Choose It

Intro

Story about finding hiking path to VA trailhead (for McAfee Knob) off the highway.

You intentionally had to leave the broad road and find the narrow - to get to the gorgeous destination. You couldnt continue on the highway and reach the same destination.

Why? Your path matters. Which road you take matters.

People often say “life isn’t the destination but the journey” this irritates me because although I understand what they are saying, the destination matters! Where you spend eternity matters!

Where will you spend eternity?

Jesus concludes by addressing this issue:

Matthew 7:13–14 NIV

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

Which road are you on? The broad road or the narrow one? Does your life look more like this world? or like Christ’s life?

Jesus is not one of many options, he is the only option for life.

The Avenue name.

John 14:6 NIV

6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Jesus begins by addressing two roads, but then he transitions to talking about two trees.

Matthew 7:15–20 NIV

15 “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. 16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.

Our identity is indicated by our lifestyle.

which road your on is evident by what you do.

However, our salvation is not wholly contingent on what we do.

It’s a heart issue. Jesus contrasts two different followers of Jesus

Matthew 7:21–23 NIV

21 “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. 22 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?’ 23 Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

It’s not leading worship, or serving, or tithing alone that are indicative of your salvation - its DO YOU KNOW JESUS - DOES JESUS KNOW YOU? Do y’all have a PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP?

If I were to ask you what his voice sounds like - would you know?

If I were to ask you what his facial expression is like when you talk - do you know?

Jesus ends with two options

Matthew 7:24–27 NIV

24 “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. 25 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. 26 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. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

We can either build our life on the Rock or on Sand.

Rain will come regardless what you choose - the question is not whether or not we experience adversity but whether or not we have a foundation that is solid.

Kyle’s Version

The Good Life: Choose It Matthew 7:13-27; Luke 19:28-44

There is a section of the highway just a few miles from my house which I drive almost every day. The highway divides itself into two different highways, one leads one way, which is the way to my house, the other leads to another city. If you are on the highway you have to make a choice. You can either go one way or you can go the other way, but you can’t go both ways and you can’t go another way. You have to choose.

Today we are wrapping up our series, The Good Life. We have been in series looking at the famous sermon Jesus gave called the Sermon on the Mount. Over the past several weeks, we have seen how Jesus invites us to experience and live, The Good Life. As Jesus brings His sermon to a conclusion, He focuses on the choice we have. Are we choosing The Good Life?

Today, Jesus gives to us four ways to know if we are choosing The Good Life. To see these four different ways, open your Bibles to Matthew 7:13, page 1478 of the pew Bible.

1. Two Roads: Matthew 7:13-14

“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.”

Several months ago I was up in Duluth, MN and had scheduled a long run. There is a famous trail that runs along the North Shore of Lake Superior called the Superior Hiking Trail, it has long sections which run through the wilderness, but the trail also runs through the city of Duluth. It is such a unique experience because one minute you are on a busy road with lots of traffic in the city and then, seemingly out of nowhere, there is a trailhead and within a few hundred feet you are on the Superior Hiking Trail and even though you are in the city limits, it feels as if you are alone in the woods. The only challenge with this trail as it winds through the city is finding the trailheads. They are small, narrow openings and it is easy to miss the small defined path. You can run right past it without noticing. [Show Photo]

Jesus says the Good Life is like that, it is a small road and few find it. Some, by the way, have made much of the word “few” here and have taken to mean that it is just a small number of people who understand the right truths of God and it develops a superiority complex where they look down on the rest of the world as those who don’t get it. But if you have ever had the experience of trying to find a narrow path, when you find it, especially after miles of looking, you don’t feel superior, you feel grateful. You are so thankful you found the path and you do whatever you can to stay on the path and you want to help other people find the path. Jesus doesn’t tell us the number is small to make us feel better than others. He tells us the number is few to experience the contrasts of the paths. Most people follow the wide path. The path where they decide how they want to live their life. They base their decisions on their feelings and what they see everyone else do. Few are the people who actually obey Jesus and live their life according to the teaching of Jesus. Why? Following Jesus’ teaching isn’t easy. It takes twists and turns and asks us to move away from selfishness and towards sacrifice. It is a path that calls us to love those who hate us and serve those who don’t deserve it.

But here is the thing about paths. They all lead someplace. When you are on a narrow path, the perception is you don’t have a lot of freedom. You go where the path leads. But if you walk on a wide, paved road, it seems like you have lots of freedom. You can be in one of several lanes and there are lots of exits. But wide path or narrow, each path only leads to where that path goes. If you continue to follow a path you will arrive at where that path leads. Jesus says only His path leads to The Good Life. So how do you know if you are on that path?

You don’t get on the Superior Hiking Trail by mistake. You have to look for the signs and intend to get on the path. The first question for us, “Are you looking to the teaching of Jesus to know which path in life to take?” You won’t get on Jesus’ path following your own feelings or thoughts or even following what other people at church or in a small group are doing. We must look to God’s Word. How do I think about college, choose a career, handle a conflict with a loved one, deal with a challenging coworker, approach parenting or manage money? Are you looking to God’s Word for direction? That is how we find the entrance to the narrow road. Once we’ve searched for the road, how do we know if we are still on the narrow road?

2. Two Trees: Matthew 7:15-20

“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.”

Our neighbors have an incredible apple tree in their front yard. It is incredible because it produces so many apples. They can’t even use them all. Each fall we wait for the text message and towards the end of the season they will send a message to the neighborhood to come get apples and within minutes a bunch of us are out there with huge buckets loading up on apples. I had an apple tree in our yard for a few years. It was a terrible apple tree. It was terrible because it never produced apples. Actually, that isn’t true, one year it produced one apple…and a squirrel ate it before I could get to it. How you assess the tree is the fruit it produces. Good trees produce good fruit, bad trees produce bad fruit. Someone is good in sales if they make sales. Someone is a good leader, if they lead effectively. You’d never have surgery from a surgeon who only read about surgery but never actually performed surgery. Jesus says the same is true in our lives. If we claim to be a follower of Jesus, we should see fruit, or evidence, we are actually following Jesus.  

Jesus starts this section about fruit with an interesting illustration of a false prophet. This was a term that hit home with the people of His day. In Israel, they knew the stories and warnings in Scripture about false prophets. Several centuries before Jesus, there was a prophet named Jeremiah. He warned the people that God was going to give them over to Babylon and they would spend 70 years in captivity because the people didn’t obey God’s Word. He said that because God told Him to say that message. As you can imagine, that was an unpopular message. Jeremiah probably wasn’t invited to a lot of dinner parties. Several other so-called prophets were running around Jerusalem telling people that in two years God would break Babylon and they’d be free. That message was widely popular! Those prophets made lots of money and people gave them prime speaking opportunities. But it was untrue. They told the people what they wanted to hear and they got rich, but it led the people to destruction. Literally. Jesus warns us, be careful, this will continue to happen.

As a teacher of God’s Word, I take this passage, and others like it, very seriously. I will have to stand in front of Jesus one day and give an account to Him of how well and how accurately I taught His words. So I take the study of His Word incredibly seriously and I work hard to make sure what I say is truthful, understandable, and practical so it can be applied. But, it isn’t enough for me just to teach well. I must live well. The fruit Jesus is talking about isn’t just the accuracy of the teaching. It is the fruit that comes from living a life obedient to Jesus. This, by the way, is a way to test teaching from Bible leaders.

First, whatever is taught, ask, does this teaching line up with everything Jesus teaches? God will never contradict or change His Word. If someone teaches something that doesn’t align with God’s Word, you know it is “Wide Road” not “Narrow Road” material.  

Second, and this is the one that is often missed, look at the fruit of the teacher’s life. Now, it is possible to learn from anyone, but what I’m referring to here is specifically Biblical teaching. We also must realize only Jesus is perfect. I promise you I make mistakes, struggle with moments of sin, and am daily dependent on God’s Grace. However, pastors, preachers, and Bible teachers must show consistent evidence, or fruit, of trying to put into practice what they are preaching and teaching.

This is one of the aspects of the local church I consider to be incredibly important. Here at this church, I am accountable to our Board of Elders, and I strive to be accessible and known. This is why I try to get over to Edina and The Avenue as much as possible, in-between services I walk around the lobby, I set time aside in my schedule to be available to meet with anyone from the congregation. I meet weekly with our staff and monthly with our Board because I believe every leader, especially every leader who is a follower of Jesus, should be accountable and known to others. This way there is evidence of fruit.  

So as you find new and exciting new Bible teachers on a podcast or online, make sure you test what they teach, but also know how they live their lives. Is there fruit of a life committed to obeying Jesus?

And, the same goes for you. If you are searching for the Narrow Road, you will see fruit in your life of obeying Jesus. Is there evidence of you obeying Jesus? It will look like a moment when you wanted to blast someone who sent you a snarky email at work, but chose to be kind and didn’t escalate. Or when rounded up the tip at a restaurant by $5 because Jesus tells you to be generous, or you scheduled around church because you know worshiping God with other believers honors Jesus, or you filled up your spouse’s car with gas after a big fight, not to make up, but because you want to honor God by serving them even when you don’t feel like it. That is all fruit! This leads to the third choice.

3. Two Followers: Matthew 7:21-23

“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!’”

These are some serious words which give us pause. Reading these words will even cause those of us who are genuine followers of Jesus to worry about the assurance of our salvation. Let’s unpack what Jesus is teaching us here. The phrase “Lord, Lord” is one which shows a reverence for Christ, repeating a phrase or name shows emphasis. This is a person who has respect for Jesus. They have even done things in His name. To put this into context, it is the person who attends church, maybe even volunteers at a local food shelf, raises money for good causes, is polite, well behaved, and does a lot of good in the name of Jesus, but who doesn’t know Jesus.

Jesus isn’t looking for fans. He isn’t looking for people to give His teaching a thumbs up. He is looking for people to obey Him and to be part of His family and His crew. He wants you to know Him and He wants to be with you. It is a personal relationship. The Good Life doesn’t come to those who have done religious activities. It comes to those who know Jesus and obey Him.

How do we know if we have a personal relationship with Jesus? How do you know if you have a relationship with anyone? Do you spend time with them? Do you talk with them? Do you have shared experiences with them?

Here is the thing about a personal relationship with Jesus. We don’t have to get Jesus to like us. He made us. He loves you and He likes you. His invitation toward you is not based on your performance. So spend time with Jesus. Don’t just do things for Him, be with Him.

We do this when we pray. Prayer is spending time talking with Jesus. We have shared experiences with Him when we receive communion, remembering His sacrifice for us, and when we worship corporately. Many people read these words and worry, but we don’t need to worry. Are you pursuing a personal relationship with Jesus? That is the third choice. All this leads to the foundation of our lives.

4. Two Houses: Matthew 7:24-27

“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.”

This illustration is the culmination Jesus was building towards and it is the culmination of the entire Sermon on the Mount. Will we put His words and teaching into practice? The way we prove we know Jesus, trust Jesus, and follow Jesus, is to do what He says. The benefit He says is our life will be strong and able to withstand the storms of this life which will inevitably come. The person who hears His words and chooses not to put them into practice is like a fool and when the storms of life hit, their life will fall apart. Note, the storms of life come to both houses. The Good Life isn’t found in being free from the storms of life. The Good Life is building our lives on the foundation of Jesus and His teaching so the storms of life don’t ruin us.

At this point, the case Jesus is making is obvious. Choose to follow Jesus and actually obey His teaching. Which brings up an important and practical question for us. Why do we struggle to obey Jesus?

This leads us to what today is. Today is Palm Sunday. It is the time, just days before Jesus Crucifixion, when Jesus entered Jerusalem to the praises of the people, welcoming Him like a coming King. Here is how Luke describes the events.

One Destination: Luke 19:37-42

When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace—but now it is hidden from your eyes.   

This scene shows us in a powerful way the challenge we have. When we look at Jesus as being the Savior for our own vision for our life, we don’t really know Him or obey Him. The crowd assumed Jesus was coming in to get rid of the Romans, to establish Israel’s independence and to bring about the vision they had for their lives and future. They had no idea how much more God was planning to do.

They didn’t understand how terrible their problem of sin really was and they didn’t realize how far from God they were living. They assumed they were good with God because of the religious rules they followed and the all the good things they did. But in their hearts, they were far from God. Here He was standing in their midst, and they loved Him for the miracles, but the moment He challenged them to live a different way, they turned on Him. They considered Him a threat, and He was, He came as a threat to their old way of living. He came as a threat to sin and death. He came to bring a way to life. He came offering them the Good Life, and He knew they would turn Him down. Which is why Jesus wept.

He came to bring peace and He was met with our acts of violence. Why? They didn’t trust His vision or His plan or His path. In their minds they couldn’t see how His solution was any solution at all. The ways of God were hidden from their eyes.

So it can be with us. We struggle to obey Jesus because we think we know the path to the Good Life. It is a wide path, paved, with lots of people on it and that path seems to be the one for us, but it is no path to the Good Life, it is only the path that leads to a hidden destruction and to our lives being swept away with the worries of this world.

This Palm Sunday, do you know Jesus as Lord? Are you able to sing, “Hosanna” which means “Save Now” to Him from your heart? You do if you are willing to obey Jesus.

Let’s get real personal and practical. As we conclude this series, consider your own life. Reflect on your own heart. What is one change Jesus has asked you to make from His teaching in this series? What is one thing you are now doing differently?

Are you approaching Him with an awareness of your desperate need for Him and His Spirit?  Are you being a witness for Him in your own place of influence? Are you allowing Him to reveal the selfishness and controlling nature of your own heart? Are you asking the Spirit to give you a new heart? Are you doing things for religious show or serving Him from your heart, even in secret? Are you giving up your treasures on earth for the sake of sharing the Good News of the Kingdom of Heaven? Are you dropping your judgmental attitude towards others and treating them like God treats you? Are you obeying the teaching of Jesus because He is your King?

Are you choosing the Good Life?