Several
years ago while serving the Union Church of Manila, Carol and I
attended a Conference for Pastors of International Churches in Asia. It
was held in Hong Kong and we spent one of our days there visiting
Jackie Pullinger nd her ministry to addicts. You may be
familiar
with her book, Chasing the Dragon.
Jackie arrived in Hong Kong 40 years ago as a young adult with very
little money and with no backing from any church or missionary
organization. She began teaching music in one of the high schools and
on her time off she tried to reach out to the addicts, many of whom
were mere 11 and 12-year-old children sold into sex slavery. Jackie
went through some very turbulent and frightening experiences, but has
had an amazingly successful ministry in Hong Kong with the government
giving her land and buildings so that she could carry-on and expand her
work.
During a question-answer time, I said, “Jackie, I understand that
you have gone through some very rough waters. How have you managed to
remain faithful all of these years? Is there a principle that you have
followed or perhaps a verse in the Bible that has helped you when you
faced the discouragements, the frustrations in your work for over 40
years?”
Jackie responded without hesitation. “Two things. First, I
have kept my mind on “that day.” On “that
day,” she said, “I will stand before Jesus, and I want to
be approved as faithful.“
In our Scripture passage, Jesus speaks of “that day.” He
says, “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, [there is
that phrase] ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and
cast out demons in your name and do many mighty works in your
name?’(7:21-22)
On “that day,” according to the scene that Jesus describes,
some will approach him with great confidence, --addressing him as
Lord, --reminding him of the good work they accomplished in
his
name. These are obviously persons who know a great deal about the
Christian faith, who have had successful ministries -- preaching,
healing, performing miracles -- ministries that have been beneficial to
many people.
But, to everyone’s surprise, Jesus says to these very impressive
workers, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you
evildoers!” (7:23)
Why does he call them evildoers? What were they guilty of? We are not
told, but the earlier parts of the Sermon on the Mount tell us what
Jesus found unacceptable: abusive relationships, marital infidelity,
dishonesty, having a vengeful spirit, failing to maintain sexual
purity, being hateful toward enemies.
Whatever they had done, or failed to do, the most surprise thing that
Jesus announces is that he never knew them. They call him
“Lord,” but he doesn’t know them. What does he mean,
“I never knew you?” The force of the biblical word
“know” is this: -- that you come into personal contact with
another person’s innermost life, --and you let the other person
come into personal contact with your innermost life. They called him,
“Lord,” but perhaps they never really let their guard
down, never opened their hearts, never really confessed their faults,
their failings, their weaknesses, never shared with him their longings,
their hopes, their innermost life.
This passage lets us know that a personal relationship with Jesus
really does matter. Jesus wants to know us, to have a relationship with
us. He is not indifferent to a single one of us. It hurts him when we
ignore him; when we live our lives with little or no regard for him or
for his teachings. Knowing Christ, and his knowing us, --is
all
important.
This text also lets us know that he has the authority to pronounce the
final verdict over our lives. He alone can say, “Come, you who
are blessed of my Father. Take your share of the inheritance, the
kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. Or
conversely, He alone has the authority to say, I never knew
you.
Depart from me, you evildoers.”
This was the scene that Jackie played in her mind again and again. She
said: “Anything that happens to me here on this earth will be
trivial compared with what will occur on ‘that day’ when I
see Him face to face. I keep that in mind, and it helps me put up with
any trial, any problem, any frustration down here.”
Jackie’s comments are very appropriate as we consider the final
warning that Jesus gave in his Sermon on the Mount—the story of
how two men built houses for themselves, one on a rock foundation and
the other on a sand foundation. Jesus says,--
Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be
like a wise man who built his house upon the rock. 25 The
rain
fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house; but
it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. (24-25)
Among those who were listening to Jesus were persons whom Jesus called
“wise.” These were like builders who recognized that the
best place to build one's home is on a solid foundation, preferably on
a huge, stable rock -- so that when rains and floods and
heavy
winds came against the house, it would stand because underneath was a
solid foundation. That’s the good news -- that a house built on a
rock will stand despite the storms. It will get bruised and beat up and
ripped here and there, but it will stand.
The Greek word for “rock” is “petran,” from
which we get the name Peter. What is this rock, this foundation, this
“petran” to which Jesus refers? It is hearing and doing the
words of Jesus. He who hears these words of mine and does
them is
like the wise man who built his house upon the rock.
It’s not just hearing the Words of Jesus, but “He who hears
these words of mine and does them.” Jesus expects us to obey his
word, to live in accordance with his teachings. The Word of
Jesus
has first to penetrate our ears. So, it is very important for us to
listen to solid biblical teaching. But then the teaching has to reach
our heart and from there every other part of our body—eyes, lips,
hands, feet. That’s what it means to build on the rock.
Did you notice the bad news in this parable? The storms of life hit
everyone. Storms beat down on the homes of foolish people, but they
also thrash the homes of wise people. There’s no protective halo
that covers the homes of those who love Jesus. So when that happens to
you, don’t be surprised. Every home is inundated by rain and
floods and powerful winds.
Some who love Jesus have had to deal with more storms than their share
of stroms. (1) A very close friend of mine has had her wallet
stolen twice here in Paris. Yesterday it was lifted out of her
pocketbook while she was being friendly on a crowded bus. That was a
relatively small storm, but nonetheless, an annoying one.
(2) Lee Johnson, the medical doctor that serves with Rafiki
spoke
to us this past Thursday evening. He impressed me as an extraordinarily
devoted servant of God. He left his mission in Africa for a few weeks
and was home in the States because a drug addict broke into his
mother’s home and killed her. (3) A Christian friend, who is a
very dedicated Christian, e-mailed me this week and asked for prayer
for his son. His boy was shooting his bb gun, and accidentally shot out
one of his friend’s eyes. (4) Another e-mail two-days ago
informed me that a dear friend who is a fully devoted follower of Jesus
and was only recently diagnosed with a serious case of cancer, was
being sent home because she was not responding to the intense medical
treatment she had been receiving. Storms! And more storms!
They keep coming and threaten to overwhelm us, and yet, for
those
whose thinking is in line with the Word of God, for those who are
firmly established in their relationship with Christ, the Lord somehow
keeps his people strong in the midst of the storms that hit
them.
Jesus describes a second kind of listener, one who hear the words of
Jesus but does not really intend to practice them. And of this person
Jesus says, [But] everyone who hears these words of mine and does not
do them will be like the foolish man who built his house upon the
sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the
winds
blew and beat against that house, and it fell and great was the fall of
it.” (26-27) What was his mistake? He had built his house on a
faulty foundation.
The August 20 issue of Time magazine has a special Cover story Report
on New Orleans. It has been two years since Katrina. August 29 is the
anniversary date. As it approaches, more and more criticism of the U.S.
Army Corps of Engineers is coming to light. The main complaint is that
the Corps of Engineers had built the floodwalls in soggy soils.
That’s because their analyses were wildly flawed. Time magazine
says that they built levees in soils with the stability of oatmeal. One
of the experts said that these mistakes were inexcusable, lethal.
That’s bad; but even worse is the fact that weather experts say
that Katrina was not the Category 5 killer that some
reported. It
was a Category 3 storm. And the Category 3 missed New Orleans. In New
Orleans, it was at worst a weak Category 2. Katrina was not
even
close to the big one, says hurricane researchers. “We better get
ready in case New Orleans really does get hit by a category 5..”
Who knows what storms of life are going to be coming at us? In this
parable, Jesus is telling us to get ready. And the best way to get
ready is to examine the foundation that you are building on.
When I was a teen-ager and into my college years. I was building my
life on laughter. I lived to enjoy a good laugh. I surrounded myself
with friends who knew how to kid around, how to make fun of one
another, some really talented jokesters; and I would laugh
with
all my heart; -- so long as they didn’t make fun of me. Then, it
wasn’t so funny. I looked for friends who were as carefree
and lacking in direction and purpose as I was. “Let’s just
work out, --and have a good time. That’s
what
life should be about! Right?” But after a time, I began to
experience the emptiness of that kind of life. And I began looking for
something more substantial.
I found that solid foundation as a newly commissioned naval officer. I
was transferred to an aircraft carrier, the USS HANCOCK. My roommate
turned out to be a dedicated Christian, and he helped me understand
that what I needed was a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. I
invited Jesus into my life and have been trying to follow him ever
since.
Some of you may wonder: “Is that how you go to heaven, --by
believing in Jesus Christ? Or is it by keeping His commandments as our
Bible passage for this morning seems to indicate? I’m
confused. Which is it?” The New Testament answer is that by
grace (God’s mercy) we are saved through faith in Jesus Christ,
and that not of ourselves, it is the gift of God, lest anyone should
boast. We inherit eternal life by receiving Christ as our Savior and
Lord.
But-- and it is a huge but -- we have to make sure that our
faith
includes good works. The proof of your belief is that you
keep
the commandments of Jesus. These two great aspects of the Christian
faith must come together—(1) faith, on the one hand. and (2)
righteous behavior, on the other. This must be a primary
agenda
for the church. Some call it the essential task of the church in the
21st century: --bringing faith and obedience together.
Rick Warren, author of the best selling book, The Purpose Driven Life,
recently said: "The first Reformation [in the 16th century] was about
belief; the Reformation [in the 21st century] is going to be about
behavior. The first one was about creeds; this one is going to be about
deeds. The first one divided the church; this time it will
unify
the church."
It’s a great goal, but it is difficult to achieve. That’s
because the gate is narrow and the way is hard. We are like addicts who
try to stay sober for one or two weeks, or even a day or two, and then
all of a sudden we are doing the very thing we hate. For
example,
we say that we want to keep the commandments of Jesus, but we rarely
turn the other check, we rarely go the second mile. We say we want to
stop criticizing; and then we turn around and find ourselves tearing
into our co-worker behind their backs.
This is where Jackie Pullinger’s second comment can be helpful to
us. She said that “Just as addicts are dependent upon God to stay
sober, I have come to realize that I am just as dependent upon God to
keep his commandments. And therefore I pray constantly for his strength
and grace.”
Those words made a tremendous impression upon me because I know how
desperately addicts and alcoholics need to cling to God to stay sober.
They know that they need his strength and help to maintain their
sobriety. And here was a mature and saintly woman saying that she was
just as dependent on Jesus to live a godly life, -- as they were to
live a sober life. I don’t have that sense of dependency. But I
want to have it.. I need to have it.
Dear friends, God wants to help us build on a solid foundation. He
wants us to be steadfast. He wants our roots to grow deep in His Word.
Let me ask: Are there areas of your life that need to be more firmly
planted in his Word? Are there certain qualities of character that need
deeper spiritual roots? Make it a point to ask God to give you strength
and grace to hear and to do the Words of Jesus.
He will favor you; He will build you up; He will establish you so that
you can stand victoriously against the storms of life. May it be so for
you. May it be so for all of us. Amen.
