"Before, During, And After"

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, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.  Now therefore everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall." Matthew 7:24-27

 

In our last message we looked at the what Jesus said in terms of the wise man who built on the rock We mostly just looked at that first sentence and the example that the Lord showed me in terms of Noah being like the wise man Jesus described here. Today, since I haven't been able to think of anything else but these verses I'd like to share something else the Lord showed me that I had never really payed much attention to before. 

That something is quite simply a look at what comes next in the verse after the hearing and the doing and the being considered wise ... so lets take a look...  "and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock."  What about for the foolish man who built on the sand? What happens next after the hearing, and the not doing, and the being considered foolish? ..."and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And it was a great fall."  In both cases the same thing happened. The rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew against the house. In both instances stuff happened! The difference was in the outcome that the stuff accomplished.  The wise builder's house stood and the foolish builder's house fell a great fall. 

I know that this seems pretty obvious but the thing that jumped out at me was that both the wise and foolish had the rain, floods, and wind come against them. Too often believers tend to act like once they become believers that nothing hard will ever come their way.  All to often when it does then they end up blaming God. Something to take notice of here. The wise man builds on the rock because he is preparing ahead for when the storm he knows will come. 

I think this example makes it pretty clear that the truth is, it doesn't matter who you are, things happen in life. We all deal with stuff at some point in our lives. Everyone deals with trials, temptations, and or circumstances that are beyond our control. Stuff Happens and the reality is it is how we respond that determines the outcome. Are we wise enough to turn to Him. Do we seek His counsel and do what he says and therefore not fall because we are founded on the Rock or do we doubt when the hard times come? Do question and turn away from His promises to see us through?

Do we trust Him to be the Rock of our Salvation before, during, and after the storm?

Truly my soul waits for God; From Him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved. Psalm 62:1-2

Hear my cry, O God; Attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, When my heart is overwhelmed; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:1-2

The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in Him I will trust, The shield and the horn of my salvation, My stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence. 2 Samuel 22:2-3

My soul, waits silently for God alone. For my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. God is my salvation and my glory; The rock of my strength, and my refuge,  is in God. Psalm 62:5-7

The Lord lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let the God of my salvation be exalted. Psalm 18:46

As for God, His way is perfect; The word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him. For who is God, except the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. He makes my feet like the feet of deer, and sets my feet on my high places. He teaches my hands to make war, So that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. You also have given me the shield of Your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great. You enlarged my path under me; So that my feet did not slip. Psalm 18:30-36