A Tail and Two Roads

Scripture of the two ways through life Matthew 7:12-14.

The two things that just keep cropping up.

There are only two things in life that most of us worry about. Whether your healthy or whether your sick.

If you are healthy then there is nothing for you to worry about. If your sick however there are two things to worry about.

If your going to get better or if you are going to get worse.

If your going to get better then you have nothing to worry about. But if you are going to get worse then there are two things.

If your going to live or if your going to die.

If your going to live then you have nothing to worry about. But if your going to die, there are still two things to worry about.

If your going to heaven or if your going to hell.

Well if you go to heaven then there is not a thing to worry about. But if you go to hell there are two things. Original or extra Crispy.

The Bible indicates that there are two roads to travel by. One leads to life and the other is wide and leads to death. If your travelling in the direction of life then you have nothing to worry about. However if you are travelling in the direction of death you have two things to worry about.

Let me explain this idea. We have this quaint saying in Christianity. “Born twice and die once.”

Speaking to Nicodemus, Jesus says as recorded in

John 3:3 “Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Spoeaking to Martha, Jesus says as recorded in

John 11:25 “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,”

However if you are only born once there are two things to worry about. You get to die twice.

John 5:25–29 ““Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming, and is now here, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.”

Revelation 2:11 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’”

The fear of death is with us all to some degree or other. The thought of death features more prominently in our thoughts as we get older. And for those that travel that broad road, those who also become aware of the truth in scripture , will have to think about having to face death twice. A double portion of fear that they have brought upon themselves. A fear that they will live with all their lives , fear that does not let them rest day or night.

The narrow road and the narrow gate are symbols for the life journey lived in submission to God. The broad road that leads to death and final annihilation is the life lived in rebellion to God.

What makes it difficult to tell that there are two ways or roads to which experience life? I have on eword for it, Deceit. The hiding of the truth or the distorting of the truth. This is where the tail comes in that I mentioned in the title of the message.

The tail is the very thing that conceals the truth so that people make poor judgements about how to live and often get caught in a lifestyle that they truly dont want, but find hard to get out of. The tail in scripture has often been compared to the work of false prophets.

For example in chapter 9 of Isaiah where we hear about the wonderful news of the birth of the Messiah. We also hear of how the nation of God had practised arrogance and oppression. One of the influences that drove the people in that unfortunate direction were the lying prophets.

Isaiah 9:14–16 “So the Lord cut off from Israel head and tail, palm branch and reed in one day— the elder and honored man is the head, and the prophet who teaches lies is the tail; for those who guide this people have been leading them astray, and those who are guided by them are swallowed up.”

There is also a description of the work of the tail of the red dragon in Revelation.

Coincidentally in Revelation 12:4 We have the dragon who is poised ready to strike at the Messiah at His birth and then we see within verse 4 this statement about the dragon. Who happens to be none other than the Devil, Satan or the fallen angelic being who was once called Lucifer as identified in Rev 12:9.

Revelation 12:4 “His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it.”

Just as the word stars is used metaphorically to describe the angels, the word tail is also used metaphorically to describe the deceptive means by which a third of the angelic host lost their place in heaven.

For every person there comes a time when we each reach whats called a crossroads in life. A time in our lives where we have to make a serious decision about the course our lives will take. Some make that choice early and others make the choice later. From a Biblical perspective there is no one that does not make the choice.

Also at the crossroads of life there are two figures that beckon to each of us. At the entrance to the narrow path awaits the Holy Spirit. A voice that is familiar to those who have responded to Him before. His voice is the one whom will lead us into all truth as described in John 16:13 “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.”

At the same crossroads there is another figure, that wants to lead us down the road that is wide and easy. Easy because the life lived along that road is very much the life which we naturally tend to live. The figure there beckoning us to go down that other road, is the same deceiver that worked at misleading Adam and Eve. He also tends to use the voices of others that think like him. This is what the scripture has to say about the Devil. Jesus first addresses the pharisees as following their father who happens to be the devil and then describes the devil’s character.

John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

The voices that want us to follow the deceiver come in various forms. They may find their way to us in the class room as a form of rudimentary evolutionary ideas. They may come to us on a sportsfield when the voice says success in life is when you are a winner. The voice sometimes suggests that life is an illusion just drug yourself to numb the pain. The voice sometimes says your a loser and you will never amount to anything. The voice takes many forms but never tells the whole truth, instead tells outright lies or mixes the truth with error to throw people of the track, hiding its deceptive intentions.

I would like to finish on a good note. Because we have heard and listened to the right voice. But my warning is that we should never be complacent. Because we have never arrived until we get there.

John 10:1–5 ““Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

As we leave today may we all continue to listen to the voice that has always led us in the direction of safety and the abundant life. You have heard the voice of God often enough to know it. In living our lives we have also heard another voice which has led us astray at times. We know that voice too. But when you hear that voice ignore it and begin to listen out for the voice of God.

When we follow the voice of God we have nothing to worry about.

If we listen to the other voice, which may at times be us talking to ourselves, then we will have two things to worry about.

So Lets ask God now to help us avoid giving ourselves more worries than necessary.