Sunday Evening Worship Service
by Anthony McCool
January 23, 2022 · First Apostolic Church of Knoxville (Knoxville, TN)
Kind: sermon
Scripture: Matthew 7:24-28

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/anthony-mccool--sunday-evening-worship-service-203
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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i believe the choir phrase team tonight have just set a theme in this house and that there is life in this place some of you under the sound of my voice entered here this evening where the enemy told you that perhaps a marriage relationship was dead maybe some finances were dead maybe some children were dead and never coming back but as we hear the word of the lord and god's word just goes forth if you'll open your ears just a little bit tonight you can hear some rattling begin to take place you can begin to hear some praise going forth and there is life in this house and we celebrate that this evening thank you praise team and musicians for just setting the tone for this service this evening and you can be seated across this house i am excited about what god has already done on this sunday and i believe that he is not finished yet i know as many of you all were so disappointed this past sunday evening that we weren't able to assemble together but i believe that we're just going to get a double portion tonight and he is already setting the stage for that to be done if you have your bibles go ahead and turn with me to the book of matthew chapter seven i want to say a a special thank you tonight to not for any one particular thing but uh just a few gentlemen just uh came to my mind over this you know past couple weeks with just different projects that they've been doing but uh brother stephen blevins brother drew flannery by the hayden briggs these guys are are special to me because i've had them in class before and i've seen them grow up and i watch an amazement you know they're not always up here singing or preaching and or up on the stage but just throughout the the years just different renovations and different jobs of refurbishing uh this building and anything you ask them to do i i don't usually know what i'm talking about but try to give them somewhat and they always put something together or make something even greater than what i could even dream up and you look back over the years of different people who've just had their thumbprints just across this what i call our temple my temple that we come in into his house and worship and i'm thankful for just another generation that just what whatever the need is their skills and talents it's not the uh you know the singing that's going forth but a few weeks back they had one of those i believe it's like a uh [Music] it's like an air tool that uh punches the uh nails in and and when it's going you can't you try to talk to somebody next to you and you can't even hear what they're saying but the project they were doing you've never heard a more beautiful sound in your life as they're just working through a project and i and i think these gentlemen as well as everyone else that so many different skills and talents that you all give that bring absolute glory and honor to god and as as you read throughout the old testament in particular it's just generation after generation and it's about a communal covenant of people just making sure and that's what we're going to be talking about tonight that their foundation is on the word of god and you read over and over about how the nation of israel may be a foreign oppressor a kingdom came in and uh in in the midst of this battle the the temple was destroyed or or over time when the people had turned away the the temple needed refurbished or when the israelites were taken captive and they came back home the temple had to be built back up the way it was and it's this this constant history of let's let's make sure the temple is built and strong because there's got to be a place for those that are scattered abroad to come home to there's got to be a place where we can sit his name on high and give glory and honor to god and i i i find it so appropriate as you as as i read that we have a another generation that is just set in place with making sure the house of god is all in order put into place staying renovated staying up to date so that there is a place for god's children to come home to and i give them honor tonight the book of matthew chapter 7 we're going to read four verses of scripture very familiar to us a parable we've heard many different times beginning at verse 24 it says therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them i will liken him unto a wise man which built his house up on a rock and this is jesus preaching and teaching verse 25 and the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat up on that house and it fell not for it was founded upon a rock verse 26 and everyone that heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them not jesus said shall be likened unto a foolish man which built his house upon the sand and the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat up on that house and it fell and great was the fall of it and it came to pass when jesus had ended these sayings the people were astonished at his doctrine i want to preach to you minister to you for a few words this evening on a house of cards a house of cards just right where you're sitted if you would just bow your heads and just lift up your hands right there in the pew and let's pray over what god has for us in store this evening mighty god in this season we thank you we thank you for the opportunity to assemble together it's not something we do so lightly in this season of uncertainty with illness and inclement weather lord first and foremost we enter your gates with thanksgiving thanking you with our highest gratitude to be able to assemble together lord we thank you for the opportunity that you have given us to study your word to go through it together and and to live as a community looking out for our brother looking out for our sister looking out for our neighbor that we may take your word and put it into practice in our lives so that we would be and so we would do that you have called for us we thank you and praise you and let your hand of anointing be upon this sermon this evening in jesus name we pray amen i want to preach to you on the topic tonight a house of cards the idiom house of cards came in to use to mean a situation a plan or a system that is unstable it's it's unreliable one that is flimsy and may collapse with the least provocation it's a structure a situation an institution that is in substantial it's shaky it's in constant danger of collapse it's a plan an organization or other entity that is designed and destined really to fail due to a weak structure or foundation likened to a literal house of cards as seen here which is built by balancing playing cards against one another and it is very easily toppled a house of cards could come to mean and metaphorically mean an athletic team where the team is a assembled of players with a great amount of ability and a great amount of talent but they're only in it for themselves and don't truly play as a team or maybe the athletic team is in discord with uh their coach and there's there's not a good relationship between the players and the coach maybe there's no discipline on the team maybe the the players were accrued to that team by an unethical and a manner of cheating and though there's a tremendous amount of talent on paper to this team this team will never produce a dynasty it will never have a championship there will be a season of success a season of flash but it is said that the team is just a house of cards there's no solid foundation a house of cards could be a business a business who took a shortcut in their dealings in their finances a company who cooks the books if you will one case study of a company fooled regulators with fake holdings and off the books accounting practices at its peak this company's shares were worth 90.75 but just prior to declaring bankruptcy they were trading at 26 cents it was a powerful business it it was a one of the largest companies in the united states it had a football stadium named after it and it disintegrated over night because of the managers and the ceos and the decision making the decision makers of the company had built a house of cards and they thought they could grow much faster than they were able to and they they participated in unethical and illegal practices and the structure which seemingly by all appearance was one of the greatest in the united states a global indeed powerhouse just overnight collapsed with the least bit of resistance and our personal finances items that we throw on credit to have a large home where the latest vehicle will take out fuel will take out loans fueled by the desire to impress and not even when necessarily the storm of life hits but the least bit of tempestuous disruption can create a financial hole seemingly impossible for us to climb out of our finances could be depicted as a house of cards oh that person certainly appears wealthy it certainly looks like that person's got it all going on but there was a foundation that was never sell settled and the bill has come due they are largely unseen being that most of them are underground no one photographs one to preserve a a record of its beauty but if any would doubt the essentiality of foundations they would only need to speak to one of the hundred residents of the millennium tower in san francisco the millennium tower opened in 2008 with grand expectations at 58 stories and 645 foot tall with spectacular panoramic views of san francisco bay the 400 multi multi-million dollar condos it contained cater to the upper crest of city dwellers every amenity for comfort and pleasure of the average owner was considered the building featured an indoor swimming pool a fitness center a theater a wine cellar the ownership group sold over 100 million dollars worth of condos ranging from 1.6 million dollars to 10 million dollars in just the first five weeks of sale that it opened the building had everything the views the luxurious amenities rubbing shoulders with the upper crest of san francisco everything except a solid foundation beginning in 2015 the millennium tower began to sink and by 2018 it had settled 17 inches and had tilted 14 inches even after being declared safe for occupancy after multi-million dollar renovations the owners departed in droves why were the accommodations not still luxurious of course they were the amenities or the service suddenly substandard no every consideration for the comfort of the owners was still intact the only deficiency in the entire massive structure was the one that no one could see the foundation was inadequate but one could readily see the results so it is with life one's foundation though generally dug out in fashion absent of the public eye absent of what's posted on social media and it matters more than all the accoutrements and all the accessories which with humans often seek to beautify their existence if our foundation is secure then none of the storms of life can unsettle us but if not our lives will sooner or later begin to sink into despair and away from upright and eternal standing but what provides the right foundation for successful living upon what should a life be built what affords unshakeable unlinking footing in a world of uncertainty and insecurity the answer is singular and we know the answer this evening it's found in obedience to the unchanging word of god and children of god may must make conscious and intentional decisions to build their lives upon the foundation of his word every decision must be shaped by the principles of god's word every priority must be defined by it every word that exits our lips should be ran through the filter of god's word and every facet of life must be governed by it in doing so we ensure our lives will not bear the sad outcome of the millennium tower or the unethical business or sports team or our personal finances that when the least bit of wind or or flood or storm comes are away that were sent in a topple but so too as i mentioned that the onset of this sermon happened in the nation of israel king josiah who was a direct descendant of king david and if you'll remember that jesus was going to come from the bloodline and be the seed of david josiah also was a direct descendant of king david and he began to rule when he was a very young at a very young age he arose to sit on the throne of a nation that had drifted away from its monotheistic roots judah's succession of rulers had included both the righteous and the unrighteous and josiah's grandfather manessa was certainly one of the worst the list of his wicked deeds includes all manner of idol worship child sacrifice extreme violence blasphemy and given the family legacy it's amazing to consider that josiah is recorded to have done what which was right and pleasing in the sight of the lord and josiah's name in hebrew means god supports and heals and as part of the quest josiah noted as he came in to rule that the temple had fallen into despair he was now king and the one thing that stood out to him above all other things is that the temple had not been kept up with he began to walk the halls and he began to look at the different rooms and the interior in the exterior and he said if i'm going to be king if this is going to be my legacy or part of it at the very least this temple is going to have to get back in shape and it it needs to be a beacon for the people and it it needs to be built back the way it was it it had fallen into despair due to the wicked condition of the nation accordingly he ordered both religious and civil authorities to instigate immediate repairs of god's house he went and got the civil and religious the the priests and the architects and the priests and the renovators he said guys let's come together and let's put a plan in place to get this temple looking how it should so to fund these efforts they asked the high priest hekau hilkiay to produce the funds that had been collected through taxes imposed on the inhabitants of judah so he got these civil and the religious authorities together and they devised a plan and they said we're going to use the tax money from the inhabitants to fund this building project of the temple and when hilkai the priest went into the treasury to retrieve these funds he made a startling discovery he located what the bible calls the book of the law many scholars accept that this was most likely the torah or a portion of it most likely the book of deuteronomy and the fact that a document as significant as this one had been lost and just locked up and pushed aside to the many items and the treasury testifies to the lack of regard for the spiritual things in the hearts of the people the drastic departure from righteous paths would be no great surprise given their disregard for the word of god for it for it had been locked up in the treasury put aside and not being put into practice and adhered to and while hill coyote went to get these taxes and this tr from the treasury he discovered this book of the law which theologians believe was the book of deuteronomy and one can only imagine the emotions fostered by this priest as he came upon the book of the law and he he gave it to shaphan one of those tasks with the temple renovations and he said we've got to notify king josiah and let him know of this discovery yeah certainly the tax money is there to renovate the temple but we've come across something that's even more important so as they went they immediately took the scroll to josiah and did something with even more significance he read its contents to this king and having the word of god for us in our possession is a precious thing that we should never take for granted however owning it is one thing but putting it into practice and adhering to what it says is another chapter articulated the contents of this book of the law to the king and he set in motion a profound series of events and upon hearing the record of god's word josiah was immediately smitten the bible records that that he rent his clothes and this was a common cultural expression of dismay and repentance he was terribly grieved by what he had heard because what he read in the book of the law was in complete and utter contrast from what was living being lived out by the people and he knew as as deuteronomy was read and as it went forth god said if you'll if you'll live your life on my word then i'm going to provide for you and then i'm going to protect you but if you turn away from it you and your entire people will have a curse and as josiah read this which is a parallel an allusion to jesus parable if you build your house upon a rock when the storm comes you're going to prevail and be just fine but if you build your house upon sand it's going to just sink away because there's no solid foundation and as josiah began to read through this book this scroll he realized that the nation was not built upon god's word he didn't play the blame game and said well that was my granddaddy's fault or that was my dad's fault they should have got this together this this isn't my fault he said no i've got to be the king that god has called me to be and get the people back on a firm foundation he began to tell the people that you you guys remember our exodus out of egypt we are uniquely built on the foundation of god's word at mount sinai god laid out from moses and all the people a myriad of precepts and regulations he required of them and the law of moses was to be and to remain the foundation upon which each israel's national story was built and conviction smote king josiah's heart as he read this book and he was come as he read it as he heard it it didn't just fall by the wayside but he responded to the word he immediately gathered all of the elders in the land he immediately gathered the priests and the civil authorities and the and the levites and all the inhabitants of jerusalem together and he read the same words to them from the book of the law and he said hey you remember the god that turned aaron's rod into a serpent and he sent the ten plagues and you remember the god that parted the red sea for us and you remember the god that provided when there was no way and he sent manna down from heaven you remember when he made aaron's rod blood do you remember when he had water come from a rock you remember when he parted the jordan river do you remember when he knocked down the walls of jericho so we could have safe passage we have to get our life belt back on god's word and he's going to protect us and he's going to provide for us and how you all are living is in direct contrast with how god has called us and what god has provided for us to live by and then in the sight of all of the people gathered that day king young king josiah made a covenant with the lord that he would obey every commandment and serve god with his whole heart first apostolic church of knoxville we are built upon the foundation of of the apostles and prophets jesus christ himself being the chief cornerstone in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto a holy temple in the lord on this day in 2022 let it be known for all those watching online for all those who will watch the archives for every person sitting in this assembly that we are founded on the word of god and on the apostles doctrine preaching repentance turning away from our sins i think we ought to praise just a little bit more than that it might be worth getting out of our seat that we are founded upon getting baptized in the name of jesus christ getting baptized in the name of the one who died for us and receiving the gift of the holy ghost with the evidence of speaking in another tongue keep praising him for just a second we are founded on the doctrine of holiness being separated from this world and it's not something we're going to lock away in a in a room that we're only going to bring out for an anniversary service it's not going to be something that we do just in a back room somewhere but every time we assemble together we are going to acknowledge that we are founded upon the apostles doctrine every time we enter into his temple we're going to be reminded that we live a life of holiness unto the lord and i wonder if i crossed this house we could lift our hands and make a communal covenant tonight that in this last day no matter what comes our way no matter how far the world shifts away we're going to remain steadfast and founded on the doctrine of the apostles would you praise him for just a moment mighty god we thank you i'm committed if you're steadfast why don't you give him some praise right there in your pew oh the praise team is not up here singing and the music's not going but can you right where you're at just give god a little bit of praise and say i'm founded on your word no matter what comes my way i will not be moved do you believe that yes jesus we're not going to lock it away we're not going to try to trick somebody and and to oh this isn't what we we really believe we believe in repentance the the greatest miracle there is jesus who died on a cross his blood washes away your sins and then getting baptized going down in water in the name of the one who died for you then he's going to give you his spirit a life of holiness separated from this world not to be isolated from it but to be insulated from it living a life of humility pointing others assisting and helping others acknowledging that this gospel is about others jesus said therefore who whoso heareth these sayings of mine and doeth them i will liken him unto a wise man which buildeth his house upon a rock the rain decided the flood came and the wind blew and it beat up on 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 like and unto a foolish man which built his house upon the sand and the rain descended and the floods came and the winds blew and beat up on the house and it fell and great was the fall of it and when it came to pass when jesus had ended these sayings the people were astonished at his doctrine the two houses were likely of comparable size there's no indication that one of the builders was more skilled than the other we can assume neither was assembled from some standard construction materials a cursory view would indicate that each home was equal to the other and matthew 7 makes it clear they faced parallel challenges the testimony of each begins with an account that the rain began to descend the flood waters began to rise and the wind blew against both of them their difficulties mirrored one another but oh how a different outcome one survived while the other was destroyed one weathered the storm while the other was weathered by it one was a victor one was a victim one stood while the other suffered a great fall why if they were so similar in their experiences alike what produced the different outcomes the answer is in but one word foundation the wise man in verse 24 built his house upon a rock and the foolish man in verse 26 built his house upon us on the sand the one simple choice of foundation produced stability for the wise and it produced devastation for the foolish the wise man who built his house upon the rock is identified as one who hears notice hears the word of god and then does what the word of god says the foolish man also had the same opportunity and hears the words of god but did not do what it said this is the one difference between the two lives pictured in matthew's gospel we all will make the conscious decision about what we will build our lives upon and by the extension also the lives of our families the choice of foundation is not a matter of randomized chance but of willful resolve if we choose to be submitted to the principles and direction of the word of god our lives will be firmly established on a foundation that cannot be shaken no storm can unseat it no pressure can move it no temptation can produce its downfall that life will stand if instead we choose to forsake the foundation and build on any commendation of human ideas and temporal values there's no hope of our lives standing upright in this world or the next we will suffer a horrid end and we cannot withstand the rain waves or wind as they are sure to come i invite all of us tonight to step out on the front porch of our lives and just simply look down what is underneath us if our submission to the word of god is intact we will see a solid rocky footing beneath but if we have chosen to ignore the voice of scripture there will certainly be sand between our toes either might be adequate in the good times either might be acceptable when the sun is shining and there's just a light breeze coming from the shore but when the inevitable storm arises we will be thankful for that obedience built upon the rock we must look to king josiah's example and as he heard the word of god he put into practice what it said and he repented for himself and told the others around him the apostle paul said i die daily we can't also become so super pious pharisaical that i've been church in so long i no longer have to do this or do that or reach out to this one or participate in this and i can become so self-righteous and super pious that i'm certain my life is built upon the rock it's been so for three generations you may need to be the first one to the altar this evening none of us should look at each other's foundations because god has called all of us to be looking down at our own and if the apostle paul said i have to die out daily i've got to wake up every single morning every decision i make every word that exits my lips and i've got to say is this is this it being intertwined and building on god's word james said in the book of james he said you would the word of god would be engrafted into your lives this is when a stem is attached to another that has been broken and eventually it grows together and it it's it's done scientifically to produce fruit or for a certain plant to remain uh alive in a hostile climate or environment and james said this word needs to be so engrafted inside of us with with our ever being we it's got to be so a part of us we must look we must not look down on anyone else because god hath called us to look down on ourselves every day we must understand that the lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer the god my rock and i will trust in him musicians please come so first and foremost tonight if you haven't turned your life over to jesus christ you can do so this very evening please understand as i talk about being founded on the apostles doctrine i don't say it with an ounce of haughtiness or arrogance i say it with desperation in my voice that god has given us a means jesus died on the cross for each and every one of us to have salvation through him and you have that same opportunity tonight you can repent this evening you can take on his name in baptism and he will fill you with his spirit and you can begin to build your life up on the rock you can be engrafted into that lineage have the word of god just engrafted into you whether you've served the lord 50 years 15 years 5 years 5 months 5 days 5 hours 5 minutes it doesn't matter each and every one of us are on this journey together locked arm and arm heading to the promised land and it is for you this evening but i also feel in my spirit that there is some people under the sound of my voice where the storms of the cares of life may have just closed in all around you and each and every one of us face different circumstances and perhaps not with illicit but you thought you could handle things on your own maybe you built some structures in your life that weren't inherently bad but it wasn't centered around his word and it wasn't centered around his house and now a storm has come through and it seems that if everything has just been torn down maybe it happened instantaneously maybe it was an incremental digression maybe a house of cards was built on dishonesty and marriage and infighting began and it seems of things have just kind of spiraled out of control perhaps someone did you wrong and by the standards of this world you have every right to not forgive them and you have every right to when you see them again give them a piece of your mind and by the world standards you are absolutely justified but you've built a house of cards out of a grudge perhaps disappointment and anxiety have become the uninvited guest who continues to knock down any progress you begin to make perhaps difficulty in your finances has brought on struggle after struggle that just seemingly has poured into all areas of your life and all of these uninvited guests of life come knocking on your door and crashing your walls down at the same time and it's knocked you to your knees and though you acknowledge that you've strayed and and though you know acknowledge that some of the decisions that you that you made weren't weren't founded and filtered through his word the cares of life and the storms of life have just knocked you down to your knees and those structures that you built they couldn't withstand the storm they were built again i say it not necessarily with ill intent but just over time and you you didn't even realize what was happening and and the storms of life come and it's just more than you can bear it it's knocked you down to your knees and everything that you've built just lays the pieces all out in front of you and you're down to absolutely nothing but then as you as you move across the debris a little bit as you as you move as you begin to brush aside some of the the stuff that you build you you see that there was a mom or there was a dad that's been been praying for you all this time you go over go over here to this rubble yeah that's that's when i got baptized in your name right there i remember that and and then this and then a song comes to your mind over here oh and then you remember a mighty testimony of a saint of god who who went through some of the same things you did and you still see them standing and you still see them worshiping and you begin to to move out all the stuff that you built because it got destroyed and you realize that you've been on the rock this entire time you realize that you've had a foundation this entire time you realize that jesus christ has never left you and never forsaken you yeah though you built up some things on your own though some storms have knocked them down you realize that you're still on the rock of jesus christ and you realize that he's to your right and to your left and that he's never left you you realize that you can't do anything you can't do anything that escapes his mercy and grace and he's ready for you to acknowledge tonight that he's the only foundation for you to build anything upon my mom's prayers hey they kept me on this foundation that testimony kept me on that foundation there was a church that's been praying for me and calling out my name this whole time stand with me daddy rambo penned these words she said where do i go when there's nobody else to turn to who do i talk to when there's nobody there to listen who do i lean on when there's no foundation stable i go to the rock i know he's able i go to the rock the rock the lord i go to the rock for my salvation i go to the stone that the builders rejected this world's not going to understand it i run to the mountain and the mountain he stands by me he's never left me and i want you to know tonight whatever you have need of if you need to turn your life over to him he's here but i want you to know the rock's been underneath you this entire time if you've been baptized in his name if you've had his spirit before it's underneath you and you need to stay mistakes i go to the rock marriage i go to the rock finances i go to the rock oh if i needed something i wouldn't just stand there tonight this rock is open right here and you need to fall down to your knees finances i go to the rock job i go to the rock can't sleep i go to the rock loneliness i go to the rock healing from my body i go to the rock disappointment and weariness i go to the rock lost family and friends i go to the rock knoxville i go to the rock i know where i'm going to get fed i know where my salvation is i know where my footing is everything around me might be torn down everything i built might be torn down but when i look beneath the ruffle he's never left me he's never forsaken me he's with me the entire time whatever you need tonight you need to go to the wrong [Music] oh [Applause] [Music] [Applause] is [Applause] is lord i'm still shy in first kings we read that elijah who had been in a showdown with false prophets and in a showdown with idolatry he told all of the people he said come near to me so all the people came unto him and it says he repaired the altar of the lord the pagan gods had come in to where altars were once built giving praise and sacrifice to the holy god of israel but these pagan ritualistic worshipers these adulterers had come to this these places where altars that were once built to give glory to jehovah they built altars there under false gods so elijah told all of the people after he had his showdown and fire came down from heaven he said all of these pagan altars all of this stuff that you've built this stuff up on that's fake and uh all of this house of cards that doesn't mean anything they've been destroyed and they need to be torn down and in its place you need to build the altar back unto the one true god of israel if you've been building something in your life that's outside the word of god you need to tear it down tonight and in its place you need to make a commitment that says everything in my life every decision i make not only for myself but also for my family it's going to be rooted and grounded and through the filter of what god's word says for me and my family we can't afford one service we can't afford one bad service we can't afford one generation or weak link we've got to stand together and win our city and win this world because god is coming back soon jesus is about to return for his church and he's coming back for those who have built their lives upon him