The Secret of an Unsinkable Life, Part 1

This escapes the inevitable storms of life.

Sometimes it's our help broken relationship may be a financial crisis and insight for living. We can't possibly know what Gaels are beating against your heart right now.

But no matter your situation. There's hope today on Insight for living. Chuck Swindoll continues our study of Jesus famous sermon on the Mount in this section of this message recorded in Matthew seven Jesus described his divine plan of protection titled today's message the secret of an unsinkable line drawing copy of the Scriptures reputedly please turn to the first book of the New Testament, Matthew and locate chapter 7 looking at the latter part of chapter versus 24 through 29.

This is a wrapup of Jesus sermon on the Mount, which he delivered in the very early part of his ministry he had three years before him or he would minister ultimately be arrested and crucified, and ultimately be raised from the dead. Those who listen to him this day. You knew nothing of the future as far as particulars or specifics are concerned. I like all of us who when we are born look forward to living Jesus when he was born realized he came to die. His final words were 24 through 29. Matthew 724 therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house, and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house, and it felt great was the fall of it. When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were made teaching he was teaching them as one having authority, not to subscribe to study the book of Matthew with Chuck Swindoll.

Be sure to download his searching the Scriptures. Studies going to insight world.org/studies another message from Chuck titled the secret of an unsinkable life. Few things are more meaningful or memorable than a great story. It's amazing how we can remember stories even though we may forget the sermons in which those stories appear. People often say to me. I remember your sermon from a male name that the Sunday even the date I don't remember the sermon they remember a story that had told him that's where it is because stories live. All they are to begin with pictures that become mirrors and ultimately window the picture we perform in our minds we can identify with it because then as they become mirrors we see ourselves and once the mirror is cleared up, we are able to look through and realize it's really a window that helps us see the work of God in some area of our life. Great stories stay with us forever as a number of years ago I was visiting with then the head coach of the Washington Redskins, Joe Gibbs, I've been invited to one of the Super Bowl's to speak at one of the one of the chapel services and and Joe was one of the coaches. It was a privilege to to see him and meet his wife and be a part of their lives for a little bit of time in little later when we were talking over something else. He told me a great story about something that happened in his neighborhood never forgotten neighbor who will will calling Frank not his real name, but he had a dog it was a big Labrador retriever and Franco went to the front of his house one morning and was shocked looking through the glass to see his dog standing right in front of the door or sitting on his haunches and he noticed something hanging out of the dogs mouth. He looked through the window closer and thought I got them see what this is. We open the front door and and and a dog wagged his tail and in the dog's mouth is the neighbors pet rabbit did end up Frank of course shocked and embarrassed and he is mind races, wondering what he could maybe do and so he very gingerly takes the dead rabbit out of the dog's jaws and in any rose in the kitchen and he begins to wash off all the blood in gunk and debris in gets it all cleaned up and he races to the bathroom and he gets a hairdryer and he blow dries turns the dead rabbit over and gets it all in soft and he waits till that night. All the lights throughout everybody's asleep and he slithers over the backyard opens the hutch and leaves the rabbit in the hutch and snaps the hutch door close.

Back home to go with next morning use of strong knock at his door and Frank opens a door that is neighbors steaming got the dead rabbit in his hand.

He said Frank city in the neighborhood really why you what you what you don't realize is my rabbit died three days ago and I buried it. Somebody just dug it up and cleaning off nice indeed. Second, I cannot. We got a real sticky in the neighborhood right if you've ever done what you thought would help and headed blow up on your new liberty problem identifying with the story you were there the circumstances were different, but that tell a story tells you. Life happens like that regardless of your best intentions times thing backfire on you sitting in my study earlier this week. In this past week and I began to think through the stories that are in the Bible.

What a realized there's hardly a book of the 66 books of the Bible doesn't have a story usually several and they are so memorable. I counted budgets going over naming him and you know David and Goliath Samson and Delilah Cain and Abel. Abraham and Isaac into going on.

I came up with 3035 stories and I never got out of the Old Testament and the New Testament which is a great story of the life of Jesus and in that life. There's one story after another of incredible power remarkable, even miraculous events dead raised to life the lamer healed the brokenhearted are comforted. The sea is calm disguises are are are are made clear storms are removed sometime even promises mountains to be moved and on and on. The stories nothing like a story to remain memorable and meaningful. Some of them are tragic and they to this day. When you enter into them bring you to tears. Some of them are absolutely hilarious.

Others remarkable no words to describe how that kind of thing could have happened as I think about stories. I believe that the the great wings have at least three essential elements. These are the reasons we stay riveted to a story first. There are people and personalities.

Virtually every story that we remember includes people with personality that adds to the compelling interest of the stroll, the people personality.

Second, there are life situation that we can identify with. We've either been through it or something like it, or we are going through it or someone we know has been through something like that so great. We have an understanding as we hear the story a life situation. And third, there are lasting lessons from which we can draw truth for life at that window we look through and realize there's a message here that I don't want to miss Jesus stories are sometimes called parables we use the word today but it is a word used frequently in the New Testament parable is from two Greek words, Barlow means to throw or to cast as you throw a ball power law is a word that means alongside you putting together. It's to cast or to throw something alongside something else. But if it had to do with stories well in a parable or story Jesus or someone will give you something familiar and then placed alongside something not that familiar so you'll understand the unfamiliar better. Jesus is the master storyteller you're never bored with his remarkable even though the son of God, he could choose the most practical stories that everyone can identify with the difficulty of describing. For example, what kind of parts. People have some parts are hard stony others authority filled with a prickly pretzels somersault often malleable, so he says a farmer went out to sow seed and he sowed someone hard soil. Some on on on thorny soil and he goes on to describe four different kinds of sort talking about soil. The earth is talking about the condition of one's heart and when you place that simple story that you understand and in the days of agriculture you could identify with alongside something is as profound as the condition of one's heart. You see it more clearly. I think it's worth noting that and certainly we should be surprised that when it comes to the end of the most famous sermon ever preached. He ends with a story he ends with a story because we are somewhat familiar with our Bibles.

Many of us, we get to this and we tendered sort of raced through it and get on the chapter 8 unfortunately because there's much here. We've never uncovered Jesus stories are like. Not only are there people involved.

There are those elements of life situations as well as lessons to be learned. We want to pull all that from the story.

By the way did it work jump to the end. After the sermon ends that's in verse 28 when Jesus had finished when you finish these words, the crowds were me at his teaching, and I don't think anybody jumped up and ran to their horse to ride off in another direction or got up and got on the cart to go elsewhere. I think they set stunned as they listened and began to piece together the truth. He had driven home in the story. In fact he was teaching them as one having authority, and not as described.

Another vote for great stories. By the way, they realized, as you will. When it's over these talking, not not about two houses talk about two lives and how one sinks into a total collapse of the other is unsinkable, your one life or the other.

That's what this is about Noah's notice. Go back to verse 24. Let's unravel the story of lasting value. First, there are some identical elements in the story. Verse 24 we have a an individual who is building his house toward the end of verse 24 who built his house. Look at the end of verse 26 is another man who built his house two houses.

We don't know.

They were near each other.

We don't know who's doing the building. We just know that they are two houses from a distance they may have looked similar and we may have thought. Had we been walking by and observed both builders in the process, but there building similar homes may be identical, but they're far from identical matter of fact, this is about houses of all he uses houses alongside the true about a life.

Are you listening Jesus often paused in the middle of his teaching and says let him who has ears to hear.

Pay attention. Don't miss this. There's truth to prepare you for the life beyond. In this simple story of two houses interesting. The men had a choice. Someone once said life is like a coin you can spend it anyway you want to but you can only spend it once you have a second occasion to build your life house you're building it now when it's over, there's no returning to the project, you will experience the result of how you built your house the identical life situation. I have this marked bold yellow color in my Bible verse 25. The ring fell, the floods came the winds blew slammed against that house, you see situations like that floods came, winds blew slammed against the house, but the result belief or moment, look at verse 27 identical words. Rain fell, the floods came the winds blew and slam against that house life situations.

The inevitable happens. The inescapable occurs, it's not only a storm. It's a severe storm.

It's like a tornado group moves through mobile home park elitist kayak and it looks like splatters, shards of glass pieces of what was once house scattered all over. Storms happen. The point is, life is difficult, it's impossible impossible to live a full life without times getting hard to hope training your child know that say more about that in a moment the tests come with extreme velocity someone we love dies younger than we expected someone we love leaves it leaves our family without notice. A child doesn't live the full life and we survive our trial some hard aches and diagnosis. Some painful situation. One woman wrote pain knocked upon my door and said that she had come to stay, though I would welcome Herbert Bader go away. She entered in like my own shade. She followed after me and from her, stabbing, stinging sword, not a moment.

Was I free. That's life. Job says it Weldon 14 one. I've always appreciated the living Bible rendering of Job 14 1 cup frail is man half-year is days have full trouble one man putting in these words, we must prepare the houses were building for wind, rain and floods. We must prepare the child for the road, not the road for the child that is a profound statement everything within the heart of a parent is to prepare the road for the child can. We must prepare the child for the road, not the room for the child. There is a testing of all the houses we are building and that testing is built into the whole plan. No favorites are excused from the inevitable testing of the value systems and philosophies of life and dreams into which we invest our lives you looking at Mr. fix-it. I don't want any of my children to hurt you know what I found. I am an absolute failure at keeping them from hurting because life hurts, storms, winds blow floods rise kids hurt suddenly were in the story. It isn't some fantasy that is come up with.

This is about life. Those who heard Jesus in that day, literally, at least mentally, were staring just like you are thinking, realizing storms are yet to come. Rains are yet to fall.

We cannot predict. My wife looked out the front window at our home yesterday and saw emergency vehicle vehicles only two doors down and she ran to me and she said there are emergency vehicles out front and on our street and we walked out there not going to the story any further out of the blue emergency vehicle showed up at a home where everybody was laughing having fun and enjoying lunch. Suddenly everything screeched to a halt. Storms come winds blow floods rock their different results to the homes being built. Look closely guide my Bible marked builder number one builds a house. According to the end of verse 25 that in spite of the store did not fall Mark that it did not fall down in verse 27 builder number two working on a house made it look just like the other one from a distance, but I notice here, it fell and Craig was the fall. My darling is the Greek word, we get a word may come from it. It was a makeup collapse everything for limited Hill together, even though there was sincerity among the builder and the crew working on that house it could withstand the storm. There's a reason for some reason.

Obviously the end of verse 25. One is founded on the rock that's the word tetra that has in mind and expanse a large expanse of that brought a giant deposit of rock he built that house where there was already rock before there was cement to build. He found a place where he could start at blue rock or bedrock to his house didn't fall, but the other house because it was built on sand last word in verse 26 fell totally claims. Not long ago I was walking along the inside for living ministries new site over here near archer and we were with our Board of Directors and that the man next to me had his degree in engineering and most of his years in his career had been in construction engineering. He was looking great interest at the process of building the building so we talked about all the rock that had been dug up, to prepare for the basement and the first floor of the building so my friend said to me, fellow board member said you may not know what Chuck shelf of rock that is that he spoke like a geologist. He said it starts up in Oklahoma and it runs down through North Texas in Central Texas limit kind of winds down and stops as it gets closer to the golf time to get to Houston little more like lunch to go down there.

He said you have to build a floating foundation, not literally, but that's what it's called because they're building in a place where there is solidity below the surface soil said it's a great thing to have this is kind of rock beneath building today again tomorrow. Chuck Swindoll is helping us understand the secret of an unsinkable life. It's designed to fortify our spiritual resolve long before the storm rolls in and takes us by surprise. This is insight for living learn more about this ministry. Please visit us online@insightworld.org. If Chuck study and Matthew has ignited your curiosity and you're ready to learn more about Jesus sermon on the mount. Then I'll encourage you to purchase Chuck's book called simple faith. This is one of the most highly requested books in his collection because it so clearly describes the timeless wisdom of Jesus on relevant issues such as forgiveness prayer confrontation dealing with hypocrisy to purchase Chuck's book again called simple faith. Call us if you're listening in the United States dial 1-800-772-8888 or go directly to insight.org/offer when you give a donation above and beyond the cost of books and resources. Your gift is channeled directly into supplying this daily program so people here at home and around the world will know the relevance of Jesus sermon on the mount to and we have ample evidence through thousands of phone calls and email comments. Your gifts are truly making a difference.

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