FOUNDATION STONES

Introduction

The components of this foundation series comes from Hebrews chapter six. The six foundation stones or elementary principles are underlined in the scripture.

Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this we will do if God permits. (Hebrews 6:1-3 NKJV)

These elementary foundation stones are necessary to be laid in our life before we can move on to maturity. We are to go on “if God permits”. His permission to move on to maturity is based on whether or not we lay a proper foundation. Without a sound foundation God does not permit us to move on.

To have a foundation implies that something will be built upon it and that is exactly what God is doing. He is in the process of building a dwelling place for Himself.

For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building. According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, each man's work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man's work. If any man's work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:9-16 NASB)

having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:20-22 NASB)

And coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:4-5 NASB)

There are two aspects of building involved—our individual lives as living stones and our corporate lives where we are build together as a dwelling of God in the Spirit.

Our individual foundation must be built upon the Rock if it is to stand the storms of life. We all face the same storms but only lives founded upon the Rock will stand when the storm has passed.

"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. "And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. "Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. "The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell--and great was its fall." (Matthew 7:24-27 NASB)

The same storm came upon both houses. The one without a proper foundation fell; the one with a proper foundation stood through the storm.

Blueprints

When one determines to build a building, the first thing needed is a set of building instructions which tell the builder all of the details needed to construct the building. In my day, these architectural instructions were called blueprints because they were on blue paper with white lines and white writing. All of the specifications, that is, instructions for the building are contained in the blueprints. When someone begins to work on the building, he consults the blueprints to make sure that he is doing the correct work with the appropriate materials to accomplish the desired results.

Whenever God desires for something to be built, He provides the blueprints to those whom He has called to do the building work. When God told Noah to build an ark, He gave him the instructions on size, material, etc. as explained in Genesis Chapter 6. When God told Moses to build the Tabernacle and the furniture for it, He gave him detailed instructions for the pattern he was to follow. Read the details in Exodus Chapters 25 through 27.

It was extremely important that Moses follow the instructions exactly because the earthly Tabernacle that he was building was fashioned after the pattern of the heavenly Tabernacle.

who serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things, just as Moses was warned by God when he was about to erect the tabernacle; for, "SEE," He says, "THAT YOU MAKE all things ACCORDING TO THE PATTERN WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU ON THE MOUNTAIN." (Hebrews 8:5 NASB)

Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. (Hebrews 9:23 NASB)

The furniture and structure of the Tabernacle also reflect spiritual truth concerning Jesus and His work. If Moses had not followed the plan, the earthly patterns would not have reflected the spiritual truth of the heavenlies.

If God had a plan, a pattern, a set of instructions, a blueprint for the Tabernacle (the dwelling place for God with His people), then he surely has a blueprint for the Temple that He is building under the New covenant.

The building materials have changed from stones of rock to living stones of people. It is these living stones which God is using to build His Temple, a place where He can dwell and people can come and worship and talk with Him, and spiritual sacrifices can be made.

Foundation Components

One of the most important aspects of a building is its foundation. Without a proper foundation the building will shift or collapse under stress or even under the weight of its own structure. The taller or larger the building the deeper and stronger the foundation must be.

The foundation of God's New Covenant Temple consists of three parts with Jesus being the primary or most important.

having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, (Ephesians 2:20 NASB)

It requires all three of these foundation components to provide a complete foundation for the individual, the Church, and the Kingdom. These are also the foundation for all doctrine.

[NOTE: for further study in this area see “Kingdom Government”, “The Purpose of the 5 Fold Ministry”, “Going to Work” and similar lessons on our website.]

God calls others into His building work (making it even more important that everyone follows His plan and not one of their own).

According to the grace of God which was given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building on it. But each man must be careful how he builds on it. For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:10-11 NASB)

To lay a foundation requires a footing to be done first. In large buildings these are huge metal or concrete pylons that go deep into the earth. In smaller buildings these are trenches filled with concrete to create a stable sub-foundation to tie the foundation together with the ground.

Before we get to the six foundation stones listed in the first three verses of Hebrews Chapter 6, we need to build a footing upon which these doctrines can stand. The footing is made up of things which the Hebrew people understood but which understanding we have either lost or corrupted through pagan philosophy.

The Nature of Man

Psychology has attempted to define the nature of man in many different ways, none of which are based on the Word of God. Our God is a trinity, that is, three in one. When He made man, He made him in His image; therefore, man is also a trinity, that is, three in one.

Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7 NASB)

The body was formed or fashioned from dirt and is primarily the part of man which is in contact and interaction with this world and through which we receive all of our sensory input. God then breathed into man the breath of life. In the original “life” is plural, that is, “lives”. When God breathed life it was both spiritual life and natural life. The spiritual life in man is the spirit (the breath of God) and it is the spirit which is God conscious and it is through the spirit that we interact with God. When the breath of God came into contact with the body, man became a living soul (in the original it is the Hebrew word for soul not being). Just like two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen combine to form a third substance called water, the spirit combined with body to produce soul. It is our soul that makes us unique, which makes us self-conscious. It is what makes me different from you and you different from the next person. It is the soul that is valuable to God for the scripture tells us that Jesus came to save souls not spirits.

but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:17 NASB)

God then gave the man a warning--if he was disobedient and ate fruit from the tree, which God said he couldn't eat, then the man would die. We all know that Adam was disobedient and ate the fruit from the forbidden tree and as a consequence had to leave the Garden. Yet, he did not die physically for a long period of time. So, what died? The spirit within man--his God consciousness.

[NOTE: for further study in this area see “Foundations of the Inner Man”, “Law, Life, and Inheritance”]

God knew that there would be a day when He would restore man to fellowship with Him and to do that man would need a new spirit.

"Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances. (Ezekiel 36:26-27 NASB)

Jesus referred to this promise as being “born again”.

Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus *said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?" Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John 3:3-6 NASB)

When we are “born again” we receive a new spirit, not a new soul. If we got a new soul, we wouldn't be us. Instead God expects us to have our souls renewed. We call the process of receiving a new spirit regeneration and the process of renewing our soul sanctification.

Just like Adam, our spirit puts us into union, communion, and fellowship with God.

The Nature of God

Our society has also lost perspective on the nature of God. We have become confused with the vain speculations of men and mythology. The scriptures give us a clear picture of the nature of God.

--for you shall not worship any other god, for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God-- (Exodus 34:14 NASB)

Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; Yes, our God is compassionate. (Psalms 116:5 NASB)

Exalt the LORD our God And worship at His holy hill, For holy is the LORD our God. (Psalms 99:9 NASB)

"Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy. (Leviticus 19:2 NASB)

These scriptures give us a look at the character of God from the Old Testament and we find that first God is jealous and we are not to worship anyone or anything but Him. Then we find that He is gracious, righteous, merciful, and holy.

Under the New Testament, the character of God doesn't change but we get a further revelation and understanding of Him.

"God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24 NASB)

We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. (1 John 4:16 NASB)

This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. (1 John 1:5 NASB)

yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. (1 Corinthians 8:6 NASB)

We realize from these that God is Spirit, Love, Life and, foremost, Father. Because He is Father, we can trust that His dealings with us are as the dealings of a Father toward His children.

Now that we have the footing in place we can move on to the foundation stones in the next lessons.