Staying on the Path

Losing your way

This is Lukas McClish, a 34 year old man from California who set out on what he thought would be a 3 hour hike in the Santa Cruz mountains in Northern California.

He left on June 11th and was reported missing on June 16th by his family after he didn’t show up for Father’s Day dinner on June 16th.

This picture was taken after he had been found following 10 days lost in the wilderness.

McClish said he lost his way after markers that were previously in the forest were lost in forest fires in the area.

It was also revealed that he has bad eyesight and that also may have contributed to him getting lost.

I am sure you have heard similar stories. It is actually pretty common to hear of people losing their way on a path and getting lost for days.

Remember what Jesus said about following paths back in Matthew 7:13-14? He called the path to life (meaning the path to Him) a “narrow path” that is difficult to follow.

Jesus is saying a lot in that illustration.

He is talking about how the path to life is singular, meaning there is only one way to abundant/eternal life, and that is through Him (John 14:6).

He is also saying that the path is hard to find in a world that offers us so many other paths that promise happiness and fulfillment, but ultimately lead to destruction.

But He is also saying that the narrow path is hard because it is hard to stay on if we don’t stay alert and keep our eyes forward.

Matthew 16 gives us 4 instructions for staying on the path and avoid getting lost.

Matthew 16:1–12 CSB

1 The Pharisees and Sadducees approached, and tested him, asking him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He replied, “When evening comes you say, ‘It will be good weather because the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘Today will be stormy because the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to read the appearance of the sky, but you can’t read the signs of the times. 4 An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then he left them and went away. 5 The disciples reached the other shore, and they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus told them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” 7 They were discussing among themselves, “We didn’t bring any bread.” 8 Aware of this, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves that you do not have bread? 9 Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand and how many baskets you collected? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand and how many large baskets you collected? 11 Why is it you don’t understand that when I told you, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,’ it wasn’t about bread?” 12 Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the leaven in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.

After Jesus had spent some time in a mostly Gentile/Canaanite region, He now traveled back across the Sea of Galilee.

And He picks up basically right where He left off, again being confronted by the religious leaders of the day.

This is a bit of a unique group though, made up of Pharisees and Sadducees, who were both prominent and powerful religious groups, but who were also usually opposed to one another.

It would be like the Republican and Democrats coming together to confront someone both of them saw as a threat to them.

Though both these groups would have disagreed on many levels, they both would have been well acquainted with the Bible of their day (the Law and the Prophets).

They would have know the stories of Moses and Elijah, how God had shown Himself in incredible displays of power, sending plagues from Heaven or even reigning fire down to burn up the wooden alter Elijah had built.

So these two groups had come together with what they thought would be a fool proof plan to prove Jesus was a fraud.

“Show us a sign Jesus, one from Heaven to prove to us you are who you say you are.”

Jesus’s response is where we learn our first lesson on how to avoid getting lost.

How do we avoid getting lost?

1) Don’t ignore the SIGN.

Have the sign holder grab their signs.

If you have ever been hiking before on a legit hiking trail you will find signs that tell you which way your path goes.

Often there are multiple paths you can follow, so the path you are following will be marked with a particular color and arrows pointing your way.

Imagine this room is a path and throughout the sanctuary there are signs that point the way.

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus asking Him for a sign, in a sense saying “if you show us a clear enough sign, then we will believe you.”

Though Jesus’s response might seem odd, what He is saying to them is simple.

“You guys can tell what the weather is going to be just by looking at the signs in the sky, but you refuse to see the signs that are right in front of you.”

Begin walking around the room.

See Jesus could have pointed them to all the people He had healed as He traveled from town to town.

Blind people who could now see.

Lame people who could now walk.

Sick people who were now healthy.

Walk to the next sign

If that wasn’t enough, He could point to the young girl who was dead when Jesus came to her house, but who was now alive after He restored her.

Walk to the next sign

What about the 5000 people He fed not far from where they were talking.

Or the 4000 He fed just hours/days before.

Walk to the next sign

Or, as John will tell us about, what about His friend Lazarus, who had been dead for 3 days before He arrived, and yet they could have gone right down to Bethany and spoken to Lazarus after he was raised from the dead.

Walk back on stage.

Jesus knew the Pharisees and Sadducees didn’t need another sign to show them who He was, they needed to stop ignoring the signs that were right in front of them.

Maybe you have never seen a miracle like we read about in the Gospels.

Maybe you have asked for one and it didn’t happen and so you are doubting whether this whole God and Jesus thing is real or not.

God never promises us that every miracle we pray for will happen.

What He doesn’t promise for those who give their lives to Him is:

hope and joy that exist even in the most painful of circumstances and season.

freedom from the guilt and shame of our sin, because He has died in our place.

And truth that will guide us through the difficulties and confusion of life.

There are signs all around us if we have eyes to see, the clearest and most profound is His love and grace shown brightly in His death on the cross and resurrection.

This is what He means by the “Sign of Jonah “ in verse 4.

Like Jonah, Jesus gave His life as a ransom to save others.

And like Jonah, who God saved by having a whale swallow him and three days later, spat him out. Jesus also died and three days rose again.

That is the only sign we need.

Matthew tells us the disciples finally reached where Jesus was and that they had forgotten again to pack dinner for their journey.

Jesus gives them a warning, which we will get to in just a moment, and yet they seem to totally miss because they are so concerned about not having packed bread.

And that is when Jesus gives the next instruction.

2) Don’t forget the MARKERS.

Begin to walk around the room handing out the cut ribbons along the way.

You remember the story of Hansel and Gretel.

They have a mean stepmother who makes their dad lead them into the forest to leave them so she and him don’t run out of food having to feed the kids.

Hansel leaves a trail of bread crumbs along the path that they plan to follow to make it back home.

The problem is, birds eat the bread crumbs and they are lost in the forest (and then there’s a witch).

Hansel had the right idea, just the wrong material.

Throughout the worship center I have marked my path, showing me all the places I have gone along my journey.

These points are reminders of where I have been and, as Jesus is showing the disciples, markers that help me continue to navigate the path.

The disciples are fretting over there lack of bread, to the point that they aren’t listening to Jesus’s warning about the religious leaders.

And it is then that Jesus reminds them “Don’t forget the markers.”

“Remember when I fed the 5000+ with only 5 loaves of bread and there were still leftovers at the end?”

What about the time in your life where God’s grace and goodness led you through a challenging time or freed you from the shame of sin.

“Remember just a few days ago when I fed 4000+ with only 7 loaves and there were still basket fulls leftover?”

Remember the times God has provided for you either with people who help or encourage you, or provisions that came right when you needed them.

The disciples had experienced Jesus do unimaginable things, and yet they were overwhelmed with worry because they didn’t bring any bread on their journey.

It is so easy to forget all the ways God has shown Himself to be good, gracious, kind, and powerful in our lives.

And yet, when we fail to remember those markers, we so easily begin to loose our way.

So don’t forget the markers, brothers and sister. Remember how God has provided, how good and glorious He is.

And how much He loves us.

3) Don’t listen to bad DIRECTIONS.

But Jesus did give the disciples a very important instruction in verse 6.

Matthew 16:6 CSB

6 Then Jesus told them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”

Remember what leaven is, the small part of a dough that makes the whole piece rise.

Jesus is saying to His disciples:

“Don’t let the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees contaminate your minds and lead you off the path.”

The disciples, much like most Jews in ancient Rome, would have considered the words of these religious leaders to be the highest authority in the lives.

They were the learned, the righteous, and the most powerful because of their place in God’s house.

But Jesus knew that their religious zeal and their outside cleanliness were only a facade (outward appearance) and that their hearts and lives were far from truth.

We live in a world that wants to sell you all kinds of stuff and give you all kind of strategies to help you be happy, successful, and secure in life.

The problem is, there are also a lot of “Christian” folks out there that say they are tell us the truth, but who are actually sell you something that is far from what God declares to us and desires of us.

It is so easy to find people on Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube that tell you all the things you want to hear and make it all seem like exactly what God wants for you life.

Whether it is promises of wealth, success, and good health.

Or it is an affirmation of a life decision or lifestyle that goes against God’s Word and His ways clearly given within His word.

False teaching is all around us, a part of the algorithm that decides what you see as you scroll through your phone every night.

Jesus is saying to His disciples “Don’t listen to bad directions.”

How do you know if what you are hearing is right, true, and good?

What does God’s Word say about it?

Sure their are topics in the Bible that aren’t as clear as others.

But the Bible is clear in most every area of life and how we are to live it out in our world.

The bible isn’t a quick reference guide we use only when we can figure something out ourselves.

It is the very Word of God, given to us to guide us, convict us, encourage us, and even to lead us to salvation and Godliness as we commit to live in His ways.

Who’s directions are you listening to?

4) Know who your FOLLOWING.

Now we are going to dive into this next passage more next week, but what Jesus does next is important.

Matthew 16:13–16 CSB

13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus turns to His disciples and asks “Who do people say I am?”

Pointing out all the opinions out there the disciples could be listening to.

And then He asked, “But what about you, who do you say I am?”

Peter, the voice of the disciples, says one of the most profound confessions we will read in the Bible.

You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Peter knew who Jesus was and he knew the He was the only one worthy of following.

That seems to be Jesus’s heart in asking that question.

Do they really understand who I am? Do they believe?

And that is the question I have to end with today.

Do you know and understand who Jesus was and is?

Have you given your heart and life to Him, asking that He will forgive you of you sin through His death and resurrection?

How has that faith and that following transformed your life?

Do you look any different than those outside the church?

Who are you following?