Solid Rock

“On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.” Words from the hymn, “My hope is built on nothing less.” Last week we were talking about how God is our solid rock, our place of safety, a place we can run to. This week we will move on to how God is a solid foundation to build on.

I am reminded of the story of the 3 little pigs. It’s not quite the same but the principle is there. In that story, one pig built his house with straw. When the big bad wolf came, he was able to blow it all away, leaving the little pig exposed and in danger of being eaten. The second pig built his house with sticks, when the big bad wolf came, he was able to blow that away too. The third built his with bricks, when the big bad wolf came, he could not blow the house away because it had been built with solid materials. The straw house sure was easy to build and was the first to go up. The stick house followed right behind it, but the brick house took time and effort.

Sometimes in life, we settle for the easy way out. The quick way to get things done. Nothing about the Kingdom of God is quick. It took almost 4000 to go from Adam and Eve in the garden, to Jesus the Redeemer of mankind. And since Jesus’ ascension into heaven, we have been waiting for Him to return, that was over 2000 years ago. (Any day now He could come!) But looking at those time frames alone, we can see that God is not in as much of a rush as we are in. What are we rushing for? What has made us so impatient that we settle for houses made of straw and sticks?

If we want to build a life that will withstand the pressures of this world, a life that will not crumble at the first sign of trouble, we have to be willing to put in the work. We have to be willing to do what God’s word says to do. Matthew 7:24-27 says, “Anyone who listens to My teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

It matters what we build our lives on. We can build on sand with the quick and easy straw and sticks or we can build with bricks on solid rock. Jesus is the solid rock on which we build the foundations of our lives. If we build based on culture, trends, people pleasing, self, ambition, anything but Jesus, it is sure to fail. It may hold up for a while. Like the straw house didn’t collapse immediately. It held on until the wolf came and exerted force on it. Sometimes our lives feel like they are ok until an external force comes and exposes that oh no, we had built with sticks and sand.

When life happens to us, which it will, it is a sure way of testing what you have built on. If everything falls apart, then perhaps you haven’t been building on Jesus. If it stands then the foundation is on the Solid Rock. Trouble is not always a bad thing. It exposes the weaknesses in our structure. It exposes the parts of us that are vulnerable to the enemy. The parts that make us targets to the one who is seeking whom he may devour like the big bad wolf (1 Peter 5:8).

It may take effort and time to build on the Solid Rock, Jesus Christ, but it is so worth it. Jesus already told us in Matthew 7:14, “The narrow gate and the difficult way leads to eternal life—so few even find it!” One does not build on the Rock accidentally. It takes conscious effort and time to do so. Build your life on the Solid Rock so you may withstand the day when the rain, wind and floods come. The safest place we can be at any point and given time, is with Jesus. Build your life on Jesus and His word.

Love and blessings,

Melissa Tsingano.