Scripture Lesson: Romans 1:16-17; Matthew 7:24-29

Sermon Transcript for June 1, 2008

By Pastor Bob Coleman

I entitled it “What am I bid?” This is not about an auctioneer although that’s the first one you jump to right? It’s a setup though for later you’ll see the interpretation. For now though I want to tell you a story, a story about a camping experience. How many like to camp? Alright, how many like to tent camp? Show of hands! How many like to sleep out of doors at night? And we’ve got one, two, three, four brave people. This goes back to my scouting days. I was a Tenderfoot; had been an advanced Cub Scout and then all of a sudden you go into the lower ranks. You are the rookie, you are the tenderfoot and the first campout that you go to the older scouts show you the way. You know, that’s the way it is. They tell you their experiences and their stories but they also hold their seniority over you. When it came time to choosing our place for pitching our tents, they chose the nicest spot. It was beautiful, lush grass and a beautiful place and location, comfortable and soft. They had brought their air mattresses. Now that’s not camping but they brought their air mattresses anyway. We didn’t know anything about that. We were told, “Well you can pitch your tents over there.” It was a rough, rocky, gravel-strewn area. Without the air mattresses soon those rocks poked you in the back. Well, that night a storm developed and the rains came. And the rains were not terribly heavy but heavy enough that they discovered that the soft, grassy area was grassy because it gets water a lot. In fact, it becomes as I sort of described sort of a shape like this; it was the slough for water retention that went down in that area. It was fun to see them the next morning. They had floated out of their tents. They had to hang their sleeping bags up in the trees to dry them out. We tenderfoots, we really enjoyed that.

We learned a lesson though and we’ve never forgotten it. Choose well where you pitch your tent! Choose the right kind of location and as it will relate to what we are talking about this morning, we will be talking about the foundation of where you lay your life. Paul was reflecting upon it. He didn’t use the word foundation or tent or anything like that, but in Romans, Chapter 1:16-17, Paul says, “I’m not ashamed of the gospel because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes; first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel righteousness from God is revealed; a righteousness that is by faith from first to last just as it is written. The righteous will live by faith.”

It was not faith that we chose that rocky soil; it was because we were told to. But we learned from it; we learned a lesson that helps in camping later. But Jesus gives us a story today in the Gospels but I want to give you a little background. When Jesus tells a story, He’s almost always in some physical, geographic location. And we have to know what that is to be able to understand. He would make His statement with people able to see what He is talking about—planting seeds, sowing crops. And in this case, He’s going to tell a story in a dry area of Palestine. If you’ve never been to Palestine, why do people want to go there? One guide said, “God created the world in six days and planted almost all the rocks in Israel on Sunday.” It’s a rocky, dry area. And with that rocky, dry area it is a place where you have to watch when it rains. They don’t get much rain, but when it does it flows down through the gulley’s, we would call them. And here we come with the water and it rises quickly, torrentially; and it also provides a nice collection point at the bottom where the water slows down and the sand settles. Sand is a wonderful, flat area when it is not raining.

So think of that and Jesus’ point of telling this story for He says, “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, the winds blew and beat against the 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 the sand. The rain came down, the rivers rose and the winds blew and beat against that house and it fell with a great crash. When Jesus had finished saying these things the crowds were amazed at His teaching because He talked as one who had authority not as their teachers of the law.”

Jesus was saying very simply, “I want to give you something to help you visually remember that the words that I have given you are important. You must first of all hear them, but that’s not good enough. You must practice them.” It’s one thing to hear wisdom; it’s another to live wisdom in your life.

You’ll know by now as it is printed in the bulletin and we’ve announced it that because of the success of the Hand in Hand and the early gifts we are able to begin the completion of the second floor of the Schrader Center. Somewhat of apologies to our graduating seniors this day that you are not going to be able to participate; there is a bit of a sadness about that. But we now are able to move forward. The Building Committee has met, and the Trustees, and the Finance Committee and they made that final approval to move forward. The Building Committee has met with the architects. They are moving forward on that. And we will be letting bids, hence the title, “What am I bid?”

What are we bid for this part of the project or that part of the project? We will be receiving several bids. The policy is usually at least two if not three bids for every part of the project. It’s good to see that, to see the comparison, the quality of the bid, etc. There are many things that are looked at. But, obviously, one of the things I run across in serving churches and being a District Superintendent is that some churches will have a rule, “The lowest bid no matter what. Save money; don’t spend that extra money on that higher bid!” But wisdom doesn’t always rest there. You can spend and choose the lowest bid but it may also be the cheapest materials or the cheapest work and what you don’t spend in quality for the first round you’ll spend later to make up for it. It’s almost the truth of that.

With that understanding then, the Building Committee will be looking at those multiple bids and when they make a decision it will be, to use a paraphrase and a metaphor, “Are we building this on sand or are we building it on rock?” Will this be the best way to do so? We know Jesus was a carpenter. We don’t know that he necessarily got in the bidding process or offer his work to someone else. But we can trust by his other words that he must have applied them in his work to give best quality possible, to do his best work. In a sense he would have lived out Walt Chambers, the title of his book, My Utmost for His Highest.

And that’s what God tells us to do through this story. For Jesus is saying, “Listen to these words. Be as perfect with them as you can as you practice them.” And practice makes perfect as the old adage says. At least practice gets you closer to perfect than just trying it on the side. One of the pieces that it says about being perfect as your father in heaven is perfect is Eugene Peterson says it in his way, “In a word, what I am saying is ‘grow up’. You are kingdom subjects, now live like it. Live out your God –created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others the way God lives toward you.” In other words, don’t chose the cheap way whether it is now leaving high school and moving on to college or higher education. Whatever the choices before you, maybe moving to a new job, maybe moving to a new location or you recently moved here, or moving in to retirement. Whatever step it is that you are taking, don’t do it cheaply. Plan well; work at it. Find a way that Jesus would say would identify you’ve chosen well the quality of what you do.

Jesus’ parable for us today is that the quick and cheap or building on sand will get us in trouble in the long run. Now it’s not easy building on rock, let me tell you. Construction, I’ve not ever had to do that. I’m not one who would like to oversee the building of a house or a personal item like that. But I talked to one who said if you are going to build on bedrock, you should anchor in to it. You may have to blast off a part of it to get it smoother so that you can have more of an even foundation. But the solid foundation, even in earthquakes, one of the most treacherous kinds of soil in an earthquake is not rock, it’s sand. At least soil that acts like sand in an earthquake.

The establishment of one’s faith, Jesus is telling us, is that the quick and easy listening to the words and grabbing them simply and thinking, “Well, now I know what is true” will not help you in your life. You have to live what is true. One can nod in agreement with what Jesus says and give even a spiritual “Amen” and “Hallelujah” but then you just walk out the door and forget what’s said and go do it your way, the cheap way. The difficult way of living life in Jesus is one first of all to do the work and to live the work.

But I think the other side of the message which we often miss and sometimes even the church is at fault in saying, “Now that you know Jesus Christ and you hear these words, God will shower you with blessings and you will have a wonderful life.” The storms still come. You can build your house on a rock and it still has to withstand the storm. Storms are part of life. The winds and the waters will rise. The shifting in our lives can even shift our foundation it will feel like and will feel the earth even move under our feet. But take Jesus’ words and His commands and slowly, routinely, and solidly you can build your life that can withstand those trials, those difficulties that will be there.

That’s the challenge first of all—is trusting that Jesus says, “And I will be with you to the end of the age.” That’s the point that Jesus was making here. There is going to be a test. There will be hard times that you have to fend off but make a good plan and then move forward. That’s one reason I am calling together some of the key people on staff and volunteers who work with education. Just calling it sort of an “Education Council” for children, youth, and adults and begin to plan for this next fall. What opportunities will we make available to help people to hear the word, not just in worship but in other settings. And then to practice that word so that you and all of us can take that with us.

In summary the first is for us to hear the words, to hear them clearly and then secondly, to put them in to practice. And the third is that requirement is the reality that as we practice God’s word, we will be tested. There will be difficulties. But by the grace of God you will make it through. I was reflecting as we were recognizing the graduates this morning, going back to those delightful times of leaving high school, going off to college, and the excitement of that. But there were difficult moments; there are also challenges and temptations. Just the hard work of college or any other post-high school experience that you go in to; life can be tough. But Jesus, the Christ, says “If you’ll ask me, I will be with you. I am offering to help you to build your life not on the sands of life, but on the solid foundation of my truth.”

Let’s join together for a word of prayer, “Gracious God, help us to choose well the foundation upon which we build our life. Let us accept your guidance and your wisdom. Let us read your words with the opportunity to be open to a new understanding of how we can see the world and choose right. Let us build well upon the foundation using the materials of your teaching. And let us support and encourage one another in prayer, in friendship, in fellowship that the Gracious God, when you ask us, “What is our bid?” it will not be the cheapest, but it will be your best. This we ask in Christ name. Amen.”

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