“Jesus said to them, ‘Have you never read in the scriptures: “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes”? Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.’ (Matthew 21:42-44)  The final parable in Matthew 21 is a grim judgment on religious complacency.  It is a warning to all of us in the church that we are only stewards and not the owner-operators of our Lord’s gracious entry into our broken world.  Jesus is of course the rock, the founding stone upon which all else is built.  Without him, all of our plans, no matter how grand or well-intended are able to stand.  And at the same time, he is the big rock in our way.  We may try to go around him; we may stop dead in our tracks or even try to retreat.  But it is with him, the great rock in the world’s way with whom we must deal.  Still, if we will trust him, we will find that the obstacle to our half-baked plans and half-hearted attempts at discipleship has now become the new way (the only way) to true life.  And that truth brothers and sisters, whether you’ve been following him for five months or fifty years, will still be “amazing in your eyes.”