Luke 6:46-49
The Wise and Foolish Builders
46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Reflection:
All of us have been exposed to shoddy construction practices. While it may cost less and get done faster in the short run, in the end it is more costly because it is not done right. This is especially true when these cheaper materials face a lot of stress and strain. The right construction relies on principles that have stood the test of time, and then those principles are put into practice by a skilled craftsman who has mastered his trade.
Jesus uses this analogy to teach his disciples how to build a solid and lasting foundation, which hinges on putting his words into practice. If He is God in the flesh, it would make sense that the principles he teaches are pretty accurate and timeless. But he notes a practice that was happening in his day, that coincidentally is prevalent today. Jesus says there are those who say that He is Lord with their lips and the deny him with their lifestyle.
This kind of duplicitous behavior will cause two bad things. One, eventually when the storms come their way their destruction will be imminent because their house is not built on the rock. They knew the principles but they didn't build their lives on it. By this I mean they might have know the principles but they didn't live by them. And if they didn't live by them, they don't apply. We could say with absolute certainty, 100% of the principles not applied won't work. Secondly, this kind of lifestyle causes those observing to think, "what they believe certainly doesn't affect the way they live!" This is a bad witness and hinders the spread of the Gospel.
What we need to be careful of here is a Christian faith that is built on works. Of course the truest foundation is trusting in God's promises by faith. Like Peter's confession, "you are the Christ the Son of the living God", Jesus says this is not revealed to you by God not men. But once we are walking in faith, the question is how are we to live? Will we continue to live life as though Jesus is Lord, or will something else be the Lord of our lives. Will we profess Jesus with our lips on Sunday, and then live as if he is not Monday through Saturday?
In all of this we need God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit so we can not only profess Jesus as Lord, but also put what he says into practice. And when the storms come in our lives, we will be glad that we didn't use shoddy construction but built our house on the true rock, Jesus Christ.
46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? 47 As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. 48 They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49 But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.”
Reflection:
All of us have been exposed to shoddy construction practices. While it may cost less and get done faster in the short run, in the end it is more costly because it is not done right. This is especially true when these cheaper materials face a lot of stress and strain. The right construction relies on principles that have stood the test of time, and then those principles are put into practice by a skilled craftsman who has mastered his trade.
Jesus uses this analogy to teach his disciples how to build a solid and lasting foundation, which hinges on putting his words into practice. If He is God in the flesh, it would make sense that the principles he teaches are pretty accurate and timeless. But he notes a practice that was happening in his day, that coincidentally is prevalent today. Jesus says there are those who say that He is Lord with their lips and the deny him with their lifestyle.
This kind of duplicitous behavior will cause two bad things. One, eventually when the storms come their way their destruction will be imminent because their house is not built on the rock. They knew the principles but they didn't build their lives on it. By this I mean they might have know the principles but they didn't live by them. And if they didn't live by them, they don't apply. We could say with absolute certainty, 100% of the principles not applied won't work. Secondly, this kind of lifestyle causes those observing to think, "what they believe certainly doesn't affect the way they live!" This is a bad witness and hinders the spread of the Gospel.
What we need to be careful of here is a Christian faith that is built on works. Of course the truest foundation is trusting in God's promises by faith. Like Peter's confession, "you are the Christ the Son of the living God", Jesus says this is not revealed to you by God not men. But once we are walking in faith, the question is how are we to live? Will we continue to live life as though Jesus is Lord, or will something else be the Lord of our lives. Will we profess Jesus with our lips on Sunday, and then live as if he is not Monday through Saturday?
In all of this we need God's grace and the power of the Holy Spirit so we can not only profess Jesus as Lord, but also put what he says into practice. And when the storms come in our lives, we will be glad that we didn't use shoddy construction but built our house on the true rock, Jesus Christ.
Comments
Post a Comment