The House on the Rock - Part 5
Matthew 7 (KJ2000)
24 Therefore whosoever hears these sayings of mine, and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock:
25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26 And every one that hears these sayings of mine, and does them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand:
27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
We Must Remember What We Heard and What We Understood
2 Peter 1 (KJ2000)
12 Therefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though you know them, and are established in the present truth.
13 Yea, I think it right, as long as I am in this tabernacle, to stir you up by putting you in remembrance;
14 Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has showed me.
15 Moreover I will endeavor that you may be able after my departure *to have these things always in remembrance.
The Apostle Peter, knowing he would soon go home to be with the Lord soon, prioritised reminding his readers about those things they already knew and were established in. He didn’t spend the time giving them new revelation.
1 Timothy 4 (KJ2000)
6 If you put the brethren in remembrance of these things, you shall be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, which you have attained.
The Apostle Paul, writing to his young protégé Timothy, encourages him to “put the brethren in remembrance of these things”.
In the short time I’ve been a Christian I’ve observed that many messages and many programmes seem to be marketed to us on the premise that we will learn something new, something that will make all the difference in our lives. Perhaps we need to reflect on the fact that we would probably do better as Christians if we have the opportunity to be firmly established in the faith, and to be reminded of those things we learnt again and again.
Peter laments the unfruitfulness of the believer who does not remember:
2 Peter 1 (KJ2000)
8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that you shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
9 But he that lacks these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and has forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.
Why do we sometimes fail to remember the Word? The world always seeks to distract us from the reality of God’s Word. There is always the temptation to forget what we learnt and understood under the pressure of our day-to-day living. If we would be doers of the Word, we must be intentional about hearing and intentional about understanding and intentional about remembering the Word when it matters most.
Remembering the Word seems to be based on three inputs:
The Ministry of the Holy Spirit (John 14:26)
The Five-Fold Ministry Offices (1 Tim 4:6, 2 Peter 1:12)
The Diligence of the Believer Himself (2 Tim 2:8, Eph 2:11)
Continue in grace!