On Solid Ground
Jesus concludes his Sermon on the Mount with an invitation for His listeners to make an important choice about three things:
1st—the path they will follow, 2ndly—the teachers they will listen to, and 3rdly—what will they do with His teachings.
The two ways tell us to examine the cost of our profession. Have we paid a price to profess faith in Christ?
The two trees tell us to investigate whether our lives have really changed. Are there godly fruits from our lives?
And the two houses remind us that true faith in Christ will last, not only in the storms of life, but also in the final judgment.
Matthew 7:13-27 ? 13Enter ye in at the strait gate: [path] for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
In verses 13 and 14, Jesus advises his listeners to choose the correct path for their lives-to go through the “narrow gate.” To go through the narrow gate is to go against society’s grain.
Most people go through the wide gate, but on the other side they find destruction.
Let me ask you dear listener, what path are you on? Are you traveling through the wide gate on a path to destruction, or are you on the road less traveled? Are you going through the narrow gate that leads to life?
For those who’ve traveled through the narrow gate, Jesus gives a warning. He says to be careful who you listen to.
Notice He never says that there is PLAN C ’or’ DOOR #3’
He simply says that there are ONLY TWO WAYS in this life.
He wants the listener to hear the REWARD for going the right way and the JUDGMENT for going the wrong way
He first says that they need to:
Realize That There Is Only One Way To Eternal Life
“Enter through the narrow gate…”
He says that one gate leads to eternal life and one to eternal death[destruction]
The opposite gate leads to eternal destruction
if Jesus was here in person today and gave such claim, He would be laughed at – as many who stand behind His claims are today.
But laughs and scoff do not make His claim any less true
I’m certainly glad that He did give us the way that we can go to heaven.
God did not have to accept us – because we are sinners and He is perfect
God is Holy and perfect and anyone who is going to go into His presence at death must also be perfect.
How can we become perfect some one may ask? By believing and trusting God to do what He said He’d do and except The Lord Jesus Christ as our Lord AND SAVIOUR
Rom. 4:23 And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness:
GAL. 3:6Even as Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
Can anyone listening boast ‘perfection”? Of course, not!
And because the Bible says that no one is perfect and perfection is required for heaven – we are all naturally lost… but thank God HE MADE A WAY!
Jesus is saying “Realize That I Am The WAY!” I am the narrow gate!
Jesus said, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he shalll be saved…” (John 10:9)
In verses 15 to 23, Jesus says that not every prophet is from God and that believers must test them by examining their fruits.
Since there are false prophets in the world, we must be careful of deception. But the greatest danger is self-deception. The scribes and Pharisees had fooled them selves in to believing that they were righteous.
There are people who know the right language, believe intellectually and appear to obey the right rules, and still not be saved.
Jesus gives us these truths to help us judge ourselves.
The broad way is the easy way; it is the popular way. But we must not judge spiritual profession by statistics; the majority is not going the narrow way.
All of us want to trust our leaders, however let me say that the final authority in true churches is not the teachers or the deacons or even the pastor, it is God’s Word!
Many of us read behind men who we think are credible, but let us keep in mind that their only men and men are not infallible. We listen to Christian radio, and hear other preachers
· A wise man once said,” Respect every teacher, but to also suspect them.” Respect them for their calling and the office they hold, but suspect that they could be wrong in what they teach and their motives might be less than pure.
Jesus said to be fruit inspectors, to observe whether or not teachers are following
the will of God. A teacher who isn’t following God’s will is a wolf, and will devastate
the flock if we listen to them. The test isn’t how charismatic a leader they are, or how great of a thinker they seem to be, or how many books they’ve sold, or even how large a following they have.
The test is: are they following God’s will? The issue is not whether they are right in what they are saying. The issue is, are they right with the Lord?
Like Peter and John, the Christian should cry out, acts 4:20 for we cannot but speak the things, which we have seen and heard.
The test is whether or not what’s being proclaimed is in God’s will, so we are all to be fruit inspectors.
The two trees (vv. 15-20) show that true faith in Christ changes the life and produces fruit for God’s glory. Everything in nature reproduces after its kind, and this is also true in the spiritual realm. Good fruit comes from a good tree, but bad fruit comes from a bad tree. The tree that produces rotten fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. "Wherefore, by their fruits you shall know them" (v. 20).
The second test is this: Did my decision for Christ change my life? false prophets who teach false doctrine can produce only a false righteousness. (See Acts 20:29.)
Their fruit (the results of their ministry) is false and cannot last. The prophets themselves are false; the closer we get to them, the more we see the falsity of their lives and doctrines. They| magnify themselves, not Jesus Christ; and their purpose is to exploit people, not to edify them. The person who believes false doctrine, or who follows a false prophet, will never experience a changed life. Unfortunately, some people do not realize this until it is too late.
15Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. 16Ye shall know them by their fruits.—Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?
17Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit. 18A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit. 19Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire. 20Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
21Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father, which is in heaven. 22Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? 23And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: *depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
Today, more than ever, are there attempts to combine and form a universal religion that encompasses an agenda of ‘many ways to God’ but Jesus says to BEWARE of these, because they are teaching a lie.
1. the Islamic say “ The God of the Bible is the same as the god of the Koran, the same as the Buddhist god, etc.” these are teaching a false doctrine
Buddhists believe God is not a being, but a force – but that’s not the same God our KJV Bible speaks of.
Some folks might say, “Christians are narrow minded” and how true that is.
[3rdly vs. 24—what will they do with His teachings.
God’s Judgment of Us (7:21-29)
From picturing two ways and two trees, our Lord closed His message by picturing two builders and their houses.
The two ways illustrate the start of the life of faith; the two trees illustrate the growth and results of the life of faith here and now; and the two houses illustrate the end of this life of faith, when God shall call everything to judgment.
There are false prophets at the gate that leads to the broad way, making it easy for people to enter. But at the end of the way, there is destruction.
24Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
After settling the question of which gate to walk through—and which teachers to listen to, --Jesus asks his listeners to decide what they will do with His teachings.
He said that those who heard and didn’t apply His teachings are like a foolish man who builds his house on the sand.
In contrast, those who heard and applied His teachings are like the wise man that builds his house on a firm foundation.
Which are you? Notice that both the foolish man and the wise man listened to His words.
24Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man,
26And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man,
So it is not enough just to hear what He says! If we are wise, we will heed His words.
As Christians we’re to be a preserving influence in a dark and evil world.
Jesus wants us to do more than what is expected of us to do.
