A Word from Matthew 7

Depending on your age (and how often you participated in Vacation Bible School), you probably remember the song, The Wise Man Built His House upon the Rock. And as the title implies, “The wise man built his house upon the rock…And the rains came tumbling down. The rains came down and the floods came up…And the wise man’s house stood firm.”

And naturally, there’s simple but profound truth in those words! Because when we build the “house” of our lives on the solid foundation of Jesus, we can be confident that God will enable us to stand, even when we’re battered by the worst storms that life can dish out.

But you know, if we really pay attention to today’s word from Matthew 7, I can’t help but wonder if the truth of the gospel is a little more nuanced than that. Because sometimes, when we talk about “building our house on Jesus,” we seem to mean that we’ve hung a “Jesus banner” on the front door. We’re glad to claim him as our Savior and Lord; but once we get inside the house, a lot of our decisions and priorities seem to built on something else.

And that’s why it’s important to remember that in today’s word, Jesus says that “everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” (7:24; emphasis added) The promise of strength amid life’s storms is given to those who don’t just call Jesus Lord, but who do what he says. As one scholar puts it: “Anyone who is not a continual student of Jesus, and who nevertheless reads the great promises of the Bible as if they were for him or her, is like someone trying to cash a check on another person's account. At best, it succeeds only sporadically.” (Dallas Willard, The Divine Conspiracy)

So today, let’s be students of Jesus! Let’s hear his words and put them into practice, trusting that we will stand firm—not because of our own strength, but because of his power working within us. Amen.