“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. 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. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.” Matthew 7:24-27
I continue with my study of - Ten Men of the Bible: How God Used Imperfect People to Change the World - eBook by Max Lucado (for purchase).
This morning, I continue with the story of "Matthew: Redefining God's Family*".
*Title of lesson seven from the Max Lucado study.
The commentary* of day four starts with Max Lucado pointing to Matthew's account of Jesus calming the storm (from the boat) in Matthew 8:23-27. Lucado wants us to look at the Greek word used by Matthew to describe the storm - he used seismos which in modern day language refers to an earthquake and such Greek language is used again in the Bible to describe Jesus' death on the cross in Mathew 27, Jesus' resurrection in Matthew 28. We are encouraged to examine how Jesus could sleep through the turbulence at sea, how the disciples felt great fear, and to contrast the two. During turbulent times, we often fail to see Jesus working in our lives but of course we should know that He is ALWAYS working in our lives. Lucado suggests that during turbulent times we often have spiritual "amnesia" where we fail to remember what God has done in our lives and to lean on what we know God is capable of doing. Lucado provides the following scriptures to encourage us:
It is through our daily time, particularly during the good times, with the Lord, where we praise and worship Him, spend time with Him, study His Word, and we build a relationship with Him so that when the storm comes we hopefully can continue to stand firm in our faith.
Comment and discuss this post here.
My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an amazing God who has been with me during all times - good and bad - and You have blessed me always, every day. I am not deserving of how You pour out Your love for me. I worry, and have other sins. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, apply and be obedient to Your message for me today and every day.
