Ephesians 2:20

“being built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the chief corner stone”

“Being built upon”: “You are. building which has been reared on the foundation” (Wey). “Firmly beneath you is the foundation” (Phi). “If the community is viewed as. building, the Gentile believers are integral parts of the structure” (Bruce p. 303). Other passages mention the fact that each Christian composes. part of this structure (1 Corinthians 3:9; 1 Peter 2:5 “living stones”). Therefore the church can only be as strong and active as the individuals who compose it (Ephesians 4:16). Weak, inactive or unfaithful members will weaken the whole structure. When you pull. stone out, usually another falls also, in like manner, the unfaithfulness of one member will probably effect others as well. Closeness and unity in. congregation are essential, because unattached "stones" only fall, and structure that is unattached to it's foundation is destined to fail. Hence the church will only be strong as long as it remains loyal to Christ. “The foundation of the apostles and prophets”: “The foundation laid by the apostles and prophets” (TCNT). Paul pointed out that Christ is the foundation He laid through his preaching (1 Corinthians 3:10). “Since apostles and prophets were both groups with. teaching role, it seems clear that what constitutes the church's foundation is neither their person nor their office but their instruction. In practical terms this means that the church is built on the New Testament Scriptures” (Stott pp. 106-107). The above statement explodes. number of myths: First that the church must always have living apostles (the argument of Mormonism). Second, that the New Testament is. product of the church. The New Testament is the foundation of the church. This verse also reveals that any church that departs from the teaching of the apostles has ceased to be the Lord's church.

“Christ Jesus Himself being the chief corner stone”: “The actual foundation-stone being Christ Jesus Himself” (Phi). The chief corner stone was: “The primary foundation-stone at the angle of the structure by which the architect fixes. standard for the bearings of the walls and cross-walls throughout” (Robertson pp. 528-529). “It is He who supports and holds together both the foundation and the walls. It is faith in Him which gives to every believer. place in the building, and it is Christ who gives to the structure its unity and its strength” (Erdman pp. 62-63). “ There was not one single line or angle of the building which was not determined by and adjusted to the perfect symmetry of that stone” (Caldwell p. 103). “The angle of the cornerstone governs all the lines and all the other angles of the building” (Lenski p. 454).

Jesus Christ is the most important aspect of Christianity (Matthew 16:16). Remove Him and Christianity becomes useless (1 Corinthians 15:17), yet this is exactly what many denominations have done. They deny His virgin birth, His literal resurrection or the truthfulness of His message through His apostles. For all practical purposes such religious bodies are nothing more than non-profit human organizations. Very busy, but completely powerless to bring their members to salvation. Jesus Christ determines everything that Christians believe in and practice. Every aspect of the church from worship, to organization, work, and terms of entrance take their cue from Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 6:3). The world can never destroy the church, because it will never be able to successfully destroy its foundation. Jesus is called. "corner-stone" in other passages as well (Isaiah 2:16; Matthew 21:42; 1 Peter 2:6). Jesus is the "great test" for all men. Some cannot bring themselves to be completely honest when dealing with Jesus, and hence they stumble, fail the test, and end up eternally lost. Others encounter Jesus and are crushed by how selfish they have lived, and become Christians.