Reading Matthew chapter 7 verses 24 to 27

A Good Foundation

Did you ever see a film of a tall factory chimney or a block of flats being blown up by a demolition expert? Such films remind me of the parable of the wise and the foolish builders. The way these disused buildings crash down after their supporting structures are removed reminds me of the great fall of the foolish mans' house in the parable told by The Lord Jesus in Matthew chapter 7 verses 24 to 27.

The wise man in the parable did all he needed to do. Building on rock requires effort and labour. The most suitable location has to be found and the design has to fit the surface of the rock. The walls of the house must be firmly fastened to the rock. All this takes hard work and effort. Only when he had a sure foundation in place did the wise man build his house.

Along comes the foolish man. We do not know his exact reasoning. Maybe He despises the wise man and the wise mans' foundation. How stupid to go to all that trouble to build a house! If the wise man had saved all the effort in getting a good foundation - which nobody can see - how much bigger his house could have been. Maybe he thought how much more room his house could have inside and how lavishly it could be decorated if he saved all the time the wise man spent on the foundation. We do know that the foolish man found a nice level bit of sand. He set to work and built up the walls of his house. The house exactly suited the foolish man.

Here we have a history of two builders. In a sense we are all builders. We are building something that will not be finished until our life on earth comes to an end, something that we need to last us forever.

Foundations that human builders set are vulnerable to all sorts of problems. There are the obvious ones like earthquakes and floods from torrential rains. Some are not so obvious. Lots of dry weather can cause soil around the foundations to shrink away from the foundation of a house. This reduces the support and can cause the building to break. Tree roots are another problem. They remove moisture from the soil and can, little by little, work their way into cracks where they grow and put ever-increasing pressure on the foundation.

Many trust human foundations for their life, wealth, relationships, careers, skills, alcohol or drugs. All will fail, if not in the storms of life, then before God in eternity.

Who is the greatest builder - ever? God Himself. God knew the need for a sure foundation for all that He made. When God designed and created the heavens and the earth He set His work on a perfect solid foundation. Psalm 102v25 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands. That which upholds all God's creation is sure and strong. The power of God's Word is what upholds creation. Hebrews 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; The Word that created all things is the same powerful Word that upholds all things. Gods' power will always be there to uphold creation because God will always be there. He never changes. There is nothing that can attack or undermine Gods power. This means that what God has set up as a foundation for all cannot be improved and it cannot be destroyed or damaged - even a little bit.

The Lord Jesus told this parable to explain the importance of not only hearing His teaching but also putting it into practice, making it our foundation upon which we base everything in our life. The Lord Jesus, when He told this parable, had just explained many things about the kingdom of heaven. He taught that spiritual things, to do with our relationship with God, are all important. He taught that following His teaching about seeking first the kingdom of God according to His Word is the only foundation upon which it is safe for anyone to build his or her life.

This teaching is about trusting God for everything in our life. It is about having faith in Him. It is about loving God. It is about believing His Word. It is about relying on God-given righteousness - not our own. It is about realising we are hopelessly sinful and it is about trusting The Lord Jesus to cleanse us from all our sin and to help us turn from sinful ways. This God-given foundation for our lives is about trusting God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

The Lord Jesus is the real foundation of all things, the universe, life on earth, salvation and eternal life. We read in 1 Corinthians 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.The Lord Jesus created all things by the power of His Word. He upholds all things by the power of His Word. The only way of Salvation is through The Lord Jesus because of Who He is and what He has done.

The Lord Jesus teaches us in this parable that it is foolish to set up a way of life for ourselves on any foundation other than the one that God provides. To ignore the foundation God has provided is immensely foolish. To build a life on the foundation God has provided is immensely wise. The Lord Jesus is described as a Rock. 1 Corinthians 10:4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

Both the wise man and the foolish man suffered the same great storms. We read in verses 25 and 27 that "rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house. " The outcome for each house was different. The foolish mans house fell, "and great was the fall of it." The wise mans' house, built on the sure foundation, held firm.

Imagine both men looking out the windows at the lightening and the wind and the rain, the floodwaters rushing by. Both might have been distressed and afraid at the sight. In the end, though, the wise man was safe. The foundation for his house held sure. The foolish man lost everything.

God has provided a sure foundation for all who will ask Him to place them on it. All who rest on the Lord Jesus as their life foundation are safe. It is not that they will be safe one day but aren't safe today. Such a persons' eternal safety begins the day they believe, their foundation is eternally sure.

What foundation is your life being built upon?