01.25. Sermon on the Mount (33)
Sermon on the Mount (33) Hearing and Doing
Matthew 7:24-27 The Lord Jesus concludes His teachings with the well-known picture of the wise man who built his house upon the rock and the foolish man who built his upon the sand (compare the parallel reference in Luke 6:47-49). Later on in the gospel He speaks of the same contrast again in the parable of the wise and foolish virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), and Paul exhorts the Ephesians, ’Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is’ (Ephesians 5:17). The wise or understanding man is someone who knows and does the will of the Lord, the foolish man, who hears the words of the Lord but does not do them. The House upon the Rock
’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’ (Matthew 7:24). As we have learnt in the previous passage a mere profession of the lips that we belong to the Lord Jesus is not sufficient to be accepted by Him. Now He explains what really matters in the lives of those who call themselves His disciples: not only to hear but also to do His words. We are often reminded of what the Lord Jesus says here when we read the words of James, ’But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves’ (James 1:22-27). The Lord Jesus uses the symbol of a house to illustrate a human life. Just as every house requires a solid foundation to keep standing so every man needs a sure foundation for his life. The best foundation for a house is rock. The rock upon which a wise man builds his life’s ’house’ is Christ. He is the ’rock’ which accompanied the people of Israel during their wilderness journey (1 Corinthians 10:4), the ’rock’ upon which his church is built (Matthew 16:18) and the living stone to whom we come when we believe on him (1 Peter 2:4). And here at the end of the Sermon on the Mount He is also the unshakeable foundation of the practical life of faith. In building his life’s house upon the rock Jesus Christ the wise man finds it does not fall but it stands eternally. It means he directs his life according to the Lord Jesus and his word, which is the only way we can prove our love for Him. ’He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me... If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him’ (John 14:21; John 14:23).
’And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock’ (Matthew 7:25). It is often only a crisis that reveals if the house has been built upon a solid foundation or not. From a superficial point of view it may appear that a house is built on firm ground but a storm can prove otherwise.
Southern countries like Israel, for example, can suffer very heavy rainfall which transforms the wadis (rivers dried out during summertime) into rapid torrents within a very short time. The rain pouring down, the floods pressing on the foundations and the storm blowing against the walls will prove the worth of the foundations of houses. If they are laid on an elevated rock the storm may well damage the house but it will not be able to destroy it.
’For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again’ (Proverbs 24:16). A disciple wanting to be faithful to the Lord and obey his word - that is the wise man in our parable - can fail also. Nor will he be spared trials. There are happenings and events that will shake the life of even the strongest believer to it’s very foundation, but he knows that his house is built upon a solid rock and won’t fall. And he has the full and unshakeable security of salvation in respect of eternity as well. The House upon the Sand
’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.’ (Matthew 7:26-27) The foolish man’s thoughts do not go very deep. He builds a house as it pleases him without considering the foundation. There is a great temptation in ’building our lives’ to put importance on those things that we can see ouwardly and neglect the deeper matter of the foundation that is essential to a life for God. Everyone who hears and knows the words of scripture, the commandments of the Lord, and yet does not follow them is acting like the foolish man. The rain pours down, the floods come and the winds blow against the walls of the house. The house is unable to stand up to it, ’...and great was the fall of it’. Clearly this goes beyond the failures of daily life. The rock upon which the wise man builds his house is not temporary but the eternal Son of God and His everlasting word (Matthew 16:16-18). This is why the house stands the attack of the elements whereas the efforts in the life of the foolish man end in a great fall. Both have heard the word of the Lord but only one of them has lived accordingly. This parable does not teach salvation by works. No one can stand before God on the basis of his own works but only as he has faith in the Lord Jesus. Then the life will be followed by works of faith. Such is one of the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount. A mere profession without faith is worthless but on the other hand there is no true faith without works. The Lord puts the sad fate of the foolish man at the end and concludes His lengthy sermon with the words: ’... and great was the fall of it.’ This stresses in a remarkable way the eternal weight of His words and impresses the seriousness of our responsibility on our hearts and minds again - as it did on the hearts of His listeners at the time.