Ian Barclay's Thought For The Day

A CHRISTIAN LOOKS AT MATTHEW’S GOSPEL
Difficult decisions (iii)
Reading: Matthew 7:24-27 Click to view passage

This third choice is addressed to, “Everyone who hears.” Probably because it is almost impossible to go through life without some basic belief or belief system. We have to choose the right foundation.

Two different foundations
The big word is philosophy, that is what Jesus is talking about. If you are a follower of Jesus, then your philosophy is all that God has revealed in his word. Christianity is the solid rock on which we can build our lives and it can withstand anything you throw at it. Another belief system of today, (although it doesn’t sound like one), is I-don’t-believe-in-anythingism and it is a quagmire of sinking sand. It doesn’t suggest a system of thought, a pattern of behaviour or present us with ideas for living. You can’t build anything on a philosophy like this, it can’t sustain anything.

However, as Christians we have chosen our foundation. The difficult question for us now is, “How can I cement this foundation and make it firmer?” Our Faith is a revealed faith. So we must: (i) continue to explore it as it is revealed in the Bible. (ii) Act on what we read because it is obedience that links “hearing” with “behaviour.” Obedience to the principles of our chosen foundation is the third cost of discipleship.

Meditation: I must commit myself to serious study of the bible each day.

Prayer pointer: I must “obey” what I “hear” in the word.

Matthew 39