Holy Boldness

In this parable, two men, one wise and one foolish build a house, and both houses seem secure. Eventually, both builders faced a formida ble storm. One man’s house survives and one does not. What was the difference between the two? The difference was the foundation. One man built his house on a rock and one man built his house on sand. Quickly and simply, Jesus pressed His point…. Whoever hears “these sayings of mine and does them is like the man who built his house on the rock.” Those who hear but do not do what is said are like the man who built his house on the sand. The houses serve as metaphors of each man’s life. One of them actually submitted to the council of Jesus and was prepared for the storm and one of them did not and suffered the consequences. Here obedience is placed squarely at the heart of the issue. This parable teaches a simple lesson: that it does not do a person any good to hear truth but not implement truth. The truth carries an obligation to put it into practice. To have truth but refuse to submit to it, is to choose darkness. This is the moral power of the message. The evangelical climate of the church in western culture has caused many to believe that obedience in the Christian life is optional . The forgiveness of God is taught in such a way as to imply that people can be Christians and yet live nominal, uncommitted lives without any detrimental effects. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German pastor who died at the hands of the Nazis, called this kind of teaching “ Cheap Grace”. He said, “Cheap grace is the kind of grace people dispense upon themselves.” 23 People believe what they want to believe. Some listen for truth and some listen for what reinforces what they already believe. In this parable, Jesus is not just telling a parable about truth in general but insisting that the real meaning of the parable is about Him! Jesus made the remarkable assertion that listening to His words and implementing them is the key to surviving the final judgment. This is as clear of a claim to being the Messiah as one could make. How a person relates to Jesus and His teaching will be the determining factor of how Obedience: the heart of the issue

23 Bonhoeffer, Dietrich The Cost of Discipleship Macmillan Compa ny, New York 1970 p. 10

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