“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock. But he who heard and did nothing is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation, against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell. And the ruin of that house was great.”
Luke 6:46-49
Jesus taught His disciples an in-depth lesson about what it means to truly follow Him. After praying all night apart by Himself on a mountain. He calls the disciples unto Himself — this is the first time that they were set apart from the multitudes that followed Him (see Luke 6:12-19). Although the power of GOD was available to them all, the lesson in our text above was specifically targeted to those who call Him Lord (And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all. Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: Blessed are you poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.) Notice that power went out to heal them all, yet he focused his teaching towards His disciples, as He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples.
He begins teaching the beatitudes and ends with a question for all who will call Him Lord in every generation to come, including of course, you and me. He is a master at drawing us in with a provocative question: “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? Jesus knows that it cannot be so, that He is my Lord if I choose to do my own thing. If I call Him Lord, that means He has power and authority over my life. Paul says it this way in 1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s. As believers, our body and spirit belong to God. Whereas Ezekiel 18:4 declares that all souls belong to our God. This means, the believer is wholly owned by God, and every soul in which He breathed the breath of life, shares the breath of God. That is why His power is available to all, but the expectation is greater for those of us who call Him Lord, because of our confession. We have been bought with a great price, which is the precious blood of Jesus!
Both the obedient and disobedient have something in common, we both come to Jesus and we each hear His sayings. Jesus often taught the multitudes, but only a remnant called Him Lord, because they actually believed and lived by the word that proceeded from His mouth. The tragedy is that even among those who called Him Lord, there were those who did not do the things that He said, which made them disobedient. In America 75% of the population professes Christianity (down from 85% a decade ago). While on the one hand the trend appears to be negative, the truth is that America has actually become more honest in her assessment of herself. Still it is a stretch to believe that 75% of the US population call Him Lord, when you look around and see the sin that besets us; it is clear that as a nation, we do not do the things that He says. “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? This is personal and is a challenge to every believer to examine ourselves in order to make sure that we recognize that Jesus is Lord by our submission to His word.
There is a clear divergence in the quality of life of those who obey His word as compared to those who do not. The mystery is that you will only see and experience the difference when the storms of life are raging. This current pandemic is an instrument that separates those who have built their lives on a firm foundation, as opposed to those who have no foundation. When a storm sweeps through an area structures crumble, and often what is left is the foundation. Is your life built on a firm foundation that is steadfast and secure?
Let us be sure to dig deep and build our foundation upon a rock, and that rock is Jesus Christ. Building the foundation is not based upon what we say, but rather it is based on what we do. I can talk about my foundation all day long. But it takes work to dig and build upon the right foundation. So it is, with the word of God. We must be careful to hear and do according to what we hear from the Lord. Then and only then can we call Him Lord, when we do what He says. If you want your life to be unshakable, regardless of what comes your way. Then hear what the Lord says, and then do as the Lord says.
Will you truly make Jesus your Lord today? Yesterday is gone and tomorrow is not promised. Do the things that He says, and you will not stand before Him and have to answer the question — “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?”
Maranatha
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