Verse of the Day Devotion Luke 6:47 

“Everyone who comes to Me, and hears My words, and acts upon them, I will show you whom he is like.” – Luke 6:47 

Here in chapter six Jesus is taking time to instruct His disciples.  In verse forty-six, He asks the disciples a question. “And why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46.  The definition of the word Kurios here translated “Lord” has various meanings, and the definition that fits best here in this context is the idea of a sovereign ruler or master.  Jesus was essentially asking them why do they not obey Him if He is their Lord. As the theologian Adam Clarke put it, “God judges of the heart, not by words, but by works. A good servant never disputes, speaks little, and always follows his work.”  Essentially, He is speaking regarding the contrast between confession and obedience.  The idea being you can say all you want, but if your deeds are not consistent with your words, you have fallen into the error of hypocrisy. And this is what Jesus was letting them know via the question, “And why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?

Then, in our focus verse, Jesus clarifies what He is saying by giving them two examples; one where they do what He says and then one where they do not. He starts with those who come to Him, hear His words, and then acts upon them, essentially doing what He told them. “He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation upon the rock; and when a flood rose, the torrent burst against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built.” Luke 6:48. They had taken the time to build a strong foundation on the rock so that the house would not fall because of the storm.  On the other hand, the one who has heard, and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house upon the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.” Luke 6:49. He built a similar house but did not lay a solid foundation, and when the storm hit, the house fell on account of the lack of a solid foundation, and Jesus finishes this with “and the ruin of that house was great.” Luke 6:49.

Jesus was teaching them that they can follow Him all over the place, but if they do not hear what He is saying and act upon His teachings, they will not develop a solid foundation in the faith and could possibly turn away. This is what I believe happened to Judas. He was more concerned with the works of this world that He did not establish a firm base for His belief in Jesus as the Messiah. And unfortunately, we see many in our churches that fall into this category.  They read the word out of duty, but not to build a proper foundation.  They give their tithes, not because they want to, but in order to lift themselves up and get the tax credits. They sit in the pews and listen to solid preaching, but they do not apply what they have heard to themselves, however they become critics of others.

How often do we call Jesus Lord, but do not do what He says?  This is the reason His word was given to us, so that read it, understand, and fulfil His will for us. He is our Lord because we, as Christians, are His. “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore, glorify God in your body.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.

If we call Him Lord, which He is, then we must obey Him completely.  This means from our heart and our deeds. And we can do this by hearing what He is telling us in His word and doing what it says. By doing, we are creating a strong foundation which will keep us truly in the faith by which we profess. We must not be hypocrites in saying Jesus is our Lord and yet not listening to Him and doing what He says. Let us make the decision to follow Him completely, doing what He says even if it is difficult. By doing this, we will show the world we are truly His disciples which can open doors to being a light in this dark world.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.