Construction Workers

Construction Workers

Introduction:

A. Smiling

A mother noticed that it was about time for school to dismiss and since it looked like it would rain, she drove toward the school to pick up her eight-year-old daughter. She turned down the street to see her daughter running towards her down the sidewalk. A lightning bolt flashed and the little girl looked up towards the sky, smiled, and then began running towards her mother’s car. Another lightning bolt flashed and again the little girl looked towards the sky, smiled and resumed running. This happened several more times until the little girl finally arrived at where her mother was parked. Her mom immediately inquired as to the strange behavior. “Why did you keep stopping and smiling at the sky,” she asked her daughter. “I had to, mommy. God was taking my picture.”

B. This morning we will talk about a parable that will bring lasting value and a sense of where we are right now.

C. When I read this story, listen as if this is the first time you have ever heard it.

Matthew 7:24-27

I. Identical elements in the lives of two construction workers

A. Two main characters are builders. – They are building the same thing in two different areas. – Two builders constructing two houses

B. Remember, Jesus is not talking about building literal houses on literal rock and sand, but about lives – establishing values and determining priorities on different philosophies or lifestyles.

C. Another set of identical elements in the story is the life situations of the two builders.

1. Each goes through a storm. – Neither is able to escape it or ignore it. They both feel the down-pouring rain that increases to flood level and the sting of the wind that hits with horrendous velocity.

2. Jesus is not telling us how to find a safe, comfortable setting, an ideal atmosphere where life remains non-threatening and where the climate is wonderfully supportive.

3. His story is forcing us to face reality: Life is difficult…storms will come…pain and discomfort will happen. BUT HE IS ALWAYS NEAR!

II. Contrasting factors in the lives of two construction workers

A. The two builders are totally different kinds of people. – They build their houses in totally different manners. One chooses to build on rock; the other, on sand.

B. The first builder is the type who does more than hear what Christ has to say, he acts upon the truth.

C. The second builder hears the same thing, but he stops. He deliberately does not act upon what he hears. The first build is called “WISE” the second is called “FOOLISH”

D. Another contrast is the outcome of the two houses.

1. One did not fall and the other came crashing down.

2. The wise builder constructed his life in that no amount of testing, no extent of difficulty, is enough to bring him down. – Because he was founded upon a rock!

3. The song “MY HOPE IS BUILT ON NOTHING LESS!”

III. Underlying principles in the lives of two construction workers

A. If you are only hearing and reading the truth, you are not prepared for life’s storms

1. The foolish and the wise builders heard.

2. The difference: - The refusal to do something about it. Jesus said: “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

3. To listen with no plan to act, to read with no interest to respond is to miss the whole point of Christ’s teaching on the mountain that day

4. Divine truth is given not to satisfy idle curiosity, but to change lives, not to lull us to sleep in church, but to equip us for today and prepare us for eternity.

B. If your foundation is sure; no storm will cause your life to collapse.

A. The rains of adversity will fall, no question about it. That’s life. The floods of misery and heartache will rise, for sure, and the winds of pressure will howl, threatening both security and your sanity. THE GOOD NEWS: YOUR LIFE WILL NOT COLLAPSE! CHRIST CAME TO BE BELIEVED IN, NOT SIMPLY STUDIED AND ADMIRED!

IV. Two questions to answer

A. Is the foundation beneath your life absolutely solid? If it is on Christ, the Rock, it is. If not, it isn’t.

B. Is the life your are building eternally reliable? If your life is solidly resting on Christ, you will ride out the storm, not fearing the flood. If not, the sand will ultimately give way, your life will collapse, and you will sink.

I WAS SINKING DEEP IN SIN, FAR FROM THE PEACEFUL SHORE,

VERY DEEPLY STAINED WITHIN, SINKING TO RISE NO MORE;

BUT THE MASTER OF THE SEA HEARD MY DESPAIRING CRY,

FROM THE WATERS LIFTED ME, NOW SAFE AM I.

LOVE LIFTED ME! LOVE LIFTED ME!

WHEN NOTHING ELSE COULD HELP,

LOVE LIFTED ME.