No Other Foundation Can Be Laid
A Sermon on 1 Corinthians 3:11
Scripture
11For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Sermon Description
On what is the Christian life built? Is the hope resting in financial security or job status? If all of that came crashing down, would Christians have something to fall back on? In this sermon on 1 Corinthians 3:10–11, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones preaches on the importance of foundations for the Christian life. Houses require proper foundations in order to secure their safety and structural integrity for the many years to come. Though it takes time and effort to lay a good foundation, it is absolutely necessary to ensure a building remains safe. By themselves, humanity is incapable of providing the foundation needed because all the typical “foundations” are changing and temporary— sex, money, and power are here one moment and gone the next. There is no other foundation that will stand the test of time than that which is built on a relationship with Jesus Christ. As Dr. Lloyd-Jones asks this most important question: Is the Christian’s life built on the foundation of Jesus Christ? Without this foundation, joy will rise and fall with the changing seasons of prosperity and difficulty. Listen as Dr. Lloyd-Jones teaches on why lives must be built on the eternal, unchanging truth of the gospel.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians to warn them about sliding into worldly wisdom and philosophy which interferes with the foundation of faith in Jesus Christ.
- The foundation is the most important part of any structure. Without a proper foundation, the entire structure will collapse.
- Man is incapable of providing a proper foundation for life by himself. All of man's efforts end in failure and confusion.
- Man is too hasty and seeks instant solutions which do not work. A proper foundation requires time and patience.
- A proper foundation requires knowledge of oneself, God, the meaning of life, how to handle trials and difficulties, and how to face death. Man cannot provide answers to these on his own.
- Civilization and human progress have failed to provide meaning or purpose. The state of the world proves man's inability and the need for a true foundation.
- The foundation must be strong enough to support the weight of life's trials and difficulties. Man alone does not have the strength, so God provided the foundation in Jesus Christ.
- Jesus Christ is the only foundation. He is the exclusive way to God, salvation, and purpose in life.
- Jesus Christ is a definite, concrete foundation. He is fully God and fully man. As God, He has the strength to support us. As man, He understands our weaknesses.
- God Himself laid the foundation of Jesus Christ. It is eternal, immovable, and the only foundation that will stand.
- Jesus Christ meets all of our deepest needs and provides wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. No one else can meet these needs.
- We must make sure we are building our lives on the foundation of Jesus Christ. All other ground is sinking sand. Jesus Christ alone will stand every test and trial.
Itinerant Preaching
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.