”Building Together as Living Stones”
1 Peter 2:2-10 & Acts 2:42-47
Pastor Deb Troester, STHPC, May 3, 2026
Have you ever seen an Amish barn-raising? The whole community gathers to build a barn – a task too great for any one individual. I watched a time lapse video on YouTube, and it was amazing how quickly the work went with everyone participating. Thirty men can complete a barn in one day by working together in cooperation.
In medieval Europe, churches were also built by the entire community, but they took much longer. Churches were expected to last longer than barns, and so were constructed of more durable material – stone. Gothic cathedrals, such as Notre Dame in Paris, were built stone by stone, each one carefully measured and cut before being laid into place. The most important stone was the cornerstone – the one that made for a solid foundation.
Our church – Santa Teresa Hills – is a bit like this. I don’t mean the actual physical structure, although I understand that a lot of the work on this building was done by volunteers.
What I mean is that by working together we can accomplish what would be impossible for an individual to do alone. Each of us has a part to play. Just as it takes a lot of people with many different skills working together to construct a cathedral, it takes all of us working together, each with our own gifts and talents, to make our church a place of worship and a light in our community.
It’s easy to take the church for granted. The building is here, the lights are on, the A/C or heating is functioning. The choir sings, scriptures are read, prayers are said, the preacher preaches. We hear of work being supported by our gifts. Sometimes we participate in volunteer efforts. Yet all this doesn’t just happen. It takes coordinated effort and organization, with a lot of prayer and the help of the Holy Spirit. As Presbyterians, like many congregations, we don’t have any large institution supporting us. STHPC is here as a result of all of our efforts – thank you! And it is a testament to those who came before us, who worked and even sacrificed that this church might exist and continue on to this day.
When Peter wrote that each Christian is a “living stone,” built on Christ, the cornerstone, church buildings didn’t actually exist. At that time people met mostly in homes. Usually a wealthier member of the congregation would open his or her home for worship and fellowship, which often included a common meal, as well as the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. That is why Peter writes, “ like living stones let yourselves be built into a spiritual house…”
There’s a little song that goes, [SING]
“I am the church.
You are the church.
We are the church together.
All of God’s people,
All around the world,
Yes, we’re the church together.”
Simple, but it contains a profound truth. Together, we are the church.
So what are some ways we can build up our church? How can we build together as living stones? How can we make our church stronger?
This morning, our reading from Acts lists several things the early believers did that strengthened the early church and built it into a lasting edifice: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers…” They helped those in need; “they spent much time together in the temple,” they often ate together, and celebrated the Lord’s supper, “praising God and having the goodwill of all the people.” As a result, the church grew.
Although it was a different time and social context, we can still do these things today. First, they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. What does that mean? Well, they actually had the original apostles there with them. Imagine hearing Peter, James, or John tell first-hand about their experiences with Jesus! Yet, we also have accounts from these same people, and others who were actually eyewitnesses of all Jesus said and did. All we have to do is open the New Testament. Luke begins his gospel: “Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eye witnesses… With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account…”
John, near the end of his gospel, writes, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” We don’t have to wonder what Jesus said or did: we have it right here in our Bibles.
How many of you have a Bible at home? How many of you have access to the Bible on your phone or tablet? We have the very words of Jesus written down for us by some of those early disciples. Do we take the time to read and study them? The early church devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teaching, and day by day God added to their number.
Another way the early church was strengthened was through fellowship: You may have heard the Greek word for fellowship: koinonia. It expresses active participation in a common life: sharing, partnership, communion, and mutual contribution.
The term gathers spiritual, relational, and material dimensions into a single reality: the life believers hold in common with God through Christ and with one another in the Spirit. Koinonia – fellowship – is the mortar that holds the stones in place. Without it, we are just single stones, that all happen to be in the same place. With it, we become a strong building, a shelter for those in need, and a sign of God’s kingdom in the world.
Last week we enjoyed some beautiful moments of koinonia as we celebrated my birthday. We ate together, we laughed together, we took time to share our lives together. And we got to know each other a bit better. Times such as these are not just “extra” in church, the icing on the cake, so to speak, but are also important experiences that help cement us together as one “spiritual house” in the Lord.
A third thing that the early Christians did was pray together. Praying together is another way we strengthen the bonds between us. We are pretty good at that – we have our prayers of the people each Sunday, and we remember each other throughout the week with our prayer chain.
Thanks to Zoom, YouTube, email, and so on, we can join together in prayer even over long distances. I’m not sure it’s possible to pray too much. After all, Paul advised the Thessalonians to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thess. 5:17). If you are not sure how to get started, a good habit is to pray before meals. If we pray before we eat, we will remember to be thankful for what we have at least two or three times a day. It’s also a good way to remind ourselves of those who may not have all the blessings we do and to pray for them as well.
Prayer strengthens our relationship with God, as well as with those we pray for and with. It also reminds us of another important way we build the church – by helping those in need. It’s good to pray, but we must put feet to our prayers. The believers in Acts 2 shared what they had, even selling what they didn’t need in order to give to the poor. Later in Acts 6, we learn that the early church had a system for taking care of widows, who were among the most vulnerable in that society. We also learn about a woman named Dorcas, who made clothes for the poor. These early saints are examples to us.
Even though we live in a vastly different culture, there are still ways we can serve those who need our help. I am proud that STHPC contributes so much to SMUM – the Santa Maria Urban Ministry – to the Maternity Clinic in Buea, Cameroon, to immigrants in the Pajaro area, and many other good causes. Let’s constantly be on the look-out for how we can help “the least of these” brothers and sisters and reach out a helping hand.
Finally, it is said that these early Christians “broke bread” together. While it is certain that they shared many common meals, this phrase has a special significance. It is used to refer to the Lord’s Supper, which would have been celebrated in people’s homes, as no church buildings existed at that time. But it is not the building that makes this sacrament holy; it is our presence as “living stones” and Christ’s spiritual presence with us in the bread and cup. As we collectively remember all that Jesus did for us, how his body was broken and his blood was shed on the cross that our sins might be forgiven, we are strengthened for service and reminded to love one another, as Christ love us.
All of these actions – Bible study, fellowship, prayer, service, and sharing in Holy Communion – strengthen our faith, and strengthen the bonds between us as living stones. These are all ways we can work together to build the church, grounded on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ, our cornerstone. You have probably heard the story about the man who came upon two stone masons at work on a medieval church. He asked the first one what he was doing. The worker impatiently answered, “Can’t you see? I’m laying stones.” But when he asked the second man, the mason stood up proudly and proclaimed, “I’m building a cathedral for the glory of God.” Here at Santa Teresa Hills we are each living stones, working together to build a church for the glory of God.
Let us pray: Lord we thank you for making us all a part of your church, the body of Christ. Thank you that each of us is important and has something to contribute. As we work together to build your church, help each of us to do our part as living stones, built on the cornerstone of Christ. Amen.
Sermon @Deborah Troester, 2026