Rev. Philip Hoppe, pastor at Peace Lutheran Church in Finlayson, MN and St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Bruno, MN, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel for Sharathon 2021 to study how God gives life to dead stones.
Stones serve as a source of stability and strength, but you can also trip over them. God’s Word makes use of the image of stones in both ways, to proclaim both judgment and salvation. The prophet Isaiah proclaims God’s judgment against Israel’s unfaithfulness while also promising that the LORD will do a marvelous thing by laying Christ as His chosen cornerstone. The use of Psalm 118 at the laying of the foundation of the second temple in the time of Ezra points forward to the singing of Psalm 118 at the foundation of the true temple of Jesus’ Body during Holy Week. John the Baptist truly preaches that those who are children of Abraham are those dead stones whom God has made alive in Christ. The splitting of the rocks at Jesus’ death and the removal of the gravestone at His resurrection signal that the foundation has been laid. Therefore, Christ is the cornerstone for salvation for all who believe in His name.
Sharper Iron, hosted by Rev. Timothy Appel, looks at the text of Holy Scripture both in its broad context and its narrow detail, all for the sake of proclaiming Christ crucified and risen for sinners. Two pastors engage with God’s Word to sharpen not only their own faith and knowledge, but the faith and knowledge of all who listen.
Sharper Iron is underwritten by Lutheran Church Extension Fund, where your investments help support the work of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod. Visit lcef.org.
