Loyal
What is considered the greatest sermon ever told was preached by Jesus in Matt chapter 5, 6 and 7.
This is of course the sermon on the mount. If you have a red-letter Bible, you will notice virtually
all of those 3 chapters is Jesus speaking.
The sermon on the mount ends with this passage.
Matt 7:24; “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.
Matt 7:25; 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.
Matt 7:26; 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.
Matt 7:27; The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
This passage has four parts to it.
1. The house.
2. The rock.
3. The sand.
4. The weather (elements)
What is the house? It's you! It's your walk with God. It's your view of God.
The interesting thing about this.. it's the man (not God) who builds the house.
( 1 Cor 3:9-10; ) We even get to decide where to build this house. Some of us build on the rock,
and some of us build on the sand.
What is the rock? It's doing. Both types of builders heard the words which Jesus spoke to them.
But one builder not only heard the words Jesus spoke. He acted on them.
What is the sand? It's listening. Of course we have to listen, in order to know what to do.
But we can't be listeners only. ( Rom 2:13; James 1:22; )
This type of buuilder also heard the words which Jesus spoke. But he didn't act of them. He didn't
do any of the things Jesus talked about in the sermon on the mount.
Now of course you have to read the chapters of Matthew 5, 6 and 7 in order to know what the words Jesus
spoke before he concluded with the verses above.
What is the weather? (the wind, the rains, and the flood) It's the things that come against us
in life. Temptation, trials, people, people, people (did I mention people?) and that thing called life.
We will all be tested at some point. But where is your foundation built? Upon merely showing up
for church and listening. Or is it built upon actually doing and living out your life the way Jesus told
us to?
Up here in Washington state we have a lot of forests. There is a practice called "thinning out".
The logging companies don't cut down all of the tress, only "most" of them. They leave a few behind.
In theory this keeps the soil from washing away, and protects some of the smaller trees from elements
(weather) until they are able to bear it on their own.
The problem is... some of these trees that get "left behind" will fall down. Almost every thin cut patch has several of these trees that have fallen down. Why does a big "fully grown" tree sometimes fall?
Because most of their life they've been sheltered from wind and storms. The other tree surround them and take most of the force of the weather, blocking most of it from these trees. Then for whatever reason, these other trees are cut down and removed. Now that tree has to be able to stand on it's own. It has to be able to stand up against the force of the storms. Many trees are able to do this. But some trees are not.
This happens to Christians sometimes, we stand in the shadow of other Christians. Letting them handle most of the storms that come our way. But then one day, they aren't there. There comes a day you have to stand without someone else to hold you up. (of course the Lord helps us and hold us up) but it's up to us where we build the house.
When I was younger I lived in San Diego and went to some of the sand festivals. People can build some truly amazing things. Some of these intricate structures are amazingly complex and beautiful. Often people will build castles. One of the problems with sand castles is that they take some moisture in the sand in order to hold them together. One trick to hold the moisture in for a little longer is to spray them with hair spray (to seal in the moisture) to keep them from crumbling. ( 1 Cor 10:12; )
I think there are more than a few Christians using hair spray to hold their houses together.
But hairspray or not, eventually the wind, rain and tides (floods) will come, and the castles that are
built in the wrong place get washed away.
So what are some of the things Jesus spoke on in the sermon on the mount that we should be "acting upon" or "doing"?
This is of course the sermon on the mount. If you have a red-letter Bible, you will notice virtually
all of those 3 chapters is Jesus speaking.
The sermon on the mount ends with this passage.
Matt 7:24; “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.
Matt 7:25; 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.
Matt 7:26; 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.
Matt 7:27; The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
This passage has four parts to it.
1. The house.
2. The rock.
3. The sand.
4. The weather (elements)
What is the house? It's you! It's your walk with God. It's your view of God.
The interesting thing about this.. it's the man (not God) who builds the house.
( 1 Cor 3:9-10; ) We even get to decide where to build this house. Some of us build on the rock,
and some of us build on the sand.
What is the rock? It's doing. Both types of builders heard the words which Jesus spoke to them.
But one builder not only heard the words Jesus spoke. He acted on them.
What is the sand? It's listening. Of course we have to listen, in order to know what to do.
But we can't be listeners only. ( Rom 2:13; James 1:22; )
This type of buuilder also heard the words which Jesus spoke. But he didn't act of them. He didn't
do any of the things Jesus talked about in the sermon on the mount.
Now of course you have to read the chapters of Matthew 5, 6 and 7 in order to know what the words Jesus
spoke before he concluded with the verses above.
What is the weather? (the wind, the rains, and the flood) It's the things that come against us
in life. Temptation, trials, people, people, people (did I mention people?) and that thing called life.
We will all be tested at some point. But where is your foundation built? Upon merely showing up
for church and listening. Or is it built upon actually doing and living out your life the way Jesus told
us to?
Up here in Washington state we have a lot of forests. There is a practice called "thinning out".
The logging companies don't cut down all of the tress, only "most" of them. They leave a few behind.
In theory this keeps the soil from washing away, and protects some of the smaller trees from elements
(weather) until they are able to bear it on their own.
The problem is... some of these trees that get "left behind" will fall down. Almost every thin cut patch has several of these trees that have fallen down. Why does a big "fully grown" tree sometimes fall?
Because most of their life they've been sheltered from wind and storms. The other tree surround them and take most of the force of the weather, blocking most of it from these trees. Then for whatever reason, these other trees are cut down and removed. Now that tree has to be able to stand on it's own. It has to be able to stand up against the force of the storms. Many trees are able to do this. But some trees are not.
This happens to Christians sometimes, we stand in the shadow of other Christians. Letting them handle most of the storms that come our way. But then one day, they aren't there. There comes a day you have to stand without someone else to hold you up. (of course the Lord helps us and hold us up) but it's up to us where we build the house.
When I was younger I lived in San Diego and went to some of the sand festivals. People can build some truly amazing things. Some of these intricate structures are amazingly complex and beautiful. Often people will build castles. One of the problems with sand castles is that they take some moisture in the sand in order to hold them together. One trick to hold the moisture in for a little longer is to spray them with hair spray (to seal in the moisture) to keep them from crumbling. ( 1 Cor 10:12; )
I think there are more than a few Christians using hair spray to hold their houses together.
But hairspray or not, eventually the wind, rain and tides (floods) will come, and the castles that are
built in the wrong place get washed away.
So what are some of the things Jesus spoke on in the sermon on the mount that we should be "acting upon" or "doing"?
