The Path Less Taken
Notes
Transcript
Robert Frost wrote an amazing poem in 1916: the Road Not Taken.
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Every day, we are faced with choices. Do we take path A or do we take path B. And there is no going back on any of these choices. We make them and then we live with the results. Whether good or bad.
Jesus has been speaking to his disciples, those who have decided that they want to follow him. He has talked about expectations, priorities, actions, focuses, everything that sets a kingdom-follower apart from someone who is not a kingdom-follower.
And in his conclusion to the sermon on the mount, he presents the most basic difference between the kingdom-follower and the non-kingdom-follower. The kingdom-follower is on one path, and everyone else is on the other.
That’s the simplest explanation. Let’s read Jesus’ conclusion.
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law.
Today, we are going to look at the two paths, and then discuss what leads us onto one path or the other.
Will you pray with me?
1. Two Paths
1. Two Paths
Jesus says that there are only two paths to life. We humans tend to muddy the waters by creating a whole lot of different paths. But, there are only two paths.
The broad path and the narrow path.
At the beginning of each path, there is a gate. One which is wide and the other is narrow. We enter through that gate to get on the path.
Let’s talk about these paths.
Let’s start with the narrow way, shall we?
Jesus describes this way as having a small gate.
Now, would you figure that a path leading to the best thing in the world would have a small gate?
It’s amazing how many ministries have cruises in the Caribbean, and they all send out their advertisements to us northerners in February, thinking that we are sick of the cold and would love to get some warmth.
The gate is wide to get to the Caribbean, and they make it very easy. Sure it costs a bunch, but if you got the money, there are ways to get there.
Not so with the narrow way. The gate is small. There is only one way to get on road, and there is no wiggle room.
Jesus will say later:
I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.
The gate is small. It’s a man.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
The road is narrow, because there is not much give in it. When we follow Jesus, we are called to follow him, not our best friend, not our parent, not our kid, not our president, we are called to follow Jesus.
Because of the limited way to get on the path and the constrained life of the path, few people will get on the path.
I was following Apple maps one day, trying to get somewhere in some big city. And I knew that I needed to turn on a certain road, and I figured that the road was there at the stop light. Because I figured that my destination was on a major road.
However, as I was aiming for that stoplight, I looked down at my map and saw that I had just missed my road. My destination wasn’t on a major thoroughfare, my destination was on a side street.
Too many people think that the way to life is found on the path that everyone else is taking. And they miss it entirely, because they are following people instead of Jesus.
Jesus is the only way to life.
But, most people take the broad path.
As I said, we as humans like to split this path up, because we don’t like to think in dichotomies. We don’t like to think of those who follow Jesus and those who don’t. Those who will be blessed with eternal life and those who are doomed to eternal destruction.
But, that’s the truth. If we have not entered through Jesus to the strait and narrow, we are on the broad way that leads to destruction.
We can label that path anyway we want to. We could talk about Islam, Mormonism, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Paganism, New Agism. Whatever label we want to put on it. It is not the path of life, but the path of destruction.
“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.
And, oh, that path is so easy. We can stroll on that path and enjoy the sunshine and roses. There are few potholes. All the fulfillment of all our desires. Hey, who wouldn’t want to walk a path were we control our own destiny.
But, there are moments, on that path, when we catch a glimpse of our true destiny. Perhaps we are reminded of the afterlife because of someone’s death. Or we are facing some sort of trouble and we realize that we are alone and the entity we were trusting was not actually helping us. We realize that we are not sufficient. We get a taste of the destruction that is ahead of us and we don’t like it.
And we have a choice: will we leave the broad way for the narrow way. Are we willing to enter through that small gate.
There are only two paths in life. The narrow way that leads to life or the broad way that leads to destruction.
2. The Path of Destruction
2. The Path of Destruction
What keeps us on the path of destruction?
Well, three things.
A. False Teachers
A. False Teachers
First, we listen and follow false teachers.
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
Have you ever been around a pastor who is cussing all the time? Maybe one who is immoral or always angry. The lifestyle of someone speaks more about what they actually believe than their words do. Which is why teachers are doubly-responsible before God.
A teacher’s lifestyle will either bring us closer to Jesus or farther from Jesus. If it is farther, they are leading us onto the broad way.
A teacher’s content will also do that.
Paul wrote:
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse!
If anyone says that the path of life can be anything other than faith in Jesus alone, they are preaching a false Gospel and are under God’s curse. If they are saying that you can follow anything else, besides Jesus, whether it is our works, or what some man is saying, or a church, or a belief system, anything other than Jesus is a false teaching, and is a quick route to destruction, eternal destruction in hell.
False teaching keeps us off the narrow way.
B. False Assurance
B. False Assurance
False assurance keeps us off the narrow way.
Jesus said:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
There are many people who are trusting in their works. They see their good deeds. They see the lives that they are changing, how they are showing love, and dying to themselves. And they do it in Jesus’ name, considering themselves one of his followers, because their lifestyle says that they are. They attend church and give money. They might even teach Sunday school!
But, all the good works in the world are not substitutes for walking up to the small gate and knocking, crying: Jesus, I need you. Save me from my sins, I trust in you alone.
If we have all the good works in the world, all the Scripture memory, all the kept rules, but never entered through that gate, we are on the road to destruction in hell. We are those who Jesus will look at and say: I never knew you.
False assurance keeps us off the narrow way.
C. False Focus
C. False Focus
The final thing that keeps us off the narrow way is a false focus.
Jesus tells a parable about two builders. The second builder is who we are concerned with right now.
But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
There are so many people who hear the words of Jesus, like that he is the gate to eternal life. That no one comes to the Father but through him.
In fact, every single teaching that Jesus gave comes back to the truth that salvation, life, is only through him.
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
But, we get distracted, and we think about living moral lives and loving people well, and those are great things.
But, Jesus doesn’t want us to just follow a teaching, he wants us to follow him. He wants us to know him, because salvation is through him and no other.
But, so many people hear his teaching about his exclusive claim as God, king, and savior, but they don’t follow it. And so, on that day of judgment, their lives will be swept away to destruction.
All because they wouldn’t come to the small gate and the narrow way.
3. The Path of Life
3. The Path of Life
What takes us off the broad way and onto the path of life?
Well, three things.
A. Hear the Words of Jesus
A. Hear the Words of Jesus
First, we must hear the words of Jesus.
Jesus said:
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
We must hear the words.
Paul wrote:
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them?
So many people are running around this world with their fingers in their ears, going la la la la, because they don’t want to have to think about eternity. They don’t want to believe that Jesus is the only God and every other being is false, a demon. They don’t want to believe that they cannot claw their way to paradise but must give up control and trust in Christ alone.
So, they don’t listen.
B. Do the Words of Jesus
B. Do the Words of Jesus
But listening isn’t enough. We must put the words into practice.
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.
What was Jesus’ message in this sermon, specifically?
For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.
The religious leaders had all the actions of holiness. But, their hearts were not righteous before God, which is where we are as well. Our hearts are desperately wicked. We can change all our actions, but our hearts would still be sinful. We must have someone change them.
Which is why Jesus came. Which is why he is calling people to turn to him.
Repent for the kingdom of heaven is near!
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
If the only way to eternal life is through Jesus, we must drop everything that we are following and turn to him alone. We must enter through the prescribed gate or we will not be on that path. We must put his teaching into practice, we must believe in his name.
C. Know Jesus
C. Know Jesus
By believing in his name, we know him.
When the waves of judgement come at the end of time, all who did not build their lives on him will be swept into hell, but those of us who have put our faith in him alone, will be kept.
He will look at us and he won’t say:
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’
Jesus died that we might know him. As Jesus prayed before he died:
Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
So, the question is: Do you know him? Do you know the only true God. This is eternal life!
Are you on the straight and narrow, having come to Jesus alone to save you from your sins, or are you trying all sorts of other ways.
The only way of life is knowing God through Jesus, going through that gate and walking that way.
If you haven’t entered through that gate, turn to Jesus today.
If you have entered through that gate, grab someone’s hand and invite them to join you.
