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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nMatthew 16: And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of my former students from my days of teaching industrial arts is employed at a local car dealer. He and I were recently having a conversation when he asked me if I still collected rocks. I was somewhat taken aback because I did not remember having discussed my rock collection with him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My collection includes rocks from the shore of the Sea of Galilee, Mt. Everest base camp and the summits of several mountains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The former student and I had discussed some of those places and my collection the last time I had been in the dealership. The best we could determine it was about six to seven years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nearing the end of the conversation, he said to me, \u201cWait a minute. I have something to show you.\u201d He went to his desk and in a few seconds reappeared with two small, but unusual looking rocks. They were extraordinary to say the least. As I examined them, I asked him \u201cAre you giving these to me?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His reply really got my attention! \u201cYes, they have been on my desk ever since you were here last. I brought them the next day and they have been there ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those two rocks are not valuable in dollars but they are worth more to me than gold. They will go on my desk at home. How could anyone possibly remember me and keep those rocks on his desk for nearly seven years?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The rocks on this earth offer strength and stability. When other materials are worn, rotted and rusted away, the stones will still be holding up buildings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have a large stone once used as a porch step into an old house in which Margie and I lived when first married. The step is sandstone, considered to be one of the more workable stones because of its softness compared to flint or limestone. It has been used for over forty years as a step into an outbuilding and was used for many years before then. There is no way to know how many steps have been taken on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If only that stone could talk! The people that have crossed into a house over it have so many stories that could be told but are lost in the shadows of history forever. Margie well remembers one of our many cats bringing her a present of a snake and placing it on that stone many years ago.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The stone is about forty inches long, twelve inches wide and eight to nine inches thick and it is heavy! It now sits on two other large stones and serves as a seat by a fire-pit in our yard. It was moved with a forklift to its approximate point then had to be man-handled into position to elevate it into a seat position. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The permanence of large stones is demonstrated over and over. The stepping stone is an example especially when we consider the many years it has existed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Buildings are constructed all over the world using large stones for the foundation. Archeological digs and the unearthed foundations of stone have been in place for thousands of years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pyramids of Giza are beautiful, symmetrical structures of Aswan granite and limestone. Egyptologists tell us the pyramids are around five-thousand years old which means they had been there over 1500 years when Moses lived. The temples of God in Jerusalem were built 3000 years ago of hand-cut stone mined outside Jerusalem in a quarry that is today frequented by tourists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foundations of buildings since before the building of Solomon\u2019s Temple were built of stone. That strength of stones holds up the pyramids and the Sphinx in Egypt and thousands of other structures in the ancient world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Geologists study layers of sedimentary rocks to help determine the history of our planet. The layers can help scientists determine a timeline of the varying weather\/climate anomalies over the millennia. A history of the earth can be written depending on findings in varying geographic areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We attempt to duplicate stone because of strength with a product called cement mixed with varying sizes of aggregate (sand and gravel). This mixture, by including water and adequate mixing, makes concrete. Concrete holds the skyscrapers of the world\u2019s many cities and the bridges across the world\u2019s great rivers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ephesians 2: 21 \u201cNow therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints, and of the household of God, and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That cornerstone, Jesus, is the creator of all life, the planet and the Universe and is our precious Savior (Colossians 1: 16). He is referred to as the cornerstone. He serves as our redeemer and our foundation. He is that solid rock that all Christians love, worship and depend upon for our strength and assurance. It is no wonder the Bible writers convey to us His infinite power and authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In Matthew chapter 16, Jesus asked the disciples, \u201cWhom do men say that I the Son of man am?\u201d They answered, \u201cSome say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then He asked them a very straightforward question, Matthew 16: 15 \u201cBut whom do you say that I am?\u201d Peter answered, \u201cThou art the Christ, the son of the living God!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After Peter\u2019s statement of who Jesus was, Jesus said to him, Matthew 16: 18 \u201cAnd I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Christians worldwide hold Peter in very high regard. Even though He betrayed Christ the night and morning before the crucifixion, Christ Jesus forgave him and made him into one of the greatest Apostles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Petros is Greek for rock or stone. When Jesus said \u201cI will build my church upon this rock,\u201d He was probably referring to Peter\u2019s faith, loyalty and steadfastness. Peter was the impetuous one; he cut off the servant of the high priests ear in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22: 50). He showed a tenaciousness not seen in the other disciples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The concept of Peter the Rock is just as important in the church today as it was two thousand years ago. The great significance of Jesus as the cornerstone signifies to us the complete church with Him as the foundation. It is all about Him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Those two rocks given to me today are of great significance. Many of my students linger in my heart and mind but the one that saved the stones definitely will. The importance of Peter\/Petros, the rock, is essential to Christianity and the church. He signifies the power of the church and our belief in our Creator Jesus as the cornerstone, crucified for the remission of sin and resurrected.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Written by: Van Yandell Matthew 16: And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":54088,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1479],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54176"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54176"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54176\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54177,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54176\/revisions\/54177"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/54088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54176"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54176"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thelehighacresgazette.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54176"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}