how to Build your house on the Rock
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Building Material
Building Material
Good evening everyone, how are we doing tonight? well tonight i though we do class on uplift some weary spirits. being a christian is not very easy. so tonight well look at building our house on the Rock. see the problem with Christianity of today is that we struggle most of the time. we have a hard time look at the negativity of the world that is always trying to to charm us. let go ahead turn in our Bibles to (Mt 7:24-27).
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
A little about this passage before we break it apart tonight. that is Jesus is talk to the great crowd during his sermon on the mountain. this is one of the first parables we learn as children and new found Christians.
Let look at the first couple of verse Mt 7:24-25
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
I want us to underline couple of words here in this section because it makes a clear statement.
the first word we are going to be looking at is “hear” in this verse of Mt 24-25.
what does the word hear mean?
Google definition: Perceive with the ear the sound made by (someone or something)
Be told or informed of.
Lets look Luke 10:38-42
38 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”
41 And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. 42 But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
What can we learn from this passage about Martha and Mary?
what was Martha doing?
What was Mary doing?
why was Martha Mad, angry, or upset with Mary?
what was Jesus response to Martha?
what kind choice do we have and is it similar to Martha’s or Mary decision?
so from the Story of Martha and Mary, are we going choose to be like Martha or we can can chose to be like Mary who choose to listen to Jesus? we also have another example how how Jesus wants us to listen, let turn in our Bible to Mt 13:3-9.
3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
what can we learn from this parable of the sower? Ok, if we look farther down the chapter in Matthew we see that parable of the sowers is explain very well and this shows what kind of people we should be, and what kind of people we should not be.
now lets go back to Matthew 13 and look Mt 13:18-23
18 “Hear then the parable of the sower: 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is what was sown along the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy, 21 yet he has no root in himself, but endures for a while, and when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately he falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and it proves unfruitful. 23 As for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”
what are some things that can we learn from these passages in Matthew?
we see that seed that lands on the path and is swallowed up by birds show us that many would come and just listen but eventually chose to leave.
the seeds that land on the rocky ground have understand and want to know more, but eventually when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word immediately he falls away.
as for the seed that was thrown into the thorns and weeds. these are one who hear yet want the more comfortable lifestyle.
the seed that lands in the good soil eventually grows and become fruitful.
in these two passages we come to realize that Jesus wants us to listen because it is for our benefit. it is our choice to follow him or this world. but in order to follow him we need to listen first.
For us today how do we listen to God? how are we able to grow and be fruitful like the seed that land in good soil? how do we get our faith?
today how do we hear the words of Christ, or how does Christ talk to us in today’s age? Rom 10:17
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
we come to understand that In Romans Paul is talking to the Jewish people first who chose not listen, then eventually going to the gentile people who were willing to listen. but if you look at couple more verse before Roman 10:17 we see that Paul takes about the responsibility of the preacher and how we should listen those who come and teach. look at Rom10:14-16.
14 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? 15 And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written:
“How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace,
Who bring glad tidings of good things!”
16 But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed our report?”
Today in our society in order for us to hear we need to listen to those who study the word of God daily. as Christians it is our job to also study the word and to read words of Jesus, and come to understanding of God’s word (the Bible), so our faith can grow and be fruitful. this will lead us to the next word under building marital for building our spiritual home.
So let look at the second word that i want us to underline this evening which is “do” it in the second part of the verse Mt 7:24.
Matthew 7:24 (NKJV)
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:
Are we suppose to live according to the Bible as Christians? many today claim to be Christians, but where are they building if its not on the rock? let look at (Jam 1:22-25).
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. 25 But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.
What are some things you guys see in this passage?
Here are some of the points that I see:
Here in James we see that James is say why just sit there and listen? your deceiving yourselves. many Christians do this with out realizing it.
Many Christian’s get in the routine of just coming twice a week, and think that is enough for them.
Here James we see that James is stating that if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer he is like a man who observing his natural face in a mirror.
If we continue with the second part of the verse which is found in 24 for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was.
so from verse 23 to 24 we that a hearer who is not a doer is man who forget on what kind of man he was?
Another verse we can look at is (Rom 2:13-16).
13 (for not the hearers of the law are just in the sight of God, but the doers of the law will be justified; 14 for when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, 15 who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thoughts accusing or else excusing them) 16 in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel.
Here in Romans we See Paul again talking to the Jewish people before he went to the gentiles. here we come to understand that Paul makes some very good points by pointing out that The Gentiles who do not have the law which at this point the Law is known as the torah or books of the law within the Bible. the gentiles have better understanding of the law then the Jewish people because they are doers and not hearers.
what do you guys get from this passage here?
Here some point we take out of this Passage:
Paul points out, that Just being a hearer is not going to cut it in the sight of God, but the ones who obey and do the law.
Paul also points that The Gentiles who do not have the law but yet follow the law are a law to themselves.
again Paul makes his statement about how the Gentiles will be also be part of the whole picture, on how they too will also be judge according to the law.
we see that hearing alone will not be enough to build a spiritual home. there is a counter balance to hearing, and that would be putting to practice what we heard into action, by doing. now that we have the material to build the walls of the spiritual were do we get our foundation? what is going to be our foundation? you cannot build a home without a foundation. so the last and final word of this point will be Rock in Matthew 7:24.
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:
we come to understand that Jesus wants us to listen, and the choice is our to listen or to not to listen. the same goes for doing also, but when it comes to being a Christian we need to understand that our foundation is the Rock the rock is one of the most important parts of building the spiritual home. let turn in our Bible to (Mt 16:13-20).
13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
20 Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.
this passage might be a bit confusing for this lesson, but there is a reason i want us to look at the passage. what some things that you notice within the passage in Mt 16:13-20?
The first thing i would like us to look at is that Peter said to Christ. look at verse 16
16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
why would do you think this verse is important to look at?
Here we see that Peter is confessing Jesus is Christ the son of the living God. we come to understand that the confession is one of the important step into becoming a Christian.
the second thing we need to look at in this passage is Jesus reply in verse 17-19
17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
what is going on in this part of the passage?
what is the mistake that people make when reading these verses?
What we see is that Jesus is replying to Peter confession and telling him that he is building his church on the Rock. the mistake that is made is made by the Catholics who seem to think that Peter becomes in charge after he confesses who Jesus is. they think that Peter is Pope and thus is why many Pope can think they can claim the Pope’s legacy into being what it is today.
now then let move on from here, we come to understand that the confession is important and is one of the steps to salvation. so the we see that the foundation is not Peter but the foundation is Christ the son of God. Christ was prophesied in the old testament. let turn in our Bibles to Isaiah 28:16.
16 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation,
A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;
Whoever believes will not act hastily.
what do we see here in Isaiah?
What is Isaiah talking about?
we as Christians come to realize that Jesus is ultimately the foundation because of his death on the cross. even in the new testament they talk about the corner stone or foundation. Look (Acts 4:5-11), (Eph 2:19-22) and (1st Peter 2:4-10)
5 And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes, 6 as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”
8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders of Israel: 9 If we this day are judged for a good deed done to a helpless man, by what means he has been made well, 10 let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole. 11 This is the ‘stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’
19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, 22 in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,
“Behold, I lay in Zion
A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient,
“The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone,”
8 and
“A stone of stumbling
And a rock of offense.”
They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
what is something that all of these passages have in common?
why is it that many of Christian’s think they can build their foundation without Christ?
Overall the three words that are under this point are consider the building material in order to begin building the house in a spiritual sense. first the two walls Hear and do, and then the foundation which is Jesus Christ. the Foundation needs to be place first we as christian’s need to understand who Christ is and what he has done for us as being the cornerstone.
The next point i would like to look in Matthew 7: 24-27 will be looking at is The two different types of Builders:
24 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
we have two kinds of builders here in this passage the first one being the wise one who build his house on the rock and the second the foolish man who build his house on the sand. so where does this point lead well to be honest here it shows us that those who listen to the authority of Christ and does the will of him will be able to tell who they are by their action, and how they treat other people. what would be a good example of the wise Builder? how can we tell if they if they are like the wise builder?
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Now on the other hand how do we tell if someone is building on the sand? how do we tell if they like the foolish builder?
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
the Foolish builder is someone who loves the world, someone who does not want to listen to Christ, and do the work that is required after listening to him about salvation. Yes sometime this also means that some Christian’s along the way thought it might be good idea to go build on the sand also. this in mind we come to realize the choice we have to make as Christians? are we going to chose to be like the wise builder who build his house on the rock life were we follow God, and his Son Jesus? or are we going to chose to be like the foolish builder who choose to build on the sand who want to disobey God, and think that the world will be a better master? this question is kind of similar to a question ask in the old testament?
14 “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! 15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
