Neighbor’s House Knocked Down

Neighbor’s House Knocked Down

Story about the house next door getting knocked down in one day.

Back in September the house next door caught fire. They put it out but it was so smoke damaged that it was unlivable. Well last week we noticed the fireplug in front of our house had a valved installed on it! Then a bulldozer/backhoe appeared in the next door’s driveway. My wife talked to them and they said they were going to knock down the house. At 7AM the next morning they started and they had the whole house into rubble by lunch time. They used a water hose while doing it to keep the dust down. Of course I filmed part of it “just in case” to make sure they wouldn’t damage our house - but they pulled it inwards and didn’t even come close to our house. But amazing that in less than one day they knocked down that house. They cleared out the rubble the rest of the afternoon and when I came home from work all that was there was the foundation. They even knocked down a couple of trees and got those out. Wow!

The next day they busted up the foundation and took that away.

How long does it take to build a house? I Googled: 3 or 4 months most - some 6 months.

How long does it take to knock down a house? One day! 2 days if you count removing the foundation too. Wow!

Let that be a lesson to you! There’s a sermon in there somewhere! ;-)

Matthew 7 - wise man built his house upon the rock

24 “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. 25 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. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

You can’t even have a house unless you have Jesus

Matthew 7:13,14 - Be saved by Jesus

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

How will you know someone is saved? By their fruits

Matthew 7:15-20 -

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

So fruits do not save you but you will know them by their fruits.

James 2:26 - Faith without works is dead.

26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

Spiritually speaking, what does this mean?

The House is your Life

The Foundation is Jesus’s words. (The Word was with God and the Word was God!)

The Rains, Floods, and Winds are Life’s trials.

Your Life:

You spend your whole life just floating through life.

You go to school, you get a job, you retire, but at some point every one of us will face God.

Your life might flash before your eyes, and what did you do with it?

With your life laid bare before God, what will matter? Both good and bad will show before God?

Your success? Your video game scores? That you were a good teacher? That you were a doctor?

Sadly none of that will matter?

You spend your whole life working to be the best football player, the best at something…

Then God says, depart from me for I never knew you.

The spiritual house you built all crashes and is destroyed in one moment!

How do you prevent that?

How do you build that house on a firm foundation that will not be destroyed?

Foundation is Jesus’ Word

James 1:22-25 - Listen to Jesus’ word and do it!

22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.