What We are Building

1 Corinthians 3:1–11 ESV

1 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not being merely human? 5 What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. 6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. 7 So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. 8 He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. 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 someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. 11 For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.

Once there was a mother pig who had three little pigs. She did not have enough to keep them, so she sent them out to seek their fortunes. The first little pig had not gone far when he met a man with a bundle of straw. The little pig said to him,

"Please, man, give me that straw to build me a house." This the man did, and soon the little pig had built a house with it. Just after the house was built, along came a wolf.

He knocked at the door of the little pig's house and called, "Little pig, little pig, let me come in!"

But the little pig answered, "No, no! Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!"

Then the wolf said, "I'll huff and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in!"

So he huffed and he puffed until he blew the house in, and ate up that little pig.

The second little pig had not gone far when he met a man carrying a bundle of sticks on his shoulders.

The little pig said to him, "Please, man, give me those sticks to build me a house." This the man did, and soon the little pig had built a house with them.

Just after the house was built, along came the wolf. He knocked at the door of the little pig's house and said, "Little pig, little pig, let me come in!"

But the little pig answered, "No, no! Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!"

Then the wolf said, "I'll huff and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in!" So he huffed and he puffed and he blew the house in, and ate up that little pig.

The third little pig met a man with a load of bricks. The little pig said to him, "Please, man, give me those bricks to build me a house." This the man did, and soon the little pig had built a house with them.

Just after the house was built, along came the wolf. He knocked at the door of the little pig's house and said, "Little pig, little pig, let me come in!"

But the little pig answered, "No, no! Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin!" Then the wolf said, "I'll huff and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house in!"

So the wolf huffed and he puffed and he puffed and he huffed, and he huffed and he puffed, but he couldn't blow this third little pig's house down.

When the little pig heard the wolf on the roof of his house and saw what he was about to do , he made a blazing fire in his fireplace, filled a big pot with water, and hung it over the fire.

Just as the wolf was coming down the chimney, the little pig lifted the lid off the big pot of boiling water, and in fell the wolf.

And then the little pig quickly popped on the cover again, and had the wolf for supper. And that is how it came about that this little pig lived happily in his snug little brick house ever after.

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If you’ve been around construction, or been around anyone who works in construction… or if you’ve been around anybody who has been around anybody who fits in these categories you know the importance of a foundation.

Foundations are the most important aspect of a buildings ability to last for an extended period of time.

Foundational errors can usually be founded immediately as you begin to build on top of it.

And UNLESS the time is taken at the BEGINNING… it has lasting effects on the structure.

ONE LITTLE PROBLEM

In 1174 the Italian architect Bonnano Pisano began work on what would become his most famous project: A separately standing eight-story bell tower for the Cathedral of the city of Pisa. The tower was to be eight-stories and 185-foot tall. There was just one "little" problem: builders quickly discovered that the soil was much softer than they had anticipated, and the foundation was far too shallow to adequately hold the structure!

And sure enough, before long the whole structure had begun to tilt... and it continued to tilt... until finally the architect and the builders realized that nothing could be done to make the Leaning Tower of Pisa straight again.

It took 176 years to build the Tower of Pisa and during that time many things were done to try and compensate for the "tilt." The foundation was shored up; the upper levels were even built at an angle to try to make the top of the tower look straight. Nothing worked. The tower has stood for over 800 years, but it leans 18 feet away from where it should be (10 degrees from the vertical, for all the engineers). One day, experts say, it will fall all because it wasn’t built on the right foundation.

IT WILL FALL. Now by the efforts of architecture and human engineering, it has been made to stand longer than it would without human interference.

You see mankind has become CRAFT in finding and allowing things to stay around longer than they should— especially in our lives.

We can look in the mirror and see the glaringly obvious shortcomings, much like they did in the Leaning Tower… but instead of taking it back to its roots, its foundations— they tried to create ways to “make it ok”.

And while it is a tourist attraction today, its an attraction for the wrong reason.

It’s an attracts people as a sign of “what NOT to do”.

Sure people may be flying to look at it— but it’s the wrong reasons.

You may be able to draw people to you… but will people want and need to emulate what you have constructed?

So this morning I ask you:

What are you building?

What kind of foundation are you creating?

What kind of life are you living?

1 Corinthians 3:12–13 ESV

12 Now if anyone builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw— 13 each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done.

Whatever material you are using to build, whatever “essence” your life is reflecting. It will be seen.

No matter how much you try to simply “shore” things up in your life— eventually the cracks and mismanagement of the foundation becomes evident.

The fire proves it. The Lord proves it. God will sort out the work each one has done.

How you build your life is evident, or will become evident.

That is why it’s important that we build our life with: Christ at the Center

It’s not just a cute saying.

It’s not just something I say to be annoying.

It’s a motto by which WE MUST LIVE.

Jesus- the chief CORNER STONE.

(illustration here with Ben and Aiden)

Ephesians 2:19–22 ESV

19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

A cornerstone is a foundational stone used at the BASE of a building. Known as the capstone-cornerstone; headstone and KEYSTONE.

the first stone laid in the construction of a building at the outer corner of two intersecting masonry walls.

So everything that we have in Christendom stems from the CORNERSTONE. Jesus Christ.

He must be the CHIEF, the preeminent ONE in our life for which everything comes out from.

Jesus Christ, the AUTHOR and FINISHER of OUR FAITH!

He is the CENTER. But we can’t just wait to try and fit Christ in our structure after the fact.

That is why when you come to CHRIST, You DIE. The OLD MAN DIES, Is destroyed and DEMOLISHED.

Christ and Carnality CANNOT be joined together.

You CANNOT keep your old foundation while reaching to live for Christ as well.

It must all come down, and be rebuilt- centered around GOD!

We try and balance Christ and Carnality.

Even after we come to CHRIST. We try and find ways to keep a foothold on two different boats going in two different directions.

You will eventually find yourself on neither one of the boats. Just you in the water, trying to stay above the waves— until you can’t.

Why do we try to do this?

Why do we try to grasp the world and Christ in the same hand?

Its nonsensical to think that we can. YOU CANNOT HAVE THE WORLD AND CHRIST.

And you may think WELL NO ONE KNOWS.

I’VE PUT A GOOD AMOUNT OF PAINT OVER THE CRACKS.

I’VE SHOREd UP THE WALLS.

but you’re leaning. you’re exposed. and you don’t even know it.

You’ve built your life on the wrong foundation. You’re trying to look trendy. Cool, let me do it MY WAY.

You need to submit your life to the Process CHRIST has set up for you. With HIM being the chief cornerstone. The foundation by which everything else is built around.

It is time MEN and WOMEN, stop trying to prop up your way of living un-submitted to Christ.

It isn’t worth it. You are on borrowed time. Stop trying to balance between success in this world and success in your relationship with Christ.

PRIORITIZE CHRIST, and you will find the SUCCESS you TRULY need.

Not monetary, not material, but spiritual confidence and peace, hope and joy in the Spirit. What Christ has given us!

20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone,

It isn’t just Jesus, but Jesus is the KEY PIECE.

When you get it out of wack and upside.

We can get so busy making Christ the Center of our communities. (Okay we can do outreach, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give here, do this)

We can get so busy making Christ the center of our churches. (Lets get this program going, let’s get that program going)

We can get so busy even making sure he’s part of our families lives (Kids what’s your memory verse? Let’s watch the Chosen. Let’s make sure you pray, you read, you you you)

And then before we know it, Christ isn’t the center of us. We’ve put ourselves and our walk with Christ LAST.

That’s building your life on the wrong foundation.

Your life cannot be built on ensuring OTHER’S have Christ as the center before YOU have Christ as the center.

You’re leaning. You’re exposed. And you don’t even know it.

You cannot pour out from empty.

If you’re not full of Christ, what your pouring into others isn’t Christ- It’s bad form. It’s bad habits, it is just plain “bad Christianity”

It’s time for a realignment. It’s time to let the facade fall.

You cannot hope to heal when you cannot hope to be real.

You must release yourself from the restraints of the idea you have to have it together.

You just need to be desperate enough and WILLING enough to say CHRIST- TAKE ME

CHRIST- BREAK ME

CHRIST- MAKE ME

What are you building?

What are you teaching?

What are you exampling?

Is it just something to look at?

Or is it something that will last?