Luke 6:46-49 (NRSV)
Read Luke 6:46-49 on biblegateway.com
Verse 46"Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I tell you? Verse 47I will show you what someone is like who comes to me, hears my words, and acts on them. Verse 48That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. Verse 49But the one who hears and does not act is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the river burst against it, immediately it fell, and great was the ruin of that house."
Devotion
Check the foundations
The summer after graduating from Luther Seminary, I worked for K & L Construction out of Fargo. We poured concrete foundations made to withstand the heavy loam of the Red River Valley.
Please check the foundations of this country. Look up Article II, Section 2, Clause 2 of the US Constitution. The Treaty Clause gives the President authority to make solemn promises with Federally Recognized Tribes, with approval of the Senate.
Note the broken foundation.
Jesus didn’t just live to die. He taught us a better way. The Sermon on the Plain offers a vision for life together: Shared redemption, down to the foundation.
Take it from a kid from the Valley. Rivers rise. Floods are very democratic. They burst against well-built houses, and flimsy chapels built on greed. “Come.” Jesus invites the whole neighborhood to listen—especially those living near our oldest neighbors. “Hear my words, and act upon them.”
Prayer
Carpenter’s son, as we look to the skies—as we look to the cross—remind us to look upon the foundation of our faith. Built on your teachings. Built on you. Amen.
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