DT READING IV: THE DISCIPLES’ ROAD

 “…broad is the road that leads to destruction…and narrow in the road that leads to life.” (Matthew 7:13, 14)

Dear brothers and sisters,

God delivered the Israelites in the hands of Egyptians and on their journey to the Promised Land, through His servant Moses God said:

“This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life or death, blessings, and a curse. Now choose life, so that your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to His voice, and hold fast to Him. For the Lord is your life...” (Deuteronomy 30:19-20).  

When God gave His laws to the Israelites He gave them a choice either to follow or to reject His words. It is also learned that the Greek, Roman, and Jewish writers often spoke of two ways; which is a choice between life and death.

Speaking to crowds, Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate, for wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction… and narrow in the road that leads to life” (Matthew 7:13-14). Here again, Jesus explicitly stated that there are only two roads: one that leads to destruction and another to eternal life, and a choice was given for all of us to make!

READING-IV: learning objectives

-        Less fun, less fulfilled life, really?
-        The Alternative
-       We all follow something and someone
-        The Disciples’ Road
-        Cut your hand and pluck your eye

Less fun and less fulfilled life, REAlly?

If someone asks you, is Jesus worth Following? My guess is you will answer, YES! it sure is worth following Jesus.

Through Jesus, we have forgiveness of sins, reconciliation with God, deliverance from evil, victory over sins, eternal life, peace, etc. We have countless reasons as to why it is worth following Jesus. It sure is worth following Him. And yet, one may wonder why many people reject or don’t seem to desire these precious gifts and blessings that come from following Jesus. And why do people opt for worldly things and sinful ways of life, such as corruption, sexual immorality, lies, greed, falsehood, alcohols, injustice, and the like that lead to destruction?

According to the Scripture, at the root of all problems in human life is sin. And Alas! Sin can be pleasurable, sin can be attractive, sin can momentarily meet the need of human corrupted appetites, sin can be fun, and sin can be addictive, and so on. We know how powerful and addictive sin can be, as such multitudes of people find it difficult to give up sinning and choose to go by the wide gate and the broad road.

It is sin that also distorts the sight of people to not see the glory of freedom from sin. And Satan who is the “father of all lies” (John 8:44) deceives and lies to people that the alternative to sin isn’t fun, isn’t real, and isn’t pleasant.

Let us be on our guard my brothers and sisters. Allow no one to deceive us into believing and thinking that following Jesus is less fun and less fulfilling.

The alternative: A Fullness of life

We now shall ask ourselves: Is the alternative to sin really fun and fulfilling? The answer is YES, absolutely! The alternative to sinning, which is following Jesus is not only fun and fulfilling but joy, peace, freedom from sin, contentment, meaningfulness, love, harmony, etc. There is the fullness of life in following Christ.

To experience the fullness of life we must come out of sin, we must put off our filthy clothes_ the sinful practices of any form and shape and color. Don’t look at others’ big sins and compare yours as smaller than someone else. The standard is not to compare with others. Christ is the standard and that is why the Scripture says, “for all have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Measure up yourself with Christ. But the good news is that there is a solution to sins. The solution is a genuine confession, renouncing of sinful practices, and repentance (Change of mind- wrong and wicked thinking to good and right thinking, and turning to God).

Christ died for all human beings on earth, for the remission of all sin. As a result, there is freedom from sin, and in that freedom, there is fullness of life. God truly loves us.

We all follow something and someone

Whether we know it or not, the fact is that we all (every human) follow something and someone in our life and with our life. All humans are followers: some follow Jesus Christ; some follow Buddha; some follow Mohammad; some follow celebrities; some follow deceiving spirits; some follow life gurus or certain thinkers, etc. The fact that someone talks about his or her beliefs, dresses or lives in certain ways, or even thinks a certain way is a manifestation of whom he/she follows.

(Unfortunately) many diehard young people today, for example, dress like K-pop or rock stars and even trim and dye their hairs like them; this is the (outward) manifestation of what is stored in their mind and in their subconscious, as they follow K-pop stars or some rock stars (listen, admire, talk, watch, study, and learn about them, etc.). On the other hand, (fortunately) there are also young people who live a godly life, do good works, assist helpless people, work faithfully, are dedicated in their given job, dress modestly, do mission works, etc. This too is the (outward) manifestation of what is stored in their mind, subconscious, and in their spirits as they follow Jesus Christ (listen, read, study, admire, obey, and share the things of God and Christ). Their minds are renewed (see Romans 12:1-2), meaning, what they think (their minds) are not their own, but what Christ thinks (Christ’s mind). That is why Apostle Paul said, “… we have the mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16), in other words, we think the way Christ thinks.

Let me repeat this again, everyone follows something and someone in their life and with their life. And what and who we follow will manifest in who we become, what we do, and why we do. It is extremely essential therefore to ask and examine ourselves what and who we follow.

Following Jesus is entering through the narrow gate; following Jesus is walking on the narrow road that leads to life. And following others, Buddha, Celebrities, or any life guru, etc. is entering through the wide gate, the broad road that leads to destruction. When Jesus declared, “I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me,” (John 14:6) Jesus is explicitly saying, there is only ONE WAY that leads to life and He is the WAY.

The disciples’ road

We all are travelers in this world as poets write, or as the Psalmist would say, “I am a stranger in on the earth” (Psalm 119:19).

Travelers travel different roads that lead us to various destinations. “All roads lead to Rome” is an idiom people use to convey a message that all paths or activities lead to the center of things, or that there are many different routes to the same goal. Likewise, (sadly) multitudes of people also believe there are many roads that will lead them to God (religious pluralists).

However, according to the Scripture, there are only two roads in life’s journey: A narrow road that leads to life, and a broad road that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14). Following Jesus, as I mentioned earlier is entering the narrow gate and taking the narrow road.

The disciples’ road is the narrow road. It is a road that leads to life. It is a road of loving God with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, and with our strength. It is a road of undivided loyalty to Christ alone. Remember, disciples owe no devotion to any other gods. And yes it is a road of loving our neighbors as we love ourselves (Mathew 22:37-39; Mark 12:30, 31).

Also, the road of disciples is exclusive and is found in Jesus alone. Let me restate this, Jesus said, “I am the way the truth and the life. NO one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). Similarly, the Apostles tell us, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved,” and “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth” (Acts 4:12; Philippians 2:10). The disciples’ road is the road of faithfulness, love, devotion, obedience, holiness, and justice, etc. and the disciples’ road leads to life, eternal.

Keep this in mind: There are only two roads; one will take us to God, the other to a place of damnation.

cut your hands and Pluck your eye

Before we conclude our reading-IV, I think it is also good to look at the lethal alternative to following the disciples’ road, the broad road that leads to destruction, hell. Jesus knew what and how dreadful hell is, as such He told his follower, ‘if their hands and legs will cause them to sin and lead them to eternal hellfire, or if their eye causes them to sin, pluck it and throw for it is better to go heaven without eye or hand than to be in eternal fire’ (Matthew 5:30). I mention this to remind us how dreadful it is that the broad road will lead people into.

The Scripture is plain and simple with regards to this message. The Scripture tells us that those who believe and follow Christ enter through the narrow gate and walk the narrow road that leads to eternal life, and those that choose the broad road will be condemned to eternal fire.

With that, I will leave with you these questions as we make continue to ponder and choose the disciples’ road.

1.      Have I made my life journey’ decision?
2.      What are some of the areas in my life (things of the broad road) that I need to come out of?
3.      Shall I commit/recommit my life to faithfully follow Jesus and take the narrow road?

 

Prayer points:

1.      Prayer to follow the disciples’ road
2.      Pray that God will give you a discerning spirit to walk His ways
3.      Pray for the strength to walk the narrow road with faithfulness