Turn again to the seventh chapter
of the book of Matthew. This appears to be the conclusion
of what is known by scholars as the Beatitudes. Fifth, sixth,
seventh chapter. of the book of Matthew. And where I left off reading
was that twelfth verse. He lays down here a general principle for our guidance. That is, the
Lord Jesus Christ himself. He says, Therefore all things
whatsoever ye would, ye desire, that men should do to you, do
ye even so to them. For this is the law and the prophets. We are to do to others as we would have others
That's what I get out of it. We're not to deal with others
as others deal with us. That seems to be the way of the
heathen, and certainly it is out-and-out selfishness. But
do unto others as we would like others do unto us. It doesn't
seem to be too hard to factually understand what's set forth here,
but the practice of it is what is difficult. Well, this general rule that
he sets forth here is known to all of us, we learned this grade
school when they did mention the Bible from time to time,
referred to as the Golden Rule. Is that right, Bob? The Golden
Rule. Well, it does not merely forbid
all pity, malice, and revenge, and cheating, and so forth, but
it does much more than that. It settles a hundred difficult
points, which in a world like this are continually arising. And they are continually arising
between man and man. And if there's a thing that we
would not like someone else to do to us, Then the admonition is here that
this thing that we wouldn't want someone else to do to us is the
thing we ought not to do to them. And that sounds rather easy,
but it is very hard and disagreeable to a corrupt nature and to a
proud heart. It's not easy. It's difficult. Well, he goes on in this chapter,
in that 14th and 15th verse, and tells us that the way that
leads to destruction is a broad way, and it's full of travelers, And the question arises, which
way am I going? What road am I traveling? Travelers. Well, happy is the man that knows
the difference between truth and error in religion. There is a difference, and we're
meant, or are meant, to know it. And later on in this book, he
talks of false prophets, false professors, unsound preachers,
and unsound hearers. And he talks about a day of judgment,
and the day of judgment, he says, will reveal many things. And one thing that he emphasizes
that the Day of Judgment will reveal is the rottenness and
corruptness of religion. And all that are involved in
this erroneous religion, involved in this rottenness of
religion, will be exposed and be put to shame the whole universe. And one thing will then be proved
beyond a shadow of a doubt, that to be saved means something more
than just making a profession. Now, look with me, if you will,
to verses 13 and 14. Verses 13 and 14. He said, Enter ye in at the straight
gate. Enter ye in at the straight gate.
I take that to mean that it's not arbitrary, it's not up for
debate or argument, that it is a specific command of God, that
you enter in at the straight gate. For wide is the gate, and
broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there
be which go in thereat." the wide gate, enter the broad
way. Many there be which go in thereat,
because straight is the gate. The reason why many go in to
the broad way, because straight is the gate, and narrow is the
way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it."
Well, the whole world are travelers. And this is, or at least it is
very vivid in my recollection right now, that everyone is going
someplace. We were talking prior to the
service about 109 people that had left Miami Airport and were on their
way, some to Chicago and some to Atlanta and some other places,
I assume. But I did hear that some was
to change planes at Atlanta and catch another plane on to Chicago. And I suppose that you could
say out of that hundred, there was others maybe going to Pittsburgh
or maybe going to Cincinnati or other places. Travelers, travelers. They're on the way someplace.
All of us is on the way someplace. The whole world are travelers
and there's no rest for the sole of man's foot. Now, the way,
the ways in which the people of this planet walk are extremely
various, many, yet all are reducible to two ways, either to heaven or to hell.
we daily bend our course. Those that crashed, whose bodies
are not yet found, who they seem to think that is buried underneath the mud of that swamp
on the outskirts of that great city of Miami, they on their
way. They have reached their destination. Everybody's moving, going one
of two places, either to heaven or to hell. It's not too significant
to talk about our travels here on this earth,
We'll leave from here and go have our lunch after a bit, may go someplace else after we
eat our lunch, come back here, we'll be a-traveling and all
that. But the significant thing of this travel business is that
when it's all said and done, when all of our All of our downsettings
and uprisings, all of our movements coordinated
will be in one or two places. Daily we wind our way either
to heaven or to hell. And that's the truth. So help
me God. Well, he said about these two ways,
he said this one way is attended with things which are smooth
and agreeable to the nature of man. But he said the end is destruction. Enter ye in at the straight gate,
for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction. The one this way is attended
with things which are smooth, easy, and agreeable to the flesh,
but the end, of this way is destruction. The other way, he said, is attended
with things that are hard and disagreeable. And he says if
you incline, if you are moved to the way which is smooth and
agreeable, It has many things, he says. It must be owned to
recommend it, because the way is the broad way. And he says
that you'll have no difficulty in your entrance upon it. It's a wide entrance. It's a
wide gate. It just suits men's depraved
inclinations, their nature. It suits their nature. We preach and have for a long
time that to preach the truth, to preach the gospel of our Lord
Jesus Christ, at least this one truth must be preached and emphasized
that a man must know the truth about himself. He must somehow
find out the truth about himself. Now, he cannot find the truth
about himself by reading the dictionary. He'll have to find
out the truth in regard to himself from God himself. from what God
says about it. Now, I'm saying here this morning
that if a man is inclined to enter into this way which is
smooth and agreeable to his flesh, he'll have no difficulty because
of the entrance. It's a wide entrance. and it
just suits our depraved inclinations. When we find out the truth about
ourselves, that we are depraved men and women and boys and girls,
we're depraved. That is, every faculty of our
being has been touched with depravity. We're not just depraved, but
the truth of the matter is we are totally depraved. Everything about us is depraved. We got that from our first father,
Adam. What he did Somehow, mysteriously,
I don't know how it took place, but it has been infused into
our being, into our system. And we are sinners, disobedient
to God. And we all are on the broad way. And as I said, in light of this,
if we are inclined, to enter in this broad way, which is smooth
and agreeable to our depravity, then it will suit our needs and
we'll find it easy to enter in. Just as soon as the powers of
your soul begins to act, They will incline to go that way because
of our total depravity, because things that are smooth and agreeable
are things that suit our inclination. So every evil course you choose
to take here this morning, you'll find it very easy to get into
it. It won't be difficult. The broad
way, this wide entrance admits to many divisions and subdivisions. You may walk in the path of gross
immorality, if you so choose. You may be a liar. You may be a swearer and blasphemer
or a drunkard. Or you may be inclined to make
fun of or laugh at all religion. Or you may even tend to adopt
one religion that suits you, or you may be religious yourself by being righteous in your own
eyes. Now, if these that I have called
your attention to does not suit you, you can find a creed of
your own or a religion of your own, make up a religion of your
own. Or you can be an advocate of
the grace of God and turn it into lasciviousness or wickedness,
if you so choose. If you choose that way which
is smooth and agreeable, you'll find out that there will be no
want of company. You'll have many companions. As a matter of fact, the Bible
says for many, make that choice. Many go there. Many, many. Not the few, but the many go
there. Made up of rich people, poor
people, learned people, ignorant people. It's impossible for you
to be at loss for companions if you incline to enter in this
way which is smooth and agreeable. You will not be at loss for fellow
travelers, and they'll keep you in good company. I'll tell you
this, if you are inclined to enter in, you'll be in the majority,
because the majority of the people on the face of this earth at
any given time have the inclination to enter in that way which is
smooth and agreeable. So you'll not want for any companions
and friends and fellow travelers, because the majority of the men
and women and boys and girls upon the face of the earth right
now, they're in that way. Did you know that the majority
of the people of all the countries of the world, The majority, most, all the people
of all the countries of the world have inclined to go that way,
the broad way. Most of the people of all the
countries of the world, of all the nations of the world, of all the cities of the world,
all the big cities, New York City, London City, Tokyo City,
San Francisco City, Milwaukee City, Cincinnati, Pittsburgh,
New Orleans, and on down the line. The majority of the people
that live in those cities have inclined to enter into that broad
way that's smooth and agreeable to the dictates of their fleshly
nature. Not only the cities and the countries,
but all the towns, all the little towns. I was talking to a lady
this morning on the phone, and I said, well, just where is it
that you live? And she told me, oh, she said
it's just a little town. She said it only has 6,000 people. Well, I said 6,000 people is
a pretty good-sized town in the state of West Virginia. But don't
you know the majority of those people in that 6,000 town where
she lived have inclined to go? You say, well, that's your judgment. No, it's not. It's God's judgment. That's what He said. He said,
For wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction,
and many there be which go in thereafter. Of all the nations,
all the countries, all the continents, all the small towns, all the
outrigg side stands, all the villages, and all the rural areas. So, if you're inclined to go
that way, you've got the majority with you. You have plenty of
companions on your way, plenty of them. But let me tell you,
according to what our Lord Jesus Christ said here, the end of
that way is destruction. So I think I ought to be honest
and tell you, if you're so inclined to go, that the end is destruction. You're gone. You're a traveler. You're on one way or the other.
If you're on this way, smooth as a gribble, the end's destruction. But on the other hand, if you're
inclined to the way that is hard and disagreeable, well, I want you to know that the difficulties
are many. And I direct you, even now, If
you have any inclination in your soul, any want, any desire, and
I trust that the want and the desire will be God-wrought in
your soul. And if you have any of that,
I want you to know that the difficulties are many, and I direct you to
count the cost, because there is a cost. Huh? The hardships, the difficulties
that attend this way is the reason why it's so little occupied. That's the reason there's not
many in it. They've counted the cost to a
degree and said, that's not for me. It's too hard. It's too disagreeable. Listen, if you incline to attend
this way, you'll find many difficulties attending to your entrance to
this straight way. Straight as the gate, he said.
Well, while you're under, if you incline to go this way, This
way that is hard and difficult, straight is the way, if you're
inclined. And I said, I hope and pray unto
God, my Father, that if you have any inklings or desire to enter
into this way that's hard and difficult, if it's of God, while you're
under conviction. And every man, every man that's
brought to the Lord Jesus Christ, he's brought, first off, the
first phase is that he's under conviction for who he is. He's found out who he is. He's
found out that he's a sinner. He's found out that God's angry
with the wicked every day. He's found out that he cannot
do anything in himself to save himself. He's under conviction. Well, while you're under conviction
and your hearts are not yet subdued to the obedience of the Lord
Jesus Christ, The difficulties of this way will seem to be insurmountable. To escape the wrath to come,
it will appear absolutely necessary that you should enter in, yet
to forego all hope of mercy, on the ground of your good deeds,
or even on the ground of your tears and on the ground of your
prayers and your anxiousness, and to sue God for forgiveness
as one of the chief of sinners, wholly for the sake of the Lord
Jesus Christ, is a hard work. for a proud heart as a hard one, to take the ground, to stand upon the ground of sinnerhood. Hopeless and helpless, like I
said the other day, Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. And all the
king's horses and all the king's men couldn't put Humpty Dumpty
back together again. Fallen, fallen from that high
and lofty, fallen clean down to the bottom of the ladder with
a sinful nature and a sinful heart. Oh, if you enter in, this way, which is a hard way,
which is full of things disagreeable. It will be necessary for you
to give up your idols without a single reserve. Give them up! That's a hard work for a man
whose heart is proud and corrupt. to give up his good deeds. His
good deeds is his idol. I'm not talking about idols of
stone, necessarily. There is idols of stone, and
idols of wood, and these heathen nations and all that, and heathen
religions. Idols. Roman Catholicism is full
of idols. The Baptists and the Methodists
and the Presbyterians, they've got some idols now. Ah, it's a hard work. These are the things, these things
that a man has got to turn as part of repentance, turn his
back upon, his idols, his good works. Something about him, he
believes, would be conducive for God to show favor. He's got to give that up. He's
got to arrive at the place, and he'll arrive at that place if
God is is working conviction in his heart, he'll come to this
place where he'll agree with God that there's nothing good
in his flesh, nothing in him, about him, concerning him, that
would be conducive of God to show him favor. He'll have to
give that idol up. He'll have to come like he is.
To come like He is, is not to be prepared to come, it's being
unprepared. Have nothing in your hand, nothing
to commend yourself to God. Oh, everyone who's inclined to
enter in to this straight way, they come to that place. They
don't come with offering God something they've got nothing
to offer. They come poor. Blessed are the poor, he said. Hadn't got anything. Said to
man that hadn't got any money. Hadn't got anything to recommend
him. You got anything to recommend yourself? Give it up. Let loose of that idol. Let it
go. These are the things, humanly
speaking, which make men hesitate in the realm of religion. Unable,
living in darkness and unable to find any rest for their soul.
But let me say to you this morning, if you've got an ear to hear
what I'm trying to say, if God would give you And you could
understand in the fact that I'm groping for words. God can take my groping and feeding
for words, for expression, for clarity, make you to see and
understand. Let me tell you this. Let me
tell you this. These difficulties that I'm talking
about exist only in your mind. If you can be contented to accept
mercy as one of the chief of sinners, all will be easy. He said, Come to me. Come to
me, all ye that are burdened and heavy laden. You'll find rest for your soul.
I'll give you rest. His yoke will be easy. Denying self and taking up the
cross and following Him will then be no hard service for you. It'll be your meat and it'll
be your drink. It'll be your desire. Ain't I
telling the truth here this morning? I'm telling the truth, so help
me God. Oh, I'm not the model Christian
by any means. I'm not the role model by any
means. But I do know this, this that has appeared to be
hard and disagreeable. And I was confronted with those
things. Yet by the grace and the Spirit
of God, He made these things easy. And I found out that they only
existed in my mind, not in experience. Denying self and take up His
cross and follow Him, that won't be no hard service for you if
you can come to Him. That'll be your meat and your
drink. But you'll still struggle in
this life. You'll still find that there's
many difficulties that will attend your progress in this business
of being a Christian. You'll struggle with temptation. You'll be tempted. Tempted by
many things. Even tempted by your family. Tempted by old friends. Tempted, tempted, tempted. They'll
invite you to turn back, if you will. Then there's the allurement
of this world. And all that seems to be attractive
in this world is tempting. Oh, you'll have some struggles. You'll struggle. But bless God,
you'll not be overcome with any temptation. that'll be too hard for you,
because He'll give you help in the time of need. In pursuing the narrow way, that
is, if you're so inclined, if God has wrought something in
your heart, this desire that cannot be You cannot be satisfied
until you find rest in Him. You incline in this direction. I want you to know this. You
pursuing the narrow way, I want you to know at the outset that
you'll have very little company there. Few be there that find
it. Won't be many there. There ain't
many of us here this morning, are there? I've been doing this for a while.
Over 40 years, I've been meeting here on Sunday morning, Sunday
night, and Wednesday night, and other
nights of special services. And not only here, but other
places. And there's always just a few. Didn't I go recently and
preach in Centauri Methodist University in Louisiana, Shreveport, Louisiana,
that had an auditorium. I don't know how long that thing
was. Biggest one I was ever in. It had an auditorium that, if
you count the seats on this side, there was 59 seats. And 59 seats
over here, and it seat about 800, 900 people. And you know
how many people I preach to? less than twenty, less than twenty. Few, if you're inclined to enter
in, understand at the beginning, have few companions. Few there be that find it, that
is compared with the unholy and the ungodly. who enters in to
that smooth and agreeable way, huh? Oh, listen, you may live
in a place where no one cares for the Lord Jesus Christ. You
may live in a town where you're the only one, so far as you know, that's a follower of the Lamb
of God. Who's the recipient of the revelation
of truth? You may be the only one. Only
one in the whole town. You may live in a place where
no one cares for the Lord Jesus Christ, or you may be the only
one in your family that is genuine. All others in your family make
a mock of what you believe, indifferent. to God's Christ, indifferent
to His cause, satisfied with where they're at. But, but, if
you have good cheer, although there only be a few
who will go with you, maybe your wife won't go with you, maybe
your children won't go with you, But the few that do go with you
are the few that are the most excellent on the top side of
God's creation. So be of good cheer. Life and
death is set before you. You're traveling on a road that
will lead you to destruction. and the other one. He says, because straight is
the gate and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, leadeth
unto life, eternal life, leadeth unto eternal, everlasting life. And the promise is not only the
enjoyment of a thing, But you enjoy it now while you're on
the way there. You enjoy it. I enjoy the air that I breathe,
don't you? It's necessary for my existence,
and I enjoy it. But I had nothing to do with
the components that make it up. Nothing whatsoever. It's free. Free. Air is free. God's salvation
is free. It's free to any man that wants
it. Free. All he has to do is come
underneath. I'll give him rest. Rest for
his soul. Take my yoke upon you. My yoke is in you. You'll enjoy
it. You'll enjoy it. I enjoy it.
I enjoy it. I do. I love to preach. I love
to be where the people of God are. I love to talk about the
things of God. Well, I'll leave you
with that, and we'll talk about something tonight. We trust it will be for His glory.
That stand will do just fine.