The Church of Eleven22 - Wk 13: Rock Solid

Episode Date: July 12, 2020

Application is infinitely more important than inspiration. If you build your life on success, stuff and status, it will fail. BUT, if you build your life on Jesus, our Savior, nothing that comes against you will prevail. For more information and resources on this series, visit coe22.com/bestsermonever. For disciple group curriculum please visit coe22.com/disciplegroups.

Amen and amen. You may take seat. It is so good to see you. Welcome at all of our campuses. And for those of you worshiping online, we're super stoked that you would worship with us too that way. Again, if you got your Bible, it's Matthew Chapter 7. We are coming to the close of this 13-week series called The Best Sermon Ever. And what we're going to do is we're going to watch Jesus land the plane to all the people that were hearing this sermon. And hopefully we're going to talk about how we as hearers of this sermon too, are able to apply this to our own lives. You see, what Jesus does at the end of the sermon is when he does this wise and foolish builder thing, it is the fourth of four illustrations that he decides to close it down with. He talked about, last week, we talked about the narrow gate,

that will know the tree by its fruit, the final judgment, and then the fourth one is this wise and foolish builder deal. So verse 24, he says this, every one, every one, we'll know, the tree by its fruit, the final judgment, and then the fourth one, he says, then, again, his final remarks, everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them. Earlier we sang the song, Our God is one that our band wrote in light of the Shema and the one initiative. And if you remember, if you've been around, the Shama that we've been studying for two years, that Moses talking to the children of God, and he says, Shema Israel. The Lord our God, the Lord is one.

and you shall love the Lord dear God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind and all your strength. And Jesus is doing a similar thing here. That when we study the Shema that gets translated, hear, oh, Israel, it doesn't just mean, do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth? It means like when my daddy used to say to me, listen to me. He didn't actually just mean listen. He meant like, hear and heed. That once you hear what I say, then you're going to do what I said. And so this is what Jesus is saying here.

Everyone then who doesn't simply attend the services and take in the sermon, but everyone who hears these words of mind and does them. That it starts with revelation, but it must be followed by application. This is what he's saying. That those people who hear and do the words that he has preached will be like a white, wise man who built his house on the rock. Now, he's using this illustration of two builders, but that house means like your life in all aspects of your life.

It means your marriage. It means your family. It means your character and integrity. It means your work life, your social life. This is what he is talking about. Now, when he says that the wise man builds his house on the rock, here's what he means. In Psalm 18. Psalm 18, verse 2, verse 31, and verse 46 says this,

The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer. My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. And then in verse 31 it says, for who is God but the Lord and who is a rock except our God? In verse 46, the Lord lives and blessed be my rock and exhaust. to be the God of my salvation. You see, the reality is that every single one of us build our life on something, and he's saying, blessed is the one

that builds your life on the rock. So in the old covenant, in the Old Testament, the rock is the Lord. In Matthew chapter 16, Jesus takes the disciples up to this place called Cessaria Philippine, and I can't preach this too much because I'm going to preach it in about three weeks,

but he asked this question, who do people say that I am? And you know who's going to talk first, who's going to talk most? Peter steps up and says, hey, I tell you who. They say that you're like a good religious teacher. Maybe you're the reincarnation of Elijah or Moses or one of them. And then Jesus asks the most important question that you will ever deal with in your life.

But what about you? Who do you say that I am? Before we go any further, have you ever ask yourself that question? Who do you say that Jesus is? And then again, who talks first, who talks most? Peter opens his loud mouth, which, by the way, is the next. series we're going to do. We're going to study the life of Peter a little bit, and it's called Lessons from a Loudmouth. I hope you'll attend, okay? And Simon Peter answered, you are the Messiah,

the son of the living God. And then Jesus says, Jesus replied, blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my father in heaven, and I tell you that you are Peter. The Greek word there is Petra. It means like, right? or rock, you are Peter, and on this rock, I will build my church, and the gates of hell or Hades will not overcome it. And so when Peter declares, publicly declares that you are the Christ, the son of a living God, in that sentence he has proclaimed the gospel. And then Jesus says, upon the public declaration of the gospel, that I am the Christ, the son of a living God, that that's the rock that the church will be built on.

And then here he is saying, like a wise man who builds his life on the rock that is the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is what he's talking about, that every single one of us build our life on something. And so whoever hears this sermon on the mount and applies this sermon on the mount, you will be like the one that has built your life not on what you. thought was best, but you have built your life on the solid rock of the gospel of Jesus Christ. And please, please, please, whatever you do, don't hear these words, whoever hears and does them and turn it into just kind of a new covenant law to be followed. Because that's not how the sermon on the mount begins.

If you remember all the way back to when we first started this thing 13 weeks ago, like when the world was still turning and all of that, remember how he starts with the beatitudes, says, blessed are the poor in spirit. In other words, blessed are you, when you realize that you are spiritually bankrupt and you can't do this on your own. You see, it's a crazy thing that we get to this, this, we get to the end here where Jesus says, blessed are you, if you hear and do these things that you have heard me say, and then we automatically think, well, I've got to get to work. Well, the beginning of the sermon is this. Your works don't work. Blessed are you when you are spiritually bankrupt and you realize it. I mean, have you ever been

bankrupt? I don't know if you have, but you look around and you think, I cannot pay my way out of this. And when you look at yourself spiritually and realize I cannot work my way out of this, then this is where the sermon on the mount starts. And he goes, all right, now you're blessed because you are ready to receive the kingdom of heaven. And then I actually think the most critical line in the whole sermon on the mount is when he just says this, and blessed are the meek. In the beatitudes, blessed are the meek. You realize you're spiritually bankrupt and you get to the place where you say, all right, so meek in Greek doesn't mean weak. It's like a rapper, don't I, okay? It means not a very good one, but still it ron. It's the Greek word for the bit. It's the Greek word for the

that would go in the mouth of a horse. So to be me, it does not mean that you're weak. It means that you have turned over the reins of your life to a different master. And this is how the sermon on the mouth starts. Blessed are you when you realize that you and your works cannot do anything to earn your righteousness before an almighty God. And blessed are you when you surrender your life to the Lordship of Christ,

when you turn over the reins of your life, the direction and control of your life to the Lord, and then everything changes. And when you do that, when you put your faith in Jesus, then understand you are salt and light, that God has placed you on purpose like a city on a hill to make everything different. So do good works that others may see and give glory to your father. Your father does not need your good works, but your neighbor does. So once the gospel has been poured into us, us, then grace and good work should flow out of us.

And then in the sermon on the mount, he just says, and listen, you've had a way of doing life, but those things should forever change now, once you experience the gospel of Jesus Christ. The way you do love and sex and marriage and friendship and forgiveness and money, quit doing them the world's way because it does not give you what you are searching for, but do those things my way. and when you pray and when you fast and when you go to church and when you sing do not do it for the applause of man because church is not about the applause of man when you do these things like pray and fast and sing but know that you you already have the approval of your heavenly father

and he loves you that through the cross of Jesus Christ your religious activity does not impress God and you don't have to try to impress him because like any good dad, he's already really into you. And he demonstrated it at the cross of Jesus Christ. And don't worry. I mean, don't worry. Why are you so worried about what you wear and what's going to eat and what's going to drive and how the bulldogs are going to do this year if we even have a year? What are you worried about that for? Because you're five. is watching over you. In fact, when he is the one thing that drives everything,

then he drives away your worry and anxiety. And when we seek first him and his kingdom, then don't worry, because all of these other things will be added to you. So build your life on that gospel, that Jesus came to save sinners. And then he adopted us as sons, and he treats us as co-heirs to the Father. You see, what Jesus is saying by the time he gets to the end of the sermon on the Mount, and I'm telling you, I mean, I've been studying this for 13 weeks with you, right?

And it's so easily for evangelical Bible-believing churches to immediately give mental assent to the gospel, but get to the end of the sermon on the Mount and think, ha, ha, holy man, I got a lot of work to do. and miss the whole point. The point of the sermon on the Mount is you can't do it. That's why you need a Savior. If we hold ourselves to the sermon on the Mount standard,

then we are all lustful, adulterers, oath-breaking liars, and idol-worshippers. So get to work? Nah, man, what we should come to when we get to the end of this and we hear the words of Jesus, what it means to build our life on the wrong. rock is this that when I get to the end of the sermon on the mount, I know that I'm a bigger mess than I ever realize. You probably should have amened right there because I'm talking about you.

I'm talking about every single week the way I pray and the way I worry and the way I get mad. I mean, you just go right down the list and think, uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh, uh-oh, I'm a bigger mess than I ever realized and yet I'm more loved through the cross of Jesus. Christ than I ever imagine. Now, apply that. And when you apply that, then here's what it means. When you build your life on that, then the performing and the pretending are over. You don't have to pretend like you got your act together anymore. You know why? Because you don't. You surely don't. and you also don't have to get caught up in this idea that if my performance is good enough,

then maybe I will earn the approval of the Father because the gospel is that through the works of Christ you have already been approved because God made Him who was without sin to be sin for us that we would be made the righteousness of Christ. That we wouldn't just believe the gospel but that we would experience the gospel. Build your life on that.

We wouldn't just know that God sent his only-begotten son for us, but we would experience for God so loved us. I mean, one of the greatest lines in all of the scripture is in the prodigal son in Luke chapter 15, when the prodigal comes running home and you'll remember the father runs to him, that's cool, wraps his arms around, him, that's cool. Then the Bible also says, and he kisses him. When we get to the end of the sermon on the Mount, because of the blood of Jesus, it's his Christ hope that you would experience the kiss of

your Heavenly Father. And you would build your life on that reality and not on how well you can keep his instruction. And when you do that, when you build your life on the rock of the gospel of Jesus, you will not be spared hard times. That is not the promise, but the promise is this, but you will be saved and sustained through them. Verse 25, and the rain fell. I mean, don't you wish it just said, and the wise man built his house on the rock, and it don't rain when the house is built on the rock, but that's not what it says. That's what we expect. A lot of us think we have merit, and a lot of us think that our relationship with God is kind of a quid pro quo thing, right? Like if I'm generous, then God, you ought to give me a raise.

Or if I've raised my kids right, then they ought to be all missionaries. They're even better yet. It makes them money to take care of me when I get old. They're all doctors and lawyers and such. But the man who builds his house on the gospel experiences the same storm as the man who builds his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the wind. winds blew. Florida, what's that called? That's called a hurricane, all right? The rest of the world

don't know about that that much, but we do. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house, but it did not fall because it had been founded on the rock. I want to show you this house. 2018, Mexico Beach, Florida, Hurricane Michael came through and wiped out almost every house save one. And the guy that built this house, when they asked him about it, he said this, he said, I built this house to sustain the big one, because I know one day it was coming. And as he was building his house, all of his neighbors thought he was crazy and that he was wasting a bunch of money because no matter what the code said, he didn't pay attention to the code, he was paying attention to what he knew one day would be a direct hit from a hurricane.

So he built his house on 40-foot pylins. So the storm surge wouldn't get him. He built his house in such a way that it would withstand 250 mile-per-hour winds. The code is 120 miles per hour. He built his house with breakaway walls so that when they tore, it wouldn't do structural damage. The walls of his house, if you ever been to Jamaica with me on a mission trip and we build stuff, you know how they build them that like a Sherman tank couldn't take these things down. built cinder block walls that were poured with concrete reinforced with still cables and rebar on the

inside and then he added additional concrete to the corners and the space between it under his roof he minimized it so he wouldn't have roof damage and after hurricane michael came through the total damage of that house was one cracked shower window see he built his house differently than everybody else and he had a different result show the picture one more time And check this out. Do you see the other house that made it to? You see the house behind the house that made it too? Now this person didn't build their houses that way,

but do you realize that when you build your life on the solid rock of the gospel of Jesus Christ, that it can have an effect on a whole bunch of people that you love the most around you, and there are people around you that are protected from the wind and the waves of this world because of your faith in Jesus Christ. and when you don't, when you build your life on the things of this world, and when your house falls and the fall is great, the collateral damage is heartbreaking. So when the storm hits you, not if the storm hits you, I mean, I don't have to talk about this much right now, right? Whether it's sickness or relationships or strife, whether it's divorce or slander, or you work really hard for this company, and they just laid you off

or somebody that you love is sick or you lost somebody early or you lose a job or he or she leaves? What it will do is it will reveal the foundations of your life. Come on, man, we live in Florida, right? So if you don't get the foundation right, it doesn't matter how strong the house is, then the whole thing will get cracked up.

up. But when our foundation is not on us, but when our foundation is on the gospel of Jesus Christ, then what happens is this. And I see it, I see it all the time as one of the pastors here, is I see you going through a storm that I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. And you lose somebody that you love or you stood in an altar with somebody and they said till death do it's part. But they didn't really mean that apparently because now they left. Or people are saying things about you and they are not true. And other folks come around you and they say to you, how are you making it? And your legit answer is, I can't really explain it.

I mean, you're in church. You know, he's like, Jesus, but you know what I'm saying. And I think what you're actually saying is what Paul says in the book of Philippians. Be anxious for nothing but by prayer and supplication. Make your request known to God. and the peace of God that transcends understanding, guard your heart and guard your mind in Christ Jesus. And so they say, how are you making it?

Because if I was going through the storm that you're going through, I don't think I would make it through. And you're saying, I didn't think I would make it through either, but I have not built my life on the shifting sand of this world. I have built my life. I have placed my trust on the foundation that God is for me and not against me. And I know this because he didn't. demonstrated his love for me and this, that while I was yet a sinner that Christ died for me on the

crosses, so the craziest thing happens. Yes, I miss her. Yes, I wish he wouldn't have left. Yes, I wish I had a right relationship with my prodigal sons or daughters. But the craziest thing is, is when I get to that moment where I feel like if one more wave hits me, the house is going to come tumbling down, somehow it doesn't come tumbling down. And this peace that transcends understanding guards my heart and my soul. And when I go to God three times and say, Lord, would you please take this thorn away from me, his answer to me, and the reality of the gospel is this,

that his grace is sufficient for me. And I don't have to be strong because he's strong. My foundation is strong. And his strength is demonstrated in my weakness. And you say, that's how I do it. Because I didn't build my life on me. I trusted when he died on the cross that counted for me. That counted for me.

So then Jesus keeps going. There's another option. This is, by the way, the more popular option. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man. Literally the Greek is moron. And it means, it does just mean you're dumb. There's a lot of dumb people. a lot.

My daddy said, if you're going to be dumb, you better be tough. All right, that should be in the Proverbs. But what it actually means is godless. That's what it means. The Greek word for moron means godless. In other words, everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like the godless man that says, all right, Lord, I heard you, but I don't need you. I got this.

I think my ways are better in your ways, my plans are better than your plans, is like the moron, the foolish man who built his house on the sand. Let me give you a little context here. Jesus is preaching right beside the Sea of Galilee. I don't know if you've been to the Sea of Galilee. There's a lot of sand at the sea of Galilee. And at the Sea of Galilee, about 10 feet below the sand is bedrock. The city of Tiberius is built there.

You can build some pretty tall buildings. And what some people would do is they would take a shortcut and they would just build their house with all. almost no foundation on the sand. And some people would spend a whole lot of extra money, time, effort, and energy to dig down 10 feet and to build a foundation that was hooked to the bedrock. Now, the crazy thing about the two houses, one built on the rock and one built on the sand, when they're both ocean front on the Sea of Galilee, is until the rain comes and until

the wind comes, you can't tell the difference. They pretty much look the same. So when everyone hears these words of mine and does not do them, he'll be like the foolish man who built his house on the sand. You see, notice the wise builder and the moron have the same information. But one guy has all the information with no application. Information and inspiration without application is pretty worthless. Like sunscreened. You can believe in sunscreen, but if you don't put on the sunscreen, you get burnt.

Or better yet, I have a 14-year-old boy at my house. Deodorant. Good night. You can believe in deodorant. You can light deodorant commercials. You can buy deodorant. You can have sticks and sprays and gels and bodies and all kind of many things. But if you do not apply V-deodorant, it does not matter what you know about deodorant.

believe about deodorant, and your intentions are worthless in that moment. You're just a walking stick of beef and cheese. That's what you are. This is the way James will say it, the brother of Jesus. James 1, 22 through 24, be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourself. James is like, Jesus' brother is looking at the church saying, so many of you're deceived. because you listen to so many sermons. I mean, the majority of the problems that we all have individually is not because we don't know enough Bible,

it's because we don't do enough Bible. I mean, my primary job is I am the CRO of our church, the chief reminding officer. Let me remind you once again, church, of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He says, be doers of the word and not here is only deceiving yourself, for if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror, for he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.

Intentions and inspiration are useless if there's no application. Like a gym membership. How many of you have a gym membership, but you don't go? Don't raise your hand, you're telling yourself. Honestly, we know, all right, we know. You action matters. I told you this before, but we all did the same thing today before we decided to go out in public, you know, you went to the mirror and what did you? When you looked at the mirror, you made an assessment. You did not advocate responsibility. You didn't be like, Martha, we need new pillowcases. Look what it's doing in my hair and face. No, you looked at the mirror and you saw your natural face. That's what James calls it. You saw your natural face looking back at you and you thought, Houston, we have a problem. Okay? And then you begin to get to work.

with your curler and if it's curly you want to make it straight and if it's straight you want to make it curly come on darling just trust what the Lord gave you but anyway I got time for all that right and you painted it up and stretched it out and moisturized it and all kind of stuff all right and these days the fellas too you blow dry and you put some give me a break okay whatever and if you didn't honestly if you don't do that long enough if you just assess the situation and don't do anything about it eventually somebody's going to come up to you and be like, are you feeling okay? Again, what you mean? You'd be like, I mean, are you living doors?

Like, what's going on? You're doing all right? And if you went, oh, you mean this? I looked at a mirror. What would you say? Okay, well, you're a moron. Because it's not just looking and making an assessment that you get credit for. It's the application.

You've got to do something about it. This is what Jesus is saying. You see, both the wise builder and the foolish builder, they both heard the same words, and one did something about it, and the other didn't. So one builds his life on the sand. Why? Because it's easy. It's quicker. Costs less money.

And here's what it looks like, I think, to build your life on the sand in America right now. In 2016, there was a survey. 84% of Americans believed that enjoying yourself was the highest goal in life. That was it. 86% of Americans believe that we should quote pursue the things you desire the most how's that working out 91% of Americans believe that to quote find yourself you would look within and that's where we would find true happiness that is a sandy foundation yourself is a sandy foundation here's the way john's going to say it in first john 2 15 to 17 he says do not love the world

or the things in this world. Basically, this is John's version of, if you build your life on the sandy things of this world, this is all this world has to offer you. Don't love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the father is not in him. For all that this world, the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life.

In other words, that's all this world has to offer. I still like using the old King James, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Lust, it sounds better than desires. It is not from the Father, but is from the world, and the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does, the will of God abides forever. There's so many people that build their lives either,

and here's the problem, if right now you're thinking, I need to forward this to my roommate, oh, help you, okay? Every single one of us, starting with me, whether you're in this room or listening around the world, every single one of us has a tendency to try to build our life on either the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes of the pride of life. When we try to build our life on the lust of the flesh,

we try to build our life on what we think we deserve to feel like. That's the lust of the flesh. And sometimes it plays itself out in like self-help, like I'm just going to make much of me. And people pour all kinds of, of money and the way they look physically. And you literally begin to think, if I could just lose X amount of pounds,

then, oh, then I'll be fully and finally satisfied. Or if I could just squeeze back into those jeans that I used to wear, or some of you, this is how dumb you are, you buy stuff that doesn't even fit as if that may inspire you to one day. Be like, how'd you lose weight? I bought pants too small.

Okay. It ain't no wrong. working out. I mean, look around. We probably need to a little bit more, do a push-up. But I'm saying when you begin to build your life on that, or some people build their life on their hobbies, like hunting, fishing, surfing, and golf. Look, man, I like to play golf a little bit. I'm just going to tell you, you ain't that good. And you never going to be that good. And even as not good as you are, you're not that good, and you lie about it. Let's be honest. So some people go after the of the self-help. Some people, in regards to lust of the flesh, man, it's just all out,

sex drugs and rock and roll. I want to feel good, so I. And what's crazy is that oftentimes when we build our lives on this sand, sometimes it's like illegal drugs and that kind of stuff, but oftentimes it's just a version of escapism. Like you're just binging on Netflix. And you don't think that's that bad because at least you're not binging on cocaine. Or some people, you think food is your best friend and you're looking for comfort in food because you think you deserve it. And you don't think it's that bad that you overindulge in ice cream, but it's not much different than overindulging in alcohol because you're just trying to get away from you because you've built your life on that kind of sand. That's the lust of the flesh. Some people build their lives

on the lust of the eyes. If lust of the flesh is, I deserve to feel this way, the lust of the eyes is I deserve to have. If you ever gone somewhere and realize, I didn't even know I had to have this thing until I've seen this thing. Now I can't live without this thing. All right. You're a bunch of liars. How do you think Amazon exist, all right?

But that's what lust of the eyes is. And oftentimes it comes down to dollars, and there's two ways this goes. Some of us kind of, some of us build our lives on stuff that money provides, and some people try to build their life on secure. that they think money provides. By the way, this is what Jesus was talking about a few weeks ago when he talked about the birds and the lilies of the field. Some people think, if I could just have a new car, a new house,

live in that neighborhood, where this kind of clothes, then, and Jesus, remember, he said, look at the flowers, the lilies of the field. They don't spend any money on what they look like, and look how beautiful the Lord has made them. Want to be like a flower? The other side of that is some people build their life on the security that they think money provides. And the crazy thing is, is when it comes to money, there are spenders and there are savers,

and in God's sovereignty, they almost always fall in love and get married. And then fight about why are you spending so much? And the other one is like, why can't you just relax and enjoy God's gifts, right? And what people do when it comes to money and you build your life on money, you get on your phone and you check your bank app and you think that a number, if a certain number shows up, then you feel like you're going to be okay.

And to that, Jesus is like, look at the birds. They don't save anything. And none of them are homeless. God takes care of every single one of them. And you build your life on money and it is sinking sand. Some people build your life on the pride of life. and this is this is a temptation to be something to be somebody and we fall into this trap of comparison and and it's not we don't just want to be rich we don't just want to be smart and we

don't want to just be successful we want to be richer and smarter and more successful in fact sociologists have a couple of terms that describe people that chase these things one is called relative deprivation and the other is diminishing marginal return that almost every person believes that they could just make 10% more money they would be infinitely more happy but the problem is if you make 10% more but somebody on your street makes 20% more you sociologically physically cannot enjoy the things that you have as long as you compare yourself to what everybody else does nothing will rob your joy like comparing yourself to the err and so we chase status and accomplishment title. Sometimes a pride of life shows up and seeking after your approval of man.

We're so concerned about what everybody thinks of us, and so we post this filtered version of our life on this thing. I mean, honest to goodness, if I was the devil, I think I would have created this. Put it in everybody's pocket so that we could try to be all-knowing, all-powerful, and omnipresent, all places at all time. Who cares? Who cares? what you're eating for dinner tonight. Give me a break. But we do, because we all look at it. And you say one wrong thing on here. These days, you're cooked, bro. You're cooked. It's the pride of life. Some people, they think their relationships, the relationships that they have, they're banking on those relationships to fully and finally satisfy them. And they take the keys to their joy and

fulfillment and hand it out to all the sinners in their life and say, when you get your act together and treat me the way I deserve to be treated, then and only then will my life be all that it could and should be. It's a foundation of sand, and some people banked their life on religion, which is just self-help with a choir robe. I hope you realize that. Making much of me with a choir robe in a to-do list. That's what religion is. One commentator said this about Jesus speaking these words to his listeners here, the religious establishment was advocating a form of surface righteousness that mask an unstable foundation of religious hypocrisy. And eventually, its instability would be revealed as to not having the answers to the deepest needs of the people. And in this parable,

Jesus continues to give an invitation to the bedrock of true life in the kingdom of heaven. But it's the unpopular way, even the troubled way, because those who followed Jesus, leave behind the comfort found in identifying with the popular religious establishment. And so these are the sandy things that we can build our lives on. The lust of the flesh, I want to feel a certain way. The lust of the eyes, I want money to do for me what it could not do for me. Or the pride of life, I'm going to make something of me and prove myself to everybody. Well, here's the problem.

And the rain fell, and the floods. came and the winds blew and beat against that house and it fell and great was the fall of it. And great was the fall of it. The problem of the sand, it's not that the house is it strong is that its foundation was weak. The problem with the house built on the rock and the house built on the sand is before the storm comes, you can't really tell the difference. The problem with my job is from here. Everybody's houses kind of look the same.

And the thing I hate about this, listen, I love my job. I feel like God had called me and anointed me and appointed me to do what I'm doing, but I'm telling you, I hate, hate, hate, to watch your life fall with a great fall.

I hate it, man. Since we opened 1122 in 2012, I can't tell you the number of people that we've walked with, and they built their lives not on the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. You built your life on success and status,

and stuff. You built your life on the applause of man or what you were going to be. And it's more like you, you sprinkled a little gospel on the house, not at the foundation, but when you started decorating your house, you built your house on the sand and then decorated it with some Jesus trinkets. Adding a verse here and there, instead of the Word of God being the very foundation on which you would build your life, that God's for you and he died for you. And the greatest thing you could do with your life is pour your life out for the glory of God. But when somebody who has heard the words of Jesus and has all the information, but like a fool, you build your life essentially on you, when it falls, great is the fall of it. And it is heartbreaking for those of us around you.

I'm just going to tell you, I really don't want your world to fall apart. I don't. Because the rain comes. And if you've built your life, if you've poured yourself and the meaning of your life into what you look like physically, it ain't going to go good for you. Because of time and gravity, darling, I'm just telling you. And again, if you've got a little change in your pocket, you can fight gravity for a while, you know. You can nip it and tuck it and stretch it and all of those things. Eventually, you look kind of like Mr. Potato Head. But that's okay, all right? And if you build your life on your hobbies, eventually you're going to wake up, and that's all you have. I mean, honestly, the pursuit of your life is going to be some dead animal or some surfed wave. And you're going to think, is this

it? I got a text recently from a guy I know, really smart guy. He says, my wife is asking me to quit hunting. Do I really have to give up hunting for my wife? I thought somebody was punking me. Yeah, you do. Because the behind. says, bro, that we're supposed to love our wives, like Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Do you mean to tell me that you would be willing to put in jeopardy the woman that you pledged your life to over a dead duck? Say it out loud and see how crazy that sounds. Well, the problem is when you chase after the feeling like the party eventually ends and you wake up and you're hung over and Monday still comes. Or you chase after the money. You chase after the

and stuff just doesn't satisfy. I don't care how sweet your car is. Eventually, it's just a car, isn't it? And I don't care how big your house is. You can only sit in one room at a time. It's a crazy thing in the world. And I don't care how new your couch is. It still only holds you up this high off the ground.

That's just what it does. And your refrigerator, it just keeps your food cold, just like your last one that you tore out to put in another one that does the same thing that the last one does. Okay, I know it feels awesome for a minute. We get some new junk that we don't need to. I'm for sure.

But eventually, you know what you do in Monopoly? Right, you play Monopoly. You ever get into an end of a game without killing somebody? Have you ever done that? So at the end of the game, you just put it all back into the box. And at the end of the game, we're going to take all your junk and put it back in the box. Except we're going to take it to Hoop's Closin and sell it and make money off of your dead people. Okay, that's what we're going to do.

and if your bank accounts are just loaded and you log on and you see a number that you never imagine the crazy thing is isn't that number so arbitrary and you are addicted to the stock market app on your on your phone and when you see an arrow down your confidence goes down with it and when you see that green come up you think that you're going to be satisfied and the current The crazy thing is that money cannot provide for you security, that one phone call that you could get in this very moment right now could take all of that away with a little bit of bad news about somebody you love. And the rains come, and you've been banking your life on status, and you climbed to the

top of the ladder, and you realize it's against the wrong wall, and you finally made it, and you got the corner office, but you go home, and you're all by yourself, because it costs you your family to get there. It's a Sandy foundation or the approval of man. I'm telling you, man, if you live for the approval of man, you will always be dissatisfied because someone, some human, will always be dissatisfied in you. You will always let somebody down. Trust me, I do it weekly. And because of these dumb things and social media, they get to let you know all about it. And the craziest thing is, is when you hold somebody up, this is why you should not think too highly of me because when you idolize a human and they prove to you that they're a human

you will then demonize that human and people will let you down and your people and if you build your life on the sand of religion I'm telling you it will leave you exhausted or prideful and then you'll be naked and afraid sewing fig leaves to cover up your sin and shame just like Adam and Eve were running away from God instead of understanding the gospel and running to him. That's what happens when the rain falls. Look, man, at the end of the service, when I say I love you like crazy, I don't meet me in some abstract way. I'm talking about you. Like your life built on the gospel so that when the enemy comes against you with storms, and he's trying to kill and steal and destroy all the good and godly blessings in your life that you would understand as a greater

reality that you serve a good shepherd who loves you. It's got a plan and a purpose for you, and he came that you might have abundant life. An abundant life is not an abundance of stuff or status. An abundant life is that you have an abundant relationship with him, and that can never be shaken. And then when Jesus finished saying these things, the crowds were astonished at his teaching. For he was teaching them as one who had authority and not as their scribes. You see, what their scribes would do is their scribes would just repeat previous information, and Jesus is the authority.

He is the final judge. He said this in this sermon, and he also said things like you have heard it said, but I say to you, and they said, this is just different. They were cut to the heart. You see, here's the point. Application is infinitely more important than inspiration and even information. And if you build your life on success and stuff, up and status, it will fail. Not might, but it will fail. But if you build your life on Jesus,

our Savior, nothing that comes against you will prevail in your life. And so to the believer and unbeliever, let me just ask you, what is your life built on? Because listen, I'm going to confess to you, my life is built on the gospel of Jesus Christ, but I am prone to wonder, Lord, I feel it prone to leave the God I love. And so, you know, every parent, you know, every parent, is not complete, but in our lives, we can build our house on the foundation of Jesus, but it's kind of weird. All of us kind of have like mobile homes because we move it over to the sand sometimes, right? I mean, I got family that would be like, hey man, can you come over and help me take my wheels off my house? No problem, all right, that's my people. But that's a lot of

times how we do our lives. We confess Christ as our Savior, and then you look up after a little while and you've wondered, pronged to wonder, Lord, I feel it. So let me ask you, right now, what is your life built on stuff and status success is it built on you on your own merit on your own righteousness on your own religious activity you see here's here's the freedom of the gospel psalms 37 four says this delight yourself and the lord and he will give you the desires of your heart i love that verse people quoted all the time it does not mean what you think it means The way that verse gets translated in the 21st century is this, You do, you, boo, all right?

That's kind of the message remix of that. Well, here's the problem with the desires of your heart. Jeremiah 179 says the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick who can understand it. Jesus says in Matthew 1519, for out of the heart comes evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander, the list goes on and all. So should you follow your heart?

But again, Psalm says this, delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Here's what that means. We don't need new desires. You and I need a new heart. Because when our hearts change, the desires of our hearts change. When we are captivated with the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ that God loved you so much, no matter how many dumb things you have done and continue to do, no matter how often we build our lives on the sinking sand of this way,

world that he sent his only begotten son on a rescue mission to fight through that storm and to come and rescue you. And he will rip out the heart of stone and he'll rip out the heart that is obsessed with the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. And he will give you a new heart. He will give you his heart. And over time, maybe not overnight, but over time, you are, you have new desires. And what you desire is the thing that matters to you most. And the thing that matters to you most is him and not the circumstances of this world. So when the wind and the waves and the hurricanes come and they jack around with all of your circumstances, what they can't do is jack around with your sovereign savior and your life is built on him and not your circumstances.

And that's better. It's just better. Ask anybody who's been through a storm or is going through a storm and their life is built on the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's just a better. It's just, better. And then the crazy thing is, C.S. Lewis in, I think it's mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis says, the crazy thing about things is when you put second things first things first, then you lose second things and first things. But when you put first things first, God tends to take care of all the second things. The way Jesus would say it is this, seek first the kingdom of heaven and his righteousness. And then all these things, all the stuff of this world that we're worried about all the time, and all of these things will be added unto you.

And so the gospel is this, that you and I are sinners who have all rejected God. Some of us reject Him with rebellion. We run and say, I do what I want with who I want, when I want. Some people reject God with religion. And they say, God, I don't need you. I'm going to work real hard, and I'm going to sew up my own covering to cover my sin and shame.

And yet, just like in Genesis, chapter three until this very moment right now, God Almighty comes from heaven on a rescue mission to us and walks through the garden of our lives, calling out our name. And for anyone who would build their life on the rock, in other words, if anyone would admit it, I'm a sinner in need of a savior. And I believe that when Jesus died on the cross, somehow that counted for me, when he says it is finished, he paid my debt and adopted me into his family. And so I want to confess him as Lord. I want to turn over the reins of my life to him,

to anybody that does that, that admits, that believes, and confesses they will be saved. That's different than just mental assent. My favorite illustration of it is when I was a kid, my dad would take me to the pool and I couldn't swim yet, and he would get in the pool, and he put me on the diving board,

and he would want me to jump off the board to him. And I would stand at the end of the diving board at the Dillon Public Pool so you can imagine the luxurious grandeur that is the Dillon Public Pool. And I was terrified

because I couldn't swim. And there's my dad. And I heard his words and his words were, come on buddy, jump. I got you. And a line would begin to form behind me of some of the least encouraging human beings on the planet. And to hear his words

and not do what he said, not put my trust in faith in him, I would be like a fool to walk away. But what Jesus is talking about is when you hear that call of God from your heavenly father through the blood of his son, Jesus Christ on the cross, and he's in the water, and you know if you jump in without him, you drown because you can't swim. But standing on the diving board, hearing and not doing something about it,

means you don't have any faith in him. You just got information. but what it means to put your faith in Christ, what it means to be saved, to have your sins washed away and adopted into the family of God, to have Jesus take all the penalty for all of our sin and us to get all the credit for all of his perfect life and be made right with God is that you take a step off the board. You say, all right, I trust you that you are who you say you are and that you'll keep your promise. And I am going to put my life in your hands. And here I am, which means my dad did what he said he was going to do. And if you ask any Christian, any person that's ever put their faith in Jesus, they heard the invitation of God.

Not because of what a preacher said, but what the Holy Spirit said deep, deep down in places that only your soul can hear. And if that's you, no matter what location you're at or watching online, if you were ready to take that step right now, to admit it, I need help. I can't pull this off on my own. I'm a sinner, not a mistakeer. And I believe that somehow when Jesus died on the cross, that counted for me. And in this moment, I want to answer his invitation to come to him and say, yes, Lord, I'll come to you. And I want to give you the chance to do that right now. If you bow your head and close your eyes, whether you're here, at home, wherever you are.

And if for the very first time you were ready to surrender your life to Christ, to put your trust, not on the sinking sand of yourself, but to build your life on the solid rock of the gospel of Jesus Christ, If you're ready to admit it, I'm a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe that when Christ died on the cross, that counted for me, and I want to confess him as Lord, would you just raise your hand right where you are and say, Father, here I am. I accept that invitation. And if you are worshiping with us online right now, I would invite you to just click that button that says you want to raise your hand and put your trust in Jesus Christ.

Our good and gracious Heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you for your son, Jesus Christ, who was not only the greatest preacher ever that preached, the best sermon ever, but he is the only Savior ever. And Lord, I pray that every single person, man, woman, child, student that hears this gospel would not just hear it and build their life on the sinking sand of the things this world has to offer, but that they would hear it and they would be doers of your word, they would put their trust, they would build their life on you and you alone. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen. Hey, would you please stand as we respond?

The gospel demands a response, and we respond by bringing our first and best, because everything that we have is a good gift from God, and we bring back to him our first and our best, our ties and our offerings, because we don't invest in trusting in this world. We know that we have a good, good father that takes care of us, and so we bring that back to him. You could do that electronically, no matter where you are, and we pray. And the reason that we can pray, as we learned in this sermon, is because he's a good dad. And when Jesus said on the cross, it is finished. The curtain was torn, but they separated the presence of God from the people of God.

And now, as co-heirs with Christ, we are invited into the throne room of the Almighty God to bring all of our request to Him. So let's pray. And we sing. Which is like a big corporate prayer of everybody at our church in all the locations, whether it's online or here, wherever it is, we join our voices together and affirm that we're going to build our life on something, but it's not going to be the temporary stuff of this world. We're going to build our life on him and him alone. So let us pray and let us sing, let us bring.

Let's respond.