In this illustration of the house built on the rock and the house built on the sand, Jesus communicates to us in no uncertain terms that only those disciples who evidence saving faith by a life of obedience will stand in the Judgment!
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Who Is Going To Heaven?
Luke 6:46-49
Who is going to heaven? Wouldn’t you agree that there is no more important question to answer than that one? Today, we hear from all sides, that all sincere religious people are going to heaven. It doesn’t matter if you are Muslim, or Hindi, or Buddhist, or Jewish, or Mormon, or Jehovah’s Witness, or Catholic, or Protestant. These people say that as long as you are sincere in your religion, you can be sure you will end up in heaven.
Others draw the line more narrowly. They say that everyone who believes in Jesus Christ as Savior will be in heaven. This view eliminates the Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and Jews, but would include all Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Catholics and Protestants.
However, according to Jesus Himself, even that view is much too broad. Jesus is in effect stating very clearly and boldly, that many sincere, religious people who passionately call Him Lord, will be in hell!
Think about the people Jesus was talking to. They were Jews. They were as close to the truth as they could possibly get. They believed the entire Old Testament. They worshipped and prayed to the God of the Old Testament. They were looking for the Messiah to come and fulfill the Old Testament promises. Not only were they sincere, zealous Jews, but they were Jews who called Jesus ‘Lord’. They called Him ‘Master’. They admired Jesus. They respected Jesus. They were curious about Jesus. These folks were much closer than a Muslim, Buddhist, or Hindu. Yet even the majority of them were still lost, because they had not become obedient followers of Jesus.
Folks, I know that the trend today is inclusivism. We all want everyone to get to heaven. If you want proof of this just attend a few funerals. It won’t matter who the person is, what religion he followed, or how sinful he was, it is always assumed he is in a “better place.” He could have been an atheist, or a thief, or even a murderer, but as soon as he dies, we all assume he is in heaven. My friends, that’s not how Jesus talked! Jesus said, “Narrow is the way that leads to life, and few are those who find it.”
There can be no more urgent and vital question for us to answer this morning than, “Who is going to heaven?” Let’s allow God to speak to us with the intention of obeying His Word.
Jesus is coming to the end of His sermon that He began in 6:20. He has told His audience who is blessed, and who is miserable. He has taught His disciples that they must love their enemies, and that they must judge themselves before judging others. Now, He concludes His message by declaring the absolute importance of obeying His teaching. They were saying ‘Lord, Lord’ but were not doing what He said. ‘Lord’ means Master. In the Old Testament it refers to Jehovah God. Jesus is saying that it is foolish to call yourself a servant of Christ, and yet ignore His commands. He goes on in verses 47-49, to illustrate this truth by describing two people building a house.
Now, in this illustration the house the two people built represents our lives. The great flood represents the Day of Judgment. All of us are living lives that will one day be judged. If we survive that Judgment, we will spend eternity in heaven. If we fall in that Judgment, we will spend eternity in hell. So, what kind of life must we live now in order to be safe in the coming day of Judgment? Let’s examine Jesus’ illustration more closely.
1. The Similarities In The Builders:
They Both Built Houses
Let me ask you a question. What is the purpose of a house? Well, primarily, a house is to provide shelter from the elements – the wind and rain, and cold, and heat and storms.
Every person in this world is building a house. Your life is your house. Just as a builder constructs a house to shield him from the storms of life, so too, if you live your life the way God has commanded you to, you will be shielded from the storm of God’s wrath on Judgment Day. During our lifetime, we are preparing for eternity. What you do with your life will determine whether you pass into heaven or are cast into hell.
Both Houses Looked Sturdy
If we were to look at both of these houses, they would have looked very similar. Both looked neat, attractive, strong, and sturdy from the outside. No one would ever have been able to tell which house would stand in the flood, by looking at them from the outside. To the casual observer the houses looked the same before the flood, but after the flood hit there was a vast difference in the houses. That which made the difference in the two houses was in the hidden part, the foundation.
Friends, you and I can’t tell with certainty who are God’s children and who aren’t. Many people look good on the outside. They say all the right words, attend church, and carry Bibles. However, when they have to face God on Judgment Day, it may be revealed that they never took the time to dig deep and build their house on a foundation.
Both Houses Faced A Great Storm
Folks, we will all stand before God one day to give an account. No one will escape. Many will wish they could escape. They will even cry to the rocks to fall on them and hide them from the wrath of the Lamb. Listen to the words of John in Revelation 20:11, “Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat upon it, from whose presence earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them.” None can escape, none can hide. The Flood will burst against our house one day.
“God has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed…” (Acts 17:31)
“So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God” (Rom.14:12)
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” (2 Cor.5:10)
“An hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment” (Jn. 5:28-29)
We are all building a house, and that house is going to face a great storm. Will your house be swept away and be demolished, or will it stand?
Now, having noticed the similarities in the builders, let’s notice the differences.
2. The Differences In The Builders
Only One Man Built His House On The Rock
One man dug deep, and laid a foundation on the rock. The other man just threw his house up hurriedly and moved right in. Building a house requires a lot of time and money. It’s not like throwing up a shed that you don’t expect to last, and don’t expect to spend much time in it. In a new home you might install the finest hardwood cabinets, granite countertops, brass doorknobs and crystal chandeliers. However, if that house is not resting on a solid foundation, you’re just throwing your money away. And folks, if we build the house of our life without obedience to Jesus, it’s like wasting money on a house that doesn’t have a foundation. It’s all going to go up in smoke!
Now, wouldn’t you agree that it’s dumb to build a house on sand? Why would anyone build a house and not root it to a foundation? Well, there are a couple of answers we could give:
1. It was too hard of work. He wanted to take the easy way out. Building on a foundation requires a lot of time and hard work. The foolish man was lazy. It was much easier to throw up his house without all of the hassle of digging down to the rock and laying a foundation. A life of disobedience is much easier than a life of obedience to Christ. J.C. Ryle has written, “To lay aside pride and self-righteousness, to crucify the rebellious flesh, to put on the mind of Christ, to take up the cross daily, to count all things but loss for Christ’s sake – all this may be hard work. But this religion will stand. The Christianity which combines good profession and good practice, is a building that will not fall.” Many don’t live their lives in obedience to Jesus, because it’s easier not to.
2. It would take too long. He wanted the immediate benefits of the house without spending the time to build it correctly. He had a roof over his head and all his furniture nicely arranged while his neighbor wasn’t even above ground yet. You see, he was short-sighted. He was living for the here and now, and ignoring giving no thought for the future. It wasn’t raining when he built his house. The river bed was dry. Flood? What flood? He just wanted to get inside his new house and enjoy the comforts it provided. I’m afraid this is the reason that most people don’t obey Jesus. They just aren’t thinking about the future, their eternity. Folks, we are fools if we don’t live our lives in light of judgment and eternity. If you call yourself a Christian, but you are not living in obedience to Jesus, your life is built on sand!
Only One Man’s House Was Left Standing
Palestine experienced a very dry climate. Occasionally torrential rains would sweep through, and the dry river beds would swell, and the floods would just begin to wash away houses and everything else in its way. In Jesus’ illustration, one man’s house was demolished and swept away. He lost everything in the storm. His ruin was great. There was no second chance. There are only two final results: the one house stands, the other house falls. There is no middle possibility of sustaining just a bit of damage. The house standing represents the person who spends eternity in heaven. The house falling represents the person spending eternity in hell. My friends, the only two possibilities for you are eternal heaven or hell. There is nothing else.
If we are condemned on Judgment Day, there will be no more opportunities to live our lives again, in spite of what the Hindus tell us about reincarnation. If you want to stand in the Judgment, you must give heed now to whether you are living in obedience to Jesus.
Only One Man Acted On The Words of Christ
This is the only difference between these two men. The first man heard Jesus’ words and acted on them. The other man heard Jesus words and did not act on them. This is the only difference between the house on the rock, and the house on the sand. To build on the rock means to believe and obey Jesus Christ. To build on sand means to hear but not obey Jesus Christ. Which are you?
Life Application
1. Many Professing Christians Will End Up In Hell!
Notice in verse 46 that these people called Jesus “Lord”. And they didn’t just call Him “Lord.” They called Him “Lord” passionately. They were sincere about Him being Lord. They called Him “Lord, Lord.” They didn’t lower their voices and mumble when they called Him Lord. They cried out loudly, “Lord, Lord.” Yet, in spite of calling Him “Lord”, they did not act on His words. Jesus says they are heading for eternal destruction. In the parallel passage in Mt. 7:22 Jesus said, “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” Many who called Jesus “Lord” in this life will be cast away from Him for all eternity!
Folks, this is a scary thought! Not only are those who don’t profess Jesus as their Savior not saved. Many people who profess Jesus as their Lord and Savior aren’t saved either! Close doesn’t count.
Listen to what God said to Ezekiel in chapter 33:31, “They come to you as people come, and sit before you as My people and hear your words, but they do not do them, for they do the lustful desires expressed by their mouth, and their heart goes after their gain. Behold, you are to them like a sensual song by one who has a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument; for they hear your words but they do not practice them.” There are many people today who attend church and hear the preaching of the Word. They enjoy listening to sermons. It’s like listening to a great singer perform. But they don’t obey the Word of God.
There are people in good, Bible-believing, Bible-teaching churches, who attend church regularly, and carry Bibles, who will end up in hell! Why? Because they don’t obey Jesus. They don’t act on the words of Jesus. Hearing is not enough. If a man doesn’t go on to practice the word of God he just proves that He doesn’t know Him and doesn’t have His Spirit.
We go out to the lightrail and witness often, and I see this all the time. When we start sharing the gospel and urging them to repent and believe in Christ, they will agree with everything we say and tell us that they are Christians. However, we know that they are loaded, or drunk, or are living with their girlfriend. They are practicing sin, yet claiming to be Christians. They are the ones who have built their house on sand.
My friend, I don’t care what church you are a member of. You can be a member here at The Bridge, and still wind up in hell, if you never act on the words of Jesus.
Listen to the words of John 8:31, “So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, ‘If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine.’” Jesus was speaking to Jews who had believed Him. So, they are in right? Wrong! Jesus says, “This is the way you can know whether you are truly one of My disciples – you will continue in My word.” They would continue to hear and apply and obey Jesus words.
Hear me very clearly this morning – only those who demonstrate their faith by obedience to Jesus’ commands will go to heaven! Now, I’m not saying that they earn their salvation by good works. I’m saying they demonstrate they have been saved by good works. Remember that Jesus just got done telling His hearers in Luke 6:43-45 that a tree is known by its fruit. Every good tree brings forth good fruit. If you have received a new nature in regeneration, you will obey Jesus Christ. This obedience will not be the perfection of your life, but it will be the direction of your life.
2. The Teaching of Easy Believism is a Lie!
How would I define the teaching of “easy believism”? Easy Believism is the teaching that obedience to Jesus Christ is optional. They teach that you can receive Jesus as Savior, but not as Lord. It’s like purchasing a car without air conditioning. The air conditioning is an option. You can still drive your car from Point A to Point B without it. The AC just makes your drive more comfortable. Some proponents of Easy Believism teach that a person is saved when they intellectually understand the truths of the gospel and make an appeal to Christ for salvation, whether or not they ever go on to live a holy life. Now, proponents of this view will tell you that it is important to surrender to Christ as Lord and live a holy life, but not necessary in order to be saved. They say that once you introduce the idea that Jesus must be Lord, you have introduced works salvation, and your have committed the heresy of teaching salvation by works rather than pure grace.
I believe that this teaching misunderstands the nature of saving faith, and gives false assurance to many professing Christians when they have not been born again.
The teaching of Easy Believism is closely akin to the Carnal Christian doctrine. Basically this doctrine says that there are 3 different types of people in the world: unsaved people, spiritual Christians, and carnal Christians. They say a carnal Christian is one who receives Jesus into their heart, are saved and eternally secure, but remain carnal their whole life. They say a Carnal Christian is one who is going to heaven but never experiences transformation of life. Friends, you can go back and read evangelical literature and will not find this teaching until about 1830. All solid evangelical bible teachers believed that a person must be holy to go to heaven. They taught that if a man professed to believe in Jesus, but continued to practice sin, he would wind up in hell.
Now, where did this teaching come from? It arose as a result of new evangelistic methods in the 19th century, which emphasized that salvation was the result of a human decision. If a person raised their hand, or walked an aisle, he was saved and eternally secure. However, when this “convert” persisted in living the same way he did before his decision, they had to come up with an explanation. The result was inventing a new category of Christians – “carnal Christians.” They say they have accepted Jesus as Savior but have not submitted to Him as Lord, and that they are going to heaven. But did you notice that Jesus has nothing to say about this? He says there are 2 kinds of people: those who hear His words and don’t act on them, and those who hear His words and act on them. The one who doesn’t act on them will experience eternal ruin. The one who does act on them will experience eternal joy and comfort.
Listen to how the apostle Paul addresses this issue in Eph. 5:5-6, “For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”
My friends, don’t let anyone deceive you with nice, smooth-sounding words that are contrary to the Word of God.
3. Prepare For The Coming Judgment!
Only a fool would build his house on sand knowing that a great storm was headed his way. Get serious about how you are living! Begin to obey Jesus Christ.
So, what are those commands we need to be obeying? Let’s look at some of them briefly:
1) Repent and Believe the Gospel: Mark 1:15, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” This is the very first thing any person must do who wants to be saved. They must repent – turn from what they have been living for (money, sex, pleasure, entertainment, power, prestige, relationships), and turn to Jesus Christ and embrace Him as your All in All. They must also believe in the Good News. Jesus is the King who has come from heaven, and is receiving all into His kingdom who throw down their arms, and wave the white flag of unconditional surrender to His rule.
Now, from that point you will begin to discover that God has a lot to say about all kinds of areas of your life: your money and possessions, your time, sex, prayer, honesty, integrity, loving others, just to name a few. The true believer in Christ will begin to apply Christ’s teaching in all of these areas to his life. He may falter and fail, but over the course of his life he will see progress in obedience to the commands of Jesus Christ.
Did you ever see the movie, The Perfect Storm? This incredible storm at sea causes 100 foot waves to arise, and a fishing boat is caught in the middle of it. But folks, that is nothing to what the ultimate storm is going to be.
Listen to this description of the Final Storm – the Judgment of God in Revelation 20:12-15, “And I saw the dead, the great and the small, standing before the throne, and books were opened; and another book was opened, which is the book of life; and the dead were judged from the things which were written in the books, according to their deeds. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead which were in them; and they were judged, every one of them according to their deeds. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.”
Oh, make absolutely sure your name is written in the book of life? You say, “Brian, how could I ever know that? Am I supposed to climb up into heaven and take a look at that book and find my name?” No, you can’t do that, but there is another way. Peter tells us how in 2 Peter 1:5-10, “Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they render you neither useless nor unfruitful in the true knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things, you will never stumble.”
Surrender to Christ and follow Him in obedience! Prepare for the Judgment to come!
Let’s pray.
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