Find a Life Worth Living!
Matthew 7:13-29
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - May 27, 2007
*So, how’s your life going? A few years ago, author Ravi Zacharias saw a bumper sticker that read: "I got out of bed for this?" (1)
*Maybe that’s the way you have been feeling lately, but God wants to give you a life worth living! And you can have it.
1. So make sure you are on the right road.
*You must be on the right road. Jesus made this clear in vs. 13&14, where He said:
13. Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.
14. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
*In other words, of all the many ways you could go in life, there is only one right way. There is only one way that works. There is only one way that will give you a life worth living, and that is the Jesus way. That’s why in John 14:6, Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
-This is also why in John 3:36, John the Baptist said, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”
-In John 8, Jesus said:
12. . . . “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.’’
21. Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I go you cannot come.’’
22. So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, ‘Where I go you cannot come’?’’
23. And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world.
24. "Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.’’
-And in John 10, Jesus put it this way:
7. “I am the door of the sheep.
8. All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.
9. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
10. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
11. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”
*There is only one right way to find a life worth living. It’s the same way that will take you to Heaven: Jesus Christ.
*A lot of misguided people are like the man who said getting to Heaven was like getting to Boston. There are a lot of roads that will get you there. But a wise Christian told him, “No, getting to Heaven is much more like flying into the Boston airport. The pilot has to land that plane on just the right runway, at just the right speed, at just the right time, at just the right angle.” (2)
*There is only one way to land that plane, and there is only one way to get to Heaven.
2. There is only one way to a life worth living: Jesus Christ! So make sure you are on the right road, and be on the lookout for treacherous teachers.
*The Lord warns us about treacherous teachers in vs. 15-20:
15. Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
16. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thorn bushes or figs from thistles?
17. Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.
18. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
19. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
*Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets. . .” The Lord knew that there would always be people around, trying their best to lead us away from Him. That has never been truer than in this day of celebrity, when so many people look up to the worst possible role models.
*Just as one example, comedian Jerry Seinfeld has entertained and influenced millions. But when someone asked him, “What is life?” Jerry Seinfeld said, “Life is truly a ride. We’re all strapped in, and no one can stop it. As you make each passage from youth to adulthood to maturity, sometimes you put your arms up and scream, sometimes you just hang on to that bar in front of you. But the ride is the thing. I think the most you can hope for at the end of life is that your hair’s messed up, you’re out of breath, and you didn’t throw up.” (3)
*I guarantee you that we are hoping for a whole lot more than that! Beware of false prophets.
*On this Memorial Day weekend, we would do well to remember that there is a big difference between a celebrity and a hero. In 1998, David Granger of “Esquire” magazine wrote to over 200 prominent people, asking them about their ideas on heroism. Most of those who wrote back claimed that they weren’t even sure what a hero is.
*Actor Paul Newman wrote, “I’m embarrassed, but I have no heroes that I know of. Everybody that I know or have read about is seriously flawed, including myself.” The best Newman could recommend was a good role model. For that post, he chose his dog, Harry. Harry’s best qualities, according to Newman, are that he’s ‘funky, curious, (and) always of good humor.” (4)
*Now I love my dogs, but I’ve got infinitely better role models than them! The heroes of faith in God’s Word, plus the many outstanding Christians I have met over the years, people who inspire us to trust and obey the Lord.
-Thank God for heroes!
*Historian Daniel Boorstein gave a great quote about the difference between heroes and celebrities: “The hero reveals the possibilities of human nature. The celebrity reveals the possibilities of the press and media. Celebrities are people who make news, but heroes are people who make history. Time makes heroes but dissolves celebrities.” (5)
*There are people worth following in life: People with faith, love, courage, and devotion to Jesus Christ. But beware of false prophets.
*What’s the measure? How can we know the difference? Jesus tells us that the measure is fruitfulness. Look at their lives. Follow anybody who leads you closer to the Lord. But run away from anybody whose life would lead you away from Jesus.
3. God wants to give you a life worth living, so be on the lookout for treacherous teachers, and make sure you have a real relationship with Jesus.
*Do you really know the Lord? Jesus showed us how important this is in vs. 21-23, when He said:
21. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23. And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
1-There are two critical truths to see in these verses. First of all, we are not saved by works. Even if you could do all of those amazing things the apostles could do, heal the sick, raise the dead, all of those wonders, that would not get you into Heaven. (By the way, Judas could do all of those things, and he was never saved, not for a moment.)
*The only way to be saved is through the merciful love of God. You must be saved by His gift of grace, or you won’t be saved at all. As Paul told believers in Eph 2:8-9, “By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”
*But why do we need God’s grace? Alan Perkins gave a great answer. He says it’s because God is completely holy, and his standard is perfect righteousness.
*It doesn’t matter if you’re a little better than someone else, or even a lot better than someone else. You’re still guilty of sin. You’re still condemned.
*The person who jumps halfway across the Grand Canyon winds up just as dead as the person who only jumps 8 feet out from the cliff! They both fall a mile to the bottom. That’s why we have to depend on Christ’s perfect righteousness to make us right with God. Our goodness will never be enough, on either an absolute scale or a relative scale.
*And by the way, the more you understand that, and accept that, the less critical you will be of other people. Because you can’t be saved by your own works, you can’t gain God’s favor by being better than someone else.
*You can’t make it to heaven by even the most strenuous attempts at good behavior. All that matters is that Jesus Christ fulfilled all of God’s requirements, and gave his life to pay for our sins. That’s grace. (6)
2-Here’s the truth: We are not saved by good works, but true salvation will produce good works. That’s in Eph 2:10, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
*Then here in Matt 7, we hear Jesus say the most dreadful thing anyone could ever hear God say, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!”
*The bottom line here is this: If you are saved, if you know Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, turn away from the sin in your life, and start doing all the good you can. This will give you a life worth living.
*In one of his best-selling books Zig Ziglar pointed to a study by the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Co. This study revealed that people with deep religious convictions make the most productive employees. According to Ziglar, “Ninety-seven percent of those who had made strong spiritual commitments also had strong commitment and loyalty that carried over to their employers, with highly productive results.
-And this parallels a study involving over 22,000 students who qualified for Who’s Who in American Schools and Colleges. Over 85% of these honor students said that their faith in God was extremely important to them.” (7)
*Well, you may not be an “A” student, but Jesus Christ can give you a life worth living!
4. So make sure you have a real relationship with Jesus, and build your life on a firm foundation.
*Jesus taught this truth in vs. 24-27:
24. Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock:
25. and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house. -And it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.
26. Now everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand:
27. and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. --And great was its fall.’’
*Everybody is building a house with their life, some a lot fancier than others but that doesn’t matter, especially in the long run. Everybody is building a house. And every house will be battered by storms. This is one of the things I try to stress to young couples who are about to get married.
*Sure, you can avoid a lot of trouble by wise and Godly living, but storms will hit every family, every life, every heart. Every house will go through storms. The only thing that matters is the foundation. What are you building on? What is your foundation in life?
-Your house will not stand unless it is built on the Rock of Jesus Christ!
*Gregory Elder reminds us of this in a story from his childhood. Greg grew up on the Atlantic Coast, and spent long hours working on intricate sand castles. Greg said whole cities would appear beneath his hands.
*Then he said, “One year, for several days in a row, I was accosted by bullies who smashed my creations. Finally I tried an experiment. I placed cinder blocks, rocks, and chunks of concrete in the base of my castles. Then I built the sand kingdoms on top of the rocks. When the local toughs appeared (and I disappeared), their bare feet suddenly met their match. (8)
*Build your house on the rock of Jesus Christ!
*Visitors to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington can see the flag that flew over Fort McHenry when Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner” in 1814. The original flag measured 42 feet by 30 feet. It would cover the whole front of this church. And it was the enormous size of the flag that allowed Key to see it from his position ten miles out to sea.
*For many years it was a mystery how this huge flag could fly in stormy weather on a pole 189 feet in the air. But in 1958, the National Park Service found the two gigantic oak beams that held up the tremendous flag. They were buried 9 feet in the ground, and formed in the shape of a cross. (9)
*There is only one foundation that can weather the storms of life: The Cross of Jesus Christ. Trust in the crucified and risen Savior. Build your house on the firm foundation of Jesus Christ. Let Jesus give you a life worth living!
*The great news is that it’s not too late for you. God can give you a fruitful life starting right now! David Jeremiah told the story of lonely woman who live in London many years ago. She was 100 years old when a missionary stopped by to see her, and she trusted in Jesus as her Savior and Lord. Later she said, “How wonderful, and how good the Lord has been in sparing me these 100 years that I might learn the way of life!”
*When she died, they put these words on her gravestone, “Born 1825; Born Again 1925.” (10)
Conclusion:
*Let Jesus Christ give you a life worth living.
*Trust in the crucified and risen Savior. Listen to Him. Learn from Him. Follow Him. Love Him. Start today! Let Jesus give you a life worth living.
1. KERUX ILLUSTRATION COLLECTION - ID Number: 9995 - SOURCE: A Slice of Infinity: Ravi Zacharias International Ministries; http://www.gospelcom.net/slice/ - TITLE: I Got Out Of Bed For This? - AUTHOR: Ravi Zacharias - DATE: 10/28/02 ("A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.)
2. Source unknown
3. Quote found on SermonCentral sermon “The Lystras of Life” by Roddy Chestnut - Acts 14:18-20
4. (David Granger, "Boy, Do We Ever Need A Hero," Esquire, November 1998, p.26.) Found in christianglobe.com sermon “Memorial Day” by Angela Akers - John 15:1-17
5. (Daniel Boorstein - Former Librarian of Congress, Pulitzer Prize winning historian. Cited in Quote, "The Speaker’s Digest," August 1995, p. 216.) Found in christianglobe.com sermon “Memorial Day” by Angela Akers - John 15:1-17
6. Adapted from SermonCentral sermon “Tax Collector & the Pharisee” by Alan Perkins - Luke 18:9-14
7. Found in christianglobe.com sermon “Bearing Fruit” by King Duncan - John 15:1-17
8. Story by Gregory P. Elder - christianglobe.com illustration - Topic: church
9. Adapted from SermonCentral sermon “Remembering Our Freedom” by Damian Phillips - Exo 12:14
10. KERUX ILLUSTRATION COLLECTION - ID Number: 20482 - SOURCE: Baptist Press, http://www.baptistpress.org/ - TITLE: In Search Of Jesus - At The Cross - AUTHOR: Rev. David Jeremiah - DATE: 3/24/05
