Building a Fireproof Life
"If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire." -1 Corinthians 3:15, emphasis added
What we have been studying in Revelation is only a foretaste of what is to come. But God has not left us without instructions. In Revelation we have seen Truth to live by for a safe future. So, how do we survive in the early twenty-first century? We need to build a fireproof life. Thus, there are three truths that I want you to remember from this week so that you can truly give God what is His.
Truth 1: Jesus compares your earthly life to a building, so you must watch what you build with-and where. Jesus says to build your life with what won't burn up: "As a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each one's work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one's work, of what sort it is. If anyone's work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. If anyone's work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are" (1 Corinthians 3:10-17).
With what are you building your life? Are you building it with wood, hay, and stubble that will burn up-or are you building your life with gold, silver, and precious stones? The gold speaks of seeking God first; the silver and precious stones speak of sacrificing your time, talents, and resources to God before they dissipate and burned up here.
Truth 2: Jesus says your life is a stewardship, so watch where you invest it. As a faithful steward, beware of investing your life-and His money-in the pursuit of so-called "Make it rich quick!" schemes. Such scams bilk people out of millions, fold companies, and cause stock market crashes.
God is going to let everyone know once and for all whom we really lived for-ourselves or for Him. He says that "we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, . . . whether good or bad" (2 Corinthians 5:10). That is decided one moment, one day, one week, one month at a time through living in the light of eternity.
Truth 3: Jesus says your life is like a race, so watch out for the rules. Know the boundaries, and keep the "baggage" at a minimum. Stay within the lines, follow the rules, and be careful to not get tripped up in the race. Paul says, "Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:1-2).
If anything trips you up in life, get rid of it-everything that holds you back and keeps getting caught so that it drags you down (like the long robes men wore in that day that they would tie up and tuck into their belt so they could run without getting tripped up). Check your life to see if you have piled up too much baggage that will prevent you from saying "YES, LORD"-yes to His will and His way. Can you really pull up stakes at any time to do God's will, or will it interrupt your plans? God says to keep the baggage to a minimum so that you can follow Him.
In 2 Corinthians, Paul said that the Macedonians excelled in their giving because they gave of themselves first. If you have never surrendered yourself, you need to do it now. There is no substitute for giving yourself to the Lord. You will never know the joy of the grace of giving (or any other grace) until you do!
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