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Text: Matthew 7:24-27 (NKJV)
24 Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.
Devotional Thoughts and Commentary:
These words are the words of Jesus Christ, and that is why they would likely appear in red in your Bible (as I have also done here).
I think most reasonable people would come to the conclusion that building a house (permanent dwelling) on a rock foundation makes a lot more sense than building it on sand; however, our understanding of this is enriched by an understanding of Palestinian geography and culture of Jesus's day. Building a house in the Palestinian desert was no small matter. The region was a desert, so it didn't get much rain. Still, when the rainy season would come, so too flash floods would rush through the region. To build a house on sand was more than risky- it set one on an inevitable path to destruction.
The message of this teaching of Christ in parable form is this- Obedience the teachings of provides perfect protection when Judgment Day comes, but failing to heed His teachings will result in inevitable destruction on Judgment Day. Please also note here that Jesus assumed the hearing of His teachings- that is easy. It is obeying them that is hard. My mind goes to an account of one of Christ's interactions with a rich young ruler, almost as if Christ had this in mind when he spoke our parable here in Matthew. The record of the exchange went like this: (Luke 18:18-27, NKJV)
18 Now a certain ruler asked Him, saying, “Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?”
19 So Jesus said to him, “Why do you call Me good? No one is good but One, that is, God. 20 You know the commandments: ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not bear false witness,’ ‘Honor your father and your mother.’ ”
21 And he said, “All these things I have kept from my youth.”
22 So when Jesus heard these things, He said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
23 But when he heard this, he became very sorrowful, for he was very rich.
24 And when Jesus saw that he became very sorrowful, He said, “How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”
26 And those who heard it said, “Who then can be saved?”
27 But He said, “The things which are impossible with men are possible with God.”
The interpretation of this passage is another thing for another day (maybe tomorrow), but my point here is that this young man heard the words of Jesus, but he did not obey them. It is not enough to sit in church your whole life in order to be saved from spiritual death at Judgment Day. One must accept the teachings of Christ, primarily that He was the Son of God who paid the penalty for our sins with his sinless death.
Applications:
Obey the teachings of Christ! C.S. Lewis popularized the idea that Jesus had to be either a lunatic, liar, or the Lord (what He claimed to be). This might start your study of studying Christ, but you have to continue learning from His wisdom and applying it to your life. That starts with accepting Him as your personal Savior from spiritual judgment and death, but the Christian should continue to grow at following Him.
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