This past weekend a magnitude 6.4 earthquake shook Taiwan causing over 40 deaths, with numbers expected to rise. The majority of these deaths occurred in one particular high-rise in the city of Tainan. Pictures of the destroyed high-rise have come to light showing support beams lined with oil cans as a cheap construction filler. The outrage from survivors and locals has spurred government officials to investigate the incident further. To date, a few people involved in the construction of the building have been arrested. While the earthquake triggered the collapse, many point to shoddy construction techniques as the root cause.
Careless building techniques plague Christianity today, and have since deceit crept into the early New Testament church. Many of today’s most popular Christian leaders have built opulent church organizations and buildings with ever increasing growth. But all of these grand edifices invoking the name of God are built on lies and foundations conceived by man, not God.
Christ spoke of those who falsely profess to know God because they refuse to heed His Word (Matthew 7:21-23). Paul states, “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” (1 Corinthians 3:11-13). What man builds is based only on the physical, and physical cannot inherit the kingdom prepared for each of us (Matthew 25:34).
Each of us has been given the opportunity to build upon a foundation laid by our Elder Brother, Jesus Christ. But He warns us that this Way of Life will take work to build and perseverance to maintain. After Christ stated that we must be willing to forfeit EVERYTHING to be His disciples, He stated, “For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it—lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish’?” (Luke 14:28-30).
The reason Christ was so adamant about us fully committing to His teachings is to prepare us so that we can inherit eternal life. An unstable foundation will always topple in adversity. We will always become lost if God isn’t leading every step we take.
When Paul wrote to Timothy to exhort him in strengthening his ministry, he explained why it is so important to build upon a foundation that will last. Speaking about those who built on a good foundation, Paul says they were “…storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life” (1 Timothy 6:19). We must have a lasting foundation for the trials we will face, not only in our daily life, but especially as this age ends and Satan is unleashed to persecute God’s people. Paul continues, “O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge” (1 Timothy 6:20).
An earthquake like none before is going to shake this world to its core. That earthquake is the righteous judgment of God. All that will remain standing during that judgment are those who built upon the everlasting truth and solid foundation of God.
