THE ROAD LESS TRAVELED
Ex. 13:17-22
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. There have been a lot of changes since I was in college. Computers have advanced incredibly.
2. One Boomer, Cyndy Hinds, was trying to explain to her five-year-old daughter how much computers had changed in her lifetime.
3. “Do You see our computer there? When I was in college, a computer with the same amount of power as ours would have been the size of a house.
4. Her daughter was wide-eyed with wonder, of a computer as big as a house. At last her daughter asked, “HOW BIG WAS THE MOUSE?” (readersdigest)
B. TEXT
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them on the road through the Philistine country, though that was shorter. For God said, “If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” 18 So God led the people around by the desert road toward the Red Sea. The Israelites went up out of Egypt ready for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him because Joseph had made the Israelites swear an oath. He had said, “God will surely come to your aid, and then you must carry my bones up with you from this place.” 20 After leaving Sukkoth they camped at Etham on the edge of the desert. 21 By day the Lord went ahead of them in a pillar of cloud to guide them on their way and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so that they could travel by day or night. 22 Neither the pillar of cloud by day nor the pillar of fire by night left its place in front of the people. Ex. 13:17-22.
C. GOD’S UNCONVENTIONAL METHODS
1. David slew the Philistine giant Goliath with one rock fired from his slingshot.
2. Joshua and his army’s offensive weapon was to walk around Jericho blowing their trumpets and when they shouted, the walls fell flat!
3. God made the sun go backwards as a sign; an ax head of metal floated; people walked on the water.
4. People received their dead back alive -- like Lazarus, Tabitha, and the son of Zarephath's widow.
5. Fisherman left their boats to follow Jesus. Many things that God called people to do defied logic. It’s still true today.
D. THESIS
1. So we shouldn’t think it strange that upon their release from captivity, God led the Israelites on an odd route, a less traveled road that didn't make conventional sense then and still doesn't.
2. There were two ways from Egypt to Canaan. One was a straight and smooth road direct to Canaan, perhaps about four or five days’ journey; the other was a crooked, winding, dry & difficult passage through the wilderness, and that was the way in which God chose to lead his people Israel.
3. We’re going to look at WHY God did this, and
Why God’s Road is Better. The title of this message is, “The Road Less Traveled.”
I. WHY DID GOD DO THIS?
The big question is WHY. Why would God go through all this effort to lead a bunch of unruly, griping, spiritual babies around for such a long time?
A. TO PREPARE THEM FOR BATTLE
1. Verse 18 tells us, "The Israelites went up out of the land of Egypt prepared for battle."
2. They were not as yet fit for war, much less for war with the Philistines, v. 17. The Philistines were formidable enemies.
3. Their spirits were broken with slavery; it wouldn’t be easy for their hands to move from the servant’s trowel to the victor’s sword.
4. They needed to be liberated in spirit as much as in bodies.
B. TO DEVELOP THEIR FAITH
1. “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” Heb. 11:1.
2. Their lack of faith was apparent the first time they reached the border of Canaan land, and refused to enter.
3. One of the failures of Christianity in America is its preoccupation with cookie-cutter, safe, predictable faith, which renders real faith inoperable.
4. We are obsessed with trying to prove that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line, but the life of
faith isn’t so logically quantified. We must learn to walk by faith. “They that are led by the Spirit are the Son of God.”
5. I'm not advocating that we take selfish, harmful, or ill-advised detours just for the heck of it, but I do think that the life of faith requires us to embrace traveling down the road less traveled, as God leads us.
6. God may lead some to put down high-profile, well-paying careers in order to begin some completely different work that few people will know or care about.
C. OBEDIENCE IS PERFECTED IN SUFFERING
1. The Scripture even says of Jesus, “Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered” Heb. 5:8. If Jesus had to suffer & be obedient, do we think we shall be exempted?
2. The purpose of Bootcamp is to teach recruits to follow orders. In the wilderness the Israelite’s learned “Not my will, but thine be done.”
3. As James said, “Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything” James 1:2-4.
4. The source of Paul’s thorn (2 Cor. 12:7) was actually his own pride. God allowed him to have a physical problem to preserve him from pride.
5. If you look on a map of Egypt & Palestine, you’ll see the direct route was hundreds of miles shorter than the way they took. But the "Path of least resistance" is often deadly.
D. SHORTCUTS AREN’T SUFFICIENT
1. It takes a set amount of time for many things: cooking, gestation, training children, agriculture, etc. Many things cannot be rushed; the time must elapse for the process to be completed. There can’t be shortcuts.
2. In spiritual things it’s the same: we can’t take shortcuts like partial commitment, partial repentance, or partial obedience. Many think that getting forgiveness is easier than compliance.
3. They cry out that "All this talk of crucifying the old nature is unnecessary; we don’t need to be too extreme." Jesus thinks so.
4. But Jesus said there was only one way – the hard way! “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me’” Matt. 16:24. “And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple” Lk. 14:27.
E. THEY LEARNED DEPENDENCY ON GOD
They cried out to God. It was God who saved them, led them, strengthened them, defeated their enemies, fed them,
quenched their thirst, forgave them and fulfilled the promise of a special land given to them.
II. WHY GOD’S ROAD IS BETTER
A. BECAUSE GOD IS OMNISCIENT
1. God knows the best way for our lives because only God is ONISCIENT!
2. Just as God could tell David the future of each route he might take (Keilah, 1 Sam. 23:12), so God knew the future concerning each road Israel might take.
3. On the coastal road God saw a strong attack by the Philistines that would shatter the thin resolve of the Israelites. They would turn and run, preferring slavery to war and death.
4. ILLUS.: Battle of Alma, 1854, Crimean War
a. When the English soldiers were marching up the heights of Alma, to meet the Russians who were marching down towards the English lines, there came a command for the English company to divide, part turning to the left and marching along the side of the hill.
b. It seemed a foolish order when first received by the soldiers. There were Russians marching right in their teeth, and yet half of them were to turn away when the foe was close upon them! But the order was not long considered foolish.
c. Those that turned to the left soon found that a company of Russians had been secretly coming up the side of the hill to fall upon the English unawares.
d. The commander-in-chief from the hill on which he stood could see all the movements of the foe, while those that were perplexed at his orders could see only a small portion of the field.
5. It’s an awesome thing to be under God’s guidance; for "The way of man is not in himself; it is not in man [who] walks to direct his steps" Jer. 10:23.
6. We’re like children; we don’t know what’s good for us. If we make the choices, we’ll should land in hot water!
7. And what looks like a worse direction at the beginning may soon turn out to be a blessing, that only God could have foreseen.
B. GOD HAS GOOD PLANS FOR US
1. God desired true, permanent freedom for the Israelites.
That’s the only reason He made them take the long way.
2. God wants the best for us. The long the best was God’s best for them and maybe for us too.
3. We in our short term view want comfort, predictability, safety, and peace, but God may see that in that way we’ll never grow in faith and obedience.
4. ILLUS.: THE ADVERSITY PRINCIPLE
a. Biologists recognize a principle at work among plants and animals. This natural wonder is called "the adversity principle."
b. As strange as it seems, habitual well-being is not advantageous to a species. An existence without challenge takes its toll on virtually every living thing.
c. This may explain the astonishing results of a recent survey where 87% of the people surveyed said "a painful event (death, illness, break up, divorce, etc.) caused them to find a more positive meaning in life." (In Other Words, #17).
C. BC GOD HIMSELF GOES WITH US ON HIS ROAD
1. Ex. 13:21-22 gives us the best rationale for being willing to take the longer, more difficult route: God is on that route!
2. “And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, so as to go by day and night.”
3. It wouldn’t do any good to take the short route if God wasn’t with you! You’d face the Philistines alone.
4. But on the harder road, God is there night and day to overshadow you and to help you. He provides shade from the hot sun and light when the night looks dark.
5. He will never fail you or forsake you. You have no reason to fear, for the Lord is with you to bring you to His land and usher you in in victory!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. True story. A man and his two children were coming back from Raleigh, North Carolina, by plane. As they approached the Dallas airport, the pilot came over the intercom, "There are storms over DFW airport and the airport has shut down. We've been rerouted to Abilene Texas."
2. When the plane arrived in Abilene, the man called for a flight attendant. He explained, "Since I've already reached my destination, may I and my children exit the plane?"
3. A few minutes later, the passenger and children got off the plane. Now this wasn't how they planned to get home; they had a connecting flight from Dallas to Abilene.
4. But the turbulence caused them to get to their intended destination quicker than they had expected.
5. God is good at that! He can use the turbulence in your life to get you where you need to go faster than you could if you hadn't had the turbulence.
6. It's never too late! God can take a mess and make a miracle! He can hit a bull's-eye with a crooked stick! [Tony Evans Bk. Of Illus., p. 324].
B. THE CALL
1. Prayer for those going down difficult path.
2. Salvation call.
[Some ideas for this sermon came from notes by James Ellis, III, J. J. Wray, & John Blair]
