Jesus, The Chief Cornerstone
John 6:66-71
This morning we saw how Jesus not only serves in the role of Savior, But sometimes He is the very thing that keeps people lost.
The Scandal of the cross, and the Offense of the truth
Can be the one thing they never seem to get past.
As we saw with the multitude this morning.
They were stumbling
They were suppressing
They were scheming
In short they did not love the truth and therefore, they rejected Jesus.
They were a picture of fraudulent disciples.
And tonight we see their 8th and final response to Jesus.
Vs. 66, “As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore.”
Their 8th statement is unspoken, but every bit as loud.
What they did spoke much louder than anything they had thus far said.
And that leads Jesus to His eighth and final point
Vs. 67, “So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also do you?”
Now there is much we need to see at this point.
First I want you to see what Jesus didn’t do.
He didn’t go after them.
He didn’t cater to their demands.
If there was ever a time for Jesus to play to the people, this was it.
He was watching His entire ministry go down the tube.
He was losing all of His followers.
Imagine if this happened in a church setting.
Where, after preaching a sermon, people took such offense that nearly everyone left your church.
It is a fear of this that has caused many ministries,
In my opinion, to take wrong turns.
So many have tried to make
The cross less scandalous and the truth less offensive.
So many look at the truth as a dilemma to get around,
Instead of the power to lead to salvation.
It led to a MARKET-DRIVEN, CULTURALLY RELEVANT, SEEKER SENSITIVE ministry approach.
If you have learned nothing from Jesus in this chapter,
You should at least be able to notice
That Jesus was not nearly concerned about numbers
As He was about the truth.
It is dangerous when we get too concerned with attracting people, and thus are tempted to down play the offense.
Jeremiah 23:28-29 “The prophet who has a dream may relate his dream, but let him who has My word speak My word in truth. What does straw have in common with grain?” declares the LORD. “Is not My word like fire?” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer which shatters a rock?”
In Jesus day, the word, “cross” was a derogatory term.
And Yet Paul said,
Galatians 6:14 “But may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
1 Corinthians 2:2 “For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.”
What I want you to see is that Paul’s theology
Was right in line with Jesus’ theology.
Neither was willing to sacrifice the truth in order to maintain a crowd.
AND OF COURSE THERE IS A THEOLOGICAL REASON FOR THIS.
Matthew 15:12-14 “Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this statement?” But He answered and said, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted. “Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
“Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted.”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Well, that means you can produce all the converts you want, but if God isn’t doing it, then they won’t last.
We do a very good job of assimilating people into church.
We show them how to walk, how to talk, how to dress, where to sit, when to cry, when to laugh, and how to put the fish on the tailgate of their pickup.
But if all of those things aren’t coming
From an inner conviction from God, they won’t last.
Jesus knew that,
That is why He was not afraid of running these people off.
Jesus knew if He could run them off, then they weren’t real anyway.
That leads to the second thing you need to see about this verse.
After this crowd leaves.
Vs. 67, “So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also do you?”
Jesus turns to the twelve and offers them the door as well.
He gives them opportunity to leave.
WHY?
Because Jesus knew if they were real, they weren’t going anywhere.
So in essence what we have occurring here is
Jesus contrasting the fraudulent crowd with the faithful one.
This morning He put the phonies on display,
Tonight He puts the faithful on display.
Tonight we see 3 characteristics of those who believe.
The Non-Believers Stumbled, but the Believers:
#1 TASTED
John 6:68
Now there is a great statement, and one that stands alone quite well.
But as Jesus offers the disciples the door, Peter refuses.
He knows Christianity will be tough.
He knows that what Jesus said was difficult to accept,
But where else was he supposed to go?
We tried to talk John-Paul out of salvation
“Yeah, but that’s the only way to be saved.”
And of course Jesus is completely comfortable
With you making such a logical decision.
Matthew 16:26 “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”
Jerry Vines listed three reasons why you ought to come to Jesus.
1) You don’t want to go to hell.
2) You DON’T WANT TO go to hell.
3) YOU DON’T WANT TO GO TO HELL.
Peter had a similar motivation.
“To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”
The cost didn’t matter to Peter.
The cross didn’t cause him to stumble.
He was willing to hang around and taste whatever God had for him.
Psalms 34:8 “O taste and see that the LORD is good; How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!”
Peter, and the rest of the 12, we were willing to give it a chance.
John 1:35-39 “Again the next day John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. And Jesus turned and saw them following, and said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, ” Rabbi (which translated means Teacher), where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come, and you will see.” So they came and saw where He was staying; and they stayed with Him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.”
Matthew 4:18-22 “Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.”
I have always loved the story of Lazarus. When Jesus decided to finally go down to where Lazarus was, one of His disciples had this to say.
John 11:16 “Therefore Thomas, who is called Didymus, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, so that we may die with Him.”
Now of course they didn’t die there, but they didn’t know that.
They were willing to try it, they were willing to taste it.
This is a characteristic of the believing.
They don’t stumble over the truth, they try it out, they accept it.
The Non-Believers Suppressed, but the Believers:
#2 TRUSTED
John 6:69a “We have believed…”
Where the fraudulent stumbled, these guys followed…
Where the fraudulent doubted, these guys had faith…
They didn’t suppress.
Hebrews 3:12-13 “Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.”
They had faith.
Hebrews 11:6 “And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.”
Luke 5:4-8 “When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.” When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break; so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!”
Peter messed up a lot of times, but this wasn’t one of them.
As he fell on that pile of dead fish, Peter only smelled one stink,
And that was himself.
This is a characteristic of the faithful. They trust God.
John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”
The Non-Believers Schemed, but the Believers:
#3 TESTIFIED
John 6:69b
“and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.”
This is a beautiful thing that is taking place here.
After having the faith to stick it out with Jesus, and the willingness to believe,
We see that now they have even gone a step further.
They are now testifying as to the conclusion they have drawn.
This also is a characteristic of those who believe.
We have talked many times about this verse.
Luke 8:16-17 “Now no one after lighting a lamp covers it over with a container, or puts it under a bed; but he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light. “For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light.”
Think about Peter for a second.
There was one time in life that he wanted to cover his light.
Matthew 26:69-75 “Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard, and a servant-girl came to him and said, “You too were with Jesus the Galilean.” But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are talking about.” When he had gone out to the gateway, another servant-girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” And again he denied it with an oath, “I do not know the man.” A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; for even the way you talk gives you away.” Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed. And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, ” Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.”
Peter tried like crazy to cover his light, but it just couldn’t be concealed
Remember when Peter healed the beggar?
Acts 4:13 “Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus.”
After arguing with Peter and John, the chief priests got in a huddle and said,
“Oh! It’s like arguing with Jesus!”
The point was the light was coming out.
But not only that, Peter wanted his light to shine.
Acts 4:19-20 “But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
Paul was the same way.
Acts 21:13 “Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”
And Paul was a true miracle since the first portion of his life was characterized by fighting against the truth.
Now, not even his close friends could convince him not to testify
That is because true believers testify about the truth.
Even if they could contain it, they wouldn’t.
These guys were the real deal.
They tasted, They trusted, and They testified.
And that leads Jesus to make a statement.
Vs. 70-71, “Jesus answered them, “Did I myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?” Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, on of the twelve, was going to betray Him.”
Jesus points out that the reason these guys were real
Is the same reason why the fraudulent followers weren’t.
Those fraudulent followers were fake because, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him.”
That stands to reason that the reason these guys were real is because, “Did I Myself not choose you?”
Salvation comes from God.
Matthew 16:13-18 “Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
You will notice why Peter is saved.
Because the Father revealed it to him.
Conviction comes from God, Persuasion comes from man.
Men can convince you to do certain things, and say certain things,
But only God has the means to plant His truth down inside your heart And make you convinced about it.
2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”
I like the story later, when Paul was a prisoner on the ship that would soon be torn apart by the sea, but an angel told Paul not to worry, for all lives would be spared.
Acts 27:25 “Therefore, keep up your courage, men, for I believe God that it will turn out exactly as I have been told.”
Paul had this conviction because God told him it would be ok.
That is exactly why Peter was blessed.
But tonight I want you to see what Jesus says next.
Peter confessed Jesus as the Christ, and then Jesus responds:
“I also say that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
Now you see what we are talking about.
Jesus as the Christ is the rock upon which the church is founded.
The entire basis, the entire existence of the true church,
Rests upon the conviction that Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith.
Ephesians 2:19-22 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.”
1 Corinthians 3:11 “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
That is a statement that should echo through our minds.
False believers all over the world
Try to make anything other than Jesus
The foundation upon which their hope rests.
Many rest their hope upon the fact that they go to church, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.
Many rest their hope upon the fact that they prayed a prayer, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.
Many rest their hope upon the fact that they were baptized, but that isn’t a suitable foundation.
THERE IS ONLY ONE FOUNDATION!
Isaiah 44:8 “Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.'”
Psalms 18:31 “For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God,”
1 Samuel 2:2 “There is no one holy like the LORD, Indeed, there is no one besides You, Nor is there any rock like our God.”
You see the point is that Jesus is “The Chief Cornerstone”
He is the only One who is a suitable foundation for salvation.
You can run to other things, you can try other avenues,
But there is no other rock.
To all those who refuse Him,
He becomes the rock they stumble over,
But He is still the only rock.
But to all those who taste, trust, and testify, He is the chief cornerstone
That is a wonderful concept for you and I to grasp.
We don’t worship One who is a faulty foundation.
We don’t worship One who is incapable to save.
We band our lives upon the rock.
“And the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”
I would ask you tonight again.
WHICH ROCK IS JESUS IN YOUR LIFE?
IS YOUR LIFE CHARACTERIZED BY:
Stumbling, Suppressing, & Scheming
OR
Tasting, Trusting, & Testifying?
It will be far better to stand upon the rock than to trip over it.
Isaiah 26:4 “Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock.”
Psalms 144:1-2 “Blessed be the LORD, my rock, Who trains my hands for war, And my fingers for battle; My lovingkindness and my fortress, My stronghold and my deliverer, My shield and He in whom I take refuge, Who subdues my people under me.”
Psalms 18:1-3 “I love You, O LORD, my strength.” The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, And I am saved from my enemies.”
