“Wherefore also it is contained in the scripture, Behold, I lay in Sion a chief corner stone, elect, precious: and he that believeth on him shall not be confounded. Unto you therefore which believe he is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner” (1 Peter 2:6,7)
Jesus was not “precious” to the “builders” of the religious establishment of His day. “He came unto his own, and his own received him not.” (John 1:11) He was not surprised though. Where a worldly attitude exists there will be little appreciation for the things of God. He told His disciples not to expect to be loved by the world. The world loves its own. Rejection comes with the territory when you’ve been joined to a Stone of stumbling and a Rock of offense.
Do not aim for more than your Master received. It is enough that a disciple should be as his master. Accept this fact: if you walk with Christ in obedience, what you do and say, will not be received or celebrated by the world, or the worldly minded in the church. You will not be popular or “precious” to the majority. A few will appreciate you, even as a few appreciated Him. But it is the very best of things to share the experience of your Master.
What will it take for you to win honor from above? To be somebody in heaven’s eyes you will have to be a nobody in the eyes of men. Your obedience to God will have to be questioned. The path He has given you to walk will have to be despised. The builders in Zion will have to reject you. Those you would only bless will have to curse you and rejoice in any calamity that may find you. When these things happen, you will have to bless those who curse you; continue to love and give to those who hate and despise you; and intercede for those who want nothing to do with you.
When you have embraced such a life, not considering it a strange thing which is happening to you; when you rejoice to share the same sufferings that your Master endured, only wanting to respond as He responded, and when the vision of a heavenly crown makes welcome the entrance of each painful thorn, you will be a partaker of His glory and someone that all heaven awaits to applaud.