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April 06, 2023

Day 12: A House on the Rock | 12-Day Guided Prayer

Welcome to Day 12 of Our Guided Prayer

Note: This prayer meditation is first and foremost designed to be listened to, so we encourage you to listen to the audio as you read along.

TRANSCRIPT:

Hey Church on the Move family,

Welcome to our 12-day guided prayer podcast.

Today is day 12.

If you’ve followed along over the last several days you know this final day falls on Good Friday. This is the day where we remember the sacrifice of Jesus. We consider His suffering on our behalf and we hold in our imaginations His body, broken for our healing, His blood spilled for the remission of our sins.

Take a moment to prepare yourself to pray over the next few minutes by putting away distractions, setting aside mental to-do lists, and finding a place where for the next 10 minutes or so you can give yourself entirely to the task of prayer.

See yourself placing any worries or situations outside of your control at the feet of Jesus.

Let’s begin by praying a simple prayer. If you find your mind wandering or it’s difficult to focus simply return to prayer by repeating this phrase. Take a deep breath, rest your thoughts on God and pray:

I have made the Lord Most High my dwelling place.

Over the past several days we have reflected upon and prayed in response to some of the most well-known teachings of Jesus found in the Gospel of Matthew. Today we are ending our 12 days of prayer with the final teaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.

Let’s read together in Matthew 7:24-29.

24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

28 And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.

Jesus is referred to again and again throughout the New Testament as the rock, the cornerstone, and the foundation upon which our lives should be built.

And this foundation, according to Matthew 7, is only built through obedience to the words of Jesus, through hearing and doing.

So, today we are going to do a little bit of a home inspection.

The foundation is the most important component of the house but it’s not always what we focus on. Maybe Jesus was describing two houses that were identical on the outside, the one with the faulty foundation may have been more desirable even. It might have looked really good.

But Jesus says that storms will come to both houses and whether or not they stand is based on a part of the house that no one can see.

If you’ve ever purchased a home you know that the inspection is a vital component. When you’ve found a home that you love you want to know that it’s built on a good foundation. The same is true of our lives.

It doesn’t matter how good things look on the outside, the most important thing about us is what we’ve built our lives on.

How do we build our lives on Jesus? The short answer is obedience. Obedience born out of trust.

Throughout the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus has been teaching that we live in a heavenly Kingdom here and now and we also live in a broken world. That means there are storms of circumstance, trial, temptation, and struggle that will still blow and beat on our lives. And if we want to withstand those storms we have to build our lives on Jesus by hearing Him and doing what He says.

So, here is the question that we are going to ask today in prayer.

Jesus, is my life built on You? Is there any part of my life that is not resting on the foundation of who You are? Is there an area of my life where I have heard and not obeyed? Any area where you are calling me to deeper trust?

Then talk to Jesus about anything that comes to mind. Surrender these things to Him trusting that the things He calls us to, the steps of obedience He invites us to make, are for our good.

This might be the first time you’ve talked to Jesus about this. It might be a conversation you’ve had many times before. Whether it’s the first conversation or the hundredth, keep bringing it to Jesus. He is faithful.

Now take a few moments and thank Him for His faithfulness. For His obedience that makes our obedience from the heart possible. Let your mind rest on His goodness and His sacrifice.

The final 2 verses in chapter 7 say, And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.”

Jesus spoke the Truth like someone who knew what He was talking about.

Where did the authority of Jesus come from? It was rooted in His identity as God’s Son, confirmed by the Holy Spirit, and flowed from His communion with the Father. And everything Jesus did was an outcome of that reality. And this authority was compelling or repelling. There is no middle ground with Jesus, He is always moving toward us and He is always inviting us closer.

Take a moment and reflect on these last 12 days. How have you sensed Jesus moving toward you with authority to speak grace and truth over your life? How have you experienced His unfailing love?

To end our time today, listen as I pray a prayer based Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3.

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever.

Amen.

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