The Sermon On The Mount (Part 22) Series

THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT (part 22)

Matthew 7:24-29

1) The house on the rock.

Matt. 7:24-25, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock."

"Therefore". This is the third time Jesus introduces a new subject with this connective word. As we know, when we see the word therefore, it connects the preceding verses with what follows. However, in this final, therefore, Jesus is connecting everything that precedes it. This therefore is meant to summarize and teach a valuable lesson along with it.

"Whoever hears these words of mine and puts them into practice." In this passage, Jesus is separating his listeners into two categories: those who put his words into practice and those who don't. And he provides an illustration for each scenario. When Jesus says, 'these words of mine' he's involving the entirety of this sermon. He's tying it all together as he concludes with his final declaration.

Whoever practices the beatitudes. Whoever chooses to be salt and light to the world. Whoever realizes that Jesus came to fulfill the law and that we still follow the 10 commandments and the moral laws. Whoever understands that things like murder and adultery are sins of the heart before they become sins of the flesh.

Whoever commits to treating the sanctity of marriage as something precious and binding. Whoever understands the value of honesty and integrity and is a person of their word. Whoever is willing to turn the other cheek. Whoever is willing to go the extra mile. Whoever is willing to love their enemies and bless those who persecute them.

Whoever does their good deeds not to be recognized for them and whoever is humble in their prayer life. Whoever is committed to storing up treasures in heaven instead of treasures on earth. Whoever is committed to not worrying and instead trust God, knowing he will take care of you. Whoever seeks first the kingdom of God and his righteousness.

Whoever is humble, factual and righteous in their judgment of others. Whoever is willing to call upon the Lord for the godly desires of their heart and seeking and pursing such things. Whoever understands that they must enter through the narrow gate and trust only in Jesus for salvation and not get swayed by false teachers and false doctrine.

Whoever is committed to bearing good fruit. Whoever knows that it's not just calling Jesus Lord that will get you into heaven but rather doing the will of God. Whoever is willing and committed to living their lives this way and whoever realizes that it isn't just hearing the word but doing the word is the wise one who built his house on the rock.

I like how Jesus used literal examples to illustrate spiritual truth. He used scenes that people would understand. They would be able to make a visual connection to what he was trying to get across. In regards to the rains and storms sweeping a house away,

Albert Barnes' commentary states that Palestine was, to a considerable extent, a land of hills and mountains. Like other countries of that description, it was subject to sudden and violent rains. The Jordan, the principal stream, was annually swollen to a great extent, and became rapid and furious in its course.

The streams which ran among the hills, whose channels might have been dry during some months of the year, became suddenly swollen with the rain, and would pour down recklessly into the plains below. Everything in the way of these torrents would be swept off.

A house erected within the reach of a sudden deluge if they were founded on sand, or any other yielding basis, would not stand before them. The rising, bursting stream would shake it to its foundation; the rapid torrent would gradually wash away its base; it would fall, and be swept away.

Rocks in that country were common, and it was easy to secure a solid foundation for their houses. No comparison could, to a Jew, have been more striking.

The Jews would be able to relate since they had seen these types of events take place and had seen the devastation that had occurred from building a structure on a soft foundation. But rock is solid, stable and secure. a strong, sturdy rock is immovable in the storm when the waves are crashing into them.

Spiritually speaking, the rock is Christ. Paul called Jesus a rock in 1st Cor. 10:4. In 1st Pet. 2, Peter refers to Jesus as the 'living Stone' and the 'precious cornerstone'. On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. Consider David's prophetic words in