Tag Archives: Christian living

Foundations, and Building Thereupon

Read 1 Corinthians 3:1-15 to start.

Before we get started, let’s take a short trip down memory lane. Back in October, I preached a sermon that I titled Work In Progress, and I started by talking about Sarah Winchester and the Winchester Mystery House. For that sermon, I read most of this same passage from 1 Corinthians. In that sermon I talked about how God is working on every believer, and how we are His handiwork, His workmanship as it says in Ephesians chapter 2, verse 10. The comparison of a building under construction is certainly a very apt one for this concept, because putting up a house or a barn or a tower or some other large project takes time, takes effort, and requires a design and a plan in order for it to come to a successful outcome. If we allow God to work on us and in us, if we are obedient and willing to let Him work, then that is what the result will be, even if it’s not at all what we first expect.

Every building, every construction project, needs the things we just mentioned in some measure, there needs to be effort, time, a plan, and of course some sort of input, some materials. But every building also needs something more than that if it is to be a lasting structure of any sort. It needs a foundation.

Continue reading Foundations, and Building Thereupon

Four Small Things

Read Proverbs 30:24-28 to start.

Who here has had a splinter? Not looking for a show of hands or anything, but I’m willing to bet that most of you have at one time or another. If you haven’t, then you must have thicker skin than I do, or you never come into contact with wood. The other week I had a splinter on the side of my finger, and I managed to get it out with tweezers. I recall one time earlier this year, I had a splinter for a couple of days that I could not get rid of, and when I was in the hospital visiting my father, I convinced one of the ICU nurses, well, I just asked her nicely, to remove it, and it took her a bit of effort to get rid of the thing. Splinters are unpleasant. But they are a normal thing that we experience from time to time.

Splinters are also very, very, small. If you’ve ever removed one and taken a look at it afterwards, it was likely only a few millimetres long, and not even one millimetre wide. A tiny and insignificant thing by any measure, other than the amount of discomfort it can cause.

Continue reading Four Small Things

Be Ye Separate

Read 2 Corinthians 5:17-7:1 to start.

I know what you are probably thinking, and yes, this might sound familiar. That’s because I spoke on this same passage last month. You might remember, the topic was unequal yokes, about believers being joined in partnership with unbelievers, and how problematic that is. There is more to the passage than that, I only discussed a few of the verses that we read. Today we are going to look at something different, although something no less important.

You might also remember how I talked about cars and tractors, and how they are not the same, they are not compatible. Don’t worry, this morning I’m not going to talk about cars or tractors. I’m going to talk about boats.

Continue reading Be Ye Separate