Play

Building a Life

Mark Dunagan
02/10/19 - Sunday Morning

Building a Life

Wisely Select the Right Foundation

As someone noted, “Build yourself a body of knowledge that cannot be undermined”. In other words, build your life upon truths that cannot be disproven. Jesus would agree:

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man who build his house on the rock. 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” (Matthew 7:24-25). 

In the above selection of passages observe that:

• Everyone builds their house on something. Everyone selects a foundation, that includes a view of themselves, others, morality and the afterlife.
• Everyone will experience trials in life. The rain, flood and winds buffeted both houses. 
• Only one foundation stood the test. The house that remained was that which had been built upon the rock (a life founded on obeying the teachings of Jesus, 7:26,24,21).
• For a moment consider that any foundation less than hearing and obeying Jesus failed. It was not enough to hear and obey Jesus some of the time or only in certain areas. Building a house in which half of the house rests on the rock and half rests on the sand is foolish was well. The final judgment will expose that foundation as faulty (7:22-23). In addition, a foundation which contains a mixture of what Jesus taught and a mixture of error will not hold (Galatians 1:6-9). 

Rigorously Test Your Foundation

Do not be afraid of thoroughly testing what you believe. Truth has nothing to fear. God does not want us to be gullible, and no one should ever want to believe what is false, no matter how comfortable such a falsehood makes you feel at the moment.

• We are told to examine everything carefully (1 Thess. 5:21-22). To avoid the temptation to wanting to listen to what sounds good and easy (2 Timothy 4:2-4).
• To shun those who are smooth talkers and who attempt to entice us by selfish desires (Romans 16:17-18; 2 Peter 2:2; 18 “they entice by fleshly desires”). The Bible frequently warns us in reference to the real possibility of being thoroughly deceived by false teachers (Matthew 7:15). In fact, an entire chapter in 2 Peter chapter 2 is devoted to this very topic.
• Jesus warned us in both of these areas. We need to be very careful about what we hear (Mark 4:24 “Take are what you listen to”), and how or who we are hearing (Luke 8:18 “So take care how you listen”).

God’s Truth Will Be Backed Up

Seeing that the same God who created and designed the universe is the same God who created mankind and authored the Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16-17); I already know that:

• Nature and the science that governs nature will always back up what is in Scripture. The Bible will be right about how human beings are put together, how they think, how they are motivated and how they are tempted (1 John 2:15-17).
• The Bible will be correct in what it says about human happiness, fulfillment in relationships, marriage, parenting and how human governments are most efficient.

Looking for Answers or Looking for Excuses?

The Bible wisely reminds us that not everyone who claims to be looking for the truth or looking for answers is honest in that quest. The rich young ruler claimed to be looking for eternal life (Mark 10:17), but then balked at the commitment required (Mark 10:21-22). In like-manner, Jesus had disciples who walked no more with Him because they reached a point at which they were unwilling to submit to His teachings (John 6:60). So how do I know if I am someone who really loves the truth or a mere pretender? Allow me to offer the following that might be helpful:

When one is Looking for an Excuse

When you are less than honest in your quest for truth and answers, what you are really looking for is a loophole. This can manifest itself in looking to place the blame for our personal failures on someone else. I am looking for an excuse when I desire to pass my responsibility or accountability to someone or something else. I am not looking for truth when I desire to play the role of the victim, or when I want to find a way that I can keep my sin and still feel good about myself.

Looking for an Excuse:  I am Vulnerable

If I am looking for an “out” or a “loophole” I will be more eager to embrace an ear-tickling message (2 Timothy 4:3). Therefore:

• Beware of those who promise you everything at the expense of others. Beware of those who want you to envy people who have succeeded in life. Someone wisely said that the people who get ahead in life are not the people who envy the successful, but rather they are the people who eagerly and humbly ask them, “Tell me how you did that”.
• Beware of those who supposedly want to replace the “oppressors”. Beware of the Absalom’s in life. People who come along and complain about the system and then say, “If I was in charge…”.  

“See your claims are good and right, but no man listens to you on the part of the king”. Moreover, Absalom would say, ‘Oh that one would appoint me judge in the land, then every man who has any suit or cause could come to me and I would give him justice” (2 Samuel 15:3-4). Yet, when Absalom got his chance at power, he did not bring about a reign of justice (2 Samuel 16:21-22).

Looking for the Truth

When you are looking for the truth, you get rid of what is holding you back, what is bad for you, what will not be good for you in the future, and especially what is spiritually and morally bad. At the same time you start adopting what is good for you, adding various virtues to your life: You start to read the Bible. You start to meet with Christians. At the same time you are not generating a list of endless “what ifs” or questions, rather you are finding answers.

What Will Make You Strong or Weak?

The truth will be what will make you morally stronger and not weaker. So beware of people who want to make excuses for you. Beware of those who do not want you to overcome your sins or addictions, and who want to pull you back into the world with them (2 Peter 2:18). As long as you are in sin, others can manipulate you. By contrast, your love for truth will turn you into a person who cannot be easily controlled or manipulated by others.

Take Charge of Your Own Life

What should you be able to do at your age? Then ask for the responsibility to do it. Prove that you can be trusted, that you are responsible. Realize what you will need to be able to do in the real world. Such as, doing your own laundry, balancing a checkbook, following a budget, cooking, doing your bible lesson without being told, getting up for work on time, and saying no to temptation when you are all by yourself.

Be honest about what is not good for you. Remember it is not the sole job of your parents to monitor your time on the computer and so on. It is your job to fix that. Do not waste valuable time waiting for other people to tell you what you already know you should be doing. Own up to your own sins. Be honest, take responsibility for your own life and realize when you are spending and wasting way too much time on what is preventing you from growing. Be honest about the things that you might be doing that do not leave you feeling good about yourself, practices and thoughts that leave you in a dark, lonely, isolated and gloomy place. Own up to when you are not learning anything valuable. When something is turning you into less and less of a moral and spiritual individual (Romans 12:1-2), and making you insensitive to sin and evil (Romans 12:9). Ask for help – what books should I be reading? What should I be learning about the Bible?

Mark Dunagan | mdunagan@frontier.com
Beaverton Church of Christ | 503-644-9017
www.beavertonchurchofchrist.net