The Stumbling Stone

The Stumbling Stone
Words of Faith 10-14-2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2021
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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Romans 9
    [30] What then shall we say? That the Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have obtained it, a righteousness that is by faith; [31] but Israel, who pursued a law of righteousness, has not attained it. [32] Why not? Because they pursued it not by faith but as if it were by works. They stumbled over the "stumbling stone." [33] As it is written:
    "See, I lay in Zion a stone that causes men to stumble
        and a rock that makes them fall,
    and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame."


      Jesus is a stumbling stone. For some, that will sound offensive, but for others, it is an obvious conclusion. Our opinions do not really matter. This is a statement in God's Word. God laid a stone in Zion that every person must pass.
     We will surely stumble and fall if we attempt to pass by in our own works or religious efforts. There is no religious observance or set of practices that can pass the requirement of the stone. There is no meditative state or ethereal attitude that can pass by this rock.  
     He is the Rock that brings every person to their knees, one way or another. If we walk with religious pride, our knees will be skinned. If we walk with soulish self-focus, we will fall flat.  But if we kneel in humility and place our trust in the Rock, we will never be put to shame.
     This is a core message in the Gospel. Suppose we pursue righteousness in our own religious effort. In that case, we will surely fall. Still, if by faith we surrender to Him in humility, we will never know humiliation.  
      And it is a strange paradox that those who pursue righteousness with all their strength will never find it, but those who will humble themselves to receive, will, in fact, find what was pursued by others.  
      Rejoice in the Rock today.  

       Lord, I humble myself before the Rock that You have laid in Zion. May I be found kneeling before You rather than stumbling over my pride.  In Jesus' name. Amen.
 
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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2021
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)        
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2021 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.