Facing
the Flame of Judgment
Each
man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be
revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's
work. (1 Corinthians 3:13).
The buildings God didn’t want to burn were sprinklered. It is an old saying among fire fighters and
it reminds one of the fact that fire preparedness goes a long way. One of the infamous fires of the latter part
of the 20th century took place in 1991 in Philadelphia. The fire broke out on the 22nd floor of the
38-story Meridian Bank Building, also known as One Meridian Plaza.
Instead of calling the fire department, one of the building
service workers took the elevator up to the 22nd floor to see if it was a false
alarm. When the elevator door opened up
on the floor, the smoke and heat were so intense that it drove him to the floor
of the elevator. He could not reach up
to the elevator buttons to bring the elevator back down.
His calls for help on his mobile radio resulted in the
security guard on the ground floor using the automatic override to bring the
elevator back down. A second security
guard a number of floors above the fire heard this radio transmission and he
noticed that the stairways in the building were beginning to fill with
smoke. They all made their way
downstairs and out of the building.
Only then did they realize that they had still not called the fire
department.
Shortly after fire fighters arrived at the building, the
fire caused an electrical shortage and the entire building was blacked
out. This meant the elevators could not
be used, even to move equipment. It
also meant that all of the hose and air bottles had to be carried up the
stairs. The early arriving fire
fighters did that, but when they arrived on the floors on which the fire was
burning, they found that the water systems were not providing enough water
pressure for them to use in their fire attack.
The situation continued to deteriorate and a number of fire
fighters encountered doors that were locked, preventing them from escaping when
they ran out of air. Before it was
over, three fire fighters would lose their lives.
After fighting the fire for 11 hours without success, all
fire fighters were pulled out of the building and it was allowed to continue to
burn. Floor by floor, the fire
continued to make its way upward, it finally reached the 30th floor. This floor had something that had been
absent from the lower floors. It had
automatic sprinklers. A total of 10
sprinklers activated and put out the fire.
Fire can be terribly destructive. I’ve seen boats and cars and buildings go up in a matter of
minutes. And yet, a bit of planning and
preparation can nullify those destructive effects. Here is the principle -- how you build makes a difference in how
you face the flames.
Paul uses the analogy of constructing a building when he
speaks of how we live our lives and how we do God’s work in the world.
According
to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a
foundation, and another is building upon it. But let each man be careful how he
builds upon it. (1 Corinthians 3:10).
Paul sees himself as a builder for God’s heavenly
construction company. He first of all
begins with the foundation. This makes
sense. After all, you don’t try to
start construction on a building by laying roof tiles. You don’t start with the walls. You always begin the same way. You begin with the foundation.
1. Paul was a Wise Master Builder: According to the grace of God which was
given to me, as a wise master builder I laid a foundation. (3:10).
Paul calls himself a “wise master
builder.” This is a significant
title. It implies that there might be
such a thing as a foolish master builder.
The phrase “master builder” is translated from the single Greek word arcitetkton.
It is from this word that we get our English word “architect.”
You are also a builder. You are either a wise builder or else you
are a foolish builder. What is it you
are building? You are building your
life. How can you tell if it is a good
life or a bad life? You can tell the
same way that you can tell whether a building contractor has done a good job or
a bad job. You can ultimately tell by
looking at how the building stands over time.
I have seen some buildings that
looked very nice on the outside but which had poor planning and poor
foundations so that they did not last.
I have also been in some buildings that are over a thousand years old
and which are still standing today.
What made the difference? It was
not just one thing. It was a
combination of several factors.
• The
foundation.
• The
plan.
• The
building materials.
2. Paul was not Alone in the Construction
Project: I laid a foundation, and
another is building upon it (3:10).
In the context of this passage,
Paul seems to be speaking specifically of building the church. But the same principles that he uses when
speaking of building the church also apply to us and the building of our
lives. Why do I say that? Because if we are Christians, then we are
the building blocks of the church. What
is true for the entire church corporately is also usually true of the
individual building blocks of the church -- US.
We are not alone in the building of
our lives. Because we are people in
community, we are co-workers in the building up of one another. The New Testament makes great use of the
term “one another.”
The people with whom you spend time
often have a great impact upon your life.
They are the co-laborers with you in building your life. The way the building project goes is
impacted by those who do the building.
So also, the ones you allow to influence your life have a great deal to
say about how your life turns out.
3. A Warning to all who Build: But let each man be careful how he builds
upon it. (3:10).
We have been applying these words
to the way in which you build your house.
Paul warns that good building requires due care. You don’t just start throwing two by fours
together if you want to build a good house.
This is a call to live deliberately.
You are engages in God’s building project, whether you like it or not. There are only two questions:
On
what foundation are you building?
What
building materials are you using?
When you begin to build a house, there first comes a time of
planning, and then you begin to do the actual work. When that work begins, you start from the ground up. You start with the foundation.
For
no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus
Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:11).
The only foundation of Biblical Christianity is Jesus
Christ. He is not merely a part of
Christianity. He IS Christianity.
Many people seem to think that Christianity is merely a code
of morality that says, “Do this” and “Don’t do that.” Many have tried to hold to these codes without the reality of
Jesus Christ. But this will not work.
If you are trying to build your life and Jesus Christ is not
a major part of that building, then you are building on shifting sand and the
entire structure is eventually going to crumble.
The next question you have to ask concerns the building
materials. Good building materials are
necessary for a sturdy building.
Now
if any man builds upon the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood,
hay, straw, 13 each man's work will
become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be revealed with
fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. (1
Corinthians 3:12-13).
Having secured an adequate foundation in Jesus Christ, the
next question that faces the builder is the choice of building materials. Paul describes two basic types.
· Valuable materials: Gold, silver, precious stones.
·
Inferior materials:
Wood, hay, straw.
What are the differences between these two categories? The most obvious difference is that one is
relatively fire-proof while the other burns very easily. But there is something else. Wood, hay and straw are very easy to come
by, especially if you live in an agricultural economy as did Paul’s
readers. Gold, silver or precious
stones are not nearly so commonplace.
What do these materials represent? Do they represent natural abilities? Do they represent spiritual gifts? No. I would suggest that
the identity of these building materials cannot be understood apart from the
context of the last two chapters. Paul
has been making a series of contrasts between the believer and the unbeliever.
|
Unbeliever |
Believer |
|
Sees the message of the cross as
foolishness |
Sees the message of the cross as
the power of God |
|
Those who are perishing (1:18). |
Those who are being saved (1:18) |
|
Tried to come to know God
through its wisdom (1:21) |
Came to know God by the
preaching of the cross (1:21) |
|
The wisdom of men (2:5) |
The wisdom of God (2:5) |
|
The natural man does not accept
the things of the Spirit of God (2:14) |
But he who is spiritual
appraises all thing (2:15) |
|
Must have a diet of milk (3:2) |
Able to receive solid food (3:2) |
|
Builds with wood, hay and straw |
Builds with gold, silver and
precious stones |
This contrast continues here. The wood, the hay and the straw refer to those things that are
built by the natural man. The gold,
silver and precious stones are those things that are built by the spiritual
man.
Paul has already established that the foundation is Jesus
Christ. He is building upon that
foundation and others are also building upon that foundation. But not everyone is using the same building
materials. Some are using building
materials that are of the Spirit.
Others are using building materials that are of the flesh.
It is interesting to note that Paul lists three different
types of building materials with each group.
He does not say that gold is better than silver or that precious stones
are not quite up to the proper standards.
And yet, I think that there is a very specific reason that three
different appropriate materials are mentioned.
It is because not all of the building materials of the Spirit are the
same. There is a lesson here. It is that you can follow the Lord and do
His will and yet the practical outworking of that might be very different from
someone else who is also following the Lord and doing His will. One person might be called by the Lord to
follow Him and do His will in a working environment. Another might be called to be a homemaker. Another might be called to be a missionary
in a foreign country.
Here is the principle.
Not all of God’s work is the same work.
Just because one man has a ministry of evangelism does not wrong that
another is wrong to have a ministry of teaching. What is important is that we are using the proper building
materials and that we are building upon the correct foundation.
You are building for eternity. You may object, “But John, I’m not building anything. I’m not an apostle or a prophet or a
preacher of a Bible teacher.” It
doesn’t matter. You are still
building. The only question is whether
you are using the right building materials.
You are either building with gold, silver and precious stones or else
you are building with wood, hay and straw.
This is the problem.
It is possible for the Christian to use the wrong building materials. It is possible for the Christian to build
with the building materials of the flesh.
It is possible for the Christian to act like the unbeliever.
This is dangerous.
It is dangerous because there is coming a time of judgment. It is dangerous because there is coming a
time when the Heavenly Building Inspector of the universe will pass judgment on
the quality of your work.
...each
man's work will become evident; for the day will show it, because it is to be
revealed with fire; and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's
work. (1 Corinthians 3:13).
A new building usually must pass an official inspection
before a certificate of occupancy can be issued. Government officials come out to the site of the building and
test its structure to make sure that it is built according to the proper
codes. This is to insure that the
building is sound.
God also has a set of standards by which He will judge the
quality of our labors. There is coming
a day of judgment.
For
we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may be
recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether
good or bad. (2 Corinthians 5:10).
There are several observations that we ought to make from
this passage:
At this point, you might object, “I
thought that God judges the heart.”
Indeed He does. But your outward
actions always come forth as the fruit of what is in your heart.
Don’t miss this! The way you live is a direct result of what
you believe. Don’t tell me that you
love Jesus if you do not obey His commandments. Show me your faith by your works and they I will know that it is
true faith.
I was working with the fire department when Hurricane Andrew
swept across South Florida in 1992. I
had opportunity to go down to where the greatest damage had been done by that
great storm. There were hundreds of
houses that had been completely blown away.
Entire communities were gone.
But in the very center of the worst devastation, I noted one house that
was virtually untouched. It was a house
made of coral rock. It had weathered
the storm. It had been tested and the
storm had not been able to hurt it.
There is a storm warning.
A storm of testing is on the horizon.
It shall come and it shall test the building of your life. You will be tested to see of what it is you
are made.
1. The Day of Testing: Each man's work will become evident; for
the day will show it (3:13).
Your work is not evident
today. I can look at the things that
you do and I cannot always be certain whether they are of the Spirit or of the
flesh. But there is coming a day when
such uncertainty will vanish away.
There is coming a day when the true character of your life will be
known. It is the day of judgment. It is the day when Christ shall return.
2. The Means of Testing: It is to be revealed with fire; and the
fire itself will test the quality of each man's work (3:13).
Fire is used throughout the Bible
as a symbol of judgment.
Now Paul tells us that the fire will actually be the means
by which our works shall be judged.
They will have to stand up to a trial by fire. This fire will not harm gold or silver or precious stones. The only thing that fire will do to such
materials is to purify them.
If
any man's work which he has built upon it remains, he shall receive a
reward. 15 If any man's work is
burned up, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as
through fire.
Do
you not know that you are a temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in
you? 17 If any man destroys
the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and
that is what you are. (1 Corinthians 3:14-17).
Paul describes three types of laborers in this passage. They are as follows:
The
man whose work remains (3:14).
The
man whose work is burned up (3:15).
The
man who destroys the temple of God (3:17).
1. The Man Whose Work Remains: If any man's work which he has built upon
it remains, he shall receive a reward (3:14).
This is the first type of
laborer. He is the laborer who is
faithful to the Master. He is the
laborer who builds on the proper foundation and who uses the proper building
materials. God rewards this faithful
laborer.
2. The Man Whose Work Is Burned up: If any man's work is burned up, he shall
suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as through fire (3:15).
This is the second type of
laborer. His work is on the proper
foundation, but it is of the wrong materials.
He is a believer in Christ and is rooted on the foundation of salvation,
but his life and his work has too often resembled that of the unbeliever. As a result, he suffers loss. His life’s work has been wasted. It is burned up.
Yet God is gracious. This unfaithful laborer is still saved,
though all that for which he has worked has been lost to the flames of
judgment. He did not deserve to be saved
(none of us did). But God does not give
him what he deserves. God gives him
grace.
God never gives any of us what we
deserve. If He did, we would be in hell
right now.
3. The Man Who Destroys the Temple of
God: If any man destroys the temple
of God, God will destroy him (3:17).
Here is the third type of
individual. He is the man who attempts
to destroy the temple of God. He is not
a faithful laborer. He is not even an
unfaithful laborer. He is an
enemy. He is one who attempts to tear
down rather than to build. He is one
who tries to divide rather than unity.
He is one who is more interested in holding up the distinctions between
Paul and Peter and Apollos than in building the kingdom of Christ.
What is this “temple of God” that
he tries to destroy? It is the
church. We see this in the previous
verse. Paul says that you are a
temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you (3:16).
That is a striking
description. It is one that is
reminiscent of the temple in Jerusalem.
The temple was the place where God’s presence had once been
manifested. It signified the presence
of God on earth. Within the innermost
part of the temple had been a special treasure. The ark of the covenant.
This was a wooden chest overlaid with gold. Inside had been kept the pieces of the ten commandments. On the top of the ark was a golden cover
known as the mercy seat. The statues of
two cherubim spread their wings over the mercy seat. This mercy seat was the royal throne of God. It was the most holy place on earth.
But there is another holy place
today. It is the church. I do not mean that it is a building. The church is not a building. The church is the body of believers. This is the most holy place of God. The Spirit of God dwells inside the heart of
each and every believer and within the church collectively.
Are you a believer?
Are you one of God’s people? If
so, then the Spirit of God lives inside you.
You are God’s holy place on earth.
You need to remember that. You
need to be aware that you are God’s place of holiness in the midst of an impure
world.
God takes very special care of His holy place. He says that if any man destroys that holy
place, then God will destroy him. This
is serious. The day of judgment is
coming. In light of that truth, you
need to ask yourself where you stand.
What kind of laborer are you?
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