1 Corinthians 3:10,11,16-23.                         Built on Christ alone!!                    19/2/17

{10}  By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. {11} For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.

 {16} Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? {17} If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple. {18} Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a "fool" so that he may become wise. {19} For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. As it is written: "He catches the wise in their craftiness"; {20} and again, "The Lord knows that the thoughts of the wise are futile." {21} So then, no more boasting about men! All things are yours, {22} whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future--all are yours, {23} and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.

This morning we are reminded of the importance of having a good foundation for our lives. Now this was brought home to me again this last week, as the manse has had a cracked wall repaired. As the soil under the manse is unstable and the foundation were not built strong enough, the cracks appear from time to time.

At times there are buildings with very poor foundations that have even collapsed as a result. The sad thing is, that we know this very well when it comes to building a home. But when it comes to our personal lives we seem to think that it doesn’t matter all that much. Then when it comes to our spiritual lives we are even less concerned. Jesus Christ and him crucified is very quickly neglected in favour of what I think and do.

Even as Christians, we all too often fall into this same temptation. We look to ourselves and the world around us to be the source of what is good and right. We determine what truth and life will be for us, often by how things look and are perceived, rather than on Jesus Christ and him crucified. And it gets us into all sorts of trouble.

God through Paul, here in this reading, seeks to remind us, just as he had to remind the people of Corinth, of what is important and necessary. He has to point us to Jesus Christ and the unity and truth that we have in him rather than ourselves and our thinking.

In this reading Paul begins by saying: By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. He established the church in Corinth through his preaching of the centrality of Jesus’ death and resurrection for their salvation and life. He understood very clearly that this knowledge came from God himself and was in full agreement with God’s Word in the Old Testament, the Gospels, and by Jesus’ revelation to him.

So God and his Word alone was the source and substance of his preaching, teaching and the foundation for the new church in Corinth. So Jesus Christ and him crucified was the centre and focus of this congregation at the beginning. But then as Paul moved on to establish other churches, other leaders came in to continue building this new church up.

Apollos and Cephas were two of these leaders, probably at different times. They too had an impact on the people and the growth of the young church. We know Apollos was a gifted speaker and Cephas was most likely the apostle Peter. They built on the foundation that Paul had laid, as he goes on to say: For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. But others also came with other ideas and focus’ and turned the people from this centre of Jesus Christ to focus on self, and gifts, and feelings, and the like.

With that he then explains what he means. Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?  If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple.

So the people had been taught that God’s Spirit had enabled his presence to dwell in each of them. This was only possible through Jesus Christ’s death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins. In connection with him alone was the assurance of eternal life in heaven.

So if the focus of life is shifted from Jesus Christ and him crucified, then there is the attempt to build one’s spiritual life on another foundation and the spiritual person is no longer a temple of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is there to focus us on Jesus Christ and the cross. Whereas a focus on self, and gifts, and what I think is good, is disastrous. Here it is made quite clear that they in the end will be destroyed.

So here God is spelling it out quite clearly, that those who do not keep Jesus Christ and him crucified as that which is all important, are not a part of God’s Church. In fact, they are destroying God’s Church and in the end they will be destroyed. So it is again important that we take God and his Word seriously.

Here, take note, of what he then goes on to say in this reading.

Do not deceive yourselves. If any one of you thinks he is wise by the standards of this age, he should become a "fool" so that he may become wise. Here then he is pointing to each one of us personally and all of us as a collective. Be careful that you do not deceive yourselves. Do not let yourselves be caught out; and do not lose what is important and in the end be destroyed.

This is vital for us at this point in time as we are surrounded by, and are encouraged to, look to ourselves and make up our own minds. We are an educated, smart society, that has a much better understanding of life and what is important. We can through education and a lot of ‘spin’ greatly improve life for ourselves. If we leave God out of the picture, or at least keep him out on the periphery of our lives, then we will be able to go ahead.

So the view is; and all too often in the church also, is that we need to be wise by the standards of this age. We must be accepting of every other view going, even if it is ridiculous. Except of course if it is Christian or right wing thinking. We can see this wisdom coming through in issues such as abortion, homosexuality and women pastors.

 But in many other areas as well we can see this wisdom of the present age coming through. Where feelings and health, wealth a happiness theology is promoted. Or, where Christianity is touted as simply about being good moral people. Or that God loves us and so we are free to do as we please. And more.

Yet God here tells us to be a ‘fool’ so as to be truly wise. We are to take God seriously even though our world around us tells us we are fools for doings so. The same goes when we accept God’s Word as the divinely inspired, written and inerrant Word, that he tells us it is. We are wise when we take Jesus Christ and him crucified as of utmost importance, even though it seems to be foolish, and we are told by the world around us that it is foolish.

Paul goes on and says: 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 instead of true Christianity being foolish it is the so called worldly- wise that are the fools. Without much of a look around us we can readily see this as being the case if we are honest. The cracks in our society are growing deep and wide.

In our western world we are seeing a great deal of thinking that wass seen as so important as now being futile and even stupid. Their clever ideas and inventions create more problems than they solve. Their craftiness has caught them out time and time again, but it is very quickly hushed up. Just as we are hearing of ‘fake news’ and half-truths being put forward by big news services. And more.

So then, no more boasting about men! Be careful about the boasting of human achievements and human possibilities. Especially for us as Christians, we surely can see that we all have a sinful human nature, that gets us into trouble over and over again. The cracks in our own lives, as well as our societies, surely indicates that our foundations are very poor indeed.

We surely have something far more stable, strong and life-giving than the foolish attempts of our world around us. Because of Jesus Christ and his death on the cross we have been given everything that is truly important. We have the absolutely certainty of forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. In him we have the truth that enables us to live happily with God and each other. In him we are united with our Lord; we are loved, we have a sure and certain future.

This same Jesus Christ who was crucified for our salvation, also was raised again three days later so that we can be absolutely sure that everything that he has said and done for us is for real. So there is no need for us to have any doubts what so ever. We can look to Jesus Christ and know that as we stay close to him it will all work out for good. He alone is our sure and solid foundation.

Together with Jesus Christ we are told that:

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. So we are a part of and have every certainty that all will work out for the good of those who are in Christ Jesus.

So even though we live in a foolish world, and all too often, we ourselves are foolish, and so all kinds of trouble and hardship are there in life for us, we can get on with life with confidence and hope. We can ever look to Jesus Christ and him crucified and know that there alone is our hope and our future. So let us ever seek to keep close to him who has come close to us, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him alone then be all glory and honour, now and always. Amen.

Pastor Roger

Glandore/Underdale Lutheran Parish