Focus: Jesus calls us to build our lives on Him and His word.
Function: To move the people to embrace Jesus by faith and apply His Word in our lives.
Text: Matthew 7:21-29
About 5 years ago, a terrible accident happened on the Arkansas River. A tugboat was pushing a number of barges up the river, when all of a sudden the captain had a blackout. Without warning the tugboat veered off course and hit the pillars of an Interstate bridge. The pillars crumbled; the bridge collapsed; and a number of cars and some trucks ended up in the Arkansas River. At least 4 people lost their lives.
What happened? The captain was not drunk; the tugboat was not going fast at all. Then why did the pillars crumble and the bridge collapse? Some engineers have suggested that the bridge was not “up to code.” They say that the bridge was built under old construction rules—rules that are outdated and seem to be unsafe by today’s standards. All of this, of course, goes to show that building codes do matter.
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In Matthew 7 we have a word from the
Lord Jesus about building codes. He speaks of wise and foolish people, and He
reminds us of rocky and sandy foundations, of solid and shaky grounds. And
Jesus calls us to build our lives on Him—who is our Rock, and on His word,
which is the cement that holds our lives together in Jesus. So, hear the Word
of the Lord!
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The Scripture reading begins with a judgment scene: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers.’” The notion or idea of a judgment day is not very popular among people today. Many discard such notions as Medieval, old fashioned, or mere superstition.
But not so Jesus. In fact, Jesus teaches us in no uncertain terms that there will be a Judgment Day, and that he, Jesus, will be the judge of all mankind. In his teachings, Jesus makes very clear that all people will face the reality of a final judgment.
Many
Christians think that the purpose of the final judgment is to determine our
future destiny. However, God does not need to conduct an examination of
people’s lives to determine who will be saved and who will not. In John
10:27-28, we learn, for example, that Christ knows his sheep and has given them
eternal life, so that no one can snatch them out of his hand. So what then is
the purpose of the final judgment? (Hoekema, p. 254)
· It is to display the sovereignty of God and his glory: Up to the time of the final judgment, the final destiny of each human being has been hidden; now that destiny will be revealed, along with the faith each one had or did not have, the deeds each one did, and the life each one lived. God’s grace will be revealed fully in the salvation of his people and God’s justice will be magnified in the condemnation of God’s enemies. Here is another reason for the final judgment:
· It is to reveal the degree of reward and the degree of punishment, which each one shall receive. Since these degrees are intimately related to the kind of lives we live, Christ will settle this matter at the time of the final judgment. Here is another reason for the final Judgment Day:
· It is to execute God’s judgment on each person. On the final Judgment Day, the Lord God will then assign to each person the place where he/she will spend eternity: either the fully renewed, restored creation, or the final place of punishment called “hell.”
So, the final judgment is not so much about examining a life to determine whether that person is eternally saved or lost. Rather, it’s a publication, a broadcasting—a making known—and it’s an execution or the carrying out of a sentence or verdict.
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Now let it be clear from Scriptures that believers in the Lord Jesus Christ do not need to fear the Day of Judgment. The Bible assures us, for example, that there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1), and that those who abide in God may have confidence for the Day of Judgment (I John 4:17). Why? Because Jesus has been judged in our place. Jesus has taken our guilt on his shoulders. He died in our place; and God raised him from the dead for our sake.
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Then what will Christ be looking for when we shall stand before Him on the Day of Judgment? He will look for works that find their roots in faith in Him. Jesus will look for fruit that grows from the tree of faith rather than from the tree of unbelief and rejection of Him. Listen: (vs. 15) “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.” Jesus will look for works that flow forth from faith.
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A while ago, I got hold of a beautiful orange. I took it out of the bag; it was big and looked good to the eye. But as I held it in my hand, I noticed that one of my fingers started to slip and slide on the peel. Barely noticeable to the naked eye, there was a rotten spot on the orange. My opinion of the orange lowered considerably.
The Lord Jesus warns us about good-looking oranges that may have hidden spots of rot on them. Oranges may fool us, but Jesus, the judge of all people, cannot be fooled. That’s why he says: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” So, for example, taking Jesus’ name on our lips is one thing. But what matters is acting, doing, living in his name. Lip service without action is like a scream without sound. It just won’t do. But speaking the name of the Lord and doing the will of our heavenly Father—these are the fruit, which Jesus desires from us. Or, to put it another way, calling ourselves Christians and building our lives on Christ and His Word are part of Jesus’ building code for us today.
Consider, for example, the parable that follows the judgment scene. Jesus begins by emphasizing the building code for life: “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.” The rock solid foundation enables the house to withstand rain and windstorms.
But woe to you if your foundation is shaky, built on sand. As Jesus says: “…everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
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Some of us don’t get it. Some think that there is nothing inconsistent about singing praises to the name of the Lord on Sunday and cursing his name on Monday or Tuesday or the rest of week. In a culture of relativism, where permissiveness is pervasive, and where morality and notions of right and wrong seem to matter very little anymore, the voice of the Christian church is often silenced with dismissive gestures.
Cohabitation or shacking up, stem cell research, abortion on demand, euthanasia, gambling, and other destructive devices that lead to a culture of death and despair—such things are none of the church’s business we are told. And thus more and more people see no need for repentance or change of heart.
Let’s be clear on this: Jesus calls for a heart that seeks to bear fruit. He calls us to build our lives with Him in mind. In doing so, we need two things: a firm foundation, and cement to build our lives into units that bring praise and honor to Christ.
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Listen again to Jesus’ building code: “Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man….” Note the connection: “words of mine”. Whose words? Jesus’ words. Jesus calls us to build our lives on Him and His word. These two go together. To build our lives on Jesus means that we turn to him in trust or faith and make him the rock foundation on which we build our lives.
This calls for relationships where we are in dialogue or conversation with the living Lord Jesus Christ every day. To build our lives on Jesus means that we connect with Him and He with us through His Holy Spirit, and yes, through his holy Word. The Spirit of Christ leads us into a living relationship with Jesus. Do you know this Jesus?
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The Word of Jesus—as found in the Old and New Testament Scriptures—becomes the cement that helps us to build our lives. For example, Jesus’ promises shape our actions. So, I will trust and face an uncertain tomorrow, because Jesus has said, “I will never leave nor forsake you.” Again, Jesus’ presence strengthens me when I face temptation. So, I will lean on Him and refuse to yield to sin. And Jesus’ call to surrender all and follow Him propels me to submit all of my life to him. So, I yield my politics, my education, my relationships, my hobbies, ambitions, and success, as well as my failures, weaknesses, and vices all to Jesus.
Earlier, I mentioned that
building codes matter. We saw that also a good year ago. The I-35W Mississippi River bridge
(officially known simply as Bridge 9340) was completed in 1967, and its
maintenance was performed by the Minnesota Department of
Transportation. The bridge was Minnesota's fifth–busiest,[4][5]
carrying 140,000 vehicles daily.[2]
The
bridge catastrophically failed during the evening rush hour
on August 1, 2007, collapsing into the river and riverbanks beneath. Thirteen
people were killed and 145 were injured. The problem? Some parts of the
bridge’s structure were not up to code. Building codes matter. So it also with
life.
All to Jesus, we surrender. To Jesus and His Word. That’s the building code of life for all who follow Jesus.
In this, as in all things, glory be to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, both now and forever, amen.