There are well over one hundred names for Jesus in the Bible, names like Almighty God, Blessed Ruler, Chief Cornerstone, Faithful Witness, Good Shepherd, High Priest, Image of God, King Eternal, Lamb of God, Light of the World, Lion of Judah, Lord of All, Morning Star, Our Righteousness, Prince of Peace, Savior, Son, Truth, and Word. As we work through the old and new testaments, we encounter names that celebrate the attributes of Christ that inspire worship. Until we arrive at the final verses of Romans 9.
Stone of Stumbling.
Rock of Offense.
These names give us pause...but they shouldn't. Instead, they should inspire our worship. Paul reminds us that many people pursue God's law, hoping it will "lead to righteousness," hoping to boast that they have attained perfection and earned God's love. However, the idea that God only loves the perfect is the exact misunderstanding Christ came to remove. John 1 tells us "the world did not know [God]" and that Christ came to "make him known."
What is it that we don't know that God had to come in the flesh to teach us?
We must always remember that the world teaches us that every good thing in life is earned. We earn forgiveness, acceptance, trust, friendship, love, confidence, respect, and reward. We revere people who have earned greatness and we often view those who have received a free ride with scorn and contempt. The concept of unearned greatness is offensive to us. This is a worldly perspective driven by human pride and we must always remember that the broken world we live in teaches us to see God from this perspective.
How do we break free from this worldly mindset when it is everywhere we look around us?
Enter the stumbling stone.
Receipt of God's forgiveness, acceptance, trust, friendship, love, confidence, respect, and reward "depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy" and who desires to call us "beloved."
Free grace. How offensive.
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