The responsibility to obey

On Sunday were looking at Matthew 7 and Jesus conclusion to the Sermon on the Mount, the Parable of the two builders. We saw that the rock here is not a picture of Christ but obedience to his words. Charles Price, Pastor of the People's Church in Toronto provides the following challenge in his commentary on Matthews gospel,

'It has been well said that the greatest need of many Christians is not to know more, but to obey what they already know.' To listen without obedience is deception, says James when he writes, 'Do not merely listen to the word and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says (James 1.22). Spiritual growth is more than an intellectual process, it is a volitional process. The word of God is only effectively read and understood from a disposition of submission and obedience. The more we know the more our capacity for sin increases. James again writes, 'Anyone who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins (James 4.17). It is a sobering thought that every new lesson we learn that does not meet with a response of submission creates new possibilities of sin. Understanding carries responsibility. It is submission to the word of God and obedience to the will of God which are the foundation of security and stability.'