City Life Starter

Written by Paul Lane

The Word

⁴⁶ “Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? ⁴⁷ Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: ⁴⁸ he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when there was a flood, the river burst against that house and yet it could not shake it, because it had been well built. ⁴⁹ But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation; and the river burst against it and it immediately collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”

Luke 6:46-49 (NASB)

Reflection

Once I was helping my friend Karen put together a desk.  What?  People can’t have friends named Karen now?  Anyway, as I worked on this desk I almost had it complete when I discovered that the last pieces didn’t fit quite right.  This time it was not my fault that I did not follow the instructions.  I think they had been lost, or I would have referred to them.  So, absent the instructions, I concluded that there was something wrong with the kit.  Not believing me, Karen decided to call her dad who immediately proclaimed, “you did it wrong.”

It was a very simple kit, and it did not have very many parts, so I thought I was on good ground with my conclusion.  However, her dad argued that the company makes lots of these kits and it is extremely rare that they get it wrong.  After hearing this argument, I began to feel a little sand under my feet.  So, I decided to reconsider my position.  I spent a little time looking at the different pieces, turning them different ways in my mind.  After a few minutes I realized that there was another configuration that might work.  So, I went about the task of taking it apart and trying the new configuration.  What do you know?  It worked!

In this little tale you can see that success was achieved not only because I heard a better argument, but also because I acted on what I had heard.

Application

I think it is easy to understand that Jesus is telling us that he intends for us to believe that His lessons, His instructions, and His words are to be taken for action.  They are not just playthings for philosophers to ponder.  So, here is a procedure you could follow:

1. Read the bible
2. Pray
3. Take note of what the Bible is teaching
4. As yourself if you have made, or are making, decisions that are consistent with what the Bible is teaching
5. Make a decision consistent with what the bible teaches
6. Repeat steps 1-5

Prayer

Lord, I thank You that You are just and that You are good.  I understand that You have the greatest of all plans.  So, I look to You for direction and I trust You for the result.  Please give me the grace to calm my spirit and to listen to Your words, that I might be faithful to complete the work You give to me.  And thank You for the sunsets.  They are quite beautiful.  Amen.