Hearing And Doing
Stories
Lectionary Tales For The Pulpit
Series VI, Cycle A
Object:
Construction advice was given us from a well-known carpenter. This story comes right at the end of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Two builders put up fine homes, but one built on a very shaky foundation -- sand -- while the other built on solid rock. When the rains came and the wind blew and the floodwaters roared, the house built on sand was demolished while the house built on the rock remained unscathed. Makes sense. The Lord tells us very plainly what the meaning is: It is all about hearing and doing.
Consider what has led Jesus up to this point ... what has gone before in the sermon. Let me give you a whirlwind overview of these three remarkable chapters. He began with the Beatitudes, those attitudes that, not ought to be, but will be, for those who have turned their lives over to God's control. They will be "poor in spirit" -- not proud of their own accomplishments, their own righteousness, because they know that there is nothing they have in which to take pride in the first place. They will "mourn" because of their failure to measure up to God's standard. They will be "meek" enough to accept God's instruction. They will "hunger and thirst after righteousness" because they will know there is no finer way to live. They will be merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, and even willing to rejoice in enduring persecution for the sake of the Lord and the kingdom. To be sure, such a lifestyle is foreign to those outside of Christ and it is impossible for even those who are in Christ without his presence in our lives. But Jesus makes plain that these are the attitudes that will be for those who are the children of God.
Then he deals with ethics in the kingdom ... getting along with one another, being careful in our sexual relationships, being honest, handling insults, even loving our enemies. He talks about our relationship with God -- making our religion more than just a big show, generous use of our possessions, genuine trust of our heavenly Father's provision for us. Finally, he discusses the danger of self-deception: deceiving ourselves about our own righteousness by being judgmental, making comparisons with others, deceiving ourselves about God's care, deceiving ourselves about the difficulty of the Christian life, and deceiving ourselves by giving credence to those he calls "false prophets."
The Sermon on the Mount is the Lord's paradigm for kingdom living. It encompasses virtually every phase of life. And now, here at the conclusion, he makes the point that just listening to the instruction is worthless. It has to be put into action!
We know that is true. If we go to a doctor to get healing for a sick body and we are told that we need to take some certain medicine, get a certain amount of rest, and then we fail to take the advice, we will not get well. If we go to an attorney and ask for help with a legal problem and find there are certain procedures to be followed and we choose not to follow them, the problem will not be solved. If we travel in a strange town and stop to get directions to our destination, if we choose not to follow those directions, we will get lost. Simply hearing what we should do, whether it be from a doctor or a lawyer or a gas station attendant, does us no good unless we are willing to put the instruction into action.
Someone has pointed out that the New Testament does not contain any book titled "The Plans and Objectives of the Apostles." Rather we find the "Acts of the Apostles." Success comes from action, not simply thinking or reflecting or planning. T. Boone Pickens, the Texas billionaire, in an address to business school students at George Washington University, said, "Don't fall victim to what I call the 'ready -- aim -- aim -- aim -- aim syndrome.' You must be willing to fire."
North Carolina's late senator, Sam Ervin, was a delightful wit. He once told the story of John and Mary sitting on a bench in the moonlight. The fragrance of the flowers filled the air, and everything was conducive to romance. John asked Mary, "If you wasn't what you is, what would you like to be?"
Mary replied, "An American Beauty Rose." She turned the question on him: "John, if you wasn't what you is, what would you like to be?"
John responded, "An octopus."
"Why?" asked Mary.
"Because an octopus has eight arms, and I would put every one of them around you," answered John.
Mary said, "Stop your foolish talk. You ain't usin' the two arms you got."
Hearing and doing. Those who have ears....
Consider what has led Jesus up to this point ... what has gone before in the sermon. Let me give you a whirlwind overview of these three remarkable chapters. He began with the Beatitudes, those attitudes that, not ought to be, but will be, for those who have turned their lives over to God's control. They will be "poor in spirit" -- not proud of their own accomplishments, their own righteousness, because they know that there is nothing they have in which to take pride in the first place. They will "mourn" because of their failure to measure up to God's standard. They will be "meek" enough to accept God's instruction. They will "hunger and thirst after righteousness" because they will know there is no finer way to live. They will be merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, and even willing to rejoice in enduring persecution for the sake of the Lord and the kingdom. To be sure, such a lifestyle is foreign to those outside of Christ and it is impossible for even those who are in Christ without his presence in our lives. But Jesus makes plain that these are the attitudes that will be for those who are the children of God.
Then he deals with ethics in the kingdom ... getting along with one another, being careful in our sexual relationships, being honest, handling insults, even loving our enemies. He talks about our relationship with God -- making our religion more than just a big show, generous use of our possessions, genuine trust of our heavenly Father's provision for us. Finally, he discusses the danger of self-deception: deceiving ourselves about our own righteousness by being judgmental, making comparisons with others, deceiving ourselves about God's care, deceiving ourselves about the difficulty of the Christian life, and deceiving ourselves by giving credence to those he calls "false prophets."
The Sermon on the Mount is the Lord's paradigm for kingdom living. It encompasses virtually every phase of life. And now, here at the conclusion, he makes the point that just listening to the instruction is worthless. It has to be put into action!
We know that is true. If we go to a doctor to get healing for a sick body and we are told that we need to take some certain medicine, get a certain amount of rest, and then we fail to take the advice, we will not get well. If we go to an attorney and ask for help with a legal problem and find there are certain procedures to be followed and we choose not to follow them, the problem will not be solved. If we travel in a strange town and stop to get directions to our destination, if we choose not to follow those directions, we will get lost. Simply hearing what we should do, whether it be from a doctor or a lawyer or a gas station attendant, does us no good unless we are willing to put the instruction into action.
Someone has pointed out that the New Testament does not contain any book titled "The Plans and Objectives of the Apostles." Rather we find the "Acts of the Apostles." Success comes from action, not simply thinking or reflecting or planning. T. Boone Pickens, the Texas billionaire, in an address to business school students at George Washington University, said, "Don't fall victim to what I call the 'ready -- aim -- aim -- aim -- aim syndrome.' You must be willing to fire."
North Carolina's late senator, Sam Ervin, was a delightful wit. He once told the story of John and Mary sitting on a bench in the moonlight. The fragrance of the flowers filled the air, and everything was conducive to romance. John asked Mary, "If you wasn't what you is, what would you like to be?"
Mary replied, "An American Beauty Rose." She turned the question on him: "John, if you wasn't what you is, what would you like to be?"
John responded, "An octopus."
"Why?" asked Mary.
"Because an octopus has eight arms, and I would put every one of them around you," answered John.
Mary said, "Stop your foolish talk. You ain't usin' the two arms you got."
Hearing and doing. Those who have ears....
