The Body Is A Building

DAY 5

The Body Is a Building

Read 1 Peter 2:1-10 and Ephesians 2:19-22.
The Bible uses several figures of speech to describe what the church is. The truth represented by the label on the thumb in the hand drawing is one of the most important of all the figures of speech the Bible uses.
Recall that truth and supply the missing words in the following sentence.
The church is __________
__________in Christ.You also learned a Bible verse that speaks of the one body, made up of all people who follow Christ. Fill in the key words that are missing from that verse.
As we have many __________
in ____________________, and all the __________do not have the same function, in the same way we who are many are ____________________in Christ.ROMANS 12:4-5
Check your Scripture-memory card for that verse to be certain you’re correct.
The two passages you read for today’s study use a different figure of speech to describe the church.
Can you identify the figure of speech without looking ahead? If not, review the verses and see if you can catch it. Then continue reading.
In these passages the called-out ones are described as a building rather than a body. Christ is “the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). But He’s also “a chosen and honored cornerstone” of the building (1 Peter 2:6). This passage describes each of us as “living stones” (v. 5). We’re being constructed into “a spiritual house” (v. 5).
Watching stonemasons build a stone wall is interesting. They chip away at each stone, smoothing and shaping it to make a good fit with the stones around it. There’s a spiritual lesson here:
You can’t grow as you should if you aren’t part of the church.
God’s shaping process in your life requires you to be related properly to other living stones. Don’t let this important truth escape you! Just as stonemasons chip away the stones until they fit correctly, God chips away at your character. He molds and shapes until you can be be bonded with other living stones.
Some people have referred to the work the Lord does in your life as the sandpapering process. He gently reshapes you from an isolated stone until you’re able to fit snugly with the other stones that make up His spiritual house. Apart from your fellowship with the others who are also “living stones,” you’ll never become what your Lord wants you to be.
Here are several stones that have rough edges. Read 1 Peter 2:1. According to that verse, what are some of rough edges our Lord may be expected to chip away from our lives as we come to Him? Record them on the stones.

First Peter 2:1-10 mentions two kinds of stones. You and I and all other Christians are like stones with rough edges—envy, hypocrisy, and all of the other evils listed in verse 1. But Jesus Christ, our sinless Savior and Lord, is the chosen, honored, or valuable cornerstone described in verse 6.
Yet this chosen cornerstone may not seem precious or valuable to unbelievers.
According to 1 Peter 2:7-8, what kind of stone does Christ become to those who won’t believe in Him?
Thinking of Christ as “a stone to stumble over” (v. 8), as a rock that gives offense to some people, may seem strange to you. But this is the way people see Jesus when they reject Him as their Savior.
Now look again at Ephesians 2:19-22. What’s the cement that bonds together the living stones that make up the church?
Isn’t it great to know that you and your fellow believers form a building in which God’s Holy Spirit lives?
How strongly are you aware that you, as an individual member of the body (or the building) of believers, truly need other called-out ones?
Describe how your relationship with other believers enabled growth in an area of your Christian life.
Now think about an area of your Christian life that needs to develop and grow. Identify it here.
Pray and wait for the Holy Spirit to direct your thinking. Then identify two or more Christians who can support you and help meet your growth needs in those areas. List their names here.
Plan a time to contact each of the people you’ve listed and express appreciation for the way they’re aiding your spiritual growth. Ask for specific prayer, encouragement, and help.
By this point in your study of Survival Kit, you should have memorized two Scripture passages. Try recording them from memory.
Psalm 119:11
Romans 12:4-5

Review This Week’s Study

Compose a brief paragraph explaining the statement that the church is a body.
What’s your function in the body?
How are you using your gifts to function effectively as a member of the body?
How are other members’ gifts helping you grow as a Christian?