Matthew 7:21-27 * May 25, 2008 * Pentecost 2 * Pastor Leyrer

The Gospel lessons throughout the summer all come from the Gospel of Matthew. They provide us with a rich variety of parables, miracles and teachings of Jesus. They’ll also serve as the text for each week’s sermon. Today we begin a summer sermon series under the general theme, “Three Months with Matthew.”

Dear Friends in Christ,

Not far outside Madison, in a small town named Spring Green, is an architectural marvel known as the “House on the Rock.” It’s a fitting name because not only is it a house built on a big rock, but it is also built into this rock. If you have seen it, you know it really is an impressive structure.

But even more than its ingenious design, what is perhaps most impressive about it is the feeling of strength and safety it conveys.

Lately natural disasters seem to be engaged in some sort of “can you top this” contest. The earthquake in China has almost made us forget about the great typhoon that hit Myanmar just weeks ago. We’ll probably never know how many houses got blown down or how many lives were lost, but we were reminded that when such forces of nature are unleashed upon the average dwelling place, the house almost always loses. Because man’s construction is simply no match for nature’s destruction.

Yet, if you or I lived in that House on the Rock, typhoon like weather or gale force winds would not concern us. Why? Because the foundation of that house is so secure that nothing could budge it. Moving it would be literally like moving a mountain.

This whole discussion ties in with the imagery Jesus uses in our text. In these final words from His Sermon on the Mount He speaks to us about building houses – spiritual houses. His counsel is that we build our spiritual lives on the solid foundation of Him and His Word. His message might be summed up in this strong encouragement:

BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON THE ROCK (of Christ and His Word)

1. A warning: Be sure of what you’re building on

2. A promise: A solid foundation withstands adversity

First, the warning. Jesus says, BE SURE OF WHAT YOU’RE BUILDING ON: Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord,” will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” Then I will tell them plainly, “I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” The day Jesus speaks of is Judgment Day, and the warning He is giving is this: Not everyone who says they are a believer really are. In these verses Jesus makes a distinction between two groups of people: Sayers and doers.

“Sayers” would be those who claim to be believers, but whose actions do not back them up. They may speak the truth, but they themselves are outside the kingdom because inwardly they do not believe it or practice it. Jesus says “Sayers” may even have done some marvelous things in the name of the Lord on the outside; nevertheless, because of what they are on the inside He will not acknowledge them as His own.

On the other hand, Jesus says “Doers” are those who do the will of my Father. Which then raises the question, what is the will of the Father? Jesus Himself gives us the answer in His “Bread of Life” discourse found in John chapter 6: “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life…” In other words, believing in Jesus Christ alone as the way of eternal salvation is the will of our Heavenly Father.

But a complete picture of God’s will for His children extends even beyond that. Let us note well that we are indeed saved eternally by faith alone in Jesus Christ alone. That is the heart of the Gospel message. That is the bedrock doctrine of the Christian faith. As the reformers of the 16^th century correctly stated, “justification (or salvation) by faith” is the teaching on which the church either stands or falls. But Scripture also clearly teaches that faith gives evidence of its authenticity by bearing fruit and showing itself in deeds and actions.

For instance, when Jesus speaks about the Day of Judgment later in chapter 25 of this Gospel, He very openly speaks of the good works of believers not as the basis for their salvation, but as the evidence of the true faith which saves them. The Apostle James put it this way: “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” And the Apostle Paul, who by divine inspiration so clearly outlined the gospel message in our epistle lesson for today, also just as clearly links true faith with obedience to the will of God as He reveals it to us in His Word.

What, then, is the will of the Father? A complete answer would be something along these lines: The will of the Father is to trust in Christ alone for salvation, which will then lead to other things in the Christian’s life. Such as:

1) Consecration to God. Hear the words of Paul in the opening verses of Romans 12: “Therefore, I urge you, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – which is your spiritual worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” It is God’s will that we live lives consecrated to Him.

2) Dedication to His Word. Each of us just received the encouragement to be “trans-formed by the renewing of [our] mind.” How does this happen? Who will teach us? The Holy Spirit will, and the transformation takes place as we spend time in God’s Word.

3) Emulation of Christ. In other words, we are to be imitators of Christ. Christ wants us to see Him first and foremost as our Savior; but He also wants a watching world to see Him in and through His disciples. Christians are called to be Christ-like, conforming ourselves to His pattern, and not the world’s.

Before we move on, it is important that we understand what our Lord is saying in these opening words. As I see it, He’s doing three things. First, He issues a matter of fact statement that there are and always will be hypocrites in the church. He’s not making any accusations; He’s simply stating a truth.

Which then leads to the second thing. With these words Jesus is preaching the law to us and asking each of us to examine ourselves. When we hear Jesus make this distinction between “sayers” and “doers,” I believe He is intending to make us feel a little uncomfortable. I believe He is asking us to do some soul-searching, some introspection.

One of the things we should be asking ourselves is where we are on the spectrum of our Christian life. Have we become content with a mediocre, “good enough,” comparative type of Christianity (“I may not be the best Christian in the world and sure I have my faults, but compared to so and so I’m a saint”)? Mediocre, comparative Christianity looks for a reason to stop where it’s at rather than press on toward higher heights.

Or, when it comes to living our faith, do we place an emphasis on convenience rather than commitment? This is the attitude which says I’ll only go so far with my Christianity and quit when it reaches a level that makes me uncomfortable among my peers or conflicts with my lifestyle or becomes inconvenient in allowing me to do what I want to do. These are the kinds of questions Jesus is inviting us to ask of ourselves.

And the third thing Jesus accomplishes with these opening words is to give us instruction on the meaning of true faith. True faith is not only evident in what we say, but also what we do. Life and lip need to be in harmony. All the right doctrine in the world is meaningless if it is not put into practice – because Christianity is a “practice,” not a theory. It is not simply head knowledge about certain facts, but a heart knowledge that lives out those facts out of love for Christ.

So the warning from our Savior is this: Be sure of what you’re building on. Let us understand what true faith is. Where we need to repent, let us do so, and then, with God’s help and in the freedom of forgiveness let us strive for nothing less than Word-driven active Christianity that is not comfortable with mediocrity.

Following that warning comes this promise: A SOLID FOUNDATION WITHSTANDS ADVERSITY. Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.

Jesus teaches us with a comparison. Two men, two buildings. The wise man builds on a rock, the foolish man on sand. When the big storm came, the wise man’s house did not fall while the foolish man’s went down with a great crash.

The lesson is evident. Those who build their spiritual lives on Him and His Word and put it into practice (again, the link between true faith and obedience) are wise. Those who do not are as foolish and unfortunate as those who lay their foundation on sand. On the surface, there may be a resemblance between the two builders. But both are seen for what they are when the bad weather comes. In the context, the bad weather is symbolic of Judgment Day. On that day believers will stand firm in Christ, while unbelievers will perish and be swept away eternally.

However, we can safely make a broader application to Jesus’ words here. Bad weather inevitably comes into everyone’s life. Each of us experiences it in different ways, and it comes in various forms. Sometimes it may take the form of trials or temptations. Other times it may show itself in bereavement or illness or loss or hardship. Often these things come upon with the suddenness of bad weather – unplanned, unexpected and unwanted.

What is it that sustains the believer at such times? It is this: The sure foundation of Jesus Christ and His Word and His promises. Specifically promises such as these: Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you… In all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose… God will not allow us to be tempted or tested beyond our endurance… He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things… Those are the words and promises of God that are rock-solid and will sustain us throughout the storms of life.

This is Jesus’ promise to us: A solid foundation withstands adversity. Consequently, His encouragement to us is to keep building on this foundation. How? Through reading. Through worship. Through attendance at the Lord’s Supper. Through prayer. Through doing the will of the Father out of gratitude for the Gospel.

We began with a reference to the “House on the Rock.” Spiritually speaking, when we build our spiritual houses (lives) on Jesus Christ and His Word, we, too, are built on a Rock. Unmovable. Unshakeable. Safe. Secure. The hymnist put it well:

How firm a foundation, O saints of the Lord,

Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!

What more can He say than to you He has said

Who unto the Savior for refuge have fled?

In every condition, in sickness, in health,

In poverty’s vale or abounding in wealth,

At home and abroad, on the land, on the sea –

The Lord, the Almighty, your strength e’er shall be. Amen