Focal Passage: Matthew 7:13-29
When we were young my friends and I dreamed of driving on a German autobahn in fast cars running wide open.
On such highways you don’t have a speed limit and you don’t have to be overly cautious. Several years later I took a mission trip to the mountains of eastern Kentucky. The roads there call for precision, not speed. Speed is of little value if your automobile falls off the road and into a deep ravine. Jesus made a similar comparison of life’s road choices.
The highway to hell is wide and easy and most people will take it.
The path to eternal life is narrow and few will find it. Be careful how you define the Christian life. It’s not a highway for the willy-nilly traveler. It’s a difficult path for people who intentionally follow Jesus.
Occasionally I like to go back and watch the Looney Tunes I enjoyed as a child. One of Wile E. Coyote’s stunts included dressing like a sheep and entering the pasture in order to steal a few sheep for dinner.
Even his sheep dog co-worker could spot such a phony setup. Sheep don’t suddenly sprout brown legs twice as long as the old ones and stack their fellow sheep on their shoulders! While we’d never observe such a ridiculous stunt in nature, Jesus warned us that similar attempts are made to infiltrate His flock.
A fake sheep, while impressive on the surface, will betray himself by what he believes.
He will say the same “amen” as you and me but will deny the deity of Christ or the authority and sufficiency of scripture. Jesus warns that doing God’s will, not invalid “ministry,” prepares us to stand before Him.
In recent years I’ve watched the horror of California mudslides as they were reported on the evening news.
Multimillion-dollar homes turned into worthless rubble in minutes for one reason – they had no solid foundation. Jesus reveals that the application of His teaching is our spiritual foundation. Hearing His words and ignoring them sits one in the sand, waiting to be washed away in the sea of life.