1 Corinthains 3:10-15 – Superstructure or Shed – Bible study

1 Corinthians 3:10-15 A Superstructure Or A Shed? Do you know what this is? Its name means "Crown of the Palace." It is an ivory-white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river. It was commissioned in 1632 by the emperor to house the tomb of his favorite wife. The building is a centerpiece of a 42-acre complex, which includes a mosque and a guest house, and is set in formal gardens bounded on three sides by castle-like walls. It is the Taj Mahal. Although almost 400 years old, the Taj Mahal was designated as a United Nations World Heritage Site in 1983 for being "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the worlds heritage." It is regarded by many as a symbol of Indias rich history. The Taj Mahal attracts 7-8 million visitors a year and in 2007, it was declared a winner of the New Seven Wonders of the World (2000-2007) initiative. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taj_Mahal Why talk about the tomb of those who worshipped false gods? Because I would say that Taj Mahal is a superstructure, a building recognized for its beauty, design, and admiration. But believe it or not, you and I have the privilege of building a far more glorious superstructure than the Taj Mahal. The superstructure that is to be build is our life. Our lives are the most important structure we will ever build, and that is saying a lot. We build careers, families, reputations, and heritages. As a body of believers, we are building a church; but all of them fade in comparison to the life that we build. Perhaps as we go along in the message, you might come to the conclusion that your life is not so much a superstructure but a shed. If that is the case, I pray that you will do something to change that this morning. Life is a precious gift from Godevery day of it. Yet for many, our lives are like small sheds: begun with little fanfare, used for the mundane, decayed by time, eventually reduced to rubble, and forgotten after its gone. That is not what God wants for our lives. They should be superstructures which increase in beauty, usefulness, and glory throughout all eternity. Lets see if we what we are building. I. \#10-11\ A Superstructure Must Have the Right Foundation. A. Notice some things about the Foundation, and its laying. 1. Verb tense – It is in the past tense, meaning that the Foundation had already been laid. 1Cor 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid. a. You and I do not lay this Foundation. b. The Foundation Paul was speaking of had already been laid. c. We are invited to build upon it, but we do not lay it. d. People spend enormous amounts of time getting an education because they think education is the right foundation to build your life on. (1) I am not against the right kind of education. (2) However, no amount of reading, writing, and arithmetic will provide a foundation that you can build a superstructure upon. 2. There is only one Foundation. a. This may not sound true for in our world, everything is built on a separate foundation. (1) The complex that we are worshiping within was built in four separate time periods. (2) Each of them rests upon their own foundation. b. However, our lives can only be built on one Foundation for if they are not, they are actually built on the sand. Matthew 7:26 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: 3. Jesus is the Foundation. 1Cor 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid which is Jesus Christ. a. This is a reference to Jesus as our Savior. b. No life has a foundation if that life is not built on Jesus Christ. B. Most of this message is directed to the saved, but just in case you are not saved, let me tell you how you can be saved. 1. Believe 2. Repent – This last one will tell on you. a. You have not repented if you lay out of church. b. You have not repented if you forsake the Bible. c. You have not repented if you have the devils tongue. d. You have not repented if your life is a contradiction of the Bible. II. \#12\ A Superstructure Must Be Built on Purpose. A. Superstructures are not just thrown together. They must be designed, planned, and carefully build. 1. The Taj Mahal and grounds took more than 20 years to complete. 2. 400 years later, it is still winning awards and has been designated one of the wonders of the world. 3. That required some thought and purpose. 4. So does a superstructure life. 5. The foundation is sure and complete. a. There is nothing else to do to the foundation. b. However, every Christian is charged to build a structure upon it. B. There are some questions we should ask about our lives and the Foundation we have claimed. 1. Are we building anything at all? a. I am not asking if we are building something strong or beautiful. I am asking if we are building anything at all. b. Some do not. (1) The sum of the life of some people is little of nothing. (a) They are not very good to their mate. (b) They are not very good to their children. (c) They do not work very hard. (d) They do not have much ambition. (e) They do not get involved in the lives of others. (f) They do not take stands on important issues. (g) They have no cause which is important to them. (h) They have few friends because they have never been friendly. (i) Like the tearing down of an old shed when they die, a few may visit the cemetery; but more than likely, they will get planted in the ground without any fanfare, visitation, or recognition. (2) Friend, a life that doesnt give to anyone is a shed not a superstructure. (a) It is sad when you come to the end of your life and realize you never did anything with it. (b) It is even sadder for the people who dont! (c) Lest you misunderstand, I am not saying that a life can or should be measured by the attendance at the funeral. i. Rather, life can and should be measured by the impact had while still alive. ii. Are you impacting anyone at? 2. Are you building anything spiritual? a. Even more common than having NO impact is having no spiritual impact. b. Like a gigantic structure with girders and beams but no floors, walls, or ceilings, so a life without no spiritual impact is missing the point of life itself. c. You have all the necessary components: salvation, mates, children, job, wealth – but you arent using to accomplish Gods work in your life. d. A life lived with no service to God is a building with no wallsimpressive and expensive as far as it goes, but it isnt serving its purpose. e. Perhaps I need to say again, but I am still speaking to the Christians here. I say that because you might wonder. (1) You see, some will be missed more at work than at the church. (a) They showed up faithfully to make a dollar but seldom if ever to worship. (b) They have promoted themselves through hard work at the jobsite but never lifted a finger in the things of God. (c) They have fishing or shopping buddies in the neighborhood but dont know anyone at church. (d) They write checks out of every charity under the sun but never give to the cause of Christ. (2) If you can skip out on church and no one misses you, it is not the fault of the church of the pastor. (a) Its your fault for not making yourself important to the work of God! (b) The church is not a warehouse where a pastor takes inventory. (c) The church is factory where workers build for the cause of Christ: lives, families, ministries that win the lost and help people. (d) Gods people need to quit being a part on the shelf and be a worker in the field. 3. Are you building with the right materials? a. Heres a riddle. (1) What is large and religious, but wont stand up? (2) Anything spiritual that is built with worldly materials. (3) Why? Because you cant build a spiritual structure with worldly materials. b. Paul specifically addresses that in the text. (1) He described the spiritual materials – gold, silver, and precious stones. (2) He also described the worldly materials – wood, hay, and stubble. (3) Paul left the message as a picture. (a) He did not tell us what things might be considered gold, silver, precious stones or what things might be wood, hay, stubble. (b) Why? Maybe because the wood, hay, and stubble changes. i. worldly music ii. indecent dress iii. carnal entertainment iv. And that is in the worship service! v. a diet of Bible-less sermons vi. powerless prayers vii. unqualified ministers in spiritually devoid churches viii. Supportive of sinfuleven abominable actions in a world where common sense has taken a permanent holiday (4) This is not the kind of life that God intended we build on His foundation! III. \#13\ Both Sheds and Superstructures will Be Tested. 1Cor 3:13 Every mans work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every mans work of what sort it is. A. Paul does not give a lot of details on the topic of the test either. 1. There is such a spiritual test coming, one that will test the very structure the life we have built. 2. It is called the Bema Seat or the Judgment Seat. \#Romans 14:10-12, 2Cor 5:10\ 3. Those references give that judgment a name and most feel that our text gives its purpose. a. Christ will put His righteous fire to the structure of our lives and burn away every worldly thing that was laid on that foundation. b. Sheds wont stand at all, but even the superstructures will be tested. B. However, most of us wont have to wait that long to find out what kind of life we are building. 1. Typically, when you build a house, you live in it. a. When you are living in a house, you dont have to wait for some spiritual test to see what it is made of. b. You can see it on a daily basis. 2. So it is with life. a. There will be one final spiritual test, the Bema Seat, but I suspect that we are going to know a long time before that hat kind of structure our lives are. b. The winds of lifethe tornadoes of problems, the hurricanes of disappointments, the floods of problemsthese will test our lives on a regular basis. c. If you we building a shed, these ill winds will leave our lives in broken shambles. C. But the good news is that you dont have to wait or fear the tests that come. 1. You can build a structure today that is strong, solid, and sure. 2. Build it upon Jesus. 3. Build it upon the Bible. 4. Build it by investing into others. 5. Build it with love, kindness, forgiveness, and with righteousness, equity, and truth. 6. Build something that you can live with all the days of your life in contentment and happiness.