Matthew 7:24-29 – Lasting lives are firmly established on Christ the Rock

The Lord Jesus ended the Sermon of the Mount with the call to obey and act on what He had taught in the form of a parable. Hearing and knowing the teaching is not good enough. It must be completed by obedience and acting upon what we have heard and know. The difference between a believer who hears and acts on the Word, and one who doesn’t, is in their foundation. One is like a house built on rock and one built on sand. Both lives will face the same stormy condition of life. The problems and trials of life come like rain and flood and test the houses built on the different foundations. The one founded on rock will remain firmly rooted, the one built on sand will crumble like a pack of cards.

 

Jesus is the Rock, the foundation on which every true believer must build His life. This is attested to by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:11 who said, “For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Matthew 7:24-29 exhort us to build our lives on Him and His teachings. When we build our lives on Him, we will become part of the house that will last forever. We will find great fulfillment and fruitfulness. And we build it by applying and obeying what He had taught and said. Don’t just think how good and well-crafted Jesus’ teachings are, we must start acting on them and build a strong life.

Many teachers in Jesus’ day would say so-and-so say this and that, but Jesus would say “And I say to you….” They would quote from other famous instructors but Jesus taught authoritatively. That’s the reason why many people were so captivated by what he said. Are we? Let’s not just hear His teachings, let’s act on them!