Matt 7:24-27
“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts on 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 slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act on 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 slammed against that house; and it fell—and its collapse was great.”
Obeying God’s Word keeps us from much heartache. Generally one could separate these into two camps, christians and non Christians. However, sometimes christians disobey and part of their world ends up wrecked.
God gives many commands in scripture that are to be obeyed. The Ten Commandments are some. There are several others. To transgress these is to sin. We all do this. Hopefully we repent and reform and don’t repeat it. Some make a lifestyle around sin. This crash would be more severe.
There are other Words in the bible that aren’t commands, but suggestions. Proverbs are full of them. It may refer to our choice of friends. It may refer to being diligent in our work. To not do these may not be sinful, but the results may be bad.
There is another set of commands God gives. These are the prompts and nudges we get in our hearts, minds and consciences. We feel God is asking us to do something or not do something. I believe to do contrary to these things is sin. James 4:17 says, “Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do, yet fails to do it, is guilty of sin.”
In this parable Jesus speaks of the rain coming and the winds blowing. These are the trials of life. These are situations that don’t go as planned. It could last a day or months. They could be the result of our disobedience or not. It could be a random occurrence.
Sometimes the strength in the storm is the result of obeying God and following His advice. Other times it’s God helping us stay strong. We adhered to His Word and He is honoring that and helping us.
Sometimes the crash is His mercy. We’ve built it on sand, we were foolish. To be rid of that would be helpful. With His children He does a controlled demolition. It still is painful to the person, but it is for the best.
Sometimes one loses his life in this crash. He could be a disobedient christian. I Corinthians 5:5 says, “hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved on the Day of the Lord.” It might be an unbeliever who had an unfortunate end.
Yesterday I attended a funeral for a friend and coworker. He had a heart attack. He was a believer, so he is in heaven. It rocked many of us as he was young and seemed heathy. The storms that we encounter come in many forms. Many are unexpected.
What God wants for us is to obey Him. What He wants more is for us to be in relationship with Him. Psalm 23 is a beautiful example of the life of a believer. He is to be our shepherd who fills our needs. He protects us and guides us. We all will walk through the valley(s) of the shadow of death. We don’t need to fear for He is with us.
Thank You, God, for Your Word. Thank You for You! You are our faithful God and Father who blesses us so. Thank You for being my Shepherd. You have been with me for years and protected me. Thank You.