On solid ground
Notes
Transcript
Have you ever missed an opportunity that you later looked back and thought, that was stupid?
Mark Zuckerburg’s roommate turned down the opportunity to start Facebook with him.
Steve Job’s boss at Atari turned down the opportunity to invest in Apple.
The thing about missed opportunities, is that there is usually a window of time that you can seize it, but once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.
On the other side of that, can you point to a time where you did seize the opportunity and look back on that thinking how different you life would have been, had you not?
Really, when you look at your life, there are only a hand full of big decisions that you make, that steer you life in one direction or another.
What career you will take.
Who you will marry.
Where you will live.
What you believe about God.
But the key is not what decision you make about these things. What makes the difference is how you act on the decisions you make.
I can decide that I want to lose weight and get in shape, but until I actually do something, nothing will change.
Faith is the marriage of what you believe and what you do about it.
We are told in Hebrews that:
By faith, Abel offered a better sacrifice.
by faith Noah prepared the ark.
Abraham going out, not knowing where he was going.
We have in the church today a whole bunch of practical atheist. With their mouths they say the believe in God, but with their lives they live as if He doesn’t exist.
This morning, as we conclude our series on the sermon on the mount, we will see that Jesus addresses this very topic of attaching action to you belief.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
25 “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock.
26 “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.
27 “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”
Therefore:
The beatitudes:
Blessed: Poor in spirit, those who mourn, gentle, hunger and thirst for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, persecuted.
Salt and light
Elevated the OT law: Murder/hate adultery/ lust
Golden Rule
Giving, praying, fasting
He told us not to worry! But trust God.
He told us to judge ourselves first, then help others.
To ask our Father for the good gifts He wants to give us.
Warned us to enter the narrow gate.
and there are wolves in sheep’s clothing and to look for the fruit.
The Foundation
The Foundation
Acts on them: Built on a rock.
Rain, flood, wind: Life
If the foundation of your house is bad, you may rock on for a while without noticing. Maybe a crack in the tile, or split in the sheet rock. But over time, the cracks will get larger. There will be roof leaks, doors won’t close or open. Windows can become stuck, or even crack the glass. Eventually the house will become uninhabitable and dangerous.
Jesus says that the foolish man builds his house on the sand. Sand makes for a terrible foundation. Because rain washes it away in the form of erosion. A flood will saturate it, and make it unstable, and wind will blow it away, and a house built on it, will not stand.
Make a path
Make a path
Hears these words and acts on them.
The word acts here literally means to make a path. That means that you do it enough that a path is formed.
When I use to commute to ASU from Kennett, there was a special needs man that rode his bicycle in front of his house around two trees. Even years after I no longer saw him out there, you could see the path that was worn in the grass. It was packed dirt, bare of any grass.
I’ve been in the woods and saw where deer would wear a path so clear and smooth, it looks like a manmade road.
When Jesus is talking about acting on the words that he spoke, that’s what he means, to constantly and habitually obey and do the things that he tells us, so much so, that there is a well worn path of righteous living visible in our lives.
James asks the question:
14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him?
26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.
Stand Up and follow me.
You trusted that I wouldn’t lead you astray. You didn’t know where we were going, or where we would end up. You didn’t understand the point, but you followed me.
Get up and follow Jesus. Do the things He said to do. You may not know where He is leading, or what is in store. But He is trustworthy.
Because here the deal:
The rain will come, the floodwaters will rage and the wind will blow. That’s life. And what determines weather you will stand or fall, is weather or not you have heard and acted on the words of Jesus.
Don’t be afraid:
We have the mind of Christ. We have the Holy Spirit of God living inside us, and we have each other to lean on and encourage one another.
you ever know a “Christian” that doesn’t go to church, they don’t spend time with fellow believers, their life doesn’t reflect a Christ centered life. When life smacks that person in the face, they crumble. they fall. And great was its fall.
12 Now if any man builds on the foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw,
13 each man’s work will become evident; for the day will show it because it is to be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each man’s work.
14 If any man’s work which he has built on it remains, he will receive a reward.
15 If any man’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.
Everything you do, matters!