What Or Who Is The Cornerstone Of Your Life?
Photo by Ondrej Bocek on Unsplash
Life’s Intrusions
It's been said that life happens while making other plans. Interruptions and the unexpected bring completeness, depth, and fullness to our lives. Often, interruptions and the unexpected come through people in both good and not-so-good ways.
When these unexpected moments intrude on our lives, we may not embrace them because they're difficult. But life is too boring and routine without them. We'd also have no reason to trust God.
We are often so consumed with the time and tasks of everyday life that we are oblivious to the people and life around us. And many times, when we focus on people in our lives, we expect too much of them. Then they let us down because we’ve put our trust in them.
These disappointments can depress us or help us. When we put our trust in others, it is only a matter of time before they disappoint us. But we can choose to redirect broken trust and unmet expectations into trusting the Lord.
Life’s intrusions can become opportunities to remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness and merciful nature. This is what I see in the selected verses of Psalm 118 below.
Scripture
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his mercy endures forever.
During times of trouble I called on the Lord. The Lord answered me and set me free from all of them.
It is better to depend on the Lord than to trust mortals. It is better to depend on the Lord than to trust influential people. [vss 1, 5,8-9]
The Lord is my strength and my song. He is my savior.
I give thanks to you, because you have answered me. You are my savior. [vss 15, 21]
The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.
The Lord is responsible for this, and it is amazing for us to see.
This is the day the Lord has made. Let’s rejoice and be glad today!
We beg you, O Lord, save us! We beg you, O Lord, give us success!
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the Lord’s house.
The Lord is God, and he has given us light. March in a festival procession with branches to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I give thanks to you. My God, I honor you highly.
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his mercy endures forever. [vss 22-29]
(Psalm 118:1, 5, 8-9, 15, 21, 22-29 GW) [Context– Psalm 118]
Reflections and Insights
Two important things stand out to me in Psalm 118. It begins and ends with the same exhortation and declaration, with the last phrase repeated in each of the first four verses—
Give thanks to the Lord because he is good, because his mercy endures forever. (Psa 118:1, 29 GW)
The psalmist seems to exhort himself along with those who hear it or us who read it. It is a good exhortation to heed and has two important points. First, we ought to give thanks to the Lord for “He is good!”
A primary reason to be thankful is for His mercy, which endures forever! I’m especially thankful for His mercy. Are you? As Jesus pointed out in the Gospels, we are to be merciful (forgiving) even as God the Father is (Matt 5:7; 6:14).
The second important element of Psalm 118 is the Messianic prophecy embedded in this psalm—and it’s an important one. It's a prophecy that Jesus quotes about Himself (Matt 21:42), and one the apostle Peter says the Lord builds His church upon (1 Peter 2:7-8).
The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. (Psa 118:22 GW)
In ancient days, the cornerstone was the foundation for a building. It set the vertical and horizontal lines for the rest of the building. Jesus refers to Himself as the Cornerstone of the Church, which is echoed by the apostle Paul, as well as Peter (Eph 2:20).
This unexpected prophetic interruption brings life and depth to this psalm. This makes the psalm more than a poetic musical prayer. It has an eternal message of hope. It is a confident proclamation of trust in the Lord.
This Messianic prophecy looks ahead to when God Himself would come to earth and bring freedom and fullness of life to all those who trust in Him as the Savior of the world.
Verses 22 through 27 echo the story of Christ's entry into Jerusalem before offering Himself on the cross to bring freedom and life to all those who trust in Him. This should also remind us to look ahead to the Lord’s second coming.
When our trust is in the Lord, we have genuine hope. Giving thanks to the Lord for His mercy and goodness confirms our trust in Him.
Reflection—
How have you seen the Lord work in your life when it's been interrupted? Build your life on the Lord and trust the One whose mercy endures forever.
Prayer Focus—
When you’re troubled by life’s interruptions and disappointed by others, ask the Lord to help you see these as opportunities to trust in the Lord, and to give thanks to Him for His enduring mercy and His faithfulness.
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