This morning we wrapped up Luke 6, where Jesus gives us a clear and challenging word: if we call Him Lord, we have to actually do what He says. He uses the image of a house with a strong foundation—those who hear His words and act on them are building on rock, while those who don’t are building on sand, setting themselves up for collapse. It’s a reminder that Jesus doesn’t just want our agreement; He wants our obedience. Our lives should be built on Him—our firm foundation—because He’s the only one who won’t fail us. Everything else will eventually crumble, but when we follow and obey Jesus, we’ll stand strong no matter what comes.

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It’s good to be with you on this wonderful Friday. I hope you’re looking forward to a great weekend. I’m excited — I don’t think I have many plans. That’s always fun, isn’t it? When you look ahead to the weekend and there isn’t a whole lot going on. I’ve got something tomorrow, and that’s about it.

Sunday will be great — we’ve got a baptism at St. Matthew’s, and all kinds of good things happening.

God is good. We had a great crowd last Sunday — the biggest we’ve had in a long, long time. God’s doing some wonderful things here, and I’m excited to see what He’s going to do this Sunday in worship at St. Matthew’s.

If you’re in the Madison area, we’d love to have you join us.

Today, I want to read from Luke 6:46–49. We’re finishing out Luke 6, which wraps up what’s often called “Luke’s Sermon on the Plain.” After this, you’ll see Jesus preaching, teaching, and moving around a lot more. His more stationary ministry wraps up here.

Here’s the passage:

“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I tell you?
I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them.
That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock.
When a flood arose, the river burst against that house, but could not shake it, because it had been well built.
But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation.
When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.”

This passage reminds me of one of my favorite hymns in the hymnal: “How Firm a Foundation.”

“How firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,
Is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!
What more can He say than to you He hath said,
To you who for refuge to Jesus have fled?”

And most of the rest of that hymn is just Scripture —

“Fear not, I am with thee, oh be not dismayed,
For I am thy God and will still give thee aid…”

It’s a great old hymn of the faith, reminding us that our foundation must be the Word of God. I’ve always loved it.

But look at what Jesus says in this passage:
“Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?”

Whew. That’s a strong word right out of the gate, isn’t it?

Years ago — feels like a hundred now — I was in college at Mississippi College. At the time, I attended and joined First Baptist Jackson, and I’ll never forget something one of my Sunday school teachers said in the college ministry:

“You can’t say the phrase ‘No, Lord.’
If you say ‘no,’ then He’s not really your Lord.
You don’t say no to your Lord.”

That always stuck with me. And here, Jesus is saying the same thing: If you call me Lord, then do what I say.

That’s the challenge for us today. If we’re going to call Jesus our Lord, then we have to obey Him. It’s not enough to hear His words — we have to act on them.

Jesus gives us a picture of what that looks like.
The one who hears and does what He says is like someone who built their house on a rock-solid foundation. The floods came, the river burst against it, and the house stood firm.

But the one who hears and does not act — that person built their house on the ground with no foundation. When the flood came, the house collapsed, and great was its ruin.

This teaching echoes others Jesus gives — like the contrast between the house built on rock vs. sand. But the heart of the message is this:
What are you building your life on?

What is the foundation of your life?
Are you building your life around the teachings and truth of Jesus Christ? Or are you building on something else?

This reminds me of an old ‘90s Christian song, “Two Sets of Joneses.” It tells the story of two families — one builds their life on Jesus, the other on wealth. When life falls apart, only the family built on Jesus is left standing.

That’s the same question Jesus is asking us in Luke 6.
Do you see the common theme in the Sermon on the Plain?

• From the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
• Judge not. Take the plank out of your own eye.
• Love your enemies. Be merciful, as your Father is merciful.
• Are we feeding mercy or feeding judgment?
• Are we blessed because we’re empty and humble — or do we find woe because we’re full of ourselves and the world?

Each teaching is asking the same question:
What are we putting our ultimate faith in?

Are we living like the world, or are we living like Jesus?
Are we building our life on Him, or on anything else?

Even good things — your kids, your church, your work — they’re not meant to be the ultimate foundation. Only Jesus is.

Why?
Because Jesus will never disappoint you.
He will never fail you.
He will never leave you nor forsake you.

Jesus is the constant.
Jesus is the only true and trustworthy foundation.
And when you build your life on Jesus, everything else starts to make sense — your family, your work, your play, your church, even your theology.

But if anything else is your foundation, when the storm comes and shakes it — it’ll fall apart.

And what does Jesus say happens to that house?
“Immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house.”

Why did it fall?
Because it wasn’t built on a firm foundation.

And notice — the foundation isn’t just believing in Jesus.
Jesus says the person who stands strong is the one who:

• Comes to Him,
• Hears His words, and
• Acts on them.

The foundation isn’t just hearing the Word. It’s not just believing it.
It’s doing it.
It’s obeying Jesus.
It’s letting His words transform how we live.

He doesn’t say, “Hey, friends, just agree with me.”
He says, “Hear me — and do what I say.”

Obey me. Follow me. Let me be your Lord.

That’s the firm foundation. That’s the Gospel.
Jesus is Lord.
That’s the Good News.

So today, friend — is your life built on that foundation of belief and action?
Or is it something else?

Because if it’s anything else… we’re setting ourselves up for collapse.
But if our life is built on Jesus Christ — our firm foundation — we will stand.

Thanks for being with us today.
Have a great weekend! We’ll pick up with Luke 7 on Monday — can’t wait.

Have a great day!