Matthew 7:24-27
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

The people had heard the sayings of Jesus.  They had heard the Word of God.  But now it was up to them to decide what to do with it.  Jesus had laid out in a very detailed way the things we are to do, the way we are to live our lives, the kinds of behaviors and actions we should have toward others, how to interact with God—a whole multitude of life lessons for how God wants us to live.  And those who heard him could go back and stay the same as they always were.  They could do nothing with the knowledge they’d gained and build their lives on that sand that can shift and offers them nothing to help in times of trouble.

Building on the rock is building on Jesus and what He says, not what we think we should do.  So as we build, we have to consider how great of a destruction we are willing to risk.  The wise man chooses a good location, something sturdy that can withstand powerful forces that may come against it.  He plans for the future and is willing to put in extra work.  But the foolish man chooses what is shallow, convenient, easy, and ultimately unstable.  He doesn’t consider future storms to come.  So even though both men face rain and floods and wind, the outcome is very different.

It is wise to build our lives upon obedience to the words and instruction of Jesus Christ.  It is wise to pay attention to what He says, to put worth and value on His Word, to take it seriously.  And it is foolish to ignore what Jesus says and to not put it into practice in our lives.  It leaves us in a bad place when we disobey Him, especially when we know His Word and still choose to disregard it.  Our attitude toward what God says determines if we stand or fall.

Our relationship with Jesus is first as Savior as we believe on Him for salvation.  But then we know Him as our Lord and submit to Him in obedience to all that He says to do.  So let’s believe Him, trust Him, and build our lives upon His doctrine and dwell upon that solid foundation.  Building on anything else will lead to great destruction.  Because ultimately what Jesus is talking about is a kingdom, a heavenly one beyond this world and this life. That’s what we are getting ready for, and it starts with a right relationship with the King.