After telling his disciples that the Narrow Gate to the Kingdom is “(doing) the will of my Father in heaven.” Jesus then launches immediately into a word picture to describe it. Frankly, he reveals that “doing the will of the Father” is so basic, anyone can do it.
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.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 rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!”
So Jesus wants his disciples to get this clear point before they head down the hill and try to live like Kingdom people. That narrow gate that most people will not choose is doing the will of the Father in heaven. And the will of the Father, Jesus says is to “hear these words of mine and act on them.”
In other words, to do the will of the Father, it is not enough to simply show up for the sermon, you must live the Kingdom. You have to hear the words and then live them out.
My friends, so often when we hear passages like this one, we hear them with the voice of judgement. It is a stern voice, a harsh voice. A voice of ultimatum. But that is not the voice I hear. The voice I hear in this text is sober, and urgent and indeed a bit confronting. It is a voice that is trying to get our attention, warning us of the precariousness of our position and trying to break through the fearful haze that so many of us live in each day. Like my Father’s voice calling up at me. “Tod, do you trust me? Tod, if you do, you must move, now, you must act on my words. You must do what I tell you.”
My friends, this is the voice of love, the voice of grace. Jesus looks at those whom he has gathered at his feet, who has listened to him tell of the Kingdom and I believe he says, pleading with us, “I know there are a lot of teachers out there. I know there are a lot of spiritual options. But, do not take the wide road. Do not build on the sand. For that is the way of destruction. I warn you, I beg of you.”
My friends, when the storm comes will you be those who are on the hard firm road, the rock of truth? And notice that I say when, not if, the storm comes, because it will most certainly come.
As one fine theologian, Bono, lead singer of the rock band U2, said in a Rolling Stone interview last month: “I want to build my house on a rock because even if the waters are not high around the house, I’m going to bring back a storm. I have that in me.”
Some of us get that don’t we? We may not be in the middle of a storm, right now, but we are certainly capable of blowing our lives to pieces, aren’t we? My friends, where are you this morning? What are you building your life on?
What gate are you entering, what road are you taking? This is your opportunity today. Do you trust Jesus? Do you take him at his word? You have heard the word, indeed we hear it every week.
Do we believe it, does it change the way we live and work, and spend our money, and use our time? Does it change our marriages and parenting style, our choices we make about the future and friends? Do we put the Kingdom first, do we live out the righteousness that only Jesus the King can bring in our lives?
My friends, Jesus is telling us that in every life a moment of truth will come. A storm will appear on the horizon or well up within your heart and at that moment the fruit of your choice of gates and roads and rock or sand will be evident. Jesus comes with a sharp word that is meant to get our attention so that we will not miss it, but it is a word of love, of truth, of caring.
To enter through the narrow gate that leads to life, to build the house of your life on solid rock, to do the will of the Father who loves us is nothing more or nothing less than to hear the words of Jesus and do what he says. To hear the words of Jesus announcing the Kingdom and to live out the Kingdom in our lives. Starting now, at this moment, God helping us by the power of the Holy Spirit that he offers.
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