Stone of Stumbling

He will be as a sanctuary, but a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, as a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Isaiah 8:14

          Wichita, Kansas was a wild west town that was settled in the area just north of where the Big and Little Arkansas rivers come together. Like most of Kansas this area is flat and since it lies between two rivers, the sandy ground is about 40 ft. deep on top of the bedrock. This was great for a pioneer settlement because it meant that the water table wasn’t deep and wells could be easily dug in the soft soil.

          The section of the city with these cowboy roots is called Old Town and we own a house there that is now 110 years old. It’s not on any historical register, but it is certainly on the city inspector’s radar for old buildings he wants to keep his eye on. On one such inspection every house on the block got a notice to repair their sidewalks. Shifting sands under the surface had made them buckle and the city declared them dangerous. They were stones of stumbling and the powers in charge told us to remove them.

          The Lord Jesus is and always has been a stumbling block to those who reject Him. They find Him offensive, distasteful, politically incorrect, and intolerable. They want Him gone from their sight and their hearing. They’ll use legal action if necessary to remove this nuisance.

          Churches and individual Christians are being sued in record numbers because enemies of the cross of Christ find it profitable to bring those who would desire to live godly to financial ruin. They want anything promoting the Savior removed from the public square. They won’t walk around it, they want Him totally out of sight, because Christ Jesus is their Stone of Stumbling.

*see also Romans 9:32,33; 1 Peter 2:8