Is Your Foundation Sure?

IS YOUR FOUNDATION SURE? (July 30 2023)

Text: Matthew 7:21-29

Matthew 7:21-29  "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.  (22)  On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?'  (23)  Then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.'  (24)  "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.  (25)  The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock.  (26)  And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand.  (27)  The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!"  (28)  Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching,  (29)  for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes. (NRSV).

Perhaps one of the most scariest passages of scripture in the Bible is Matthew 7:21-23. Why is this passage of scripture so scary? It is scary because it reminds us that without Jesus there is no way to get to heaven.

You cannot just use Jesus’s Name and be saved! Acts 2:21 says that “Anyone who calls on the Name of the Lord shall be saved”. Salvation is not a taxi cab ride where the Lord drives the taxi and we sit idly in the back seat till we get to heaven. No! Jesus calls us to be His disciples who pick up our crosses and follow in His footsteps as His disciples! (Luke 9:23 -35). Jesus called us to discipleship not idleness! Calling on Jesus to be our savior means that we must make Him Lord of all in our lives or He cannot be Lord at all!

A person might indeed be a charismatic person. He or she might indeed be an influential person. He or she might be a good person in character. He or she might even perform what William Barclay “heathen miracles”, and unless he or she has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, then he or she is not saved. There is a huge difference between knowing the Name of Jesus and knowing Jesus as your Lord and Savior! That is certainly why Jesus said… “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me you evildoers!’ (Matthew 7:21-23: NIV).

Is Jesus a visitor to our hearts like it is a hotel or the Lord of our hearts and lives? Our fruits will give us away won’t they? What does all this have to do with builders and foundations? The one word answer for that is “Obedience”! Jesus tells us that obedience is important to following the spiritual building code on a firm foundation rather than sinking sand!

We know from today’s text that there are two builders, two foundations and two results.

TWO BUILDERS

Aren’t we all builders when it comes to our spiritual lives?

Are we building according to God’s will or our own? “We can be calm if we are building in God’s will can’t we? Or, are we like the preacher who pounded on wood shouting and pounding at the weak part of his sermon”? (Dr. David Jeremiah. The Handwriting on the Wall. Nashville: W Publishiong Gropup, p. 2019, p. 31). “Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain” (Psalm 127:1). The point is that God does not want us to build in vain!

Does God will for us to build wisely or foolishly?

Obviously, God wants us to build wisely. Why in the world would God want us to fail? When we obey God’s word, and the words of the Word made flesh---our Lord Jesus Christ, then what is built will stand.

“A Florida resident built his house according to the state building code. Then, in 1992, Hurricane Andrew tested his work. Hurricane Andrew destroyed thousands of homes in South Florida. Yet in an area where the wreckage looked like a war zone, one house remained standing, still firmly anchored to its foundation. When a reporter asked the homeowner why his house had not been blown away, he replied, “I built this house myself. I also built it according to the Florida state building code. When the code called for 2” x 6” roof trusses, I used 2” x 6” roof trusses. I was told that a house built according to code could withstand a hurricane—and it did". How about the work of your spiritual house? Was it built according to the foundation of God’s Word?