Sunday, February 12, 2006
Hear Ye?
Matt. 7:
24."Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock.
25. "And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. 26. "And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand.
27. "And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall."
Luke 6:
47. "Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words, and acts upon them, I will show you whom he is like:
48. he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood rose, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.
49. "But the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great."
The contrast we are drawing is between the Christian and the pseudo-Christian by the analogy of two builders and two houses. Externally they all pretty much look the same. These guys want to go to the same local church so they build in the same locale. They are interested in the same activities and want to be part of the church family. The difference comes from the motives of these two people. One desires discipline and purity and the other is not interested in holiness but finds it beneficial be around those who do take sin seriously. After all, doesn’t everyone want their kids in a “Christian daycare”? The church has a lot of similarities as an adult daycare for those desirable activities one may choose to attend. The kids can be dropped off in the nursery and the adults can hear a preacher sooth their conscience and feel good about how they spent their Sunday morning. The wise man does not go to hear a preacher but the Word of God or he will go somewhere that he can.
Herein lies the tragedy; one is safe in his faith and the other has false hope. The river will eventually flow and the true test will reveal the one with a foundation built on Jesus’ words and the other who has no foundation to resist the coming difficulties. C.H Spurgeon said, “I dread that any man should perish without religion, but I dread far more that any man should perish with it, finding his faith to be false after all.” He then admonishes the church, “It will be a sad thing to breed hypocrites when we are looking for converts… I therefore warn you against any peace except that which comes from doing that which Jesus commands, or in other words, against any confidence except that which rests in Jesus only, and is attended with repentance, faith, and a life of obedience to your Lord.”
1Cor. 3:11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 2Tim. 2:19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness."
What sort of foundation is your house built upon?
24."Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock.
25. "And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. 26. "And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand.
27. "And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall."
Luke 6:
47. "Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words, and acts upon them, I will show you whom he is like:
48. he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood rose, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.
49. "But the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great."
The contrast we are drawing is between the Christian and the pseudo-Christian by the analogy of two builders and two houses. Externally they all pretty much look the same. These guys want to go to the same local church so they build in the same locale. They are interested in the same activities and want to be part of the church family. The difference comes from the motives of these two people. One desires discipline and purity and the other is not interested in holiness but finds it beneficial be around those who do take sin seriously. After all, doesn’t everyone want their kids in a “Christian daycare”? The church has a lot of similarities as an adult daycare for those desirable activities one may choose to attend. The kids can be dropped off in the nursery and the adults can hear a preacher sooth their conscience and feel good about how they spent their Sunday morning. The wise man does not go to hear a preacher but the Word of God or he will go somewhere that he can.
Herein lies the tragedy; one is safe in his faith and the other has false hope. The river will eventually flow and the true test will reveal the one with a foundation built on Jesus’ words and the other who has no foundation to resist the coming difficulties. C.H Spurgeon said, “I dread that any man should perish without religion, but I dread far more that any man should perish with it, finding his faith to be false after all.” He then admonishes the church, “It will be a sad thing to breed hypocrites when we are looking for converts… I therefore warn you against any peace except that which comes from doing that which Jesus commands, or in other words, against any confidence except that which rests in Jesus only, and is attended with repentance, faith, and a life of obedience to your Lord.”
1Cor. 3:11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 2Tim. 2:19 Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, "The Lord knows those who are His," and, "Let everyone who names the name of the Lord abstain from wickedness."
What sort of foundation is your house built upon?
# posted by Castusfumus : 1:16 PM
