Sheryl Brady - I Have a Rock That Will Not Fail

[Music] Matthew chapter 7 is where we will go today, and let’s begin reading at the 24th verse. If you were here last Sunday morning, Prophetess Callaway preached on this text. I’m just going to touch on it and then move on from this passage because she did an incredible job. Matthew 7, verse 24—if you have it, say amen. Amen! Therefore, whosoever heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock. And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded upon a rock. And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them not shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand. The rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it. Identical storms battered identical houses; one fell and one stood. Look at your neighbor and say, «Neighbor, I got a rock that never fails.» Keep moving; go to Acts chapter 27. Acts chapter 27. Y’all have to give me time because I use my real Bible, my paper Bible. Verse 41 speaks of falling into a place where two seas meet. Somebody shout, «Transition!» They ran the ship aground, and the fore part stuck fast and remained unmovable, but the hinder part was broken by the violence of the waves. The soldiers' counsel was to kill the prisoners, lest any of them should swim out and escape. But the centurion, who was willing to save Paul—Isn’t it awesome when you have favor that you don’t even know about? Paul was on this ship right here and did not realize that he had so much favor that it would not only save his life but also save everyone around him. The centurion, who was willing to save Paul, kept them from their purpose and commanded that those who could swim should cast themselves first into the sea and get to the land, and the rest, some on boards and some on broken pieces of the ship. It came to pass that they escaped all safe to the land. Look at somebody and tell them, «Neighbor, it’s because I have a rock that will not fail.»

Spirit of God, I thank You for Your word on this first Sunday morning. I thank You for speaking in this place and for providing direction. I ask You to speak through me, Lord; anything that You have to say is far more important than what I would have to say. So, Father, I pray that You would just talk in this place. We are anxious, we are waiting, we are sitting on the edge of our seats, as it were, just to hear Your voice. We’ll give You glory, honor, and praise in Jesus' name. Somebody shout, «Amen!» Amen.

On your way down, hit somebody and tell them, «I have a rock that never fails.» Last Sunday morning, I told you Prophet Callaway was here. Did y’all hear her speak last Sunday morning? Amen. She was here, and if you didn’t listen to that message, you also need to listen to it as well. She spoke from the subject, «Jesus, the Sure Foundation.» She talked to us about the wise man and the foolish man, explaining how the foolish man built his house on the sand while the wise man built his house upon the rock. Both men built the same type of house; the difference lies in what the houses were built on when the storm moved in.

Let me stop right here and tell you that as long as you are living, you will find yourselves facing storms. We never outgrow storms. I said we never outgrow storms. We do grow and learn how to deal with them, but there will always be a storm. Our lives will always be confronted by storms because storms are inevitable. It doesn’t matter who you have as your prayer partner, where you live, what you drive, how much money you make, or if you pray 23 and a half hours of a 24-hour day—storms are inevitable.

The tragedy of this text, however, is that one man built without considering a storm, while the other man built and was prepared for what was coming. There is nothing like being prepared. My suitcases, wherever I go, are always heavy. Our family went on a little trip this week to Broken Bow, and I had the biggest suitcase out of the whole group—it was mine, and it was heavy. Everybody knew it was mine, and they said, «We’re only going for two days, Gigi!» I ended up breaking their dad’s suitcase down, so now my grandkids have to lift it and help me. My thing is, I’d rather have it and not want it. Where are the ladies in here? Y’all know what I’m talking about. I’d rather have it and not need it than to need it and not have it. So perhaps the man whose house did not survive the storm was someone who was more concerned about the cosmetics of his house. Maybe he was more focused on the curtains than on the foundation. However, any time that a building survives…