When the church put new windows in the parsonage this summer, we found out there is no insulation in the walls. None. You couldn’t tell it from looking at the house, but could only tell when you tore into it. Likewise, the person who has their house built on the sand will one day find out that it wasn’t well built.
I heard Jody Ray preach from Matthew 7:24-29 about building your house on the rock verses building your house on the sand. He said a couple of things I want to share with you. First, it’s better to build a shack on a rock than a mansion on a garbage dump. Second, you never know how strong your foundation is until the storms come.
I often see people who appear to have a great life with lots of great “stuff”. They may have four wheelers, motorcycles, jet skis & boats, expensive homes and vehicles, they buy their kids/grandkids clothes from the most popular stores, eat out all the time at expensive places, but their life is all built on the sand. Matthew 7:27 says when the storms come, those who have built on the sand will see it all come crashing down. There is no support underneath. They are a storm away from having it all swept away, or at least realize none of it really mattered.
On the other hand, some have built on the rock. You can’t tell from looking at what they have. They may have everything listed above! Or they may have a beater for a vehicle or no vehicle. They may have trouble paying their utility bills. They may be in line every week at the food pantry. You see, we can’t tell by looking at where they live or how much they have. But when the storms come, they come through them.
How do you know if you’ve built on a dump or on the rock? It’s not a matter of just being good or just going to church. This Scripture tells us how we know. In Matthew 7:24 Jesus says people who have built on the rock are those who, “hear what I say and do what I say”. James tells us to not just be hearers of the Word, but doers. There are people who don’t go to church, don’t pray, and don’t read the Bible. They are not hearers. There are also people who do attend church that are hearers, but not doers. According to this, have they built on the rock? No.
And many will realize they’ve built their lives on junk only when the ultimate storm comes: The storm when they stand before Jesus and hear Him say, depart from me. I never knew you.
Click here to read about real homes built on a real garbage dump.
This song from Casting Crowns is a great song about what I’ve blogged about today:
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