“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” (Matthew 7:24-27 NASB1995)

The Wise

The wise, according to the Scriptures, are those who do not merely listen to the Word of God, but they are those who put the Word of God into daily practice. They don’t just listen, but they act upon what they hear. The truth doesn’t just go in one ear and out the other, but it remains with them like glue. They don’t just go through the motions of religious practice, but they take God and his Word to heart to apply his words to their daily lives.

They don’t just profess faith in Jesus Christ with their lips, but they act upon what they believe. By the grace of God, and in the power of God, via Jesus’ sacrifice for the sins of the people of the world, and by God-persuaded faith in the Lord Jesus, they are crucified with Christ in death to sin, and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin but now as servants of the Lord Jesus in doing what his will desires.

When the difficulties of this life come upon them, or when temptations to sin confront them, they remain steadfast in the Lord and they do not surrender their lives to the enemy. And when the enemy pursues them, and people persecute and reject them, they remain steadfast in faith and in Christian practice and they do not give the enemy a foothold in their lives. Even if they get death threats, they waver not, but they remain steadfast in faith.

The Foolish

The foolish, on the other hand, are also those who hear the words of the Lord, but they do not put them into daily practice. They may even be those who are or who were teachers of the Word. Perhaps some of them are even pastors and/or elders of church congregations. But they are just going through the motions of religious practice to make others think they are doing well, but while many of them are still living in addiction to sinful habits.

They may give lip service to the Lord, convinced that a mere profession of faith in Jesus is enough to secure them salvation from sin and eternal life with God, but they do not act on the faith they proclaim is theirs in Christ Jesus. Nothing really changes in their lives except for what is artificial and is on the outside only. For many of them are convinced that God requires nothing of them other than a profession of faith, so works are out for them.

So, when trials and temptations come their way, they easily give in to them. Even if they determine that they are going to now obey God and serve him with their lives, their hearts have not changed. They have not exchanged the old life for the new life in Christ. And so they keep returning to their vomit. They keep going back to the same old sins that have held them captive all their lives. For they are not committed to obeying Christ with their lives.

The Results

The Scriptures teach us that to come to faith in Jesus Christ we must deny self, take up our cross daily (die daily to sin and to self), and follow our Lord in obedience to his commands. And they teach us that lip service only will not assure us of salvation from sin and eternal life with God. We must be those for whom obedience to our Lord’s commands are what we practice. For if sin is what we practice, instead, we will not inherit eternal life with God.

So, just because we make a profession of faith in Jesus Christ, it does not assure us of salvation from sin and eternal life with God. We must put the word of God into practice in our daily lives, in the power of God, and sin must no longer be what we practice. This does not mean we will never sin again, or that we must be absolutely perfect, but that righteousness and holiness and obedience to our Lord are to be our practice from now on.

[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; Acts 26:18; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Colossians 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10]

Open My Heart

An Original Work / July 2, 2013
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

“Be wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil” (Rm. 16:19b).

Open my heart. Let Your truth in.
Make of me a servant, pure within;
Sing of Your praise all of my days.
Let Your Spirit transform all my ways.
Jesus Christ died on a cross to
Save me from my sin.
“Repent of sin. Be cleansed within.
Obey all of His commands today.”

“Why do you doubt? Why do you fear?
Jesus Christ will wipe away your tears.
He cares for you. He feels your pain.
Die to sin, and life with Him you’ll gain.
Follow Him where’er He leads you.
Talk with Him each day.
Then you will know what He has planned
For your life before your world began.”

“Come unto Me, weary in heart.
Let My love and grace to you impart.
Believe in Me. Trust in My care.
Take your burdens to the Lord in prayer.
He will meet all of your needs,
And give you peace within.
Rejoice in Him! Tell of His love.
He will give you comfort from above.”

The Wise and The Foolish
An Original Work / April 28, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love