Matthew 7:24-27
When hard times come, what do you do? You examine the foundation.
Our Lord says,
Matthew 7:24-27
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. But 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.
If you had walked up to these two houses, you would not have been able to tell the difference. But when the storm came, the difference was revealed—in the foundation.
How to Have Faith
Jesus taught that the Word of God is the foundation, or rock. How can we be sure we have rock-solid faith?
1. Make Sure You Have the Word of God
Matthew 7:15
Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
There are two ways Satan wars against the Church: persecution, and infiltration. Here, our Lord is talking about infiltration—about those who pretend to be prophets of God, but really are the enemy within the gates. (Read Acts 20:28-30; 2 Corinthians 11:14-15.) There are only two kinds of religion: the true and the false. Make certain you are building upon the Word of God.
How do we know? Jesus said, “You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16a). Are you becoming more like Christ Jesus?
2. Hear the Word of God
Luke 6 records Jesus telling this same story about two builders and adds some details.
Luke 6:48a
He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock.
Jesus is saying that sometimes, you must dig to get to rock. Many of you have no foundation, because you don’t hear the word of God, because you are not listening.
“Hearing” does not mean simply letting the sound waves in your ears. Have you ever told a child to do something and then said, “Do you hear me?” You know the child heard you. You want to know, did the child hear you?
3. Heed the Word of God
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22).
You are saved by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone—it is always accompanied by good works. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also” (James 2:26).
Faith Is Necessary to Overcome Challenges
The test of your faith is your stability in the storm.
The writer of Hebrews tells exciting victories of faith: of Daniel in the lions’ den, Moses at the Red Sea, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego taken out of the fiery furnace. (Read Hebrews 11:17-35.)
Then he goes on:
Hebrews 11:36-37
Still others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yes, and of chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, were tempted, were slain with the sword. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, tormented…
They did this by faith.
Difficulty does not mean God has abandoned you. (See Habakkuk 3:17-18.) Trust God. Faith is not receiving from God the things you want; it is accepting from God the things He gives.
