I am reminded of the Christian walk because of my own 14 mile walk yesterday. Whereas the Pilgrim Path is a solitary walk, mine yesterday had friends enduring the same course. We hiked the Overnight Trail at Falls Creek Falls in one day. It was tiresome, but at the end we felt accomplished... as well as a little sore!
Matthew 7:13 "Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.""The narrow way" is the path to eternal life. It leads to paradise where hope is the prize.
Philippians 3:13 " Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, 14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus."If a person wanders off the way, there are things out there which are destructive. This past winter, my friend Steve and I wandered off the path and became lost out in the cold. I prayed and so did Steve. Our faith led us back to the right path, but it was better if we had never lost the way. What caused that? We thought we had found a better way. We deceived ourselves! I don't credit Satan because he merely desired that we become lost. We are responsible for our own failures!
After we got off the path, the way was broad. We could walk in any direction, but most were wrong. As such, I just stood still with my trust in God and he led me back to the right path. Steve detoured a little, but trust brought him back as well!
Why did we desire to stay on the right path? Other paths led other directions, but the object of our desire was safety. We didn't want to spend a cold winter night by ourselves in places unknown. We wanted and cherished comfort. As such "finishing the course" was the prize because where the path ends was safety. When we found the narrow path again we continued on our safe journey. We now were safe because we were traveling right and not again veering off to the right or left because our eyes were on the prize! In this case it was the car which would take us safely home. Once we found the car we were no longer "safe", but saved! That had been our hope all along because safety is the present, but "saved" is after the fact. We weren't saved until the path was walked to completion. That was our hope all along!
We never had hope in safety although that was quite reassuring. We had hope that the course would be walked and that upon receiving our prize we would be saved! We could have taken the broader path and arrived there late; long after our car had been towed. As such we would have missed out on the prize and it's likely that we would still face the cold isolation of failure to get our prize although we walked longer and harder on the wrong path. The wrong path is much harder work because we are prone to wander because things are deceptive. The right and narrow path is a gift and we are wise if we accept what is given!
Fourteen miles is a long trip! We had the opportunity several times to take a ride and get there by easier methods. That's not the legitimate way to hike. Scripture refers to this as "the strait gate". It's doing things the right way and taking the path specified by Jesus. In the case of our hike, there would be little joy if we had merely hopped on a truck and let it carry us there. It had to be accomplished as prescribed. We got there safely because we took the right course. We never looked for a back way as people are prone to do! It was a hard trip and we could have taken a shorter route. We didn't! We stayed true to the end.
2 Timothy 2:12 (ESV) "If we endure, we will also reign with him; if we deny him, he also will deny us;"For Steve, Stan and me; we endured the course! Out prize was the car. It was our way home. We had sore feet and were stiff, but we got there. We were safe all the way and when we got there we were saved! We went home!
Be assured, that at the start we knew that we would finish. That is faith. However, we could have gotten lost or given up our hope, but the path would never change. It was there for our taking and a high gate or tree blocking the way would never be on that path. It was narrow, but safe! It would be to our own lacking that we would try the broad way or just give up. That's what weak people do. We stayed strong and were rewarded. Our safety was in our own trust, but it was on the Promise whom we trusted, not ourselves!
Life is not a walk for entertainment and health. It is a walk for eternal life. I don't mean to trivialize the walk which we must take, but merely make a point. Sometimes Christianity seems hard, but when it does, it's the Holy Ghost who walks with us, guiding the way and Comforting us as we go! He is there to see that we claim the prize and are saved!
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