Would you consider buying a house that you knew was perched atop a shaky, shifting, unsound foundation? I doubt anyone would, and yet many people live day in and day out in a house exactly like that! But I’m not referring to a physical house although I could be. What I’m alluding to here is something infinitely more important…I’m talking about YOUR LIFE!! Is it on rock solid ground or does it tend to wiggle and wobble when the challenges arrive and you’re in much need of stability?
What can you do to make certain you’re on a solid footing; that you are building your house on a rock? You can easily make comparisons to your own life and the building of an actual house that will help you strengthen your own personal foundation.
What would the process be if you wanted to build a house? First of all you’re definitely going to need a blueprint. It will take you by the hand and guide you step by step through the entire process; to ensure you that your house will look exactly like the blueprint says it should after you complete the construction. This will require that you become intimately familiar with the blueprint by reading and studying it extensively until you clearly understand all aspects of the project.
Building your life on a rock will follow the same methodology only, your blueprint will be the Bible. Without a thorough understanding of it how will you ever build your house? I’ll answer that for you…..YOU WON’T!! The Bible contains EVERYTHING that you will EVER need to complete the task!
Failure to study the Word of God is analogous to attempting to construct a house without a blueprint! This step can’t be skipped if the goal is a house built on solid rock!
Once you become familiar with the blueprint, the next thing you must do is decide on the type and quantity of building materials will you need to build the house. Once again a complete understanding of the building’s blueprint will be necessary.
Finally you must know where to find help when needed to complete your project. Fellowship with other likeminded believers is a good place to start. As the old saying goes….two heads are better than one but that’s only true if both heads are thinking the Word.
Proverbs 27:17 (KJV) Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
All of these activities, in their proper order, are necessary. Try skipping one and see how fast your house gets built. Try just reading your blueprint and see how far you get. Just making up a materials list won’t cut it either. You have to choreograph all the steps and then go to work building it!
Since the Bible is our blueprint for how to live life. It must be an integral part of any continual and repetitive process of building your house on a rock. But knowing what the Bible says is just the beginning, you must also DO what it says to achieve results! As I’ve heard it said many times, “Believing is ACTING on the Word!” Well, ACTING is DOING! Reading the Bible will definitely boost your knowledge, but what good is all the knowledge if you never use it? You MUST also DO what it says!!
James 1:25 (KJV)But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
This might sound basic, elementary, intuitive even, but it is also often the place where construction ceases for many good hearted believers because intention never built anything! You cannot, wish, hope or pray a house into existence……..THAT REQUIRES WORK!!
There is both a mental and a physical component involved and one without the other is a fool’s errand! BOTH requirements together, and not just one, is what equates to building your house on solid rock!
In Luke 6:47 & 48, Jesus is explaining this two step process. He said to “listen” to his teaching which is equivalent to us reading and studying the Bible, given the fact that he is no longer here to teach us in person! Then he said to “follow” what he taught which is to take action and DO what he taught!
Finally Jesus describes the outcome, the eventual result; a house that’s built on solid rock. It stands firm against the storms of life without washing away!
The world we live in is not inherently different (Eccl 1:9) than it’s been since the fall of mankind. It is constantly changing, yet remains fundamentally the same. It will never be short on calamities, tribulation, catastrophes and tragedies. Our adversary, the devil, guarantees it. So if you want your life to be rooted and grounded…resting on solid ground…then you MUST begin NOW to LEARN & DO as God directs!
The rains and the floods and the winds of this life can be relentless in their attempt to dislodge you from your anchorage and cast you onto the stones of chaos and confusion. Being in good hands with Allstate or having a piece of the rock with Prudential won’t do you much good in the long run! You need to be held up by the loving hands of God and firmly rooted, not on a piece of the rock, but rather on Jesus Christ himself because….