LAYING THE FOUNDATION – Part 1

As a teacher I always try to get to the foundational principles of eternal life that will automatically result in developing the character of Christ in us. Foundations are important, for they determine what can be built on them in regards to strength, quality and size.

EPHESIANS 2:19-22 Says God’s household is built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets with Jesus as the Chief Cornerstone. So it is God’s grace and anointing on these two ministry gifts that gives oversight and guidance to the building of the Lord’s church.

In MATTHEW 7:24-27, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said, “Anyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” He also added that whoever did not put His words into practice is like the foolish man who built his house on the sand.

In view of this, the Sermon on the Mount contains some foundational principles to develop a strong foundation, to develop our spiritual lives on. We will discuss these in later issues.

I want to discuss the foundational issues of Kingdom Unity and the one foundational principle they all flow and proceed from.

In MATTHEW 16:15-20 Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus said, “On this Rock (or this truth) I will build My church.”

So, it starts with the Lordship of Jesus in our lives. He doesn’t say He will build your church or my church, but His Church! So it has never been about us and our ministry but about Him and His Kingdom.

If Jesus truly is lord of our lives then we will develop sacrificial love for Him and others. Sacrificial love is one of the foundational principles or attributes that will result in a purified heart.

In MATTHEW 5:43-48 are some of the words that Jesus said we should put into practice to build our spiritual lives on the solid foundation of the Rock.

This is why He said that we should love our enemies and pray for those that persecute us. He also said that if we only love those that love us, what benefit will that be to us, even tax collectors do that. If we only love those who love us, then we will not change because we are only living out of our emotions and the goodness that is in our heart.

As we love our enemies (whoever has offended us), then the love of God that is in our born again spirit literally become a part of our heart (our life) through that experience. When that happens, the anger, hurt or bitterness that is in our hearts from the past starts to dissipate and this is how we are changed from glory to glory.

Sacrificial love for others is what heals us and makes us emotionally whole. It also purifies our heart and fulfills the law and brings the blessing of God as well as many other benefits. Many people try to get the blessings through faith, however, the goal of our faith is the salvation of our souls (I PETER 1:9) or to become like Jesus and the blessings flow out of that, including Kingdom Unity.

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