A Solid Foundation for Life

Context

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus. Comes to a culmination today.

We are in Luke chapter 6. Jesus went up a mountain to pray. He spent the whole night in prayer.

“He came down and stood on a level place.” (Luke 6:17)

Great power went out from him. Healed and delivered all from evil.

Gave a powerful sermon.

Today, Jesus concludes his sermon. Emphasis is on putting into practice what he has taught.

Text

Luke 6:43–49 NRSV

“No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks. “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you? I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them. That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built.But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.”

Introduction

EG: pic of the Ponce Inlet lighthouse. Symbol of strength against storm. Navigational aid with the light on top.

Constructed 1887. 138 yrs.

One of the highest in the country.

Second pic: same lighthouse. It fell over. Difference. The foundation.

constructed 1835. Shoddy workmanship.

…John Rodman confirmed that the lighthouse construction was indeed substandard, validating his opinion of government contractors. He said that it was “the worst mechanical work I ever saw in my life.”

Successive storms eroded the insufficient foundation. Collapsed 1836.

The lighthouse as a metaphor for our lives. Which one do you want to be? The one that survives the storm.

We have to have a strong foundation for our life. That is what Jesus is preaching about today.

Exegesis

Jesus preaches his sermon. He says:

Count yourself happy if you follow me even though you are experiencing adversity; and count yourself happy if you don’t let earthy security get in the way of your spiritual growth.

Love your enemies, don’t retaliate but instead pray for them.

Do not judge others, but instead correct yourself, treating your own sin as a much greater problem.

Jesus says: These are foundational truths. Rock solid.

Yet: Jesus knows that some of his disciples in the crowd are happy to listen to him, defer to him with respectful speech, but will not put what he says into practice.

Why do you call me “Lord, Lord” but not do what I say?

Rhetorical question. That Jesus is going to answer himself with an illustration.

Anyone who listens and does not put my words into action: is like a man who built a house without a foundation and when the storms came the house was swept away.

Who would build a house without a foundation? A person interested in what is easy. What is less costly. In appearance rather reality.

Original Ponce Inlet. Bad construction. Cut corners. Insufficient foundation. Looked like a lighthouse, but not steady like it should be.

1st century hearers, dry climate. Heavy rains and floods could happen. Houses looked comparable, but the ones without a foundation were swept away.

Jesus’ illustration is clear. The house is our life. His teachings are the foundation that our lives must be built upon.

What is the storm?

There are many storms we go through.

difficult financial times; health problems; relationship crises, and so on.

Without a strong foundation in Christ’s teachings we may fall apart in these storms.

Yet, Jesus is also talking about a more important storm; the last storm

When Jesus uses the word “flood” we cannot help but think about the great flood recorded in the book of Genesis. That flood came and swept wickedness away and only Noah and his family survived because they were righteous.

One day each and every person will stand before the Lord on the day of judgment.

Some will have called him Lord but not put his words into actions.

It was simply easier to hear the Jesus’ commands and not put them into practice.

Jesus warns that a superficial disciple will be swept away.

Matthew 7:21–23 ““Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. …And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”

Jesus does not desire that fate for any of his hearers. so he says, let me show you the alternative.

There is also the disciple who hears my words and puts them into practice. I will show you what they are like.

They are like ones who built their house on a stone foundation.

Who does that? A person who wants to build a solid house that endures storms. A person who thinks about the future.

They dig down deep. They excavate. They get to bedrock. Then, and only then do they build.

Ponce Inlet second tower. Wide, strong, deep foundation.

1st c. hearers would have understood the point. Houses with a foundation harder to build but they lasted.

The house is a metaphor for one’s life. Those who call Jesus Lord and put his words into practice dig down deep and build a life that reflect his commands.

When the day of judgment comes — like a sudden flood — they stand tall. the house of their life stands firm.

Well done, good and faithful servant. Come you who are blessed. Into the kingdom that has been prepared for you. (Matt. 25)

Interpretation

Jesus came down from the mountain to speak to the crowds. He stood on a level place. Levels with them. Solid, trustworthy teaching. But for it to benefit them, they have to put his teachings into practice.

The same is true for us.

We must not listen to Jesus as one voice among many that we then ignore.

EG: I listen to lots of podcasts. Full of good advice. I listen while I mow the lawn; while I ride my bike. Hmmm.. that’s good advice. But then I forget it and don’t put it into practice — I miss out on a good tip about what book to read next, or about money, or leadership or some such thing. But life goes on. My soul is not on the line whether I obey the latest influencer.

But Jesus is different. He is the Son of God. He came down from heaven to give us the kingdom of God. He levels with us…firm and clear.

He takes our eternal life seriously. He wants us to take it seriously. He wants us to survive the storms of life and ultimately to enter into his eternal kingdom.

You must build your lives upon my commands, like you would build a house upon a foundation.

Jesus preached and embodied:

we see love. We see forgiveness and mercy. We see holiness. We see hope.

So we should see the same things in our own lives.

The Kingdom of God is built upon Jesus; he is the foundation.

If we want to join him in glory, we must be built upon him.

1 Peter 2:4–6 “Come to him, a living stone, though rejected by mortals yet chosen and precious in God’s sight, and like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house…For it stands in scripture: “See, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.””

To be built upon him means we have to strive to be like him as much as we possible can. Obeying his command and example..

The apostles chime in with encouragement:

James 1:22–25 “But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers …those who look into the perfect law, …and persevere, …—they will be blessed in their doing.”

1 John 2:3 “Now by this we may be sure that we know Jesus, if we obey his commandments.”

Romans 2:6–8 “For God will repay according to each one’s deeds: to those who by patiently doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; ….”

Even the famous verse in Ephesians which assures us that we are finally and ultimately dependent on God’s grace for salvation encourages us:

Ephesians 2:8–9 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God… goes on to say

Ephesians 2:10 “For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.”

Grace does not excuse us from obeying Christ, it empowers us to become like him.

Long and short of it. An eternal life is built on a lasting foundation. Jesus is that foundation and we build upon him by putting his commands into practice.

Application

What kind of life are we building right now?

Is it superficial? Are we just listening to Jesus’ word and then going on the same way as before? (A sermon like a podcast) If so, then we are setting ourselves up for failure. Sooner or later the storms of life will come and our life will fall over. Just like a faulty house.

Or, are we striving to build a life that lasts? Endures the storms of this life, and the evaluation of God on that Great Day.

If we want that, we have to work the foundation. Work our relationship with Jesus. Savior AND Lord.

That is what Jesus wants us to do. He wants us to go deeper, even though it is not easy.

We work the foundation by making the choices to put his teachings into practice every day.

We go through a hard circumstance…easy to say, O I give up. No: I am going to put into practice Jesus’ beatitude: Blessed are those who mourn…

Build on the foundation.

We have plenty and comfort…easy to get too comfortable and not rely on God. No: I am going to put Jesus’ command into practice: I am going to give and serve the needy around me.

build on the foundation.

We experience bad treatment from others…easy to retaliate. No: I am going to put into action: turn the other cheek, for Jesus’ sake.

build on the foundation.

Other people’s faults may be obvious to us…easy to condemn them. No; I am going to work on my self first.

build on the foundation.

When spend lives building a foundation on Jesus, we will be ready to meet him. When his judgment flood washes away all that is superficial, our lives will stand the test.

Benefit for us.

Also a benefit for others.

Lighthouse as a navigational aid. Complex computers, but still rely on lighthouses.

Our lives built on Christ becomes a navigation aid for others.

That mindset is also putting his commands into practice.

I am the light of the world, you are the light of the world.

Conclusion

Two ways of life. One is shallow and ready to fall over. The other is built upon Jesus and is secure.

Let us build upon Jesus by obeying his commands. He is our sure foundation for this life and the life to come.