Concerning Spiritual Foundations

I have been seeking greater understanding of spiritual foundations lately, at the same time as being overwhelmed by Jesus' explanation of love in Luke 6. As much as I appreciate the poetic description of 1 Corinthians 13, it is Jesus' words that have stopped me in my tracks.

Today I was pondering the end of Luke 6, where Jesus was giving the parable of the builder who built his house on the sand as compared to the builder who built his house on solid rock. Obviously the one built on the rock withstood the storms. Foundational matters, right? Have you noticed what Jesus said to launch into this parable?

"But why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things I say?" (Luke 6:46)

The solid foundation is not just the teachings of Jesus; it is obedience to what he taught. The foundation of our life is not the Bible, it is living the Word by the power of Jesus Christ in us. Jesus said:

"Whoever comes to me, and hears my sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like ..."

And then he launches into the parable. But notice in the parable that the wise builder did not take the easy way out. He dug through the sand, dirt and gravel until he found the solid rock. Once he unearthed the rock he began to build his house. Once built, nothing could destroy that house, even though many things came against it, but on that solid rock it stood.

Then Jesus said the foolish builder represents those who hear but do nothing about it. This is the lazy builder who couldn't bother to dig to find the solid rock. He just built it on where he was, right on the sand, dirt and gravel. How many of us are too lazy to dig in the Word for understanding and application? The many things that came against it easily moved the weak foundation and brought the house down.

Sounds like a simple Sunday School lesson but the truth of the matter escapes us every day. "But why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things I say?"

I may struggle with the vulnerability of the love commanded in Luke 6, but I am digging through all the useless foundational material to find that solid rock. With the power of Jesus I am determined to make sure my foundation of obedience is right. Even though this love requires me to be open to rejection, slander, misunderstanding, hurt after hurt, I want to do it right according to what Jesus has taught. I trust him to heal those hurts but I want to be vulnerable in love. We must be vulnerable in order to love as Jesus loved; we must be willing to be wronged, to be hated, to be killed without a demand for justice. Obedience to this is a foundational matter; THE foundational matter. It is from this that everything else gets built and it is upon such solidness that everything else is able to stand the storms without being destroyed.

"But why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do the things I say?"