Everyone Builds a House

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Southeast Christian Church

Jan 3, 2023

Some of the teaching that we read in Scripture can seem simple on the surface level, but they are not necessarily easy to live out in our day to day lives. One example of this can be found in Matthew 7, where Jesus is preaching the infamous Sermon on the Mount. When you read this sermon, you see that Jesus was giving people a lens through which to look at life, a foundation for them to build their life on, and showing them what it looks like to live for the Kingdom of Heaven. And it wasn’t super complicated. Jesus's teaching was simple, and he used relatable stories to help people unpack it and understand it.

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, in verses 24 through 27, Jesus discusses the difference between two men who choose to build their homes on different foundations; one on rock and one on sand. This parable is a metaphor for what we choose to build our life upon. It may seem like a simple decision to build our lives on Jesus, but, in practice, it is much more difficult.

Our everyday decisions matter and make a difference in the stability of our “home”, whether we realize it or not. Many of our choices don’t seem that significant in the moment, until we observe how quickly they have added up. Each time you respond with defensiveness and criticism, you're putting a brick in the house that you live in. Each time you decide to forgive and let go of bitterness, you’re adding another brick to the house. Our habits shape our existence and our future. It’s the invisible architecture of daily life, and it’s the little things that you do consistently that end up having a pretty determinative effect on the house that you're building, whether you want them to or not.

Discussion/Reflection Question: What is a habitual decision that you need to change in order to build a life that can withstand a storm?

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