BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON THE ROCK

Matthew 7:1-29, Key Verse: 24

““Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” 

1. Look at verses 1-6. Why should we not judge? Why do people pay attention to others’ speck more than the plank in their eyes? How are we able to remove the speck from brother’s eyes? What are your pearls? Who are the pigs who may trample your pearls?
2. Look at verses 7-12. To whom should we ask? Why should we ask, seek and knock? How does a human father provide for his children who asks? How does the Father in heaven provide? How hard it is for you to treat others as you would have them do to you?
3. Look at verses 13-14. What is the wide gate and road that lead to destruction? What is the small gate and narrow road that leads to life? Why only a few find the narrow road?
4. Look at verses 15-20. How do we distinguish between the false prophets and the true ones? What are the bad fruit and good fruit? What happens to the tree does not bear good fruit?
5. Look at verses 21-23. Who will enter the kingdom of heaven? Why do people who have done miracles or prophesied not enter the kingdom of heaven?
6. Look at verses 24-29. What is the conclusion? How could we build our house on the rock or on sand? What can we compare to the rain and the winds in life? How did the people take Jesus’ teaching?

BUILD YOUR HOUSE ON THE ROCK

Matthew 7:1-29, Key Verse: 24

“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” 

Jesus’ sermon on the mountain is composed of the Beatitudes, teaching us who is truly blessed in God. The rest of chapter 5 is teaching how disciples can be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Chapter 6 is teaching how disciples should live before the unseen God and have a personal relationship with Him. In chapter 7, Jesus is teaching how disciples grow in the midst of people, building one’s life of faith on the rock in this troubled world. May God bless each one of us to build a house of faith on the rock!

1. Take the Plank from Your Eye and Pray by Faith (1-11)

Look at verses 1-2, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” When you study the word of God, it is like a mirror. You begin to see yourself in the light, how messy it has been and you clean up through repentance. Then your eyes begin to see others’ speck of sawdust in their eyes. At that time, you may have two reactions: either you want to help the person, or you pass judgment. But Jesus wants us not to judge. When we judge others, we will be judged with the measure we use. It is passing judgment. Therefore, we do not want to judge, but to help others as we find someone doing wrong. How? 

Look at verses 3-5, there are two important points.

1. Recognize the plank in your own eye. Naturally, we cannot see ourselves. We can easily see what others are doing wrong, pointing a finger and saying that you are doing this and that wrong, while we are doing the same, if not worse. In this sense, we are bound to be hypocrites, saying, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye.’ What Jesus is saying is this: when we see someone’s speck, we have a plank in our own eye. Therefore, we must check ourselves before God first, so that we may be able to find the plank in our own eye first. 
2. Then the plank from our eye first. Unless we take plank from our own eye first, we cannot really take out the speck in someone else’s eye. How can we take the plank from our own eye? Have you tried to take even a speck from your own eye, not to mention a plank? Have you let the water run through your eye to get rid of the speck, but are still not sure whether it is out of your eye or not? The best way is to go to a doctor who will see clearly and take it out of your eye with a professional tool. Who is our doctor and what is his tool? Jesus Christ and his love in his word! When our doctor takes the plank from our eye, we can see it clearly. Then, we are able to take the speck from our brother’s eye through the love of Christ in the way he helped us. May God help us to come to Jesus, our doctor, who can take our plank from our eyes so that we may be able to help others in the way Jesus healed us. 

Yet, there are people who refuse to be helped and even despise your compassion and God’s word. What should you do? Look at verse 6. “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.” Do you know how pearls are made? Oysters make pearls as a defense mechanism when an irritant, such as a grain of sand, becomes lodged inside their shell. The oyster then secretes a substance called nacre, in layers around the irritant to protect its soft body. Over time, these layers build up, creating a beautiful pearl. Relating to the previous verses, your pearls are the wisdom in helping people with problems in life through God’s love and his word. Pearls are appreciated by people who accept the wisdom, but rejected by people who continue to live like pigs or dogs. They despise your compassionate heart and even hate you for the pearls you give. Dogs are cute and can be a companion, but you cannot teach them the sacred word of God. They will only say, ‘Bowwow,’ or growl at you or even bite you hard. 

Yet, when we face such people who are like dogs and pigs, we do not know what to do. As Jesus said, we don’t want to throw away our pearls; God’s word, wisdom, time and heart. We want nothing to do with them if we can. But if they are close people like family members, we cannot avoid them. It is the time of trials when you have to face them. At that time, what should we do? Look at verses 7-8. “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Usually, the ask, seek and knock is progressive steps. 

1. We must pray first, asking God for the wisdom and perseverance. When we ask God, he will respond to us. 
2. After prayer, we must seek the way God gives us. Often people sit around and do nothing until an apple falls into their mouth. When we pray to God, we must believe that God answers our prayer in one way or another. It may be the way how to deal with such dogs and pigs in a godly way, not in a human way.
3. We must knock as God shows us the door. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. Jesus wanted his disciples to believe when they come to God in prayer, especially when they have to help dogs and pigs. 

Yet do you believe that you will receive when you pray? Look at verses 9-11. Jesus gave us the example we can understand. If Andrew asks his dad for a fish sandwich, is his father, Dr. Jason, going to give him a stone snake sandwich? He will give him something delicious, maybe grilled salmon with delicious bread. Even if we are evil, we know how to give good gifts to our children. How much more our heavenly Father will give us good gifts when we ask him. What a confidence we have in prayer! 

Apostle James encourages us what to do when we have to face dogs and pigs in James 1:2-5, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. ⁴ Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. ⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”  At the time of trials, let’s pray and receive God’s wisdom and strength to persevere until we find the way to help even dogs and pigs. In this way, we grow mature in Christ. 

2. Do the Will of God and Bear fruit (12-29) 

With the confidence in our prayer, what should we do to others? There are four things Jesus wants his disciples to do. First, the golden rule. Look at verse 12, “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Jesus always summarizes complicated things in one sentence as the rule of thumb. Even if we don’t know how to deal with such dogs and pigs, we should do what we would have them do to us. If you want to be treated harshly, you treat the person harshly because the measure you use will be measured to you. Even if you treated the person harshly, if the person is treating you gently, he or she probably has the fruit of the Holy Spirit, gentleness. 

Secondly, Take the small gate and narrow road. Look at verses 13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” Most people take the wide gate and broad road. What is the popular and common way for them to take when they face trials in life? They live according to their emotion and fight like a dog or a pig, saying that the other person made them to react to it. The Bible warns us, “Watch out for those dogs, those evildoers, those mutilators of the flesh.” Therefore, we must not take a popular way but the small gate and narrow road. In stead of fighting against those dogs or pigs in human way, we must take the way of Jesus. Only a few people find and take the narrow way. It is the way of the gospel; humble and meek toward the proud, mercy on sinner, pure in heart, peace in troubles, joy in the midst of sorrow and love the unlovable, which leads to life. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” When we take the way of Jesus, we have life that is full. 

Thirdly, bear fruit. Look at verses 15-20. There are two kinds of prophets; false and true. The false ones come in sheep’s clothing, looks innocent and even spiritual. How do we know which one is which? By their fruit you will be able to distinguish between false prophets and true ones. The true prophets bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit in their hearts and it becomes evident in their lives. You will be able to see how the person deals with trials of life. During good times, you don’t know whether the person has the fruit or not, but in bad times, the person will reveal whatever is inside. We cannot harvest delicious grapes from thornbushes. A bad tree will bear bad fruit. It is because there is no work of the Holy Spirit in the person’s heart and life. They are like a goat among sheep, like Judas Iscariot among 12 disciples. Eventually, they will be cut down and thrown into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 

Fourthly, do the will of God. Look at verses 21-23. A popular way of counting fruit in this world is outward achievement, but it is not the case in Jesus. Even if a person has done great work in the name of Jesus, they cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven if they did not do the will of God the Father. Maybe they did all good work for their own name;s sake in human way. They may be popular in this world, but they do not belong to Jesus. They did not have a relationship with Jesus. They do not know Jesus and Jesus does not know them. They are not Jesus’ sheep. Therefore, Jesus will tell them, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ 

Therefore, here is the important question, ‘Am I doing the will of God and have relationship with Jesus?’ What is Jesus’ conclusion? Look at verse 24. “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Thus far Jesus spoke wonderful words of God to the disciples. And we heard them too. We must not only hear the words of Jesus but also put them into practice. It is doing the will of God. Then, we will be like the wise man who builds his life of faith like a house on the solid rock. This means that his life of faith will endure the storms of life, and his life will not be shaken by terrible circumstances or even by natural and human disasters. Look at verse 24, “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” Rather, those trials of life will make the person stronger, bearing fruit even more, as true disciples, revealing the glory of God. 

But if we do not put Jesus’ words into practice, what happens? Look at verses 26-27. But if we do not put Jesus’ teaching into practice, we are building our life of faith on sand, which will be destroyed by the storms of life. What word of God are you putting into practice? As you do, may God help you to persevere until you bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit!

In Genesis 26, Isaac was facing two things; a famine in the Promised Land and the Philistines. God told him not to go down to Egypt but stay in the Promised Land. He obeyed and God blessed him to harvest abundantly. Due to famine, he had to dig wells. But whenever he dug a well, the Philistine people took it away from him, not only once but many times. Even the king Abimelech wanted to kick him out of the land, but Isaac stayed and dug wells until the Philistines gave up taking a well from him. Moreover, the king and the army general came to Isaac and wanted to make a peace treaty with him, saying, “We saw clearly that the Lord was with you; so we said, ‘There ought to be a sworn agreement between us’—between us and you. Let us make a treaty with you ²⁹ that you will do us no harm, just as we did not harm you but always treated you well and sent you away peacefully. And now you are blessed by the Lord.” In fact, they were hostile to him, Isaac made a peace treaty and gave feast. He truly won the spiritual victory by faith. When he obeyed God, God blessed him, which was evident even to unbelievers. 

In today’s passage, we learned that we must come to Jesus our doctor who can take our plank from our eye first before we try to take speck from others. When we have to face dogs and pigs, we must pray by faith, living with a golden rule and bearing fruit of the Holy Spirit. As we put Jesus’ teaching into practice, we are building our life of faith on the rock, persevering the time of trails and bear much fruit as true disciples for the glory of God. Amen!