Reflection on Mt 7:24

Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine

and puts them into practice  is like

a wise man who built his house on the rock.

Jesus continues: “The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock.” (v.25) At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus says this parable of two builders. One built a house on the rock, the other on the sand. It is said that the one who built on the rock not only heard God’s word but also put it into practice. That is why in life’s trials, likened in the parable to wind, storm or sea waves, the house did not fall because it was built on the rock.

On the evening before His death, Jesus speaks of His commandments: “Whoever has My commandments and obeys them, he is the one who loves Me.” What in particular are Christ’s commandments? We have the Ten Commandments, and what are the commandments of Jesus? They are contained in the Sermon on the Mount in chapters 5, 6 and 7 of Matthew’s Gospel. Apart from these practical counsels, there are also other commands of Jesus in other parts of the Gospels. It is important not only to think about the content of the words, but also about how we should implement them in specific life circumstances. Then, in times of storm and the test of life’s faithfulness to Christ, we shall stand and save our soul.

The hardest attack will be at the hour of death. We do not know when death comes, so we have to be ready every day and not postpone the implementation of God’s word until tomorrow.

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