Matthew 7:24-29
Mat 7:24-29 The King Sums up his Discourse
24, 25. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and heat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
We are to hear our Lord; and by this is, of course, intended that we are to accept what he says as authoritative: this is more than some do at this time, for they sit in judgment upon the teachings of. the Lord. But hearing is not enough; we must do these sayings. There must be practical godliness, or nothing is right within us. The doing hearer has built a house with a stable foundation: the wisest and safest, but the most expensive and toilsome thing to do. Trials come to him. His sincerity and truthfulness do not prevent his being tested. From above, and from beneath, and from all sides, the trials come: rain, floods, and winds. No screen is interposed: all these "beat upon the house." It is a substantial structure; but the tests become so severe that nothing can save the building unless it be the strength of its foundation. Because the chief support is so immovable, the entire erection survives. "It fell not": it may have suffered damage here and there, and it may have looked very weather-beaten; but "it fell not." Let the Rock of Ages be praised if, after terrible tribulation, it can be said of our faith, "it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock."
26, 27. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. The mere hearer is in a poor plight. He, too, is a house-builder. The hearing of the Lord's sayings sets him upon work, and work which is designed to afford him shelter and comfort. He "built his house": he was practical and persevering, and did not begin and leave off before completion. Yet though he was industrious, he was foolish. No doubt he built quickly, for his foundation cost him no severe labour; his excavations were soon made, for there was no rock to remove: he "built his house upon the sand." But trials come even to insincere professors. Are we not all born to trouble? The same kind of afflictions come to the foolish as come to the wise, and they operate in precisely the same way; but the result is very different.
"It fell." These are solemn words. It was a fine building, and it promised to stand for ages; but "it fell." There were minor faults in the fabric, but its chief weakness was underground, in the secret place of the foundation: the man "built his house upon the sand." His fundamentals were wrong. The crash was terrible; the sound was heard afar: "great was the fall of it." The overflow was final and irretrievable. Many heard the fall, and many more saw the ruins as they remained a perpetual memorial of the result of that folly which is satisfied with hearing, and neglects doing.
28, 29. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. The sermon is over; what has come of it? Never was there so great a Preacher, and never did he deliver a greater discourse: how many were the penitents? How many the converts? We do not hear of any. Divine truth, even when preached to perfection, will not of itself affect the heart to conversion. The most overpowering authority produces no obedience unless the Holy Ghost subdue the hearer's heart.
"The people were astonished": was this all? It is to be feared it was. Two things surprised them; the substance of his teaching, and the manner of it. They had never heard such doctrine before; the precepts which he had given were quite new to their thoughts. But their main astonishment was at his manner: there was a certainty, a power, a weight about it, such as they had never seen in the ordinary professional instructors. Ho did not raise questions, nor speak with hesitation; neither did he cite authorities, and hide his own responsibility behind great names. "He taught them as one having authority." He spoke royally: the truth itself was its own argument and demonstration. He taught prophetically, as one inspired from above: men felt that he spake after the manner of one sent of God. It was no fault on their part to be astonished, but it was a grave crime to bo astonished and nothing more. My Saviour, this was a poor reward for thy right royal discourse—" The people were astonished." Grant to me that I may not care to astonish people, but may I be enabled to win them for thee: and if, with my utmost endeavours; I do astonish them, and nothing more, may I never complain; for how should the disciple be above his Lord?