Over the next few weeks our plan is to bring a series of messages on the family. Our intention is to look at what the Bible teaches about the family and then allow it to speak out concerning what society has to say about the family.

We are going to call this series "Blueprints for Building the Home." As we work our way through this series, I believe we’ll see several elements in building a literal house that we can draw from as an illustration for building the family that will live in that home.

When looking to build—one of the first things you need to do is acquire some blueprints from a good architect in order to help you decide what type of house to build. Finding an architect with your best interest in mind is essential to building the right house. Some architects might be more interested in just your money than what’s best for you.

So—If having the right architect is important for building a house—without question, it’s more important to have the right architect for building the family that will be living in that new home. In our Scripture verse this morning—we’re told by the Psalmist that the right architect is God. As a matter of fact—I believe he’s saying…if the Lord isn’t our architect…our work will be in vain. Building in vain here doesn’t mean that we can’t assemble 2x4’s and 2x6’s…it means building by our plan and then expecting God to come along and bless our work. 

When you look at this particular Psalm—you’ll notice the theme is God’s blessing on the family. But it’s important to note—that His blessing only comes as a result of faithfulness. Our willingness to allow the Lord to be the architect in building our lives instead of us trying to do it on our own. Therefore—if having the right architect makes the difference, and the Lord is that architect…what are we to do?

1. We must find the right plan.

There are basically only two places people look for a plan and instruction on building the home. One place to look is to those who have the benefit of higher learning and allow them to tell us what the latest in the realm academia has produced and how it should define building the family in an ever changing culture.

The second place to look—is to the architect. The creator of the heavens and the earth. The Lord…the God of the Bible. The One who’s thoughts are above every man’s thoughts. The One who has never been counseled by man. Notice what He has to say in Genesis 2:24.

When the intent of this verse is written there’s not a man alive who could leave his father and mother to be united to a wife. Therefore—God must be doing something special here. What He’s doing is establishing the plan for the family unit, the home. What we see is the architect at work!

Basically what we’re left with is a choice. Listen to those from the realm of academia…or look to the Lord. What are we to do? I believe we should look to the architect. Hebrews 1:1-2 says, “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom He made the universe.” The writer here is telling us that God has always been talking to His people…and therefore we need to be listening to Him.

2. We must follow the plan.

Now that we know where to find the plan for building the home—we must follow the plan. This takes us back to Gen. 2:24 to discover what God is saying to us about building the home. Notice if you will there are 2 parts to God’s plan for the family:

A. Separation. The father, mother, and man represent a family unit. An essential element in any society. When it’s time create a new family unit the child separates from the father and mother…and he and his wife start their own.

B. Sacrifice. When the man is united to his wife they enter into a new covenant relationship. And covenants are always associated with a sacrifice in the Bible. The marital sacrifice is seen when the two individuals consistently take the necessary steps to become one in purpose by following God’s plan for the family.

Blueprints for building the home has to start with God. He’s the architect, the designer, and the contractor. And all that’s left are workers. That’s where we enter the picture. We must be WORKERS who know where to find the plan and WORKERS who are faithful in following the plan. If that’s not who we are…we will work in vain. Workers simply saying that we have a better plan for the family than the architect.

On every job site there always seems to be a worker who thinks he doesn’t need a plan to build. He’s done it all before and therefore he just knows what needs to be done. Is that person you when it comes to building the home?