A Good Foundation Series

Chico Alliance Church

Pastor David Welch

“A Good Foundation”

Matt 7:15-29

Review of Parable series

Jesus told parables or made up stories in order to illustrate spiritual truth in terms that people could instantly relate both emotionally and intellectually.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan reminded us that we demonstrate genuine love for our neighbor as ourselves with A.C.T.S.

Concerned Awareness

Deep Compassion

Healing Touch

Personal Sacrifice

This parable teaches us what to do when we encounter those in need. It is filled with emotion and conviction about our attitudes toward people in need.

The Parable of the Lost and Found reminded us that all people have value and are worth the effort to bring to repentance…

Must be our priority

Must be our passion

Will take great patience

This parable too is filled with emotion.

The distress of loosing something very valuable to you

The devastation of choosing a wrong path

The delight of finding what was lost

That parable taught us how we must demonstrate a passion for those who have wandered off God’s path and separated from God’s people. The parable also was filled with conviction about our own attitudes toward lost people.

Attitudes come from thoughts.

Watch over your thoughts, they become your attitudes.

Watch over your attitudes they become your words.

Watch over your words, they become your actions.

Watch over your actions, they become your habits.

Watch over your habits, they become your character.

Watch over your character...it becomes your destiny.

Introduction

This message explores another familiar parable and focus on its main point.

Like the others, Jesus related this parable to illustrate a basic truth which should guide our thinking and our living. The truth emphasized here could be the difference between heaven and hell. Practicing this vital life principle means the difference between a walk that survives the storms of life and one that crumbles in the midst of crisis. As we will see, it is the core of what it means to be a genuine disciple of Christ. It is best known as the parable of the Wise Man and the Foolish Man.

I. The Particular Perspective

Every parable has a context. Listen to the context of this parable. Jesus had been sharing the principles of life in the Sermon on the Mount. He was relating how true disciples feel and live. He just finished urging them to enter through the narrow gate leading to life. Then he issued this warning against false prophets who pretended to be from God but actually were not.

"Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. "You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? "So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. "A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. "So then, you will know them by their fruits.

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. "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.'

Matthew 7:15-23

He made it clear that it is not an occasional positive work here and there that gains entrance into the kingdom but a fundamental root change accomplished by faith in Christ that becomes evident by spiritual fruit and life change. In fact, those who claim to follow Christ but have not had a fundamental root change are in for a grand surprise when it comes time for the judgment. Even though they pretended to speak for God and even though they invoked the name of Jesus against demons and healed people in the name of Jesus, their heart was still self-centered and rebellious against God. They were never fully surrendered to Him as Lord even though they called him Lord.

They lived a lie. Jesus made it clear that such people will not enter the kingdom.

Such people had never established a personal relationship with Jesus. “I NEVER knew you!” He did not say, “I knew you once but have rejected you.” “I NEVER knew you!”

He used the word to know someone by personal experience. These people never really wanted to bow to God’s will. They never intended to arrange their lives according to God’s law. They had never really surrendered to the authority of Christ over everything in their life.