Around 27 A.D. in Fidenae, near modern-day Rome, a massive amphitheater was built to hold gladiator games. Unfortunately, due to poor design constructed upon a faulty foundation, ancient sources tell us that when the stadium collapsed approximately 20,000 people died.
My father worked as a Master Carpenter for a large metropolitan area union for over 35 years. He can tell you how important a solid foundation is for the structural integrity of any building. To this day, there are still buildings across the nation that have suffered severe damage due to poor foundation work. A building can only be as good as what it is built upon.
In chapter seven of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus continues his famous Sermon on the Mount. As he concludes this world-renowned sermon, he addresses how the Day of Judgement correlates with those who are doers of His teachings and not merely hearers only. Jesus says,
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on 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” (Matt. 7:24-27, ESV).[1]
Some Jews had argued whether being a hearer or a doer was more important when it came to Scripture. Biblical scholar Craig Keener points out:
“The rabbis debated whether hearing or doing the law was more important; most concluded that hearing it was more important, because one could not do it without hearing it. But they did insist that both were necessary.”[2]
Another important thing to remember is that one must not only hear Scripture—they must also believe what God has said in Scripture about the Gospel. The writer of Hebrews makes a relevant point concerning Jesus’ teaching about these wise and foolish builders:
“For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it” (Heb. 4:2, KJV).
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus demonstrated His divine authority when teaching the Law, continuing to gradually reveal the fulness of God’s new covenant with humanity. Theologian Joachim Jeremias points out that
“‘Thus says the Lord’ which is used by the prophets to show that their words are not their own wisdom, but a divine message. In a similar way, the ‘verily I say unto’ that introduces the sayings of Jesus expresses his authority.”[3]
In other words, when Jesus was speaking, He spoke by His own authority and stood in place of God while elaborating on the Law. No prophet would ever dare to attempt this, so why would Jesus?
Jesus was more than a mere prophet, rather, He was God in the flesh (Second Person of the Trinity: Isaiah 9:6; John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:8-9)
Jesus was showing that He was more than just another messenger from God and was bringing greater clarity to what it means to be a true follower of Yahweh. The parable of the wise and foolish builder would help with that.
The Foolish Builder and the Wrong Foundation
Biblical scholar Craig Blomberg remarks,
“The wise person living in the Palestinian desert would erect a dwelling on a secure rock to protect the house from the flash floods that sudden storms created. The foolish person would build directly on the sand and would have no protection against the devastation of the elements.”[4]
I believe the Foolish Builder can be identified as representing two different types of religious persons.
The first religious type performs several of God’s commandments. This man or woman has put in a great deal of labor in constructing their house, i.e., spiritual life. No doubt, they’ve put in countless hours of serving others and working diligently to please God.
However, there’s a looming dilemma that this Foolish Builder is often oblivious to. Despite working tirelessly at building their house and keeping their religious appearance tidy, unfortunately, this person has also built their life on a faulty foundation.
How can this be, though? Aren’t they serving God and doing a lot of good works? Yes. Nevertheless, this Foolish Builder has crafted a life of works based on their righteousness, rather than the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
These religious people are those who have heard Jesus through the teachings of their religious leaders, however, they have either been falsely taught, or by their own accord, decided to place their trust in something else other than Jesus alone.
These builders are convinced that in order to be made acceptable in the sight of God, they must please Him by their own efforts. What a sad state of affairs, for Scripture makes it plainly clear that “all our righteousness are as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6, KJV).
The word filthy is translated from a Hebrew word that refers to the bodily fluids of a woman’s menstrual cycle.[5] In other words, when we try to justify ourselves before the Holy and perfect God of the universe by our own righteous deeds, they are viewed as a used hygiene product.
The Apostle Paul reprimanded the church of Galatia because men who claimed that they trusted Jesus Christ as their Savior, were also putting their trust in parts of the Old Covenant by keeping the Law to make themselves right before God (Galatians 5:1-14).
False religious teachers had convinced some of them that they must add a work to their faith, which contradicts the idea that we are saved by Grace alone, through Faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
In other words, if we could work our way to God and gain his approval by what we do, then we’re indirectly stating that God’s righteousness and Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross wasn’t good enough and insufficient by itself (Gal. 2:21).
The second religious type is a Foolish Builder that only serves God in order to have an appearance of righteousness. For whatever reason, they have never placed their faith/trust in Jesus Christ alone to be their Lord and Savior.
Maybe they thought they did this as a child and are relying upon a parent’s testimony and memory of what happened. Maybe they have doubted this stuff from the get-go and are only part of a religious community for the social interaction or keeping their family happy. These are false disciples that Jesus references right before he addresses the wise and foolish builders (Matt. 7:21-23).
Either way, both types of religious foolish builders have heard the message of salvation but have rejected it in some fashion. And sadly, if they do not repent and put their faith/trust in Jesus alone, then at the Judgement Day their true foundation will be exposed as a faulty one.
Ultimately, their righteousness will be like the sand and the spiritual life they built will be crushed by the storm, i.e., God’s judgement. Biblical scholar Robert Gundry notes,
“The sand on which the foolish man builds his house doesn’t deserve to be called a foundation, nor is it….‘Its falling was great’ gives a pictorial equivalent of ‘Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’ (7:23).”[6]
Jesus said,
“On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness’” (Matt. 7:22-23).
The faulty foundation upon which the foolish builder constructed their spiritual life is compared to sand. Although sand could be very hard in the Palestinian region, one would have to dig deeper to hit bedrock to maintain stability during times of inclement weather. Jesus’ story is not only referencing eternal matters, but it’s also relevant to temporal matters.
In the sea of relativism that our secular culture is swimming in, the perpetual changes of moral values and dangerous ideologies will push hard against a Christians house/spiritual life.
And if you have built your life upon an unstable foundation, then you may find your spiritual life wrecked when your house is destroyed by the tide of non-Christian thinking.
Many Christians end up going with the flow and forsake what they have formerly built, abandoning their former devotion to Jesus and His teachings. These false disciples would rather avoid uncomfortable and mild persecution so they can gain the acceptance of their secular peers. After all, who wants to be rejected or ostracized by mainstream culture for what they believe?
These foolish builders have demonstrated that they care more about the values of the world than the values of God. Political issues, and the desire for total human autonomy in choosing whatever makes one happy, becomes the primary form of worship.
This abandonment of Jesus’ teachings on serious spiritual issues is indicative that the foolish builder was a hearer only and not a doer. It is a manifestation of a spiritual condition that shows this person was never a true follower of Christ, and although they did good works and community service through their church, it was never founded upon a true salvation experience or the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
Sadly, they too may very well hear those dreaded words, “depart from me” at the Day of Judgement.
The Wise Builder and the Right Foundation
This Wise Builder represents the religious person who not only heard the teachings of Jesus but also did them. This person has trusted Jesus to be their Lord and Savior. What does that mean?
In short: they have recognized their spiritual condition as a sinner whose done wrong in the eyes of God and in need of His forgiveness (Romans 3:10, 23); they’ve confessed their sins to God and asked for forgiveness; and they’ve acknowledged that God sent Jesus to die for them while trusting that Jesus is Lord, asking Him to be their Savior in order to justify them before God (Rom. 10:9-10).
If you are remotely unsure that you’ve done this, feel free to contact our ministry at any time.
Now, how do we know that this builder is truly a regenerated and new creature in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17)? This is NOT to say the Wise Builder will act perfect or never do anything wrong; rather, it means they will be a doer of Jesus’ teachings and will love God and love others (Matt. 22:37-39; Gal. 5:22-25; 1 John 3:23-24).
Concerning what a doer looks like, writing in 1892, Reverend W. Sunderland Lewis said,
“There are a great many good Christian exercises comprehended under this practical part; namely, holy resolution, vigilance against temptations, fervent prayer for grace, repentance after lapses, courage against evil examples, and patience and perseverance to the end.”[7]
Let me be clear, doing these things is not what makes you a true Christian; rather, you being a true Christian should make you do these things.
Saving faith occurs prior to exercising God’s commandment as taught by Jesus. Good works cannot save you, but if you are saved, then you will at least desire to do good works.
And although a Wise Builder can fall into sin and drift away from God, a true Wise Builder will never totally forsake God or deny Christ, nor live an entire life that contradicts the teachings of Jesus and the New Testament concerning what a true disciple of Jesus looks like.
A “carnal Christian” may be carnal for a certain period of time, but probably not for the entire duration of their Christian life. However, God is patient, gracious, merciful, and He has welcomed countless prodigal sons and daughters home. I am one myself!
The Fruits of the Spirit and good works that Scripture references is the character of God being manifested through your life by the power of the Holy Spirit as you daily surrender yourself to Him.
The righteousness of Jesus Christ is the solid foundation upon which a true spiritual life/house will be built. Our good works are not what make us acceptable before God.
After we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, the Bible tells us that the righteousness of God has been imputed/credited to us by the grace (unmerited favor) of God through faith alone in Jesus Christ. This is what makes us acceptable before Him (1 Cor. 1:30; 2 Cor. 5:21; Phil. 3:9; Rom. 4:3-6; James 2:23).
John 3:16 does not say that “whoever works really hard and does good things will have eternal life,” but rather, “whoever believes in Him [Jesus]” will have eternal life.
However, with sincere faith/true salvation, invariably some kind of good works will follow in a manner that reflects what Jesus and His disciples taught as seen in the Gospels and New Testament.
The Wise Builder’s solid foundation can never be moved. At the Day of Judgement, God sees His righteousness rather than yours because of what Jesus did for us, and that person will spend eternity with Him.
In addition to the solid foundation in the eternal realm, Wise Builders will find their spiritual lives fortified in the midst of the temporary realm. When the trials of life beat against the wise builder’s house, it will be evident that their foundation is solid. This isn’t to say they will feel unaffected by the storm, however, it does mean they will not drown in a sea of despair.
Whenever the wave of secular culture pushes against the true Christian or wise builder, this person can remain firm upon an unmovable foundation. These builders will most likely not compromise in order to avoid the pressure of their peers, and they will not trade Christ for political policies championed by a secular society that is spiritually alienated from God.
These individuals will hold to Christ and His approval rather than the world’s. True Christians should be more concerned with pleasing God than they are pleasing family, friends, or colleagues. Because what is heard in the end from God (“well done, good and faithful servant” Matt. 25:21) is infinitely more valuable than what is heard now from the world.
Everyone in life is some kind of builder. Many are working hard to construct a life of happiness that meets the demands of their perpetually changing desires. We are very good at building lifestyles to maximize pleasures that we seek. Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt. 6:21).
When you build your life upon the temporary pleasures of this world, you can be sure that this type of foundation will be unstable. Invariably, your life will be met with adversity.
There will be harsh storms that arise out of nowhere beating against what you have built. It may be the loss of a good job, a cancer diagnosis of your child, the death of a spouse, a debilitating disease or injury, an increase in depression and anxiety, etc.
Therefore, it’s imperative to lean upon God’s strength instead of your own. This is why Paul said,
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:9-10).
One day we will stand before God with a status of being justified by the righteousness of Jesus Christ and what He did on the Cross, or a status of being justified by our own righteousness and what we did apart from the Cross.
If you remember one verse from this article, remember this one and allow God to saturate your soul with it:
“Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified” (Gal. 2:16).
Be sure that you are not a hearer only, but that you are a doer and that you are building on the right foundation. Thanks for reading.
Blessings,
Andrew Drinkard
[1] Unless otherwise noted, all biblical passages referenced are in the English Standard Version.
[2] Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, 2nd ed (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2014), 64.
[3] Joachim Jeremias, Characteristics of the Ipsissima Vox, James D. G. Dunn, and Scot McKnight, Historical Jesus in Recent Research (Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 2005), 113.
[4] Craig L. Blomberg, Matthew: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture (Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 1992), 112.
[5] See Gary V. Smith, Isaiah 40-66: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture (Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2009), 514.
[6] Robert H. Gundry, Commentary on the New Testament (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishing, 2010), 29.
[7] W. Sunderland Lewis and Henry M. Booth, The Preacher’s Complete Homiletic Commentary: On the Gospel According to St. Matthew (Grand Rapids: Baker Books Publishing, 1980), 189.
