WEBVTT 00:00:00.650 --> 00:00:03.609 Today we come to the next passage in the book 00:00:03.609 --> 00:00:06.750 of 1st Corinthians as we have been steadily working 00:00:06.750 --> 00:00:10.570 our way. We are in chapter 3 verses 9 through 00:00:10.570 --> 00:00:14.570 17. I'd like to speak today on architects and 00:00:14.570 --> 00:00:18.510 builders of God's building, the church and the 00:00:18.510 --> 00:00:23.910 temple of God. Let's look at our passage here 00:00:23.910 --> 00:00:26.210 and read from God's word beginning in verse 9. 00:00:27.329 --> 00:00:31.589 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's 00:00:31.589 --> 00:00:37.469 field. You are God's building. According to the 00:00:37.469 --> 00:00:40.969 grace of God which was given to me, as a wise 00:00:40.969 --> 00:00:44.229 master builder, I have laid the foundation, and 00:00:44.229 --> 00:00:48.170 another builds on it. But let each one take heed 00:00:48.170 --> 00:00:51.990 how he builds on it. For no other foundation 00:00:51.990 --> 00:00:55.649 can anyone lay than that which is laid, which 00:00:55.649 --> 00:00:59.170 is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this 00:00:59.170 --> 00:01:02.590 foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, 00:01:02.929 --> 00:01:08.370 wood, hay, and straw, each one's work will become 00:01:08.370 --> 00:01:12.090 clear, for the day will declare it, because it 00:01:12.090 --> 00:01:15.650 will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test 00:01:15.650 --> 00:01:20.150 each one's work of what sort it is. If anyone's 00:01:20.150 --> 00:01:22.629 work which he has built on it endures, he will 00:01:22.629 --> 00:01:26.290 receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, 00:01:26.840 --> 00:01:30.319 he will suffer loss, but he himself will be saved, 00:01:30.480 --> 00:01:34.459 yet so as through fire. Do you not know that 00:01:34.459 --> 00:01:37.040 you are the temple of God and that the Spirit 00:01:37.040 --> 00:01:41.060 of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple 00:01:41.060 --> 00:01:45.060 of God, God will destroy him, for the temple 00:01:45.060 --> 00:01:50.900 of God is holy, which temple you are. Let's pray 00:01:50.900 --> 00:01:52.780 and ask for the Lord's blessing on this time. 00:01:53.659 --> 00:01:57.219 Father, I pray today, Lord, that you by your 00:01:57.219 --> 00:01:59.579 spirit would illuminate this passage and give 00:01:59.579 --> 00:02:02.480 us understanding. I pray, Lord, that I might 00:02:02.480 --> 00:02:05.019 teach it properly and according to sound doctrine. 00:02:05.480 --> 00:02:08.560 I ask, Lord, that you would send forth your spirit. 00:02:09.560 --> 00:02:12.280 We look to you and we depend on you, O Lord, 00:02:12.439 --> 00:02:16.039 as we consider what you say to the church in 00:02:16.039 --> 00:02:18.659 this passage. We ask for your blessing in this 00:02:18.659 --> 00:02:21.639 time together. In Christ's name we pray. Amen. 00:02:25.550 --> 00:02:31.530 You are God's field. You are God's building. 00:02:32.430 --> 00:02:35.569 With these words from Paul the Apostle in verse 00:02:35.569 --> 00:02:39.370 9, there seems to be a shift in metaphor from 00:02:39.370 --> 00:02:43.669 that of a field to a building. That is of the 00:02:43.669 --> 00:02:47.849 new temple in the New Jerusalem that was prophesied 00:02:47.849 --> 00:02:51.370 in the Old Testament and written about in the 00:02:51.370 --> 00:02:55.669 New Testament. And yet, is it a shift? Or is 00:02:55.669 --> 00:02:59.050 it perhaps even a combination of the two? G .K. 00:02:59.069 --> 00:03:01.150 Beal seems to think so and points out that in 00:03:01.150 --> 00:03:04.409 the Old Testament, the Garden of Eden, that is 00:03:04.409 --> 00:03:08.229 Israel's garden -like promised land, and Israel's 00:03:08.229 --> 00:03:11.669 future restoration in a garden -like land, were 00:03:11.669 --> 00:03:16.229 either equated or associated together with a 00:03:16.229 --> 00:03:20.810 temple. As Peter Lightheart summarizes, the Bible 00:03:20.810 --> 00:03:24.189 moves from the Garden of Eden in Genesis where 00:03:24.189 --> 00:03:27.250 Adam was to act as a gardener priest, and it 00:03:27.250 --> 00:03:31.229 goes to the final city, which represents the 00:03:31.229 --> 00:03:36.509 perfection of that garden. Thus, the two metaphors, 00:03:36.509 --> 00:03:39.569 that of you are God's field and you are God's 00:03:39.569 --> 00:03:43.889 building, are quite tied together. You are both 00:03:43.889 --> 00:03:48.469 a field and God's building. Now, the word begins 00:03:48.469 --> 00:03:54.180 here with you are, and as you may know, The Greek 00:03:54.180 --> 00:03:59.360 language has many more tenses than what English 00:03:59.360 --> 00:04:01.599 language does. And so sometimes when you get 00:04:01.599 --> 00:04:04.460 into translation of the Bible, it's hard to convey 00:04:04.460 --> 00:04:08.539 everything. So this you are is, now get this 00:04:08.539 --> 00:04:11.520 straight, second person plural present indicative. 00:04:12.180 --> 00:04:16.279 Okay? So let me repeat that. Second person plural 00:04:16.279 --> 00:04:22.079 present indicative. Y 'all right now are God's 00:04:22.079 --> 00:04:24.920 building. You are God's temple. You are God's 00:04:24.920 --> 00:04:29.079 people. You are God's field. This beautiful temple 00:04:29.079 --> 00:04:33.480 resides in Zion, that is God's city, which is 00:04:33.480 --> 00:04:37.680 a place of worship. Christ's church functioning 00:04:37.680 --> 00:04:44.319 as a city set on a hill that brings healing and 00:04:44.319 --> 00:04:48.860 life to the nations. The final state then of 00:04:48.860 --> 00:04:51.579 all believers is not a return to the primitive 00:04:51.579 --> 00:04:55.579 garden, but it is a glorified garden in the city 00:04:55.579 --> 00:05:00.319 of the New Jerusalem. This, of course, is contrasted 00:05:00.319 --> 00:05:03.579 with what John in Revelation calls the harlot 00:05:03.579 --> 00:05:07.279 city. The city of Babylon. This is a destructive 00:05:07.279 --> 00:05:11.100 city. It is doomed for damnation. And from which 00:05:11.100 --> 00:05:15.160 God's people are called to flee. As he says in 00:05:15.160 --> 00:05:18.569 chapter 18 verse 4 of Revelation. Come out of 00:05:18.569 --> 00:05:21.810 her, my people, lest you share in her sins and 00:05:21.810 --> 00:05:25.250 lest you receive of her plagues. So we see this 00:05:25.250 --> 00:05:28.870 huge contrast between the city of man that is 00:05:28.870 --> 00:05:31.870 the city that is doomed for destruction, also 00:05:31.870 --> 00:05:35.069 called the Babylon or the harlot city. And we 00:05:35.069 --> 00:05:38.589 see the city of God, which is also a beautiful 00:05:38.589 --> 00:05:42.470 temple. We're going to be speaking a little bit 00:05:42.470 --> 00:05:46.230 more about that. Now, it's important to emphasize 00:05:46.230 --> 00:05:50.329 this. Because so many Christians have a very 00:05:50.329 --> 00:05:54.569 low view of Christ's church, which is the temple 00:05:54.569 --> 00:05:57.689 of God. And they think that all that is important 00:05:57.689 --> 00:06:04.449 is, like the Josh Turner song, me and God. Just 00:06:04.449 --> 00:06:08.120 me and God. Me and God. And as long as I can 00:06:08.120 --> 00:06:10.579 worship anywhere, that's all that matters, whether 00:06:10.579 --> 00:06:12.420 that's in the field or in the mountains each 00:06:12.420 --> 00:06:14.759 weekend or on the beach or in the privacy of 00:06:14.759 --> 00:06:18.360 my home where I stream a sermon online. Well, 00:06:18.480 --> 00:06:20.920 indeed, you can worship God in prayer everywhere 00:06:20.920 --> 00:06:23.500 at any time, and that is a glorious and wonderful 00:06:23.500 --> 00:06:27.500 truth. God's church, however, is described in 00:06:27.500 --> 00:06:32.199 corporate terms. You all, in other words. As 00:06:32.199 --> 00:06:35.600 a building with many stones being built together 00:06:35.600 --> 00:06:40.220 into this glorious temple. You all are that building. 00:06:40.339 --> 00:06:44.579 Even as Peter describes in chapter 2 verse 4 00:06:44.579 --> 00:06:48.379 and 5. Which we read in our responsive reading. 00:06:48.579 --> 00:06:51.980 Coming to him as a living stone. Rejected indeed 00:06:51.980 --> 00:06:56.379 by men. But chosen by God and precious. You also. 00:06:57.360 --> 00:07:02.839 As living stones are being built up together 00:07:02.839 --> 00:07:06.939 in a spiritual house, a holy priesthood to offer 00:07:06.939 --> 00:07:10.540 up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through 00:07:10.540 --> 00:07:15.379 Christ Jesus. This is corporate sacrificial language 00:07:15.379 --> 00:07:20.759 or as we call it covenant renewal worship. God 00:07:20.759 --> 00:07:24.000 builds us up. God feeds us together from his 00:07:24.000 --> 00:07:27.680 word and sacrament. And we, what do we do? Why, 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:31.060 we offer up sacrifices to him. That is, spiritual 00:07:31.060 --> 00:07:36.220 sacrifices of prayer, of confession, of consecration. 00:07:36.319 --> 00:07:40.339 And thus we together worship our God, our triune 00:07:40.339 --> 00:07:45.540 God, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Now Paul 00:07:45.540 --> 00:07:50.519 speaks of this building in two senses. The first 00:07:50.519 --> 00:07:54.740 sense is, in the church small c catholic that's 00:07:54.740 --> 00:07:57.699 the church catholic which means universal this 00:07:57.699 --> 00:07:59.800 is not referring to the roman catholic church 00:07:59.800 --> 00:08:03.040 it is the church that is it's christ's church 00:08:03.040 --> 00:08:06.060 throughout all ages in the past and present and 00:08:06.060 --> 00:08:09.459 in all places and we are all built up together 00:08:09.459 --> 00:08:12.759 into this glorious building and city that is 00:08:12.759 --> 00:08:15.819 built over centuries and even millennia this 00:08:15.819 --> 00:08:19.980 is the sense for example in hebrews chapter 12 00:08:19.980 --> 00:08:24.829 verse 22 But you have come to Mount Zion and 00:08:24.829 --> 00:08:28.089 to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, 00:08:28.389 --> 00:08:32.529 to an innumerable company of angels, to the general 00:08:32.529 --> 00:08:35.710 assembly and church of the firstborn who are 00:08:35.710 --> 00:08:38.990 registered in heaven, to God the judge of all, 00:08:39.129 --> 00:08:42.590 to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus 00:08:42.590 --> 00:08:45.289 the mediator of the new covenant, and to the 00:08:45.289 --> 00:08:47.450 blood of sprinkling that speaks better things 00:08:47.450 --> 00:08:51.259 than that of Abel. You have come to this. This 00:08:51.259 --> 00:08:54.679 is the grand and glorious edifice of the church 00:08:54.679 --> 00:08:57.860 of Jesus Christ. It's a beautiful temple that 00:08:57.860 --> 00:09:01.679 is throughout all the time of the ages and is 00:09:01.679 --> 00:09:04.679 found throughout the whole world. So that's the 00:09:04.679 --> 00:09:08.460 first sense of a building that Paul speaks about. 00:09:08.639 --> 00:09:11.639 But the second sense... And this is the one from 00:09:11.639 --> 00:09:14.679 the passage today, is that when he is speaking 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:16.919 of a building, he's speaking of an individual 00:09:16.919 --> 00:09:21.379 church. He is writing to the church at Corinth, 00:09:21.620 --> 00:09:24.899 the Corinthian church. It's what we might call 00:09:24.899 --> 00:09:27.980 the church particular. It's the congregation 00:09:27.980 --> 00:09:31.679 in Corinth in his time, the one that he founded 00:09:31.679 --> 00:09:34.419 as recorded in the book of Acts, chapter 18. 00:09:35.460 --> 00:09:39.480 This local congregation is also called a building. 00:09:40.009 --> 00:09:44.809 And Paul is the master builder who laid the foundation 00:09:44.809 --> 00:09:48.500 for it. So let's move now into the passage here 00:09:48.500 --> 00:09:51.620 and look at it and examine it more closely. The 00:09:51.620 --> 00:09:54.720 first thing is beginning in verse 10. According 00:09:54.720 --> 00:09:57.120 to the grace of God, he says, which was given 00:09:57.120 --> 00:10:01.840 to me as a wise master builder, I have laid the 00:10:01.840 --> 00:10:04.840 foundation and another builds on it. But let 00:10:04.840 --> 00:10:08.419 each one take heed how he builds on it. So our 00:10:08.419 --> 00:10:11.940 first point is a skilled and a wise master builder. 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:15.879 Paul says, according to the grace given to me. 00:10:16.360 --> 00:10:19.320 That is, Paul, the former persecutor of the Christian 00:10:19.320 --> 00:10:22.980 church, was going to far off places in order 00:10:22.980 --> 00:10:26.700 to do what? To apprehend, to imprison, and to 00:10:26.700 --> 00:10:29.320 call for the execution of Christian believers. 00:10:29.820 --> 00:10:33.460 This man was changed by the power of God. He 00:10:33.460 --> 00:10:36.419 was converted by the grace and the mercy of God. 00:10:36.720 --> 00:10:40.350 Paul describes this. To King Agrippa in Acts 00:10:40.350 --> 00:10:44.169 chapter 26, verse 11, he says, I punished them 00:10:44.169 --> 00:10:48.090 often in every synagogue. I compelled them to 00:10:48.090 --> 00:10:52.850 blaspheme and being exceedingly enraged against 00:10:52.850 --> 00:10:57.019 them, I persecuted them even. To foreign cities. 00:10:57.399 --> 00:11:00.519 But then he goes on to tell the king. How Jesus 00:11:00.519 --> 00:11:03.399 commanded him. After being struck down by the 00:11:03.399 --> 00:11:06.759 light. After speaking to him. And calling him. 00:11:06.940 --> 00:11:11.399 What does Jesus say to him? He says Paul. Rise 00:11:11.399 --> 00:11:14.139 and stand on your feet. Or Saul actually his 00:11:14.139 --> 00:11:16.899 name was then. Rise and stand on your feet. For 00:11:16.899 --> 00:11:19.740 I have appeared to you for this purpose. To make 00:11:19.740 --> 00:11:23.950 you. a minister and a witness both of the things 00:11:23.950 --> 00:11:26.289 which you have seen and of the things which I 00:11:26.289 --> 00:11:28.809 will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from 00:11:28.809 --> 00:11:31.590 the Jewish people as well as from the Gentiles 00:11:31.590 --> 00:11:35.639 to whom I now send you. to open their eyes in 00:11:35.639 --> 00:11:38.500 order to turn them from darkness to light and 00:11:38.500 --> 00:11:41.259 from the power of Satan to God, that they may 00:11:41.259 --> 00:11:44.179 receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance 00:11:44.179 --> 00:11:47.799 among those who are sanctified by faith in me. 00:11:48.039 --> 00:11:51.240 It's all in Acts chapter 26. God miraculously 00:11:51.240 --> 00:11:55.500 changed this man from being a persecutor to being 00:11:55.500 --> 00:12:00.740 the persecuted. He called him to serve him. How? 00:12:00.840 --> 00:12:05.860 As a builder of his church. He continues, verse 00:12:05.860 --> 00:12:08.940 19, he says, Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not 00:12:08.940 --> 00:12:11.700 disobedient to the heavenly vision, but declared 00:12:11.700 --> 00:12:15.259 first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem and 00:12:15.259 --> 00:12:17.820 throughout all the region of Judea and then to 00:12:17.820 --> 00:12:20.639 the Gentiles that they should repent, turn to 00:12:20.639 --> 00:12:24.370 God, and do works befitting repentance. This 00:12:24.370 --> 00:12:28.429 is the grace given to Paul. And he says, according 00:12:28.429 --> 00:12:31.409 to the grace given to me, it is the grace of 00:12:31.409 --> 00:12:35.610 the mercy of God toward him in granting him unmerited 00:12:35.610 --> 00:12:39.330 favor in sparing his life, giving him a new regenerate 00:12:39.330 --> 00:12:42.289 heart and fitting him for a new calling. But 00:12:42.289 --> 00:12:47.490 this is also in giving him a grace gift, a grace 00:12:47.490 --> 00:12:51.730 gift as an apostle and as a church builder and 00:12:51.730 --> 00:12:55.120 planter. Paul is then later sent out by the church 00:12:55.120 --> 00:12:58.360 in Antioch with Barnabas and then Silas to travel 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:02.200 throughout Asia and through Europe to evangelize 00:13:02.200 --> 00:13:05.159 and to build churches, as he puts it in Romans 00:13:05.159 --> 00:13:09.980 15, 17, in every area where Christ was not named. 00:13:10.419 --> 00:13:16.240 This is Paul as a master builder. He writes this. 00:13:16.360 --> 00:13:20.179 He's a wise master builder. He has laid the foundation 00:13:20.179 --> 00:13:23.559 that others will build on. Now the word master 00:13:23.559 --> 00:13:26.419 builder means both a designer and a builder, 00:13:26.580 --> 00:13:29.919 an architect and a supervisor in the erection 00:13:29.919 --> 00:13:32.679 of the building. Paul was not a novice. He was 00:13:32.679 --> 00:13:35.379 one who was skilled in wisdom, and he laid the 00:13:35.379 --> 00:13:38.639 foundation of the Corinthian church, as well 00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:41.399 as many others. But we're in this passage, in 00:13:41.399 --> 00:13:43.940 the book of Corinthians, and this is the sense 00:13:43.940 --> 00:13:47.220 of the context, as was his custom in many cities. 00:13:47.440 --> 00:13:49.740 How did he begin? Well, he first went into the 00:13:49.740 --> 00:13:52.220 Jewish synagogue, and he taught the word of God. 00:13:52.440 --> 00:13:54.740 Now, this was a great advantage in one respect, 00:13:54.840 --> 00:13:58.590 because synagogues in the Roman Empire taught 00:13:58.590 --> 00:14:00.950 out of the scripture, that of the Old Testament. 00:14:01.169 --> 00:14:04.149 And many Gentile people who were God -fearers 00:14:04.149 --> 00:14:07.509 came there, came to the Jewish synagogues to 00:14:07.509 --> 00:14:10.350 hear the word of God. They wanted to hear the 00:14:10.350 --> 00:14:13.370 word of God. So they didn't become proselytes, 00:14:13.409 --> 00:14:18.370 but they came to hear the word. And so, therefore, 00:14:18.690 --> 00:14:21.669 many Gentiles were biblically literate. They 00:14:21.669 --> 00:14:25.480 had been hearing God's word. And this gave Paul 00:14:25.480 --> 00:14:28.639 an excellent place to begin because as he would 00:14:28.639 --> 00:14:31.340 go into the synagogue, he was a visiting rabbi 00:14:31.340 --> 00:14:33.980 and he would be asked to read and to give the 00:14:33.980 --> 00:14:37.179 sense of the passage, which he readily accepted. 00:14:37.200 --> 00:14:40.340 And then he would preach Christ and demonstrating 00:14:40.340 --> 00:14:44.620 how to preach Christ out of the Old Testament. 00:14:45.299 --> 00:14:48.960 And we can learn a lot from this because the 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:51.990 Old Testament is filled. not just with wonderful 00:14:51.990 --> 00:14:57.169 stories, but it speaks of Christ. Even the stories 00:14:57.169 --> 00:14:59.370 in the Old Testament that we read, you know, 00:14:59.409 --> 00:15:02.169 those children's stories where we think of them, 00:15:02.269 --> 00:15:05.190 that, you know, we tell the stories to children 00:15:05.190 --> 00:15:07.990 about David and Goliath and about the children 00:15:07.990 --> 00:15:10.389 of Israel going through the Red Sea and how God 00:15:10.389 --> 00:15:13.870 parted the waters and how God delivered them 00:15:13.870 --> 00:15:16.509 from their enemies so many times. You know, for 00:15:16.509 --> 00:15:21.659 example, the one where, you know, enemy to the 00:15:21.659 --> 00:15:25.480 people of God is so worn out and he's so tired 00:15:25.480 --> 00:15:28.759 and so he comes into the tent of this woman and 00:15:28.759 --> 00:15:31.480 he asks for milk and for bread and a place to 00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:34.460 lie down and so he does. She gives him something 00:15:34.460 --> 00:15:36.899 to eat and he lays down and what does she do? 00:15:36.940 --> 00:15:39.460 She picks up one of those big tent pegs and drives 00:15:39.460 --> 00:15:42.460 it through his head and kills this commander 00:15:42.460 --> 00:15:46.120 against the people of God. Well, these are not 00:15:46.120 --> 00:15:50.320 just stories. but rather they illustrate christ 00:15:50.320 --> 00:15:53.940 in many ways so for example noah and the ark 00:15:53.940 --> 00:15:56.620 noah and the ark is being saved from the waters 00:15:56.620 --> 00:15:59.600 of destruction just as we are saved by christ 00:15:59.600 --> 00:16:02.379 and we're made a member of the covenant by baptism 00:16:02.379 --> 00:16:05.919 i told you that just told you the story of jail 00:16:05.919 --> 00:16:08.519 the crushing of the head of the captain of the 00:16:08.519 --> 00:16:11.519 army what does that prefigure it prefigures christ 00:16:11.519 --> 00:16:15.169 crushing the head of the serpent which was which 00:16:15.169 --> 00:16:18.269 promise was given to Eve. And notice when you 00:16:18.269 --> 00:16:20.590 read through the Testament, how many times it 00:16:20.590 --> 00:16:23.029 speaks of the crushing of the head of the enemies 00:16:23.029 --> 00:16:26.870 of God. This is all pointing to Christ who would 00:16:26.870 --> 00:16:32.129 do this to the evil one, to Satan. And then there's 00:16:32.129 --> 00:16:34.909 also David. He's slaying the giant Goliath with 00:16:34.909 --> 00:16:37.289 a stone from the sling and then cutting off his 00:16:37.289 --> 00:16:40.490 head again, showing the same thing. So Paul would 00:16:40.490 --> 00:16:42.970 preach the Old Testament and he would point to 00:16:42.970 --> 00:16:46.509 Christ. Then when the Jews would cast him out 00:16:46.509 --> 00:16:48.889 of the synagogue, he would take those who were 00:16:48.889 --> 00:16:51.350 converted to Christ, both Jews and Greeks and 00:16:51.350 --> 00:16:54.730 all the other Gentiles, and he would begin a 00:16:54.730 --> 00:16:57.950 local Christian church. He would ordain elders, 00:16:58.210 --> 00:17:00.990 establish church order, and then he'd move on 00:17:00.990 --> 00:17:03.889 to another place and he'd do it all over again. 00:17:04.609 --> 00:17:09.250 That was what God had given him to do. And that 00:17:09.250 --> 00:17:12.019 is exactly what happened at Corinth. What I just 00:17:12.019 --> 00:17:14.880 described to you happened in the synagogue. When 00:17:14.880 --> 00:17:17.339 they threw him out, they then started meeting 00:17:17.339 --> 00:17:20.279 as the Christian church right beside the synagogue 00:17:20.279 --> 00:17:25.240 in the house of one named Justice. He then later, 00:17:25.440 --> 00:17:28.519 after he would move on to another place, he would 00:17:28.519 --> 00:17:31.539 send others in to help the church to grow and 00:17:31.539 --> 00:17:34.980 to mature. These are what he describes as building 00:17:34.980 --> 00:17:38.599 on his foundation. They would water the plants. 00:17:38.740 --> 00:17:41.559 They would lay the stones of the building. This 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:44.339 is, for example, what Apollos did at Corinth. 00:17:44.500 --> 00:17:47.640 It's what Timothy did, what Titus did, and there 00:17:47.640 --> 00:17:50.019 were many others. They would both work with Paul, 00:17:50.160 --> 00:17:52.359 and then they would also be sent to other places 00:17:52.359 --> 00:17:56.400 to serve for a time. And then Paul gives this 00:17:56.400 --> 00:18:00.799 admonishment. He says, but let each one take 00:18:00.799 --> 00:18:05.460 heed how he builds on this foundation. He says, 00:18:05.539 --> 00:18:08.880 I have laid the foundation. I am a wise master 00:18:08.880 --> 00:18:13.509 builder. Others will build on this foundation, 00:18:13.769 --> 00:18:17.730 but let each one take heed how he builds on it. 00:18:18.109 --> 00:18:22.349 Every congregation is either being built up or 00:18:22.349 --> 00:18:25.130 being torn down. And so this is an admonition 00:18:25.130 --> 00:18:28.650 to ministers of God that they must take heed 00:18:28.650 --> 00:18:35.809 on how they build Christ's church. Careful thought 00:18:35.809 --> 00:18:39.920 and prayer. and consideration on how the structure 00:18:39.920 --> 00:18:43.140 is to be built and to be maintained so that each 00:18:43.140 --> 00:18:47.299 local body will last for many generations. This 00:18:47.299 --> 00:18:49.920 is why we here at this church, we're a little 00:18:49.920 --> 00:18:52.400 over two years old, Grace Reformed Church of 00:18:52.400 --> 00:18:55.819 Weezer. We must be thinking and praying about 00:18:55.819 --> 00:18:59.019 this in the congregation. How do we build it 00:18:59.019 --> 00:19:02.440 well on the foundation that is laid so that it 00:19:02.440 --> 00:19:06.140 continues on in the faith? and doctrine of our 00:19:06.140 --> 00:19:09.259 Lord Jesus Christ, not only in our lifetime, 00:19:09.579 --> 00:19:12.740 but in the lifetime of our children and our grandchildren 00:19:12.740 --> 00:19:16.319 and our great -great -grandchildren, and hopefully 00:19:16.319 --> 00:19:20.420 for hundreds of years. So Paul's going to develop 00:19:20.420 --> 00:19:23.359 this theme a little bit further in the next verses. 00:19:23.539 --> 00:19:25.900 He's going to describe the building, that it 00:19:25.900 --> 00:19:31.859 needs to be built with living stones. And these 00:19:31.859 --> 00:19:34.700 stones should be gold, silver, and precious stones 00:19:34.700 --> 00:19:38.180 that will endure, and not ones that are made 00:19:38.180 --> 00:19:42.240 out of wood or hay or straw, which will not endure. 00:19:43.119 --> 00:19:46.240 Then he moves on in verse 11, he says, For no 00:19:46.240 --> 00:19:49.359 other foundation can anyone lay than that which 00:19:49.359 --> 00:19:53.180 is laid. which is Jesus Christ. So in the first 00:19:53.180 --> 00:19:55.299 place here, he says, I'm laying a foundation, 00:19:55.599 --> 00:19:58.559 but he says, there is no other foundation other 00:19:58.559 --> 00:20:02.000 than Jesus Christ, the one that is already laid. 00:20:02.259 --> 00:20:04.400 So I think what he's doing is not just a play 00:20:04.400 --> 00:20:07.059 on words. What he's saying is, when I go into 00:20:07.059 --> 00:20:09.980 a new city, I lay the foundation, that is, I 00:20:09.980 --> 00:20:13.559 preach Christ. I begin with Jesus Christ and 00:20:13.559 --> 00:20:17.980 him crucified. That must be the basis of any 00:20:17.980 --> 00:20:21.759 church of Jesus. It must be. If it's anything 00:20:21.759 --> 00:20:26.039 else, it won't turn out right. In order for a 00:20:26.039 --> 00:20:29.740 building to endure the test of storms, of time, 00:20:29.880 --> 00:20:32.900 and the winds of adversity and persecution, the 00:20:32.900 --> 00:20:35.259 building must be built on a right foundation. 00:20:36.759 --> 00:20:40.880 This is the principal rule of architecture. If 00:20:40.880 --> 00:20:43.339 the foundation is wrong, the whole building will 00:20:43.339 --> 00:20:46.019 not turn out right. It must be strong. The foundation 00:20:46.019 --> 00:20:49.119 must be strong. It must be correct in size relative 00:20:49.119 --> 00:20:51.859 to the size and the shape of the building being 00:20:51.859 --> 00:20:56.000 built on it. That foundation, he says, is Jesus 00:20:56.000 --> 00:21:00.339 Christ and him crucified. The true church of 00:21:00.339 --> 00:21:03.299 God can never deviate from or lose their tenacity 00:21:03.299 --> 00:21:07.299 to the solid doctrines of the faith, which must 00:21:07.299 --> 00:21:11.509 be that of Jesus. That of his birth of a virgin, 00:21:11.609 --> 00:21:15.369 his sinless life, his death upon the cross as 00:21:15.369 --> 00:21:17.950 atonement for man's sin and his resurrection 00:21:17.950 --> 00:21:21.130 from the dead and his ascension to the right 00:21:21.130 --> 00:21:24.150 hand of the Father where he rules and reigns 00:21:24.150 --> 00:21:28.700 over all. foundation must be there it must be 00:21:28.700 --> 00:21:32.240 firm it must be laid for these are crucial doctrines 00:21:32.240 --> 00:21:35.480 and teachings they cannot be abandoned nor can 00:21:35.480 --> 00:21:39.279 they be changed now jesus said and he promised 00:21:39.279 --> 00:21:45.019 that he would build his church we know that he 00:21:45.019 --> 00:21:47.539 is the foundation but he also says that he would 00:21:47.539 --> 00:21:51.220 build his church We see Jesus saying this in 00:21:51.220 --> 00:21:54.720 Matthew chapter 16, verses 18 to 19. He says, 00:21:54.859 --> 00:21:57.500 I also say to you that you are Peter, and on 00:21:57.500 --> 00:22:00.960 this rock I will build my church, and the gates 00:22:00.960 --> 00:22:04.019 of Hades shall not prevail against it. I will 00:22:04.019 --> 00:22:06.720 give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and 00:22:06.720 --> 00:22:09.059 whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, 00:22:09.220 --> 00:22:11.619 and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed 00:22:11.619 --> 00:22:14.279 in heaven. Now this is the fulfillment of two 00:22:14.279 --> 00:22:17.920 prophecies, two or more, in the Old Testament. 00:22:19.630 --> 00:22:22.210 That spoke about this in chapter 28 verse 16. 00:22:22.529 --> 00:22:26.890 Said behold I lay in Zion. A foundation. A stone. 00:22:26.950 --> 00:22:31.609 A tried stone. A precious cornerstone. A sure 00:22:31.609 --> 00:22:36.349 foundation. Zechariah also prophesied of it in 00:22:36.349 --> 00:22:40.130 chapter 6 verse 12. Thus says the Lord of hosts 00:22:40.130 --> 00:22:42.769 saying. Behold the man whose name is the branch. 00:22:43.089 --> 00:22:46.089 From his place he shall branch out. And he shall 00:22:46.089 --> 00:22:49.819 build the temple of the Lord. Yes, he shall build 00:22:49.819 --> 00:22:52.660 the temple of the Lord. He shall bear the glory 00:22:52.660 --> 00:22:55.660 and he shall sit and rule on his throne. So he 00:22:55.660 --> 00:22:58.180 shall be a priest on his throne and the council 00:22:58.180 --> 00:23:02.099 of peace shall be between them both. Jesus is 00:23:02.099 --> 00:23:06.660 the foundation and Jesus is the builder. He will 00:23:06.660 --> 00:23:11.259 build his church. But how does Jesus do this? 00:23:11.420 --> 00:23:16.579 Well, he does it with gifted people that he calls. 00:23:17.319 --> 00:23:23.420 to do the building in each day and time. And 00:23:23.420 --> 00:23:25.660 that is what Paul was saying here. He said, I 00:23:25.660 --> 00:23:28.059 am a wise master builder. In other words, I've 00:23:28.059 --> 00:23:31.460 been commissioned by Christ to build his church, 00:23:31.700 --> 00:23:35.400 and I need to do it well. I need to do it with 00:23:35.400 --> 00:23:39.779 wisdom. So also for us, while the foundation 00:23:39.779 --> 00:23:44.299 is already laid, yet we as ministers must also 00:23:44.299 --> 00:23:48.549 lay the right foundation and build on it in the 00:23:48.549 --> 00:23:51.650 local church. We cannot simply claim to be a 00:23:51.650 --> 00:23:54.509 member of the church universal without being 00:23:54.509 --> 00:23:58.390 attached to and members of a local congregation, 00:23:58.450 --> 00:24:03.170 a place with elders and ministers of God, a place 00:24:03.170 --> 00:24:06.829 where we put love into action, we love one another, 00:24:07.049 --> 00:24:12.019 and we worship God together rightly. Paul said 00:24:12.019 --> 00:24:15.019 he did this in Corinth as a wise master builder, 00:24:15.160 --> 00:24:18.039 as God's minister and his servant. Throughout 00:24:18.039 --> 00:24:21.539 all time, this must be done by making sure that 00:24:21.539 --> 00:24:24.460 the church is started in the right way and by 00:24:24.460 --> 00:24:27.460 preaching and emphasizing and teaching the supremacy 00:24:27.460 --> 00:24:31.279 of Christ and of his great work, his position 00:24:31.279 --> 00:24:35.940 and his glory based upon the word of God. I have 00:24:35.940 --> 00:24:39.759 seen churches start. over other various common 00:24:39.759 --> 00:24:42.319 beliefs. And it might just be something that 00:24:42.319 --> 00:24:44.900 is in vogue at a particular time. Back in the 00:24:44.900 --> 00:24:48.359 day, when there was a real strong push for homeschooling, 00:24:48.380 --> 00:24:51.160 churches would start because, what did they have 00:24:51.160 --> 00:24:53.700 in common? It wasn't a lot of doctrine. It was 00:24:53.700 --> 00:24:55.920 because they were homeschoolers and they wanted 00:24:55.920 --> 00:24:58.279 to visit together with other like -minded homeschoolers. 00:24:58.299 --> 00:25:00.200 They wanted to have a church together. And it 00:25:00.200 --> 00:25:02.279 didn't work out very well because the foundation 00:25:02.279 --> 00:25:06.680 that was laid was not right. Or there are others. 00:25:07.210 --> 00:25:10.250 where churches start because of hurts and wounds 00:25:10.250 --> 00:25:13.210 from a previous experience, so they want to create 00:25:13.210 --> 00:25:15.569 a space where people can commiserate together 00:25:15.569 --> 00:25:18.490 and share together in the hurts that they've 00:25:18.490 --> 00:25:21.630 had, and then they try to call it a church. Again, 00:25:21.849 --> 00:25:25.190 there's great blessing of being able to get support 00:25:25.190 --> 00:25:27.309 from other people, but that's not the reason 00:25:27.309 --> 00:25:31.289 for a church. It needs to be founded on Christ 00:25:31.289 --> 00:25:36.630 and the worship of Him. With his word as the 00:25:36.630 --> 00:25:41.170 rule and guided by his spirit. It cannot just 00:25:41.170 --> 00:25:44.789 be the fact that we have some particular common 00:25:44.789 --> 00:25:48.930 interests. Everyone must have the right and the 00:25:48.930 --> 00:25:51.710 proper foundation. And we must take heed to this 00:25:51.710 --> 00:25:56.960 and not cheat. In the foundation. Or use inferior 00:25:56.960 --> 00:26:00.180 materials. And this brings us to the next point. 00:26:00.400 --> 00:26:03.140 The kind of material. That is used to build. 00:26:03.380 --> 00:26:06.279 So Paul goes on and he speaks to this. Again 00:26:06.279 --> 00:26:11.140 using metaphors. In verse 12. Now if anyone builds 00:26:11.140 --> 00:26:15.299 on this foundation. With gold. Silver. Precious 00:26:15.299 --> 00:26:19.980 stones. Wood. Hay. And straw. Each one's work 00:26:19.980 --> 00:26:23.029 will become clear. For the day will declare it 00:26:23.029 --> 00:26:26.309 because it will be revealed by fire. And the 00:26:26.309 --> 00:26:29.690 fire will test each one's work of what sort it 00:26:29.690 --> 00:26:32.630 is. If anyone's work which he has built on it 00:26:32.630 --> 00:26:36.529 endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's 00:26:36.529 --> 00:26:40.690 work is burned, he will suffer loss. But he himself 00:26:40.690 --> 00:26:47.430 will be saved, yet so as through fire. Now this 00:26:47.430 --> 00:26:50.750 is a metaphor that requires... A little bit of 00:26:50.750 --> 00:26:54.029 digging, because what is this all speaking about? 00:26:54.349 --> 00:26:57.230 What's the gold, the silver, what's the hay, 00:26:57.390 --> 00:27:00.789 the straw? What is this fire that is spoken of 00:27:00.789 --> 00:27:05.910 here? Is this speaking of some type of purgatory 00:27:05.910 --> 00:27:08.710 as taught by the Roman Catholic Church? Indeed, 00:27:08.910 --> 00:27:12.250 they pointed to this, but I don't think... that 00:27:12.250 --> 00:27:14.410 that interpretation is correct. So let's look 00:27:14.410 --> 00:27:16.990 at it further and see if we can understand what 00:27:16.990 --> 00:27:19.829 Paul is saying in this passage. Well, first of 00:27:19.829 --> 00:27:22.029 all, it's obvious that the metaphors are not 00:27:22.029 --> 00:27:24.250 referring to actual gold or silver or precious 00:27:24.250 --> 00:27:28.480 stones or of wood, hay, and straw. Paul might 00:27:28.480 --> 00:27:30.539 have been thinking of the beautiful and costly 00:27:30.539 --> 00:27:33.240 stones of the temple in Jerusalem. They were 00:27:33.240 --> 00:27:36.539 resplendent with gold and silver, and there were 00:27:36.539 --> 00:27:40.319 also many precious stones. But he is not describing 00:27:40.319 --> 00:27:43.700 a cathedral or a physical temple because he says, 00:27:43.799 --> 00:27:48.059 you all are God's building. You all are. So he's 00:27:48.059 --> 00:27:52.200 not describing erecting an actual physical building 00:27:52.200 --> 00:27:55.750 made out of stone or gold or silver. or of wood, 00:27:55.750 --> 00:27:59.170 hay, and straw. They represent something. So 00:27:59.170 --> 00:28:01.869 what is it that they represent? Well, the reference 00:28:01.869 --> 00:28:06.509 in the next verse is each one's work. Each one's 00:28:06.509 --> 00:28:10.309 work will become clear. So which work is this? 00:28:10.950 --> 00:28:15.309 In the context, it is not the Corinthians themselves 00:28:15.309 --> 00:28:19.269 who are under scrutiny right here, but it's rather 00:28:19.269 --> 00:28:24.160 the work of those who have led them. Or those 00:28:24.160 --> 00:28:28.019 who have built them. In other words, it's their 00:28:28.019 --> 00:28:31.000 leaders. It's those who are ministering to them 00:28:31.000 --> 00:28:34.480 and guiding them. It's referring to their teachers 00:28:34.480 --> 00:28:38.859 and their teaching and the doctrine and the works 00:28:38.859 --> 00:28:42.079 that result from the teaching. Those who were 00:28:42.079 --> 00:28:44.539 building on the foundation. Let me say that again. 00:28:44.980 --> 00:28:48.440 It must refer to the teachers and their teachings 00:28:48.440 --> 00:28:53.259 and the doctrine followed by the works that came 00:28:53.259 --> 00:28:56.680 from that teaching. Gold and silver and precious 00:28:56.680 --> 00:28:59.960 stones, they are the teaching that builds up 00:28:59.960 --> 00:29:02.980 the church. It is sound doctrine that edifies 00:29:02.980 --> 00:29:07.099 the hearers and motivates them to do good deeds 00:29:07.099 --> 00:29:10.940 that glorify Christ. And wood, hay, and stubble 00:29:10.940 --> 00:29:14.799 or straw, that is doctrine that is wrong. It 00:29:14.799 --> 00:29:19.339 is in error and it brings forth bad works. Many 00:29:19.339 --> 00:29:23.039 times when Paul extols the grace that has been 00:29:23.039 --> 00:29:25.539 given to us in Christ and the forgiveness of 00:29:25.539 --> 00:29:27.980 our sins through the blood of Christ, he then 00:29:27.980 --> 00:29:30.859 immediately shows how the good works must follow 00:29:30.859 --> 00:29:33.660 that. We are not saved by our good works, but 00:29:33.660 --> 00:29:38.210 they must follow. They must follow. And he emphasizes 00:29:38.210 --> 00:29:41.690 that in a whole number of passages. And I'm not 00:29:41.690 --> 00:29:43.529 going to read them for the sake of time. But 00:29:43.529 --> 00:29:46.930 Ephesians 2 verse 10 and Philippians 2 verse 00:29:46.930 --> 00:29:51.009 13 and Titus 2 verse 14 and chapter 3, 8 and 00:29:51.009 --> 00:29:54.529 14. This is the teaching as Paul says in 1 Timothy 00:29:54.529 --> 00:29:58.410 6 verse 3. It is wholesome. It accords with the 00:29:58.410 --> 00:30:01.329 words of our Lord Jesus Christ and doctrine that 00:30:01.329 --> 00:30:04.660 accords with godliness. All ministers then are 00:30:04.660 --> 00:30:08.200 called to teach and preach, to build the congregation 00:30:08.200 --> 00:30:12.380 in such a way so that the church of God is built, 00:30:12.500 --> 00:30:15.799 God's people are edified, and they are sanctified 00:30:15.799 --> 00:30:18.960 through the word, and their lives are changed 00:30:18.960 --> 00:30:21.900 as they put what they are taught into practice. 00:30:22.220 --> 00:30:25.779 This is what needs to happen in the preaching 00:30:25.779 --> 00:30:30.000 of the word. It refers to putting off the old 00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:32.599 man and the sins of the flesh and spirit, but 00:30:32.599 --> 00:30:35.079 also the active obedience to Christ in putting 00:30:35.079 --> 00:30:37.980 on the new man and seeing the fruits of the spirit 00:30:37.980 --> 00:30:42.019 blossom and grow. And then God's people take 00:30:42.019 --> 00:30:45.920 dominion on the earth as God's people and as 00:30:45.920 --> 00:30:50.180 his instruments of mercy and of grace and of 00:30:50.180 --> 00:30:55.339 love and of building in a way throughout all 00:30:55.339 --> 00:30:59.049 of time. He then says, every man's work will 00:30:59.049 --> 00:31:05.069 become clear on the day of Christ. Now, this 00:31:05.069 --> 00:31:08.950 day can certainly only mean, in my opinion, the 00:31:08.950 --> 00:31:12.069 day of our Lord Jesus Christ. It's found in chapter 00:31:12.069 --> 00:31:15.490 1, verse 8 of 1 Corinthians. This day would especially 00:31:15.490 --> 00:31:18.869 make manifest the counsels of the heart. 1 Corinthians 00:31:18.869 --> 00:31:22.650 4, verse 5. It is a day when God will judge the 00:31:22.650 --> 00:31:26.779 secrets of men. Romans chapter 2, verse 16. and 00:31:26.779 --> 00:31:29.619 he will make all men manifest before the judgment 00:31:29.619 --> 00:31:33.279 seat of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4 and verse 10. 00:31:33.559 --> 00:31:37.339 Again, the immediate context is that of ministers, 00:31:37.599 --> 00:31:40.279 those who are building the church, and they stand 00:31:40.279 --> 00:31:42.930 before Christ. even though there is application 00:31:42.930 --> 00:31:46.109 to everyone. But as each minister stands before 00:31:46.109 --> 00:31:50.269 Christ, his work becomes clear. It becomes manifest 00:31:50.269 --> 00:31:53.529 and evident. For as Paul says, the day will declare 00:31:53.529 --> 00:31:57.549 it because it will be revealed by fire. And that 00:31:57.549 --> 00:32:01.769 fire will test each one's work of what sort it 00:32:01.769 --> 00:32:07.529 is. Is this speaking of a real fire, of actually 00:32:07.529 --> 00:32:11.650 flames that come out? Or is it a fire that reveals 00:32:11.650 --> 00:32:14.609 and tests the work that is done? So what is this 00:32:14.609 --> 00:32:18.170 fire that Paul speaks of? Now some think that 00:32:18.170 --> 00:32:21.990 it's the fire of judgment. Referred to in 2 Thessalonians 00:32:21.990 --> 00:32:25.269 1 verse 7. It's when the Lord Jesus is revealed 00:32:25.269 --> 00:32:28.109 from heaven with his mighty angels. In flaming 00:32:28.109 --> 00:32:31.130 fire taking vengeance on those who do not know 00:32:31.130 --> 00:32:33.990 God. And on those who do not obey the gospel 00:32:33.990 --> 00:32:37.230 of our Lord Jesus Christ. Is that the fire that 00:32:37.230 --> 00:32:41.470 Paul is speaking of? I think not. Because the 00:32:41.470 --> 00:32:45.329 language here is not speaking of the fire of 00:32:45.329 --> 00:32:51.700 damnation. Judgment as in destruction. It is 00:32:51.700 --> 00:32:54.960 not referring to the fire of hell. But this is 00:32:54.960 --> 00:33:00.740 a probing fire. A fire that reveals. It reveals. 00:33:02.200 --> 00:33:05.359 Perhaps a better explanation is found in the 00:33:05.359 --> 00:33:07.900 beginning of Revelation where John sees Christ. 00:33:08.640 --> 00:33:10.519 And he describes them this way in Revelation 00:33:10.519 --> 00:33:14.279 1 verse 14. He says of Jesus, his head and hair 00:33:14.279 --> 00:33:17.440 were white like wool, as white as snow, and his 00:33:17.440 --> 00:33:24.079 eyes like a flame of fire. Like a flame of fire. 00:33:25.069 --> 00:33:28.529 When Joss saw him, he fell to his feet as one 00:33:28.529 --> 00:33:31.509 who was dead. So awesome and terrifying was this 00:33:31.509 --> 00:33:34.529 sight. And so what happens to us when we stand 00:33:34.529 --> 00:33:37.670 before Christ and he turns his eyes as a flame 00:33:37.670 --> 00:33:43.109 of fire upon us and everything. is revealed every 00:33:43.109 --> 00:33:46.890 thought every teaching every doctrine every work 00:33:46.890 --> 00:33:49.829 and those works and teachings that built the 00:33:49.829 --> 00:33:52.369 temple of christ and the edified christ people 00:33:52.369 --> 00:33:55.490 those will remain those are the ones that sound 00:33:55.490 --> 00:33:58.450 biblical truth those are the ones that will remain 00:33:58.450 --> 00:34:01.109 as gold and as silver and as precious stones 00:34:01.900 --> 00:34:04.980 But the ones that were wrong doctrines, the teachings 00:34:04.980 --> 00:34:07.599 that were built on man's wisdom and on human 00:34:07.599 --> 00:34:10.940 philosophy, doctrine that does not accord with 00:34:10.940 --> 00:34:15.380 sound doctrine, those burn up and the minister 00:34:15.380 --> 00:34:19.480 suffers loss. The loss of reward, he sees his 00:34:19.480 --> 00:34:23.420 works vanish, burnt up like a fire devours wood 00:34:23.420 --> 00:34:30.349 and hay and straw. This is very sobering. The 00:34:30.349 --> 00:34:32.869 Pillar of Commentary says, and I quote, Building 00:34:32.869 --> 00:34:36.150 materials that will be burned up are those in 00:34:36.150 --> 00:34:39.369 keeping with human wisdom instead of the wisdom 00:34:39.369 --> 00:34:42.469 of God, which is the fullness of the message 00:34:42.469 --> 00:34:46.309 of the cross. Remember the context here. The 00:34:46.309 --> 00:34:49.030 context is that some of the Corinthian teachers 00:34:49.030 --> 00:34:52.130 did not want to preach Christ crucified. They 00:34:52.130 --> 00:34:54.389 did not want the simple truths of the gospel, 00:34:54.590 --> 00:34:57.530 but rather they wanted men's wisdom, human philosophy. 00:34:58.400 --> 00:35:00.980 And Paul here is saying that's the kind of work 00:35:00.980 --> 00:35:03.699 that when revealed before Christ is going to 00:35:03.699 --> 00:35:08.739 burn up like wood and hay and straw. But here's 00:35:08.739 --> 00:35:11.480 the astonishing thing, though. If the foundation 00:35:11.480 --> 00:35:15.880 is right, that of Jesus and him crucified, the 00:35:15.880 --> 00:35:20.739 person who was doing that teaching is still saved 00:35:20.739 --> 00:35:24.980 through that fire. It says he will suffer loss 00:35:24.980 --> 00:35:30.739 yet. He himself will be saved, yet so as through 00:35:30.739 --> 00:35:35.519 fire. So this passage, I think, then, describes 00:35:35.519 --> 00:35:38.719 three different types of ministers, of those 00:35:38.719 --> 00:35:40.500 who are giving the word of God and attempting 00:35:40.500 --> 00:35:43.340 to build the church. There are those, number 00:35:43.340 --> 00:35:47.139 one, who are faithful. They build upon the foundation 00:35:47.139 --> 00:35:50.420 with right doctrine and with right practice, 00:35:50.440 --> 00:35:54.460 and they receive the reward. of their labors 00:35:54.460 --> 00:35:56.599 now there are a whole number of rewards that 00:35:56.599 --> 00:35:59.739 are talked about in the scripture that we might 00:35:59.739 --> 00:36:03.219 look at in a brief moment the second one then 00:36:03.219 --> 00:36:07.820 is the carnal or the immature and somewhat unfaithful 00:36:07.820 --> 00:36:11.679 minister they still have the foundation right 00:36:11.679 --> 00:36:15.559 but they have many other things wrong they still 00:36:15.559 --> 00:36:18.539 believe in jesus they preach salvation through 00:36:18.539 --> 00:36:21.989 christ but they have many other things that are 00:36:21.989 --> 00:36:26.010 wrong and those wrong teachings have many bad 00:36:26.010 --> 00:36:29.349 effects. These are still saved so as through 00:36:29.349 --> 00:36:33.110 fire but they lose rewards. I can think of a 00:36:33.110 --> 00:36:36.730 number of examples of these. and obviously I'm 00:36:36.730 --> 00:36:38.969 not going to spend much time on this, but I think 00:36:38.969 --> 00:36:41.690 of those who would preach salvation by grace 00:36:41.690 --> 00:36:44.250 through faith, but they also teach what we call 00:36:44.250 --> 00:36:47.289 easy believism. That is, your life doesn't need 00:36:47.289 --> 00:36:49.130 to change. You just need to confess Christ. Just 00:36:49.130 --> 00:36:51.530 pray the prayer. Pray the sinner's prayer, then 00:36:51.530 --> 00:36:53.909 it doesn't matter what you do from then on, you're 00:36:53.909 --> 00:36:55.849 going to be saved. You're going to be saved eternally. 00:36:56.389 --> 00:37:01.289 That's a wrong doctrine. It does great injury, 00:37:01.510 --> 00:37:05.610 and yet, in so doing it, They believe in salvation 00:37:05.610 --> 00:37:08.090 by grace through faith, and they preach Jesus 00:37:08.090 --> 00:37:11.070 Christ and then crucified. It's a wrong doctrine, 00:37:11.150 --> 00:37:16.550 even though they have the foundation right. We 00:37:16.550 --> 00:37:19.269 see the same thing. That also, by the way, is 00:37:19.269 --> 00:37:21.289 called no lordship salvation. In other words, 00:37:21.309 --> 00:37:24.230 Jesus could be your savior, but not your lord. 00:37:24.849 --> 00:37:27.869 Huge problems with that theology, and it has 00:37:27.869 --> 00:37:34.019 wreaked much havoc in Christ's church. They may 00:37:34.019 --> 00:37:38.539 be saved. Think of the Corinthians who were elevating 00:37:38.539 --> 00:37:41.719 human philosophy and reason. I think that some 00:37:41.719 --> 00:37:44.239 of the teachings of dispensationalism fall into 00:37:44.239 --> 00:37:47.119 this category. All of these wrong doctrines have 00:37:47.119 --> 00:37:50.219 very real effects. We cannot minimize that. And 00:37:50.219 --> 00:37:52.599 yet, because they are true believers in Christ, 00:37:52.739 --> 00:37:55.320 they will be saved. That is my understanding 00:37:55.320 --> 00:37:59.559 of what this passage is teaching. But then, there 00:37:59.559 --> 00:38:02.199 is a third category. And that is those who do 00:38:02.199 --> 00:38:05.360 not get the foundation right. They do not get 00:38:05.360 --> 00:38:08.900 the foundation right. They are destroyers who 00:38:08.900 --> 00:38:11.539 defile God's temple. And we're going to jump 00:38:11.539 --> 00:38:14.960 ahead and look at verse 17. If anyone defiles 00:38:14.960 --> 00:38:19.739 the temple of God, God will destroy him. These 00:38:19.739 --> 00:38:22.559 are those who undermine the authority of God's 00:38:22.559 --> 00:38:25.960 word and who deny the very basics of Christian 00:38:25.960 --> 00:38:28.639 faith and doctrine. The doctrines and teachings 00:38:28.639 --> 00:38:32.019 that we confess each Lord's Day in our confession 00:38:32.019 --> 00:38:34.579 in the summary of the apostles of the Nicene 00:38:34.579 --> 00:38:37.840 Creed. The word is the same. As they destroy 00:38:37.840 --> 00:38:40.300 the temple of God, God will destroy them. As 00:38:40.300 --> 00:38:43.760 they defile the temple, God will defile them. 00:38:43.920 --> 00:38:48.900 It's the same word used there of these. And we 00:38:48.900 --> 00:38:51.840 can think of a number of examples of these. I'll 00:38:51.840 --> 00:38:54.739 simply give just a couple. We can think, for 00:38:54.739 --> 00:38:59.460 example, of which we tend not to think of this, 00:38:59.539 --> 00:39:02.739 but Islam really is a Christian heresy. Because 00:39:02.739 --> 00:39:04.840 what did Muhammad do? He said, oh, I believe 00:39:04.840 --> 00:39:08.519 in Jesus, but it's Jesus in this kind of a way. 00:39:08.579 --> 00:39:11.110 And by the way, there's a greater prophet. And 00:39:11.110 --> 00:39:14.369 so by it, he completely undermines the teachings 00:39:14.369 --> 00:39:17.849 of Jesus, even while he says they're good. And 00:39:17.849 --> 00:39:22.090 yet he denies the Trinity. He denies the essence 00:39:22.090 --> 00:39:25.269 of Christian faith. And he believes in jihad, 00:39:25.269 --> 00:39:29.289 a holy war against all the infidels who are also 00:39:29.289 --> 00:39:32.190 Christians, by the way. And so, you know, we 00:39:32.190 --> 00:39:35.250 just see him. What happens to him? God will destroy 00:39:35.250 --> 00:39:40.530 him and all those who teach. doctrines like that. 00:39:40.650 --> 00:39:43.889 These are works -based religions. I could think 00:39:43.889 --> 00:39:47.389 of Charles Russell, who founded the Watchtower 00:39:47.389 --> 00:39:50.190 Society, also known as Jehovah's Witnesses. I 00:39:50.190 --> 00:39:52.710 could think of Talmudic Judaism, those who reject 00:39:52.710 --> 00:39:55.809 Christ in that way. These are works -based religions. 00:39:55.969 --> 00:39:59.750 They are damnable heresies that lead people astray 00:39:59.750 --> 00:40:02.530 and into perdition, and they are an affront to 00:40:02.530 --> 00:40:06.469 Christ. Those, they are defiling the temple of 00:40:06.469 --> 00:40:10.809 God and God will destroy them. They will suffer 00:40:10.809 --> 00:40:13.969 destruction. Note, unless you think my words 00:40:13.969 --> 00:40:17.230 are too strong, think of what Paul said in the 00:40:17.230 --> 00:40:20.150 book of Galatians chapter 1. He said that those 00:40:20.150 --> 00:40:24.269 who preach another gospel are accursed by God 00:40:24.269 --> 00:40:29.460 for doing so. Verse 8 of Galatians 1. or an angel 00:40:29.460 --> 00:40:33.340 from heaven preach any other gospel to you than 00:40:33.340 --> 00:40:36.719 that which we have preached to you, let him be 00:40:36.719 --> 00:40:40.559 accursed. And then he states it again for further 00:40:40.559 --> 00:40:44.500 emphasis. As well those who have taken away or 00:40:44.500 --> 00:40:47.500 added to the word of God, which is expressly 00:40:47.500 --> 00:40:52.000 forbidden in Revelation 22, verse 18 and 19. 00:40:52.460 --> 00:40:56.400 And so these are great warnings to us. There's 00:40:56.400 --> 00:40:59.639 the faithful. building on the foundation. There 00:40:59.639 --> 00:41:02.159 are the carnal or the somewhat unfaithful or 00:41:02.159 --> 00:41:04.559 the immature. They have the foundation right, 00:41:04.699 --> 00:41:07.199 but many others wrong. And then there are those 00:41:07.199 --> 00:41:09.920 who don't even have the foundation right, and 00:41:09.920 --> 00:41:12.980 they are destroyers who defile God's temple and 00:41:12.980 --> 00:41:16.480 experience the judgment of damnation from God. 00:41:19.599 --> 00:41:23.239 Well... Let's close this up as we look at this 00:41:23.239 --> 00:41:24.840 passage here. I'm not going to be able to spend 00:41:24.840 --> 00:41:28.860 much time today on verse 16 and 17. Lord willing, 00:41:28.960 --> 00:41:32.420 I'll do that in the next sermon. But I still, 00:41:32.420 --> 00:41:34.559 though, would like to remind you all that you, 00:41:34.719 --> 00:41:39.239 as the people of God, you are called by his name 00:41:39.239 --> 00:41:44.360 and you are the temple of God. He says this so 00:41:44.360 --> 00:41:48.809 clearly. You, you all. Again, the same type of 00:41:48.809 --> 00:41:53.889 you plural here. You are the temple of God and 00:41:53.889 --> 00:41:58.210 the spirit of God dwells in you. The temple of 00:41:58.210 --> 00:42:02.460 God is holy, which temple you are. Paul is here 00:42:02.460 --> 00:42:04.800 depicting the Corinthians and indeed all Christian 00:42:04.800 --> 00:42:10.739 churches as part of the end time temple which 00:42:10.739 --> 00:42:13.619 was prophesied in Malachi chapter 1 verse 11. 00:42:13.900 --> 00:42:17.000 From the rising of the sun to its going down, 00:42:17.139 --> 00:42:20.139 my name shall be great among the Gentiles. In 00:42:20.139 --> 00:42:22.559 every place incense shall be offered to my name 00:42:22.559 --> 00:42:25.780 and a pure offering, for my name shall be great 00:42:25.780 --> 00:42:29.539 among the nations, says the Lord of hosts. This 00:42:29.539 --> 00:42:32.400 is the temple described in the latter part of 00:42:32.400 --> 00:42:35.320 the book of Ezekiel where the waters flow out 00:42:35.320 --> 00:42:38.340 from underneath the threshold of the temple toward 00:42:38.340 --> 00:42:41.300 the east and those waters bring healing to the 00:42:41.300 --> 00:42:43.860 nations and along the banks of the river will 00:42:43.860 --> 00:42:46.900 grow all kinds of fruit used for food fruit bearing 00:42:46.900 --> 00:42:49.699 trees all year long because their water flows 00:42:49.699 --> 00:42:54.159 from the sanctuary this is the spiritual temple 00:42:54.159 --> 00:42:58.789 of God and you all as Christian As a Christian 00:42:58.789 --> 00:43:01.670 church, you are part of this temple. You are 00:43:01.670 --> 00:43:04.909 living stones, Peter says. You are being built 00:43:04.909 --> 00:43:08.389 up together in him. You have a glorious and a 00:43:08.389 --> 00:43:11.130 wonderful inheritance. And those who teach and 00:43:11.130 --> 00:43:14.530 preach in this temple of God must make sure that 00:43:14.530 --> 00:43:17.230 they teach and build up the congregation with 00:43:17.230 --> 00:43:20.449 the wisdom of God and not the foolishness of 00:43:20.449 --> 00:43:24.400 men and man's wisdom. Now, the congregation, 00:43:24.820 --> 00:43:28.159 you all, you have a part to play in this as you 00:43:28.159 --> 00:43:30.760 are the ones who affirm the calling and the qualification 00:43:30.760 --> 00:43:35.090 of your ministers. Paul warns Timothy of the 00:43:35.090 --> 00:43:37.989 time when those in the congregation will not 00:43:37.989 --> 00:43:41.590 hear because they will not endure sound doctrine, 00:43:41.650 --> 00:43:44.849 but according to their own desires, because they 00:43:44.849 --> 00:43:47.989 have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves 00:43:47.989 --> 00:43:51.230 teachers and they will turn their ears away from 00:43:51.230 --> 00:43:54.670 the truth and be turned aside to fables. So whereas 00:43:54.670 --> 00:43:57.090 ministers are called to preach the pure word 00:43:57.090 --> 00:44:00.440 of God, the congregation is also called. to have 00:44:00.440 --> 00:44:04.300 pure hearts that desire the truth of God and 00:44:04.300 --> 00:44:10.960 not fables, idle tales, and false doctrine. So 00:44:10.960 --> 00:44:14.559 this is also laid on us all. So take this seriously. 00:44:14.760 --> 00:44:18.199 You all are the temple of God. The Spirit of 00:44:18.199 --> 00:44:21.500 God dwells in you, and this temple is yours. 00:44:21.789 --> 00:44:26.309 Like Peter says in 1 Peter 1 .15, as he who called 00:44:26.309 --> 00:44:30.570 you is holy, so also be holy in all your conduct 00:44:30.570 --> 00:44:35.170 because it is written, be holy for I am holy. 00:44:36.210 --> 00:44:39.530 Finally then in the last application, faithfulness 00:44:39.530 --> 00:44:45.570 to Christ brings reward. It brings reward on 00:44:45.570 --> 00:44:49.190 the day of Christ. Now this is not just speaking 00:44:49.190 --> 00:44:52.949 of the eternal state. of enjoying the glories 00:44:52.949 --> 00:44:56.449 of heaven with Christ. It is that indeed, but 00:44:56.449 --> 00:45:01.409 there is also rewards that are given. Here are 00:45:01.409 --> 00:45:04.869 some of them. 1 Peter 5, verse 4. When the chief 00:45:04.869 --> 00:45:07.449 shepherd appears, you will receive the crown 00:45:07.449 --> 00:45:10.730 of glory. That does not fade away. So there's 00:45:10.730 --> 00:45:13.469 a crown of glory that's a reward. Matthew 10 00:45:13.469 --> 00:45:16.210 verse 42. Whoever gives one of the little ones 00:45:16.210 --> 00:45:18.690 only a cup of cold water in the name of disciple. 00:45:19.409 --> 00:45:22.150 Assuredly I say to you he shall by no means lose 00:45:22.150 --> 00:45:26.110 his reward. The rewards given even just sent 00:45:26.110 --> 00:45:29.110 for simple acts of service. So simple as giving 00:45:29.110 --> 00:45:33.380 a cup of cold water. Then there's Matthew 24, 00:45:33.559 --> 00:45:37.099 verse 45. Who then is a faithful and a wise servant, 00:45:37.219 --> 00:45:39.780 whom his master made ruler over his household 00:45:39.780 --> 00:45:42.760 to give them food in due season? Blessed is that 00:45:42.760 --> 00:45:45.000 servant whom his master, when he comes, will 00:45:45.000 --> 00:45:48.039 find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you, he will 00:45:48.039 --> 00:45:51.860 make him ruler over all his goods. I don't understand 00:45:51.860 --> 00:45:54.099 what all that's going to be in the future state, 00:45:54.300 --> 00:45:57.699 but there it is from Jesus himself. And then 00:45:57.699 --> 00:46:00.760 there's Revelation 2 in verse 7. He who has an 00:46:00.760 --> 00:46:03.059 ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the 00:46:03.059 --> 00:46:06.900 churches. To him who overcomes, I will give to 00:46:06.900 --> 00:46:09.579 eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst 00:46:09.579 --> 00:46:13.000 of the paradise of God. And then again in Revelation 00:46:13.000 --> 00:46:16.199 2 verse 10, be faithful unto death and I will 00:46:16.199 --> 00:46:19.019 give you the crown of life. These are some of 00:46:19.019 --> 00:46:22.550 the rewards for God's people. And so to you as 00:46:22.550 --> 00:46:25.489 individuals, to parents, as you work with your 00:46:25.489 --> 00:46:29.469 children, to all others, as you minister Christ 00:46:29.469 --> 00:46:33.869 to those who are around you, God will bless you 00:46:33.869 --> 00:46:37.969 with rewards. Plus you have eternal life on top 00:46:37.969 --> 00:46:41.329 of it all. And isn't that glorious? For you all 00:46:41.329 --> 00:46:45.670 are the temple of God. Let's pray.