“For we are both God’s workers. And you are God’s field. You are God’s building. Because of God’s grace to me, I have laid the foundation like an expert builder. Now others are building on it. But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have—Jesus Christ.”
1 Corinthians 3:9-11 NLT
I watched a man recently digging a series of trenches that were to become the foundation of his new house. He had a mini digger which removed all the otherwise hard and back-breaking shovel work, but it still took him quite a while to penetrate the heavy West-Fife clay and prepare the ground. The following week, a ready-mixed concrete lorry delivered what was to become the foundations to his new dwelling. A process that was labour-intensive, ultimately unseen, but necessary. But houses built nearby in the Victorian era had no such care taken with their foundations, because there was a practice of building directly onto the ground without any consideration of the effects of the load of the house above. And in another place near where I live, several houses started to sink because an unknown mine shaft was directly below them. Sometimes, even adequate foundations can be insufficient.
Paul wrote that the Corinthians were “God’s building”, and Paul laid their foundation, “like an expert builder”, and he went on to say that “now others are building on it”. He used an analogy which aptly connected with the process of growing a new Christian because the foundation on which he built was Jesus Christ Himself. There is no better start to a believer’s life than a sound doctrinal and Biblical foundation. But sadly, some have been converted by a “Gospel” that lacks the proper credentials and content, and results in disappointment and dismay. Jesus taught about foundations in a parable that we find in Matthew 7. He started with this verse, “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock”. That’s a good place to pause because there was nothing easy about Jesus’ teaching. For example, here are a couple of verses from a previous chapter that are especially hard for men to follow, “You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:27-28). And here’s another one further down in the same chapter, “You have heard the law that says, ‘Love your neighbour’ and hate your enemy. But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!” (Matthew 5:43-44). But Jesus was clear that unless a new believer could follow and apply such teaching, his or her foundation would otherwise be somewhat fragile and would lead to the result the other builder in Jesus’ parable experienced. Matthew 7:26, “But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand”. In both cases, the storms of life would buffet and bluster against the “buildings” built by the good and not-so-good builders, with one house standing strong and the other collapsing into a pile of bricks. The Corinthian Christians who were in Paul’s mind were very blessed because he laid a proper foundation of Scripture and the teaching of Jesus as revealed to him, with his messages supported and endorsed by the Holy Spirit working through miracles and signs. A solid foundation for sure, and one that became his legacy with the writings and teachings contained in his epistles. Paul knew that a new believer with a proper foundation was always going to be resilient and resistant to the attacks that were to come in his or her life. The one that had perhaps been converted with a Gospel based purely on the single thought that God loves them, was always going to be vulnerable to the devil’s attacks. The devil destroyed Eve with his question, “Did God really say …” (Genesis 3:1), and he will do the same with them, introducing doubts into their minds about God’s love when a problem or challenge emerges. At such a time, the devil’s question will be “Does God really love you …” or “surely a loving God wouldn’t have allowed that to happen to you”? The foundation that Jesus taught about started with John 3:16, ” … whosoever believes in Him …”, and that was the basis of Paul’s foundation, the foundation that was Jesus Christ Himself.
In Ephesians 2:20, Paul succinctly referred once again to believers being a building, “Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself“. A drone view of a housing estate will portray many little boxes all isolated from each other, separate buildings where the occupants need to have no contact with other residents. But not so in the Christian life. We are all being built into a single building, God’s house, with everything being built on Christ, the Cornerstone, the only Foundation required. John 14:1-2 records the words of Jesus about the life to come, a “house” that He is preparing for us. He said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?” There has been much conjecture and even a few jokes about this place, a “building” of which we have no idea. But the picture emerges that what Jesus is building for us is going to be wonderfully amazing, because it will be God’s house. We pilgrims, however, have to be founded and built here on this earth in a way that will fit into God’s house. The wrong foundation on earth will produce a lop-sided structure that might not fit very well, if at all, when we come to knock on the door with the address 1 Heaven, expecting to be shown our room.
Are we pilgrims sure of our foundation? If we have any doubts then we must ask the Holy Spirit for guidance and He will lead us into all truth (John 15:26). It is amazing how His gentle whispers and nudges will steer us back onto the right path, and He will fill the gaps and blemishes in our foundation, allowing the building of our lives to continue.
O Lord. We love You and worship You today. You are the foundation on which we build our lives, and we ask for guidance to lead us in the right way. We know that You will never disappoint us, and we thank You that You bless us with Your presence day by day. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 