“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” Matthew 7:24-27
With those words the Lord Jesus closed the Sermon on the Mount—the longest teaching, given to the largest and most diverse group of people of His ministry. It’s also the one in which He unveiled New Testament theology.
Jesus was establishing His words as a builder’s code with the promise that if one builds his house to the code of His word, it will stand through any storm.
Your Life is a House
Imagine that each of our lives is a house that we are building.
- Each of our houses has a kitchen where we share our personal lives with our family.
- There is a bedroom where those who are married share their lives together.
- A bathroom where we attend to our personal, private needs.
- An office where we work.
- A family room where the family and close friends enjoy recreation.
- A living room which is the formal (social media) room that we meticulously maintain for the world to see.
- And then for many people there is a room at the end of the hall which we keep locked.
Now imagine that at the moment of our salvation, we turned the title deed of our house over to the Lord. That’s precisely what the Apostle Paul meant when he said that “our lives are not our own for we are bought with a price.”
Homeownership
As the new owner of our house, Jesus has incredible plans for our house! He is the ultimate visionary—clearly seeing what our house can become, and has all of the skills and resources necessary to make them happen.
He does however require our cooperation and participation. A part of His plan is apprenticeship, wherein He shows us and teaches us the skills needed to be His true disciples.
One interesting aspect of apprenticeship is that there is very little classroom instruction. Just like with His first disciples, most of the teaching is through on-the-job training. This is also what the Lord was referring to in Matthew 6 (the heart of the Sermon on the Mount), when He told His listeners to “seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.”
Seeking first the Kingdom of God means that we deliberately put Him first in every aspect of our lives. We should implement those things that He shows us and teaches us during our time with Him into our daily lives by “putting off the old, sinful nature, learning to think Biblically, and putting on the new man, whom God has created in righteousness and true holiness.”
One way of doing this is by making Sunday the Lord’s day through active participation in a church and small group. Apprenticeship is hard work, but the return on investment is eternal. We cannot do His part, and He will not do our part.
Home Maintenance
The initial projects may be simple—a fresh coat of paint in a color we never imagined, or new flooring in the family room. As our skills develop, the projects become more complex—remodeling the kitchen or adding on a new room.
Not only will our house take shape, but our relationship with Jesus grows stronger every day. As our relationship with Him grows, so do our relationships with others. He strengthens our marriage, our role as parents, and relationships with our family, friends, and coworkers.
Before long, we are able to pass the skills we are learning on to others. We model the ability to talk with Jesus through prayer, and to read and follow the blueprint of His Word. The house that we had been living in has been transformed into a home that is far beyond anything we had ever hoped or dreamed, simply because we trusted God.
House Cleaning
Oh, and that room at the end of the hall that we thought no one knew about? The room with all of the junk and baggage of our hurt and pain? Sooner or later, He’s going to help us clean that out once and for all. We can repurpose that room in to something really great.
When all is said and done, we may realize that the house was merely the means the Lord used toward the end of some relationships He was building all along. First with Him, and then with others. Relationships that will extend into eternity.
“Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him and him with Me.” Revelation 3:20 ESV