JESUS STRAIGHT TALK - The Road Less Traveled
Matthew 7:13-14 (p. 679) May 14, 2017
Introduction:
Robert Frost wrote one of my favorite Poems in 1920…It’s called “The Road Not Taken.”
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
Jesus also said there are two paths each of us will chose to take…One is wide, easily accessible…and traveled by huge crowds of people…and the other is narrow…not so easily accessible…and only a few find it…He also said the road you chose will make all the difference.
Jesus is pretty straight in His talk when He says…there are two roads you can choose in your life…one has a wide gate and the path is broad…many choose it…but it leads to destruction.
The second road has a small gate…and the path is narrow…only a few people choose it…but it leads to life.
On this Mother’s Day let me challenge you to be someone worth following.
I. FAITH ISN’T HEREDITARY, BUT IT CAN BE MODELED
Faith is a choice…It cannot be forced upon anyone…nor can you or I make this choice for anyone else…including those we love fiercely.
I love the place where the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy and says, “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois, and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” (2 Timothy 1:5)
Your grandmother chose the path of faith…so did your mother…and I now see you walking down that same path of faith Timothy.
One of the first funerals I ever preached was my grandmother’s. We called her Memaw…and I shared this story for the first time then…It’s called:
A LITTLE PARABLE FOR MOTHERS
The young mother set her foot on the path of life. "Is the way long?" she asked. And her guide said: "Yes, and the way is hard. And you will be old before you reach the end of it. But the end will be better than the beginning."
But the young mother was happy, and she would not believe that anything could be better than these years. So she played with her children, and gathered flowers for them along the way, and bathed with them in the clear streams; and the sun shone on them, and life was good, and the young woman cried: "Nothing will ever be lovelier than this".
Then the night came, and a storm, and the path was dark, and the children shook with fear and cold, and the mother drew them close and covered them with her mantle and the children said: "Oh, Mother, we are not afraid for you are near, and no harm can come." And the mother said: "This is better than the brightest of days, for I have taught my children courage."
And the morning came and there was a hill ahead, and the children climbed and grew weary, but at all times she said to the children: "A little patience and we are there." So the children climbed, and when they reached the top, they said: "We could not have done it without you, Mother." And the mother, when she lay down that night, looked up at the stars and said: "This is a better day than the last, for my children have learned fortitude in the face of hardness. Yesterday I gave them courage, Today I have given them strength."
And the next day came strange clouds which darkened the earth - clouds of war and hate and evil, and the children groped and stumbled, and the mother said: "Look up! Lift your eyes to the light." And the children looked and saw above the clouds an Everlasting Glory, and it guided them and brought them beyond the darkness. And that night the mother said: "This is the best day of all, for I have shown my children God."
And the days went on, and weeks and months and the years, and the mother grew old, and she was little and bent. But her children were strong and tall and walked with courage. And when the way was hard, they helped their mother; and when the way was rough they lifted her, for she was light as a feather; and at last they came to a hill, and beyond the hill they could see a shining road and golden gates flung wide.
And the mother said: "I have reached the end of my journey. And now I know that the end is better than the beginning, for my children can walk alone, and their children after them."
And the children said: "You will always walk with us, Mother, even when you have gone through the gates."
And they stood and watched her as she went on alone, and the gates closed after her. And they said: "We cannot see her, but she is with us still, “A mother like ours is more than a memory. She is a living presence."
I know for many of you Mother’s Day can be different…for some because children weren’t possible…for others because Mom is no longer physically present for you to honor…and for some because mom wasn’t the perfect picture of Christ’s love in your home.
But for our journey in this life there are very few individuals who influence our path more than our mothers.
My mom will be 91 on July 27 of this year (If Jesus hasn’t returned and she’s still alive). And this is the picture I see every single day.
SHOW PICTURE OF MOM READING THE BIBLE IN HER BED
She could not give me her faith…or make me choose a path directed by God’s Word…But Man!!! She modeled it for me. Her life has been one of Psalm 119:105
“Your Word is a lamp for my feet. A light on my path.”
You see, Jesus said very clearly that He is the gate to enter the Kingdom of God and that His commands are the guidepost that keep us heading in the right direction.
“In John 10:7 He says “I am the gate!” And in John Chapter 8 He told the Jews who believed Him “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)
The most important discipleship we will ever do is to show our children we’ve made Jesus Lord of our life and our priorities. And that His word…His teachings…His commands guide our steps. The truth is a powerful, freeing thing…Following Him is a choice…but when parents model it…it’s life changing for their children and grandchildren. It was for Timothy and many of us.
The doctors of the children’s health and development center say:
Children are natural learners and between birth and five years, and especially to three years, children grow and learn at the fastest rate of their lifetime. It is easy to see the enormous opportunity parents, and those who care for children have in these early years to help shape children’s learning before they start school.
How important is it for Jesus and His teachings to be a part of this time? And who do you think has the opportunity to be of the greatest influence?
[Charles Spurgeon was asked one time what was the greatest truth he’d ever learned and who taught it to him…And this amazing leader and evangelist said with hesitation, “The greatest truth I’ve ever learned was “Jesus loves me for the Bible tells me so…and I learned it when I was a child sitting on my mother’s lap.”
Jesus Straight Talk is that “He is the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Him.” (John 14:7)
There’s only one path to God…and it’s found in following Jesus. We cannot make others follow Jesus…but we can passionately follow Him and invite others to come on the journey.
Let me end with this Jesus Straight Talk warning:
II. MORE PEOPLE WILL CHOOSE THE BROAD WAY OVER THE NARROW WAY
[Many of you know that I love to go deer hunting in the fall. I love God’s creation…I love being with friends I’ve done this with for 20 years and I love venison bacon and summer sausage.
But almost 50 years ago I was taught one of the most important methods to kill a deer…and it’s this…”Look for the easiest way to get through the woods that leads to food or bedding…deer always take the easiest path to save energy. And you know what, 99% of the time I’ve found this true…there are exceptions. But deer follow each other and the easiest path is pretty well work…my tree stand is always set with this method in mind.]
Jesus said, “Many people go through one gate because it’s wide and the road is broad.”
He also said, “Only a few go through the other gate because it’s small…and the road is narrow.”
I think there are three main reasons most people choose the road that leads to destruction over the road that leads to life.
One, “I can do what I want.” By nature I like to please myself. By nature I don’t want anyone telling me what to do. By nature, if I feel tempted by a desire, I want to satisfy it.
The broad road lets me do what is easy…or at least what makes the original choice easy. As William Ernest Henley wrote in his poem “Invictus” it allows us to say, “I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.” So we follow this path of rebellious independence. Surrendering control is something our selfish, sinful souls don’t do easily. The longer we stay on this path, the harder it is to get off it.
The second reason is: “Our traveling companions.” No one influences our children more than their friends. They affect how they dress, how they talk, their priorities and purpose. If most of the people we “hang” with are doing certain things, we feel great pressure to do those same things. This isn’t true just for kids either. Satan loves to use our rebellious independent nature in crowds who affirm those choices.
And finally third, we almost always focus on the temporary over the eternal. The right now, over the “wait for what is best.” The god of this world whispers…have sex right now with who you want, fulfill the desire…and God says, “wait…I’ve got a plan…one man…with one woman…in the confines of marriage for life. One of those choices is “broad and wide” one is “narrow and small.” Most of the world will choose the first. But, I’ve never met a forgiven and redeemed man or woman that’s told me…I’m glad I didn’t wait.”
Jesus told us “If anyone would follow me as a disciple he or she must deny themselves, take up their cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)
[I think it’s important we understand what Jesus meant when he talked about taking up our crosses daily. It starts with self denial…and the reason we do it is to follow Him. I’ve heard many people use the term “It’s just a cross I have to bear” when talking about a death, or physical struggle or financial set back. They apply it to something bad that’s happened or is happening to them. They had no choice in the matter and could not change it. They had to endure it…to be sure this involved faith and trust…but it’s not a cross we take up daily.
Jesus chose to pick up the cross. No one made Him. He denied himself. He followed God’s plan. He chose not what He wanted to do…but what pleased His father…He volunteered.
Our cross starts at our salvation. I feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I choose to turn in repentance to God…and at my baptism I take up my cross and die….I’m buried in Christ…I rise with the gift of the Holy Spirit.
But temptations don’t stop…probably the same temptations I had before this new birth…but every day I choose Him over what I want. I choose my traveling companions carefully and I choose the eternal over the temporary…that is our cross.
Let’s pray.
