Matthew 7:25-29“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.”
The wise man built his house upon the Rock,
The wise man built his house upon the Rock,
The wise man built his house upon the Rock,
And the rains came tumbling down.
The rains came down and the floods came up,
The rains came down and the floods came up,
The rains came down and the floods came up,
But the house on the Rock stood firm.
The foolish man built his house upon the sand,
The foolish man built his house upon the sand,
The foolish man built his house upon the sand,
And the rains came tumbling down.
The rains came down and the floods came up,
The rains came down and the floods came up,
The rains came down and the floods came up,
And the house on the sand fell flat.
This song is a familiar song to any child that grew up in church. It is so familiar that as you were reading it the tune probably popped into your head. What a great song, and what a great story. This particular story was at the end of perhaps one of the greatest sermons ever by Jesus – the sermon on the mount. Jesus had been preaching to the multitude about a great many things such as the beatitudes, salt and light, prayer, forgiveness, the Lord’s prayer, divorce, heavenly treasure rather than earthly, etc., and ends the great sermon with the story of the wise and foolish men. There was a good reason to end with this story, as it summed up the sermon and gave an ultimatum to the listeners. He said “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them,……….And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not,…….” When Jesus said this all of those who heard then had a choice – to do what was said or not to.
Young person you are faced with the same choice. Every time you attend church and hear the man of God preach from the WORD OF GOD you are faced with the same decision – to do or not to do. How will you build your life? Will you be as the wise man who built his house upon the Rock or the foolish man who built his house upon the sand?
The House and man represents your life.
The Rock represents the Word of God.
The Sand represents the world.
The Rain represents trials and troubles.
The Floods\Winds represents the pressures of this world.
Christ states that there are two types of people – the wise and the foolish. So what separates the two?
There is the young person who goes to church hearing the Word of God preached from a good Pastor and Youth Pastor and Sunday School Teacher and maybe even Godly parents, and chooses to heed what has been taught from God’s Word. They decide that if God said it that settles it, and that young person begins to build their life on the sure foundation of THE WORD OF GOD! The young person may not even always understand why, but chooses that what God said is best and does it! As life continues, trails and troubles and pressures of the world beat upon the house of their life, yet in the end their life is still standing strong!
Then there is the young person who goes through church hearing the Word of God preached from a good Pastor and Youth Pastor and Sunday School Teacher and maybe even Godly parents, but chooses to be as the foolish man and ignore the Word of God. They build their life on the fickleness of the world thinking that there is security in the system of earth. Not realizing that the foundation they have built is on unstable sand ready to be washed away by the trials and pressures that come. As they are challenged they begin to blame God, the church, and those who love them. Boasting that their life is just as secure in the sands of carnality and worldliness as the “Secure Rock”. In the end their life is ruined and “great was the fall of it.”
One thing separates the teenager who is sold out for God from the one who isn’t. One thing separates the young person who is pure at the wedding alter from the one who isn’t. One thing separates the teenager who doesn’t quit in the hard times and the one who does. ONE THING! One thing separates the young person who falls and stays down from the one who falls and gets back up! One thing and one thing only – that is the foundation they decided to build their life on! Young person If you build your life on the world and carnality it will fall – please do not read this and think “he is just trying to keep me from……or they just don’t want me to have……..” No that is not it at all! It is not an ultimatum from me, your pastor, youth pastor, etc. but one from God. He has stated that if you build your life on GOD and HIS WORD then you will live and have a good, strong life, but if you hear His Word and do not build your life on His Word then your house (your life) will fall and great will be the fall of it! Your Godly authorities are trying to help you. They do not want to see another young person’s life ruined by the world. So young person build your life on God’s Word. It has not failed yet. God has not failed yet – so why would He start failing with you. The answer is He won’t! God and His Word will not and cannot fail, so trust it and build your life on the rock of God and His Word!
So build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ,
So build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ,
So build your life on the Lord Jesus Christ,
And the blessings will come down.
The blessings come down as your prayers go up,
The blessings come down as your prayers go up,
The blessings come down as your prayers go up,
So build your life on the Lord.
How to build your life on God’s Word –
- Read The Bible – Have a daily walk with God where you read the Bible yourself. You cannot coast on the spirituality of your pastor, YP, or parents, you have to read the Bible and know what you believe from the Word of God.
- Be a hearer and a DOER! –Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them,……….And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not,…….” Decide if God said it then I will do it. Not just at camps or youth conferences, but in Sunday School and Church services! Every time a pastor gets up to preach he is preaching God’s Word and you are faced with a decision to do or not to do. So be a doer!
Caleb Young
Assistant Pastor | Assistant YP | Activities Director at Circle C Baptist Ranch | Editor of YPLife
