The Sure Foundation (1994)

THE SURE FOUNDATION

Text: Matthew 7:24-29

"It is told that [Horatio] Nelson [1758-1805] was famous for his courtesy to defeated enemies. [He was one of England's most famous Naval heroes.] On one occasion a defeated captain came on to Nelson's quarter-deck as a prisoner. He had heard of Nelson's courtesy and came forward holding out his hand almost as if it were a reception. Nelson spoke one sentence. "Your sword first and then your hand". The first necessity was submission. This parable teaches clearly that the claim of Christ must either be totally accepted or rejected. It is the claim of Jesus that to take His way is the way to security; to refuse to take it is the way to disaster". (William Barclay. The Daily Study Bible Series: The Gospel Of Matthew. Volume 1. Revised ed. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1970, p. 218). Again this parable makes the point that there can be no compromise when it comes to living by the words of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We either live by His words or we don’t.

As someone has said, “People do not drift toward holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord.

“We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.” (David P. Barrett. ed. More Perfect Illustrations For Every Topic And Occasion.. [Citation: Citation: D. A. Carson, quoted in "Reflections," Christianity Today (7-31-00)]. Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. 2003, p. 278). It is obvious that such a lifestyle is illustrates those who will wind up being restless in search of the rest that only God can give.

It is as St. Augustine once said, “we are restless until we find rest in God”. There are many in the world who will try to satisfy that restlessness with other than God. They usually try to satisfy that hunger for eternity with things that are temporary. What is it that makes people use substitutes instead of turning to God? What is it that causes people to create their own religions? What is it that causes people to pursue such an idolatrous endeavor? As someone (Ed Young) has said, “… most pleasure seekers are trying to cover a wound”. (Ed Young. Been There. Done That. Now What?. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1994, p. 47). They seek pleasures in the hopes that life will be satisfying only to still feel restless.

Matthew 7:24-29 is a Biblical parable that points to the necessity for obedience. In that parable, Jesus illustrates His point through three things in that passage of scripture which are the construction site, the storm's test and the results of the test.

THE CONSTRUCTION SITE

The place where one decides to construct and build one's spiritual abode is an important factor that must be considered.

Hurricane Hugo (1989) more than any other recent hurricane proved just how foolish it is and was for expensive housing to be built on a poor foundation in SC. But, it is unfortunate that some people just do not learn from their mistakes. Proverbs 26:11 grotesquely illustrates by comparison how fools return to their folly: "As a dog returns to his vomit, so a fool repeats his folly" (NIV). Proverbs 5:22-23 make the following point: "The evil deeds of a wicked man ensnare him; the cords of his sin hold him fast. He will die for lack of discipline" (NIV). Are we sometimes ensnared---trapped by repeating some of the same ineffective methods that that got us nowhere? Are we learning where our potential for lack of discipline can cause us to fall behind in making progress?

The way that people seek to establish the foundation of their spiritual lives is important. Who can forget the story of the Big Bad Wolf and the Three Little Pigs? The first house was built out of straw. The second house was built out of sticks. The wolf was able to blow both house down because of the poor choice of building materials. But, the third house was made of bricks and withstood the wolf's attempt to blow it down. Friends our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ warned us about how there are false prophets who come in the guise of sheep when the truth of the matter is that they are wolves in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7:15).

Have you ever tried to do something your own way without God’s help successfully? There is the story of a World War II pilot who had plane troubles that forced him to bail out. He landed in the water, freed himself from his parachute only to face what seemed like death by drowning as the shore seemed miles away. He resolved to quit fighting and give in to his fate expecting to drown. Exhausted, he let his body go only to discover that his feet landed on the bottom as the water rested at his shoulder level. (Richard Carl Hoefler. The Divine Trap. Lima: The C. S. S. Publishing Co., 1986, p. 11). Like the pilot in this story, our efforts have their limits.