Sermon Central
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Check The Foundation
Contributed by Sean Dees on Mar 1, 2022 (message contributor)
Summary: Foundations are important to a structure. Without a good foundation everything you build will fall apart if it's not on a solid foundation. All we do for God needs to be on a good foundation of Faith.
I. “IF” That word alone is mentioned 1,420 times in Scripture.
A. The Dictionary describes "IF" this way : in case that; granting or supposing that; on condition that: Sing if you want to. Stay indoors if it rains. I'll go if you do. even though: an enthusiastic if small audience. 3. whether: He asked if I knew Spanish. 4. (used to introduce an exclamatory phrase): If only Dad could see me now! 5. when or whenever: If it was raining, we had to play inside. –noun 6. a supposition; uncertain possibility: The future is full of ifs. 7. a condition, requirement, or stipulation: There are too many ifs in his agreement. —Idiom 8. ifs, ands, or buts, reservations, restrictions, or excuses: I want that job finished today, and no ifs, ands, or buts.
Ge 18:26 And the LORD said, If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare all the place for their sakes.
2Ch 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
I didn’t read all 1,420 but through all the ones I did it always related make to man. This verse is the only verse that I could find that would try to tie make to God by asking a what if question in relation to God.
God asked Job in Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth.
• Mal 3:6 For I [am] the LORD, I change not; …
• Heb 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
• Re 22:13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
• God is before all things, and by him all things consist.
II. What is the nature of foundations?
A. The word “foundation” is a term used in relation to buildings.
In the Bible we are described as God’s building.
Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building.
…but Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end.
It’s encouraging to know that we are not just an ordinary building but we are called “God’s building.” This means that God is very interested and involved in the process of ensuring that a solid foundation is laid in our lives.
B. Buildings are only as strong as their foundations.
A foundation is something that is put in place first before the building is built; yet many Christians only come to understand the importance of foundations long after they get saved. In most cases this means they have built their lives in the wrong order. Fortunately in God’s grace we can go back and rebuild our foundation to ensure our stability for the future.
C. A foundation is actively placed but hidden from public view.
The word in the Bible for foundation speaks of something that is put down as the substructure of a building. This is significant because even though it is unseen it is vitally important. It is derived from a word which means to place, sink down, settle, set, ordain, purpose or conceive.
D. A solid foundation can be very costly to build properly.
And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it- lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, “This man began to build and was not able to finish.”
E. When you begin to build up you have to dig deep. When designing a building the architect and engineers work together to design the foundation of the structure. A smaller building like a house would not require the same foundation as a skyscraper. A house may only require a foundation to be dug down a few feet while larger buildings can require a foundation to be dug down in excess of 150ft. such as in the case of the tallest building in the World the Burj Khalifa standing at 2,722 ft with a 163ft foundation.
1. Reasons for a deep foundation are determined by the structure that is being built and its purpose as well as the ground itself. For structures that are to serve a great capacity and function they cannot just have a foundation on the topsoil but require a foundation beneath the subsoil with a support system reaching down deep into the bedrock.
