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2004年12月，史密斯一家从英国到普吉岛度假。在迈考海滩散步时，10岁的蒂莉·史密斯注意到海面上冒着嘶嘶作响的泡沫——像啤酒上的泡沫一样——而且海水不断上涨。就在两周前，她的地理老师才教过他们如何辨认海啸的征兆，还给他们看了1946年海啸的黑白影像。眼前的景象，和她所学的完全对上了。

她立刻提醒父母，但他们一开始并不相信。她坚持说：“我要走了，我一定要走，肯定会有海啸的！”父亲从她急切的语气中感到不对劲，决定听从她的警告。在一名保安的帮助下，他们迅速撤离到附近的酒店。就在最后一位游客离开海滩的几秒钟后，一道9米高的海啸吞没了海岸。那一天，迈考海滩成为全岛唯一没有人员死亡的海滩。

有时候，我们“怎么听”，有没有“听进去”，是关乎生死的。而当面对主的话语——我们是否真正听进去，并照着去行——这关系到的，是永生或永远的灭亡。

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四个图画，四个提醒

在马太福音7:13-29，耶稣在登山宝训的结尾，用四个图画提醒我们，要认真省察自己是怎样听祂的话。

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1. 走窄门，不随大流（太7:13-14）

我们面前有两条路：一条是宽敞的大路，通向宽门；另一条是艰难的小路，通向窄门。前者轻松、受欢迎，却通向灭亡；后者艰难、不受欢迎，却通向生命。没有第三条路。

这和世人“人多就安全”的想法正好相反。跟随主的人，往往要选择少数人的路。门徒的道路，常常意味着坚持一些不受欢迎的道德立场，坚守一些在世人看来愚拙的委身。

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2. 看果子，分辨真假（太7:15-20）

主也提醒我们要提防假先知。祂说他们是“披着羊皮的狼”，意思是他们常常有很有迷惑性的伪装。他们看起来像我们，说的话也可能带着一些真理，不容易被识破。

所以我们要看“果子”，也就是他们的生命。我们是否看见福音的品格？他们是否像主一样，以真理与爱来对待人？我们不要把魅力当作品格，也不要把恩赐当作敬虔。

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3. 真识主，不做表面（太7:21-23）

这里是一幅“口号喊得很响”的人的图画。他的口头禅是：“主啊，主啊。”他甚至可能有很亮眼的事奉成绩——“奉你的名说预言、赶鬼、行许多异能”。

但主最后的评语却是：“我从来不认识你。”（太7:23，新译本）

这句话揭露了一个事实：这些都不过是忙于宗教。就像穿上队服，不代表你就是球队的一员；同样，奉主的名做事，也不代表你真的被主认识。只有遵行天父旨意的人，才真正属于主。

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4. 行主话，落到实处（太7:24-27）

我们都熟悉这个比喻：聪明人和愚拙人。把房子盖在沙土上——也就是只听不做——看起来容易、快速，甚至“很聪明”。用更少的时间和代价，就能把房子建起来。

但当风雨来临时——而且一定会来，还是狂风暴雨——结果就是：“房子就倒塌了，并且倒塌得很厉害。”（太7:27）

相反，把房子建在磐石上虽然辛苦、缓慢，却是稳固的。那些在平顺日子里就把真理活出来的人，在试炼来到时，会发现自己的生命是建立在坚固的根基上。

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把生命建在稳固的根基上

2025年底香港王福阁的火灾，就是一个值得警惕的例子。调查显示，这场火灾涉及多项违规与疏忽，例如没有使用阻燃材料、火警系统失效、以及没有严格执行禁止吸烟和明火的规定。这些问题加在一起，导致火势迅速蔓延。

我们的属灵生命和信心，也不是一夜之间倒塌的，而是一次次忽略的累积，一点点被侵蚀、削弱。主有没有把一些真理放在你心里，但你还没有去顺服？祂有没有提醒你一些该尽的责任，但你一直在忽略？每一次你选择不理会，就是在一点一点削弱你信心的根基。让我们选择实践顺服吧。

“如果你们今天听从他的声音，就不要硬着心” （来3:15）。

A Warning to Practise Obedience

In the December of 2004, the Smiths travelled from England to vacation in Phuket. Strolling along Mai Khao Beach, then ten-year-old Tilly Smith noticed the sizzling froth on the sea – like the kind you get on beer – and how the tide just seemed to keep coming in. Two weeks ago, her Geography teacher had taught the class to recognize the signs of a tsunami, with black-and-white footage of a 1946 tsunami. Those signs matched what she saw that day on Mai Khao Beach.

She alerted her parents, who initially did not believe her. “I’m going. I’m definitely going. There’s definitely going to be a tsunami,” she insisted. Sensing the urgency in Tilly’s voice, her father heeded the warning. With the help of a security guard, they evacuated the beach to a nearby hotel. Seconds after the last patron stepped off the beach, a 9-meter tsunami swallowed the shore. Unlike other beaches on the island, Mai Khao Beach reported no fatalities from the tsunami that day.

Sometimes, how we hear can be a matter of life and death. When it comes to the words of our Lord, how we hear – whether we truly heed and act on them – is a matter of eternal life or eternal destruction.

Four Pictures, Four Warnings

In Matthew 7:13-29, at the end of His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus uses four pictures to serve as warnings for us to examine how we are hearing His words.

1. The Narrow Gate: A Call to Unpopularity (Mt 7:13-14)

We are faced with a choice of two paths: a spacious road leading to a wide gate, and a hard road leading to a narrow gate. The first is the easy and popular route, but leads to destruction, while the latter is the difficult and unpopular option which leads to life. There is no third option. Against the common wisdom of safety in numbers, the Christian needs to choose the way of the minority. Often, the path of discipleship involves holding on to unpopular moral positions and difficult commitments that appear foolish to the majority in society.

2. The Tree and its Fruit: A Call to Discernment (Mt 7:15-20)

Jesus also warned us to beware of false prophets. By describing them as wolves in sheep clothing, the Lord wants us to realize that false prophets are often arrayed in convincing disguises. They look just like us; their teaching contain some degree of truth and may not be easily recognised as wrong. We are to distinguish them by checking the fruit of their lives. Do we see gospel character in their lives?  Do they treat others with both truth and love, as modelled by our Lord? We must not confuse charisma with character, and giftedness with godliness.

3. The Ministry Worker: A Call to Real Relationship (Mt 7:21-23)

This is the picture of the slogan-shouter. “Lord, Lord” is his refrain. He may even have impressive ministry accomplishments under his belt (“prophesy… cast out demons… do many mighty works”) done in the name of Christ. Yet, at the end of the day, the Lord’s verdict – “I never knew you” – exposes his work as mere religious activism. Just as putting on a jersey does not make one a member of the team, doing things in the Lord’s name does not make one truly known by the Lord. Only those who do the will of the Father truly belong to the Lord.

4. The House Builder: A Call to Action (Mt 7:24-27)

We all know about the wise builder and the foolish builder. Building on the sand – that is, hearing without doing – is easy, fast, and “clever”. At a fraction of the time and cost, the house is built. But when the rain falls, and it will fall – mightily – “it fell, and great was the fall of it.” In the rain, the wisdom of the hard and slow way of building on stone is vindicated. Those who have been putting truth into practice in fair weather will find their life and faith resting on firm foundation when the trials come.

Build Your Life on Firm Foundation

The Wang Fuk Court fire in Hong Kong at the end of 2025 is a cautionary tale to heed. Reports point to multiple violations and negligence of construction safety regulations, such as the failure to use fire-retardant materials, the failure to maintain working fire alarm systems, and the failure to enforce prohibitions against smoking and open fires on the building site. All of these contributed to the rapid spread of the fire.

Our Christian lives and faith do not break down overnight. They are eroded and chipped away gradually, one negligence at a time. Has the Lord been impressing on your heart some truth that you have not obeyed practically? Is He reminding you of a duty that you have been ignoring? Each time you choose to overlook His call, you are chipping away at the foundation of your faith. Choose instead to practise obedience.

“Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” (Heb 3:15).