Building The Right Way
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· 39 viewsone day God will judge our labors as related to the local assembly. “The fire will test the quality of each man’s work”. God is concerned that we build with quality.
Notes
Transcript
9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But each one must direct his attention to how he is building upon it.
11 For no one is able to lay another foundation than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
12 Now if anyone builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, straw,
13 the work of each one will become evident. For the day will reveal it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the work of each one, of what sort it is.
14 If anyone’s work that he has built upon it remains, he will receive a reward.
15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, but so as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and the Spirit of God dwells in you?
17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy this one. For God’s temple is holy, which you are.
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks himself to be wise among you in this age, let him become a fool, in order that he may become wise.
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, for it is written, “The one who catches the wise in their craftiness,”
20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”
21 So then, let no one boast in people. For all things are yours,
22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come, all things are yours,
23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
Intro:
Do you remember the story of the three little pigs? I remember reading it in grade school. The story of three little pigs who set out to build houses of their own after the Momma pig tells them their too big to live in her house any longer.
The first little pig runs into man with a load of straw and he quickly constructs a house made of this material, the second little pig runs into a man with a load of sticks and be quickly builds a house out of this material…but the 3rd little pig runs into a man with a load of bricks…and Mud builds a strong house with two windows and a chimney…it’s a house make to last/ when the big bad wolf comes calling…when he huffs and puffs…the first two houses come crashing down...the 2 little pigs
run for safety to the brick house…and when the big bad wolf comes calling he cannot blow this house down…Its built to last…and when he tries to sneak in the chimney he ends up in a big pot of boiling water…the 3 pigs live together in the brick house…happily ever after.
I don’t know if the original author of this story every read 1st Corinthians chapter three, but both stories have the same theme…when you build….build out of material that lasts.
The three little pigs story starts out "Once upon a time there were three little pigs whose mother said to them…"It's time for you to go out into the big world to build houses of your own..
They are sent out with a very specific purpose…and if we are to be a church with a powerful purpose we need to understand our mission at lest as well as these 3 little pigs.
Today we are going to be talking about building a foundation that will last. Here is what Jesus said to His followers as he sent them out into the world.
15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you protect them from the evil one.
16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify them in the truth—your word is truth.
18 Just as you sent me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.
build something that will last…Teardown, foundation, material, Plan, and Motives. And when the big bad wolf (comes huffing and puffing…it will remain standing….
The usual explanation of this passage is that it describes the building of the Christian life. We all build on Christ, but some people use good materials while others use poor materials. The kind of material you use determines the kind of reward you will get.
While this may be a valid application of this passage, it is not the basic interpretation, Paul is discussing the building of the local church, the temple of God.
Paul points out that one day God will judge our labors as related to the local assembly. “The fire will test the quality of each man’s work”
God is concerned that we build with quality.
The church does not belong to the preacher or to the congregation. It is God’s church. “Ye are God’s building” (1 Cor. 3:9). If we are going to build the local church the way God wants it built, we must meet certain conditions.
1. Teardown The Old
1. Teardown The Old
37 Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “What should we do, men and brothers?”
38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
2. Lay The Right Foundation
2. Lay The Right Foundation
10 According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But each one must direct his attention to how he is building upon it.
11 For no one is able to lay another foundation than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
That foundation is Jesus Christ.
When Paul came to Corinth, he determined to preach only Christ and Him crucified (1 Cor. 2:1–2).
He laid the only foundation that would last.
There are churches” try to build on a famous preacher or a special method or a doctrinal emphasis they felt was important; but these ministries simply did not last.
The Corinthians were emphasizing personalities—Paul, Peter, Apollos—when they should have been glorifying Christ.
The foundation is laid by the proclaiming of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The foundation is the most important part of the building, because it determines the size, shape, and strength of the superstructure.
A ministry may seem to be successful for a time, but if it is not founded on Christ, it will eventually collapse and disappear.
3. Build With The Right Material
3. Build With The Right Material
12 Now if anyone builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, grass, straw,
13 the work of each one will become evident. For the day will reveal it, because it will be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the work of each one, of what sort it is.
14 If anyone’s work that he has built upon it remains, he will receive a reward.
15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, but so as through fire.
16 Do you not know that you are God’s temple and the Spirit of God dwells in you?
17 If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy this one. For God’s temple is holy, which you are.
Paul described two opposite kinds of materials, as the chart reveals.
Gold, Silver, Precious Stones
Permanent
Beautiful
Valuable
Hard to obtain
Wood, Hay, Stubble
Passing, temporary
Ordinary, even ugly
Cheap
Easy to obtain
What did Paul want to symbolize by his choice of materials?
He is not talking about people, because Christians are the “living stones” that make up God’s temple (1 Peter 2:5).
Paul is referring to the doctrines of the Word of God.
In each section of this chapter, the Word is symbolized in a way that fits the image of the church Paul used.
The Word is food for the family, seed for the field, and materials for the temple.
God is interested in quality as well as quantity, and Paul makes it clear that it is possible to have both.
The faithful minister can work in the field and see increase, and he can build with the Word of God and see beauty and lasting blessings.
4. Build According To The Right Plan
4. Build According To The Right Plan
18 Let no one deceive himself. If anyone thinks himself to be wise among you in this age, let him become a fool, in order that he may become wise.
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God, for it is written, “The one who catches the wise in their craftiness,”
20 and again, “The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are futile.”
It comes as a shock to some church members that you cannot manage a local church the same way you run a business.
This does not mean we should not follow good business principles, but the operation is totally different.
There is a wisdom of this world that works for the world, but it will not work for the church.
The world depends on promotion, prestige, and the influence of money and important people.
The church depends on prayer, the power of the Spirit, humility, sacrifice, and service.
The church that imitates the world may seem to succeed in time, but it will turn to ashes in eternity.
The church in the Book of Acts had none of the “secrets of success” that seem to be important today. They owned no property; they had no influence in government; they had no treasury (“Silver and gold have I none,” said Peter); their leaders were ordinary men without special education in the accepted schools; they held no attendance contests; they brought in no celebrities; and yet they turned the world upside down!
5. Build With The Right Motive
5. Build With The Right Motive
21 So then, let no one boast in people. For all things are yours,
22 whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or things present or things to come, all things are yours,
23 and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
That motive is the glory of God. The members of the Corinthian church were glorying in men, and this was wrong. They were comparing men (1 Cor. 4:6) and dividing the church by such carnal deeds. Had they been seeking to glorify God alone, there would have been harmony in the assembly.