The Cornerstone, the Capstone, and Everything In Between

The property where we live is hilly. Which is great for sledding if we end up with any snow in the winter, but other than that is more of a hindrance than a help for doing anything useful with our backyard (gardening, for instance, or -- as my husband wants to do -- building a ninja obstacle course).

We've thought off and on about how to best use what we've got: a porch swing at the top of one of our hills for a good view (too many mosquitoes), planting wide-spreading shrubs on the slopes so we don't have to try to mow them (the tilt of the mower is just enough that it gets scary). 

One idea I'd love to try -- but admittedly, am such a novice that I don't think my husband would ever trust me enough to let me do it -- is to build my own retaining wall on the slope and spread a level flower bed across the top. It can't be that hard, right? You can even make a 3 foot retaining wall without engineering or mortar!

I've read Google, so I'm an expert.

That is, I read an interesting article this morning about it, and now I'm full up of ideas. Pray for me as I introduce this idea to my husband; he might not be as convinced as I am that this is a good idea.

Okay, a couple of things about a mortar-free retaining wall that I picked up from this article (you should read it; it's really good, and then we can all build retaining walls in our backyards): 

1.) Cut and fill is the best approach. You could bring in soil from another place, but if you cut into, say, a hillside (hey, I've got hillsides in my backyard!), you have mostly undisturbed soil backing your wall, which is best for structural longevity. 

2.) You need an even foundation. In other words, don't just lay your rocks on unprepared ground, or you'll mess up the entire wall with the angle.

3.) You should try to find rocks that fit together in a puzzle-like fashion. Round rocks, not a good idea. Flat rocks, also more difficult. Irregular rocks, yes, good idea. The author of this article says: "I find irregular rocks easier to work with than flat ones; with flat rocks you have to be more precise." Along with this, not all rocks will get to be showcased. The largest, strongest ones serve as the foundation layer, the capstone layer is the culmination of the project, but in between are all sorts of sizes of rocks. Then, you also have a whole unseen layer of smaller rocks (called rubble) that you will hide behind the wall face that will serve as strengthening agents behind your wall.

4.) For that first layer of stones, it is super-duper important that it fits tightly and rests solidly on the ground, because it's going to be carrying the weight of the rest of the wall. This is also where you would lay the cornerstone, the main stone in the base of the wall that sets the angle or the place for the entire project.

5.) The most difficult layer is going to be the top layer, the capstone. That's the layer that has to be perfect. It's the culmination of the whole project, and without it, you have a roughshod, uneven wall that won't hold together. It's the layer that says: I'm finished. This project is complete. The author of the article suggested layering soil just behind the capstone and planting herbs, which -- in her words -- was "a delightful finishing touch to a living wall." In the picture illustrations, the wall was beautiful -- but there was a mess to clean up, lots of unused rocks still lying along the ground before the scene could be complete.

That wording was really interesting, because I found myself in 1 Peter 2:4-10 this morning (I'll get to Joshua 21 in a second; I was there, too), and in that passage, Peter says: "As you come to Him, the Living Stone [that is, Jesus] -- rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to Him -- you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."

Living wall, living stones. I liked that. Hang on, let's keep going:

"For in Scripture it says: 'See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious Cornerstone, and the one who trusts in Him will never be put to shame.' Now to you who believe, this Stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, 'The Stone the builders rejected has become the capstone,' and, 'a Stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.' They stumbled because they disobeyed the message -- which is also what they were destined for."

In case you didn't pick up on it, there are a few things about these stones that Peter is talking about -- obviously, he's not talking about actual rocks. He mentions the Living Stone (Jesus), and the living stones (us, His followers). Together -- Jesus, us, His followers -- make up a "spiritual house to be a holy priesthood." 

Peter then offers two perspectives of that Living Stone (Jesus). To us, His followers, He is our Cornerstone. He's the Stone around which this entire spiritual house is built. On Him, around Him, in Him. Without Him, we fall apart, we have no purpose, we are just a rock pile. 

The other perspective of that Living Stone (Jesus) comes from those who choose not to follow Him, who are not a part of the priesthood, as Peter puts it. To those people, Jesus is the Capstone, the culmination of the spiritual house, the perfect completion of the project. This is such a great parallel to the rebuilding the Temple of Israel -- seen in Zechariah 4:7-10: "What are you, oh mighty mountain? Before Zerubbabel [the one who rebuilt the Temple] you will become level ground [sound familiar? Cut and fill]. Then he [Zerubbabel] will bring out the capstone to shouts of 'God bless it! God bless it!' Then the word of the Lord came to me: 'The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this Temple; his hands will also complete it. Then you will know that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you. Who despises the day of small things? Men will rejoice when they see the plumb line in the hand of Zerubbabel.'" 

The capstone, the finishing piece, the culmination, the apex of a project. This is why Jesus is seen as the capstone to those who don't follow Him: Because when you deny the existence of something being built, when that project is finished, it's ready for use, it's purpose is fulfilled, the Temple is done, the people shout, "God bless it! God bless it!"

And they stumble over what has been built before their unbelieving eyes. "The stone the builders rejected..." They've turned away from the One Who completes His work in our lives, they've turned away from all the stones collected for the project who have become the "living stones" to make the "living wall," the spiritual house, and they've refused to be a part of the project. "They stumble because they disobey the message."

So the Capstone completes the project... without them.

The Cornerstone, for we who believe, is our centerpoint. The Capstone, for those who don't believe, is a sign of rejection of any unused rocks left over when the house is complete.

You know, I was going to get to Joshua, but I don't have time to really grapple with it. I'll just leave you with a little connection that I saw in it: Joshua 21 talks about the cities that were "given" to the Levites, the Israelite priesthood. They didn't inherit land like the rest of the tribes, because they had inherited the work of the Temple, the work of the Lord.

Still, the other eleven tribes made space in cities for the Levites, the priesthood, to live, and among those cities (forty-eight in all), six of the cities they were designated were the Cities of Refuge I talked about yesterday in Pancake Hurlers and Avengers of Blood. Why did the Israelites make sure that the priesthood of Israel lived within all six of the Cities of Refuge?

I offer this as a partial answer, because I'm sure there's much more to this: What if the priesthood, as suggested by Peter, is the place of refuge for those who seek shelter within its living stones? Obviously, I'm not a Levite (that I'm aware of anyway), but we, if we have Jesus as our Cornerstone and as our Capstone, as the Beginning of us and as the End of us, are a spiritual house, built by God. We are a living wall, not fashioned by human hands. We are a wall of refuge for those who seek shelter.

There are many who will see the spiritual house and turn the other way, because the Capstone holds the living stones exactly in the place where they are positioned for the strongest structure -- even the rubble has a purpose. 

If you feel like a rock on the outer wall, be just as strong a barrier against the elements as you can be. If you feel like a piece of rubble behind the outer face, strengthen those gaps with all the strength of your little pebble heart. The Lord is your Cornerstone, you get your foundation from Him. The Lord is your Capstone, you are complete in Him. 

Whew, yeah! Hallelujah!