Is Jesus Your Lord? (Part 4)

Building on the Rock, in preparation for the coming storm, makes all the difference.

October 4, 2021

"And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?  Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:  He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.  But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great."

Luke 6:46-49

Part 4

Yesterday:  How to Be Safe in the Coming Storm
“He is like a man which built an house.”
“And digged deep.”
“And laid the foundation on a rock.”
“And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house.”
“And could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.”

 

Today:  The End of Disobedient Fools

“But the people who hear my words and do not obey are like a man who builds a house without preparing a foundation. When the floods come, the house falls down easily and is completely destroyed” (Luke 6:49, HSB[1]).

 

“But he that heareth, and doeth not.”
What sad words.  Here is described the deeds of a person that does not know Jesus.  They have heard the truth and refused to believe it or do it.  Information is only as good as its source, and the source is Jesus Christ, the Son of God.  Whatever He says is exceedingly reliable and needs to be obeyed.  Only a fool would reject and disobey the words of Jesus.

Believers who know Jesus are quick to obey Him and do what He says without delay.

“And hereby we do know that we know Him if we keep His commandments.  He that saith, I know Him, and keepeth not His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him” (1 John 2:3-4).

What do you make of a believer that has trouble obeying Jesus?  God’s Word makes it clear that not everyone who says they know Jesus really does.  A person can have professed faith in Christ and yet walk away from Him even years later.  John was clear when he wrote –

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us” (1 John 2:19).

“Dr. H.A. Ironside once said, ‘We cannot live the life until first, we possess it.’” [2]

A genuine believer is an obedient believer.  The foolish are people, who after hearing, have rejected Jesus and His words.  Jesus describes this person like this, he –

 

“Is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth.”
In Matthew’s version, the foolish built their house on the sand.  Here in Luke, they build their house on the ground.  The point is that in neither case have they built upon a rock.

“Those who hear His words and act on them are secure—like a man building a house … on rock (vv. 47–48), and those who hear His words and do not act on them are destroyed—like a man who built a house … without a foundation (v. 49)”[3] (BKC).

This reminds me of the children of Israel, God’s chosen ones.  Jehovah built the nation, brought them out of Egypt, led them in the wilderness, and provided food for them every day.  And yet they have refused to listen to Him or obey Him and have gone off after other gods.  They have ignored their Rock, who is the only one that keeps them stable.

“They sacrificed unto devils, not to God; to gods whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not.  Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee” (Deuteronomy 32:17-18).

According to Jesus’ words, the children of Israel were often like the foolish one who built his house on the ground with no foundation.

“Jesus’ thesis is that those who practice what He says are grounded on God’s foundation, anchored in divine truths that keep them safe and secure.  The difficulties of life and false teaching cannot move them away from their faith in Christ, and they triumph spiritually.  This is a serious warning to the hypocrite or half-hearted follower who isn’t taking Jesus’ teaching seriously.  Such people are headed for disaster”[4] (Osborne).

 

“Against which the stream did beat vehemently.”
Why would anyone build a house on the ground with no foundation?  The only thing that makes sense is they didn’t believe that the storms would ever come.  And yet there it is, pounding “vehemently” on that house.  This is not a word that we often use in English, and the ancient word means “to break against, break by dashing against”[5] (Thayer).

Nahum, the prophet, has an interesting thought.  He says that Jehovah while preserving His own, brings the flood upon His enemies to destroy them.

The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; and He knoweth them that trust in HimBut with an overrunning flood, He will make an utter end of the place thereof, and darkness shall pursue His enemies” (Nahum 1:7-8).

“Jesus warned that the foundations of our lives will be shaken at some time or another, both now (in seasons of difficulty) and in the ultimate judgment before God.  It is better that we test the foundation of our life now rather than later, at our judgment before God when it is too late to change our destiny”[6] (EWC).

 

“And immediately it fell.”
There is no surprise here.  This is what we’ve been expecting, and “it fell.”

 

“And the ruin of that house was great.”
There’s nothing left.  Without foundation on the rock, this house had no chance of surviving the flood.  The builder was foolish, without a heart to listen and obey.  He paid the price for his disobedience.

“The difference between a life that can withstand storms and one that cannot depends not just on whether one comes to Christ and hears His words but also whether one acts on His teachings”[7] (CSB).

When God speaks, we need to listen with our ears to get the message.  We need to listen to the message with our hearts and think it through, believing it and making it a part of our lives.  And we need to listen to the message with our hands, in obedience to Him.

 

Quote:

I Trust in God [8]
by Brian Cameon,
Missionary to Zambia.

I trust in God.
The world provides no refuge
It offers nothing that brings me peace.
When all around the storms of life are raging,
Above the roar, I hear His “Peace. Be still.”

I trust in God.
I know no other comfort
When darkness gathers, and blackness falls.
With eyes of faith, I see Him ever near me.
He’ll bring me through and leads me safely home.

Chorus:
I know my God
Will calm the stormy tempest
The blast without; the conflict deep within.
No need to fear; my Father is beside me.
And in His presence, my heart finds peace and rest.

 

 

 

[1] HSB is the Harvest Study Bible from Harvest Ministries in Guam.
[2] Wiersbe, W. W. (1996).  The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 194).  Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[3] Martin, J. A. (1985).  Luke.  In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 221).  Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.  The emphasis is theirs.
[4] Osborne, G. R. (2018).  Luke: Verse by Verse.  (J. Reimer, E. Ritzema, & D. Thevenaz, Awa Sarah, Eds.) (pp. 183–186).  Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[5] J.H. Thayer, Thayer’s Greek Definitions, the electronic version in eSword.
[6] EWC, the Enduring Word Commentary, the electronic version in eSword.  Luke 6:46-49.  The emphasis is theirs.
[7] CSB, Luter, A. B. (2017).  Luke.  In E. A. Blum & T. Wax (Eds.), CSB Study Bible: Notes (p. 1617).  Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.  The emphasis is theirs.
[8] “I Trust in God,” a song by Brian Cameon.  Written Friday, October 1, 2021.  All rights reserved for Mr. Cameon.  Used by permission, with special thanks to our fellow-laborer in Christ, Brian.