Matthew 7:24-29 (NLT) 24Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. 25Though 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. 26But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. 27When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash. 28When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, 29for he taught with real authority – quite unlike their teachers of religious law.
As we wrap up our two-week focus on our appreciation of some of the older hymns and the Biblical messages they bring, I’d like to close with one of my youngest son’s favorite hymns. Every time our church had a sing-spiration night and asked the congregation for their favorites... David was always first to call out #448 – The Solid Rock. This is a great hymn to wrap up our series for it tells of comfort, hope, and encouragement that can only be found when built upon the unshakable foundation of Jesus Christ.
The author of The Solid Rock is Edward Mote – a humble cabinet maker in London. The year is recorded as 1834, when walking to the cabinet shop, the words flooded Edward’s mind. By the end of the day he had written four verses. They were later set to music by William B. Bradbury, who interestingly enough selected a repetitious and rhythmic cadence, complimenting the repetitious and rhythmic sounds of a carpentry shop. The author, Edward Mote, eventually became a Baptist minister; however, his hymn reflecting the solid foundation of life in Christ is still a favorite among many denominations today.
You might be familiar with the story of the two houses built by the wise and unwise builders... but today, take special note of the last two verses. Jesus taught with authority – he taught from his heart. It wasn’t, nor is it today, a matter of religious laws or beliefs – it is a matter of building on a solid foundation that cannot be shaken by the world’s views. Our world, our society, our educational systems and teachings, our surroundings are all full of sinking sand. Build your life on Jesus Christ the Solid Rock!
The Solid Rock (Edward Mote, 1834)
My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness; I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace; in every high and stormy gale, my anchor holds within the veil.
His oath, His covenant, His blood, support me in the whelming flood; when all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay.
When He shall come with trumpet sound, Oh, may I then in Him be found; dressed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before the throne.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; all other ground is sinking sand, all other ground is sinking sand.
Lord God Almighty, our Father;
Thank you for the reminder in your Word and through the older hymns that our only hope is to build our lives on the sure foundation of Your Son, Jesus Christ. The world, our nation, our society, our school systems – all of it is sinking sand – all of it lures us away from You. Jesus’ blood and righteousness is redeeming hope for eternal life when Christ shall come again. Forgive our sins, and set us back on the right path.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
The devotional The Solid Rock appeared first on Write From My Heart at https://writefrommyheartblog.blogspot.com
Email: Dotty Willmon, writefrommyheartblog@gmail.com
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The Advent Christian Hymnal, ACGC, Charlotte, 1967.
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