andrew dodson

Luke 6:46-49 Listen

46 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? 47 Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: 48 he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. 49 But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.”

1. What is the will of God (in this passage)?

The will of God in this passage is to obey His teaching; Do what He tells us; Listen & obey.

2. In light of God’s will, what is He like?

He is our solid foundation for everything in life; He is trustworthy; If we obey His words, when the flood arises, our house will stand; He has our best interest at heart and desires to take care of us.

3. What are practical ways we can apply God’s will?

Build a solid relationship with Him through regular Bible study, prayer, worship & fellowship; Make our decisions in life based on Scripture.

4. What are practical ways we blow obeying God? 

Jeremy used the example of a weatherman - if the weatherman tells us it will be 20 degrees outside, and we wear shorts, we have completely disregarded the information we’ve been given.  Similar to this, the Bible instructs us on how to live our life.  If we ignore what we are taught by God’s Word, we are like the person wearing shorts in 20 degree weather.  The fact of the matter is, we blow it every day as Christians.  Similarly, we rely on sources other than the Bible for our foundation - Dr. Phil & Oprah to give an example.  The subtitle of the Bible should be “The Christian’s Guide to Life,” and sometimes we simply don’t rely on its teachings.  As verse 49 tells us, our life then becomes a mess without this solid foundation.

5.  What thoughts are revealed by our actions?

Sin is doubt; We doubt that God will provide for our desires, so we act in sin to obtain our desires; Sin is pride; We feel we can be our own god and handle our own issues without turning to God for help.

6.  What beliefs about God are revealed by these actions?

Our beliefs are revealed by our actions; As Christians, we should strive to act out the teachings of the Bible to reveal our belief in God and our faith to others; A lot of times, Christians blend into a lost culture because their actions are steeped in sin - we don’t look any different than a lost person; We have been made holy, however - set apart - and our actions should show it; Be in the world, but not of the world.

7.  How are you doing in this area?

Obeying God is what the process of sanctification is all about; Daily we should strive to become less like ourselves and more like Christ; The Christian life can sometimes be a roller coaster ride with ups and downs - feeling close to God and walking closely with Him one day versus feeling apart from God the next; Our goal should be to smooth out the ups and downs to live in close harmony with Him; Continue to build a solid foundation so that when the flood arises, our house will stand and not crumble.