Recently a portion of North Jersey was hit with a major rainstorm, bringing
16 inches of water in less than 12 hours. The result was devastating as several
roads buckled, while dams burst open draining whole lakes, causing major
flooding. On one block we saw a house had been washed away by a new river that
actually ran through house, yet only a few hundred feet away, another house was
barely affected because it was built high upon a rock.
The world’s
largest ministry, PTL, once had the largest television network in the world.
They had hotels, fancy cars, airplanes, and even one of the largest amusement
parks in America. PTL introduced some of the most famous “prosperity” teachers
in America today. PTL had hundreds of millions of dollars pouring in, and
founders, Jim and Tammy Fay Bakker each had multimillion dollar salaries, yet
when the storms of life hit, they both lost everything. Jim ended up spending
years in jail cleaning toilets for 11 cents per hour. Jim later wrote in his
book, “I Was Wrong,” that he never built his ministry upon the Rock of God’s
Word, and he repented of his wrongs.
While in Cuba, I asked God to
show me what is the most important thing I could be teaching the Cuban brothers
and sisters, and He showed me to teach them to build their ministries, and lives
upon His Word. But the more I meditated upon this, the more I realized that is
the problem with Christianity today; we don’t want the “hard” work of building a
proper foundation of obedience to God’s Word. Instead, we want the shallow
foundation of experiences, dreams and signs.
For some of us, the
storms are already hitting and we are wondering if we are going to survive! The
foundation that we built our life upon is starting to rock our world with
insurmountable problems, and we are wondering what we did wrong. We may need to
reexamine the foundation in which we are building our lives upon so that we can
know for sure that we will survive the storms of life. So let us learn how we
can make sure we are building upon the right foundation.
Matthew 7:21-27 gives us an illustration of the different types of builders and
foundations: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon
them, may be compared to a wise man, who built his house upon the rock. And the
rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that
house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. And
everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like
a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. And the rain descended, and
the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell,
and great was its fall.”
Now according to Matthew 7, there are two
ways in which to build: one on the sand and the other on the Rock. What we see
represented in this passage are two people building their lives on different
foundations. From the outside, these two homes probably look very similar. The
same is true of us; we are similar in many ways. Many of us attend the same
fellowship, we carry the same Bibles, and we do the same works, but the
difference is that we may be building our lives on different foundations.
The house in this passage represents your life, but it could also represent your
ministry, your marriage, your business, etc… So it is important to understand
the basis upon which we build our lives, because according to this passage, the
storms will hit, and then we will see the worth of our construction.
The Differences in Foundations
I am the type of person that, if
there is an easy way to do something, I want it. Yet, I have learned the lesson
over and over again that if I do not build a proper groundwork or foundation to
what I am planning, and a problem arises, those plans usually crash. One of the
reasons why some build houses on the sand is that no hard work is involved and
results are achieved quickly. To build a foundation on a rock takes time, sweat,
and work. It requires hard discipline and obedience to a set plan. The sand is
actually not a foundation but is a representation of personal opinions,
attitudes, and wills as opposed to the obedience of God’s Word. Instead of using
the Scriptures as our standard, we use our own methods. But God warns us about
building without His foundation.
The saddest part of building your
life on the sand is that it is a house that cannot hold out against a storm.
Without a foundation, there is nothing solid holding the house together. So when
the storms of life come beating against the house built on sand, that house will
collapse. How many Christians have we seen that have built their spiritual lives
on ceremonies, rituals, visions, experience, feelings, prophecies, self
purpose... everything but the Word of God, and when they face a major trial,
their whole spiritual life collapses? Let us examine some of the different types
of foundations that we build our lives upon.
Building on the
Foundation of self-will
Building on the sand of self-will is
one of the most dangerous types of foundations upon which you can build. It is
like building your house on quick sand! Imagine if I am having a house built and
I keep giving the builder instructions on what I want done, but I know nothing
about construction. (In reality, I don’t!) The builder tells me that I need
support beams throughout the house and I tell him that I don’t care what he
thinks, I don’t like them. Then the builder says that I need plywood to
construct the house and I tell him I want cardboard instead and I’m in control,
not him. As ridiculous as this sounds, we do the same thing when God tells us
what He wants from us and we say that we know what we are doing. We know what
the Bible says, but we want to do things our own way. Instead of living by the
words of Jesus, “not my will but your will Lord,” we would rather do our
own will and pray that God blesses it!
If you are living your life
against the principles of the Bible, instead of relying upon your own feelings
or your own opinions, then you must really examine yourself like 2 Corinthians
13:5 declares, “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine
yourselves! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is
in you - unless indeed you fail the test?”
I have had Christians
tell me that they are marrying unbelievers even if God’s Word is against it (2
Corinthians 6:14). I am shocked when Christians tell me that women should have
the choice to get an abortion, and they get mad when I tell them that is against
God’s Word. People have actually said to me, I don’t care what God thinks, I’m
doing this anyway!
Unfortunately, we are becoming a society of
Christians that believe, if we feel or think a certain way, it must be truth.
There are no more absolutes, or adherence to God’s Word, but simply a faith
based on self-centered thinking. We have become like the Israelites worshipping
the golden calf, dancing, laughing, and worshipping the way we want instead of
the way God wants us to worship. The Israelites tempted God’s faithfulness many
times and they lived in constant turmoil, despair, confusion and terrible pain.
Yet, they could have lived in a land flowing with milk and honey, with rest and
peace, if they simply entered into God’s rest, and yet they refused! What did
they have to show for it? A generation of fighting, bitterness and complaining
and never finding the peace, love, and joy that they were seeking.
God tells us not to harden our hearts like the Israelites did in rebellion. He
said of the wandering Israelites, “Their hearts are always going astray, and
they have not known my ways.” If we would simply come to God and die to our own
ways, thoughts, opinions and ideas, and trust God in obedience to His Word, then
we would never be swept away from any storms. Instead of a demanding, full of
activity life-style, God wants us to wait upon Him, to fellowship with Him, and
to let Him direct our steps. The old gospel song still challenges us when it
says, “Oh what peace we often forfeit, Oh, what needless pain we bear, All
because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” Psalm 32:8-10 sums it up
when it says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I
will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which
have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not
come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD’s unfailing love
surrounds the man who trusts in Him.”
Building on the Foundation
of Feelings or Experiences
I truly love being in God’s presence
and I cannot put into words how you sense the power of the Holy Spirit sweeping
through Cuba. Yet, as individuals, we all have personal subjective experiences
with God, but that experience must always be evaluated by God’s Word which is
objective truth.
The house build by the foolish builder represents
putting one’s own “feelings” or “experiences” over the Word of God. This person
is sensual not Scriptural. He is a slave to his feelings and they are usually
his final decision. Unfortunately today, people would rather “experience” God
than read His Word. People tell me they know that God works a certain way
because they have experienced it. This thinking is believed even if it goes
against God’s Word! When a famous evangelist is cupping his hands blowing on
people to “blow the Holy Spirit into them,” and they fall over, this is total
blasphemy! ONLY JESUS has the power to blow the Holy Spirit into someone. My
Spirit is deeply disturbed when I see “prophetic teachers,” who claim to get
direct revelations from God that go contrary to God’s Word. YES, God still
speaks, but it has to line up with His Word, otherwise it is not from Him! God
NEVER goes against His Word. One famous teacher claimed a direct prophetic
message which shows that there are nine parts to God which is contrary to the
Scriptures and yet his book is one of the most popular in the world!
The problem is that the person who builds on feelings or experience refuses to
pay attention to doctrines. They don’t even care about the doctrines of sin,
salvation, repentance and faith, justification and sanctification, or even the
doctrines of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. They just want the blessings of
God, not the responsibilities. This is the type of person that does not build a
foundation because they have not dug deep into the Word of God (Luke 6:48). God
has given us His Word, which needs to be studied and applied, and unless that
requirement is met, we will NEVER survive the storms of life.
The
Bible tells us that people who live by experiences are like infants, “tossed
back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching
and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming (Ephesians
4:14). Instead of having the quiet assurance that God is in control, we look for
His signs and wonders even though He warned us that a “wicked and adulterous
generation seeks a sign (Matthew 16:4). There is no “new” revelation or prophecy
that supersedes the Bible, despite what many “famous” teachers are claiming.
Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever...” The next
verse says, “Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings.”
His teachings are the same as they were yesterday, today and forever!
When you build your life on the Rock of God’s Word you realize that those who
worship God must worship in Spirit and in Truth because God is Spirit. On the
other hand, Tricia Tillian of Banner Ministries in UK expresses basing your
faith on experiences so well when she says:
“demons interact with
people in the flesh - that is, in the physical body, and in the mental realm
(emotions, desires, feelings). They give bodily sensations (shivers, shakes,
heat, tingles, weakness, energy, etc.) and mental feelings (overwhelming
burdens, or intoxicating sensations of joy, revelations, strong desires,
impulses to do irrational things, etc.). “Although God is interested in our
bodies as well our souls, His area of involvement with a Christian is primarily
in the spirit.”
Jesus told us in Luke 18:8, “When the Son
of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” I did not understand that
verse for years. I kept on thinking of the millions of Christians around the
world, and Jesus questioning whether He would find faith on the earth. But that
verse in the original language opened up my eyes when I realized that Jesus was
saying, “Will I find correct faith on the earth.” Many people have a faith, but
is it the type that is based on obedience to the Word of God or on one’s
experiences? I started to wonder if I was questioning God’s “anointed,” because
of all the signs and wonders that some of these famous evangelists were
producing and the Lord simply showed me Matthew 7:21-23, ”Not everyone who says
to me, `Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the
will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, `Lord,
Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and
perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, `I never knew you. Away
from me, you evildoers!’ ” Jesus is saying here that some will prophesy, preach,
do miracles, or drives out demons in the name of God, but they never really knew
Him! So we have to be discerning whose message is from God, and the best way to
do that is to see if their doctrine is lined up with the Word of God.
If only we would simply realize that the foundation of fleshly experiences will
collapse, as opposed to building our faith upon the Rock of obedience to God’s
Word, which will stand forever. We must also realize that since our experiences
are based on our sinful nature, we must always look to God’s Word, which is
truth, to evaluate our experience of Him. Then God will give us that inward
peace and direction that we are seeking. Always remember: God calls the one who
builds his life upon obedience to His Word “the wise builder.”
Building on the sand of dreams and visions
The first time I
went to Cuba many Christians came up to me and told me their dreams and visions.
When I tried to put emphasis back on the Word of God they would go back to their
dreams.
I am shocked at how much emphasis people put on dreams or
visions without consulting the Word of God. I hear of Christians who have dreams
every week, and even though 99% of them are false, they just keep on spouting
them off hoping something sticks! Yet, God tells us if there is just one iota of
that dream or vision that is off, that person is not speaking for God. Yes,
there are dreams and visions, but they are of the rarity, not of the norm. In
fact, God warns us about dreams and visions in Jeremiah 23:28-33, “The
prophet who has a dream, let him tell a dream; And he who has My word, let him
speak My word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat?” says the LORD.
“Is not My word like a fire?” says the LORD, “And like a hammer that
breaks the rock in pieces?”
God is telling us here that His Word
is certain and absolute truth compared to dreams and not to even dare compare
dreams or visions to His Word. It is the Word of God that is the purifier that
destroys all that is not truth. Actually, if you look at Jeremiah 23:27, God
tells us that those who tell dreams are “intent to make people forget my
name...” Imagine God condemning a person for using dreams or visions intending
to make people forget His name! I believe that, before a person tells their
dream or vision, that they better know it is from God. I also believe that if
the dream or vision is false, the person should be accountable before the whole
church! You may think this is harsh, but if this were the Old Testament times,
we would be allowed to stone that person for being a false prophet! Also, that
dream or vision MUST line up with the Word of God. Again, this is where many
people fall into trouble. Suddenly they have a dream that they are going to
marry someone. I had those dreams when I was younger, but somehow it didn’t work
out and I had to realize that I cannot build my life on dreams but simply on the
Word of God, otherwise the storms of life would do me in. Yes, on rare
occasions, God gives me a dream or vision. But they are almost always for me
alone. I test them to ensure that they line up with the Word of God, and
usually, they are to rebuke me because I am not listening to Him in a certain
area!
Instead of putting emphasis on the shallow foundation of dreams
or visions, we should be building our lives upon the living Word of God. God
tells us that the one who has HIS word should speak HIS work faithfully. For God
tells us, “He who has My word, let him speak My word faithfully.” The
Scriptures tell us that the Word of God is alive and active, not our dreams or
visions. You will withstand the storms of life when you build upon the correct
foundation.
Building Your Foundation on the Sand of Prosperity
There is a story of a young preacher who just took over a church and the
whole congregation was eager to hear what he said. He preached a great sermon
and the people told him so afterwards. The very next week, he preached the same
sermon, but no one told him because they felt that as a young preacher he must
have forgot, and they felt embarrassed for him. The third week he preached the
same sermon again and the congregation was aghast. Finally, after the fourth
week of hearing the same sermon, the people rose up and said, “Why do you keep
on preaching the same sermon?” He told them that when they start to obey it, he
would change his message. The same message is true as I point out that we focus
more on the temporal values of prosperity than on the eternal values of God’s
kingdom.
We put such an emphasis on money that it starts to control
our lives. It controls our careers, and our focus on life…money, money, money
(see you are smiling already!) We all want to be rich like Bill Gates, Donald
Trump, or Ken Copeland. We have bumper stickers that say, “He who dies with
the most toys wins.” Yet, God tells us “What shall it profit a man if he
gains the whole world, but loses his soul.” We vote for a candidate that
promises to make us richer, even if he aborts babies. We vote for a candidate
that promises to give us more government funding, but at the same time gives
homosexuals rights to your children… and we vote for that candidate all in the
name of money!
We love money so much that we made a doctrine out of
it! The “prosperity doctrine,” or “health & wealth,” “name it and claim it,”
“blab it and grab it,” whatever you want to call it. This doctrine was written
on the walls of hell by satan. It is a doctrine that is based on money,
possessions and health. It builds a church quite quickly when you feed peoples
lusts by saying that God is going to make them rich with money, possessions, and
perfect health along with eternal life. God warned up against this doctrine in 2
Timothy 4:3-4 when He says, “For the time will come when they will not endure
sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for
themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their
ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.” So God is telling us here
that because of our lusts and desires, we will listen and obey false teachers
rather than obey the Word of God!
This false gospel teaches that the
human mind and tongue contain a “power.” So when that person talks, uttering his
positive words, and thoughts, then he “speaks” them into existence. Yet, every
time astorm hits and wipes out the person, the faith “teacher” blames the person
for “lack of faith.” The teaching of the prosperity doctrine is not only poor
doctrine, it is outright heresy. There is absolutely no justification for that
doctrine in the Word of God. To the contrary, God tells us in Matthew 6:24,” No
one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he
will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and
money.” God then tells us in Colossians 3:2 to “set our minds on the things
above, not on the things down here on earth.” God is not looking for us to build
a financial empire down here on earth, but rather a spiritual kingdom in heaven.
Yes, God wants all of us to become a success, but He wants us to become a
success in heaven, and He wants to say the words, “well done thou good and
faithful servant,” to us.
Philippians 4:19 says, “And my God will
supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” God
promises to meet all of our needs and none of our greed. He never promised a
Mercedes. Rather, He promised the true riches of love, peace and joy. Building
one’s life upon the foundation of prosperity is an attractive and enticing, yet
poorly build foundation that will not stand the storms of life. God tells us in
1 Timothy 6:6 that “godliness with contentment is great gain.” The Scriptures
are teaching that godliness and contentment in any situation is a “great gain.”
Paul emphasized the same thought when he said, “I am not saying this because I
am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know
what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned
the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or
hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who
gives me strength” (Philippians 4:11-13).
The Beginning
Foundation
1 Corinthians 3:10-11 says, “By the grace God has
given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building
on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. For no one can lay any
foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
Building your house on the foundation is coming into a living relationship with
the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. It is not just a belief in God, but a
living relationship with the Creator of the heavens and the earth. One of the
biggest misconceptions about Christianity is that it is a “belief” or
“religion.” That is true to a degree, but you can believe in the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit, heaven, hell, and all the proper doctrines of the Bible and still
go to hell! The Scriptures tell us that the devil believes and that He shudders
(James 2:19). You have to receive the Lord Jesus Christ into your life, asking
him literally to come into you. This means building the foundation of your life
upon God and His Word. This requires coming to God and saying, “I die to myself,
my sins, my plans, my ambitions, my goals and I will let you become what you
want to become through me. You are my Lord, and I am your servant.” It is not
easy because you are now turning over the keys of your life to God! Your highest
priority in your life is seeking first God’s will, His Lordship and
righteousness in your life (Matthew 6:33). The conclusion of Matthew 6:33 is
that God promises to meet all our needs of love, peace, joy, forgiveness and
necessities if we would simply build our lives upon Him.
The Wise
verses the Foolish Builder
Jesus shows us the difference
between the wise builder and the foolish builder, the one who builds on the sand
and the one who builds on the Rock.
a) Jesus identified the wise man
as “Whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them,” as compared to the
foolish men “who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them.”
b)
The “foolish” merely call Jesus “Lord”; the “wise” obey Him as “Lord.” To the
foolish He says, “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not the things which I
say?” But He identifies the wise as “Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings
and does them.”
c) The “foolish” are “hearers only, deceiving
themselves,” while the “wise” are “doers of the word,” and each is “blessed in
what he does” (James 1:22-27).
The More Sure Word
God has given us His “more sure Word,” (2 Peter 1:19) to guide our lives.
He tells us that “His Word is alive and active and sharper than any two edged
sword (Hebrews 4:12). God is telling us that His Word is Alive and Active and
possesses the very attributes of God Himself, not our experiences, our dreams or
visions, and certainly not our own self-thinking. God tells us the six blessings
of His Word in Psalm 19:7-13:
1) It restores the soul
2)
Makes wise the simple
3) Rejoices the heart
4) Enlightens the
eyes
5) Endures forever
6) Produces complete righteousness
Then God promises us in Joshua 1:8, “This book of the law shall not
depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you
may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will
make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” So God is telling us
the principles for a successful and prosperous life, to mediate on His Word and
do all that is written in it, then we will survive the storms. The person who
bases his life on God’s Word is the one who God says will have life more
abundantly, and be more fruitful and generous. That person will now have the
love, joy and peace that God promised because he realizes that God is
responsible for all his steps, and he trusts Him.
The Solid Rock
Building the foundation is hard work, it is a slower process because
you have to dig to get a good foundation. You have to sweat and labor, and it is
more costly as well to add a solid foundation. Yet the Scriptures point out that
everyone who obeys the Word of God is building his house on the foundation that
could out last any of the storms of life. Yes, the house may take some hits
through a storm, but as long as the foundation is solid, the house will not come
crashing down.
Some of our lives or foundations are in need of
repair. Some of us may have laid our foundations on Christ, but we have built
some parts of the house poorly. 1 Corinthians 3:11-15 tells us, “For no one can
lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If
any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay
or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the day will bring it
to light. Psalm 127 echoes this when it says, “Except the Lord build the house,
they labor in vain that build it.” Unless God is the one who is building your
house, your life, your ministry, your marriage, your business, you are laboring
in vain. Some of us need to make sure we are building on the foundation of Jesus
and obedience to His Word. We may have to move the spiritual house onto the
proper foundation of God’s Word. Some of our “buildings” are in dire need of
repair. Some of us need to gut the house, restructure the beams, and clean out
the attics. We may need to return to our “first love” and make Jesus the Lord,
the Captain, and the Master of our lives. We have to sit down before Him and
evaluate how we are using our gifts, our resources, and what our motives are
before Him.
Jesus was a Carpenter. He is also a Master Craftsman who
is molding us, His spiritual houses, into something beautiful. Yes, we may have
made mistakes, even years and years of mistakes. God tells us that “He will
restore the years that the locusts have eaten” (Joel 2:25). Even if we have
messed up so bad that we think God will not use us, He tells us that he will
restore the years back to us. He can take a worn out life and restore it to
something beautiful. God can work with anything, and anyone as long as we come
to Him and step back to let Him be God! We have to give Him total control of
our lives, building it on the solid foundation of God’s Word, then and only
then, we will become survivors of the storms. “This is what the LORD says:
‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his
strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about
this: that he understands and knows Me..’” (Jeremiah 9:23-24)
