Parable of House Building and Life

How does one build a house? In the back of a small shopping center near us was a mature forested area. In very little time, heavy equipment was brought in to clear the land. Clearing is no small task. Trees and topsoil were removed in the first weeks. The next step was leveling the land down to what we call “hard pan” — the layer of very stable compacted clay. Machinery worked it and worked it some more. The result is an area upon which footers can be built. Foundations for any sizable building cannot be built on topsoil or inconsistent soil. Without rock underneath, a builder must “make” rock for a foundation that is laid on this prepared land. Hence the work up front on the land is critical.

Do you want to know God? We are not talking about some religious practice or self-help program. Entering a relationship with the God of Creation, the God of the Bible, means a real relationship with interaction. If you agree to it, it becomes a path of fruitfulness and eternal life. But one cannot do this without a heart that can receive. How does one have a heart able to receive? By turning from your ways to want His. It is repentance.

What does repentance mean in real terms? Your list might be a little different than others, but the Bible is full of examples and guidance. This culture is no different. Are you engaged in sexual immorality, stealing, or lying? Do your eyes take in the same things via any media, and you think it’s just fine and normal, or perhaps even enjoy it? Are you involved in any illegal or immoral activity?

So, don’t expect to have Him touch you or revive your spirit and birth you again without a prepared heart, which is repentance and believing. Then he does what no man can do — He forgives the sin and rebirths your soul. Then the walking starts.

This is no game playing with the Living God of the Bible. He loves all, and calls all of us to Himself, but without repentance and belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, it does not happen. So, if a person is afraid of what He might demand, there is a question about how seriously that person wants to know Him.

When one does repent and believe, the storms of life don’t all go away, but our souls are preserved through them. Our relationship does not go away because of a storm. Even if life is seemingly foreshortened, the relationship with Him is preserved in eternity. So, it is worth it to know Him at any cost.

Just remember, on this earth He cannot build in your heart any more than a building can be built on unprepared land. Therefore, repent and believe.

Yes. It’s that simple.