Words of Jesus.- “Hearing and Acting” 9-7-25

Overview

Hearing and Acting: Building on the Rock

At the close of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus draws a sharp line between two kinds of hearers. "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock" Matthew 7:24-27. The Greek word for "rock" here doesn't mean a stone or boulder—it points to a massive, immovable formation: solid, stable, sure. The fool, by contrast, builds on sand, and when the rains and floods come, great is the fall. The difference between the two builders is not whether they hear Jesus' words, but whether they act on them.

The storms come for both the wise and the foolish—wisdom does not exempt us from them. What wisdom provides is a foundation that holds. As 1 Peter 1:24-25 reminds us, "All flesh is like grass… the grass withers and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord endures forever." The call of Christ is to hear his words, act on them, and build our lives on that enduring rock.

And yet, our sinful nature is strangely drawn to the sand. The Beatitudes show us the rock; our hearts often prefer the alternatives. Instead of being poor in spirit, we explain away our sin. Instead of mourning over it, we shrug. Instead of meekness as controlled strength, we impose our will. Instead of hungering for God's righteousness, we settle for our own. Instead of mercy, we want others to get exactly what they deserve. Instead of purity of heart and peacemaking, we maneuver to win. And when persecution or discomfort comes for Christ's name, we slip into the suit of compromise to blend in. Sand castles are appealing, but they will not stand against the rising tide.

The good news is that God refuses to leave us in our foolishness. The red letters—the words of Jesus—come to us covered in the promise of his blood. This is the cup "poured out for you" Luke 22:20, through which our sins are atoned, we are redeemed, and we are reconciled to God. Christ is our way, truth, and life John 14:6; our light John 8:12; our strength Isaiah 41:10; and our song Ephesians 5:19-20. By his grace, he keeps pulling us sand-lovers back onto the rock, giving us ears that hear and lives that act on his word. There is much to hear, and much to act on. Come to the red letters.

Transcript

Would you open your Bibles Please with me to Matthew the 7th chapter if you're using a 2s

Pew edition of Holy Scripture you'll find in the Pew rack in front of you or underneath 7s

you you'll find that in the New Testament on page 6 Matthew the 7th chapter for our 13s

time in God's Word today. 19s

Lewis Clopchish 1899 and Lewis had an idea. 24s

Lewis dearly loved the Lord and he wanted the Word of God to be placed in the hands of 33s

as many people as possible and only to place the Word of God into people's hands but he 41s

was an idea. 52s

What about taking the words of Jesus and putting them in red ink and what was born was the 55s

first red letter edition of the Bible. 69s

The printing run was 60,000 and since that time there's been a few more red letter 74s

Bibles printed haven't there. 82s

Today we start a new sermon series. 87s

It's a sermon series that's going to extend through the end of May of 2026. 90s

I've entitled it simply red letter words. 97s

We're going to look at a lot of the red letter words in the Bible those words of Jesus. 102s

And after the introductory sermon this morning as we proceed through these months together 110s

and looking at the red letter words there's going to be seven different sections. 117s

So after the introductory sermon today we're going to take a look at a section on the 124s

great I am passages and scripture that our Lord said. 129s

It's entitled I am you are. 135s

And we're going to see in light of Jesus' I am statements who we are after that section. 139s

We're going to take a look at what did Jesus recorded in scripture what did Jesus give 148s

thanks for? 154s

What did he give thanks for following that? 156s

We move into Advent. 161s

We move into a section that's entitled Advent anticipation the Baptist and beyond. 163s

Well, take a look what did Jesus say about John the Baptist and what did he say about 170s

beyond specifically an advent theme of the second coming of Christ. 175s

And we're going to look particularly at some passages that are particularly misinterpreted. 181s

Following that we enter into the Christmas season and we're going to take a look at first words. 189s

What were the first words that each of the gospel writers recorded of Jesus? 197s

After the first words section we're going to take a look over the stories that Jesus told. 206s

What were the stories that will take us to Holy Week? 212s

Just thinking ahead here now Easter Sunday on April 5th. 217s

So we just back it up on that great week in the life of the church. 221s

What did Jesus say during Holy Week? 226s

And then for the rest of the Easter season and all the way through to the end of May, 231s

we're going to take a look at what Jesus didn't say. 237s

We're going to take a look at words that are oftentimes attributed to God, but it's no place in Scripture. 242s

And so we're going to ask the question, 249s

what did Jesus say to the words that he never said? 252s

And so we start today on our nine-month journey together in the red letter words. 257s

And we start in Matthew 7th chapter. 266s

In Matthew 7th chapter it's at the conclusion of Jesus's great sermon, the sermon on the Mount. 274s

In Jesus draws a distinction. He draws a distinction between a wise man and a fool. 282s

Look, please, at verse 24 of Matthew 7th chapter. 290s

Jesus says, everyone then who hears these words of mine and axon them will be like a wise man, 295s

who built his house on rock. 305s

The rain fell, the floods came, the winds blew and beat on that house, 308s

but it did not fall because it had been founded on rock. 313s

That word there for rock, it's not a stone, it's not a boulder, 318s

that word means a massive formation, a massive formation of rock, 327s

immovable, solid, stable. 339s

The opposite then of the wise man, Jesus paints the picture of the fool. 346s

Look, please, at verse 26. 355s

And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man, 359s

who built his house on sand. The rain fell and the floods came and the winds blew and beat 365s

against that house and it fell and great was its fall. That's an image that the people of that day 371s

they would have readily understood, readily understood because in the Holy Land there can be 380s

two racial rains that all of the sudden can come upon you. 385s

And so someone who builds their house on the sand? 390s

Well, everyone would have known what would have happened. 397s

Look again now at the distinction, verse 24. 406s

Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man. 412s

Who built his house on rock, 26. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them 420s

will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 429s

The call then, as Jesus makes this distinction clear, this call then is to hear 436s

His words to act on them, to live on them. The solid rock of the words of Jesus. 443s

In first Peter, the first chapter we read, all flashes like grass and all that's glory like the 458s

root of grass. The grass withers and the flower falls but the word of the Lord 468s

endures forever. The solid, immutable rock of the word to hear 476s

and to act to live based on that word. 493s

But but. 513s

My parents recommended it to me for quite a few years 517s

and we never took him up for some reason on it. They had made several trips to Hawaii. 523s

In fact, I remember in the church basement in the state of Washington there was a 25th 533s

anniversary party for my folks and my father surprised my mother with a trip to Hawaii. 540s

She had no idea that it was coming absolutely none. That had skimmed a little bit. I don't 548s

recommend this for couples by the way. He had skimmed a little bit of the paycheck for years and 557s

had his little Hawaii fund and so he surprised her on a Sunday and the church basement Tuesday 565s

they were there were gone. They made a few trips, maybe three or four trips to Hawaii. 572s

But they said, you know the beach that we love. The beach that we love is destined Florida. 581s

He said, you should go to destiny. I don't know why we didn't take them up on their advice 589s

but but finally one year we did. They were right. We should have done that long time ago. 595s

It had never been to destined Florida. The sand is just this beautiful white. 602s

And the thing about it is, is it can be a hundred degrees outside and a humid floor at a day 613s

and you can walk on this sand and it never burns your feet. Growing up in California, 620s

I understood hot sand. I remember when we would park the car and then running over the sand 628s

to get the blanket down quickly and then running to the water with my boogie board to calm my feet. 635s

I understand hot sand. Distant Florida, you don't have that at all. 642s

Someone described it as like walking on a pillow. Good description. 649s

It's a quartz crystal composition in the sand. So that repels the heat. 656s

And then the sand being so white, well that reflects the sun. 665s

My folks were absolutely right. We should have gone there a lot sooner. 672s

We've made repeat trips after that. 677s

There's something so appealing about that sand. Something so appealing about the sand. 680s

There's something also in a sad way, so appealing about building our lives on sand. 698s

Something so appealing about it. Instead of building it on the rock, 709s

of hearing and acting on the word of God. That solid rock of God's word. There's something 717s

about the sand that our sinful nature is just drawn to like a beach on a summer day. 723s

For some reason we are drawn to the squishiness and the softness and the lack of stability 736s

of building one's life on sand. This is the immediate context here for example here in the sermon on 746s

Mount. As Jesus was was giving earlier in the sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes. 758s

We're at say blessed are that word there means more than happy. In other words, it's a happiness 765s

that's not based upon the circumstances of life. It's a happiness that's rooted in a spiritual 771s

joy born out of who God is and his promises. And Jesus said, blessed are the poor in spirit, 776s

more than happy with the spiritual joy are those when the poor in spirit. But we're drawn to the sand. 787s

We're drawn to the sand to build our lives on the sand where there isn't an acknowledgement 796s

of our sinfulness. We just kind of can explain it away maybe or, well, you know, 803s

everybody's human and we've got a whole list of things that we can use but we're we're drawn to the opposite. 811s

Jesus said, blessed are those who mourn. Jesus wasn't talking about grief over the loss of a 821s

loved one there. He was talking about mourning over the reality of our sin. But instead of of being 827s

sad with regard to our sinfulness, we can have a lack of sorrow as we enjoy our feet in sand. 834s

Jesus said, blessed are those who are meek. Meek doesn't mean milk toast here. Meek means 851s

controlled strength. And yet there's some kind of appeal of the sand where instead of controlled 858s

strength, we'll go to whatever means to impose our will on the somebody because our will 865s

is going to be what reads. Jesus said, blessed are the righteousness, but we can be drawn to building 873s

our lives on the sand of that which we think is right. Jesus said, blessed are the merciful 881s

and yet the appeal of the sand is to say, I'm going to give them exactly what they deserve. 888s

Jesus said, blessed are the pure in heart. We can be tempted to build our lives on the 900s

blessed are the peacemakers. But what is it about the sand that's so alluring to us that we just 911s

simply want to conquer the other. Jesus said, blessed are those who are persecuted for his name 918s

and yet there's the appeal of the sand of building our life upon the sand where if there's 928s

any discomfort that comes for standing for Christ, we can run, we can run to the changing area 935s

to get out of any type of discomfort. We can run quickly and put on the suit of compromise 944s

so that we can simply blend in. The sand can be so very, very appealing and we can 953s

build our castles of sand and we discover that they won't stand to the waves that come. 965s

They won't stand when the clouds come over the horizon and come right to the shore. 984s

They won't stand as the tide begins to rise. There's the appeal to the sand. 991s

But God will not leave us in our foolishness. You won't. 1012s

Lewis Copschitch, that idea in 1899, to be precise the idea came on June 19th of 1899 1029s

on that day and on that day he was reading from Luke the 22nd chapter and he read this 1041s

cup. Jesus said, that his poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood. 1054s

This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant of my blood. As Jesus instituted the 1065s

sacrament of holy communion at the Passover celebration when with the cross right on the precipice, 1072s

that's what Lewis read. He read about the blood of Christ and he said, 1082s

the words of Jesus, they should be put in red so that every time we read the word, 1092s

it's the blood that comes to mind. For through the blood of Jesus Christ, all of our sin 1107s

has been atoned for through the blood of Jesus Christ, we have been redeemed. We have been 1118s

bought back through the blood of Jesus Christ, a reconciliation between God and humanity has been 1125s

enacted through the blood of Jesus Christ. We stand as the people knowing that the tomb of our 1132s

Lord is empty that Jesus reigns that He has prepared for us a place in the beauty of heaven. 1143s

We are washed in the promises that God has won through us through His blood and through the 1151s

truth, we are washed in that the dead. Paint. Beloved Christ is our hope. 1160s

John 14, Jesus said, I am thee way and thee truth and thee life. No one comes to the Father except 1179s

through me. Beloved, Jesus is our light. Jesus said, in John 8, I'm the light of the world, 1187s

whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. 1197s

Beloved, Jesus is our strength. Isaiah 41 records that God says, I will strengthen you. I will help you. 1203s

I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. Beloved, Jesus is our song. 1214s

Paul writes in Ephesians the 5th chapter, sings songs and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, 1223s

singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks to God the Father at all times, 1231s

and for everything in the name of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Jesus said, 1238s

everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built 1248s

his house on rock. The rain fell, the flood came and the winds blew and beat on that house, 1258s

but it did not fall because it had been founded on rock. That foundation is sure. 1266s

And notice that the wise are not immune to the storms that come. 1282s

The wise simply stand on the foundation of the word. 1297s

Thanks be to God that He keeps pulling us sand lovers back on to the rock and by his grace 1313s

empowering us to have ears that hear and powering us to act and live, 1334s

based upon his words. Come. Let's dive into the red words together. 1352s

Let all of those red words remind you of the blood of Jesus. 1368s

There is much to hear and much to act on. 1377s

So come to the red letters we go. 1389s