Matthew 7:24-27 – “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.  25 “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.  26 “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.  27 “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall.”  NASU

The quest for a ‘word’ from the Lord has, at times, relegated many believers to becoming nothing more than ears!  The church is the BODY OF CHRIST not the EARS or MOUTH of Jesus!  Here, as Jesus taught, He made a clear distinction between success and failure in the Christian walk.  Both groups HEARD the Word and I contend that an absence of the Word is not the problem it is application of the Word.

I recall a story of a preacher who was chosen by a congregation and his first Sunday preached a powerful message that the people were raving about for days.  The next Sunday the same message was preached and this continued for several weeks.  The congregation began to complain and the board met to discuss the issue deciding to approach the minister and advise him that this was not acceptable.  The board called him in and said, “Pastor, your message was great but you keep preaching the same thing.  You need to get a new sermon.”  He calmly looked at them and said, “Only when you do something with that one.”

Jesus said if we HEAR and APPLY we are like the house built on the rock that cannot and will not be moved by trial, trouble, or difficulty.  However, if we HEAR but DO NOTHING we are like the house built on shifting sand that can and will be shaken by the trials of life and failure is virtually guaranteed.  We have the choice as He opens His word to become ACTION ORIENTED in faith through the grace of God.

May God help us apply His word in our lives daily!  Blessings as you go through your day!