Verse of the Day 7/14

Through the Bible - Psalms 16-18, Acts 20:1-16   Good morning, What comes to mind when you hear the word "astonished"?  Amazement or surprise? The word can be defined as follows " fill with sudden and overpowering surprise or wonder; amaze".  It can have positive or negative connotations.  It can be accompanied by fear or great joy depending on the situation.   One of the reasons that Jesus spoke in parables was to open the eyes of His hearers to understand principles through the application of them in a story.  It is much the same with "life applications" given in a sermon by a pastor.   Today's verses followed Jesus parable of the house on the sand versus the house on the rock.  The verses capture the reaction from His audience. Matt 7:28 And so it was, when Jesus had ended these sayings, that the people were astonished at His teaching, 29 for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.   NKJV John MacArthur writes, "the verb translated here means to be struck out of oneself, or to be beside oneself with astonishment.  The crowd was utterly flabbergasted by the power, comprehensiveness, and extraordinary insight of Christ's words.  Never had people heard such a penetrating description of true righteousness or such a relentless condemnation of self righteousness."   Jesus had compared the house on the rock, built on the solid foundation and that of the house built on the sand with a shifting foundation.  Aside from the foundation, the houses could appear to be almost identical.   Why were they so astonished?  Jesus had just finished the "Sermon on the Mount" with some of, if not the most, significant "how to" teachings of all time", in other words how to live your life as a part of and not apart from "the kingdom of God".  His teachings were counter cultural then and they are now.  He was teaching that "image is not everything" but it's what's inside or in this case underneath, below the surface that matters.   Following Christ, His teachings, applying them in faith to our lives are foundational and will give us the foundation to withstand the storms of life.   The choice with His hearers then and now is will they, will I move from astonishment to obedience, to "follow" Him.  The astonishment will draw true followers to Him while others will turn and walk away, holding onto, building on their foundation of sand.   Have you ever been "struck out of yourself", astonished and woken up by verses from scripture that you have read or a message you have heard?  What did it lead you to do? Where did it lead you?  What are you building on today?   Read the passage from "The Message" below, may God's Word be more than an incidental addition to your life but be foundational.   In Christ, Mike Matt 7:24-8:1 "These words I speak to you are not incidental additions to your life, homeowner improvements to your standard of living. They are foundational words, words to build a life on. If you work these words into your life, you are like a smart carpenter who built his house on solid rock. Rain poured down, the river flooded, a tornado hit — but nothing moved that house. It was fixed to the rock. "But if you just use my words in Bible studies and don't work them into your life, you are like a stupid carpenter who built his house on the sandy beach. When a storm rolled in and the waves came up, it collapsed like a house of cards." When Jesus concluded his address, the crowd burst into applause. They had never heard teaching like this. It was apparent that he was living everything he was saying — quite a contrast to their religion teachers! This was the best teaching they had ever heard. (from THE MESSAGE)