The Solid Rock Series

Edward Mote - 1797-1874

Mote spent his early career in the cabinetry business. Mote eventually became a Baptist pastor and served for 26 years. As a minister, Edward Mote wrote more than 150 hymns.

Working on a sermon called ‘Gracious Experience of a Christian.’ The chorus came to mind ‘On Christ the solid Rock I stand, All other ground is sinking sand.’ After preaching a church member came to him tell of his wife who was very ill. Looking for his hymn-book but could find it nowhere. He said, ‘I have some verses in my pocket; if he liked, we would sing them.’ We did, and his wife enjoyed them so much, that after service he asked me, as a favor, to leave a copy of them for his wife. I went home, and by the fireside composed the last two verses of "My Hope Is Built On Nothing Less", and took them to her. She had almost given up

In the News this week of lost hope

Brittany Maynard 29 - NBC News

Life is not going as she dreamed it might She has had no children with her newlywed husband, no more time as she has brain cancer. So she plans to end her life on Nov. 1

Maynard made three choices that are elevating her final days to viral immortality. She moved with her husband, Dan, from San Francisco to Oregon — one of five states where doctors can legally prescribe life-ending drugs to the dying. She obtained the two bottles of lethal pills and selected the precise moment, place, guests and soundtrack for her last breaths. And she posted the reasons for all this in a video that, as of Thursday night, had received more than 5 million views.

1,100 Backpacks ABC News Birmingham, Ala (Send Silence Packing)

They lay on campus grounds representing the 1,100 college students who die by suicide each year. Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death among college students

40,000 Suicides - USA Today reports that there are 40,000 suicides each year, one every 13 minutes in America

- Despair and a sense of hopelessness

- Hope is powerful.

- May be the most powerful thing we have.

- Sometimes, it is all we have.

- "My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’

blood and righteousness"

Sermon on the Mount

- It begins with the blessing of the poor in Spirit

- It ends with the ruin of the proud independent

- Where we build brings either -- Life or Loss

- Both were building a house

- The foundation made the difference

Temple's Foundation

- Get the idea from the Temple's foundation

- Started on on bed rock

1 Kings 5:17 (AV) — 17 And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house.

1 Kings 7:10 (AV) — 10 And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.

1 Kings 7:10 (GW) — 10 The foundation was made with large, high-grade stones (some 12 feet long, others 15 feet long).

- Because: Note Lk 6:48 "and when..."

Mt. 7:25 - Only two kinds of people in the world:

• Those who are going through a crisis

• Those who are going to go through a crisis

Shelter In The Time Of Storm

- We need shelter from rain flood wind

- Any one of these could destroy

- It was one after another

• Relationship Troubles

• Financial Crisis

• Legal Problems

• Health Struggles

• Death's Bereavement

• Rebellious Children

• Out of Work

Consider Your House

Matthew 7:25 (AV) — 25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.

- Rain, floods & winds beat upon the house.

- Lk 6:48-49 "Beat Vehemently"

• To burst against

• Break by tearing apart

- The rain tares at the roof

- The floods beat the foundation

- The winds howl at the whole structure

- Contras Lk.6:48-49

- With foundation – Without foundation

- On rock – On earth

- Could not shake – much less destroy

- It immediately fell & the ruin was great

- Nothing but Disappointment, Sorrow & Loss

- Who do we think we are to be independent from the Lord

- Past Proud Nations have crumbled into dust

- What hope do I have if I continue without a foundation

"My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness

- The storms of life don't have to destroy us

- It's what I build my life upon

Psalm 61:1–2 (AV) — 1 Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer. 2 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.