Scripture Lesson

From the Psalms, Chapter 46:

To the leader. Of the Korahites. According to Alamoth. A Song.
¹God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble.
²Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change,
though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea;
³though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
Selah

⁴There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
⁵God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved;
God will help it when the morning dawns.
⁶The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter;
he utters his voice, the earth melts.
⁷The Lord of hosts is with us;
the God of Jacob is our refuge.
Selah

From the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 7:
‘²¹ ‘Not everyone who says to me, “Lord, Lord”, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only one who does the will of my Father in heaven. ²²On that day many will say to me, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?” ²³Then I will declare to them, “I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.”
²⁴ ‘Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. ²⁵The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. ²⁶And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!’ ²⁸ Now when Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were astounded at his teaching, ²⁹for he taught them as one having authority, and not as their scribes.

"Sinkholes and Solid Rock "

A Communion Meditation Preached by
The Rev. Jean Niven Lenk

at the First Congregational Church of Stoughton

United Church of Christ

Sinkholes have been in the news recently.

Last month, a sinkhole closed part of Bay Road here in Stoughton after a stone box culvert collapsed.

A few weeks ago, a massive sinkhole in Texas managed to swallow up oil tanks, telephone poles, and several vehicles. Engineers say that oil drilling over the years may have weakened the ground, causing the collapse. The sinkhole has grown to the size of three football fields and, after filling with water from nearby swamps, has become home to an alligator.

We even had two small sinkholes appear in our parking lot this spring. Our thanks to John McKay for filling them in.

With all these sinkholes opening up, it’s enough to make us wonder if the ground under us is all that stable. Are we putting our confidence in something that may, at any moment, collapse?

In this morning’s Gospel reading, which comes at the end of his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses the example of solid and sandy foundations to speak about the choices we make in following God. “Everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell – and great was its fall!”

The people listening to Jesus would have understood the significance of his parable, for its imagery was drawn from the terrain of ancient Palestine. For most of the year there was no heavy rain in that region, and the riverbeds would dry up, leaving smooth and inviting plains called wadis. People looking for a place to build a house would have been attracted to these flat and smooth riverbeds; building on the sand of a wadi required much less site preparation than taking the time, trouble and expense of digging down to bedrock.

And as long as the weather was dry and sunny, the sandy ground held firm. But every once in while, a torrential downpour would turn the dried-up wadis into raging rivers which uprooted those houses from their sandy foundations. Meanwhile, houses built on bedrock held firm, even though they were made of the same materials and faced the same weather.

But in his parable, Jesus wasn’t talking about the houses we live in, then or now. He was talking about our lives; have we built them on sandy soil or solid rock? Because life, like the weather, is unpredictable. One minute the skies are sunny, and then suddenly, the storm clouds roll in. One minute everything seems under control, all seems to be going well and then – the sudden accident, the unexpected diagnosis, the bewildering change of circumstances. And what we have chosen as the foundation of our lives, what we have built our lives on, can determine if we will weather these storms or be swallowed up by a sinkhole of despair and hopelessness.

God graciously gives each of us the freedom to make decisions as to how and on what we build our life. But will things such as money, power, and material possessions satisfy the deepest needs of life? Will they provide support when our world collapses?

When the gales start to howl and the downpour begins, no person, no place, no thing, and no amount of money will provide what we need. There is only One who can give us true security, and Scripture points us to that sure Foundation.

The Psalmist [89:26] proclaims that “God is my rock and my salvation.” Deuteronomy [32:4] declares “God is the Rock and God’s work is perfect.” The prophet Isaiah tells us “The LORD… will be the sure foundation for your times…” [33:6].

And in this morning’s Old Testament lesson, the Psalmist declares, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult…God is in the midst…”

These comforting words were repeated often in the days and weeks following September 11, when our whole nation relied on the sure foundation of God’s unshakeable presence. You may have heard of Lisa Beamer, whose husband Todd was on Flight 93. Lisa tells of her unshakable faith in God in the midst of overwhelming personal loss. What is the reason for Lisa’s hope? How does she face each new day as she raises her three young children?

She says, “Probably the most important truth is that my security must be in God rather than in anything or anyone in this world. Think about it: the World Trade Center represented economic power, success, and security; yet it was shaken and destroyed in one hour or less. The Pentagon is the symbol of our nation’s military might; yet it, too, proved vulnerable. Where can we find true security these days?i… I have found safety and security in a loving heavenly Father, who cannot be shaken, who will never leave me or forsake me, and in whom I can trust completely.”ii

We will all face stormy weather sooner or later. Jesus tells us that God “sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous” alike [Matthew 5:45], and the two houses in Jesus’ parable were constructed of similar materials and faced the same storm. The difference in the outcome was based on the foundation.

And so, when heartache comes, when illness intrudes, when divorce or betrayal brings us to our knees, when we lose our job, when our children are in trouble, or when we are just plain frightened, what will we hold on to?

May it be on Christ the solid rock we stand, because all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand. Amen.