What stone could it be talking about?

They are talking about Jesus, the Chief Cornerstone, the Messiah who is the foundation of our faith.

As with all scriptures, this one has both surface and in-depth meanings. On the surface, it is talking about humbling yourself before the Lord or He will humble you. It also has a deeper meaning of who Christ is and His kingdom as is apparent in Daniel and Acts and 1 Peter and Psalms and many other scriptures that refer to the Cornerstone.

For this post, we are going to keep it simpler, about humility before the Lord.

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time. 1 Peter 5:6

There will be a time when those who have refused to humble themselves before the Lord will say to the rocks fall on us and hide us from the wrath of the Lord:
And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake;
and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 
And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs,
when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains,
and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man,
hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 
And said to the mountains and rocks,
Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 
For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? Revelation 6:12-16

Those who refuse to acknowledge Christ as Lord will one day suffer the consequences of their refusal.
They have warnings and opportunities to humble themselves before Him. I do not know when those opportunities come to each person, none of us do. We only know what happens to us. Each person will give account for his or her life and choices regarding Jesus the Messiah.

it will not be a good day for those who have refused Him when He returns to the Earth.
They will then be greatly humbled.

Oh remember that my life is a breath. My eye will no more see good. Job 7:7 WEB

Time flies away like the wind. A moment it’s here and another moment, the memories are what remain.
Each moment is of value. Make it count.
Time does not stop for anyone or any thing.
It is here now and gone tomorrow.
Like the clouds are a vapor.

Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee:
verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. Psalm 39:5

For he remembered that they were but flesh; a wind that passeth away, and cometh not again. Psalm 78:39
The flesh will pass away, only what we do for Eternity will matter. God will reward our efforts to Him.
Choose His ways and all the emptiness will fade away and His righteousness will remain.

His days are like a shadow. A shadow, here this moment, gone the next. Full of nothing substantial.
You see it but you cannot grasp it. Its energy is unable to be caught.
Sure, snap a photo, which will be meaningless just like the shadow itself.
Man is like to vanity: his days are as a shadow that passeth away. Psalm 144:4
Keep your eyes on the Eternal, the things in this world that matter which are not always easy to find.
Jesus is our treasure and our abundance in the Heavenly realm.

If we only plant things of this world, we shall have an empty basket.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

When you need wisdom or discernment:

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not;
and it shall be given him. James 1:5

How to get more faith:

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. Romans 10:17

When you don’t know which way to go:

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

Humility before the Word of God, just in case you need to wonder who is right, you or God:

For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, saith the Lord.
For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways,
and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9

Always seek and pray the Lord’s will:

For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that. James 4:15
Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:10

God’s word is powerful and accomplishes whatever He sends it forth to do:

For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it. Isaiah 55:10-11

What if we sin?

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins,
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

How to be wise:

And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require of thee,
but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love Him,
and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, Deuteronomy 10:12
The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. Proverbs 14:27

How to find confidence in the Lord. When we obey the Lord, we know we are in His will:

In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. Proverbs 14:26

That’s the first clue, is someone or something, perhaps a teaching leading you away from Christ?
When Satan offered the apple to Adam and Eve, he twisted what God had told them
and he gave them another way to look at things, his way.

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.
And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 
And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it,
neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. 
And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: 
For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof,
then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 
And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes,
and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat,
and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. 
And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked;
and they sewed fig leaves together, and made themselves aprons. Genesis 3:1-7

So, the deception was that they would be like gods and know good and evil. They were tempted.
The succumbed to the temptation and their eyes were opened to know good and evil,
just like Satan said.

This deception is still happening today.
While we may have been sanctified and bought by the blood of Christ, we can still be deceived.
How do we guard against that?

The easy solution is to know the truth and to love the truth. Sometimes that is easier said that done.
Satan is still offering apples in a variety of lustful delicacies.
Some of them can even be spiritual, to lie to us and make us think we will be closer to God
or that we have more wisdom than God’s word.
That is what he said to Eve, “You will be like gods and your eyes will be opened.”
He said more and it was hard for her to resist. She fell for it.

As the days draw on, the deception will become stronger and greater.
Let a little in and it will swallow you up, like a huge leviathan.

Be humble before the word of God. As the days go on, there will be more tricks up Satan’s sleeve.
We will not recognize them unless we love the truth with all our being and resist excusing sin
or refusing that God’s word is above all other thoughts.
There is a battle for our heart going on that will continue until we make it to the finish line.
We have the strength that Jesus gives us and discernment, but if we choose to fall for the lies of Satan,
we will be in dire straights.

Stay humble before God’s word. Satan elevated his thoughts above God.
We are in danger of doing the same thing as the days go on and as the deception grows stronger.

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 2 Corinthians 11:3

It can happen to any of us. Let us not be proud in that understanding.
Remain humble before God and His Word.
We need Jesus, who is the Truth, to keep us on the straight and narrow.

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life;
and man became a living soul. Genesis 2:7

With God, things are always more than they appear. That doesn’t mean we can’t take Him at face value.
God says what He says and He does what He does. He means what He says and He says what He means.
Still, even so, there are often deeper meanings in His word that don’t always appear on the surface.

When God breathed the breath of life into Adam, it really was a natural event.
He had lungs and all the makings of a human at that point.
There is a spiritual implication involved as well, along the same lines as being born again.

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof,
but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
John 3:8

The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life. Job 33:4

The life was given to Adam and Job knew who gave him life. That is a spiritual understanding.

Thinking back to Noah, and Noah walked closely with God.

All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died.
And every living substance was destroyed which was upon the face of the ground, both man, and cattle, and the creeping things, and the fowl of the heaven; and they were destroyed from the earth:
and Noah only remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark. Genesis 7:22-23

The vision that Ezekiel had was an example of the spiritual meaning behind the breath of life from God.
All those bones were dry and useless for God’s kingdom until His breath was breathed upon them.
Then they were able to be used by God.

And He said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord God, Thou knowest. 
Again He said unto me,
Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 
Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones;
Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live: 
And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin,
and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking,
and the bones came together, bone to his bone. 
And when I beheld, lo, the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above:
but there was no breath in them. 
Then said He unto me, Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind,
Thus saith the Lord God; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain,
that they may live. 
So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived,
and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
Then He said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say,
Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost: we are cut off for our parts. 
Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God;
Behold, O My people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves,
and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord,
when I have opened your graves, O My people, and brought you up out of your graves, 
And shall put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land:
then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord. Ezekiel 37:3-14

God’s people can walk about without direction and life from God.
We need to seek that life that God gives, that same life that rose Jesus from the dead, to dwell in us.

But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you,
He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies
by His Spirit that dwelleth in you. Romans 8:11

And when He had so said, He shewed unto them His hands and His side.
Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. 
Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as My Father hath sent Me, even so send I you. 
And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: 
John 20:20-22

Jesus still breathes His life into us.

How is the Kingdom of God within you?
For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries,
and will bring you into your own land. 
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness,
and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. 
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you:
and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 
And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes,
and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them. 
And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be My people,
and I will be your God. Ezekiel 36:24-28

The Kingdom of God is a spiritual mystery that not everyone can understand.
If people are interested in solving the mystery, God will meet them there.
If their hearts are seeking God, they will find Him.
That’s the simplest way to describe this process.
If you think of how you came to Christ, it was a response to His calling,
however that process was for you, because the way He calls each of us is different, as we are all different.
Prayer for lost souls plus sharing the gospel and your own personal testimony of how Jesus reached you,
are all invaluable for the kingdom of God.

And I will put My spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes,
and ye shall keep My judgments, and do them. Ezekiel 36:27

Being born again is part of the same mystery. God’s word confirms itself, we just have to notice.
Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old?
can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? 
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 
That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 
Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 
The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof,
but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
John 3:4-8

But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.
Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. Romans 8:9

When we draw near to God, He draws near to us. from James 4:8

And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep:
for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. Romans 13:11

While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. Matthew 25:5

An interesting thing about this parable is that all of the virgins fell alseep.
It wasn’t just the ones who did not have oil.

And He cometh, and findeth them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou?
couldest not thou watch one hour? Mark 14:37

Our flesh gets tired. Some people say, ‘Oh, we have been hearing the Lord is coming soon for centuries.’
They are scoffers and mockers.
All of the instructions the Lord gave us in the bible are applicable for our walk with Him.
We should never start doing our own thing because we think we have a little extra time
because this night our soul may be required of us.

This is a portion of The Parable of the Rich Fool:

And I will say to my soul,
Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 
But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee:
then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 
So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Luke 12:19-21

We should not be lazy in the things of God.
If we are laying up for ourselves treasures here on Earth, but are not rich toward God,
we are missing the whole point. Those who do not value the things of God will be found desolate.
Don’t be that guy.

Every eye shall see Jesus when He returns. There is no place that says He will come and get us secretly.
Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him:
and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen. Revelation 1:7

There are scriptures that do speak of our gathering together with Him.
For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout,
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: 
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds,
to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
We will meet the Lord in the clouds and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
“With a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God.”
It is not a quiet experience.
Most teachings on the Rapture state that the Rapture happens before the Tribulation
and that all the beloved of God will be spared.
That is not what the bible teaches.

Jesus warned us of great difficulties to come.
Jesus warned us that before His return, we will be persecuted up to and including death.
He encouraged us to endure and if we endure to the end, we will be saved.
And ye shall be hated of all men for My name’s sake:
but he that endureth to the end shall be saved. Matthew 10:22

So, how is believing we will be rescued in a Rapture dangerous?
It is dangerous because if people believe that they will be rescued before the Tribulation,
they will be sorely disappointed when the Tribulation is here and there has been no Rapture.
It is not going to happen before and if people are expecting to avoid the Great Tribulation,
they will be very disappointed and may very well fall away
because they will be greatly disappointed when they have to remain on Earth during the Tribulation.
We should be all be praying for the strength to endure.

The idea of a pretrib Rapture is a trap set by Satan.

In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound,
and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 1 Corinthians 15:52

People separate scriptures to misteach Christ’s return and the Rapture.
The Bible does not teach that there are two separate events. They are one in the same.

The best basketball players have shot thousands and thousands of balls into that basket over years and years.
They learned, the tried, they failed, they practiced, and they got better and better and made it.

Practice makes perfect is true for earthly things, it is also true for Heavenly things.
You want to understand the bible, you need to read it, listen to it, meditate on it.
You want to learn how to hear from God, you must practice listening and hearing
and comparing it to the word of God to make sure it’s Him.
Jesus said: Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matthew 5:48
While that is a different type of perfection than what we consider perfection,
if you want to get there, you must practice.
That means fearing God, being humble, loving your enemies, tapping into the strength of the Lord,
choosing obedience, carrying your cross and a host of other attributes that if you don’t practice,
you will never make it to the perfection God has intended.

Consider some things you might want to be perfect in within the Kingdom of God.
Prayer? Spend time in prayer, cultivate your prayer life, seek the Lord about how to improve it.
Relationship with Jesus? Practice. He made you for His pleasure, so He wants the relationship more than you do.
Understanding The Bible? Read, study, learn, grow. It’s all up to you as the Holy Spirit will respond to your efforts.
Work on the things of God. People get very confused about works. If you are lazy in the things of God,
you will miss out on what God has for you.
Use your talents for Him. You will then be an asset to the Kingdom of God.
If you do not do what Jesus says, what good are you for the Kingdom?

And why call ye Me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Luke 6:46

It all sounds so easy, but it’s not. Practice takes time and dedication. It takes choices. It takes determination and fervor.
It takes failure and messing up and then, brushing yourself off and continuing toward your goals.
Jesus is worth it. Whatever you do, do it as unto the Lord.

And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men;
Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. Colossians 3:23

Scriptural References:

Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.
James 4:8

And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.
And, behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains,
and brake in pieces the rocks before the Lord; 
but the Lord was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the earthquake:
And after the earthquake a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice. 
And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle,
and went out, and stood in the entering in of the cave.
And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said, What doest thou here, Elijah?
1 Kings 19:11-13 

And Hannah answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit:
I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but have poured out my soul before the Lord.
1 Samuel 1:15 

O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!
how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out!
Romans 11:33

And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul:
but rather fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish;
because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.
2 Thessalonians 2:10

And why call ye Me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
Luke 6:46

Seek the Lord, and His strength: seek His face evermore.
Psalm 105:4

Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
2 Timothy 2:1

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you;
that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:
2 Corinthians 9:8

For he shall have judgment without mercy, that hath shewed no mercy; and mercy rejoiceth against judgment.
James 2:13

Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.
Jeremiah 23:24

To whom then will ye liken Me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.
Isaiah 40:25

The sea is His, and He made it: and His hands formed the dry land.
Psalm 95:5

For with God nothing shall be impossible.
Luke 1:37

Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power:
for Thou hast created all things, and for Thy pleasure they are and were created.
Revelation 4:11

 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in My name,
He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.
John 14:26