For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is
Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold,
silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble, every man's work
shall be made manifest; for the day shall declare it, because it
shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's
work of what sort it is. If any man's work abide which he hath
built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work
shall be burned, he shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be
saved, yet so as by fire.--_1 Cor. 3, 11-15._
In order to understand these startling words we must, in the
first place, gain a clear idea of the picture which lay before
the Apostle's mind. He sees the Church of Christ as a building,
harmonious in structure, every part fitting into, and each stone
supporting, the other, thus presenting that oneness which the divine
Architect designed it to have. The foundation of the building had
been laid once for all, but for the uprearing of the walls men are
to bring the materials.
No materials except those worthy of God and of the precious
foundation on which they are to be built, ought to be brought and
laid there. Nothing but the pure and eternal truths of the faith
revealed in the Scriptures ought to be preached as the doctrine
of the Gospel and the Church. This was the ideal, perfect picture
which stood out before the mind of the Apostle. But he also spoke
of men placing perishable and vile materials upon the walls of
God's building, using "wood, hay, stubble," substances unworthy to
be made a part of Christ's spiritual temple. What did the Apostle
mean by "wood, hay, and stubble"? The Church of Corinth, whom he
addresses, had lost, so far as some of its members were concerned,
that perfectness which ought to characterize the whole body. There
was a working towards disunion. Envying and strife, factions, and a
disposition to make this or that man the religious leader and guide,
had been allowed to disturb the harmony of the congregation. The
names of men had become watchwords. Parties rallied around Apollo,
mistaking his eloquence for the Gospel to which it ought to lead;
around Cephas, that is, Peter, because of his prominent position;
around Paul, because he brought out certain doctrines into special
prominence. And so, instead of regarding these men as doing each his
own part in helping to maintain and preserve the whole truth, they
foolishly set up this or that one, Apollo, or Peter, or Paul, as
their favorite. Still, notwithstanding all these outworkings of a
carnal or earthly spirit, there was as yet no rupture. The organic
unity of all believers and builders remained unbroken. Individuals
differed in opinions, but the Church had still only one creed. There
were parties, but no denominations; factions, but no sects; strifes,
but no schism. But even these cannot be allowed to disfigure the
furnished temple, the Church of the final future. The Apostle looked
beyond the poor work which narrow-minded men were doing at Corinth
to the day when, as he tells in another place, that same Church
which had been built upon the one foundation shall be presented to
God, "not having spot or wrinkle," but "holy and without blemish."
That day, he says, "will try every man's work, of what sort it is."
Whatsoever is worthy of Christ, the solid and precious stone, shall
abide, and the builder thereof shall have, along with eternal life,
a reward due to his faithfulness to God's plan and design. But the
human materials which unwise and ignorant workmen brought--all these
shall be burned with the cleansing fire and go for nothing, but the
builder himself shall be saved, because his own soul was built upon
Jesus Christ, as the foundation of his faith and as his Redeemer.
That is the meaning of the Apostle's solemn teaching. And now for
the application.
That application may be made unto each Christian. We are all
builders, and it is for us to use the proper materials. What is
built upon Christ, from faith in Him and love to Him, according to
His mind and the honor of His cause and Church, is "gold and silver
and precious stones." What is done to serve self, the gratification
of one's vanity and ambition, is to heap up stubble for themselves
which cannot abide in the day of testing fire. But the more special
application in accord with the text is that which pertains to the
Church as a whole, of the various bodies of Christians, the many
denominations of Christendom. Concerning these let us speak a few
words, taking occasion, _I. to explain our position_, _II. to regard
our duty in this respect_.
"Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus
Christ." The Church is a building reared upon that foundation.
Therefore, there is and can be but one Church. As the Apostle says
in the Epistle-lesson: "One Lord, one faith, one baptism," so he
says there is _one body_. To rend the body of Christ, to divide His
Church into different sects, where altar is set up against altar,
ministry against ministry, is contrary to the will and purpose
of its Founder. Some look amiably upon this Babel of beliefs and
unbeliefs and counterbeliefs, think well of and would justify all
so-called churches, consider one as good as another, and meekly
settle down in the nearest, because "they are all aiming at the same
end." This is not the teaching of the Bible nor the position of our
Church. Not as if we read the members of these denominations out of
the Church of Christ. We admit that they are built upon Christ, the
Foundation, and we furthermore admit that they are building some
gold, silver, and precious stones upon that foundation. To be more
specific. Take the Roman Catholic Church. We have many things in
common with the Catholic Church. It believes with us in the divinity
of the Trinity, in the Godhead of Christ, in the personality of
the Holy Ghost, in the divinity of the vicarious atonement, in the
inspiration of the Scriptures. Far be it from me to contend that
in the Catholic Church souls cannot be saved. Notwithstanding the
many grave errors the Catholic Church has clung to up to this hour,
it has produced characters, true, noble children of God, whose
lives we may profitably study. Nearer to us stand the so-called
Reformed Churches, by which term we understand the Episcopalians,
Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Methodists, Baptists. With
these Protestant Churches we have in common the great fundamental
principles of the Reformation, namely, first: that the Word of God
is the only source of religious knowledge and the only judge in
matters of salvation, and secondly, justification before God by
Christ through faith only. Thus it stands in the matter of doctrine;
nor can we dispute that in matters of practical Christianity they
are zealous, even putting us to blush. We all love to hear that
the Bible is the most widely read book in the world. But to whose
efforts is this mainly due? What little we do is far outdistanced by
the work of societies principally supported by Methodists, Baptists,
and Presbyterians.
We glory that we accept the whole Bible, but who studies the Bible
as a whole most earnestly? I well know that we teach Bible History
in our schools, and that we also have many earnest Bible readers,
but if I could show you at greater length what is done for the study
of the whole Bible by both young and old people in some of the
churches mentioned, you would confess that at least many of our
younger and older people are put to shame in this respect too. We
point with satisfaction and pride to the mighty changes which the
Gospel has wrought in heathen lands,--but who for the most brought
them that Gospel of Christ? Who has footed the bills? We preach as
no other church does that the grace of Christ is powerful to rescue
the vilest, the most degraded sinners,--but who goes after them and
labors the most extensively among them? Who, to mention one more
particular, gives most liberally for the support of the Church and
for charity? Lutherans? Roman Catholics and others. Of course, it is
not all gold that glitters, and splendid things could also be said
to the glory of our Church. Who first gave the Bible to the people?
Through whom has the whole Church been redeemed from the bondage
of Antichrist? Who was the first to begin modern mission work? But
our present purpose is to point out that the various Churches are,
thank God, also adding gold, silver, and precious stones upon the
foundation which has been laid, which is Christ Jesus. But is that
all?--Fair-minded as we are to the one, should we be short-sighted
as to the other, namely, that they are also building worthless,
perishable material, material of their own human choosing, "wood,
hay, and stubble"?
Who, enlightened by the plain Gospel, as it shines to us from
every page of the sacred Book, can help but see that the errors of
the Roman Catholic Church are many; that they seriously obscure
the truth; that they lessen the merits of Christ; that, among the
masses, they produce a mere formal religion devoid of soul and life?
Their divinity of the Church, with its visible head upon earth, the
Pope, of purgatory, mass, worship of the Virgin and the saints,
indulgences, confessional,--are these not wood, hay, and stubble?
And coming to the Reformed Churches, which of them believes in
baptismal regeneration, accepts Baptism to be a christening? Which
believes in the real presence of Christ's body and blood in the
Sacrament? Not one. Then, again, the Baptists insist, contrary to
God's Word, that immersion is the only mode of baptism; he that
has not been completely put under water has not been baptized.
Likewise they sneer at infant baptism. The Episcopalian upholds as
divine his form of church government,--so that, if a minister has
not been ordained by an Episcopalian bishop, he is no minister.
The Methodist overestimates the knowledge of one's conversion,
and, like all of the Reformed Churches, cultivates a spirit of
legalism, placing religion in such things as abstaining from
intoxicants. The Presbyterian Church has never yet revoked the
teaching of their catechism that God has elected certain persons
to damnation, and insists upon its form of government as divine.
"Wood, hay, and stubble," teachings and practices that are not
according to the teachings of God in His Bible. What about them?
The text declares that the fire will try the Christian work of all
the ages. Every religious system not in harmony with God's will,
all human speculations which men have woven around the truths of
the Bible, all the wood and the stubble, though brought with pious
hands and placed in sincerity upon the one foundation, shall turn to
ashes and wither like grass. And yet, because of that foundation,
and the faith of those who wrought thereupon, they themselves shall
be saved. We would distinguish between sectarian systems and the
individuals gathered under them. We recognize the unity of all
Christians as believers in Christ, but we can never recognize these
divisions of Christ's spiritual body. That would be sanctioning the
"wood, hay, and stubble."
What, then, is our duty--to come to the second consideration--in
this respect? So sensitive, my beloved hearers, have people become
these days that when a clear Scriptural presentation of this matter
is given, they will stop up their ears, and without giving thought
or attention, will say: illiberal, uncharitable, bigoted! We are
none of these. Not illiberal; we are just as liberal as God's plain
Word permits us to be. We are not uncharitable;--the greatest
charity is to tell a person the greatest amount of truth. And as
to the charge of bigotry, that shows so much ill-feeling and bad
judgment that we dismiss it without comment.
The truth is, that, guided by the Bible, we cannot justify and hold
fellowship with religious societies that teach doctrines contrary to
the Bible, without sinning in a twofold way. First, we would mislead
our own people to believe that the differences are of no fundamental
character, that it makes no difference whether you believe that
Christ's body and blood are in the Sacrament, or not, whether
children are baptized and regenerated in baptism, or not, and so
forth. That would be practically denying the faith; and secondly,
by fellowshiping with these denominations, we would be endorsing
their errors, and arouse the impression that it makes little or no
difference whether they believe in the Bible, or not.
When a man builds a house, he is very much on the alert that no
shoddy, inferior material enters into the building; not one joint or
door but it should measure up to the specifications. Strange that in
the infinitely more important building of Christ's Church, people
should be so indifferent as to the material and of things measuring
up to the specifications of God's Word, and allow "wood, hay, and
stubble" to take the place of gold, silver, and precious stones.
God protect us against indifference. And then, to conclude, the
members of what Church are we? The character, legitimacy, and proper
Christianity of a church is its true, clear, unmistakable confession
of the doctrines of the Scripture, and it is our right to say that
these doctrines are embraced, held, and taught by us, and were thus
held and taught by us before any of the multitudinous sects and
parties about us had a being. The Mother of Protestantism,--what
church is it? It was born, existed, and was mighty in strength
before them all, and upon them rests the burden of proof and apology
for their separate being. And we should go borrowing to them, or
hesitate to speak a modest word in our favor?
My Church, my Church, my dear old Church!
I love her ancient name,
And God forbid a child of hers
Should ever do her shame.
Her mother-care I'll ever share,
Her child I am alone,
Till He who gave me to her arms
Shall call me to His own.
Amen.