A few weeks ago I was able to travel with our Duluth missions team to Kentucky where we did some extensive work on the foundation of a building. Over the years the foundation of this building had shifted several inches leading to severe compromise of the structure and safety of the building. Simply stated, buildings are not supposed to move and when they do there will inevitably be problems.

You know that the Christian life is one of continual growth, moving forward, continuing to change more and more into the image of Jesus. Christians lives should never be static, yet there is one way that we are to not move, one thing that we are to stand firm upon keeping us unchanging and unwavering. Everything in this world will be moved, everything will change, shift, and waver. There is only one thing that will last and that is the truth of God. We are to be built immovable upon the truth of Jesus Christ. What we are building upon is not to be just words, theories, or human philosophies, but upon Christ himself.

1 Corinthians 15:58 “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” We are commanded to be immovable and that can seem to be a daunting task when we consider the world that we live in. It seems as though everything around us is pushing and pulling at our hearts and lives. Our worldly desires pull us away from God, the storms and difficulties try to push us down; and yet we are to stand unshaken and unwavering. We are to remain steadfast for our Lord. How can that be possible? The prior verse has the answer. 1 Corinthians 15:57, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

We are to build our lives upon the rock of Jesus Christ, you know that, but have you?

We can remain steadfast because of God, because of the victory He provides in Christ. God stabilizes our lives. He takes us from going up and down and all over the place to standing firm in Him. He says that we are no longer to be like a wave tossed about too and fro. We are to build our lives upon the rock of Jesus Christ, you know that, but have you? That is the question you have to answer, have you really built you entire life upon Him? Will the problems and pleasure of this life cause you to drift, to be thrown about, to lose the firm foundation that you thought you had? Or will you weather the storm?

It is easy to start well, to began upon that rock of Christ, but then carelessly drift away. Sometimes we think we are standing strong, but really the only reason we haven’t moved is because the right pressure has not yet been applied. What will it take to get you to move? The right job, the right spouse, the right house, the right adventure? If you really know Christ as your strength, none of that will matter. You will not be shaken. You will not be budged from God, His plans for you, the church He has placed you in no matter what happens.

Psalm 62:6 “He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken.”
Psalm 125:1 “Those who trust in the LORD Are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever.”
Proverbs 10:31 “The righteous will never be shaken”

Are these verses really true of you? Can you confidently say that you will not be moved because of your trust in Him and what He has done?

So how are we to do this, how can we really become steadfast, immovable, resolute, trusting our Lord? The answer is NOT to try really hard not to move, to flex our muscles, plant our feet, and dig in. This will surely eventually end in failure.

We are to know Him. If we do not know our savior, we do not know what we are to build upon. We are to know His word. His truths are the one thing we have to hold unto in this world that will not change. We obey Him and see Him come through for us time after time. We are to do it together, because it is a lot easier if we are not standing alone. Above all, and really the only answer that matters, we need to love God. If we love Him, above and beyond anything else, nothing will be able to remove us from Him.

Circumstances do not matter. When the earth and sky is falling away, when everyone around you is panicking, when the winds and waves our crashing all around you, when everything in your life seems to be falling apart our God remains sovereignly enthroned; and our God wins.

I’ve been around long enough now to see people moved, people that at one time seemed immovable. I thought they would remain steadfast to the end, but they didn’t. Their lives were built upon a rock of empty religious devotion and fleeting emotions. The foundation looked strong. The rock looked right, but in the end turned out to be hollow. No amount of trying to patch up that hollow rock would suffice. No, the only real fix is just like the fix to the falling building in Kentucky. The old foundation needs to be smashed to bits and removed, allowing no part of it to remain, and in turn replaced with the new unfailing rock of Jesus Christ.