In Matthew 7:24-27, Jesus stressed the vital importance of having the right foundation for life — and the utter foolishness of having an inadequate foundation.
The contrast Christ makes in verse 24 is between doing (obeying) His Word and disobeying it. The right foundation is Christ and His Word. The person who knows Christ and, as a result, obeys His truth, is the one with the rock solid foundation.
Some commentators believe the foolish man built his house in a dry riverbed during the dry season. When the heavy rains came, his house was destroyed. It could also simply mean that one man built his house on sand, choosing to disregard established truths regarding the necessity of a good foundation. Whatever circumstance is in mind, the significance of a solid foundation is the key.
Two scenarios are presented: a foolish builder and a wise builder. Their houses were probably built from the same materials and maybe even looked alike. In appearance, both houses seemed good. In both cases, a common experience revealed the soundness of the foundations — a storm. Storms in Palestine often developed quickly with intensity and rain, which many times led to flash flooding. In life, people will go through many of the same types of experiences that are common to nearly all human beings. Being a Christ-follower does not exempt us from trouble, temptation, bad breaks or heartaches. God gives us His Word to anchor us in truth, His Spirit to give us power, and faith to please Him and be a blessing to us during our journey on this earth.
A house built on sand is like a person who refuses to trust God, obey His Word, and order his or her life accordingly. When the inevitable storms come, the result is disaster. Verse 27 says, “Great was its fall.” John MacArthur underscores the point: “That is the destiny of those who build on the sand of man’s ideas, man’s philosophies, and man’s religions. It is not that such people will have little left, but nothing left.”
There can be a world of difference between knowing the Word and obeying the Word. If we do not obey the Word, the Word is not our basis or foundation for life. James 1:22-25 says, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at himself in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does.”
This issue is not salvation by works, but salvation by grace that works!
A wise person builds his or her life on the solid foundation of truth. Jesus is truth. His word is truth.
Edward Mote wrote “The Solid Rock” in 1834. The third stanza of that hymn says, “When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil. On Christ the solid rock I stand. All other ground is sinking sand.”
Jesus could not have made it clearer. Wise people trust Christ and obey His Word throughout life. The foolish do not. The storms in life will reveal what kind of foundation we have.