What does "stumbled over the stumbling stone" teach about rejecting Christ? Setting the scene in Romans 9 Romans 9:32: “Why? Because they pursued it not by faith, but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the stumbling stone,” Who the stumbling stone is • Isaiah 8:14; 28:16 and Psalm 118:22 point to the Messiah as both cornerstone and stone of offense • The New Testament identifies this stone as Jesus Christ (Matthew 21:42-44; Acts 4:11; 1 Peter 2:6-8) Why Israel stumbled • They trusted in ancestral privilege and meticulous law-keeping rather than faith in God’s promised Savior • Christ’s lowly incarnation and suffering death contradicted their expectations of a triumphant national deliverer • His message of grace confronted their self-righteousness: salvation is received, not earned What the stumble teaches about rejecting Christ • Self-reliance blinds the heart to God’s provision • Works-based righteousness cannot coexist with the righteousness that comes by faith (Romans 10:3-4; Galatians 2:21) • Offense at Christ’s cross—its humility, exclusivity, and lordship—results in spiritual ruin (1 Corinthians 1:23) • Unbelief turns the very cornerstone meant for security into an obstacle that brings judgment (Isaiah 8:14) The ongoing danger today • Moral effort, religious tradition, or social activism can become modern “works” pursued apart from faith • When people trip over Christ’s claims—His deity, His atonement, His call to repentance—they repeat Israel’s error • Rejecting Him leaves no alternative foundation; everything built on self collapses (Matthew 7:24-27) Embracing the cornerstone instead • Believe in Him and never be put to shame (Romans 9:33) • Rest in the completed work of the cross rather than personal merit (Ephesians 2:8-9) • Build life on Christ, and what once seemed offensive becomes the surest place of confidence and hope |
    |