The wise man built his house upon the rock.
The wise man built his house upon the rock.
The wise man built his house upon the rock,
And the rains came tumbling down.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
But the house on the rock stood firm.
The foolish man built his house upon the sand.
The foolish man built his house upon the sand.
The foolish man built his house upon the sand.
And the rains came tumbling down.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
The rains came down, and the floods rose up.
And the house on the sound fell down. CRASH!
So build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ,
And the blessings will come down.
The blessings will come down as the prayers go up.
The blessings will come down as the prayers go up.
The blessings will come down as the prayers go up.
So build your life on the Rock.
Of course there are actions with each verse. I don't remember when I first heard it, but it was a real favorite of mine in 5K.
The text in Matthew 7 that it comes from was part of my focus in this week of study. Jesus teaches this illustration after having taught since chapter 5 of the kingdom call specifics to live distinctively as a disciple of Christ. This illustration is key as a vivid illustration of exactly what that means.
There are only two ways about it in this life. Jesus opens that teaching with the word picture of a narrow gate and road versus a wide gate and broad road. The narrow leads to life, and the broad leads to destruction. Jesus warns against false teachers who are known by their bad fruit in His contrast of good trees produce good fruit and bad trees produce bad fruit. Jesus declares that empty profession without internal possession will not be known by Him as truth.
And then He really ramps up the contrast between two ways with this last picture. What is startling is the fact that both the wise man and the foolish man HEARD His words. They maybe even sat in service together, took sermon notes, and served on many church committees.
But the wise man is eternally saved by the truth that he built his house upon the rock solid truth of Jesus' words---alone. The foolish man is eternally destroyed by the truth that he built his house upon the sandy traditions and opinions derived from that which is not of God. Both men suffered storms. Both men were proved in their faith and works by those storms. The wise man's house stood. The foolish man's house came crashing down.
Two ways. That's it. There is no third verse about the semi-wise, sometimes foolish man who built his rock house on sand, or his sand house on rock.
Implicit in the illustration is that the storms come to everyone. The very foundations of your and my house will be exposed by rebellious children, by troubled marriages, by conflict with family, by job loss, by chronic illnesses, even by death and by every manner of difficulty on the scale of 1 to infinity.
Waiting until the storm appears is not the time to consider your insurance. Consider your assurance today.
Not told in that passage is HOW one builds his house on the rock. I never wondered before, but looking at it through the eyes of one who did not grow up in church, I wonder what this story would sound like?
ReplyDeleteBut the truth of it plays out very strongly, especially when families experience the death of a loved one.
And thanks for the last verse to that song--I have been trying to remember that last part for years!