48. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. 49. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.
Luke fills us in a few more details of this parable concerning a well-built house. The biggest difference was the wise man was a doer, not just a hearer. Three verbs are used to describe the situation - dug, down, deep and laid the foundation on the rock. The other built on the sand.
is not so much that the foolish man believes that sand was a better foundation to build on, but that he simply gave no thought to the importance of a good foundation. In his view, it was the house which was important and not the foundation.
We might apply the parable to our choice of a lifelong mate. Shall we choose the exciting, popular person even though she/he is arrogant, proud and somewhat flighty or shall we choose the decent, quiet and godly person?
The one who digs must make plans for his house. He studies the blueprints and measures out the dimensions carefully. It takes planning. It takes labor. It takes toil and effort to do it right the first time.
I think about the words “dug deep”. Deep digging is contrasted with shallow work. The deeper you go, the less likely something will fall over. To dig is to toil. To deepen is to toil more. The deeper you go the more difficult it becomes and the harder ground. To deepen is more than just breaking the surface - it is to be willing to discover more and more.
there is the laying of the foundation. Everything depends, not on the construction, but the object upon which the foundation is laid. The foolish man laid his foundation on the sand, the wise man on the rock. That makes all the difference. Sand implies the things which pass away. The foolish man is impatient wanting it done now, quickly and inexpensively. The wise man thinks ahead and makes plans.
Many people see the church in grave peril from a variety of dangers: secularism, politics, heresies, and plain old sin. They forget that the church is built upon a Rock (Mt. 16:16), which the gates of hell itself shall not prevail.”
Jesus was making the point of the differences between hearing and doing. Doing implies commitment to build well and on the right foundation that will not shake and fall. What is missing? The work, the toil, the planning, the preparation, the time, the energy, the money, and the total commitment to making a good house.
Application: Ponder how this is similar to building our spiritual life.
Prayer: Oh Lord Jesus, You are my one foundation. One Lord, one faith, one birth. Lord guide me to keep building on this sure foundation.
