“Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And every one who hears these words of mind and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it.”
Mathew 7:24-27
Anyone who was living in this area five years ago is acutely aware of what happens when great quantities of water come relentlessly down a river. Our minds did not want to believe what our eyes were seeing, that familiar landmarks and buildings were filled with the dirty, disgusting water, our streets looked like rivers, and boats were going where cars were supposed to drive. We had seen such sights on television in other places — homes in California sliding down steep hills of mud, structures in Florida disappearing into enormous sinkholes. But not here — not in our safe and quiet town!
Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus uses stories of everyday life, or, in this case, a disastrous event, to teach us how to live lives of faith. He tells us about a loving God, who wants to see us caring for one another, not judging others, living lives of kindness and generosity, demonstrating his love for all the world. Caring for the entire world is a tall order, and most of us find it overwhelming. That is why Jesus tells us these short, simple stories of the kind of values and behavior that, as they spread, can reach throughout the world.
Starting with Matthew 5, there are many parables that Jesus used to make his point — knowing that different subjects would speak to different people. Take a look at these, because you’re very likely to find one that speaks to you. As we sang in church last week: