Matthew chapter 7. We'll be looking at the final
section of this sermon on the mount. The word
Jesus speaking as he's drawing this to conclusion,
he says, Therefore, whoever hears these sayings
of mine and does them, I will liken him to a
wise man who built his house on the rock. And
the rain descended and the floods came and the
winds blew and beat on that house. And it did
not fall for it was found on the rock. But everyone
who hears these sayings of mine and does not
do them. He will be like a foolish man who built
his house on the sand. And the rain descended
and the floods came and the winds blew and beat
on that house and it fell and great was its fall.
And so it was when Jesus had ended these sayings
that the people were astonished at his teaching
for he taught them as one having authority and
not as the scribes. Let us pray and ask the Lord
for help this morning. Father, we do come to
you for help. Lord, for the aid of your Holy
Spirit of God, Lord, your word is truth. It is
light. It is a lamp. Father, but it must be energized.
It must be made effective by the Holy Spirit.
Lord, that is something I cannot do. Lord, we
stand very weak and in need of you. And Lord,
we pray, God, for your empowerment and for your
help at this hour. And we trust that you'll give
it in Jesus' name. Amen. As a teacher, sometimes
you have students ask why teachers even give
exams. Why do we do it? Is it just to torture
students? Do we have nothing better to do with
our time? Do you know any teacher who just loves
to grade papers? But rather, we do it because
a good teacher is going to want to assess how
much of the material the students have mastered.
And there really is no better way to do that
than to give an exam. I mean, think about it.
If the teacher, if I simply asked my students,
hey, do you understand the material? Do you think
you know it? If they did not think an exam was
coming, they would say yes, just simply to move
on and not to belabor the point. But the test
is going to serve as a very important function.
Because what it does, it's going to reveal whether
they got the material and understood it or not.
The test does not assess what the students say
they learned. Rather, it reveals what they actually
did learn. And Jesus is the ever -master teacher.
And he's telling us in Matthew chapter 7, basically
what he's saying in our text this morning is
that a test is coming. And it's a profoundly
consequential test. In fact, this is the most
important test that could ever be given. The
Lord tells us that one day... everyone's lives,
all of our lives, everyone sitting in here this
morning, our lives are going to be tested. Now
his words are sobering, and they really are designed
to get our attention. So this test is not going
to reveal what people say they believe. Rather,
this test will reveal what the people actually
do believe. It's going to show something. Do
the people, do they really believe in Jesus or
not? Did they really take his teaching seriously
or not? See, the test is going to reveal something.
It's going to reveal the foundation that our
lives have been built upon. Were they built upon
rock? Or were they built upon sand? As I said,
this is the last section in the Sermon on the
Mount. Now what we have in the Sermon on the
Mount in Matthew 5, 6, and 7, we don't have everything
that the Lord said in its entirety. Matthew,
under the guidance and supervision of the Holy
Spirit, he has included the pertinent or the
salient points that the Holy Spirit had wanted
him to include. So we can be confident that we
have recorded before us all that God wants us
to know and all that we really need. So this
sermon, Jesus, this is a great master sermon.
And it has really one overarching theme. If you
look at all of it taken together, you could say
it various ways. Authenticity versus hypocrisy.
You could say true religion versus false religion.
True faith versus a pseudo faith. Now remember,
in this sermon, the Lord really is rebuking the
religious leaders and officials of his time.
Jesus knew something. He knew many of the scribes
and many of the Pharisees who were the leading
men of that day were rife with hypocrisy. He
knew why they were doing their acts of devotion.
They looked pious. They looked good on the outside.
But they loved, they craved, they were motivated
by the praise and acclaim that came from men.
They did not do what they were supposed to do
because their hearts were right with God. They
did not. He knew what was driving these men.
They loved respect. They loved to be held in
high esteem. These men were itching for prominence,
prestige, and popularity much more than they
ever loved God or the truth. But the problem
was they were the shepherds. They were supposed
to be leading people to God, and instead they
were leading people to themselves. They had almost
developed like a cult -like following. Now our
Lord comes on the scene and he sees through their
hypocrisy. He was not fooled by any of it. But
we have to understand the culture of his day.
As far as public opinion is concerned, the Pharisees,
I mean, they were the good guys. They were considered
to be the salt of the earth. The Pharisees were
the pillars of society. Now today, we know them
as the bad guys. But not at that time. That wouldn't
have been true in Jesus' day at all. They were
considered, the Pharisees were considered to
be the most knowledgeable and accurate interpreters
of the Jewish law. They worked hard. They worked
in local synagogues. They weren't simply located
at the temple. They taught the law to the common
people. They were emphasizing piety in daily
life. And therefore, many of the ordinary Jews,
just the commoners, really appreciated these
folks. And of course, the Pharisees looked holy.
They were fastidious in their devotion. Their
teachings were actually considered authoritative.
And today, we think of the Pharisees, we know
them as the bad guys, but at that time, you have
to understand, they were aligned more with the
common, ordinary people of the day. Now the scribes,
they were the rich, ruling elite, and that's
who they aligned themselves with. So as far as
common, ordinary Jews, they loved the Pharisees.
They were the true heroes. They were the ones
getting their hands and their feet dirty, if
you will. So to say that the Pharisees were influential
would be just a gross understatement. They ruled
the roost, if you will, until a popular Nazarene
prophet upended it all. The Lord Jesus, he comes
on the scene issuing a scathing indictment. He
called him out. He said, you're hypocrites. He
said, you're false teachers. You're wolves in
sheep's clothing. These Pharisees who had been
held in the highest honor, who had been taken
as the best interpreters of the law, Jesus said
they are mistaken and they are deceived. And
all of this was leading to an epic showdown between
the religious leaders and Jesus. Who would the
people believe? The Pharisees or Jesus? The ones
they had always known and trusted? Or the newcomer
who is able to work miracles among them? Friends,
isn't that the question that all of us must come
to? Who do we believe? What do we believe? Do
we believe Jesus? Do we trust in his word? Do
our lives reveal that we believe in Jesus? See,
many people say they believe in him. They commit
to him, if you will. But that doesn't mean necessarily
that Jesus has committed to them. Now that may
sound like a strange statement, but I want to
show you something in John chapter 2. In John
chapter 2, notice the text. It says, now when
he, Jesus, was in Jerusalem at the Passover,
during the feast, many believed in his name when
they saw the signs which he did. Now if we stop
there, that sounds like a great day. Many people
believed in Jesus. They saw the miracles, they
were convinced, right? Look at verse 24. But
Jesus did not commit himself to them because
he knew all men and had no need that anyone should
testify of man, for he knew what was in man.
So verse 23, many believed in his name. That
sounds fantastic. If you look up, the Greek word
for faith is pistis. To believe, the verb form
is pistou. And it means to have faith in or to
commit oneself to. So they believed in him. They
committed themselves to him. Verse 24, Jesus
did not commit himself to them. Notice two different
verbs in English, same verb in Greek. They pursued
in Jesus. Jesus did not pursue in them. What's
that mean? They claimed to believe in Jesus.
Jesus did not believe in their claim. They believed
only because they saw the miracles. Jesus knew
all men. And he saw that their faith was spurious,
it was false, it was shallow, and it would not
last. And that's still true today, by the way.
Especially in the Western world, especially in
the United States, where many people claim to
be Christians, they claim to be disciples of
the Lord. If you talk to most Americans, still,
even in our secular society, most still wear
the label Christian. That's changing some. But
what about where we live? I mean, we're kind
of in the Bible belt, right? We're in Lawrence
County. If you surveyed the people of Lawrence
County, I venture to say almost everyone, now
there would always be exceptions, but almost
everyone would identify or claim to be Christian.
And Jesus said, yeah, well, one day that profession
is going to be tried. Your claim to believe in
Jesus is going to be tested. See, it's one thing
to make a claim. It's another for that claim
to be proven true. Or for that claim to be proven
authentic. Jesus has reduced life down to a series
of binary choices here. There are two gates.
There are two roads. There are two destinations.
There are two groups of people. Two trees, the
good tree, the bad tree. Two houses. And two
foundations. And there's just one point. Do you
trust Christ? And will you obey him? Verse 24.
This is our text. Therefore, whoever hears these
sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him
to a wise man who built his house on the rock.
Now that saying ticked the religious leaders
off. This is what really irked them, if you will.
Why? Who did Jesus think he was? Notice the text.
Now we read it. We just gloss over it. But think
about if you're hearing it for the first time.
He said that people must keep and obey his words
if they are wise and if they're going to enter
eternal life. Who was he? I mean, was he greater
than Moses? Moses is the one who gave the law
in the first place. They would have been fine
had Jesus said, hey, listen, you must keep Moses'
word. But instead he said, no, you must keep
my word. You must obey my word. Jesus was claiming
an authority that was equal to God who gave the
law in the very first place. Jesus, in fact,
said, it's not enough to hear Moses. You must
hear and obey me. Now, can you imagine any ordinary
man saying that, hey, if you want to avoid hell,
and if you really want to enter into life, you
better listen and obey me. I mean, can you imagine
what, like today, what if I were to tell you
that your soul's destruction, and to avoid that
destruction, you would need to listen to me and
to obey my words. Rightfully, you would have
me tarred and feathered and run out of here.
That would be the right thing to do. That's crazy.
That's crazy talk coming from the lips of anyone
but Jesus. See, Jesus makes that astonishing
claim. But he didn't do it without warrant. He
offered proof to back it up. Many miracles and
many signs were done publicly, right? But there
was the ultimate sign. His dying and rising again
the third day. Jesus is saying the people must
hear him. Why? He is the only one church who
never misspeaks. He never misleads. He never
deceives. He never has to utter a retraction
or a correction. Ever. Jesus is not the one who
will say, do as I say and not as I do. He's not
the way, he doesn't operate that way. He's no
hypocrite. His words always perfectly reflecting
his character. But sadly today, that is not the
case for the land in which we live. Daniel Doriani's
commentary, he wrote a phrase, I thought it was
just very gripping, although it was actually
telling. He said, the world has all too many
obese gym teachers, divorced marriage counselors,
and debt -ridden financial planners. But not
so with Jesus. He does what he says. He is what
he says. See, the life of Jesus was a life of
integrity. His teaching and his life were perfectly
aligned. We might say it this way. He practiced
what he preached, right? He's called his disciples
to be servants. What do you find him doing? Being
the ultimate servant. In Luke, 22. He says, for
who is greater? He who sits at the table or he
who serves? Now, if you're thinking about that,
you have a big dinner table and you've got a
servant waiting on the people sitting at the
table. He says, who's greater? Who's more important?
Is it not the one that sits at the table? Yeah,
we would all say that. Dignitaries sit at tables.
Servants serve them. And what does Jesus say?
Yet I am among you as the one who serves. Do
you see what humility there? In John 13, Jesus
said, You call me teacher and Lord, and you say,
Well, for so I am. I am teacher. I am master.
I am rabbi. I am Adonai. I am Lord. If I then
your Lord, kurios, and teacher, but I've washed
your feet, you also ought to wash one another's
feet. Notice verse 15. I love what he said here.
For I have given you example that you should
do as I have done. See, Jesus is saying, do as
I do. He did not sit aloof as king in some ivory
tower, issuing commands and issuing edicts. Instead,
he was one among the people. Jesus said this
of himself, I did not come to be served, but
to serve. His life perfectly exemplifying all
that he taught. So think about this. He never
commanded his people to do something that he
was unwilling to do himself. He wanted you to
wash people's feet. What'd he do? Wash people's
feet. He wanted you to serve. What'd he do? Serve.
He said he wants you to lay down your life for
your friends. What did he do? He laid down his
life. But that wasn't true of the scribes or
the Pharisees. They were the ones that were held
in high esteem. But they were hypocrites. They
loved to give commands that they were unwilling
to do. This is why Jesus was so upset with them.
We read about it in Matthew 23. Jesus said, listen,
the scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses' seat.
They're the teachers of the law. Therefore, whatever
they tell you to observe, that observe and do.
But do not do according to their works. For they
say and do not do. For they bind heavy burdens
hard to bear. They lay them on men's shoulders,
but they themselves will not move them with one
of their fingers. But all their works they do
to be seen by men. Here the Son of God is revealing
the hypocrisy of the shepherds of Israel. They
say, they do not do. Now get that in your mind.
Jesus said, do as I have done. They say, but
don't do. This is the hypocrisy that Jesus is
warning of in Matthew 7. There are many who say,
and they do not do, many who say, I am a follower
of Christ, and yet they don't follow. They say
he is Lord, but they don't obey. They pay him
lip service, but their hearts are far from him.
And Jesus is saying, a day is coming in which
all this is going to be revealed. Therefore we
must listen and take heed. This is the most sobering.
Listen, we cannot dismiss the words of Christ.
Those who hear the word and understand it and
fail to practice it are deceiving themselves
and Jesus would warn they are on the broad path
to destruction. Now in the parable that we're
looking at this morning, there are two men. who
ostensibly looked the same, right? For all intents
and purposes, they looked the same. But a day
of testing would reveal how different they were.
Warren Wiersbe said, the two men in the story
had so much in common. Both had desires to build
a house. Both built houses that looked good and
sturdy. But when the judgment came, in this case
the storm, one of those houses collapsed. What
was the difference? He said, not the mere external
looks to be sure. The difference was in the foundation.
The successful builder dug deep and he set his
house on a solid foundation. Who is the wise
man in this parable? The one who hears the words
of our Lord and does them. His obedience shows
that he believes the word. Obedience is a result
of grace. Obedience does not earn grace. This
is not a work to get you in the door of heaven.
Rather, obedience to the word of God shows or
reveals a heart that has been touched and changed
by grace. You have to understand that. James
said in James chapter 1, Be you doers of the
word, not hearers only. Because when you hear
only and don't do, He said, you are deceiving
yourself. Now listen, deception is bad. It really
is. To be deceived is terrible. But to deceive
yourself is the most insidious. John MacArthur
writes, the mark of true discipleship is not
simply hearing and believing, but believing and
doing. In other words, a person who professes
to know Christ but does not obey Christ has no
lasting image of what the new life is all about.
He glimpses Christ, and he glimpses what Christ
can do for him, but his image of Christ and of
the new life in Christ soon fade. His experience
with the gospel is shallow, superficial, and
alas, short -lived. See, there are some who have
correct ideas. correct teaching about Christ,
and yet they're not converted. They're not wrong
in what they think about Jesus. But they're not
converted. This has always been the case. We
call them nominal Christians. Nominal meaning
in name only. There have always been tares among
the wheat. Now some of those tares have been
planted by Satan himself to deceive. The others
are tares And they don't realize it, being self
-deceived. And this latter group, that second
group, is whom Jesus is addressing. See, the
wise man trusts in righteousness that can only
come from Christ. The foolish man trusts in some
form of self -righteousness. Because remember,
who's this sermon about? It's a rebuke to the
scribes and Pharisees who were extremely religious.
But they were building on the wrong foundation.
What foundation were they building upon? Their
adherence to the law of Moses. In other words,
the works of their own hands. Their own works.
They thought they could please God through their
own efforts and bypass Christ. Not come to Christ.
And Jesus saying, but the day of judgment would
show how foolish and deceived they really were.
See, now this is interesting because if you look
at the Pharisees, they claim to be devoted to
Moses. But Jesus said in John 5, if you believe
Moses, you would believe me for he wrote about
me. So they don't really follow Moses. They claim
to love God the Father and Jesus, nope. He who
does not honor the Son does not honor the Father
who sent him. So no, you don't love God the Father
either. Remember I told you an epic showdown
was on the move and here it is. Who? are the
people going to believe? Christ or the Pharisees?
The one who comes to faith in Christ will show
his faith by obedience to him. But the Pharisees,
they outright rejected Jesus, and instead they
sought to earn God's favor by working really
hard, by being really moral, by supposedly following
the law. They believed they didn't really need
Jesus at all. They could be right with God on
their own, is what they thought. But to be obedient
to God, you must come to Jesus in faith and rest
in him alone for salvation. If you are going
to be obedient to God the Father, you must repent
and come to faith in God the Son. Jesus said
in John 8, verse 24, If you do not believe that
I am, I am he. He's not in the original there.
If you do not believe that I am he, if you don't
believe I'm the one sent from God, if you don't
believe I'm the Messiah, you will die in your
sins. And we talk about meek and mild Jesus.
That is not a meek and mild statement, friends.
He says, if you don't believe that I'm the one
that was promised to be sent into the world to
be the savior of the world, you will die in your
sins. But then he's also, when he's talking to
others, he's very, he is meek and mild. Come
to me, all who are labored and are heavy laden.
I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and
learn from me. Why? For I am gentle and lonely
in heart. Look at the last part. And you will
find rest for your souls. Who can promise rest
for your soul? Only the Son of God. Just Jesus.
The point of Jesus' parable is not about the
house. The point of the parable is about the
foundation. John Wolvard says, they could build
on one of two foundations. One foundation would
liken to a big rock, the other to sand. The foundation
determines the ability of a structure to withstand
the elements, in this case rain and winds. The
rock foundation represented the Lord himself
and the truths he had been presenting, especially
the truth concerning inner transformation. But
the sand spoke of pharisaic righteousness, which
the people knew. That's what they were comfortable
with. That's what they were familiar with. And
on which many were basing their hopes. In storms,
the first would give stability, yet the second
foundation would result in destruction. Jesus
is standing there, and I think he's very earnest
at the end of this sermon. He's looking around
the crowd and seeing all the people listening
to him, and he was making the claim that he is
the only sure foundation. You have to believe
that he is the one sent from heaven. They had
to get that he was the long -awaited Messiah,
the one that God had promised to redeem Israel.
The point, what's the point? Jesus is a rock,
and true faith in him is the only sure foundation.
Paul wrote about that. He says, for no other
foundation can anyone lay than that which is
laid, which is Jesus Christ. Paul said in 1 Timothy,
for there is one God and one mediator between
God and men, the man Christ Jesus. The person
who builds his house upon the foundation of Jesus
Christ, here it is. This is the person who is
absolutely convinced that he has no righteousness
of his own, and he sees Christ, and he sees what
Christ has done, and he trusts in him and his
work. To build upon the rock is to understand
that Jesus' sacrifice is a gift of righteousness.
It's not something you work for. It's not something
they earned. Romans 3 says it is a gift of righteousness
and it is to be received by faith. Religious
leaders, they rejected him. And they were teaching
the people following them to build upon sand.
They're man -made traditions. They look good.
They seem to have come from God. Yet when the
storm came, it would all be blown away and it
would be revealed that it was simply shifting
sand. Jesus, because he loved the people, he
calls them back to an absolute foundation of
obedience to God's word, which was his word.
Not the man -made traditions, not the man -made
elements of the scribes and Pharisees. And you
might be saying, but why is this so important?
This is it, folks, even today. This is so important
because the rains are going to fall. The floodwaters
are going to rise. The winds are going to blow.
And only the life that is built upon the rock
of Jesus Christ will stand. Every life is going
to be tested. In this life, right now, right
now, you and I, we're tested by trials. We're
tested by storms. But soon, we will all be tested
by death. For it is appointed unto man once to
die. What's going to endure? What's going to
endure the storms, the flood, the wind, and even
death itself? Christ Jesus alone. For he alone
has prevailed. The religious leaders rejected
them to their own peril. What about you? Acts
4, Peter preaching. Let it be known to all you
and to all the people of Israel that by the name
of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified,
whom God raised from the dead, by him this man
stands here before you whole. This, Jesus, is
a stone which was rejected by you builders, which
has become the chief cornerstone. nor is there
salvation in any other. For there is no other
name under heaven given among men by which we
must be saved other than the name of Jesus. But
what about those who don't obey? What is their
end? Verse 27. And the rain descended, the floods
came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house.
And it fell. And Jesus says, and great was its
fall. All roads without Christ will always end
in destruction. Great falls. Great destruction.
Eternal destruction. A presence in eternity away
from God. How do the people listen? What do the
people do? Imagine Jesus is preaching the sermon
to them. Verse 28, when Jesus had ended these
sayings that the people were astonished at his
teaching. Because he taught them as one having
authority and not as the scribes. Do you understand
what that verse is saying? The scribes and the
Pharisees, they were accustomed to quoting other
rabbis, other leaders to give credibility to
what they're saying. You find that all the time.
I've quoted several people this morning. John
MacArthur, John Wolver, Warren Wiersbe, others.
Jesus never quotes. Jesus would quote no other
because he didn't need to. No other voice gives
credibility to him. His word alone is authoritative.
And the people were astonished by that. They
were left in amazement. They had never heard
any rabbi teach like Jesus. So as we come to
the end of this, I'll quote Dana Doriani one
last time. We cannot overlook the harm, the dire
warnings in Matthew 7. Get this, guys, get this.
Jesus does not call his hearers to redouble their
efforts to ensure that knowledge produces action.
He's not saying, hey, double it up, make sure
you start working harder. On the contrary, he
warns against vain activity. How then do we know
Christ so that we enter in the kingdom of heaven?
Humble repentance. You see yourself for what
you are. Like Isaiah did that we read earlier
in the scripture reading. And faith in Jesus
opened the door to eternal life. That's it. Jesus
said, all that come to me, I will no wise cast
out. Come unto me all who are weary and heavy
laden. I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon
you and learn of me for I am meek and lowly.
And you will find rest for your souls. We sing
it. My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus'
blood and righteousness. I dare not trust the
sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus' name.
On Christ, the solid rock I stand. All other
ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking
sand. Do you believe it? Is that your confession?
Do you trust in Jesus the rock alone? Well, then,
church, let's stand and sing a glorious anthem
to our Lord. Brian and Kirsten, if you would
come. It's the solid rock. I don't know what
hymn number it is, but it's going to be on the
walls behind us. If you would stand at this time.
If you know Christ, friends, let the rafters
ring out.