August 5, 2025

Is “this rock” that Yeshua [Jesus] is talking about above a material object, person, or something otherwise, perhaps even a metaphor? It depends upon who you ask. As for this devotional, I will wander off into the privilege of being the writer of this narrative… I hope you will give me some slack as I don’t pretend to know everything… but some things can be considered without making doctrine of them. I fear Yahweh too much to take liberty with foolish claims concerning His Holy text; yet some of the Biblical passages can be mysterious… so herein I ask, “what if” some of what I have been thinking about could have substance in some way? Let me explain.

For some reason Yahweh places significance on certain things, such as do not use any tools on the building of “My altar”… “And if you make Me an altar of stone, you shall not build it of hewn stone; for if you use your tool on it, you have profaned it.”  ex 20:25 nkjv, and similar warning in deut 27:5 nkjv…  It seems anything humans do with their hands represent their work instead of Yahweh's work. Consider Paul’s interesting comments:

“In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, 12 buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.”  col 2:11-12 nkjv  I think Paul is speaking of the “in the heart” circumcision, which comes spiritually when a person repents of their sins and makes Yeshua the Master of their life… again, heart circumcision it is not something a man can do.

Yeshua confounded the religious leaders when He made this remarkable comment: “Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”  jn 2:19 nkjv  Their comment, that it took 46 years to build the then present temple, clearly did reveal their perspective being earthly and their not understanding His heavenly view… which I can say, I think He was referring to His body; and Paul said our body was the temple of the Holy Spirit:

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 cor 6:19-20 nkjv

In the Book of Daniel, chapter 2, we have the vision/dream that Daniel interpreted for king Nebuchadnezzar, where he saw the stone “cut without hands,” that crushed the pagan image to powder… a probable foreseeing of the day when Christ [Yeshua] destroys all pagan and ungodly systems and entities from the earth and builds His new millennial kingdom.

Lets look at what Peter says: “ Coming to Him [Christ] as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,
“Behold, I lay in Zion
A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.” 1pet 2:4-6 nkjv

Let’s look at Peter’s revelation and confession of “Yeshua the Messiah.” in Matthew chapter 16:

“ When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”

Now consider the relationship of Paul’s words to Peter’s confession:

“ But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” rom 10:8-10 nkjv

Yeshua told Peter that “flesh and blood” [i.e., hands of men] had NOT revealed to him that Yeshua was the Messiah… but that Yahweh had revealed Him to Peter… and it is such with all of us who believe. Do you think Peter calling believers “living stones,” was related to Yeshua calling his confession "a rock" upon which He would build His church? Just saying, it’s not a far reach to consider the words of Yeshua being a metaphor to tell us what He was/is doing. Sounds like those “living stones” not made with hands, but by faith and confession, were to be the building blocks of the temple, of which Yeshua was the chief corner stone… in which He, by His Holy Spirit, would dwell. Like, “Christ in us, the hope of glory.”

“the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.” col 1:26-27 nkjv

Could it be that the “living stones” temple is the last days temple of Yahweh’s kingdom, where a kingdom of Priest would, “offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” Is this the target of the devil in the last days to try to corrupt the “spiritual” condition of these living stones… are we being bombarded by everything possible to separate us from fellowship with our duties as “Priest?” Remember, it was the failure of the Priesthood of old that brought down the chosen people nation and the temple by association…

Could this living stones temple be the place where the anti-Christ is prophesied to set up his abomination, (2 thes 2:4), like as Antiochus Epiphanes did in the last physical temple before its destruction. The one in antiquity being real, made with hands and physical, and the last days temple perhaps being a spiritual realm, within the living stones body, that Yeshua said would be His Church, that the gates of Hell would not stand against? Just some things to consider, I think.

Could this last days evil entity [anti-Christ] be the feet of iron and clay [last empire, that Daniel saw] that the stone from Heaven destroys… is this “iron and clay” entity a combination of flesh and man-made components [such as a transhuman entity] having artificial intelligence, that is fused with the devil’s spiritual power? It would be what Paul included in his “theses things” list, as “any other created thing,” in Romans 8:35-39 nkjv

I think the temple Ezekiel saw just may be the millennial temple, and if so, could the push to build a “third” temple here and now, be a deception to keep “living stones” from focusing on their Priesthood? To deceive them into following false signs and for them to abandon their duties… and seek after another temple built by “hands of men?”

I hope you will forgive me if have I confused or offended you or your views, that is not my intention. I have been watching so much distortion of news, religious doctrine, plain logic, and common sense, that I want us to focus upon the written Word of Truth and not be distracted by the evil theatrics that draw us away from the Tree of Life, to the abominable Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Remember, that was Satan’s initial plan, and he will keep pushing it until Yeshua comes and does away with him forever… unlike in generations past, for our times, the devil’s toolbox is fully equipped for his final charge. And it seems, to me, too few people are paying attention… many are falling away from the fellowship of Yeshua and His Word.

Yeshua is asking us the same question yet today: “But who do you say I am?”

Shalom, John