One of the most interesting and delightful aspects of teaching is how my own wisdom and knowledge increase as I teach. When I am teaching the Bible, God reinforces in my own heart the truths I aim to convey to my students. He often convicts me when I attempt to teach them something I am not fully practicing myself. I love this, and I believe it’s a gift from God. A great example of this occurred last week while I was teaching the parable Jesus gave in Matthew 7:24‑27 about the wise and foolish builders as He was concluding the ‘Sermon on the Mount.’ Jesus begins, “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:” He then describes the storms of life that come and how that house stands because it was built on a rock. He contrasts this with the fool who hears the Word but does not obey, likening him to a man building upon sand. When the storms arrive, Jesus says the house falls and “great is the fall of it.” Total destruction. Here’s the full passage for reference. Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. Matthew 7:24-27 One of the great challenges of teaching young children God’s Word is helping them apply Scripture to their daily lives. Children love a good story, and even as adults, we often enjoy the Bible’s narratives, parables, and vivid word pictures. But do we understand the application? The whole point of Scripture is to bring that application to life so we can be living epistles, known and read of all men (2 Corinthians 3). Here’s how I approached this particular lesson. After telling the parable, we established the understanding that a ‘hearer’ is someone who learns about God and knows what is right. By comparison, a ‘doer’ not only learns and knows what is right, but actually chooses to do what is right, even when no one is watching. I began describing various scenarios and let the children decide which category a behavior belonged to. I asked, for example:
…and so forth. The children instinctively placed each scenario in the correct category - rock or sand; wise or foolish. They could easily discern the difference between just hearing or knowing what was right - and actually doing it. We then began talking about the rain and wind and storms that come in life and what that looks like - giving examples of difficulties like illness, financial hardships, home problems, accidents, social conflicts, etc. We took special note that both houses experienced the ‘bad weather.’ It was important to notice that ‘doing right’ didn’t guarantee there wouldn’t be troubles in our lives. The difference was how the storm affected the life of the wise builder as opposed to that of the foolish builder. Finally, I introduced James 1:22: “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” To me, James summarized the parable of the wise and foolish builders in one sentence. We practiced this verse several times, and I plan to reinforce it with them again next week. In my opinion, one of the most important parts of that verse is the final phrase, “deceiving your own selves.” I asked the children, If you pretend to love God and do the right thing only when certain people are around, who are you fooling? Can we fool God? You may fool some people for a while, but the real truth is that you are just fooling yourself. You fool yourself into thinking that you are getting away with things. You fool yourself into thinking that your actions aren’t that bad and that it doesn’t really matter. You don’t realize that you are building your character on sand, and when the wind and rain and storms come, your ‘house’ will fall flat… …and great will be the fall of it. As I taught this to the children, I reflected on how often I see this truth in the lives of those around me and in my own life, both its positive and negative aspects. How often do we still pretend at Christianity, publicly or around certain people, putting on a façade that seems good or godly without actually living a life of obedience to God at home or in private. Do we behave one way in front of one group of people and a different way around others? How often do we justify our sin or make excuses for our behavior? As James reminds us, when we know what is right to do and we don’t do it, we are only fooling ourselves. Of all the deceptions, the worst is fooling yourself. The end result? Total destruction. As I taught that lesson over and over, I couldn’t help but ask the Lord to show me the areas of my life where I am deceiving myself. I certainly don’t want to be a fool. I want to continue building on a foundation of solid rock. I’ve seen godly people weather incredible storms and still stand strong, glorifying God in their daily life and consistent testimony. That’s the kind of life I want to have, and I hope that you seek the same. I’m confident it’s worth it. Blessings, P.S. Just a reminder that we can’t really be a doer of the Word if we aren’t first a hearer. Let me encourage you to get in the Bible every single day, even if it’s just for a little while. It makes an amazing difference.
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