July 20

Rock or Sand?

Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock (Matthew 7:24).

Scripture: Matthew 7:24-28

Song: “Be Doers of the Word of God”

One of the first choruses I learned in Sunday school was “The wise man built his house upon the rock.” A house is only as good as the foundation it rests on. Many people learned that lesson the hard way when Hurricane Katrina slammed into New Orleans a few years ago.

My wife has hearing problems. In addition to wearing a hearing aid, she also has a cochlear implant. But some people have spiritual hearing problems—an ailment with more serious symptoms and consequences. For example, consider the type of person who knows much of the Bible but never actually tries to apply it in daily life. Jesus likens him to a foolish builder, someone who’d construct his house on a sandbar.

In light of Jesus’ teaching in these verses, we can no doubt conclude that the success or failure of a Christian’s “spiritual house” doesn’t depend so much on the hearing as on the doing. Do we indeed practice the teachings of our precious Lord?

Every time we hear the voice of Christ, whether in private reading or a congregational setting, we face a choice. Will I put these words into practice or not? Will I build my house on the solid rock or on constantly shifting sands?

Lord God, as I seek to study and know Your Word, strengthen my resolve also to be a doer of the Word, and not a hearer only. In Jesus’ name, amen.