"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep His commandments. The one who says, "I have come to know Him," and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked."
The issue of true salvation is paramount, and of monumental significance not only to us but certainly to our Lord Jesus Christ. The issue is the difference between knowing and believing in Christ and being self-deceived, ending up in hell and knowing and believing in Christ and being saved from sin, being on your way to heaven.
That is the crux, the importance of verses 22 and 23, "Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’" A verbal profession of faith without obedience is nothing more than empty words, coming from an empty soul. Nothing more than disguised disobedience.
Allow me to remind you, those to whom Jesus is speaking in His Sermon on the Mount, believe in the God of the Old Testament, they are religious and they are unconverted, unsaved, deceived and damned It was nothing more than an empty profession. There are many today in the church who are committed to knowing, studying and understanding God’s Word but only those who obey the Father will enter into heaven. True saving faith requires obedience. So you have the professors and you have the possessors.
What could possibly lead believers into such a deception? We'll discover that as we get into the text. This is a very sobering passage of Scripture.
"Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes."
Jesus is comparing the nature of true saving faith to the apostate standard modern evangelicalism. And He warning us not to deceive ourselves into thinking we are Christians when we're not. If you claim to be a Christian and Jesus isn't Lord in your life you're either deceived or your a liar. That's not a judgement, that's a warning that you need to examine your life and ask yourself, what it is that makes you a Christian. How do you conclude that? There are many professing Christians whose lives are built on self-deception, the foundation of their faith is nothing but sand. Much of Christianity today has become superficial. It's easy believism and cheap grace. Where is the brokenness, the mourning over sin, and where is the repentance? It's just not present. It's the broad way that leads to destruction.
Let's look at verse 24 in which Jesus says "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock."
The rock that Jesus is talking is obedience. When you build your on the rock, you are literally building your life on God's Word. The house is representative of the Christian life built on obedience to the Word of God, which calls for repentance. Jesus is drawing the line as clearly as possible between the way that leads to destruction and the way that leads to life. In my years in ministry, I've known many people who say they’ve built their life on Christ, but there has to be more to it than that, there must be obedience. That's why Jesus says "everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them." He's talking about obedience. We've swept that under the rug of self-righteousness in the church today. We have to take it a step further than just our profession.
In Matthew 16, He says the same thing. "Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.” He *said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it." In the original text the word for rock is "pétra," I’ll build My church upon the affirmation of the truth.
Look at verse 25, "And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock." If you hear the Word of God and you do not act upon it, you’re life is not built upon the rock, which is God's Word. Christianity isn't just believing, it is a life lived in obedience to the Word of God.
In James 1:19-25, James teaches us "Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does."
If you profess to be a Christian and there’s no obedience, neither is there legitimate salvation. In these verses in Matthew 7, Jesus is presenting us with the evidence that the Christian life built on a rock, which is obedience to the Word of God. That's the validation of your salvation. Examine your life, is there a longing, a desire to obey the Word of God? Or are you continuing to live in disobedience, doing whatever it is that you want, constantly justifying your disobedience? Confessing Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior is just empty words unless there is obedience.
If you are a Christian, if your salvation is authentic, you're not going around trying to change the Word of God, you're not altering it to accommodate your sin, you are believing it, accepting every jot and tittle as truth and you desire to obey it! Not perfectly, as no one is perfect, but you are constant striving to obey it. When the storm comes, the house built on the rock bed stands. That's what Jesus is saying here. He is assaulting false Christianity at its foundation. There is quickly approaching the day when the ultimate test is going to come. Will your spiritual house stand or fall?
Verses 26-27, "Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall."
Our Lord is clearly saying one built the easy way, and the other built the hard way. One will stand, and one will fall. He talking about heaven and hell. The fool is always in a hurry, he's always looking for a shortcut to obtain quick results. He's not looking for self-examination, he's not looking at confronting and dealing with his sin, he's not looking for repentance. Rather, he carelessly lives his life in disobedience, his profession of Christ verbal and baseless, and his spiritual house will collapse in the judgment.
Wise men whose foundation is built on the rock will dig deep, he will make the maximum effort. He is not satisfied with easy believism and a cheap grace gospel. He has counted the cost of following Christ, there is tremendous soul-searching, he is overwhelmed with his own sin, and there is a brokenness, therefore, there is genuine repentance because he is committed to the truth. He has a biblical view towards self and the world, he's not part of it. Because he wants a genuine relationship with the Lord. It's not external but internal. His spiritual house is built upon the rock, on the sound doctrine of which is God's Word. He's not a hypocrite. His house will stand.The storm in our text not only represents trials in general, but it also specifically represents God’s final judgment. In the Old Testament, storms were often used to represent judgement.
Listen as I read from Ezekiel 13, verses 13-14 "Therefore, thus says the Lord God, “I will make a violent wind break out in My wrath. There will also be in My anger a flooding rain and hailstones to consume it in wrath. So I will tear down the wall which you plastered over with whitewash and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation is laid bare; and when it falls, you will be consumed in its midst. And you will know that I am the Lord."
I strongly believe that any faithful pastor who understands this, he is moved by Jesus' The Sermon on the Mount. and will teach the urgency of this. He knows judgement begins at the house of God. Therefore, he does not teach empty words, with a worldly view, only to have the judgment destroy them because they have no foundation. He is genuinely concerned whether your faith be true or false, pleading for God’s mercy for his hearers to receive it.
So much of Christianity today has become superficial. Those who claim Christ as their Lord and Savior without giving any thought as to what that means. They aren't concerned about the details. They don’t know God. They don't know Christ. There are spiritual termites eating away at the spiritual house, while they sit comfortably in Christ's church. I cannot begin to describe how deeply this grieves my heart. I can only imagine how this must break our Lords heart, for the church He paid for with His blood, to turn from His ways.
If you know anything about the Scripture, you understand that Satan disguises himself as an angel of light, and therefore, his minister is also disguised. All throughout Scripture, we are warned about doctrines of demons.
The design and purpose of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount is to unmask false religion. That's why He says "Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven."
My greatest concern is not how easily people are being misled into damning, false religion, my greatest concern is how difficult it has become for people to embrace true religion and the teaching of sound doctrine.
It's time to pray for those who stand in the pulpits, who claim to represent Christ, that they would teach God's Word with authority and conviction, confronting sin and calling for genuine repentance. And freely offer His grace, mercy and forgiveness, in and out of season. Encouraging those within their care to examine their lives, check the spiritual foundation, to make sure it’s still there so that their salvation may stand. They must refrain from teaching easy believism and cheap grace which leads to destruction.
If Jesus' teaching in the Sermon on the Mount isn't the pattern, the direction of your life, you best be concerned. You may well be deceived.
That brings us to verses 28-29, "When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching; for He was teaching them as one having authority, and not as their scribes."
Jesus didn't quote anybody, He didn't read from notes. Notice it doesn't say they repented, it simply says they were amazed. I would imagine that some believed, but not multitudes of people. That tells you just how profound deception is, how deeply rooted it is in the hearts of men.
In Closing..
The church today is full of goats and sheep, tares and wheat, virgins whose lamps are without oil and virgins whose wicks are trimmed and their lamps are ready, filled with oil. All that they claim is cheap grace instead of the costly obedience of authentic salvation.
I believe it is imperative that we must warn others of judgment, just like our Lord did, to turn away from sin and from the broad road because hell is real, it is a place of eternal, burning and torment.
Because tomorrow is not guaranteed, we must proclaim the Gospel. We must let people know that today is the day of salvation waste no more time! I believe that every faithful pastor must follow in the footsteps of our Lord and as He did, teaching truth with love and grace. Calling for the repentance of sin.
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen