Episode #467
Rock and Soul Week 1
This is the Motion Church Podcast. Thanks for joining us. If you'd like more information about Motion Church, you can always visit our website at motionchurch.com. If you'd like to contribute to what God is doing here at Motion, you can do that at motionchurch.com/give. We hope you enjoyed today's message. Hey, so we're kicking off a new... There we go. Kicking off a new series today called Rock and Soul. Rock and Soul. Did you know that that's an actual genre of music? There are people that have kind of tried to... There was an album. I forget who it was. It's like in the 70s or 80s, like Simon and Garfunkel or something, you know? Anybody feel me on that? And then they came out with an album and it was called Rock and Soul. Not what we're talking about at all. We're talking about... We're gonna shift gears a little bit from kind of the format of our last series. We were very localized in terms of, you know, timeline. We're just looking at some of the stories from the life and ministry of Jesus and stories that demonstrated incredible faith and really enjoyed working. One of my favorite things to do is just kind of taking a passage of Scripture and just working through it, right? Kind of what does it say? What does it mean? How does it apply to us? What are some details that we're inclined to miss? Because we read... Sometimes I do this. Sometimes I just read it to read it and I miss some stuff, right? So I love working through a passage of Scripture like we did each week in that series. This series, we're gonna be all over the place. We are gonna be in Matthew today. We'll probably be in the book of Psalms next week and maybe the book of Exodus the next week. So we're gonna be all over the place. And the point is what we're gonna be doing is looking at in Scripture some of the references to rocks and the imagery and the symbolism and kind of the analogies that rocks have in terms of a spiritual connection to what it is that we're trying to accomplish as followers of Jesus. Makes sense? How many of you like rocks? Rocks are fun. Now, all the dudes, I promise you if we walked outside and there was a pile of rocks, we would pick it up and we would have a target competition, right? We're gonna hit... First one to hit the light pole wins. And for 30 minutes, because all of our arms are trashed these days, right? And then tomorrow we'd wake up and be like, "I don't know what's wrong with..." So we're gonna look at one of the many, some of the many, a few of the many references and illustrations pertaining to rocks in Scripture. Here's what I believe. I believe that anything that is repeated in Scripture is important. If there's a pattern that is repeated, it's for a reason. You're a parent. You know you repeat things that are important because they didn't hear it the first time or the third time or the 300th time. So you just continue to repeat things that are important. I think if there are principles that are repeated, it's there for a reason. It's important. If there is symbolism that is repeated, it also is important. There's got to be something to it, right? And I think that is very true as it relates to rocks. Did you know this... So it's funny when I was writing out my notes, I wrote offhand... This is verbatim what I said. I said, "Offhand, I would venture to say that there are over a hundred references to rocks in Scripture." So then I was like, "Well, I better fact check myself because somebody will do it if I don't." Right? I know y'all. And is somebody gonna call me out because you were wrong past... So I Googled it. And it said that there are roughly between 99 and 136 references to rocks in Scripture, depending on which translation you use. And you know, maybe this is a looser analogy or whatever the case was. So about 100, okay? About 100. And we're only gonna look at a few. You can thank me later. For the next two years, we're gonna be doing a series called Rock and Soul. Got a hundred messages lined out. We're good to go. So we're gonna kick off this week. We're gonna look at an analogy that Jesus uses that highlights the importance of rocks. Here we go. Title for today's message is a firm foundation. A firm foundation. Y'all know this. This is gonna be fun. Sometimes, I think the expectation sometimes when we go to church is like we're expecting to hear something we've never heard before. And I'll be very honest with you. Sometimes we just need to hear what we've already heard and do what we've already... Right? This is for me, right? It's not that I need to learn something new. I need to do better doing what I already know. That's what needs to happen sometimes. So the title is a firm foundation. The first point is, we're gonna call this one construction 101. Construction 101. I know a lot of you guys, guys and girls are kind of in construction industries or construction adjacent injuries. You understand injuries. It's football season. I already think about injuries, right? The construction industry connected like you understand. And if you have it, you've seen houses being built. You understand kind of some of the basic components of construction. We all probably understand how important a good foundation is to whatever it is that you're building. And that's the point that Jesus makes in Matthew chapter 7 verses 24 through 27. It says this. So just before we dive into it, it's the two paths, right? It's the two ways that you can choose to live your life. I think we think sometimes that there's a lot of different paths. And the reality is it's like, yeah, those paths may look different, but it's still the same path, right? You can take this road or you can take this road. One ends well, one not so well. Therefore, if it says therefore, preacher joke, you got to see what it's there for. Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of mine, this is Jesus talking, whoever hears these sayings of mine and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock and the rain descended. The floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house and it did not fall for it was founded on the rock. Founded on the rock is another way of saying what the rock was its foundation. So it was founded on the rock. But everyone who hears these sayings of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand and the rain descended. The floods came and the winds blew and beat on that house and it fell and great was its fall. So here's what we're going to do. We're going to break down both of those paths, right? But what does it look like when you build your house on the rock? What does it look like when you build your house on the sand? What are kind of some of the things that go into that? And ultimately, what is the outcome of that? And really, I hope through contrast, we can see which is the better path for us as if you don't know this. But sometimes again, just important to be reminded of things that we know. So we're going to break it down. You ready? Break it down. I thought you were going to start dancing. Break it down. Break it down. This is the first thing that Jesus said. Therefore, whoever hears these sayings of mine, whoever hears these sayings of mine, that's where for us, for those of us who aspire to be wise people who build their house on the rock, it starts with hearing these words of mine. Now, specifically in context, what is Jesus talking about? The words that he just said, right? So Matthew chapter five, Matthew chapter six, Matthew chapter seven, it's a sermon on the Mount. And in terms of a sermon, best sermon ever preached, ever hands down, bar none, nothing even close, right? Just maybe the modern way to say it would be bars, right? Just so good. Matthew chapter five starts with the beatitudes, blessed are the poor in spirit, blessed are the me, blessed are the peacemakers, blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. And then I'll be honest with you, like the back half of Matthew chapter five is tough. It's tough because he's like, Hey, I know this is what you've been taught, but I actually expect more of you. Like I know this is what you think about adultery, but I'm also going to teach you about lust. I know this is what you think about murder, but this is what I'm going to tell you about anger, right? Not that any of us struggle with those sorts of things, right? Not an angry person at all. Okay. Right. And so he gets into some stuff and he's like, Oh, those enemies that you've got, I'm going to teach you how to forgive them. That, that, that thing that people asked you how to do, I'm going to teach you how to go another mile. I'm like, why did you have to put all that stuff in there? Jesus, right? So it's such good, but challenging stuff, which is kind of the point. And we'll go over this a little bit more in detail at the end. The point for us, those of us who are aspiring to build our house on the rock, y'all, we don't get to pick and choose which sayings of Jesus apply to us or which ones we, we want to fit into our lives. The point is not for us to fit the teachings of Jesus into our lives. It's to fit our lives into the teachings of Jesus. Okay. And I look at, and not easy. Nobody ever said that it was, but worthwhile. It's building your house on a rock and it's something that will last. So he's specifically talking about the words that he just said, Matthew chapter six. This is how you give. This is how you pray. This is how you fast. Also stop worrying about everything. Look at the birds of the air. I take care of them. Look at the flowers of the field. I take care of them. What can you add to your life by worrying about all the things that you be out here worrying about? Right? It's good stuff. And in Matthew chapter seven, he's like, uh, you know, the, the ask, seek, knock, and then also our, our favorite, the judge, not list, you be judged, right? And then the two different paths, Matthew chapter Matthew seven, 13 and 14. He's like, Hey, there's a Broadway and there's a narrow way. And it's like your mama said, if everybody else was jumping off the bridge, would you jump off the bridge also? Right. And then he finishes with, you know, if you hear my words and you do them, you'll be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. However, I think it's safe to expand this to the other teachings, the life of Jesus, the example of Jesus. So anything that Jesus said, anything that Jesus did, I think it is safe for us to assume that when we hear that, when we see that we should do that. Okay. Very good. All right. So that's the simplest takeaway is, is the idea for us, I think bottom line, we need to be hearing the words of Jesus. Like whoever hears these words of mine, we need to hear the words of Jesus. You know why that's so important? Because we hear everything else. We hear everything else. Like just all the chatter and all the talk and all the, the criticism and all the negativity. We hear everything else. We hear the news. We, we, we read the articles, right? We hear the reels. We see the shorts. We hear the opinions. We hear the criticisms and what you better have, what you have to have, if you want to make it, if you want to build your house on something that's going to last is you better build your house on the rock. You need to hear the words of Jesus to give you framework, to understand everything else that you're hearing. I'm hearing it, but is it true? And if I hear the words of Jesus, I know what truth is. So I know that that's not truth. So that doesn't get internalized into my life. If I hear the words of Jesus and I know what's good and right and, and just in those sorts of things, then all of the other things that I hear, they don't have the same effect on me. It just gives us a framework. We need to be hearing the words of Jesus. That means we get into his word. We read the scriptures like personally, like it's not, listen, and y'all know this, but it's not the church's job to feed you. Y'all, if you're eating one time a week, like you're in trouble, you are not getting the proper nutrition. You should be eating all the time. Just eat, eat, right? Sorry, another football reference. Just like we got to be, we have to be, we have to be hearing the words of Jesus on our own. Listen to sermons. Like you're not going to hurt my feelings. I know there are better preachers out there. I listen to them too, right? Listen to people who are preaching the word of God, hear the words of Jesus, be in, come to church. Like we're going to talk about it here too. And that's amazing, but that's once a week and we need to be hearing it more than just that. Get into some small groups where it's being talked about. Have some friendships where you can, you can like break it down. And man, this is what I think it means. And what do you think it means? I have no idea. Tell me what you're thinking, how you feel, and hear the words of Jesus. We just need to hear the words of Jesus. Have you ever known someone so well that you knew what, this happens to me a lot. Everybody thinks they know what I would do. And usually they're right. I'm kind of predictable, right? So there are so many times in my life, somebody's like, yeah, I know what you would have done. So I went ahead and did it. I'm like, all right, you got me. That's right. And so what's the point of that? It's like, you know someone so well that you know what they would do even if they're not there. Why? Because you've heard their heart. You've heard, if you hear the words of Jesus, you hear his heart and you know what you're supposed to do. So the person who hears these words of mine, and then the next part of that, and this is the challenging part of that, and does them, and does them. And I know you know this, but it is not enough to hear the words of Jesus. We need to do something with the words of Jesus. We got to, listen, it's got to get deep down. It's got to penetrate deep enough into your heart that it actually affects the way that you live your life. The point is never, ever just information. The point is transformation. Like information in and of itself is fine, but it's never enough. The point is to have the information that goes in and does a work on your soul that causes you to live differently. This is how it says it in the book of James, James chapter one, verses 22 through 25. One of my favorite passages of scripture, and I say that all the time, and I mean it. I got a bunch of, like some of y'all got a bunch of best friends, which is impossible because best means best. It's my favorite passage of scripture. Here we go. It says, "But be doers of the word and not hearers only." Deceiving yourselves. Isn't that kind of interesting? Because like I think what we do sometimes is we talk ourselves into not doing it because we know it, and that's kind of good enough, right? So we deceive ourselves because we're hearers and not doers also. And then it says, "For if anyone is," this is so good, listen to this, "For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror," checking yourself out, looking at all the angles. I know you snuck in that duck face selfie. I know you did. "Is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror, for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the word, this one will be blessed in what he does." You know what I think that means? Again, when we hear the words of Jesus, we understand the heart of Jesus. When you hear the words of Jesus and you do them, you know who he is. Therefore, you know who you are. You can look in the mirror and you know who you are. And when you leave the mirror, you still know who you are because you've heard the words of Jesus and you've allowed them to get deep enough into your heart that you understand your identity. You're not going to leave and forget who you are just based on who you're with because that never happens. Like, what is it? A code switch? Is that what they call it when you get around different people and you act different? Thank you, trendy. Youth pastor, right? It keeps me in touch. It's not enough. It's not enough to be a theologian. And I think that's amazing that there are people who devote so much of their time and, you know, effort and stuff to learning more about scripture and learning about God. But listen, if you're a theologian and not a practitioner, you are wasting your time. Like, if you got all the knowledge in the world and there isn't any application of that knowledge, you are missing the point. You're missing the boat. You're wasting your time. And trust me when I say this is like, this is not an attack on knowledge. Knowledge, I think, is incredibly important. We should always be aspiring to attain a better understanding of the things of God, but never just for the sake of knowing, but for doing, right? I know it so that I know how to do it. Not just so I know it so that I know it because y'all got a lot of, there's plenty of those. You met the know-it-alls that never do anything. I'm like, that's amazing. You got all this information in your head. How about you get out there and do something with your hands? That was good preaching. Sorry. You know what the difference in my opinion is between knowledge and wisdom? Again, knowledge is incredible. Knowledge is kind of, it's the doorway. It's the step in the right direction, but knowledge is simply information. It's having the information in your head. Wisdom is when you take that information and you apply it to your life. You're a hearer and a doer also. So that's the second part, right? So he hears the words of Jesus and he does them. And then Jesus said, this is like a wise man who built his house, which means, which is to say that then we get about the business of building our house built, which is kind of another way, a clever way of saying, an illustrative way of saying, go build your life on the principles of Jesus, the teachings of Jesus, the ways of Jesus. Then go and build your life. Like we are called to be doers, not just in the sense that we're doing God's word, but doers in the sense that we are building something that matters and something that lasts. Our lives are significant. We're not just, you're not just floating through time. Like you're here for a reason. You have a purpose. Like God has called you to do something with your life. So get about building that house, right? I think someone who follows the teachings of Jesus, you feel deep in your soul that you're supposed to do something significant with your life. We use language like this, like something bigger than myself. You feel this sense of urgency to build something and be a part of something that is bigger than yourself. It's something that you can pass on to the generations to come. It's never just about you because you're building something that matters. We're called to be builders and makers, not just grifters and takers. That was a good line. You can say amen or owe me, right? We're called to be builders. We're called to be people who make things, like who creates. God is a creative God and we're made in his image. Therefore we should create. So we're called to be builders and makers, not just grifters and takers. The world and the church for that matter. We've got too many of those. We've got so many people that are always about what can you do for me? What can I get out of this? It's always this consumption thing. It's always, and you live your whole life like that and it even bleeds over into your spiritual pursuits where it's always about consumption. Here's a thought. What have you given? What have you built? What have you contributed? Make sure it's not that we don't consume. It's just also we do contribute as well. So let's get about the build
