House on the Rock

In the Spring Green area of Wisconsin, there is a world-famous attraction called, The House on the Rock. This massive house built in the 1940s by Alex Jordan Jr. is literally built high up on a group of rocks with a stunning view. I remember visiting this marvel many years ago and thinking about the great skill of engineering it took to make it stand the test of time. In his concluding remarks in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses a memorable metaphor of the building of two houses on two different foundations to represent two different philosophies of life. Some have labeled verses 21 and 22 of Matthew 7 the most terrifying verses in the Bible. Jesus warns that there will be many religious people that come before Him and say, "Lord, Lord, did we not..." What He's teaching is that there are true believers and then there are those who profess Him in name only. You can hear the passion in their plea as they remind Him of all they have done, but they have never personally owned it. They have never bowed the knee to Christ as Savior and Lord.

The first individual (builder) has not only heard all of the words of Christ given in His great Sermon, but he has acted on them. He has applied the truth that has been revealed to him, and his life is built on the solid rock of Christ. When the storms come his house will be immovable. The second individual however has heard the very same things as the first man, but he never actually applied what he heard. It was intellectual knowledge only. The foundation of this foolish person's life is compared to sand. When the storms come, having trusted in his own righteousness, he will not be able to stand. Any good pastor or teacher is concerned about how much of what they are teaching is actually getting through to the learners. Two people can attend the same church, sing the same songs, and listen to the same messages, and yet come away with something very different. How about you? Has there been a time in your life when you came to the realization of your sinfulness and inability to save yourself? Paul told the Romans, "if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth, he confesses, resulting in salvation." Press On, Pastor Brian Richard