Matthew 7:25

He said not, I will account him that hears and does, as wise; but, He shall be likened to a wise man. He then that is likened is a man; but to whom is he likened? To Christ; but Christ is the wise man who has built His house, that is, the Church, upon a rock, that is, upon the strength of the faith. The foolish man is the Devil, who has built his house, that is, all the ungodly, upon the sand, that is, the insecurity of unbelief, or upon the carnal, who are called the sand on account of their barrenness; both because they do not cleave together, but are scattered through the diversity of their opinions, and because they are innumerable. The rain is the doctrine that waters a man, the clouds are those from which the rain falls. Some are raised by the Holy Spirit, as the Apostles and Prophets, and some by the spirit of the Devil, as are the heretics. The good winds are the spirits of the different virtues, or the Angels who work invisibly in the senses of men, and lead them to good. The bad winds are the unclean spirits. The good floods are the Evangelists and teachers of the people; the evil floods are men full of an unclean spirit, and overflowing with many words; such are philosophers and the other professors of worldly wisdom, out of whose belly come rivers of dead water. The Church then which Christ has founded, neither the rain of false doctrine shall sap, nor the blast of the Devil overturn, nor the rush of mighty floods remove. Nor does it contradict this, that certain of the Church do fall; for not all that are called Christians, are Christ's, but, The Lord knows them that are his. (2 Tim. […]

When the soul considers the Most High in a manner that is most pious, true, and good, then it is lifted up by zeal and the rapture of love to the third heaven, yet not in such a perfect way as Paul. And then the …

The assault on this house follows: And the rain came. Rain is taken as doctrine, so that there is good rain and bad rain. Therefore, what collapses is bad doctrine: "The Lord rained sulphur and fire on Sodom" (Gen 19:24). Likewise, floods are good and …

"Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of Mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, who built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the rivers came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell …

And the rains descended, and the floods came,....

And the rain descended - floods came - winds blew - In Judea, and in all countries in the neighborhood of the tropics, the rain sometimes falls in great torrents, producing rivers, which sweep away the soil from the rocky hills; and the houses, which are built of brick only dried in the sun, of which there are whole villages in the east, literally melt away before those rains, and the land-floods occasioned by them.

The Lord Jesus winds up the Sermon on the Mount by a passage of heart-piercing application. He turns from false prophets to false professors, from unsound teachers to unsound hearers. Here is a word for all. May we have grace to apply it to our own hearts! The first lesson here is the uselessness of a mere outward profession of Christianity. Not everyone that saith “Lord, Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven. Not all that profess and call themselves Christians shall be saved. Let us take notice of this.

And the rain descended--from above. and the floods came--from below. and the winds blew--sweeping across. and beat upon that house--thus from every direction. and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock--See 1Jo 2:17.

Conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 7:13-27). "The righteousness of the kingdom," so amply described, both in principle and in detail, would be seen to involve self-sacrifice at every step.

Anchor repaired 2026-08-10: was 7:12; quote is JFB's section opening for the Sermon's conclusion, self-labeled Mt 7:13-27.

The Lord Jesus winds up the Sermon on the Mount by a passage of heart-piercing application. He turns from false prophets to false professors, from unsound teachers to unsound hearers. Here is a word for all. May we have grace to apply it to our own hearts! The first lesson here is the uselessness of a mere outward profession of Christianity. Not everyone that saith “Lord, Lord,” shall enter the kingdom of heaven. Not all that profess and call themselves Christians shall be saved. Let us take notice of this. It requires far more than most people seem to think necessary to save a soul. We may be baptized in the name of Christ, and boast confidently of our ecclesiastical privileges; we may possess head knowledge, and be quite satisfied with our own state; we may even be preachers, and teachers of others, and “do many wonderful works” in connection with our church, but all this time are we practically doing the will of our Father in heaven? Do we truly repent, truly believe in Christ, and live holy and humble lives? If not, in spite of all our privileges and profession, we shall miss heaven at last, and be forever cast away. We shall hear those awful words, “I never knew you. Depart from me. The day of judgment will reveal strange things. The hopes of many who were thought great Christians while they lived will be utterly confounded. The rottenness of their religion will be exposed and put to shame before the whole world. It will then be proved that to be saved means something more than “making a profession.” We must make a “practice” of our Christianity as well as a “profession.” Let us often think of that great day: let us often “judge ourselves, that we be not judged” and condemned by the Lord. Whatever else we are, let us aim at being real, true and sincere.

THESE were the closing words of our Savior's most famous sermon upon the mount. Some preachers concentrate all their powers upon an effort to conclude with a fine thing called a peroration, which, being interpreted, means a blaze of rhetorical fireworks in the glory of which the speaker subsides. They certainly have not the example of Christ in this discourse to warrant them in the practice. Here is the Savior's peroration, and yet it is as simple as any other part of the address. Here is an evident absence of all artificial oratory.

THESE were the closing words of our Savior's most famous sermon upon the mount. Some preachers concentrate all their powers upon an effort to conclude with a fine thing called a peroration, which, being interpreted, means a blaze of rhetorical fireworks in the glory of which the speaker subsides. They certainly have not the example of Christ in this discourse to warrant them in the practice. Here is the Savior's peroration, and yet it is as simple as any other part of the address. Here is an evident absence of all artificial oratory. The whole of His hill sermon was intensely earnest, and that earnestness was sustained to the end so that the closing words are as glowing coals, or as sharp arrows of the bow. Our Lord closes not by displaying His own powers of elocution, but by simply and affectionately addressing a warning to those, who, having heard His Words, should remain satisfied with hearing, and should not go forth and put them into practice. As according to usual experience, a preacher warms to his subject as he advances and becomes more intense as he nears his final sentences—so we are bound to give the more earnest heed to the words which are now before us—words with which the Lord of all preachers concluded His memorable discourse. Jesus had been saying many things, but these are two words to which I think He especially alluded when He said, "Whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man." The first of these words was, "Enter you in" (Matt. 7:13). And the second was, "Beware" (Matt. 7:15).

The difference between sand and rock is far more subtle than you may think—one is simply small particles of the other, conforming to whatever presses against it.

When things are good, it is hard to spot the difference. But when the storms come—and rest assured, storms will come—your foundations will be revealed for what they truly are.