Open your Bibles, if you would,
to 1 Corinthians chapter 3. The name of the message is One
Foundation. One Foundation. Now, when people
construct a building, they usually put down what is called a foundation.
And they put down this foundation in order to build that building
in sure footing. Sure footing. If you build on
a sandy Foundation, well, it's prone to start dropping in certain
sections. But if you build on a sure foundation,
it won't move. It won't move. When I was subcontracting
in construction, we knew when a new house was coming, because
we would see the contractor we worked for, we'd see that he
had purchased the property. Think of that. Purchased property.
He purchased the property. And then he tilled the ground.
We know that for we who are believers, the seed fell on good ground,
right? Prepared ground. So when he sent in the bulldozer
guys, they prepared that ground for the foundation. Because you couldn't lay a foundation
on ground that's like this. It has to be level. It has to
be prepared to receive that foundation. And the ground was being prepared
and a week or two later, we'd see the concrete guys out there.
And they'd lay down the concrete, kept in place by wood planks
to the exact measurements of what that house was going to
be. And then slowly, the framers
would come in and they'd frame the house. Then we'd see The
drywall guys come in and they put the drywall up and all that.
All the inside was done to whatever the customer desired. But before all that, they put
on the roof too, wouldn't they? So that the water wouldn't, the
rain, the natural elements wouldn't damage that which was inside.
Do you know Christ is both the foundation and the capstone? He's both. The Old Testament
says he's the capstone. In the New Testament, what we're
going to read says he's the foundation. And the capstone, the foundation
and the capstone protect everything that was within it. The capstone
does that, protects all that's within it, the building, and
then that foundation is most important though. Because if
that building's not built on a firm foundation, it'll heave
and crack and it'll do all kinds of things. And also, if you use
cheap masonry, cheap concrete, that foundation will crack, won't
it? Crack like nothing. Let's look at the one needful
foundation here before us in Scriptures for sinners. And it's not ourselves. It's
Christ Jesus our Lord. Left to ourselves, we have no
foundation. And people who build a foundation on their self, or
who build a foundation upon what they do, are building a refuge
of lies. Because the only foundation for
the believer in Christ is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the one
true foundation. There's no other one. Let's read
the scriptures here. 1 Corinthians 3, verses 4-10. For, well, one saith, I am of
Paul, and another of I am Paulos, are ye not carnal?" So again,
Paul's still dealing with preacher worship. There's one saying, well, I am
of Paul, and I am of Paulos, and I'm of this guy. No. We're to look to Christ. I'm just a messenger. All we
gospel preachers are just messengers trumpeting trumpeting the wondrous
salvation in Christ Jesus alone. Don't vault us up, please. No
gospel preacher wants to be vaulted up. We want to lift Christ up,
and we want you to lift up Christ. So he's dealing here with what's
called preacher worship, because they're saying, I'm of Paul,
and oh, I'm of Apollos. And then we know in the first
chapter, they said, well, I'm of Christ. So they take Christ,
who is the high and mighty one, and bring him right back down
to immortal man. No, we're to look to Christ and
Him alone. We look to one another, we'll
find faults, won't we? We're to look to Christ and Him
alone. Look what it says here. Who then is Paul? And who is
Apollos? But ministers by whom you believe, even as the Lord
gave to every man. So Paul can't save. Apollos can't
save. No gospel creature can save a
soul. Can't even save our own. But we preach the One who can
save anyone who comes to Him. Right? He's able, isn't He? He's
able. He's able. And then Paul goes
on to say, I've planted. Paul has watered. But God gave
the increase. So we Gospel preachers, we preach
the Word, right? You've got Donny and Jim and
other preachers. We all preach the Word. Tim and Gary, we preach
the Word. Watering sometimes. But it's
God who gives the increase. We can't give no increase. It's
God who gives the increase. It's him who saves. It's him
who, as we saw in the Sunday school, it's him that makes the
word effectual, the gospel effectual. He gives the increase. So then,
neither is he that planteth anything, neither he that watereth, but
God that giveth increase. Now look at that. Look at the
selflessness of Paul. He says, I'm nothing. Isn't that
wonderful? That's how we Gospel Preachers
feel. We're nothing. We're amazed that God uses us.
We're just amazed. Donnie and I were rejoicing last
night over the wondrous salvation that we have in Christ. And we
were both amazed that God's using us for His glory and His honor
and His praise. It's incredible. You know, every believer could
say that, can't we? It's amazing that God uses me. It's amazing
that God saved me. See, but it's God that gives
the increases. It's God who gets all the glory. Look at neither
he that watereth but God that giveth the increase. Again, the
second time it's told. Second time in this passage that
the Lord's telling us. It's God who gives the increase.
Because remember who the author of the scriptures are. Paul's
just a man writing these words, but the true author is the Holy
Spirit of God. And he's saying, God's the only one who can give
the increase. Look at verse 8. Now he that planteth and he that
watereth are one. We're just normal men. And every
man shall receive his own reward according to his own labor. For
we are laborers together with God. Ye are God's husbandry,
as ye are God's building, according to the grace of God. which is
given unto me, and as a wise master builder, I have laid the
foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take
heed how he buildeth thereon. And in verse 11, which is our
text, for other foundation can no man lay than that which is
laid, which is Jesus Christ. So this is the verse that we're
going to consider. For other foundation can no Man
lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. God has
laid, excuse me, God has laid the Lord Jesus Christ to be the
foundation of the church. The whole building is built upon
Him. He's what matters the most. We're just, think of this too,
think of, you know, we're some lumber put together, Some drywall
put in the walls. Stones being made ready. Remember
that? Where stones being placed in the place. And then we're
going to see it's the whole building is of God. He does all the building.
He's the wise master builder. Isn't it amazing that we're part
of that building? As the people of God. Isn't that incredible? It's God who's placed us there.
By His will. And by His power. It's absolutely
amazing. Now, in building a foundation,
always the first question which needs to be addressed. However
quickly and however cleverly a man may build a building, if
the foundation is unsound, then they're a foolish builder. Foundation
is the number one priority. The number one priority. However, a man labors and may
proceed his building, if it's built upon an unsound foundation,
then it will crumble. He may build his walls upon that
foundation and they will not be firm if the foundation is
not firm. The foundation must be sound.
And great care must be taken in the consideration of the foundation.
And this is especially true for spiritual things. For here, the
foundation is of utmost importance, right? You see, if your foundation is
God and you, that God's done something and now the rest is
up to you, that's not a firm foundation at all. Not at all. If it's God and me
in any point, then that's not a sure foundation.
It must be the foundation that God lays down. And that's Christ
Jesus our Lord. The hearer of the Word of God,
who is not a doer, comes to a fatal end. Comes to a fatal end. Because as the Savior says, He
that built upon the sand and therefore His house in the day
of storm comes and it's taken away. The flood takes it away.
The one who hears the Word and trusts and rests in the Lord
Jesus Christ alone is secure. Because his or her foundation
is laid deep in the ground. They have an eternal Think of
this. They have an eternal foundation.
We who are the people of God, we don't just have a foundation
that's made here and then gone in 20, 30 years. We have a foundation
that's from eternity. We have a sure foundation, don't
we? And who is He? He's the Word of God, the Lord
Jesus Christ, who became flesh and came down into this world
to live the perfect life in the place of His people and then
to die on Calvary's cross for them. As I said this morning, the Bible
proclaims what Christ has done for us. It's already a finished work.
It was finished 2,000 years ago. That means that we have nothing
to do with it. He cried, it is finished, right?
We're just receivers of the mercy and grace of God. The scripture
tells God's people what Christ has done for us. It's wondrous. In gospel preachers,
we stand up and we proclaim what Christ did for sinners, what
he did for his people. It's wonderful. And we say, flee
to him. He's able. He's able. We're not
able to save ourselves, but He's able to save us. He's able. He's able to save to the uttermost
all who come to Him. All of them. Doesn't matter what
your past is. Doesn't matter what you've done.
Because if God regenerates you, if you're born again by the Holy
Spirit of God, which we know regeneration always precedes
faith. So if we're born again by the Holy Spirit of God and
we're given faith to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, God's regenerating those for
whom Christ died for. It's not of our will, it's of
his will. He does whatever he wills. In
the armies of heaven, the scripture says, and all the inhabitants
of the earth are reputed as nothing to him. But yet he has mercy
on we who are his people. And now we have a foundation,
beloved. We have a sure foundation. He's always been our foundation.
We just didn't know it, too. Isn't that amazing? My, oh my,
we're chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.
We've always had a sure foundation. We just didn't have any idea.
And then when God the Holy Spirit reveals to us what Christ has
done for us, what do we do? We run right to Him, don't we?
Thy people shall be made willing in a day of His power. And we
flee right to Christ. And we only have one foundation. And that foundation is the Lord
Jesus Christ. And Paul's bringing forth here that Christ is the
one true foundation for believers. The one true foundation for born-again,
blood-washed saints of God. Think upon this. When someone's
going to build a building, they make changes to what's going
to happen on the inside, right? But they don't change the foundation. Bedroom might be bigger, this
bedroom might be bigger than that bedroom, or might put an
extra room here or there on the inside, but the foundation does
not change. Once the foundation is set, it
never changes. Christ is the one true foundation
for the church, the one true foundation. And that foundation, again, must
be sure. There can be no variety in the foundation. It must be
firm. The variety within the house,
within the building, but no variety in that foundation. None of all. And when it comes
to salvation, when it comes to salvation, there's salvation
in no other than the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one foundation.
There's no other foundation. He's the one foundation. He's
the one sure foundation. Turn, if you would, to Psalm
118.22. And then put your finger in Isaiah 28. You know, it's God who's laid
this foundation. Not man. It's God who planned
and purposed the salvation of a people in Christ in eternity. It's said of Christ that He's
the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And that which
was planned and purposed in eternity came to pass in time. Isn't that
amazing? God's amazing, isn't He? Look
what it says here in Psalm. Psalm 118, verse 22. The stone which the builders
refused has become the headstone of the corner. So the very one who we will see
in Isaiah, to now turn to Isaiah if you would, the very one who
God laid down as a foundation is the one who man naturally
rejects. Natural man rejects the Lord
Jesus Christ. We were there. Before we were saved, we rejected
Christ. We might not have outrightly
said, I reject you, Lord. But by our actions and by our
words, we rejected him. The very same one who the builders
refused has become the headstone of the corner. The Jews rejected Christ as Messiah,
some believed, by the grace of God. But the majority of Jews
rejected Christ as the headstone. Look at this in Isaiah 28, verse
16. Look at this. This is a wondrous
verse in light of this. Now, think of this. All we believers
have different personalities, different backgrounds, but we
who are the born-again, blood-washed saints of God, we all have one
foundation, don't we? All have one foundation. All
have one foundation which we rest our eternal souls upon,
and that's the Lord Jesus Christ. And look what it says here. This
is wonderful. Isaiah 28, 16. Therefore, thus
saith the Lord God. Behold, I lay in Zion. See, it's
God who's laid this foundation. It's God who's done this. He's
laid a foundation stone. Where? It says in Zion. That's the church. The Old Testament,
when we see Zion in the Old Testament, that's speaking of the church.
Now, I know contextually it's speaking of Jerusalem. But Jerusalem, we saw in our
studies in the Psalms, is a picture of the church. She's a walled city. Who protects
us? The Lord Jesus Christ. Look at
this. And this is God doing this. This is Elohim, the Mighty One. It says, I lay down. I do this. This is by His might
and His power. I lay in Zion for a foundation.
Note it says for a foundation. It doesn't say for many foundations. A foundation. One foundation. One. Singular. A foundation. A stone. Singular again. Look
at this. A tried stone. Christ is a tried
stone, isn't He? Think of all He went through
in His life. He's a tried stone. And note the singularity of this.
A stone. A tried stone. A precious cornerstone. That's what Christ is. I love
this next one. A sure foundation. That's what Christ is for His
church. All those things. He's a foundation. He's a stone. A foundation stone. He's a tried stone. A precious
cornerstone. A sure foundation. Now what does
that mean? If He's a sure foundation, that
means if I'm resting and trusting in Him, my salvation's sure. You know why? Because it's not
dependent on me. My salvation is not in any way
dependent upon what I do. Not one bit. And neither is yours
as a believer. Not one bit. See, in religion
it's always, you've got to do this, oh, I've got to keep doing
this, oh, I've got to keep doing that. What rest and peace we
have in grace. It's all about what He's done.
We just look to Christ. We just rest in Christ. Does
that mean we can go out and go crazy? No, we won't do that.
We won't do that because the love of Christ constrains us.
But I am so thankful that my salvation is not dependent in
any way upon me. Hallelujah, right? Praise God.
That's the joy that we feel, isn't it, as believers? To know
that it's a work done. The Scriptures reveal what Christ
has already done for us. Oh my. I just look to Him by
faith that's given to me? I look away from myself, and
I look to Christ, and I'm saved? Yeah. Oh, isn't it wondrous? And me being saved and being
kept is all by the power of God? That's what the Scripture says.
Oh, it's wondrous! It's absolutely wondrous, isn't
it? That's the truth, though. A sure foundation. When a foundation
is sure, it's not going to move. So remember, the One who keeps
us, the One who saved us, is the One who's eternal, the One
who never changes. He's the same what? Yesterday,
today, and forever. And because He doesn't change,
we're not consumed. Because He's satisfied with the sacrifice
of Christ, because the wrath of God fell upon Christ in our
place, the wrath of God will never fall upon we who are His
people. There is therefore now no judgment. Remember, condemnation is judgment.
There is therefore now no judgment for those in Christ Jesus who
walk after the Spirit and not after the flesh. No judgment. Like, no TV screen. No TV screen telling us, well,
you messed up here and you messed up there and you're going to
lose this. No, Christ is our reward, right? Christ is our
reward. Hallelujah. He's our reward.
We have everything in Him. And He's done it all. He's completed
the work. We have a sure foundation for
our salvation. And we have a tried stone. He
endured so much for our salvation. He lived the perfect life. And
then think of what He endured in His death. Spitting on them.
Beating them. And he's the silent suffering
substitute because he's redeeming us. He's going to that cross
because he knows he must purchase his people with the shedding
of his precious, precious blood. That's love. There's greater
love than no man. Greater love knows no man than
a man laid down his life for his friends. And Christ laid
down his life for his people. He died in a Roman place. It's
magnificent. It's magnificent. And then you
see Peter. Well, what if we mess up? What
if we wander? What if we stray? Peter, do you
love me? Peter, do you love me? Oh, I love looking at Peter there.
Peter shows us that salvation, those who trust Christ for their
eternal soul, their salvation, are safe in Christ. Peter denied
the Lord three times, didn't he? See, God's love never changes
for His people. He's loved us from eternity because
God chose us in Christ. He loved us and chose us in Christ
from eternity. That's what the scripture says
in Ephesians 1, 4. And so, we're chosen in Him before
the foundation of the world. So that eternal love, does it
change? Does it ever change towards us? No. See, our love is fickle, right?
We can go up and down, right? Not the Lord's. It's constant. And He is that one sure foundation
for we who are believers. He's that one sure foundation.
He's the only foundation that a sinner needs. He's the only
foundation that a sinner needs. Paul wrote there, For other foundation
can no man lay than that which is laid. Well, we saw there in
Isaiah 28, Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in
Zion for a foundation. No man can lay any other foundation. God has laid the foundation of
the church. And that's Christ. That's Christ. And all true believers
agree that Christ is the one sure foundation. That's what
the Word of God says. We bow our knee to it, right? He's the
one sure foundation. What does He say? I'm the way,
the truth, and what? The life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by Me. That's our Lord. That's the words of the Master. Well, praise God. That we believe,
we who are the people of God, believe on the one who is the
way, the truth, and the life. And now we're going to see the Father.
Only by the grace of God. It's amazing. So you see, any
foundation that man lays by works is a foundation that will prove
to be a refuge of lies. A refuge of lies. False foundation. There's only one sure foundation
for sinners. And that's Christ. And the work
is all by Him. We are just receivers of the
mercy and grace of God. And God gave us the power to
receive that. We receive Christ. Isn't it amazing? Salvations
of the Lord. It's all of Him. From beginning
to end. He's the Alpha and the Omega. He's the beginning and
the ending. He's the author and the finisher of our faith. It's
wondrous. Absolutely wondrous. Zechariah says this, For behold,
the stone that I have laid before Joshua, upon one stone shall
be seven eyes. Behold, I will engrave the graving
thereof, saith the Lord of hosts. I will remove the iniquity of
that land in one day. All the iniquity of God's people
have been removed when Christ died at Calvary's cross. Isn't
that wondrous? Listen to what it says. Turn
if you would to Matthew 21. We'll read this. Matthew 21. Then put your finger in Ephesians
chapter 2. Matthew 21 verses 42 to 44 and
then Ephesians chapter 2 verses 19 to 22. Matthew 21 verses 42
to 44. It says this, Jesus saith unto them, Did you never read in the scriptures,
the stone which the builders rejected, the same has become
the head of the corner? We just read that in Psalm 118. And then it says in verse 42,
this is the Lord's doing, and is it marvelous in our eyes.
Therefore I say unto you, the kingdom of God shall be taken
from you and given to a nation, bringing forth the fruits thereof.
And whosoever shall fall on this stone, being the chief cornerstone,
shall be broken. But on whosoever it shall fall,
it will grind him to powder." My, oh, my. In Romans 9.33, it says, as it
is written, Behold, I lay in Zion a stumbling stone, a rock
of offense, and whosoever believeth in him shall not be ashamed.
Never be ashamed. Now turn, if you would, to Ephesians
chapter 2. Here we see the building being built upon the foundation,
which is Christ. Look at this. Ephesians chapter
2, verses 19 to 22. Important verses to look at when
considering Christ as the foundation. The one sure foundation that's
spoken of in Isaiah. Ephesians 2, verses 19-22, Now
therefore, ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens
with the saints and of the household of God, and are built upon what? The foundation of the apostles.
Well, Paul already told us who the foundation was. It's Christ. The foundation of the apostles
and prophets. Who did the prophets testify of? Christ. And then he's going to name them
right here. Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone.
So that which we looked at in Psalm 118 was speaking of Christ. He's the chief cornerstone. Look
at this now. Here we are. In whom all the
building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in
the Lord. It's the Lord's doing. He builds the temple, which is
his people. In whom you are built together
for inhabitation of God through the Spirit. Look at that. It's
all the work of God. It's all the work of God. He's
the one who builds the household of God. It's incredible. So we clearly
see then Christ is set forth in the scriptures as the foundation.
He's the one sure foundation for believers. And the Lord Jesus
Christ is the foundation for all who believe. We have no other
foundation. None. None at all. Definition
for a foundation found in our text over there in 1 Corinthians
3, verse 11. It means laid down as a foundation.
The foundation of a building, wall, or a city. Metaphorically,
the foundation's beginnings and the first principles. So it's
the first thing that a builder lays down is the foundation. A foundation of a superstructure. Christ is the foundation of His
church. He's the foundation who the church
is built up upon. He's the one sure, as we saw
in Isaiah. He's the sure foundation. He's
the sure foundation. Paul wrote this. He said, Yea,
I have strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was
named, lest I should build upon another man's foundation. If
Christ is being preached, then the foundation's being taught
there. And Paul said, I'm not going
to teach there. If the foundation's already being taught, I'm going
to go over here and preach. Isn't that wonderful? Oh, it's amazing. Oh, he said that in Romans chapter
15, verse 20. So the word foundation expresses
the basis and groundwork of a building. In scripture language, which
Hawker uses, it means Christ is the foundation that God have
laid down in Zion and on which Jehovah has built his church,
and against which the gates of hell shall not prevail. See,
the only reason why the church is not overwhelmed in this world
is because we have a sure foundation. That's the only reason. We have
a sure foundation. And that's Christ Jesus, our
Lord. That's Christ Jesus, our Lord. Church is joined to the
Lord, it says, for both he that sanctify and they who are sanctified
are all of one. He's the head and we're the body. Our hands and our legs and our
feet can't do anything without our head telling us to do things,
right? That's who Christ is for us. And let us remember this,
the building cannot stand without a foundation. A foundation can, though. A foundation
can stand without a building, eh? Yeah. But a building can't stand without
a foundation. Christ doesn't need us. But yet He has mercy on us. We need Him, don't we? We're
that building. We need a sure foundation. We
need it. And that's Christ Jesus our Lord.
Oh my. Let's look at our text again.
1 Corinthians 3, verse 11. For other foundation can no man
lay than that which is laid, which is Christ Jesus. We're
going to look at a few things here. Just a few quick points. We saw in Isaiah that Christ
is the foundation laid down by God Himself. He is the one who's
laid this foundation down. God's done this. It's God's work,
not man's. It's God's work. Who builds the
church up? God does it. He adds as he's
pleased. He is the one who does the building.
He's the master builder. Christ is the only mediator between
God and man. He's the only foundation, the
only one who we can come to to approach God. He's the one sure
foundation laid down by God Himself. And He's purchased us with His
precious blood. He owns us, beloved, by the fact that He purchased
us. And He's our foundation and He's
the cornerstone of our faith. And the Lord Jesus Christ, He
was appointed to be the foundation in the council halls of eternity.
When God the Father and the Holy Spirit covenant to save a people,
Christ was appointed to be the foundation. When a builder builds a house,
they plan out the foundation first. They plan out all the
materials they're going to use. Well, Christ planned and purposed
the salvation of his people. And again, in the halls of eternity, God the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Spirit covenanted to save a people. They planned and
purposed it. And Christ is the appointed foundation. Aren't you glad as a born-again,
blood-washed child of God, aren't you glad that the Father, Son,
and the Holy Spirit covenanted to save you? It's amazing, isn't it? It's
absolutely amazing. No wonder John Newton penned
Amazing Grace after the Lord saved him. No wonder. He believed what we believe.
He believed in the absolute sovereignty of God. It's incredible. And then that which was purposed
came to pass. Christ came to this world to
save sinners and He did it. by the power and might of the
Holy Spirit, He reveals to us what Christ has done for us. Again, like I said this morning,
Sunday School, we're never the same. After we hear the message
of grace, we're never the same. Never the same. See, when I was in religion,
it was all about what I did. Now it's not about anything I
do. It's all about what Christ has
done. And we rejoice in that fact,
don't we? I ask you, if it was about you, if salvation was about
us, would we not mess it up? Amen. But it's not about us. We rest our eternal souls on
the one foundation, the one foundation. The one foundation that God has
laid. And that's the Lord Jesus Christ. And He's a precious foundation,
isn't He? Isaiah again. Isaiah 28, 16.
It says, Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in
Zion for a foundation stone, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone,
a sure foundation. And he that believeth shall not
make haste. Why? All stones in their place are
not useful stones. And all stones in their place
are not precious stones. Some stones can be irritating.
My brother has a sod farm. He owns a sod farm, two sod farms,
200-acre sod farms, and he says they constantly have to pick
rocks because they come up out of the ground. Well, those aren't precious stones
to him. Not at all. Not at all. But few buildings are built upon
precious stones. But you know, the church is built
on the most precious stone of all. The Lord Jesus Christ. The most
precious stone of all. Oh my. It's amazing. Christ is precious in himself.
He's of great worth, isn't He? Just ask His people. Just ask
His people if Christ is of great worth. My, oh my, He's of great
worth to us. Scripture says this, unto you,
therefore, which believe, He is precious. Christ is precious
to we who believe. Unto them which be disobedient,
the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made
the head of the corner. So what kind of foundation is
Christ? Third point. What kind of foundation
is Christ? Well, He's a permanent foundation. He's a permanent
foundation. Rock of ages. He's the rock of
ages. He's from everlasting to everlasting.
And He's our everlasting strength, isn't He? Scripture says, trust
ye in the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting
strength. And you know what? How long have
the saints been resting on this stone? All the way from Adam. All the way from Adam until right
now. Until whenever the Lord wraps it all up, God's people
will rest upon this unchanging, permanent foundation, which is
the Lord Jesus Christ. Again, he's Christ Jesus, the
same yesterday, today, and forever. And his righteousness is an everlasting
righteousness. He doesn't change. What kind
of foundation is Christ? Well, he's the believer's one
foundation. One foundation. God has made
Christ, we saw in Isaiah again, a tried stone, a sure foundation,
one foundation. It was one foundation for the
church, for God's elect. Scripture says, whosoever believeth
in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. That's
wonderful, isn't it? We look to Christ alone. We renounce
all hope within ourselves. We renounce it all. And we renounce
our righteousness, which is like filthy rags, our natural righteousness. And we praise God. And we renounce
all other foundations, including self. And we trust in the one sure
foundation. All other foundations are sink
and sand. Turn, if you would, to Mark,
chapter 7. Mark, chapter 7. One of the preachers of old said
this, we roll and rest thy soul by faith upon his notorious righteousness. None but Christ. None but Christ. He's the only one we trust. Look at this in Matthew chapter
7, verses 24 to 27. Therefore, whosoever heareth
these sayings of mine, this is the Master speaking, and doeth
them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon
a rock. And the rain descended, and floods
came, verse 25, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house,
and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. Who's the rock? Well, it says
right here in Matthew chapter 7, verse 25, and the rain descended,
and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that
house, and it fell not. See, Christ's church will never
fall. Never. Never. Because it's built upon
the eternal rock. It's founded upon a rock. Then
look what he says, And everyone that heareth these sayings of
mine, and doeth them not, shall be like unto a foolish man, which
built his house upon the sand. And the rains descended, and
the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house,
and it fell. And then it says, and great was
the fall of it. Think of all these men through
the ages who have been so proud and so anti-God and all this. You know, when they died, the
moment they died, they found out their house was built on
sand. And they stepped into eternity
and faced the very One who is the one true foundation of the
church, the Lord Jesus Christ. He's the sure foundation, beloved. He's the one sure foundation.
Now the building which is built upon Christ again is the church
of God. We are a spiritual building.
Other buildings are made of wood and stone and other materials,
but this building is made of men and women who have been purchased
by the Lord Jesus Christ. They've been born again by the
Holy Spirit of God. And one day they will glorify
God in their presence. Brother Henry Mahan used to say,
that the blood of Christ is the mortar that keeps us all together. Isn't that beautiful? He's the
one thing that keeps us all together. You see some beautiful brickwork
and you see there's mortar all through there. That's the blood
of Christ. The blood of Christ. That picture is the blood of
Christ keeping all, because all them bricks are held together
by that mortar, right? Oh, it's wonderful, beloved. It's absolutely
wonderful. Oh, He's the one sure foundation.
So Christ is the foundation of the church. The foundation that
the church is built upon. Only Him. No one else. No one
else. My, oh my. Turn, if you would, to 1 Peter
2. 1 Peter 2. We see here that the church is
a living foundation. Christ is in heaven. He is the
foundation. And the superstructure is a living
superstructure. The church. Look at this in 1
Peter 2, verses 4 and 5. To whom coming as unto a living
stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God and precious,
he also These are the ones who Peter's writing to, the saints
that are scattered. As lively stones, living stones,
look at that, are built up a spiritual house and holy priesthood to
offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
So all the materials in God's church, God's building, are men
and women who are made spiritually alive by the Holy Spirit of God,
quickened, regenerated by the will of God, They were once dead
in trespasses and sins, but now they've been made alive. And this building has a sure foundation.
It's secure. It's built upon a permanent foundation. And that's the Lord Jesus Christ. It's protected by God. Other
buildings are exposed to wind and weather and water, to fire. to assaults from outside, but
this is safe from all peril and all danger. You know why? Because
God protects it. Think of this. Men in all generations
have tried to bring this building down. They've tried to bring
the church down. And I'm talking people. I'm not
talking about buildings. They've tried to stamp out the
Church of Christ. They've tried to destroy it.
Paul was even trying to destroy the people of the way. before
the Lord arrested him on the road to Damascus, saved him by
His grace. So they've tried, men in all
generations have tried to tear the people of God, the building
of God down, seeking to overthrow it. But you know what? They've
been dashed to pieces. They've been dashed to pieces,
beloved. All their schemes have been in
vain because it's God who protects His church. And that be of the
people. The only reason this work is
here is because God's kept it here. Isn't that amazing? Praise
be to God. It's wonderful, isn't it? The
only reason that there's grace churches the way they are is
because God's kept them there. That's the only reason. It's
absolutely amazing. And He protects us. He protects
us, beloved. He keeps us. So the building
is a growing church. It's a people who are growing
up, growing in the Lord Jesus Christ. We grow in grace, don't
we? And it's all God's doing. And
the Lord adds to his church as he's pleased. He's the one who's
building this temple, not man. I had someone not long ago tell
me, Oh, my. They said, well, if you
let me do this and you let me do that, it'll be more people
in your church and more money. You know what I said? We don't operate that way. God brings in whomever He's pleased. See, man tries to employ these
tricks and these things. We don't work that way. The scripture
very clearly says God adds to the churches he's pleased. Brother
Dye told me, you just need to keep being faithful and preach
the gospel where you're at. And I'm like, amen. That's right. And God will do what he's pleased
to do. It's absolutely wonderful. Let's turn to Acts chapter 2,
verse 46 and 47. We'll see that about fourth. We praise God, don't we? Now,
do we desire for the Lord to bring in more people? Absolutely.
If it's His will. Absolutely. It's incredible what He does. Look at this in Acts 2, verses
46 and 47. The people of God are building
fitly, framed together, growth into a holy temple in the Lord.
And it grows larger by the addition of those to it, who shall be
saved by God. As he saves his elect, the building
grows. And it grows amidst much opposition. But it's a sure growth, because
the Lord makes it so. Acts chapter 2, verses 46 to
47. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple,
breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with
gladness and singleness of heart. Now there it is. Singleness of
heart. We have singleness of heart,
don't we? We're here for the gospel to go out forth. We're
here to come here to hear the gospel preached and proclaimed,
and it's wondrous. We're single-hearted as God's people. Praising God
and having favor with all people, and the Lord added to the church
daily, such as should be saved. Look at that. It's God's work. He adds to the church. You know,
Charlie and Denise walked in here four years ago, Stooped
in religion? Stooped in religion. And they
asked me, they said, what can we do? I said, just sit and listen. Just sit and listen. Well, a
year later, they both came to me and said, now we know why
you told us to sit and listen. We were lied to in religion. God bought them to hear the Word. He saved them by His grace. Isn't it amazing? And they said
they were just driving by and they saw the sign and said, oh,
let's just pull in there. And they never stopped coming. Isn't
that incredible? That's God's work. That's what
God does. He adds to the church as He's
pleased. And it's wondrous. So the believer in Christ has
no other foundation no other righteousness, no other acceptance
with God, no other salvation but in Christ and Him alone.
And we cleave to Him who is the Savior of our souls. So the church's
one foundation is the Lord Jesus Christ. He's our hope. He's our
hope.