A Piece Of The Rock

We’ve got some interesting weather going on around the world. Some people believe that it is all due to global warming, others say it’s part of normal cycles of climate change. But whatever you believe is the cause, there’s no doubt that we are more aware of what’s going on around the world than any other time in history.

Last month, heavy rain In New England caused the worst flooding in New England since the 1930s. More than a foot of rain fell across New Hampshire, Massachusetts and southern Maine, with up to 17 inches in some places. Even after the downpour eased, washed out roads and the danger of dam breaks prevented many people from returning to their homes. Gov. Romney said the damage would reach tens of millions of dollars in Massachusetts alone. And more rain was forecast for the weekend.

So far this year, tornados in the US have resulted in 50 deaths and the destruction of thousands of homes. Just Missouri, 19 year old Matt Suter was blown for a record 1307 feet from his disintegrating mobile home to an open field. He was the first person known to have been carried more than 1000 feet and lived to tell about it.

Around the world, flooding in 2005 killed over 50 people across southern China and nearly a half million had to be evacuated. In India, monsoon rains killed over 1000. And of course we’re still cleaning up after Katrina and the other killer hurricanes that hit the US last year. It’s scary to realize that we’re already in the 2006 hurricane season.

Hurricanes happen. Tornadoes happen. Floods happen. And earthquakes happen.

Survival rates depend to a huge extent on how well people are prepared.

One case study contrasting the effects of differing infrastructures covered an earthquake registering 7.6 on the Richter scale which hit California in 1972. One person was killed. A smaller earthquake, registering 6.9, hit Managua Nicaragua that same year, and several thousand were killed. The difference was almost completely due to preparedness and the way building and roads are constructed. The author’s conclusion was short and to the point: “Appropriate infrastructure can provide a sense of security in the face of inevitable natural disasters.”

Jesus makes exactly the same point about your life and mine in today’s story. Notice that Jesus doesn’t say that there won’t be any storms. And he doesn’t advise us to build our house up on a hill where the waters never reach. Being human - being in the world - means living on a flood plain. His assurance to us is that when we build our lives on the foundation he has given us we will make it through the windstorms and rainstorms that are always part of life.

Now, what is that foundation? We’ve spent seven months on it. If this three-chapter sermon in Matthew were all we knew about Jesus, and we took it seriously, we would be safe. We wouldn’t have all the helpful detail, practical application, gripping images and philosophical implications that John and Paul and the other writers give us, but we’d know how to live.

Jesus has told his disciples - which includes us - that we are on the right track if our spirits are needy, if we mourn, if we are meek, if we hunger and thirst to know God and be like him. He tells us we are getting it right we when are merciful and pure in heart, when we try to bring peace and when we are persecuted. God will be with us in those times and places.

Jesus has also told us that we called to be light in a dark world, that we should shine. He’s said we have to be more righteous than the Pharisees: not only are we to keep all of the commandments, but we have to go even farther. If we cherish anger against someone it is the same as murder; if we play with lustful fantasies about someone it is the same as adultery; divorce is only allowed in cases of infidelity; our word should be so good that oaths are unnecessary; we aren’t to get even with those who have wronged us; we are to pray for our enemies and seek their good; we aren’t to make a public display of our religion. We should pray humbly, sincerely and diligently; we shouldn’t put getting rich at the top of our “to-do” list; we shouldn’t worry about the circumstances of our lives but instead trust God to take care of us. He tells us not to judge. He says that if we seek him and ask of him we will have everything we need.

If we build our lives on these principles, according to Jesus, we will be secure. And we can be confident in our security, for one very clear and simple reason. The word of God called the universe and everything in it to life. And so wherever and whenever we depart from the word of God in our lives, we are living contrary to the created order, and the ground starts to slip away from beneath us.