Matthew 7:24-27 (ESV)
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
These four little verses are so simple to read and yet so powerful in meaning. They come at the end of this 15-20 minute sermon of Jesus. His only recorded sermon. He teaches so many truths in the sermon it might be spoken in that amount of time but only applied over ages. The message of the sermon fills books written by men.
In this word picture of a house built on a solid foundation vs soft sand, Jesus tells us the key to our success in life. He is, of course, the rock in the metaphor. We are to build our lives upon Him. When we don’t, certain peril will result. We don’t have to be a theologian to understand what Jesus is saying. The truth is simple. Yet, so many build their lives on the sifting sands of man’s philosophy, pride, and possessions. We think we know better. We don’t. We think we can stand on our own. We can’t. We think we can find a source of strength in the world around us. We won’t. He is our sure foundation and when we stand on Him we are able to withstand the storms of life. And, it is in the storms of life that the test comes for what we have built our lives upon. Just ask Job.
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