Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“The stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.”
NL Daily Devotion for Monday, April 1, 2024
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Out of rejection, a new foundation. Jesus quoted this about himself in Mark 12:10 at the end of the Parable of the Wicked Tenants, in which those who were renting the vineyard killed the owner’s son in order to steal the inheritance. And no one has suffered a more profound rejection than Jesus—turned on by his people, betrayed by a trusted friend, denied by another, abandoned by almost all of them, humiliated and murdered in the most painful way possible by the State, abandoned even (or so he felt) by God. And why? Because he loved us. Loved us so deeply he was willing to experience the worst of human experience on our behalf. Loves us so deeply still that he continues to experience our worst pains and trials with us every day. Thus he has become of the foundation for all of living. We can all stand firm on the knowledge that we are not alone, that Jesus lives in and with and through all of us. We are the temples in which God lives, and Jesus is the foundation on which those temples are built anew each day. This Easter Monday, may we be deeply grateful and exceedingly joyful that the stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone of our faith.
What helps me to stay connected to Jesus as a foundation of my daily life of faith?
