The Love One Another Podcast | Episode 08 - Building on the Foundation of Christ

This is the Love One Another podcast from Beach Point Church.

Together, we're exploring the first letter to the Corinthians with the hope that we will be formed by the wave of the cross and the love of the one who bore it.

In midday, as this letter says, we are nothing without love.

Love empowered by the Spirit through the work of Jesus is an unstoppable force.

It invites each of us to join God in the work of redeeming all things back to God.

With that in mind, let's open our hearts to God's word today.

1 Corinthians 3, verses 10 to 23.

1 Corinthians 3:10–23

By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder and someone else is building on it.

But each one should build with care.

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay, or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the day will bring it to light.

It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each person's work.

If what has been built survives, the builder will receive a reward.

If it is burned up, the builder will suffer loss, but yet will be saved, even though only as one escaping through the flames.

Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple, and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst?

If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy that person, for God's temple is sacred, and you together are that temple.

Do not deceive yourselves.

If any of you think you are wise by the standard of this age, you should become fools, so that you will become wise.

For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight.

As it is written, he catches the wise in their craftiness.

And again, the Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile.

So then, no more boasting about human leaders.

All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world, or life or death, or the present or the future.

All are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.

What you build matters, but what you build on matters even more.

For decades, our church has built homes in Mexico for families in need.

Anyone who's been on one of these trips knows how crucial the first phase is.

Everything begins with the foundation.

If the concrete isn't level, if the frame isn't square, the rest of the project is at risk.

One year we learned that lesson the hard way.

We were just a little off, and that minor misalignment ultimately affected everything.

Walls didn't fit, angles were off.

It was frustrating and messy.

Thankfully, a group of expert builders from another site helped us realign the structure and make it right.

After a lot of extra effort, the house was finished, safe and sturdy, but the takeaway was obvious.

It all starts with the foundation.

That's precisely what Paul is getting at in this section of his letter to the Corinthians.

He switches metaphors from a field to a building.

But this isn't just any structure.

Paul calls it the temple, not a physical one of stone and gold, but a spiritual one, made of people who follow Jesus.

We, together, are God's new temple.

His Spirit lives in us.

And what is the foundation of this new temple?

Jesus Christ.

From the beginning, the church was founded on the message of the gospel, centered on Christ's crucifixion and resurrection.

Paul says, if you build on anything else, everything else is at risk.

It's like starting with a crooked frame.

It may not look like much at first, but in time, it all begins to fall apart.

But the foundation is only the beginning.

Paul challenges the church to consider what kind of materials they are building with.

Are we building with things that last, like gold and silver, or with things that burn up, like wood and straw?

He's pointed ahead to the day of the Lord when all our work will be tested and to reveal what was truly worthwhile.

This is a call to integrity.

This is a crooked frame affects everything built on it.

Our spiritual lives affect everything around us.

God takes seriously how we build his church.

Do we?

The good news is that each of us has something to offer.

Paul will continue to teach that we have been given spiritual gifts, not to keep for ourselves, but to use for the sake of others.

Those gifts, when aligned with the foundation of Jesus, become building blocks for a community that reflects the kingdom of God.

And so we ask, what are we building?

Are we investing our lives in things that will last?

Is Jesus the foundation, or have we allowed something else to take his place?

Watch out, Paul says, because the way we build matters.

But the foundation Jesus makes all the difference.

Here's a few questions for reflection.

What am I currently building my life, my relationships, or my ministry on?

Are there areas where I've substituted Jesus with something less solid like approval, success, or comfort?

What kind of materials am I using to build?

Do my actions, attitudes, and priorities reflect eternal values like faith, love, and truth?

Or temporary ones like recognition, convenience, or control?

How am I using my gifts to build up the church community?

Am I offering what I have in a way that contributes to a healthy, unified church that reflects Christ's love?

Join me in this prayer, and as I pray, just agree alongside the things you hear as it resonates in your heart.

Lord Jesus, you are the true foundation of my life and your church.

Thank you for your grace to build on something unshakable.

Your love, your cross, and your resurrection.

Search my heart and reveal where I may be building on lesser things.

Realign what is crooked.

Help me invest my time, energy, and gifts in what truly lasts.

I want to be part of building a community that reflects your character, one of love, sacrifice, and unity.

Strengthen me to build with integrity and to honor you in every choice I make.

May our church shine as a living temple where your spirit dwells and where others can clearly see that we are your disciples by the way we love one another.

We pray these things in your name.

Amen.

Thank you for taking intentional time to align yourself with God's love and the call to love one another.

You can find the Love One Another Sermon Series and other resources at Beachpoint.com slash messages or on the Beach Point Church app.

May you carry the love of God into every encounter you have today.