Lesson Five: The Gate and The Path
Devotion #1: Follow God’s Map
Mark Pittenger
How many of you use Google Maps? I use it every day. I like that it verbally gives you step-by-step directions. Every morning, before I start driving to Pontiac, I put in the location I am headed, which is always the same. I know the directions to get there. I know all the turns and roads and whatnot, but sometimes Google Maps will tell me there is a better way to get there. This happened the other day. As I was about to leave, Google Maps directed me down M15 to I75 instead of taking Saginaw Street. This seemed crazy, as I75 is only about twelve minutes away. If I take Saginaw, M15 itself is about ten minutes away. So, I looked more into the reasoning. The map shows that I75 was very congested with traffic between Grand Blanc and Clarkston.
Oftentimes, we hear that the Bible is like a map for our lives. It shows where we should be going. It gives us directions to follow, and often, those directions may not be what makes sense to us. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” In life, when we arrive at a place in which we have to make a decision, sometimes we choose the easy way. We may say things like, “I just don’t feel like dealing with it right now,” or, “It’s such a hard thing to do; I’m going to take the easy way out.” It may even be the thought, “I know what I should do, but that’s not what I want to do!” Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount, that choosing the right pathway will not be easy. It may take us down a road that forces us out of our comfort zone, forces us to grow, and forces us to learn. The world tells you, “Don’t take that route. Go this way. Everybody’s doing it like this! Look how easy it is.” However, Jesus is showing us that when we follow the crowd or when we allow the world to direct us, we can only arrive at destruction.
Entering the narrow gate may not seem like the right direction to follow, but if we look into the reasoning, we find Jesus (John 10:9). He tells us in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” We see that Jesus is the only way. What may seem hard for us is nothing for our Lord (Luke 18:27)! We have God’s map (Psalm 119:105), and if we listen to what it tells us (John 14:15-16) and follow the directions (Matthew 16:24), we will reach our eternal destination (John 3:16). While the way is hard, His strength will get us through (2 Corinthians 12:9). I urge you, every day choose the narrow gate! I urge you every day to follow Jesus!
In 2 Corinthians 12:9 we read, “But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”