law. He only did what pleased the Father everything he did was perfect and yet they hated him. This is God laying a foundation for the temple in heaven here on earth in Zion that's how he did it. His perfect son came in a human body and was rejected by the religious leaders, crucified, dead, buried, raised again, ascended up into heaven on the 40th day. That's the foundation for the temple of God in heaven wherefore wonder at this behold this is amazing. God did this. This is  what God did in Jerusalem in time with a human body. He sent his son and he laid the foundation in heaven. Jesus Christ came to Jerusalem to die. He was born to die, that was his purpose , come into the world to die, then every believer, every elect person who comes to God through the Lord Jesus Christ is then cut and saved and shaped and sanctified to fit into that temple that God is going to have in heaven. Jesus Christ is the chief cornerstone. Apostle Paul lays out the same plan for the building of the temple in Ephesians chapter 2. That chapter is all about how the Gentiles believers are going to be brought in with the Jews believers and made part of the church. And the dividing wall of partition that God had erected the law is going to be broken down in the body of the Lord Jesus it's taken away and disparate groups of people can be brought together  and be part of the same body of Christ's body so Jews and Gentiles are then brought together as part of Christ's body in Ephesians 2 :19 and to 22, it says now therefore you're no more strangers that's the Gentiles, you're not strangers anymore, not foreigners anymore but fellow citizens with the saints and of the household of God and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone in whom the whole building in Jesus that whole building is being fitly framed together grows unto a holy temple in the Lord. You grow as you're a Christian. You start out as a baby, you need sincere milk, you need the milk of the word but you don't want to stay there, you want to progress, you want to grow to a child and to a young person and eventually to a mature adult by taking in the Word by growing and that's what Jesus Christ does to us. He sanctifies us, he makes us holy, the Holy Spirit inside of us conforms us to the image of Christ and that's the fitly framing us together we grow up into a holy temple unto the Lord in whom it says in verse 22 you are built together for a habitation of God through the spirit. Amazing God did this and he did it in Zion, he laid the foundation there for the church and what happened to the Lord Jesus  then our verse says that he was elect. Well, we understand what election is for individuals. Ephesians chapter one, we're elect according to the foreknowledge of God before the foundation of the world, God chose those that he would that he would save in his Son those people are set apart to him and he does it for his own glory. He does not do it because he finds any goodness in us. He does it so that he's glorified but Jesus was elect how can the Son of God be elect Jesus was chosen by God to be the foundation of the church that's what this is talking about. He is selected by God through the cross, he conquered death, he was chosen to die, so God could be just in the forgiving of our sins. The payment was  made for all who believe. That is the election of the Lord Jesus chosen for this end and we are right in the middle of God's fulfilling this prophecy. God is saving people. He is working in their lives and sanctifying them. He is fitting them to be placed in that temple in heaven to add it be added as building blocks in that temple each believer that is saved is cut out and sharpened and shapen here on earth to be taken to the quarry here on earth to be taken where the temple is being made in heaven shaped into the perfect dimensions that God wants us to be in. That is why James chapter 1 verse 2 can say, my brother count it all joy when  you fall into diverse temptations. Why? God is shaping you. He saved you and he sets about the process of holding off all the stuff that doesn't belong there using the tools at his disposal, his Holy Spirit in us, all our circumstances, our family life, our vocation, our money, our friends, the government that we're under, everything shapes us into the the shape that we need to be in to be a stone in that temple then it says if you believe on him you're not going to be confounded. Well , we don't talk like this anymore. But he is not going to let you down, you can hope in him , you don't need to be afraid, you don't need to be agitated, you don't  need to have fear. Luke 12 : 6-7 says the hairs on our head are all numbered. Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, in other words, these sparrows are of little value they're really cheap to buy not one of them is forgotten before God. He cares for them and he understands them and he knows them, none of them, sparrow doesn't fall without your Father's knowledge in heaven but even the very hairs of your head are numbered, fear not, for you are more value than many sparrows, the sparrows weren't considered to be valuable birds weren't considered to be valuable the poor people brought sacrifices of birds because they were poor and sparrow birds were cheap and they could make sacrifices of those well we're of more value than a sparrow, I mean, I think you can agree with that you're more valuable to God than a sparrow so if he takes care of them by analogy he's going to take care of you. So God will not let you down you can hope in him, you can trust in him, you don't need to be afraid, Jesus is precious to the Father, he is loved by his Father, Matthew 3 verse 17 , the Father says, lo! a voice from heaven the father speaking saying, this is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. The Father and the Son were like this. There's no daylight between them. They were together on everything up until the point of his crucifixion when there was a separation between them because of sin because of Jesus Christ becoming sin and paying for our sin. So Jesus was laid as the foundation stone for the church by the Father in Jerusalem according to his plan and his purpose and his prophecies he was elected by God he was precious to God and all of us who believe in him are not going to be confounded you can put your faith and your trust in that cornerstone that will not be moved. First Peter chapter 2 verse 7 and 8. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious but unto them which are disobedient to those who are disobedient the stone which the builders disallowed the same as become the head of the corner and a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense even to those who stumble at the Word being disobedient whereunto they also were appointed.

Lord Jesus Christ is the precious head stone or cornerstone first he's precious to believers to us christians, he's the head of the corner when you see yourself as lost before God when you understand your spiritual condition like the prodigal son in the pig pen out there feeding with hogs starving and clothes have turned to rags and no one's helping him and he's emaciated and he smells like pigs .  That is a spiritual condition. That is a good place to be when you become when you come to that spiritual condition of great need then you will understand who Jesus Christ is and you can trust in him. Even the highest person in a Fortune 500 company, the CEO when he comes to Christ, he comes as a beggar, down there in the pig pen, he comes broken. That is how precious Jesus Christ is to us. We see our sinfulness, we see the wrong that we've committed, we see the death that we're headed for.  That is the correct view of everyone who becomes saved.

Jesus Christ is supremely precious to believers, serving as the chosen and precious cornerstone upon whom their faith and lives are built.  This preciousness is rooted in His intrinsic value as God incarnate and His sacrificial love, having died for sinners while they were yet enemies.

Divine Selection: He is precious in the sight of God, chosen by the Father and honored by believers who trust in Him. 

Redemptive Value: His blood is described as more precious than perishable gold, having redeemed humanity from empty ways of life.

Personal Treasure: For those who believe, He is more valuable than all earthly wealth, fame, or health, satisfying the soul’s deepest needs.

Everlasting Hope: He is the living Stone who ensures that those who trust in Him will never be put to shame, offering an imperishable inheritance.

 Then Christ is valuable and he's esteemed and he is gained for us and he provides for us our eternal welfare, he is of inestimable value  to christians, he is the pearl of great price that Jesus talks about in Matthew 13, verse 45 and 46, he says again the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant man seeking goodly pearls who when he'd found one pearl of great price went and sold all that he had and bought it. That is the Lord Jesus. When you see him that way in your life as precious to you, you will get rid of every sin, you will repent of all sin and when sin come rears its ugly head, you'll repent of it again and you'll confess it to God and he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. To believers, Christ is the head of the corner. We are very happy to have him as the foundation of our lives: all that he said, all that he commanded is our delight to do, to follow him, to obey him, to listen to him. When the Word is preached or in the quiet times of our devotional life. But the disobedient stumble and are offended in Christ, verse seven and eight, unto you which believe he's precious but unto those who are disobedient, and verse eight says, and he becomes a stone of stumbling in a rock of offense even those who stumble at his word being disobedient where unto they were appointed .  The disobedient are in contrast to the believers. Believers obey, unbelievers disobeyed the Lord Jesus. Believers delight to do God's Word, unbelievers hate to do God's Word. Believers look for what God wants them to do. Unbelievers look for ways out of what God wants them to do. It is like the wicked citizens who would not have their noblemen rule over them in Luke 19:14. It says but as citizens hated him. That is what unbelievers are like. And send a message after him saying, "we will not have this man to rule over us."

 "But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, 'We don't want this man to be our king.' - Luke 19:14 

 That's what unbelievers are like they won't have jesus for their foundation they will not have him rule over them a thousand years before the psalmist predicted this in Psalm 118 verse 22 it says the stone which the builders refused has become the headstone of the corner.

The phrase "The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner" appears in the Old Testament and is quoted in the New Testament in the following contexts:

Psalm 118:22: The original source, often interpreted as referring to King David, Israel, or the Messiah. 

Matthew 21:42: Jesus quotes this verse to the chief priests and Pharisees, identifying Himself as the rejected stone who becomes the cornerstone. 

Mark 12:10-11 and Luke 20:17: Parallel accounts of Jesus using this metaphor.

Acts 4:11: Peter quotes this verse before the Sanhedrin, explicitly identifying Jesus as the rejected stone. 

1 Peter 2:7: Peter applies the verse to believers, describing Christ as the precious cornerstone. 

The metaphor signifies that Jesus Christ, rejected by the religious leaders (the builders), was exalted by God to become the most important foundation stone of the church and the world.

 Those people that should have been in place when Jesus came to build up that nation to teach it to bring it to God the chief priest the scribes the pharisees those people refused him they would have nothing to do with him they disallowed him they refused him they hated him for who he was. God placed Jesus Christ as the head corner stone and the kingdom was taken from those people those wicked unbelievers who refused christ as their savior as their messiah as their redeemer. 

John 1:11 is a verse in the Gospel of John stating that Jesus came to his own creation and people, yet they did not receive him.  The verse highlights a profound tragedy where the Creator, who entered his own domain and nation of Israel, was rejected by those who should have welcomed him. 

The phrase "his own" carries a dual meaning in the original Greek text:

🔴Neuter (ta idia): Refers to his own things, meaning the world he created or his earthly home. 

🔵Masculine (hoi idioi): Refers to his own people, specifically the Jewish nation chosen as God's covenant people. 

While the world did not recognize him (v. 10), his own people actively rejected him, fulfilling prophecies of a suffering Messiah. However, this rejection is immediately contrasted in verse 12, which promises that those who do receive him are given the right to become children of God.

 John 1 :11 says he came unto his own and his own received him not. They saw no worth in Christ. They disallowed him. Banned him.  Disallowed is the past tense, past participle, and adjective form of the verb disallow, meaning officially rejected, prohibited, or not permitted by rules or laws. They saw no sin on their own account which needed relief. Their righteousness was their own, and they were in deep trouble. Because of that they stumbled over the Lord Jesus. They were offended in him. They disobeyed his word. So he was a stumbling stone. Well, you all probably tripped over something. If there's a pavement made out of stone and one of them is higher than the others, that can cause you to fall. You do not see it. You're not expecting it. Your foot hits it and down you go. And Jesus Christ is a rock of offense. This means he's a snare or a trap or a gin. So when you're in survival mode and you're trying to live off the land and you're trying to catch animals you know you take something heavy, a rock and you put a stick underneath it and you're gonna pull the stick out when the animal's there and it's going to fall down on them. That is what Jesus was to them. He is going to crush them. He was a rock of offence. He was a snare, the trap is going to spring upon them, their fall, notice the reason they don't believe is because they stumble at the Word of God, in verse 8 , they stumble at the word, being disobedient, they won't hear what God has to say to them. Thhey withdraw from that, they rebel at it, they won't have it in their lives.

The Word of God should bring life to us. The Word of God is the Lord Jesus.

It is what the spirit uses to bring life to our souls. John 6:63  says the spirit makes alive or quickens, the flesh profits nothing. The words I speak to you these are, this is Jesus'  words, they are spirit and they are life. John 6:63 states, "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.  The words that I have spoken to you are spirit, and they are life"  If you hear his word you will have life within you so that's why I continually emphasize spend time in the word of God for your own self your personal time listen to it preach listen to it taught take in as much as the word of god as you can do it daily do it regularly just like you eat your food this is the same way you should be about God's word there should be a constant intake of it because you need it to live these people no thanks they don't want to have it they have no interest in that when you refuse to hear the Lord Jesus in his word that adds to your condemnation those who refused him were disallowed him stumbled over him were offended at him did so at God's appointment look at the end of that verse 8 being disobedient whereunto they were also appointed so this was not a surprise to God these people acted of their own volition yet they fulfilled the prophecies that God has made their hearts, their hearts were hardened

John 12 : 37-40 says although he had done so many miracles before them yet they believed not on him that the saying of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled which he spoke, Lord who has believed our report and to whom is the arm of the Lord revealed so faith in what the what he was saying. The arm of the Lord is the power and the strength of the word as it comes into your life.

Verse 39 says therefore they could not believe because that Isaiah had said again verse 40 he has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts that they should not see with their eyes nor understand with their hearts and be converted that I should heal them. So that prophecy of hard hearts unbelieving hearts and unseeing eyes was 700 years  prophesied by Isaiah and fulfilled in the chief priests, the Scribes and the Pharisees as they rejected the Lord Jesus with their hard hearts. Don't let Jesus be a stumbling block to you. Trust in him, put your faith there. Look to him for your salvation. Look to him to build your life upon. That is where we need to go. He has to be the foundation for our lives and we are living stones in his temple, so this was God's choice that Jesus by his unjust death in Jerusalem was made the chief cornerstone of God's temple in Jerusalem it happened in Jerusalem and he and it is being built in heaven. Each believer is brought into and shaped, brought into the kingdom by salvation in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repentance of sins and faith in Christ and is being shaped and sanctified to be a living stone in that temple. It occurs during our lifetime by the trials and tribulations that we face and also by the good people that come into our lives and disciple us and teach us what it means to be a christian. We are going to be set in place there in heaven, in the tabernacle that is made without hands. Those who stumble over the Lord Jesus are snared by him or trapped by him. Their eyes are blinded and their hearts are hard and they will not hear God's word. So this fits the overall theme of this book, be holy because God is holy. You're being  shaped by God if you're a believer to be fit for that temple in heaven to be a stone in that temple.

 So let's praise Him and pray.

  Father, thank you for your Word. Thank you for the Lord Jesus the sure foundation for our lives. He is elect, he is precious. Lord help us not to stumble in his Word. Help us to have faith and trust in him. Help us to commit ourselves to him. Lord help us to understand what you're doing in our lives as you shape us and mold us to be part of the temple that's in heaven. Don't let us be like those people who disallowed him, who would not have him rule over them and who would not believe His Word and would not trust in Him. Lord put that far from us. Let us be faithful to you. Let us cooperate with your sanctification of our souls, in Jesus's name, amen.


1 PETER

a living stone, disallowed of men, chosen of God, precious, you are living stones, a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ, I lay in Zion a chief corner stone, elect, precious, he who believes on him shall not be confounded, to you who believe he is precious, the stone which the builders disallowed, is the head of the corner, to the disobedient he is a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense, stumble at the word, whereunto they were appointed,