Hammer and Nail: Heart and Soul
Text: 1 Cor 3:9-17
Introduction: How do you build a church? More importantly how does God expect us to
build His church. There are many ideas
and just as many structures which result from those ideas, but God only has one
church and only one way to grow that church.
Joke: Pastor planning a worship service with the song
leader. “I’m going to make a pitch to
start a new building fund. I going to
ask everyone who would be willing to give to the building fund to stand
up. The song leader asks, “What would be
a good invitation song for a message like that?” The pastor smiles and says, “Well, I was
thinking the Star Spangled Banner would be nice.”
Joke: Throws the switch and electrocutes 5 deacons.
I. Carpenters and Contractors 1 Cor. 3:9-10
For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's
husbandry, ye are God's building. According to the grace of God which is given
unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another
buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
A. Paul, Apollos and the Corinthians built the church.
1. Ye (Vs.
9, plural, all of you) are God’s building
2. The
church is people, saved, Baptized and
joined in membership. It is not a building, it is not programs or budgets or
reputation. The church is built of the lives of the redeemed and the souls of
the saved.
3. If anyone
builds. (vs. 12) Anyone, so it is not only Paul and Apollos but any member who
could build the church.
B. We Are Laboring Together
1. In this
passage we see that God views the Pastor like we would a contractor. Paul calls
him a wise master-builder. In other words, he is working from a blueprint given
to him by God and he directs those involved in the work with him.
2. So then
who are the co-laborers with the pastor?
a) We can
see from this passage that it is any members who desires and works the church
to grow.
3. This
working relationship is defined in Ephesians 4:11 - 13 And he
gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some,
pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the
ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity
of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto
the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
b) The
church is people. It is heart and souls and if we want the church to grow then
we must bring people into the church.
4. A church
is not built not wood or stick but souls and hearts are its mortar and brick.
If we are to see our church grow we must realize we are dealing with hearts,
lives with people and we must have the compassion for hearts and people that
Jesus did.
C. Illustration: Egyptian Engineer raising the Pharaoh’s Obelisk
D. Transition: Now that Paul has told me, I am a church builder, now I need to know learn the right way to build God’s house. Look at vs. 11
II. Cornerstone of Christ 1 Cor 3:11
For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which
is Jesus Christ.
A. The Foundation Must Be Jesus Christ
1. In
constructing the church those involved in building it must build it upon
Christ. Jesus is the stone that was rejected by Israel but destined by God to
be the foundation of the church. He is the foundation that Paul says is already
laid and that we dare not try and build upon anything.
2. We read
in Ephesians 2: 19-20 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners,
but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; And are built upon the foundation of the
apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
3. If we try
and start with any other foundation then we change the superstructure. We
change the church itself. What we are
left with is not the church that God’s word shows and commands us to build.
B. Looking For Cracks In the Building.
1. What
foundations should we be careful not to use today? What foundations will not
last but will have cracks that will bring down the church from what God
intended it to be?
a) Foundation
of Works- Seven sacraments, baptism, good works, social work.
b) Foundation
of Humanism- Man’s ability to change himself and the world around him by his
own effort and plans.
c) Foundation
of Social Entertainment - Our pastor is the best. He tells such funny stories.
Our youth group is the best. Our couples class has the best times. Our music
program is better than the local disco and has more lights and fog machines.
d) Foundation
of False Hopes- These are the health and wealth gospel churches, the
mountaintop to mountaintop belief systems, They tell the lost that it is always
going to be positive and good for the Christian if we just believe in
ourselves.
2. How do we
make sure we are laying the right foundation? Because it is on this foundation
that we will lay the lives and souls or our present and future members, of our
friends, families, our children and our grandchildren.
a) We must
build their lives and our church on the person of Jesus Christ.
(1) His
Salvation: We must build upon who Jesus is, “… the way, the truth, and the
life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Him.”
(2) His
Sacrifice: They must know when He said, love one another, as I have loved you.
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his
friends.” That he is speaking of His sacrifice and our obligation because of
that sacrifice.
(3) His
Sanctification: And they must realize that they are to be sanctified and
separated from this world when they come to Him and into the church. Jesus
said, “ If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye
are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the
world hateth you.”
b) It is
salvation, sacrifice and sancification that turns lost souls into living stones
for the building of the church.
C.Transition: Now that we know the Church is people let us go on and learn what we are supposed to be as church members.
III. Conscientious, Carnal or Corrupt 1 Cor 3: 12-17
Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver,
precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man's work shall be made manifest:
for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the
fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide
which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work
shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as
by fire. Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God
dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for
the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
A. Workers and Workmanship
1. According
to this passage there are three types of workers and two types of work.
a) Vs.
14 Conscientious- will receive a reward
at the judgment seat of Christ
b) Vs. 15
Carnal- saved but through fire, like running through a burning house trying to
save what you can.
c) Vs. 17
Corrupt- not saved but a false prophet or professor. They defile and destroy
and will be destroyed.
2. There are
Two Types of Works
a) Permanent-
Gold, silver precious stone. These are costly, valuable but long lasting
b) Temporary-
Wood, hay, straw. These are cheap,
common and short lived.
B. Are We Prepared For Our Trail by Fire?
1. Every
child of God knows that one day we will stand before the judgment seat of
Christ and there receive our reward or have what could have been our reward
taken from us.
2. 1
Corinthians 5:9-10 Wherefore we labour,
that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him. For we must all
appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the
things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or
bad.
3. Notice it
does not say whether you are good or bad. You are not being judged to determine
your salvation or where you will spend eternity. It says whether it be good or
bad, whether the work that you did is good or bad. If good it will endure the
trail by fire if bad it will be burned up. Just as we have read.
4. Looking
forward to that day, we must strive to be the kind of worker whose work is
good. I don’t want to be the carnal worker, who makes it to heaven by the skin
of his teeth and has nothing to show for eternity. I don’t want anything to do
with a corrupt worker who Paul says God will destroy. I want to be that worker
that prayerful, consistently and fervently works on the Lord’s House.
5. I don’t
want to use cheap material that costs me little, does not call for effort much
less for sacrifice. I want to build something that lasts into eternity and that
means I must build with precious building materials, gold, silver and precious
stone. They will cost me dearly now but they will last forever.
6. The
precious will cost you time, time to attend, time to invest, time to study,
time to pray, and time to weep. The precious will cost you wealth. Money that
is giving to sustain the church, grow the church, to carry the gospel to foreign lands and
to help other members in need. The
precious things will cost you your pride, your ego and your self-esteem in the
eyes of the world. You must be willing to become nothing in the sight of others
to become something in God’s eyes.
C. Illustration: Do you remember how God built his first house of worship?
1. He called
for His people to bring Gold, silver, bronze and fine linen to build the
Tabernacle.
2. Exodus
25: 1-2, 8 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they
bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye
shall take my offering. And let them make me a sanctuary; that I may dwell
among them.
3. When you
think about it, God really hasn’t changed His building methods. He still calls
for His people to bring precious things to His House to build. Then the
precious materials were gold and silver but today it is hearts and souls. We
bring those precious souls to the Church of God and build upon the foundation
of Jesus Christ.
IV. Conclusion
A. Callused Hands
When I was a young boy and would visit by Grandfather, he
would hold my hand in his as we walked and I would feel the calluses in his
palm. My grandfather was a pastor and carpenter and those calluses meant he
worked hard. More than once the church he built was with literally with both
hammer and nails, hearts and souls. Later when I was a young man I worked labor
jobs for a living, usually pick and shovel oftentimes laying block or swinging
a hammer. It wasn’t long before I had my own calluses and I was proud to have
them for they meant I was a worker and the evidence was in my palms just like
it was in my Grandad’s.
Each of us this morning need to examine our spiritual hands.
The hands we use for building this church. How callused are they in the work of
the Lord? Do they show the evidence of a workman who has been busy building
God’s House? As you look around this congregation do you see your
craftsmanship. Are there hearts and souls here because you have witnessed to
them, invited them, brought them and now they are now a part of this temple of
God? How sad to one day stand before
Jesus Christ and when He shows us the marks in His hands and we will not be
able to hold up ours for they do not bear the evidence of a life spent working
for God building His Church.
Let me close with this prayer and plea to God.
Church Builders Prayer.
O Lord, you who have saved me from this world and from everlasting
death. Lord save me now from apathy and spiritual laziness. Show me, Father,
those souls around me which can be reached and claimed for Jesus Christ and let
me bring them to your house, to grow and flourish in Your love. Teach me to use
the tools you have proved in your Word.
Correct me when I make mistakes. And give me the vision of Your Spirit.
Most of all, Dear Lord use me. Let me be a part of this work. Let me share the
joy of seeing someone believe in Jesus because of my testimony or witness. Let
me be able to shout amen when I see them baptized, and let me weep tears of joy
as they grow in your grace.
If I fail in this, O God, then I will have failed to do what
you have left me on this earth to do.
Fill me with your Spirit and let
me be a tool in your hand. In my heart
of hearts, I give myself into thy service. Use me dear Lord, please, I pray use
me.
No comments:
Post a Comment