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“Everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.”
— *Matthew 7:26 (NIV)*
The central issue in this passage is not whether we *hear* the words of Jesus, but whether we *do* them. Hearing is not enough. Knowledge is not enough. Correct doctrine, by itself, is not enough. The decisive issue of the Christian life is obedience to the words of Christ.
The lyrics you provided echo the warning and the promise at the end of the Sermon on the Mount. Two men. Two houses. Same storm. Different foundations. One falls with a great crash. One stands firm. The difference is not in what they *heard*, but in what they *did*.
The message is very simple, but its implications are profound:
This is not a message to the world only; it is a message especially to those who *hear* Jesus—churchgoers, Bible readers, worshippers. The greatest spiritual tragedy is to sit under the Word of God, nod in agreement, and yet never build on it through obedience.
Let us look at what the Word of God says and place ourselves under its authority.
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Matthew 7:24–27 is the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5–7). Jesus has just delivered the most concentrated body of ethical and spiritual teaching in the New Testament. He has addressed:
At the end of this sermon, Jesus does not simply say: “Remember these principles,” or, “Admire this teaching.” He drives the hearer to a crisis: *What will you do with My words?*
### Who is speaking?
Jesus speaks as more than a rabbi. He speaks as the authoritative Lawgiver, greater than Moses. Six times in chapter 5 He says, “You have heard that it was said… But I say to you…” He claims the right to interpret and even reframe the Law. At the end, the crowd is astonished:
“For he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.”
— *Matthew 7:29 (ESV)*
So the One who speaks about rock and sand is not a philosopher speculating about life. He is the Son of God, the Judge before whom all will stand.
### To whom is He speaking?
He is addressing those who have already *heard* His teaching. These are not pagans on the street. They are people who followed Him up the mountain, listened, perhaps admired His words.
In the verses just before our text, Jesus has already given two solemn warnings:
1. About false prophets:
“You will recognize them by their fruits” (7:15–20).
2. About false disciples:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (7:21).
Then He describes people who prophesy, cast out demons, and perform miracles in His name, yet He says to them:
“I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”
— *Matthew 7:23*
After that comes the parable of the two builders. In other words, this is not primarily a contrast between “religious people” and “irreligious people.” It is a contrast between two kinds of *hearers of Christ*—those who obey and those who do not.
### The situation pictured
Jesus describes two men building houses. In that culture, especially in parts of Palestine, there were dry stream beds (wadis) that looked safe in the dry season. The ground could appear firm, but when the winter rains came, the wadis would fill suddenly, and the water would tear away anything built on unstable ground.
The “house” represents your life—your character, your faith, and ultimately your eternal destiny. The “storm” represents testing: trials in this life, demonic assaults, and finally the judgment of God.
Both houses are tested. No one is exempt from storms. The gospel does not promise a storm-free life. It promises a foundation that will not fail in any storm.
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Let us look at two key words: “foolish” and “rock.”
### 1. “Foolish” – Greek: *mōros* (μωρός)
Matthew 7:26:
“But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man…”
The Greek word is *mōros*, from which we get the English “moron.” It means:
Biblically, a “fool” is not someone with low intelligence. It is someone who knows what God says and chooses not to act on it. Psalm 14:1:
“The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’”
In Matthew 7, there is no indication that the foolish man *denies* God with his lips. His folly is shown in his refusal to *do* what he hears. He builds a house. He is active. He is religiously engaged. But he ignores the foundation.
So, to hear Christ’s words and not obey is not minor negligence; it is spiritual madness. It is to live as if the storm will never come.
### 2. “Rock” – Greek: *petra* (πέτρα)
Matthew 7:24:
“…a wise man who built his house on the rock.”
The word *petra* refers to a large mass of rock, a bedrock, not a small stone. This same word appears in 1 Corinthians 10:4:
“…For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.”
We must hold two truths together:
To build on the rock, then, means both to anchor ourselves in who Christ is and to submit ourselves to what Christ says. We cannot separate the Person from the Word. A “Christ” whose words we do not obey is an imaginary Christ.
The lyrics say:
“Build on sand and it will fall—
only the rock endures.”
The rock is not our sincerity, not our religious activity, not our emotional experiences, but Christ, received in faith and obeyed in practice.
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### A. Hearing Without Doing: The Root of Collapse
Lyrics:
“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 sand.”
Notice the order:
1. Hears
2. Does not put into practice
3. Result: foolishness and collapse
James picks up the same theme:
“But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
— *James 1:22*
Self-deception is a major spiritual danger. We can hear sermons, underline verses, sing lyrics, and yet never translate them into obedience. When that happens, we live under an illusion of security. The house looks fine—until the storm reveals the foundation.
James continues:
“For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror… and at once forgets what he was like.”
— *James 1:23–24*
The Word exposes our condition, but if we walk away without acting, we lose the benefit. The foolish man in Jesus’ parable is that kind of hearer.
This is a crucial point for spiritual warfare. Demons are not impressed by what we *know*; they are confronted by what we *obey*. In Acts 19, the seven sons of Sceva tried to use the name of Jesus without obedience or submission to Him, and the evil spirit answered:
“Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?” (Acts 19:15)
Knowledge without obedience leaves us spiritually unprotected.
### B. The Storm: Tests, Trials, and Judgment
Lyrics:
“The rain came down, the streams rose,
and the winds blew and beat against that house,
and it fell with a great crash.”
The repetition in the lyrics mirrors the text of Matthew 7:27. Jesus uses three elements:
These symbolize pressures from above, below, and all around. The picture is of total testing.
There are three levels of “storms” in Scripture:
1. Life’s trials and afflictions
Financial pressure, sickness, persecution, disappointment. Peter says:
“Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you… as though something strange were happening to you” (1 Peter 4:12 NASB).
Trials reveal what is in us and what we are standing on.
2. Satanic attacks
Ephesians 6:13:
“Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day…”
When Satan attacks, he always tests the foundation. He questions the Word, as he did in Eden: “Has God really said…?” If our Christian life is not grounded in obedience to the Word, we will be shaken.
3. Final judgment
1 Corinthians 3:13:
“…each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire…”
Everything built on wrong foundations will not survive the final testing.
The song repeats:
“Build on sand and it will fall—
only the rock endures.”
This is absolute. There is no partial survival of a sand-built house. Jesus says: “it fell—and great was its fall.” The language indicates total collapse, and the word “great” emphasizes the magnitude of the ruin.
### C. Sand: Human Wisdom, Religious Formality, Disobedience
What is “sand” in spiritual terms?
Sand is anything we rely on *instead of* obedient submission to the Word of Christ.
Sand includes:
Jesus has just warned of people who prophesy, cast out demons, and do mighty works “in your name” yet are called “workers of lawlessness” (Matthew 7:22–23). Their activities were real; their foundations were wrong. They did things in His name but not in His will.
Sand often looks easier. It is more comfortable. It demands less repentance, less dying to self. But its end is disaster.
Lyrics:
“Hear the words but do not obey—
your foundation will crumble in the storm.”
That is precisely the theology of this passage. To hear without doing is to choose a foundation that will certainly crumble.
### D. Rock: Christ Obeyed, Word Applied
Lyrics:
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine
and does them will be like a wise man
who built his house on the rock.”
The wise man is defined by two things:
1. He hears Jesus’ words.
2. He *does* them.
This is genuine faith. Biblical faith is not mental agreement; it is trust that produces obedience. Hebrews 5:9 says of Jesus:
“And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him.”
There is no salvation apart from obedient faith. Not perfect obedience, but real, practical obedience that flows from trusting Christ.
Obedience is the mark of wise building.
Jesus Himself is our pattern. Philippians 2:8:
“And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
If the Son of God learned obedience (Hebrews 5:8) and walked in it to the end, how can we imagine a “Christianity” that treats obedience as optional?
Building on the rock means:
The reward is stability. When the storm comes, the house stands. Not because we are clever, but because we have aligned ourselves with the unshakable foundation:
“For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
— *1 Corinthians 3:11*
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We must move from hearing to doing. I will outline four practical steps, framed as both actions and proclamations.
### 1. Examine Your Foundation Honestly
First, we must allow the Holy Spirit to search our lives.
2 Corinthians 13:5 says:
“Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves.”
Questions to ask before God:
This requires honesty. Many believers hide behind religious activity. But the issue is not, “Do I go to church?” The issue is, “Do I obey Jesus in the things He has shown me?”
Proclamation:
“I choose to examine my foundation in the light of God’s Word. I refuse self-deception. I invite the Holy Spirit to expose any ‘sand’ in my life.”
### 2. Repent Where You Have Been a Hearer Only
Second, we must repent of selective obedience.
Repentance (*metanoia* in Greek) is a change of mind that produces a change of direction. It is not mere regret, but a decisive turning.
If the Spirit shows you an area where you have heard but not obeyed—perhaps in forgiveness, sexual purity, financial integrity, submission, truthfulness—you must respond.
Acts 3:19:
“Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out.”
Proclamation:
“Where I have heard the words of Jesus and not obeyed, I repent. I turn from disobedience and from building on sand. I renounce every pattern of hearing without doing.”
### 3. Commit to Systematic, Practical Obedience
Third, we must form a lifestyle of obedience.
Colossians 3:16:
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly…”
The Word must:
Here are practical steps:
James 1:25 promises:
“But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.”
Blessing is attached not to hearing but to “doing.”
Proclamation:
“I commit myself to be a doer of the Word. I choose to translate the teaching of Jesus into daily obedience, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.”
### 4. Build with Storm-Preparation in Mind
Fourth, we must live with the storm in view.
Most people build for appearance and comfort. The wise build for endurance. 1 Peter 4:7 says:
“The end of all things is at hand; therefore be self-controlled and sober-minded…”
We should ask in each major decision:
Think especially of three areas:
1. Marriage and family – Are you building your home on the Word (Ephesians 5–6), or on culture and convenience?
2. Finances – Are you obeying God in stewardship, generosity, and integrity? Or are you following the world’s system?
3. Spiritual disciplines – Are you anchoring your life in prayer, the Word, fellowship, and obedience? Or is your spiritual life occasional and casual?
Proclamation:
“I choose to build every area of my life with the storm in mind. I will not live for appearance or convenience, but for obedience to Jesus Christ, my Rock.”
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### Proclamation
Say this out loud, thoughtfully, in faith:
“I declare that Jesus Christ is my Rock, my only sure foundation. I renounce every form of sand—human wisdom, religious tradition, and disobedience to the Word of God. I refuse to be a hearer only; by God’s grace I choose to be a doer of the Word. I build my life, my home, my future, and my eternal destiny on the words of Jesus, obeyed in faith. When the rain falls, when the floods rise, when the winds blow and beat against my house, I shall stand, because my foundation is the Rock that endures forever—Jesus Christ and His unchanging Word. Amen.”
### Prayer
“Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Rock of Ages, the solid foundation laid by God Himself. I confess that many times I have heard Your words and have not fully obeyed. I ask You to forgive me for every area where I have built on sand. Holy Spirit, shine Your light into my heart. Expose every false confidence, every compromise, every form of self-deception. Grant me true repentance.
Write Your Word on my heart. Give me the fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom. Strengthen my will to obey, even when it is costly, even when I do not see the immediate benefit. Teach me to build daily—thought by thought, choice by choice—on the Rock of Your Word.
I ask that my life, my family, and all that You have entrusted to me would be established on Christ alone. Let every storm only prove the strength of Your foundation in me. Keep me from spiritual folly. Make me a wise builder who hears and does. I ask this in Your mighty name, Lord Jesus. Amen.”
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