Luke 20:9-18 The Rejected Stone
Format for Your Devotions
Instructions: Do not read my example devotion until you have completed your own devotional time in the scriptures. Reading my thoughts first may limit your own understanding. Let the Holy Spirit speak to you alone before looking to see what anyone else has to say, whether it is me, a Bible commentary, or a friend. Let God speak to you before you let another person speak to you. I have provided a format, but modify it to fit your needs. For example, I usually combine my application and prayer together talking to God about the application to my own life. You can go through this devotion process mentally, speaking out loud, or in writing as you wish. Don’t worry if you are not following this process exactly. Sometimes, I add extra information and sometimes I emphasize one part more than others. However, you should always think about what you learn about God from this passage.
Step 1: Pray–Ask for the Holy Spirit’s guidance first of all and that God may reveal the lessons that He wants you to have that day. Request that God protect you from Satan’s distractions (and the devil will try to distract you whether it is pinching the baby or putting you to sleep). Ask to see God more clearly as you read and think about the passage.
Step 2: Read the passage–Read to get an overview of the information first. Then start looking at specific parts after the first reading. You may read a larger or smaller section than I have here because you do not have to follow my organization at all.
Step 3: Understand the passage–You can summarize, ask and answer your own questions about the passage, visualize the story, analyze the characters, and relate this passage to other scriptures and personal experiences.
Step 4: What does this reveal about God?–What do you learn about the Father, Son, and/or Holy Spirit from this passage?
Step 5: Apply this to your own life.
Step 6: Prayer
My Example Devotion: November 6, 2018 Luke 20:9-18
Note: In the devotion examples, I leave my questions and thought processes in the text because I am trying to demonstrate that a devotional time is a dialogue with God about what you are reading from His word. As such, any questions or ideas that you have should be explored by talking it out with God. These example devotions are not my attempts to teach you what the meaning of a particular scripture is. They are an attempt to teach you the process of devotions, which is a combination of prayer and Bible study where you explore ideas with God as you read His word.
And he began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants and went into another country for a long while. When the time came, he sent a servant to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard. But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent yet a third. This one also they wounded and cast out. Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the tenants saw him, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance may be ours.’ And they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” But he looked directly at them and said, “What then is this that is written: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone’? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”
(Understanding the Text) The listeners knew that Jesus’ parable was referring to Israel because they said that God would not give the vineyard to others. They knew the Old Testament allegories that compared Israel to a vineyard. They knew that Israel killed the messengers that God had sent to them, but God had always forgiven them and called them back from their rebellion. They believed that God would never forsake them. What they did not understand is that they were only Israel if they were God’s people. Otherwise, they were idolaters or atheists. They were not the vineyard. They were tenants maintaining the vineyard. There is still a country named Israel where ethnic Jews live, but God took away the privilege of being His representatives from the Jewish nation of Jesus’ time and gave it to a remnant of Jews and a bunch of Gentiles who chose to follow Jesus.
(Revelation of God) Jesus quotes from Psalm 118. The first part of the psalm does not seem to be messianic, but about halfway through that changes. “This is the gate of the LORD; the righteous shall enter through it. I thank you that you have answered me and have become my salvation. The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Save us, we pray, O LORD! O LORD, we pray, give us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD. The LORD is God, and he has made his light to shine upon us. Bind the festal sacrifice with cords, up to the horns of the altar! You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God; I will extol you. Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; for his steadfast love endures forever!” (Psalm 118:20-29). Jesus is the gate that the righteous enter through. He is the answer to the prayers and the salvation of the psalmist. Jesus is the festal sacrifice that was bound. Jesus is the psalmist’s God. Jesus’ love endures forever.
Cross references also give Isaiah. “Therefore hear the word of the LORD, you scoffers, who rule this people in Jerusalem! Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol we have an agreement, when the overwhelming whip passes through it will not come to us, for we have made lies our refuge, and in falsehood we have taken shelter”; therefore thus says the Lord GOD, “Behold, I am the one who has laid as a foundation in Zion, a stone, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation: ‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’ And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plumb line; and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, and waters will overwhelm the shelter.” Then your covenant with death will be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol will not stand; when the overwhelming scourge passes through, you will be beaten down by it. As often as it passes through it will take you; for morning by morning it will pass through, by day and by night; and it will be sheer terror to understand the message. For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on, and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in. For the LORD will rise up as on Mount Perazim; as in the Valley of Gibeon he will be roused; to do his deed—strange is his deed! and to work his work—alien is his work! Now therefore do not scoff, lest your bonds be made strong; for I have heard a decree of destruction from the Lord GOD of hosts against the whole land” (Isaiah 28:14-22). In these verses Isaiah refers to the precious cornerstone and warns that God is going to do a strange, alien work that people will not believe. The Lord of hosts (Jesus?) was going to destroy the whole land of Israel.
Cross references also gives Zechariah. “Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, you and your friends who sit before you, for they are men who are a sign: behold, I will bring my servant the Branch. For behold, on the stone that I have set before Joshua, on a single stone with seven eyes, I will engrave its inscription, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of this land in a single day. In that day, declares the LORD of hosts, every one of you will invite his neighbor to come under his vine and under his fig tree.” (Zechariah 3:8-10). Jesus is the Branch. He is the single stone. What does it mean to have seven eyes and an inscription? I understand the part about removing the iniquity of the land in a single day. Note: God answered my question on the same day I posed it. I heard a sermon by Ty Gibson where he said that the original Hebrew that is translated as eyes, actually means facets in this context. Therefore, the single stone with seven eyes is a seven-faceted stone, a jewel, and each facet is engraved with an inscription. Gibson points out that in the number symbolism of the Bible, the number 7 indicates perfection.
The stone does not leave anything the same. We either fall on it or it falls on us. We are either broken and healed, or crushed and destroyed. Peter uses the symbol several times. “This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:11-12). He identifies the Jewish people as the ones who rejected the cornerstone, but he gives them the hope of salvation and redemption from their sin of rejecting the cornerstone. Peter later applies this metaphor more fully explaining the concept of being broken and healed. “So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.” (1Pe 2:1-12). Not only is Jesus the cornerstone, but His followers are the stones of His house, which Peter defines as priests of Jesus offering spiritual sacrifices.
(Application / Prayer) My application for myself is that I do not own the church that represents Jesus on earth. I am a tenant taking care of it and giving the fruit to the owner. It is not mine to do with as I wish, but instead I must always represent the interests of my Master and take care of it the way that He would want. That means that there can be no pride or self-willed ways in the way I work His vineyard. He is the foundation on which I need to base all my actions, attitudes, and beliefs. I am His priest and representative. As such, I need to constantly be aware of His desires for His people rather than my own opinions. I pray that I will take care of your people in a way that pleases You. I pray that I will always represent You responsibly and accurately so that others will know Your salvation and love.