When Jesus ended His sayings, people seem most impressed by the note of authority in His teaching. It was as if what He said was true simply because He said it!
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his
teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers
of the law.
I suppose the teachers of the law taught as most preachers do today - basing their remarks on recorded Scriptures.
However, as people listened to Jesus, they were conscious His teaching was not primarily based on the authority of previously recorded words.
They were right!
In fact, The Teacher was speaking the very words that would become the new message of Scripture!
I suspect the people also felt something else that day. Even as we still do! Something answering within their hearts - This is true!
Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into
practice is like a wise man who built his house on a rock…
I have asked many times, “What is the difference between the wise man and the foolish man in Matt7?”
ReplyDeleteThe answer is almost unanimously - “The wise man built his house upon a rock.”
Then I say, “No, that was the illustration, what was the real difference?”
Many don’t know, many will have to re-read that familiar story to find the answer.
The wise are the ones who put Jesus’ teachings into practice. This is where the rubber meets the road. This is the crux: we can spend a year reading the scriptures - a year studying Jesus - but if we don’t put the lessons we see and learn into practice in our lives, we will be the fools.
Pray, read, seek, study, contemplate - and put into action - the words of the Teacher.
Then we will have that solid foundation. Then, we will be the wise.