THE JOURNEY

Speaker: Rich Gartman

Series: THE RECAP

Scripture: Deuteronomy 2:1–25

Main Idea: God determines the destination, God reveals the path, and our responsibility is to follow.

INTRO

We have been walking through this series called THE RECAP, and today we come to Deuteronomy chapter 2. This sermon has a title that is obviously a little special to us: THE JOURNEY.

We call ourselves Journey Church. That name is more than something we put on a sign. The Christian life really is a journey. We were somewhere when Christ found us. He is taking us somewhere now. And one day, for those who belong to Christ, this journey will end in His presence.

But here is the important part: a journey is not simply about moving. You can move a lot and still not get anywhere. Israel proved that. They spent years walking through the wilderness, but much of that movement was circling rather than progressing.

That can happen spiritually too. We can be busy, attend church, know the songs, know the language, and still keep circling the same mountain. We can keep fighting the same battles, carrying the same bitterness, making the same excuses, and wondering why we never seem to move forward.

Deuteronomy 2 begins after the rebellion we studied last week. Israel had refused to enter the land when God told them to go. Now Moses reminds the new generation what happened next. They turned back toward the wilderness. But here is the good news: their failure did not mean God had abandoned His people. Even in the wilderness, God was still directing the journey.

And if we are going to call ourselves Journey Church, then we had better be a church that is actually going somewhere. More importantly, we had better make sure we are following Jesus to get there.

So today I want us to see three things about the journey God has for His people.

BIBLE VERSE

Read Deuteronomy 2:1–25 (ESV).

BIBLE VERSE EXPLANATION

Chapter 2 begins with Israel turning back toward the wilderness, just as God had commanded at the end of chapter 1. Verse 1 says, “For many days we traveled around Mount Seir.” Then verse 3 gives the turning point: “You have been traveling around this mountain country long enough. Turn northward.”

That sounds a lot like Deuteronomy 1:6, where God told them they had stayed at Horeb long enough. God’s people are not meant to camp forever when God says move, and they are not meant to circle forever when God says turn.

But God also gives Israel very specific instructions about the route. They are not to attack Edom because God had given that land to Esau. They are not to harass Moab because God had given that territory to the descendants of Lot. Later He says the same concerning Ammon. Israel cannot simply take whatever land looks good to them. God determines where they go, what belongs to them, what does not belong to them, and when they are to move.

That gives us the heartbeat of the message today: God determines the destination. God reveals the path. Our responsibility is to follow.

1. THE JOURNEY STARTS WITH A PATH

A. EXPLANATION – POINT 1

Every journey needs a path. Israel did not get to draw its own route through the wilderness. God told them when to move, where to turn, where not to fight, and where they were headed.

Verse 3 says, “You have been traveling around this mountain country long enough. Turn northward.” I love that. God does not merely tell them what to stop doing. He tells them which direction to go next.

Sometimes we want God to show us the whole map. We want to know what happens five years from now, ten years from now, and how every problem will work out. But most of the time God gives us the next step.

Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” A lamp does not usually light the entire road. It gives enough light for the next steps.

Israel also had to learn that not every road was theirs to take. God told them not to seize Edom, Moab, or Ammon. Just because a door exists does not mean God wants us to walk through it. Just because we are capable of doing something does not mean it is His path for us.

That matters for us as individuals, and it matters for us as Journey Church. Our job is not to copy every church around us. Our job is not to chase every trend. Our question has to be, “Lord, what path have You laid out for us?”

B. ILLUSTRATION – POINT 1

Most of us have used GPS long enough to know what happens when we miss a turn. The voice says, “Recalculating,” and it gives us another route. The GPS does not sit there offended for twenty miles saying, “Well, I told you to turn back there!” It begins directing you from where you are now.

Israel had missed a major turn at Kadesh-barnea. Their disobedience had consequences, and they could not simply erase those consequences. But God still knew where they were, and He still knew how to lead the next generation forward.

C. APPLICATION – POINT 1

Maybe you have taken some wrong turns. Maybe you wasted time. Maybe fear kept you from obeying God. Maybe you are looking back at choices you wish you could change.

You cannot change yesterday, but you can obey God today. Do not spend the rest of your life staring at the turn you missed. Ask God, “What is my next faithful step?”

And as a church, we need the same attitude. Journey Church does not need to know every detail of the next ten years. We need to be faithful with the next step God puts in front of us.

BIBLE VERSE – POINT 2

Deuteronomy 2:4–7, 9, 18–19 (ESV) emphasizes God’s specific directions concerning Edom, Moab, and Ammon. Israel had choices to make, but those choices had to remain inside the boundaries God established.

2. THE JOURNEY IS DEFINED BY THE PATH YOU CHOOSE

A. EXPLANATION – POINT 2

God showed Israel the path, but they still had to choose whether they would walk it. That is one of the lessons of Deuteronomy. The previous generation had a clear command from God and chose fear. This generation is being taught to choose obedience.

Choices matter. A single choice may look small in the moment, but choices become habits, habits shape character, and character influences the direction of a life.

Proverbs 3:5–6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” Notice the connection between trusting God and the path we walk.

The world offers plenty of roads. Some look easier. Some look wider. Some are more popular. Some promise faster results. But the easiest path is not always the right path.

Jesus said in Matthew 7 that there is a broad road leading to destruction and a narrow road leading to life. The question is not simply, “Am I moving?” The question is, “Which road am I on?”

B. ILLUSTRATION – POINT 2

Eleanor Roosevelt is often quoted as saying that a person’s philosophy is best expressed not merely in words but in the choices that person makes. Whether or not we say the right things, our choices eventually reveal what we truly value.

You can tell me where you want to go, but if every choice you make takes you in the opposite direction, your destination will eventually reveal which path you really chose.

C. APPLICATION – POINT 2

Every day we make choices that shape our journey. What will I put into my mind? How will I treat my spouse? Will I forgive? Will I pray? Will I open God’s Word? Will I serve? Will I share my faith? Will I obey when obedience costs me something?

And churches make choices too. Ten years from now, Journey Church will be shaped in large part by the spiritual choices we make today. Will we choose comfort or mission? Will we become inward-focused or keep reaching people? Will we invest in the next generation? Will we stand on Scripture even when culture takes another road?

Our name cannot merely describe movement. Journey Church needs to describe direction. We want to be a people deliberately choosing the path of Christ.

BIBLE VERSE – POINT 3

Matthew 16:24–26 (ESV) “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?’”

3. THE JOURNEY OF THE CROSS

A. EXPLANATION – POINT 3

Ultimately, the Christian journey is not simply about making better choices or finding our purpose. It is about following Jesus.

Jesus does not say, “Admire Me.” He says, “Follow Me.” And He tells us what that path looks like: deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow.

That is very different from the message our culture gives us. Culture says, “Find yourself.” Jesus says, “Deny yourself.” Culture says, “Protect yourself at all costs.” Jesus says, “Take up your cross.” Culture says, “Choose your own path.” Jesus says, “Follow Me.”

The cross was not jewelry when Jesus said those words. It was an instrument of execution. To take up your cross meant surrender. Jesus was telling His disciples that following Him would cost them something.

But notice the promise: “Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” The path of surrender looks like loss to the world, but it leads to real life.

And Jesus did not ask us to walk a road He refused to walk Himself. He went before us. He carried His cross. He gave His life for our sins. He rose from the grave. The One calling us to follow knows exactly where the road leads.

B. ILLUSTRATION – POINT 3

Neil Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, once visited the Old City of Jerusalem. According to the story, when he was shown stones associated with the path Jesus would have walked near the Temple Mount, Armstrong said he was more excited to step there than he had been to step on the moon.

Think about that. A man who had walked somewhere almost no human being had ever walked was moved by the thought of walking where Jesus walked.

But Christianity is about more than walking where Jesus physically walked. It is about walking the way Jesus walked: in obedience to the Father, in love toward people, and in willingness to sacrifice.

C. APPLICATION – POINT 3

If we are Journey Church, then this must be our journey: following Jesus.

Not following a pastor. Not following a personality. Not following culture. Not following whatever is popular this year. Following Jesus.

That means there will be moments when His path is harder than the alternative. There will be moments when obedience costs us comfort, time, money, pride, or popularity. But no road is safer than the road where Jesus leads.

Ask yourself: Am I actually following Jesus, or am I asking Jesus to follow me? There is a big difference. Disciples do not hand Jesus the map. They follow.

CONCLUSION

Robert Frost famously wrote about two roads diverging in a wood and the significance of choosing a road. That image stays with us because life really is filled with crossroads. We make choices, and eventually those choices take us somewhere.

But Scripture takes that picture even deeper. Jesus says there are ultimately two roads: a broad road and a narrow road. One leads to destruction. One leads to life.

So here is today’s recap: THE JOURNEY STARTS WITH A PATH. God does not leave us without direction. THE JOURNEY IS DEFINED BY THE PATH YOU CHOOSE. Our daily choices reveal which direction we are actually traveling. And for the Christian, it is THE JOURNEY OF THE CROSS. We deny ourselves, take up our cross, and follow Jesus.

There is something I want every person who walks through the doors of Journey Church to understand: we are not Journey Church because we have arrived. We are Journey Church because we are following the One who knows the way.

In fact, Jesus said something even greater than that. John 14:6 says, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Jesus does not merely give us directions to God. Jesus is the Way to God.

Maybe your journey has included some wrong turns. Maybe you have circled the same mountain for years. Maybe you have tried roads that promised happiness and left you empty. Jesus is calling you to follow Him.

If you have never trusted Christ, the first step of the journey is not cleaning yourself up. It is turning from your sin and trusting the One who died and rose again for you.

And if you already belong to Christ, maybe today God is saying what He said to Israel: “You have traveled around this mountain long enough. Turn.”

There may be a habit you need to leave. A relationship you need to repair. A ministry you need to begin. A fear you need to surrender. A step of obedience you have delayed.

Whatever the next step is, follow Him.

Church, if we are going to carry the name Journey Church, then let us be a people on a journey with Jesus: His Word directing us, His cross before us, His Spirit leading us, and His glory as our destination.

We are not wandering. We are following. And wherever Jesus leads, that is the path we want to take.