Isaiah 8:14 and 15 say that Christ will become “a stone to strike against / And a rock of stumbling / To both houses of Israel... / And many will stumble at these, / And will fall and be broken to pieces.” Isaiah’s word is quoted by the apostle Paul in Romans 9:32-33 and by Peter in 1 Peter 2:7-8. All these portions speak concerning the effect of Christ as the rock on the perverted people, that is, on His being a stone to strike against and a rock of stumbling. The unbelieving Israelites truly stumbled and fell on Him and were even broken to pieces (Matt. 21:44a).
As the rock laid by God, Christ is not only a stone to strike against and a rock of stumbling to the unbelieving perverted ones but also a smiting stone to those who rebel against God and oppose God (Dan. 2:34-35, 44-45; Matt. 21:44b).
As the stone that smites God’s enemy, Christ is for bringing in God’s kingdom. Before He becomes the stone to smite God’s enemy for the kingdom, He first became the seed of God’s kingdom to grow God’s kingdom (Mark 4:3, 26).
As the seed of God’s kingdom in His first coming to the earth, Christ was sown on the earth as the gospel to grow the kingdom of God, which is the church (Rom. 14:17). At His coming again, He will become a stone cut out without hands to smash and completely destroy the nations which fight against the kingdom of God so that the kingdom on the earth may become the kingdom of God and of Him (Rev. 11:15).
After smashing the nations which are at enmity with God, Christ as the stone cut out without hands will become a great mountain that will fill the whole earth. This indicates that He, as the stone dealing with the nations which are at enmity with God, will become the kingdom of God which will fill the whole earth. This shows that Christ as the reality of the kingdom of God in the church will be enlarged to become the kingdom of God which will fill the whole earth. Both the kingdom of God in the church today and the enlarged kingdom of God in the kingdom age in the future are Christ Himself and both take Christ as the reality.
The Bible uses not only plants to signify God, Christ, the church, the believers, and the world but also stones to signify Christ and the believers. According to 1 Corinthians 3:6-15, plants are for growth, and stones are for building. The plants grow to produce materials, and the stones are built to produce the church. The change from the growing plants to the building stones involves a process of transformation. This is the process of Christ being life to the believers, and it reveals the intrinsic reason that the Bible uses plants and stones to signify what Christ is to the believers.
With stones as symbols, the Bible likens Christ to the living stone, the rock, the foundation stone, the cornerstone, the topstone, the rock of stumbling, and the smiting stone. The living stone signifies that Christ possesses life and is living for generating the believers that they may become living stones for God’s building and expression, the consummation of which is the New Jerusalem. The living stones portray the believers, who were clay and who have received the divine life and nature through regeneration to become stones with the purpose of building up the church as the spiritual house of God. Such a building is approved by God. The rock portrays Christ as One who is steady, sure, and stable; who has been tested; who is trustworthy, massive, and spiritual; who follows His believers; and who has been cleft for ministering His riches to His believers. Such a Christ is also the foundation stone as the foundation of God’s building, who is firm, secure, and unshakable, having sufficient strength to uphold the entire building of God in the universe, which is His universal church. He is also the cornerstone for joining the different sides, the different sections, of God’s building, making it one Body as God’s fullness. With Christ’s joining, the walls of God’s building become a strong support for the top covering of God’s building. Christ as the topstone is for covering God’s entire building to resist the forces from outside and to protect the contents of God’s building.
To unbelieving perverted ones, Christ as the rock becomes a stone to strike against and a rock of stumbling; the unbelieving Israelites truly stumbled on Him. Even more, He is the smiting stone to those who rebel against God and oppose God. Before He becomes the stone to smash God’s enemy, Christ came as the seed of God’s kingdom to sow Himself on the earth as the gospel to grow the kingdom of God, which is the church. When He comes back, He will be a stone cut out without hands to smash and completely destroy the nations which fight against the kingdom of God, and He will become a great mountain to fill the whole earth. This indicates that Christ will be enlarged to be the kingdom of God which will fill the whole earth.