Disclaimer:
Due to the large amount of sermons and topics that appear on this site I feel it is necessary to post this disclaimer on all sermons posted. These sermons are original to the author and the leading of the Holy Spirit. While ideas and illustrations are often gleaned from many sources including those at Sermoncentral.com, any similarities and wording including sermon title, that may appear to be the same as any other sermon are purely coincidental. In instances where other minister’s wording is used, due recognition will be given. These sermons are not copyrighted and may be used or preached freely. May God richly bless you as you read these words. It is my sincere desire that all who read them may be enriched. All scriptures quoted in these sermons are copies and quoted from the Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible.
Pastor James May
OUR SURE FOUNDATION
Everywhere you look today, whether, in your own life, on the TV, or in the news, there are people whose lives are falling into ruin. Thousands of families are headed for destruction, as the love of many grows cold. Relationships among people are crumbling. Even churches are falling apart, and businesses are falling into disarray. The whole world seems to be heading for self-destruction.
Why are so many lives being ruined? Why is every nation on earth facing such tragic and dire circumstances? Why does it seem that the world is coming apart at the seams?
The answer lies in the Word of God and can easily be found by anyone who is willing to search for the truth with an open mind. That’s the trouble with the world though; they refuse to hear the truth and would rather believe the deception and lies of the devil.
Isaiah 28:16, "Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste."
The reason that so much needless tragedy is prevalent in our world is that most of us don’t build our lives, our nations, or our world upon a sure foundation.
The Lord God of Heaven has determined what will constitute a sure foundation. That foundation must be solid, unshakeable, perfect and without flaw. That foundation must be tried, tested and proven sure. That foundation is the Lord Jesus Christ and His death on the cross, burial in a borrowed tomb, His resurrection from the dead by His own power; and His subsequent rise to the eternal Heavens where He has sat down at the Father’s right hand to signify that He has completed His work in becoming that sure foundation.
Matthew 16:16-18, "And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."
There can be no other foundation upon which to build our lives than belief and trust in the unshakeable foundation of the Jesus Christ. When man is confronted with the question of where he will place his confidence, man will trust anything but Jesus because to trust in Jesus means that we must submit to His authority and live according to His law. Man refuses to bend his knee or bow to the Lord and, therefore, continues to build upon foundations that will surely fall.
Just as Peter confessed in these verses, we must all reach the point in our lives where we, too, will confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. That confession can only come as we are inspired by the Holy Spirit to understand, receive and believe in Jesus as our Lord and Master. That is where wisdom begins. When we finally come to the realization that Jesus is our only answer, that’s when we can begin to build upon our sure foundation of belief in Him.
Jesus told Peter that the realization of who Jesus really is could only come from the revelation to our heart that comes from the Father in Heaven through the Holy Spirit.
That’s why we read these words in John 6:44, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day."
Jesus’ own words tell us that the only sure foundation is found in the belief that Jesus is the Son of God and accepting Him as the Lord of our life. Jesus is the only foundation that will stand against every test, every storm and every trial.
Matthew 7:24-27 says, "Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it."
Illustration:
The Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy is going to fall. Scientists travel yearly to measure the building’s slow descent. They report that the 179-foot tower moves about one-twentieth of an inch a year, and is now 17 feet out of plumb. They further estimate that by the year 2007 the 810-year old tower will have leaned too far and will collapse onto the nearby restaurant, where scientists now gather to discuss their findings. Quite significantly, the word "pisa" means "marshy land," which gives some clue as to why the tower began to lean even before it was completed. Also--its foundation is only 10 feet deep!
I want you to notice one very important point concerning this parable of Christ. Whether your foundation is based upon Jesus or not, the rain, floods and winds are surely coming. Jesus said in Matthew 5:45, "...for He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." That tells me that just because we trust in Jesus and base our lives upon that sure foundation, that the storms of life are still going to come with all their fury.
If it were true that Christians would never have to face the storm, it would be so much easier to get people to become Christians. How easy would it be to convince someone to accept the Lord as their Savior if you could promise them that life would be a blissful bed of roses and they would never face another trial, test or sickness? People would flock to Christianity by the millions to never have another trial. But, that’s not the reason that Jesus wants them to come. Jesus doesn’t want people to love Him and accept His great salvation just to get the blessings. Jesus wants people to accept Him and live for Him because of who He is and because we love Him. If our commitment to Christ is based only on the good times, then that is no commitment at all.
Illustration:
Even our weddings vows to one another, that are designed to present a picture of the relationship of the Bride of Christ to Jesus, the Groomsman, state that we will stay together for richer or for poorer, for better or worse, in sickness and in health, and forsaking all others, remain faithful to our chosen spouse for life until death do us part. In the marriage of the Bride to Christ there is no “until death do us part” for there is no death.
When the storms of life come, as they surely will, our foundation must be set upon a sure place. Jesus is the Rock. He is the only solid foundation for life.
When you set your life upon the Rock, Jesus Christ, you will be cemented into place by the power of the Holy Spirit. When you build a natural building upon a rock, there is always a mortar or cement mix applied to keep the base of the wall from slipping away or sliding. The cement keeps the bricks, blocks or stones of the wall from moving when weight is applied to the top of it. Have you ever tried to stack a pile of rocks? If no cement is applied, the pile will fall, but when the cement is applied and then hardens, it takes great effort to knock the rocks down then. I believe that the cement that holds us to the sure foundation in Christ is the Love of God and the fact that we have been washed clean in the Blood of the Lamb.
One of the greatest promises in all of God’s Word to His people is found in John 10:27-29 where Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand."
When Jesus promised Peter that the “Gates of Hell” would never prevail against the Rock and against the church that was built upon that Rock, this is what He was referring to. There is no power in hell or on the earth that has the power to remove us from the hand of Almighty God for we are cemented into the sure foundation of Jesus Christ. You don’t have to worry about Satan stealing your salvation. You don’t have to worry about accidentally falling away from the Lord. You can chose to leave the foundation if you want to but the Holy Spirit that has helped you to be cemented to the Rock in the first place will not allow you to leave without giving you every warning and every opportunity to repair your anchor to the sure foundation.
The “gates of hell” means the works and powers of the invisible world. In ancient times the gates of fortified cities were used to hold councils in, and were usually places of great strength. Our Lord’s expression means, that the plots, stratagems, or strength of Satan and his angels, should ever so far prevail as to destroy the sacred truths in the above confession. Sometimes the gates are taken for the troops which issue out from them: we may firmly believe, that though hell should open her gates, and cast forth her devil and all his angels, to fight against Christ and his saints, ruin and hurt must be the their consequence on their as the arm of the Omnipotent God must prevail.
Mankind has ever loved to build upon foundations of sand and soil. He prefers the darkness rather than the light for the light reveals man’s true nature of sin and brings to his remembrance the need for a Savior.
What foundations do men build upon?
1) Worldly Pleasure – only last for a season and then the pleasure is gone and we are left with the guilt of sin and shame for life. The end result is a life that comes crashing down around us and we fall into the pits of hell itself.
2) Wealth & Prosperity – where is your salvation, your foundation, when the stock market crashes and your money becomes less valuable through the effects of inflation? What good will money, house, lands and property do for you when the world is on fire and it is all burned away? We came into this world without anything and I’ve never seen a Funeral Hearst pulling a wagon with the possessions of the deceased behind it to the grave.
3) People and Relationships – people are fickle and relationships are so very fragile. There are multitudes of examples of people who have based their whole meaning in life in the lives of other people. Children will one day leave, spouses can only be there for a time until life comes to its end, many won’t even be faithful even for the short span of their lifetime, much less for eternity.
4) The Church – the church as the Body of Christ is a living organism, inspired and given life by the power of the Holy Spirit. Without the sure foundation of the Lord Jesus Christ, even a church can fall and the doors will shut when the Spirit departs. You cannot place your trust in a church that is not founded upon Jesus as its head and foundation.
5) A Preacher – Oh, how many have fallen away into their old life of sin because of the moral failure of a preacher of the gospel. Preachers are mere mortal men and as such are just as vulnerable to failure as anyone else. We should never place a man, no matter who he may be, whether Pope or pauper, upon a pedestal and base our lives upon their teaching or preaching. No man is infallible but Christ is!
6) The “Arm of the Flesh” or military might – even the vaunted military power of the greatest empires of history and the modern power of the US Armed Forces can and will be defeated. How can we trust in such weak things as our eternal foundation?
7) False Doctrines - 2 Peter 1:10, "… give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:” - Philippians 2:12, "… work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." We are instructed to be careful of the teaching we hear and to always compare it with the true Word of God. False doctrines abounds in our day and Jesus even said that He would have to return in a timely fashion unless even those who are the “very elect” would be deceived. How sure is your foundation in the Word of God that will never fail?
There is only one sure foundation. That foundation is the Lord Jesus Christ! Base your life, your eternity, upon faith and trust in the Blood of the Lamb. That’s the only way to salvation. That’s the only way to win in the end.
Illustration:
One of the commercials that we see and hear a lot on the TV and radio right now is aired by the “Cable Lock Foundation Repair Company”. This company will come in, dig down and anchor your home on huge concrete pilings up to 90 ft deep and run huge cables under your home to lift and hold your foundation of your home. I wonder if they think that those pilings and cables will last forever? Sooner or later the pilings will sink more and the cables will rust away and break. Where does that leave your foundation?
Jesus is here to repair your foundation right now! His repair is not guaranteed for this life, but for life eternally. There is no better guarantee than that! Jesus is in the foundation repair business. He repairs your life and brings all the broken and cracked places back together. Then He becomes your solid rock foundation, your sure foundation, and you never have to worry about the storms of life again.
What have you based your life upon? Is it upon the “sure foundation” of the Lord Jesus Christ? Why not put your trust in Him? Why not place your life in His hands? Why not surrender your life to Him so that He can place your feet upon the Rock?
