The Narrow Path: Choosing The Right Road

This week and next week we are going to look at what it means to follow Jesus. And when I say ‘follow Jesus,’ I don’t mean you know a Bible story, or that the Bible tell us that we should be kind to other people. What I mean by ‘follow Jesus’ is that because of what Pastor Raoul talked about last week, is that Jesus came to the earth, he was God, and his purpose was to lay his life down for the sins of the world. And because, BY FAITH, you believe, it changes your life. Now because you believe, you have chosen to follow him, and be different from the rest of the world.

When Jesus came with the purpose of giving his own life for the sins of the world,. that means for everyone. Everyone that has ever lived going back 2000 years, and everyone who will live up until the time that G0d chooses that this world will even. Everyone, no matter where they live in our world…he came to die for all their sins and offers salvation to everyone. Are you getting me? Okay.

But I want you to hear me on this… he came to die for the sins of the world, but that doesn’t mean that all the world, past, present, and future will enjoy his forgiveness and the salvation he offers. Not everyone is a child of God. Everyone is made in his image, but not everyone will live forever in his presence, in heaven.

And that is what we are going to talk about today, CHOOSING THE RIGHT ROAD.

***CORNERSTONE CREED

Open your Bibles to Matthew 7.

The first time I walked from your house to the field, I noticed something different. When I came outside the gate to go to the field, I went right towards the road, and Victor A and Bala turned left outside of the gate. I thought the only way to get to the field was to get up the road towards Mama Joshua’s store, then turn lift, and walk all the way up to the field. It was an easy road. It was wide, it was what was familiar to me. But Victor A and Bala told me, “No Dad, this way is faster.” So we went up a small path as we walked in the bush. The path was very small…it was narrow, and I didn’t like it. There was tall grass, and it was rubbing my legs as I walked through it. I kept thinking there is going to be a snake. I don’t like snakes. Do you like snakes? I heard someone say once, “the only good snake it a dead snake.” But I followed them all the way through the bush and then we came out on the road that goes to the field. And I thought, for me, this was hard, it was challenging. I am not used to walking through the bush like this. And even though it was fast compared to the man road, I felt more comfortable on the man road. It was wide, it was easy, and I was not fearing snakes on this wide, main road. But the truth is, the narrow, in the bush road got me there faster. And even though I feared what could be there, in the end, it was the best choice.

In Matthew 7, Jesus was teaching on a hillside, those who were there were his disciples, and there were possibly others who came to listen. We see his teaching begin in Matthew 5, continues in Matthew 6, and spills over into Matthew 7. And it’s here in Matthew 7 that Jesus talks about two paths that someone can walk. These paths are not to a football field, but they are paths that will determine where they will be forever. It’s a path that lead to life or death. Eternal Hope or Eternal Sorrow. Lets look at Matthew 7:13

Matthew 7:13–14 NLT

“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way. But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.

Jesus has been teaching for a long time. He has talked about how those who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness, they will be satisfied. He has instructed his disciples that they should be a light to the world with the things he is teaching them. He has also told his disciples to love their enemies… and even taught how to pray. All of these things are preparing them to spread the gospel to the entire world when Jesus is not with them physically anymore.

And here, Jesus makes a statement that defines who are the true followers. The true Christians. He says that to enter into God’s Kingdom, the road, the path is small. It’s narrow. A better way to say here in Nigeria…it’s not easy. I hear that all the time, Nigeria, it’s not easy. And after living here for over 11 years, and seeing the environment, the insecurities, the price of everything always going up and up.. I know, it’s not easy.

Looks at verse 13:

Matthew 7:13 NLT

“You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell* is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.

Only the follower, the true believer of Jesus Christ will enter into heaven when they die. The path is small, it’s narrow, it’s not easy. And…the gate, the door, the way is also narrow, small. And those who do not enter through this small gate into heven at the end of their life, will go through another gate. When they die, they will walk down a big road, with lots of room, and then they will enter into a place that has a big gate. Many can walk through it at one time. It will be an easy trek. In verse 14 it says… that the highway to hell is broad and its gate is wide….why? Because there are many who choose hell.

Are you understanding this? There is two road for you to trek…only two. You are the one who will chose the road…no one else can chose it.

The one that leads to hell is easy. It’s comfortable. It’s enjoyable. You can do what you want to do. Nobody can tell you how to live, what to think, or make you do anything. You are your own boss. You don’t have to follow any rules, you live like you want. It’s easy. And Jesus says here, that there are many who live like that. There will be many who choose to walk on the wide road and walk through the wide gate at the end of their life.

What about the narrow road and the narrow gate? It’s not easy. The person who follow the narrow road, understands that they are on the narrow path because they are following their Savior. They are living to follow his will and they re trying to glorify him in everything they do. They want to worship him, even when it’s not Sunday. They want to make good decisions even when no one is watching, and they want to feel his presence during time of prayer and seeking him through his word. All of that is not easy, but that is the life of the follower of Christ walking the narrow road. Everyday walking the narrow, not easy road, and one day, you will walk through the narrow gate.

Why so few people? Why does Jesus say there will be many on the wide road. Because the truth is that many who identify themselves as Christian are no more Christian than I am Nigerian. Did you know that, even now, because Mom and I have been here more than 10 years, we can apply to be citizens of Nigeria. And if I am a citizen, I can even vote for which president I think would be the best. But even if we chose to become a citizen of Nigeria, we would never truly be Nigerian. We could speak Igbo very well and eat FuFu every meal, but if people looked at us, would they say that man and woman are Nigerian? No. Why? Maybe because we are white, but also because we were not Nigerians, we are Americans.

There are many people who think, if I say the right thing, if I know about the BIble, if I go to church on Sunday, if my grandmother was a Christian, if I am from the Southeast of Nigeria… then I am a Christian. If that’s why people say they are a Christian, they are not on the narrow path that leads to life, they are on a BIG, WIDE ROAD with a lot of people who are headed to eternal destruction.

How did these people on the broad, wide road with the wide gate come to believe that that their lives were secure in Jesus, when they are not? Here’s one of the ways… Look at verse 15.

Matthew 7:15–20 NLT

“Beware of false prophets who come disguised as harmless sheep but are really vicious wolves. You can identify them by their fruit, that is, by the way they act. Can you pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? A good tree produces good fruit, and a bad tree produces bad fruit. A good tree can’t produce bad fruit, and a bad tree can’t produce good fruit. So every tree that does not produce good fruit is chopped down and thrown into the fire. Yes, just as you can identify a tree by its fruit, so you can identify people by their actions.

Listen, there are so many people on the wide road the leads to destruction for many different reasons. Maybe they don’t like to believe that there is only one way to get to heaven. Maybe they don’t beleive that the Bible is true, or maybe they just want to live their life like they want and just want to be happy, not caring that one day this life will end and there will be eternal consequences. But another reason I believe that there are people on the wide road that leads to destruction when they think they are on the narrow road, is that they have believed a false gospel. They have believed someone who says they are a pastor or a prophet or whatever title they give themselves, and they never look into the people to see if what the person is preaching is true.

Acts 17:10–11 “The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”

Last Sunday, somewhere in Nigeria, I don’t know the place, but a preacher, stood up in his church, and asked his members to bring a cane. They didn’t know why, but they brought a cane to church. And he told them to go outside the church in the rain and to beat the ground over and over with their cane. Why? Because he told them it was a symbolic act of fighting their enemies. A Pastor who has suppossed to preach the Word of God which leads to salvation told his people to go outside and beat the ground with a cane to show them they are fighting with their enemies. Do you beleive that this is a true stroy? Do you? Look at this…

Video.

Why are we fighting with our enemies.

Jesus said, Matthew 5:43–44 ““You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,”

What did David say when he faced Goliath…. 1 Samuel 17:47 “and that all this assembly may know that the Lord saves not with sword and spear. For the battle is the Lord’s….

There is not a can big enough or strong enough to beat away you enimies, because it is not yours to fight…. The battle belongs to the Lord, and as you know, from last week…..HE HAS WON!

What does the Bible say? Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”

Our enemy is defeated! On the very Sunday that Pastor should have been talking about the victory we have in Christ Jesus, he is more concerned about earthly things. They don’t matter. Earthly struggles don’t matter. But there are people in every country of the world who are listening and following instruction from people they believe are not telling them the truth.

Verse 16 says, you will know them by their fruit. What is the fruit of that Pastor? False teaching. You saw it. False teaching, leading those members to beleive that by doing that they were living the life of a Christian, when it was only instruction from a false pastor. If you follow those teaching, you will find yourself on the wide road with a lot of other people who will be surprised when they stand in front of the Lord on Judgement Day.

Look at verse 21:

Matthew 7:21–23 NLT

“Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgment day many will say to me, ‘Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’

There are many people, perhaps people you know, yoru friends, family, and maybe even some of us here who might say this when they get the wide gate: Lord, Lord, I went to church, I sang the songs, I went to Bible Study? And the Lord will say, I never really knew you? Why did he not know you? Because you didn’t know him.

Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.”

Our knowledge does not get us into heaven. Our belief, faith, and trust do. And with that, we live a life that honors him because we follow him.

How do find ourselves on the right road? 1. Choose Jesus not yourself. 2. Stay with Jesus through his Word. 3. Proclaim Jesus to all who will listen.

That day when I walked that narrow path through the bush to the field……When you CHOOSE THE RIGHT ROAD, the narrow path that leads to life, you are actually not walking alone, you are following Jesus as you walk that path that will take you into his presence one day.

Would you bow you heads?