A Note From Pastor Al - Experience

During the gray morning hours as the Israeli desert heats, a small force of Israeli Defense Force soldiers (IDF) makes a pilgrimage to the top of a 1300 foot peak to the fortress called Masada. At this fortress, almost 2000 years ago, 1000 Jewish rebels were encircled by eight Roman camps of soldiers numbering 8000 or more. With these eight-to-one odds the Jewish rebels held out for as long as seven months before eventually succumbing to the power and might of the Romans. 
The 21st century IDF soldiers climb on foot to the top of this historic setting in order to experience the tenacity and raw determination of their people in the fight against the Romans. They reach the top of the snake-like trail and proclaim “Masada shall not fall again.” Why would they climb such difficult terrain in the dead of night? Why would they throw away a good night’s sleep in order to mount the crest of this chunk of ground? Why would they make this trek up to an ancient fortress? Because they wanted to experience what had once happened at this place, and in their own thoughts, try to relive the passion and the pain of their own countrymen. In the belly of their own determination each step opens up an experience of the heat of the desert and the struggle for freedom. Every meter they climb they can recall the power of the Roman siege as they view siege ramps and make note of the boundaries of the Roman camps far below on the plain. In this lonely desert land they sense the resolute opposition to tyranny and they each conclude that they will do everything possible to not let this happen again. Masada is a symbol of defense for their nation. Masada is an experience. It’s an experience that is equivalent to the Alamo for Texans. It’s rich, it’s personal. Its enduring tragedy resides deep inside each soldier's soul.
What is behind an experience? Why is an experience so much more important than just pure information from a book? We have each witnessed the benefits of experience. A real hug from a real person you adore is much more endearing than a description of that same occurrence. I would much rather sink my teeth into a warm cherry pie with vanilla ice cream on the side. Any alternative that is void of tasting the tart cherries and sweet cream dessert cannot stack up. The experience of receiving a first place award in an auditorium packed with your peers is much more fulfilling than only reading about it.
Or take the experience of becoming a parent for the first time. Intellectually we all know what it means to be a parent. We know there will be diapers and bills to pay. We are intellectually aware of late nights and early mornings that become an automatic part of the parenting experience. We have heard about taxiing children from one event to another. But it is not until we hold our own newborn child in our own hands and feel their tiny little limbs moving that the facts become more impactful. Now we KNOW by experience that life is precious and dear. The experience of being a parent awakens us to the idea that God IS our parent; he IS our Father in heaven.  
In our pursuit of discipleship we are unpacking the next tool in the toolchest: Experience. We see Jesus' own words from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and they encourage us to dive into an experience. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts on them (do, construct, make, manufacture, experience), will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” (New American Standard Bible, Matthew 7:24). 
Jesus holds up two examples that are almost completely identical. Both individuals hear the words of Jesus and experience the exact same difficulties of life: “the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat” (Matthew 7:25,27).  Rain, floods, and winds are symbolic of the storms of life. These hearers of the Word each experience identical events, but one of them falls and one of them stands. Why is this significant? Because they both hear the words of Jesus! Did you catch that? 
They both are sitting in the pew on Sunday morning, absorbing all that Jesus has to say. But one of them is living it, acting on it, and experiencing it. The other person just considers it pure information and jumps back into a life devoid of practicing what Jesus taught. This means that there can be two Christians in a Bible study, answering the same questions to the same text. They can both understand the meanings and interpretations but ONLY the one who lives it out and does (experiences) what Jesus says will be blessed enough to stand in difficult times.
They are identical hearers of the Word of God, until you look at the foundation on which they build. One of these individuals builds on sand; they ONLY hear and quickly dismiss doing anything with the Word of God. They might even love the information but have not taken it further into the corners of their life. The other person also hears Jesus’ words, but now they dig in and start doing what the words of God tell them to do. 
Such a person will try out forgiveness. They will try to drop grudges and personal vendettas against someone who has caused pain in their life. They build relationships with strangers and seek to give charity to the blind and helpless because that is what Jesus speaks about. They pursue knowledge and explore information so that, according to God’s own words (1 John 4:1-6), they can discern truth from lies. This is an experience. This enables each believer to build on the rock. In Jesus’ analogy the one that builds on the rock will stand in tough times. Who is standing and who is crumbling in our current state of affairs? Who is hiding away and who is scared? Who is confident in God’s protection and care?
Let’s give fair attention to the other believer. I truly feel sorry for this person. They devote time to Jesus’ teachings but make the fatal mistake of not doing anything with it. God’s wisdom, revealed in every page of the Scriptures, gets set down on a nice coffee table. They know they should forgive but they hold umbrage at someone’s painful jabs. They know factually that they should confess their weaknesses but find it awkward to admit failures (yet we all fall short of the glory of God—why not admit what is universally true). They are the type of person who knows the Bible inside and out but can’t stop being narcissistic or fearful or burdened. They see teachings on marriage, roles of men and women, insight about turning off adulterous movies (Matthew 6:22-23), and turning aside from lies, but these applications never get tried out in their life. In the end, when the storms hit, they whine and complain and whimper as their life settles in the quickened sand. Wow! They were so close to standing.
I have to ask the question, what am I ignoring about the Word of God? According to the promise of Jesus, any such person will crumble. Here is where my heart and Scriptures send me to my knees in prayer: 
Lord Jesus, forgive me for the times that I have read and studied your Word but failed to do what you have said. I am a hypocrite. I am in need of your forgiveness and mercy. Please forgive my arrogance and my laziness. Forgive me when I find your words and instructions tedious or burdensome. Help me, help us, to see that through your words and by your Spirit we find life (John 6:63). Help us to live out your words even when they are not in line with our culture. Help us to be bold and seek your truth as well as live your truth. We do not want to crack and be crushed by the storms of life that are now already swirling around us. Protect us, dear Jesus. Make us bold enough to live out your truth in our lives. Help us to take your Truth so seriously that we live unashamed and proud of you, our Lord, our God, our Savior. Thank you for giving your life for ours. May we learn to love your words and live your words. To the glory of your name we pray, Amen.
Matthew 7:24-27 says, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
Which hearer of the Word are you? 
May you be blessed this week as you hear and do the words of our living Savior. Enjoy the experience!