For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ himself is the one foundation already laid, and no man can lay any other in his place. Paul laid that foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God, planting the truth of Christ for others to build upon while God gave the increase. Every man must take heed how he builds upon it, for his work will be made manifest and tried by fire in the day of testing. Gold, silver and precious stones are enduring character, pure teaching and unselfish labor that the fire cannot consume, while wood, hay and stubble are false teaching, human invention and selfish work that will be burned. If the work abides the builder receives a reward, but if it is burned he suffers loss of his life-work, though he himself may yet be saved so as by fire.
Christ the Only Foundation
For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ, for he himself is the one foundation already laid on which faith, the church, its work, education and redemption must be built. No different, new, or supposedly stronger foundation can be laid in his place, and every attempt to establish a new faith or new principles apart from him does not stand. The foundations of faith were laid through prayerful study of Scripture and revelation, and believers are to hold firmly to the beginning of their confidence and take heed how they build on what God has laid.
He is the living Rock, the eternal Rock, the Rock of Ages, the solid Rock, the true, sure and immovable foundation, the abiding place for a perishing world. He is the chief cornerstone, the tried stone and precious cornerstone laid in Zion, a sure foundation strong enough to bear the burden of the world and broad enough for all to build upon. He is the Word and the revelation of God's character, law, love and life, crucified for sinners as propitiation and atoning sacrifice, his body broken and bruised for humanity, rent so that hope may anchor within the veil.
The foundation is not Peter, whose denial showed he could be overcome, and not any pope, priest, prelate, minister or other man set up as mediator for forgiveness and salvation. No man may set himself up as foundation or pattern for others to build upon, for men make mistakes, misjudge, fail and lack his Spirit, so life must be built by looking to Jesus at every step. Christ laid the foundation himself by giving his life, and he remains its builder, great Teacher and head, while apostles and later workers serve only by bringing people to him and building upon him.
His words and works laid the foundation, and his followers are to hold the doctrines he taught and follow his example. Christ crucified as the atonement for sin is the great central truth of the gospel, round which all truths cluster and to which all are tributary, deriving their value and importance from connection with him rightly understood. He is the foundation of the whole Jewish economy, whose types pointed to the faith and obedience of all people and in whom patriarchs and prophets had all their hope as the promised Lamb to take away sin, and he is the sole foundation of the plan of salvation. That plan rests on obedience to the moral law as the commandments of Christ, which are the transcript of God's character for converting the soul, so that keeping them proves love and brings the indwelling of Father and Son.
Paul's Work at Corinth
Paul laid the foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God given to him, and another builds upon it. That foundation already laid is Jesus Christ, and no man can lay any other foundation for faith, for the church, and for God's building. All workers do not have the same work, for one plants and another waters while God gives the increase, with Paul planting and Apollos watering the precious seed Paul sowed. He who plants and he who waters are one, ministers only by whom belief came, laborers together with God, and each shall receive his own reward according to his own labor.
In calling himself a wise master-builder Paul did not exalt himself, claimed no wisdom of his own, and took no glory to himself, but worked as a humble instrument in God's hands and a laborer together with God. Divine power uniting with his human effort enabled him to present truth in a manner pleasing to God, bringing spiritual knowledge from the word of God and the works of Christ to all whose hearts were open to evidence. United with Christ the greatest of all teachers, as co-laborer with Christ, he communicated lessons of divine wisdom meeting the necessities of all classes and conditions of men for all times, places, and peoples.
He urged this foundation while wisely forbearing to mention false teachers by name, for fear of irritating a darkened and divided church and turning some entirely from the truth. His work among the Gentiles was working in the Gentile quarry to bring out valuable stones to lay upon that foundation. Gentiles who accept the gospel are brought to this foundation and belong among God's building stones, for descent from Abraham does not give the Jews an exclusive claim to that place, and converts built on him are the building stones of God's house, pictured as gold, silver, and precious stones. Paul laid himself upon Christ as the true and living foundation stone of the church and brought every stone, large or small, polished or unhewn, common or precious, to be connected with Christ, so that by contact with that living stone they become living stones slowly building up the temple of the church of God.
The verse stands in 1 Corinthians 1-3, and especially chapter 3, which must be read carefully, studied, read in every church, and prayed over, because it is full of instruction and reproof for ministers of the gospel and for all churches wherever located. It confronts readers as carnal babes in Christ rather than spiritual, calls ministers to search the Scriptures and seek truth for the soul's sake, and requires humbling of hearts before God in order to have names placed in the book of life. It condemns carnal party spirit saying I am of Paul and I am of Apollos, with envy, strife, prejudice, jealousy, evil surmising, withdrawing from some for imagined reasons and binding up with others. It teaches that ministers whose work differs in emphasis or presentation are one in object and are to receive reward according to labor rather than be condemned or feared, and that God will not tolerate such differences or send His Spirit as Comforter and Strengthener until His people are of one mind, loving as brethren, pitiful and courteous. The first three chapters also show that men given to worldly pursuits and cultivating sharp business traits after a worldly order see the preaching of the cross as foolishness, so not many wise after the flesh, mighty, and noble come into the truth, while God saves them that believe through the foolishness of preaching and chooses the foolish, weak, base, despised, and neglected things to confound the wise and mighty and bring to nothing the things that are, so that no flesh glories, with Christ made unto believers wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Faith and practice need to be energized by the Holy Spirit, ruling power to compel men to obey the dictates of the finite mind is forbidden, and minds must cease from man and not lean on human wisdom, because turning minds to human wisdom places a veil between God and man so that Him who is invisible is not seen, and reliance on human wisdom can obscure God.
No one not built upon that true foundation can be a living stone, however polished by worldly policy and human effort, for such work is only hay, wood, and stubble. The temple of Diana illustrates the ruin of a religion built on a false foundation, found worthless when tried, while the people won at Ephesus were precious and enduring stones because they were built on Christ. Gold, silver, and precious stones are true moral worth sanctified by the Spirit of God, the most perfect Christians refined by grace and affliction, obedience, love, and self-sacrifice, who will endure the burning day of God. The great temple of the church rises through the centuries on Christ as its only foundation, and Luther was called to serve as a builder in that temple.
Building Tested by Fire
Every person who builds on the foundation already laid must take heed how he builds thereupon, for no other foundation can be laid and each builder shall receive reward according to his own labor. Paul laid that foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God for another to build on, with one planting and another watering while God gives the increase, since all do not have the same work. God and man cooperate in this building, with divine power working with human effort, and building on Christ decides present peace and happiness and future well-being. Care is therefore required to study directions carefully and prayerfully, to bring no wood, hay and stubble to the foundation and no human inventions or human wisdom in place of His wisdom into character building, for He is the light of the world and the Sun of righteousness and lasting peace and assurance. That care means examining one's own work rather than criticizing others, because what is built will be made manifest and tried.
Gold, silver and precious stones picture enduring work that fire cannot consume — true moral worth, pure teaching substantiated by Scripture, unselfish soul-saving labor, and Christlike character formed of the most valuable and imperishable material. Such building uses means, influence, wisdom and tact to save precious souls, especially children, relatives, neighbors and friends who have let love of the world separate them from God, gathering straying ones into the fold to secure a harvest of souls. Wood, hay and stubble picture perishable work that will be burned in the last-day fire — human inventions, false teaching, invented tests, unsupported claims and misinterpretations, selfish gathering of earthly treasure with an inconsistent example, and careless neglect of soul-saving work. A life that excludes Jesus and relies on personal judgment instead of faithfulness to Him is such a failed work and brings loss. Work done for Jesus by helping people come to Him is spiritual work with lasting value, built by faith, hope and love as partakers of the divine nature who have overcome corruption through lust, and those saved through such efforts will share in heaven's praise of the Lamb while Christ remains the only Redeemer.
Every man's work built on the foundation will be made manifest, for the day shall declare it by fire that tries every man's work of what sort it is, revealing its quality and deciding reward and place. Teaching, character, words and actions are all tested, and in the day of judgment God places His estimate on each one's work just as it is. Tilling and preparing literal soil for seed and harvest illustrates this work of breaking up hardened hearts so the Word as gospel seed finds favorable soil and produces a harvest, requiring watchers for souls to labor faithfully. Building rightly therefore means forming a character for eternity, with every part of the work bearing God's mark.
If the work abides the builder receives a reward, including souls standing before the throne of God and white robes and jeweled crowns. If the work is burned he suffers loss with his life-work lost, yet he himself may be saved so as by fire after repentance, affliction and conversion. One who repents after worthless work is consumed may suffer great loss, and those he led astray may not repent. Building on Christ therefore carries responsibility for the faith of others. Right building requires humbling the heart before God, becoming a fool to become wise, not judging brethren for failing to count all words and spirit and actions perfection, not glorying in men whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, not thinking above what is written or being puffed up for one against another, for ministers are stewards of the mysteries of God required to be found faithful and judgment belongs to the Lord who will bring to light hidden things of darkness.
Those built on Christ are God's field, God's building and holy temple indwelt by the Spirit, so defiling that holy temple brings destruction from God. This includes caring for oneself as God's property and not neglecting or harming the body that belongs to Him. Worldly wisdom is foolishness with God and the thoughts of the wise are vain, so none should deceive himself by seeming wise in this world or glory in men, for all things belong to those who are Christ's and Christ is God's. The same plain words against carnality, division and defiling God's temple rebuke impurity in thought and heart, calling for centering affections on proper objects and being as true as steel to marriage vows in thought, word and deed.
Church Built in Unity
The foundation already laid is Jesus Christ alone, and the apostles built the church of God upon the foundation he had laid. They gathered people out of both the Jewish world and the Gentile world into one spiritual temple resting on him, bringing them as stones for that building. That building continued and could not be overthrown despite opposition and the death of its workers, going forward under God's supervision to his glory. Its members depend individually on Christ and are united to one another under him, as a temple cannot stand apart from its foundation. Converts built on him are gold, silver and precious stones, and Gentiles who accept the gospel belong among God's building stones, for descent from Abraham gives the Jews no exclusive claim to that place.
People of every kind are brought into connection with him and the church is built up gradually upon him. The church is built not on Peter but on Jesus Christ as both foundation and chief cornerstone, with no other creature set forth as foundation. It is composed not of ministers only but of many others, all centered in Christ as branches in the parent vine stock. That one foundation admits Gentiles as well as Jews through repentance and receiving Christ, breaking down separation so that broken branches cut away can be gathered and engrafted again into Christ and given new life from him.
A church founded on Christ as the Rock is built up when workers continue in the power of the same Spirit that established the work, by opening the Scriptures, by praying, by exercising faith, and by educating the people in the way of the Lord. Those interested in the truth must be taught to build on the sure foundation by studying diligently the word of God. When presentation of truth in large congregations awakens inquiry, that interest must be followed up by personal house-to-house labor, with wisely directed Bible workers helping inquirers by opening to their understanding the treasure-house of God's word. Work founded on him gives evidence of its genuineness and honors God rather than seeking glory for people, with workers not glorifying self but praising God as designer and organizer of every holy ennobling work, as believers sanctified by truth acted as well as preached. So the church in Greater New York is to be built on Christ through opening the Scriptures, prayer and faith under the direction of God's Spirit.
Placing oneself on the side of the minister under whose labors light and truth were received, while refusing harmony with brethren, is carnality like that of babes in Christ, not being sanctified through the truth. Cementing oneself to a man and tying up in separate bundles for want of meekness and humility and wholehearted kindness makes crooked paths that turn the lame out of the way, needs speedy reconversion, and otherwise makes claimed conversion a stumbling block to sinners. When a man begins in self-confidence to build after his own notions, plans and desires without reference to his brethren, he lays on the foundation a mass of his own suppositions that is only rubbish. No one is to build on the man under whose labors he received light or stand as an independent atom, but all who receive truth in love of its principles are sanctified to be a channel and representative of grace in love and unity and harmonious action. This means ceasing to feed on one another's faults and ending strife of tongues, believing God's word and following his methods so his people can be blessed and his cause saved, building up rather than tearing down the work others have done.
The foundation of Christianity is Christ our righteousness, and every person is individually accountable to God and must act as God moves upon him, not as moved by the mind of another. Building on Christ alone leaves souls free to be impressed and directed by the Spirit of the great I AM with freedom of action and of choice, while dependence on human minds keeps souls under restraint that prevents that divine impression and direction. Faith and practice need to be energized by the Holy Spirit, which forbids exercising ruling power to compel men to obey the dictates of the finite mind. Men must cease from man and not lean on human wisdom or replace God's principles with human counsel, for turning minds to human wisdom places a veil between God and man so that him who is invisible is not seen. Following human judgment and claims to control others instead of God's way leads to confusion and cannot teach wisdom to others, for Jesus is the authority on whom people must build and the sole foundation on which faith and spiritual life must rest.
Ministers are only ministers by whom believers believed, one planting and another watering while God gives the increase, with differing emphasis or presentation one in object and rewarded according to labor, not to be condemned or feared. Carnal party spirit saying I am of Paul and I am of Apollos, with envy, strife, prejudice, jealousy and evil surmising, withdrawing from some for imagined reasons and binding up with others, must be put away, for God will not send his Spirit as Comforter and Strengthener until his people are of one mind, loving as brethren, pitiful and courteous. Building rightly means counseling together and praying together and making no move independently or in opposition to one another, with every member dependent on Christ for life and working power and using God-given ability to the utmost in perfect harmony despite differences of individuality, manner and bearing. It requires highly esteeming the counselors God has raised up and taught whose heart and soul and life are in the work, receiving advice and working in harmony with brethren instead of following crude independent notions that sow doubt and discord, being subject to one another and conducting worship with consistency, unity and sound judgment. Planting the feet on Christ as the one foundation of truth and only pattern means looking to Jesus and copying his manners and spirit until the same Spirit dwells in each as Christ in them, the hope of glory. When Italian, French, German and all other nationalities do this, differences disappear and partition walls between nationalities are broken down, and they become one in judgment and one in purpose in union and harmony for the salvation of others.
Character Built on Christ
Jesus Christ is the foundation already laid for character building, and no other foundation can be laid by any man. Building upon him requires cooperation between God and man, with divine power working with human effort to will and to do God's pleasure. Each person must work out salvation with fear and trembling and take heed how he builds, studying directions carefully and prayerfully, because the character formed here decides eternal destiny. God cannot work through those who make no effort, but when people faithfully do their part he works through them the good pleasure of his will, shaping soul, body and spirit so the results endure beyond this life into eternity. Such building must be done after God's order with an eye single to his glory, willing and obedient, not from man's standpoint or finite judgment, and its material must be gold, silver and precious stones rather than wood, hay and stubble that will not endure the fire of the great day of God.
Building character on Christ means digging deep and removing all rubbish so the foundation is firm and broad and well laid, since salvation is found in him alone. Only solid timbers and best material belong in God's building, with no cheap material, no worthless timbers, and no haphazard, careless or indifferent work in fitting the different parts together. Piece must fit piece perfectly with exact care, as God's temple was carefully built, with character wrought point by point and no flaw allowed, because one stone mislaid affects the whole building. Every worker must guard well every point and phase, using every hour to place the character-stone on Christ the solid foundation and eternal Rock, consecrating each faculty, so the building riveted to the Rock will bear storm, tempest, pressure and the day of test and revelation.
Receiving Christ means receiving his word, for he is the Word and the revelation of God's character, law, love and life. Building on him means obeying that word and doing the Father's will in thought, word and action, with righteousness shown by doing what is right and holiness consisting in surrender to God. This obedience does not earn God's favor but follows receiving his love, as faith is made visible in works of righteousness and works by love to purify the soul. The finished character must stand final inspection, so selfishness or a harmful trait that distorts the building must be put away, while upright deeds and pure words help form a character fit for the Lord.
Falling on the Rock Christ Jesus breaks the heart and brings truth from the outer court into the inner sanctuary of the soul, giving sight and understanding of truth and of sacred past history. To fall upon him and be broken means to give up self-righteousness and self-dependence, to come humbly, repent of sin, and trust his forgiving love, blood and righteousness alone. Salvation is not built upon works of righteousness done by men, for all such works together are as sliding sand and cannot be rested upon, while his blood alone atones for transgressions and his righteousness must be claimed by living faith, depending on him and abiding in him alone. Laying the foundation right requires coming to Jesus with much prayer and a broken and contrite spirit, wrestling as Jacob did until prevailing, keeping the mind off other people so the work is directly between God and the soul, treating the decision as life and death, making thorough work for eternity, and humbling self under God's mighty hand without waiting to be humbled. Those who hold truth only theoretically with their fingertips have not been so broken, and they accept what pleases their ideas and flatters vanity while manufacturing another foundation and devising pillars to replace the pillars of faith.
Without building on Christ in faith and practice of the truth, with true reformation and not a mere form of godliness without power, the house falls when storm and tempest beat upon it like a house built on sand. The way is one of self-denial and self-sacrifice, self-control and self-discipline, in which his strength of character becomes sufficient, his character becomes the character, his Spirit becomes the spirit, and the Word opens the right of way to every spiritual blessing. Without painstaking effort and earnest education of converts in what it means to be a Christian, conversion is spurious and character is like a bowing wall and a tottering fence. The foundation must be laid broadly and deeply with integrity in daily dealings, for professing to build on Christ while acting dishonestly or failing to grow in grace and perfect holiness is building on sliding sand that the tempest will sweep away, leaving no refuge and bringing great loss in peril and trial. Truth received into the sanctuary of the soul sanctifies the receiver, never leading to unrighteous action or resting on false ground, so those built on Christ keep the mind stayed on God in trust for perfect peace, are not tossed by temptation or left to drift on opinion, and grasp his outstretched hand to be held, with everything besides Christ as sliding sand and with standing or falling in time and eternity depending on laying the foundation well.
Enduring character is formed day by day, stroke upon stroke, as God joins distinct yet dependent faculties together until life grows into a holy temple for the Lord. Each person forms character daily through use of God-given powers, and the present time is for cultivating intellectual and moral powers to become useful in this life and prepared for the life to come. A sound character grows by adding grace and good deeds while putting away sin such as impatience and fault-finding, seeking with determination for purity and perfection that harmonizes with professed truth, and being cleansed by Christ's blood. Connection with Christ is formed as Scripture truth is planted in the heart and impressed by the Spirit to control life, while refusal to connect with him brings connection with Satan and threads of influence drawing others into false paths; those who place precious material on the foundation cooperate with him and send golden threads of influence to draw other souls to Christ. Daily choices add good or bad bricks until life ends, and small acts and neglected duties shape the structure and prepare or leave unprepared for severe tests.
Rejecting False Foundations
No other foundation can take the place of the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ the Rock, and no supposedly stronger foundation, new faith or new principles can replace it. The foundations of faith laid at the beginning by prayerful study of the Word and by revelation are built on that Rock, bringing believers out from the world point by point into clear present truth, and fifty years of building stand upon them. To claim a new way has been found, to tear those foundations away and attempt to build apart from Christ, is great deception, and such building soon falls because it is not founded on the Rock. As the first disciples met the sayings of men and false theories by standing firm on the laid foundation, so now the beginning of confidence must be held steadfast to the end.
The correct order and character of the first, second and third angels' messages rests on this laid foundation and cannot be controverted from the Word of God. Under the proclamation of the third message that foundation secures the work against weaving in human theories and against getting up something original by diligent study, and all such attempts must be refused. Those who tear down the foundation God has laid are not to be accepted as teachers or leaders of his people, for the words bringing them out of the world into clear present truth belong to truth built on that foundation and confirm its genuineness.
False doctrine is rubbish heaped up on the true foundation to obstruct faithful builders, leaving the few who build faithfully perplexed and hindered amid persecution, fraud, iniquity and every obstacle, so that some turn away from the true foundation for peace and security of property and life while others remain undaunted, fearless and vigilant to the close of time. God's word is the unerring rule for testing every teaching and practice built on Christ, for careless builders may add false teachings and superstitions as though precious, yet they are worthless materials laid on the true foundation. Spiritualistic theories and false science are corrupting additions that lead astray, and speculation about the unrevealed mystery of God's essence, fanciful ideas, human theories and manufactured fables taught as essential for salvation are wood, hay and stubble, chaff to wheat, with no virtue or nourishment to strengthen souls. The truths God has established must remain firmly in their proper place in purity without mixture with error, for undermining them or mixing them with false teaching weakens the whole structure, confuses truth with error, and will not endure the day of trial when every man's work is tested by fire but will be consumed. Those who teach such things are unsafe teachers who need to learn the first principles of truth, and if saved at all it will only be as by fire through repentance, humiliation, purification and trial, with the life saved but bringing no reward.
Forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation are found by trusting in the Son of God, not by relying on pope, priests, prelates or other human authorities as mediators between people and God. During the Dark Ages faith was transferred from Christ to the pope, priests and prelates, with people taught to depend on them for forgiveness and salvation and to approach God through the pope as standing in God's place. That transfer of trust turned people away from the true foundation to fallible human authorities.
Christ is the only secure foundation for hope, life and character, broad enough for all and strong enough to bear the burden of the whole world, and those connected with him as chief cornerstone become living stones. To fall upon him and be broken means to give up self-righteousness, come humbly, repent of sin and trust his forgiving love, while effort spent polishing self without that connection cannot make a person a living stone, so that when trials and tempests of temptation come those not firmly joined to Christ will fall. Those who reject him or refuse him as Redeemer build on foundations that will fail, and their hopes and prospects will fall with them as did those of the unbelieving Jews. Merely having the truth and being actively engaged in work does not put a person on the only sure foundation nor cause the works to be accepted, for those who walk contrary to God's expressed will while flattering themselves that they are on the foundation and that God accepts their activity are under great delusion. Building on another foundation means building on human ideas and opinions, on forms and ceremonies invented by men, on worldly policy, or on any work done independently of the grace of Christ, which is erecting character on shifting sand that the storm sweeps away and leaves a wreck on time's shore, requiring preparation of heart and sanctification of character rather than mechanical formal service that brings sacred things down to the common level.
Applying Foundation in Life
True education and redemption rest alike on Jesus Christ as their one foundation, for their work is one because both are built on him. Teachers are to take up the labor of placing every student's feet upon him as the solid Rock, working for the salvation of souls lost through transgression and for the recovery of what was lost. Those who build a life of faith on him will not follow worldly practices or worldly-minded church ways, but will search the Bible and obey what God commands for salvation.
This foundation is to be the first education of life, and what is built on it should be like gold, silver and precious stones rather than hay, wood or stubble. Children and youth must now lay a good foundation on Christ against the time to come in order to lay hold on eternal life, taking their stand at once and coming under strict discipline so character can be reared in strength and beauty. Young people need Christ in order to build on that sure abiding foundation and withstand the trials and temptations that seek control of the mind. By following the pattern of Christ's life, children can build a useful, noble and balanced character.
Building on Christ that amounts to anything is not mere profession of faith without self-denying labor, for hay, wood and stubble built upon him will be lost for time and eternity with no reward. Enduring building is fruit that remains, like gold and silver that fire cannot consume, which is the same work Christ did in the world, with the mind drawn away from self and centered upon Jesus in organized personal effort for souls. Such valuable imperishable material means using means, influence, wisdom and tact to save precious souls, especially children, relatives, neighbors and friends separated from God by love of the world, gathering straying ones into the fold to secure a harvest and a rich reward in the day of God. Devoting strength and talent to the things of this world and to gathering earthly treasure with an inconsistent example is wood, hay and stubble to be consumed when every man's work is tried of what sort it is. The foundation is prepared by doing best in missionary work and using ability in practical effort to win souls and work for the sick, the afflicted and the suffering, laboring together with Christ until faith is built upon knowledge and gold, silver and precious stones are brought to the foundation. True missionary work furnishes the churches with this sure foundation under God's supervision, going forward with innumerable evidences of genuineness while workers seek not to glorify self but praise God as designer and organizer, believing not merely in profession but sanctified by truth acted as well as preached with purifying influence upon character.
Believers are God's building and temple, so they must take heed how they build upon Christ and care for themselves as God's property, using what he entrusts to them in ways that support physical, mental and moral well-being and help discern right from wrong. Caring for the body intelligently is part of honoring him, since neglecting or harming health can undermine the work a person is fitted to do. A home dedicated to God is to be built on this foundation, with a mother's influence and good works helping make it an orderly place where Christ may preside. Father and mother must together consider their responsibilities for the salvation of their children and build with clear comprehension on Christ, with no variance and no criticism of each other before the children, submitting to God's control with no passion in word or spirit, maintaining eternal vigilance and trusting implicitly in Christ's power to transform transmitted tendencies to wrong. Building on Christ means centering the affections on proper objects, honoring God, respecting, cherishing and loving one's wife, refusing impurity in mind or heart, and being as true as steel to marriage vows in thought, word and deed against dangerous sentimentalism and spiritualistic affection.
All enduring work must be laid on Christ after God's order with God's mold upon it and not man's, by laborers together with God with an eye single to his glory, willing and obedient, with his work wrought in righteousness as gold, silver and precious stones that will stand the great conflagration. Institutions, sanitariums, schools and church enterprises must have their interests established and conducted on a foundation worthy of the confidence of God's people, so they can invest means knowing they support his work, with careful intelligent labor and humility. Their very foundation must be laid in solid timber without defective timbers of defective characters not under the special control of the Spirit who will work at cross purposes and bring variance and dissension. No man's name, impress or leadership can give medical missionary work and sanitariums influence or carry their responsibilities, for Christ is the great Medical Missionary and strength and efficiency come from the truth of his Word with lasting trust in the grace of his atonement. Laying the broad principles of the Word as the foundation for character is the first work, being right before God and standing in Christ's strength, so that whoever builds on it can stand wherever providence calls even amid deleterious influences without being swayed from the path of right. The foundation laid through work among the colored people in the South will endure for eternity.
Jesus Christ is the only foundation on which faith and hope can securely rest, the Rock of Ages rent on purpose so the anchor of Christian hope can find holding place in him within the veil where he as forerunner has entered. Trusting in God and resting as a child in a parent's care fixes hope upon him, giving security and serenity of mind and keeping from spiritual shipwreck, with the Word of God as directory because he has taken the mediation between God and man. In the face of satanic deception and erroneous teaching believers must keep their Redeemer as anchor, hold fast and cleave to him whose dominion and power endure forever, and the wicked one will lose power over them. Those connected with Christ trust him, follow where he leads and crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts, so the storms of earth cannot sweep them from this sure foundation. Believers must remain firmly rooted in Christ and in Bible truth, holding fast to him as personal Saviour and Rock, for faith will be tested and those not firmly established may be led astray by error. Taking a stand on him is the only hope for God's people now, raising the banner of truth higher and still higher and giving no place to the enemy even for a moment, which keeps them secure and prepares them for the Lord's coming, the final inspection and the city of God.
Salvation is in Christ alone because no other name under heaven has been given among men by which people must be saved, and no other plan of salvation can replace him. Hope of everlasting life must be founded on him, with the soul's welfare and eternal happiness depending on having this foundation laid sure. He is the foundation of every noble character and of everything truly good, virtuous and holy, and saving faith in him is the only hope of overcoming appetite, impatience and self. Building on him means full surrender of the whole heart to God, bringing Christ into the life, learning humility from his life and character, and talking of Jesus and his love instead of praising self, since partial service reserving self-indulgence he will not accept. It requires breaking ties that hinder spiritual faithfulness and coming out from the world, with purposeful consecration raising the banner of truth higher.
God's cause is being built on Christ in Europe as in America, with the Lord's hand guiding the whole building and a grand purpose running through the work from first to last. The Lord tests the material to be used, hewing and squaring it, and every stroke of chisel and blow of hammer proves it. Those who will not bear his proving but meet it with anger and resistance are laid aside, and other material is brought in to be tested in like manner. The breaking away of fragments causes delay and is regretted and mourned as if it will ruin the building, but removal of those elements of weakness renders the building stronger and the work goes steadily forward with his guiding hand made plainer every day. Human workmen may build upon the foundation for a time, but no worker's methods or personal stamp is the foundation or should be treated as sacred, for God raises up other workmen to carry the work forward with further light and power and the work continues after earlier workmen are buried.
Jesus Christ himself is the one foundation already laid, and no man can lay any other in his place. Paul laid that foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God, planting the truth of Christ for others to build upon while God gave the increase. Every man must take heed how he builds upon it, for his work will be made manifest and tried by fire in the day of testing. Gold, silver and precious stones are enduring character, pure teaching and unselfish labor that the fire cannot consume, while wood, hay and stubble are false teaching, human invention and selfish work that will be burned. If the work abides the builder receives a reward, but if it is burned he suffers loss of his life-work, though he himself may yet be saved so as by fire.
Christ the Only Foundation
For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ, for he himself is the one foundation already laid on which faith, the church, its work, education and redemption must be built. No different, new, or supposedly stronger foundation can be laid in his place, and every attempt to establish a new faith or new principles apart from him does not stand. The foundations of faith were laid through prayerful study of Scripture and revelation, and believers are to hold firmly to the beginning of their confidence and take heed how they build on what God has laid.
He is the living Rock, the eternal Rock, the Rock of Ages, the solid Rock, the true, sure and immovable foundation, the abiding place for a perishing world. He is the chief cornerstone, the tried stone and precious cornerstone laid in Zion, a sure foundation strong enough to bear the burden of the world and broad enough for all to build upon. He is the Word and the revelation of God's character, law, love and life, crucified for sinners as propitiation and atoning sacrifice, his body broken and bruised for humanity, rent so that hope may anchor within the veil.
The foundation is not Peter, whose denial showed he could be overcome, and not any pope, priest, prelate, minister or other man set up as mediator for forgiveness and salvation. No man may set himself up as foundation or pattern for others to build upon, for men make mistakes, misjudge, fail and lack his Spirit, so life must be built by looking to Jesus at every step. Christ laid the foundation himself by giving his life, and he remains its builder, great Teacher and head, while apostles and later workers serve only by bringing people to him and building upon him.
His words and works laid the foundation, and his followers are to hold the doctrines he taught and follow his example. Christ crucified as the atonement for sin is the great central truth of the gospel, round which all truths cluster and to which all are tributary, deriving their value and importance from connection with him rightly understood. He is the foundation of the whole Jewish economy, whose types pointed to the faith and obedience of all people and in whom patriarchs and prophets had all their hope as the promised Lamb to take away sin, and he is the sole foundation of the plan of salvation. That plan rests on obedience to the moral law as the commandments of Christ, which are the transcript of God's character for converting the soul, so that keeping them proves love and brings the indwelling of Father and Son.
Paul's Work at Corinth
Paul laid the foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God given to him, and another builds upon it. That foundation already laid is Jesus Christ, and no man can lay any other foundation for faith, for the church, and for God's building. All workers do not have the same work, for one plants and another waters while God gives the increase, with Paul planting and Apollos watering the precious seed Paul sowed. He who plants and he who waters are one, ministers only by whom belief came, laborers together with God, and each shall receive his own reward according to his own labor.
In calling himself a wise master-builder Paul did not exalt himself, claimed no wisdom of his own, and took no glory to himself, but worked as a humble instrument in God's hands and a laborer together with God. Divine power uniting with his human effort enabled him to present truth in a manner pleasing to God, bringing spiritual knowledge from the word of God and the works of Christ to all whose hearts were open to evidence. United with Christ the greatest of all teachers, as co-laborer with Christ, he communicated lessons of divine wisdom meeting the necessities of all classes and conditions of men for all times, places, and peoples.
He urged this foundation while wisely forbearing to mention false teachers by name, for fear of irritating a darkened and divided church and turning some entirely from the truth. His work among the Gentiles was working in the Gentile quarry to bring out valuable stones to lay upon that foundation. Gentiles who accept the gospel are brought to this foundation and belong among God's building stones, for descent from Abraham does not give the Jews an exclusive claim to that place, and converts built on him are the building stones of God's house, pictured as gold, silver, and precious stones. Paul laid himself upon Christ as the true and living foundation stone of the church and brought every stone, large or small, polished or unhewn, common or precious, to be connected with Christ, so that by contact with that living stone they become living stones slowly building up the temple of the church of God.
The verse stands in 1 Corinthians 1-3, and especially chapter 3, which must be read carefully, studied, read in every church, and prayed over, because it is full of instruction and reproof for ministers of the gospel and for all churches wherever located. It confronts readers as carnal babes in Christ rather than spiritual, calls ministers to search the Scriptures and seek truth for the soul's sake, and requires humbling of hearts before God in order to have names placed in the book of life. It condemns carnal party spirit saying I am of Paul and I am of Apollos, with envy, strife, prejudice, jealousy, evil surmising, withdrawing from some for imagined reasons and binding up with others. It teaches that ministers whose work differs in emphasis or presentation are one in object and are to receive reward according to labor rather than be condemned or feared, and that God will not tolerate such differences or send His Spirit as Comforter and Strengthener until His people are of one mind, loving as brethren, pitiful and courteous. The first three chapters also show that men given to worldly pursuits and cultivating sharp business traits after a worldly order see the preaching of the cross as foolishness, so not many wise after the flesh, mighty, and noble come into the truth, while God saves them that believe through the foolishness of preaching and chooses the foolish, weak, base, despised, and neglected things to confound the wise and mighty and bring to nothing the things that are, so that no flesh glories, with Christ made unto believers wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption. Faith and practice need to be energized by the Holy Spirit, ruling power to compel men to obey the dictates of the finite mind is forbidden, and minds must cease from man and not lean on human wisdom, because turning minds to human wisdom places a veil between God and man so that Him who is invisible is not seen, and reliance on human wisdom can obscure God.
No one not built upon that true foundation can be a living stone, however polished by worldly policy and human effort, for such work is only hay, wood, and stubble. The temple of Diana illustrates the ruin of a religion built on a false foundation, found worthless when tried, while the people won at Ephesus were precious and enduring stones because they were built on Christ. Gold, silver, and precious stones are true moral worth sanctified by the Spirit of God, the most perfect Christians refined by grace and affliction, obedience, love, and self-sacrifice, who will endure the burning day of God. The great temple of the church rises through the centuries on Christ as its only foundation, and Luther was called to serve as a builder in that temple.
Building Tested by Fire
Every person who builds on the foundation already laid must take heed how he builds thereupon, for no other foundation can be laid and each builder shall receive reward according to his own labor. Paul laid that foundation at Corinth as a wise master-builder by the grace of God for another to build on, with one planting and another watering while God gives the increase, since all do not have the same work. God and man cooperate in this building, with divine power working with human effort, and building on Christ decides present peace and happiness and future well-being. Care is therefore required to study directions carefully and prayerfully, to bring no wood, hay and stubble to the foundation and no human inventions or human wisdom in place of His wisdom into character building, for He is the light of the world and the Sun of righteousness and lasting peace and assurance. That care means examining one's own work rather than criticizing others, because what is built will be made manifest and tried.
Gold, silver and precious stones picture enduring work that fire cannot consume — true moral worth, pure teaching substantiated by Scripture, unselfish soul-saving labor, and Christlike character formed of the most valuable and imperishable material. Such building uses means, influence, wisdom and tact to save precious souls, especially children, relatives, neighbors and friends who have let love of the world separate them from God, gathering straying ones into the fold to secure a harvest of souls. Wood, hay and stubble picture perishable work that will be burned in the last-day fire — human inventions, false teaching, invented tests, unsupported claims and misinterpretations, selfish gathering of earthly treasure with an inconsistent example, and careless neglect of soul-saving work. A life that excludes Jesus and relies on personal judgment instead of faithfulness to Him is such a failed work and brings loss. Work done for Jesus by helping people come to Him is spiritual work with lasting value, built by faith, hope and love as partakers of the divine nature who have overcome corruption through lust, and those saved through such efforts will share in heaven's praise of the Lamb while Christ remains the only Redeemer.
Every man's work built on the foundation will be made manifest, for the day shall declare it by fire that tries every man's work of what sort it is, revealing its quality and deciding reward and place. Teaching, character, words and actions are all tested, and in the day of judgment God places His estimate on each one's work just as it is. Tilling and preparing literal soil for seed and harvest illustrates this work of breaking up hardened hearts so the Word as gospel seed finds favorable soil and produces a harvest, requiring watchers for souls to labor faithfully. Building rightly therefore means forming a character for eternity, with every part of the work bearing God's mark.
If the work abides the builder receives a reward, including souls standing before the throne of God and white robes and jeweled crowns. If the work is burned he suffers loss with his life-work lost, yet he himself may be saved so as by fire after repentance, affliction and conversion. One who repents after worthless work is consumed may suffer great loss, and those he led astray may not repent. Building on Christ therefore carries responsibility for the faith of others. Right building requires humbling the heart before God, becoming a fool to become wise, not judging brethren for failing to count all words and spirit and actions perfection, not glorying in men whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas, not thinking above what is written or being puffed up for one against another, for ministers are stewards of the mysteries of God required to be found faithful and judgment belongs to the Lord who will bring to light hidden things of darkness.
Those built on Christ are God's field, God's building and holy temple indwelt by the Spirit, so defiling that holy temple brings destruction from God. This includes caring for oneself as God's property and not neglecting or harming the body that belongs to Him. Worldly wisdom is foolishness with God and the thoughts of the wise are vain, so none should deceive himself by seeming wise in this world or glory in men, for all things belong to those who are Christ's and Christ is God's. The same plain words against carnality, division and defiling God's temple rebuke impurity in thought and heart, calling for centering affections on proper objects and being as true as steel to marriage vows in thought, word and deed.
Church Built in Unity
The foundation already laid is Jesus Christ alone, and the apostles built the church of God upon the foundation he had laid. They gathered people out of both the Jewish world and the Gentile world into one spiritual temple resting on him, bringing them as stones for that building. That building continued and could not be overthrown despite opposition and the death of its workers, going forward under God's supervision to his glory. Its members depend individually on Christ and are united to one another under him, as a temple cannot stand apart from its foundation. Converts built on him are gold, silver and precious stones, and Gentiles who accept the gospel belong among God's building stones, for descent from Abraham gives the Jews no exclusive claim to that place.
People of every kind are brought into connection with him and the church is built up gradually upon him. The church is built not on Peter but on Jesus Christ as both foundation and chief cornerstone, with no other creature set forth as foundation. It is composed not of ministers only but of many others, all centered in Christ as branches in the parent vine stock. That one foundation admits Gentiles as well as Jews through repentance and receiving Christ, breaking down separation so that broken branches cut away can be gathered and engrafted again into Christ and given new life from him.
A church founded on Christ as the Rock is built up when workers continue in the power of the same Spirit that established the work, by opening the Scriptures, by praying, by exercising faith, and by educating the people in the way of the Lord. Those interested in the truth must be taught to build on the sure foundation by studying diligently the word of God. When presentation of truth in large congregations awakens inquiry, that interest must be followed up by personal house-to-house labor, with wisely directed Bible workers helping inquirers by opening to their understanding the treasure-house of God's word. Work founded on him gives evidence of its genuineness and honors God rather than seeking glory for people, with workers not glorifying self but praising God as designer and organizer of every holy ennobling work, as believers sanctified by truth acted as well as preached. So the church in Greater New York is to be built on Christ through opening the Scriptures, prayer and faith under the direction of God's Spirit.
Placing oneself on the side of the minister under whose labors light and truth were received, while refusing harmony with brethren, is carnality like that of babes in Christ, not being sanctified through the truth. Cementing oneself to a man and tying up in separate bundles for want of meekness and humility and wholehearted kindness makes crooked paths that turn the lame out of the way, needs speedy reconversion, and otherwise makes claimed conversion a stumbling block to sinners. When a man begins in self-confidence to build after his own notions, plans and desires without reference to his brethren, he lays on the foundation a mass of his own suppositions that is only rubbish. No one is to build on the man under whose labors he received light or stand as an independent atom, but all who receive truth in love of its principles are sanctified to be a channel and representative of grace in love and unity and harmonious action. This means ceasing to feed on one another's faults and ending strife of tongues, believing God's word and following his methods so his people can be blessed and his cause saved, building up rather than tearing down the work others have done.
The foundation of Christianity is Christ our righteousness, and every person is individually accountable to God and must act as God moves upon him, not as moved by the mind of another. Building on Christ alone leaves souls free to be impressed and directed by the Spirit of the great I AM with freedom of action and of choice, while dependence on human minds keeps souls under restraint that prevents that divine impression and direction. Faith and practice need to be energized by the Holy Spirit, which forbids exercising ruling power to compel men to obey the dictates of the finite mind. Men must cease from man and not lean on human wisdom or replace God's principles with human counsel, for turning minds to human wisdom places a veil between God and man so that him who is invisible is not seen. Following human judgment and claims to control others instead of God's way leads to confusion and cannot teach wisdom to others, for Jesus is the authority on whom people must build and the sole foundation on which faith and spiritual life must rest.
Ministers are only ministers by whom believers believed, one planting and another watering while God gives the increase, with differing emphasis or presentation one in object and rewarded according to labor, not to be condemned or feared. Carnal party spirit saying I am of Paul and I am of Apollos, with envy, strife, prejudice, jealousy and evil surmising, withdrawing from some for imagined reasons and binding up with others, must be put away, for God will not send his Spirit as Comforter and Strengthener until his people are of one mind, loving as brethren, pitiful and courteous. Building rightly means counseling together and praying together and making no move independently or in opposition to one another, with every member dependent on Christ for life and working power and using God-given ability to the utmost in perfect harmony despite differences of individuality, manner and bearing. It requires highly esteeming the counselors God has raised up and taught whose heart and soul and life are in the work, receiving advice and working in harmony with brethren instead of following crude independent notions that sow doubt and discord, being subject to one another and conducting worship with consistency, unity and sound judgment. Planting the feet on Christ as the one foundation of truth and only pattern means looking to Jesus and copying his manners and spirit until the same Spirit dwells in each as Christ in them, the hope of glory. When Italian, French, German and all other nationalities do this, differences disappear and partition walls between nationalities are broken down, and they become one in judgment and one in purpose in union and harmony for the salvation of others.
Character Built on Christ
Jesus Christ is the foundation already laid for character building, and no other foundation can be laid by any man. Building upon him requires cooperation between God and man, with divine power working with human effort to will and to do God's pleasure. Each person must work out salvation with fear and trembling and take heed how he builds, studying directions carefully and prayerfully, because the character formed here decides eternal destiny. God cannot work through those who make no effort, but when people faithfully do their part he works through them the good pleasure of his will, shaping soul, body and spirit so the results endure beyond this life into eternity. Such building must be done after God's order with an eye single to his glory, willing and obedient, not from man's standpoint or finite judgment, and its material must be gold, silver and precious stones rather than wood, hay and stubble that will not endure the fire of the great day of God.
Building character on Christ means digging deep and removing all rubbish so the foundation is firm and broad and well laid, since salvation is found in him alone. Only solid timbers and best material belong in God's building, with no cheap material, no worthless timbers, and no haphazard, careless or indifferent work in fitting the different parts together. Piece must fit piece perfectly with exact care, as God's temple was carefully built, with character wrought point by point and no flaw allowed, because one stone mislaid affects the whole building. Every worker must guard well every point and phase, using every hour to place the character-stone on Christ the solid foundation and eternal Rock, consecrating each faculty, so the building riveted to the Rock will bear storm, tempest, pressure and the day of test and revelation.
Receiving Christ means receiving his word, for he is the Word and the revelation of God's character, law, love and life. Building on him means obeying that word and doing the Father's will in thought, word and action, with righteousness shown by doing what is right and holiness consisting in surrender to God. This obedience does not earn God's favor but follows receiving his love, as faith is made visible in works of righteousness and works by love to purify the soul. The finished character must stand final inspection, so selfishness or a harmful trait that distorts the building must be put away, while upright deeds and pure words help form a character fit for the Lord.
Falling on the Rock Christ Jesus breaks the heart and brings truth from the outer court into the inner sanctuary of the soul, giving sight and understanding of truth and of sacred past history. To fall upon him and be broken means to give up self-righteousness and self-dependence, to come humbly, repent of sin, and trust his forgiving love, blood and righteousness alone. Salvation is not built upon works of righteousness done by men, for all such works together are as sliding sand and cannot be rested upon, while his blood alone atones for transgressions and his righteousness must be claimed by living faith, depending on him and abiding in him alone. Laying the foundation right requires coming to Jesus with much prayer and a broken and contrite spirit, wrestling as Jacob did until prevailing, keeping the mind off other people so the work is directly between God and the soul, treating the decision as life and death, making thorough work for eternity, and humbling self under God's mighty hand without waiting to be humbled. Those who hold truth only theoretically with their fingertips have not been so broken, and they accept what pleases their ideas and flatters vanity while manufacturing another foundation and devising pillars to replace the pillars of faith.
Without building on Christ in faith and practice of the truth, with true reformation and not a mere form of godliness without power, the house falls when storm and tempest beat upon it like a house built on sand. The way is one of self-denial and self-sacrifice, self-control and self-discipline, in which his strength of character becomes sufficient, his character becomes the character, his Spirit becomes the spirit, and the Word opens the right of way to every spiritual blessing. Without painstaking effort and earnest education of converts in what it means to be a Christian, conversion is spurious and character is like a bowing wall and a tottering fence. The foundation must be laid broadly and deeply with integrity in daily dealings, for professing to build on Christ while acting dishonestly or failing to grow in grace and perfect holiness is building on sliding sand that the tempest will sweep away, leaving no refuge and bringing great loss in peril and trial. Truth received into the sanctuary of the soul sanctifies the receiver, never leading to unrighteous action or resting on false ground, so those built on Christ keep the mind stayed on God in trust for perfect peace, are not tossed by temptation or left to drift on opinion, and grasp his outstretched hand to be held, with everything besides Christ as sliding sand and with standing or falling in time and eternity depending on laying the foundation well.
Enduring character is formed day by day, stroke upon stroke, as God joins distinct yet dependent faculties together until life grows into a holy temple for the Lord. Each person forms character daily through use of God-given powers, and the present time is for cultivating intellectual and moral powers to become useful in this life and prepared for the life to come. A sound character grows by adding grace and good deeds while putting away sin such as impatience and fault-finding, seeking with determination for purity and perfection that harmonizes with professed truth, and being cleansed by Christ's blood. Connection with Christ is formed as Scripture truth is planted in the heart and impressed by the Spirit to control life, while refusal to connect with him brings connection with Satan and threads of influence drawing others into false paths; those who place precious material on the foundation cooperate with him and send golden threads of influence to draw other souls to Christ. Daily choices add good or bad bricks until life ends, and small acts and neglected duties shape the structure and prepare or leave unprepared for severe tests.
Rejecting False Foundations
No other foundation can take the place of the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ the Rock, and no supposedly stronger foundation, new faith or new principles can replace it. The foundations of faith laid at the beginning by prayerful study of the Word and by revelation are built on that Rock, bringing believers out from the world point by point into clear present truth, and fifty years of building stand upon them. To claim a new way has been found, to tear those foundations away and attempt to build apart from Christ, is great deception, and such building soon falls because it is not founded on the Rock. As the first disciples met the sayings of men and false theories by standing firm on the laid foundation, so now the beginning of confidence must be held steadfast to the end.
The correct order and character of the first, second and third angels' messages rests on this laid foundation and cannot be controverted from the Word of God. Under the proclamation of the third message that foundation secures the work against weaving in human theories and against getting up something original by diligent study, and all such attempts must be refused. Those who tear down the foundation God has laid are not to be accepted as teachers or leaders of his people, for the words bringing them out of the world into clear present truth belong to truth built on that foundation and confirm its genuineness.
False doctrine is rubbish heaped up on the true foundation to obstruct faithful builders, leaving the few who build faithfully perplexed and hindered amid persecution, fraud, iniquity and every obstacle, so that some turn away from the true foundation for peace and security of property and life while others remain undaunted, fearless and vigilant to the close of time. God's word is the unerring rule for testing every teaching and practice built on Christ, for careless builders may add false teachings and superstitions as though precious, yet they are worthless materials laid on the true foundation. Spiritualistic theories and false science are corrupting additions that lead astray, and speculation about the unrevealed mystery of God's essence, fanciful ideas, human theories and manufactured fables taught as essential for salvation are wood, hay and stubble, chaff to wheat, with no virtue or nourishment to strengthen souls. The truths God has established must remain firmly in their proper place in purity without mixture with error, for undermining them or mixing them with false teaching weakens the whole structure, confuses truth with error, and will not endure the day of trial when every man's work is tested by fire but will be consumed. Those who teach such things are unsafe teachers who need to learn the first principles of truth, and if saved at all it will only be as by fire through repentance, humiliation, purification and trial, with the life saved but bringing no reward.
Forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation are found by trusting in the Son of God, not by relying on pope, priests, prelates or other human authorities as mediators between people and God. During the Dark Ages faith was transferred from Christ to the pope, priests and prelates, with people taught to depend on them for forgiveness and salvation and to approach God through the pope as standing in God's place. That transfer of trust turned people away from the true foundation to fallible human authorities.
Christ is the only secure foundation for hope, life and character, broad enough for all and strong enough to bear the burden of the whole world, and those connected with him as chief cornerstone become living stones. To fall upon him and be broken means to give up self-righteousness, come humbly, repent of sin and trust his forgiving love, while effort spent polishing self without that connection cannot make a person a living stone, so that when trials and tempests of temptation come those not firmly joined to Christ will fall. Those who reject him or refuse him as Redeemer build on foundations that will fail, and their hopes and prospects will fall with them as did those of the unbelieving Jews. Merely having the truth and being actively engaged in work does not put a person on the only sure foundation nor cause the works to be accepted, for those who walk contrary to God's expressed will while flattering themselves that they are on the foundation and that God accepts their activity are under great delusion. Building on another foundation means building on human ideas and opinions, on forms and ceremonies invented by men, on worldly policy, or on any work done independently of the grace of Christ, which is erecting character on shifting sand that the storm sweeps away and leaves a wreck on time's shore, requiring preparation of heart and sanctification of character rather than mechanical formal service that brings sacred things down to the common level.
Applying Foundation in Life
True education and redemption rest alike on Jesus Christ as their one foundation, for their work is one because both are built on him. Teachers are to take up the labor of placing every student's feet upon him as the solid Rock, working for the salvation of souls lost through transgression and for the recovery of what was lost. Those who build a life of faith on him will not follow worldly practices or worldly-minded church ways, but will search the Bible and obey what God commands for salvation.
This foundation is to be the first education of life, and what is built on it should be like gold, silver and precious stones rather than hay, wood or stubble. Children and youth must now lay a good foundation on Christ against the time to come in order to lay hold on eternal life, taking their stand at once and coming under strict discipline so character can be reared in strength and beauty. Young people need Christ in order to build on that sure abiding foundation and withstand the trials and temptations that seek control of the mind. By following the pattern of Christ's life, children can build a useful, noble and balanced character.
Building on Christ that amounts to anything is not mere profession of faith without self-denying labor, for hay, wood and stubble built upon him will be lost for time and eternity with no reward. Enduring building is fruit that remains, like gold and silver that fire cannot consume, which is the same work Christ did in the world, with the mind drawn away from self and centered upon Jesus in organized personal effort for souls. Such valuable imperishable material means using means, influence, wisdom and tact to save precious souls, especially children, relatives, neighbors and friends separated from God by love of the world, gathering straying ones into the fold to secure a harvest and a rich reward in the day of God. Devoting strength and talent to the things of this world and to gathering earthly treasure with an inconsistent example is wood, hay and stubble to be consumed when every man's work is tried of what sort it is. The foundation is prepared by doing best in missionary work and using ability in practical effort to win souls and work for the sick, the afflicted and the suffering, laboring together with Christ until faith is built upon knowledge and gold, silver and precious stones are brought to the foundation. True missionary work furnishes the churches with this sure foundation under God's supervision, going forward with innumerable evidences of genuineness while workers seek not to glorify self but praise God as designer and organizer, believing not merely in profession but sanctified by truth acted as well as preached with purifying influence upon character.
Believers are God's building and temple, so they must take heed how they build upon Christ and care for themselves as God's property, using what he entrusts to them in ways that support physical, mental and moral well-being and help discern right from wrong. Caring for the body intelligently is part of honoring him, since neglecting or harming health can undermine the work a person is fitted to do. A home dedicated to God is to be built on this foundation, with a mother's influence and good works helping make it an orderly place where Christ may preside. Father and mother must together consider their responsibilities for the salvation of their children and build with clear comprehension on Christ, with no variance and no criticism of each other before the children, submitting to God's control with no passion in word or spirit, maintaining eternal vigilance and trusting implicitly in Christ's power to transform transmitted tendencies to wrong. Building on Christ means centering the affections on proper objects, honoring God, respecting, cherishing and loving one's wife, refusing impurity in mind or heart, and being as true as steel to marriage vows in thought, word and deed against dangerous sentimentalism and spiritualistic affection.
All enduring work must be laid on Christ after God's order with God's mold upon it and not man's, by laborers together with God with an eye single to his glory, willing and obedient, with his work wrought in righteousness as gold, silver and precious stones that will stand the great conflagration. Institutions, sanitariums, schools and church enterprises must have their interests established and conducted on a foundation worthy of the confidence of God's people, so they can invest means knowing they support his work, with careful intelligent labor and humility. Their very foundation must be laid in solid timber without defective timbers of defective characters not under the special control of the Spirit who will work at cross purposes and bring variance and dissension. No man's name, impress or leadership can give medical missionary work and sanitariums influence or carry their responsibilities, for Christ is the great Medical Missionary and strength and efficiency come from the truth of his Word with lasting trust in the grace of his atonement. Laying the broad principles of the Word as the foundation for character is the first work, being right before God and standing in Christ's strength, so that whoever builds on it can stand wherever providence calls even amid deleterious influences without being swayed from the path of right. The foundation laid through work among the colored people in the South will endure for eternity.
Jesus Christ is the only foundation on which faith and hope can securely rest, the Rock of Ages rent on purpose so the anchor of Christian hope can find holding place in him within the veil where he as forerunner has entered. Trusting in God and resting as a child in a parent's care fixes hope upon him, giving security and serenity of mind and keeping from spiritual shipwreck, with the Word of God as directory because he has taken the mediation between God and man. In the face of satanic deception and erroneous teaching believers must keep their Redeemer as anchor, hold fast and cleave to him whose dominion and power endure forever, and the wicked one will lose power over them. Those connected with Christ trust him, follow where he leads and crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts, so the storms of earth cannot sweep them from this sure foundation. Believers must remain firmly rooted in Christ and in Bible truth, holding fast to him as personal Saviour and Rock, for faith will be tested and those not firmly established may be led astray by error. Taking a stand on him is the only hope for God's people now, raising the banner of truth higher and still higher and giving no place to the enemy even for a moment, which keeps them secure and prepares them for the Lord's coming, the final inspection and the city of God.
Salvation is in Christ alone because no other name under heaven has been given among men by which people must be saved, and no other plan of salvation can replace him. Hope of everlasting life must be founded on him, with the soul's welfare and eternal happiness depending on having this foundation laid sure. He is the foundation of every noble character and of everything truly good, virtuous and holy, and saving faith in him is the only hope of overcoming appetite, impatience and self. Building on him means full surrender of the whole heart to God, bringing Christ into the life, learning humility from his life and character, and talking of Jesus and his love instead of praising self, since partial service reserving self-indulgence he will not accept. It requires breaking ties that hinder spiritual faithfulness and coming out from the world, with purposeful consecration raising the banner of truth higher.
God's cause is being built on Christ in Europe as in America, with the Lord's hand guiding the whole building and a grand purpose running through the work from first to last. The Lord tests the material to be used, hewing and squaring it, and every stroke of chisel and blow of hammer proves it. Those who will not bear his proving but meet it with anger and resistance are laid aside, and other material is brought in to be tested in like manner. The breaking away of fragments causes delay and is regretted and mourned as if it will ruin the building, but removal of those elements of weakness renders the building stronger and the work goes steadily forward with his guiding hand made plainer every day. Human workmen may build upon the foundation for a time, but no worker's methods or personal stamp is the foundation or should be treated as sacred, for God raises up other workmen to carry the work forward with further light and power and the work continues after earlier workmen are buried.