Any good building contractor knows you need a solid plan before starting any building project. The plan needs to include a careful consideration of building and zoning codes. Before people can live in the house or use the building or space being built, it will have to pass inspection. There is no point in going through all the work of building a house that can never be lived in. The building codes are intended to help the building stand and work well. The inspection is required to ensure the building is secure. The rains will come. The wind will come. Hail, fire, flooding, or life-threatening storms may come. It is essential to have a good plan.
What about life in general, though? How do you face life? What are the codes you need to consider as you build a life? What do you do when storms come? Do you have a plan?
Jesus said: ” Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the wind blew and beat against the house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rains came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” (Mt 7: 24-27)
What is Jesus talking about here? What comes before the “therefore”? What are the words we are to hear and put into practice? How can we become wise builders living on the rock? How can we be the people who can endure the storm, still standing?
To find out, we will have to go back and figure out what Jesus was saying before he shared this part of the teaching. In Matthew 4:23 and following, we learn that Jesus went throughout Galilee teaching in the synagogues. We also learn what he was talking about - the good news of the kingdom; and what he did - he healed every disease and sickness among the people. As you can imagine, as a result, Jesus became famous and very popular among the people. We learn that large crowds came out to follow him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and the region across the Jordan.
It is hard to take in exactly what that means. Scholars have suggested it covers the “compass” with Gailee in the NW, the Decapoils (made up of ten cities) in the NE, Judea in the SW, beyond the Jordan in the SE, and the center region of Jerusalem. Jesus has been busy. (1)
It is also helpful to understand that these areas were not just different geographically but spiritually and politically. Nazareth of Galilee was where Jesus was raised. It was a diverse region. Some thought the Galileans needed to follow the law more closely, socially and religiously. Galilee was the kind of place where a revolution could begin.
So people have come from the north, south, east, and west to be with Jesus. He is teaching them about the kingdom of God. He is healing them of every sickness and disease, and they follow him. As one scholar points out, “Jesus not only talks, he heals. In fact, he often heals by talking.” (1) People want to be with him. To be changed, you have to want it. People left their homes and followed him. They were on their way to becoming wise people who built their lives on the rock. Let’s join them. Over the next couple of months, we will go into this teaching together by looking at what has come to be known as the Sermon on the Mount. (2)
“I believe that the greatest gift of Jesus, outside the gift of himself…is the Sermon on the Mount.” Dallas Willard (3)
If you want to do deeper….
Read
Matthew 4:23-25. (You may want to try reading it from a different translation.)
Reflect
1. How do you face life?
2. If you were one of the people in the crowd, what would you most want to hear from Jesus right now?
3. What healing do you need?
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1. Frederick Dale Bruner, Matthew Commentary: The Christbook Matthew 1 - 12, Revised and Expanded Version.
2. Jesus did not call his teachings “The Sermon on the Mount”. That term was added later as a way to refer to it. Bible scholar and teacher Dale Bruner calls it Jesus' “State of the Universe” address. Jesus probably shared this same teaching many times in different places with different groups of people. Another version is found in the Gospel of Luke. A good teacher may say things differently in various settings to care for his listeners. It is important to keep this in mind, as different interpretations focus on different aspects of the Sermon on the Mount.
The Sermon of the Mount can be found in Matthew 5 - 7. However, many believe it begins in Matthew 4:23. (W.D. Davies and D.C.Allison Hr., Matthew, ICC: Vol.1, Matthew 1-7) Some scholars place it within an ever larger unit of teaching - Frederick Dale Bruner, Matthew 4:23 - 9:35. See Matthew Commentary: The Christbook,
3. Dallas Willard, Renewing the Christian Mind: Essays, Interviews, and Talks