What path are you on?

Welcome to this week's message from the church at Chelsea Westover.

Our core values are vibrant worship, intimate fellowship, fulfilling service, and clear biblical truth.

We pray that this message changes your life.

Let's tune in to today's message and see what God has in store for you.

Let the church say amen.

The singer said, let sing holy, holy, holy.

I want to see you.

I really enjoyed the choir.

Beautiful, beautiful.

I like what he said.

He was singing holy, holy, holy.

I want to see him.

How many people out there want to see him?

How many people want to say holy, holy, holy?

I want to see him.

I want to see him today, people.

I want to see him today, brothers and sisters in the Lord.

I heard the psalmist say I was glad when they said, Let us come into the house of the Lord.

Now we've had some wonderful service here lately.

I mean, this God, as a church body, he has us on a spiritual high.

I remember starting back a couple weeks ago, we did that series on the tabernacle.

So today I know it's gonna be some praising up in here because I remember one thing he taught us from the word of God that we're the high priest now.

Every person sitting out there that is a believer is the high priest.

So we got the right to go boldly before the throne.

We have to come into his house with thanksgiving and lifting his name up.

I want you to stand to your feet.

Just give God a praise for just being here.

Give him a praise.

The Bible said, let everything that have prayed, everything that have lift his name up.

Lift him up.

Lift him up.

Amen.

Let me have prayer while we're standing.

Heavenly Father, oh God, we just enter your gates with Thanksgiving.

God, we praise you, God.

We praise you for this day, Lord God.

God, we thank you again for another opportunity, Lord God, to hear your word, Lord God.

I ask that I decrease, God, and you increase, God.

God, I was one of your chosen vessels, Lord God.

I ask that you use me, Lord God.

And God, I'm gonna speak what you tell me to speak, Lord God.

I want to speak your oracles, Lord God.

Not just speak them, Lord God, but I want to speak with an anointing.

It's from the power of the Holy Ghost.

All these blessings we ask in Jesus' name.

We pray.

Amen.

Amen.

All right, you have your seat.

All right, as Pastor Rick was saying today, uh first of all, I give honor to God.

It's a blessing being here.

And I always, it's an opportunity, it's a great opportunity when I get to stand before the people of God.

I know it's spring break.

A lot of people not here today, including our pastor and first lady.

Uh, we love them, we honor them.

He's done a great job.

He's a wonderful shepherd, and I'm proud to be on his ministry.

Let's give our shepherd a round of applause in his absence.

And Dr.

Love, Dr.

Susan Love it.

Okay, everybody's ready to go on spring break.

I'm ready to go on spring break too.

But that's that includes going back to work.

So that's my spring break.

Actually, I'll tell you about my spring break.

I took it earlier, and actually goes with the song he just talked about.

How we want to see God with our spirit.

My spring break was actually a winter break.

My whole family and I, we went on vacation.

We went to Mexico.

And uh, I love the water.

I'm not gonna swim, I'm not gonna do all that old crazy stuff.

But I can just look at the water and I see God.

I mean, I'm like, I was thinking about Genesis, it just took me straight back to Genesis.

I said, oh my goodness, God is a wonderful God.

Then I thought about his love.

And the water was just so blue and so ring, it just relaxes me.

And all I gotta do is just look at the water.

Like I said, I'm not gonna swim, I'm not gonna do that.

Skiing, and I know we have some people in there who like to ski and uh all that, but no, no, I'm very conservative.

That water does it for me.

It does it for me.

It's like God just speaking to me, zone ways.

So I pray today that God open your spirit so you can hear and see what God is saying.

Now, uh, I thank God for my wife, my four kids, and for the beautiful church family we have here at CCW.

We are really blessed with great leadership and a great counsel.

Because as this message, when I talk about this message day, it is important where you go to church at.

It is very important.

It's not that we're the only church, but we're one of the churches that's uplifting the name of Jesus and preaching the gospel.

So today, my sermon is entitled Two Paths.

And the question I want to ask you: what path have you chosen?

Now, in life, the choices we make today will determine all tomorrow.

What we make today will determine all tomorrow.

And it's very important about the choices we make.

Because all of our choices have consequences, some of them short-term and some long term, but they have consequences.

Now, many people leave there a bunch of paths to the afterlife, but it really isn't just only two.

There's only two.

And we're gonna talk about those two paths today.

Now, this sermon was very sobering to me.

I mean, actually, I as I was studying, I was like, God, you want me to preach this?

Because it scared me, it shook me.

I had to check myself.

I mean, this was deep to me, and I was like, okay, but God, this is what you're saying, do, and I do it.

So it's imperative that each person in here know what path that you're on.

Because you're on a path.

And you know, just like you get on the interstate, it's always a destination.

It's an end result.

Every path you travel is going somewhere.

For today, my assignment is to make sure that you know what path you're on, and what's the final definition, the final destination to that path.

Now let's go to Matthew the seventh chapter and the 13th verse.

Here it is, the greatest preacher of all times.

He's preaching.

And Jesus gets to get straight to the point.

He's preaching from Matthew the 7th chapter, starting at the 13th verse.

And he says, Enter ye in at the straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many, and many, and many there be which go in there.

And the 14th verse says, Because straight is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth us into life.

Few there'll be that find it.

That's basically what I'm gonna talk about this morning.

Jesus broke it down.

I know we look at people, we try to put them in different categories, their national app, the national, uh, what nation they come from, their political status, uh, political parties.

It doesn't make a difference with Jesus.

He doesn't classify people like that.

With God, it's just two types of people.

It's not black people, white people, rich, poor, it's covenant people and people not in covenant.

That's the only thing he's concerned about.

Let's talk about covenant.

Now, a lot of people here know what a covenant is, but I want to make sure today that everyone knows what a covenant is.

Because it's very important.

Because if you believe in this Bible, you need to know what a covenant means.

Because everything is about covenant.

Everything is about covenant.

It literally means a uh it's a contract between two parties which have equal abilities.

That means you can do something too.

That means it's two people involved in it to perform agreement.

Good example is marriage.

So a lot of us are marriage, so that's a great example.

If you buy in a home, you sign that contract.

And even for the young people, some of you probably have cell phones.

You sign a contract.

Now, when you start thinking about covenant, one of the covenants I remember from Sunday school class is when God destroyed the world with water, but he allowed Noah to live.

And it was a rainbow.

Many of us see rainbows today.

Well, that's a covenant God made with earth that he will not, I say again, he would not destroy the earth again by water.

That was a covenant.

Now let me tell you what's so important about covenant.

See, God is a God, he can't lie.

That's a numbers 23, 19.

Now, man, if you listen to the television, uh sports or whatever, man, they'll change the changed the rules.

But God's word, when he says it, that's it.

It's gonna happen.

And he's gonna honor his word.

We live in a time today.

What is the truth?

What is the truth now?

People lie like people lie not like it's a hobby, like it's a sports.

Just lie.

Just lie.

I mean, like they get a half of them lying.

Just lie.

Just I mean, why well I can tell more lies than you, but we're gonna talk about the path they on.

But with God being a covenant keeping God, He's not a man that can lie.

Now let's let's go to the 13th verse, and I want to unpack it.

I said, Broad is the way, and many travel on this path.

But let me tell you something about this path.

It's crowded, it's crowded, everybody's on this path.

A lot of freedom is on this path.

You can do whatever you want to on this path.

You can be an affiliate with any type of religion, it doesn't matter.

You can serve many gods, it doesn't matter.

Oh you don't even have to serve God.

You can be an atheist, but it's about having fun, freedom.

You're free.

Nobody's gonna tell you what to do.

Nobody's gonna tell you what to do.

And it's crowded.

Luke 13 23 says this.

Strive to enter in at the straight gate.

For many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in and shall not be able.

But the thing about it, they think they're on this, they think they're on the right path.

And I tell you another thing about this path.

It's loaded with people that's selfish.

Now I know nobody, yeah.

I know nobody here knows anybody that's selfish.

I know I'm the only one who got the proclivity every nine and then to be selfish.

But it's selfish.

Me, myself, and I.

That's the society we live in now.

But we love the Lord.

Me, myself, and I.

It's all about me.

Now, when Pastor Danny and uh David, when they they found the church, they wrote down something.

They was actually directly in the Bible.

I was looking at being t-shirt.

What does it say for loving God?

Loving people, and guess who's last?

Guess who's last?

We are, but now I'm guilty of myself.

All the time I'm first.

So I had to be introspective, like, okay.

And you can't afford to be first.

God has to be first.

God has to be first.

Now, what else on this path, dude?

I like it too, because like I told you, it's the freeway, it's the runway.

Like for my baby boomers, you would know about Burger King, you say, have it your way.

Just do it your way.

Now, Frank Shonatra came back and said, Oh, blue eyes said, I did it my way.

And as you go around and meet people today, you see people doing it their way.

But like I told you, every path has a destination.

Every path has a destination.

Have it your way, do it.

And at the end, we all just be in heaven and singing.

Hallelujah! At the end.

Also, this path is ungodly.

This path, leader is Satan.

That's why it's ungodly.

Because see, it's leaders on both that's leading both paths.

But the leader is Satan.

The way of the ungodly shall perish.

Then my third point I want to bring up, not only will they perish, but this path is dark.

Now I know a lot of y'all guys never been to the nightclub.

I used to go to nightclub.

Nightclub, darkness.

Nightclub.

Proverbs 4 and 19 say, the ways of the wicked is like darkness.

Wonder why people like to keep secrets and stuff.

We're gonna do this, but don't tell nobody.

Then they get caught.

Oh, I was gonna tell you.

Really?

Now I read in the Bible, what you do in the dark, it's gonna come to light.

That's why it says in Luke 8, 17.

It's coming to light.

I know you say it's a secret.

Nobody don't know.

Oh, yes.

It's gonna come to light.

And then it's also with this path, it's disappointing.

Because I can tell you about this path, and this is the thing was so sobering to me.

You can come to church every day.

That's one part I left.

I gotta tell you who Jesus was preaching to.

You know, like I know my audience.

Jesus was preaching to the Jews, and they believe in Judaism.

They knew the law.

And when I said they knew the law, oh, they knew the law.

They could quote it verbatim.

They were scholars and proud.

And they'll tell you, I tithe, I give to the poor.

They even got mad with Jesus.

Why are you healing on a Sabbath?

Why are you healing on a Sabbath?

You know you're not supposed to heal on a Sabbath.

They was always criticizing and pouring out different things according to the law.

But they didn't know they was talking to the word.

They were so busy focusing on the law, they didn't realize they was talking to grace and truth.

Grace and truth, they were talking to it all the time.

Yes.

And that's why he deceived people.

But the most important part about this role, it talks about it in Mark 8, 34 through 37.

I want to read this to you.

Mark 8, 34 through 37.

And when he called unto the people and his disciples, he said unto them, Whosoever shall come after me, let him deny himself and take up the cross and follow me.

That means it's gonna cost you something.

For whosoever shall save this life shall lose it.

But whosoever lose this life for my sake and the gospel shall save it.

For what shall it profit a man if he should gain the whole world and lose his soul?

Oh, what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Uh Pastor Rick read, nothing shall separate me from the love of Christ.

Not money, not power, not sexual immortality, nothing.

That's the stand we gotta have.

Because what's worth your soul?

What is worth your soul?

I remember coming up always here.

If you go and dedicate your life, God's gonna give you eternal life.

That's true, but they're leaving some out.

They're leaving a very important factor out.

See, every person in here, you have eternal life.

When God makes something, like I was telling somebody, when he makes something, he created.

It never dies.

That's God.

Your soul is gonna live somewhere.

You're never gonna die.

Because see, when we die, see, we're in time now.

2017, 2018.

You're gonna go through a portal.

That portal is called eternity.

And the path that you and I are on is gonna determine where you end up at.

So we all have eternal life.

It's just with who and where.

But we have eternal life.

Now let's switch over here to the narrow path.

The narrow way.

Now on the narrow way, it's different.

Everybody can't be on the narrow way.

Oh no, oh no.

Oh, small, it's narrow, it's constricted.

That's why they call it narrow.

You got to walk.

It's a circle, you gotta walk.

You gotta be a soldier, you gotta have discipline.

And it's all religions are not welcome.

No, no, no.

Come on, Pastor Rick, with that one way.

It's only one way Christianity.

And I'm not talking about knowing about Christianity, but you have to know him as your Lord and Savior.

It requires discipline.

And what I found out too, and I I never looked at it like this.

Uh I was reading, it was Matthew 28 and 20.

You know, when you look at these letters, I mean, Jesus talked.

All the way throughout Matthew, but uh I was looking at the end, he said, uh teaching them to observe all things, whatsoever I commanded.

So when he tells you to enter these gates, he's not asking you late.

Come on, Pastor Rick.

It's a command.

Now, when I was in the military, if the commander gave you an order, you need to take heed.

If the commander gave you an order, not mama, not dad, not your wife, not your kids.

If the commander gave you an order, you need.

Because actually in the military, it could be punishable by death.

I just wondered whether or not these commands can be punishable by death.

But we'll see.

It was punishable.

Now, God requires the discipline, but also He's not with so much all that talking.

He wants to see some action.

He wants you to be a doer of the word.

Anybody can hear the word, but he wants you to do.

I was reading our Sunday school lesson, my men's class, I love them, but it was talking about, you know, people said, Well, I know the Bible, I know the Bible.

And one wisby said, the only part of the Bible you know is the part that you're doing.

I'm like, okay.

You say you know it.

Really?

And that got thank me think of John 14, 15.

That you'll love me if you what?

Keep my commandments.

That's the discipline.

You can't do everything you want to.

You can't have it your way, you got to have it his way, and his way is found in the book.

That's where his way is found in.

Then it talks about it's only gonna be a few.

I was like, few, Lord.

I read that thing and I got to study and said, Phew.

That's a small word.

Small, few.

I'm like, but then I I got to thinking about, you know, I was talking about covenant.

He's a God of covenant.

Remember that.

Luke 13 and the 23rd chapter says, Then said one unto the Lord, are there be few that be saved?

And he said unto them, Stride in unto the straight gate.

For many I say, unto them will seek the end in and shall not be able to.

Only a few.

Only a few are gonna be saved.

For many are called, few are chosen.

Few are chosen.

Now let me give you an example of a few.

Some people don't believe me.

Let's go back to what is Genesis, about the ninth chapter.

God had got upset with the word.

He said, I'm gonna destroy them, I'm gonna get ready to take them out.

But he made a covenant with a brother called Noah.

He destroyed everything except for Noah and his wife, and he had three children and their wives.

So just like God is a God of love, but he also a covenant-keeping God.

He told Noah, and you know, the people's laughing at Noah too.

You know, it's gonna rain, you know, like now we see rain all the time.

You have to remember, at that time, no one had ever seen rain.

And they thought he was crazy.

You know, just think about it, it never rained.

You see somebody every day, every day you go by, he's building on this big boat.

You never even seen a boat either.

Like, this guy's out there.

But you know what?

We laughing.

People think we're out there too.

You a Christian.

What's a Christian?

You go to church, you serve who God, you pay money to a church, man.

That preacher taking all your money.

Living in a big house, driving a fine car, just like they was laughing at Moses.

Oh my god.

They actually laughing at people that are in the body of Christ.

They laughing.

But I believe this book.

I believe the book.

I believe he's coming back.

That's why when I get a chance, I try to tell people about Jesus.

He's real, he's real.

So that was eight people he saved up.

Yes, yes, it was real.

And that door is gonna shed.

I'm gonna talk about that.

It's it's gonna shed too.

Now, another time it happened.

Um, let's go to the children of Israel.

They was promised a promised land.

And okay, uh, we had to do a little military thing again.

He sent out a recon.

He sent out twelve people.

Twelve.

They were preachers too, leaders.

But now let me tell you what happened.

They came back.

Let me tell you what they did now.

You gotta remember the Bible said the gesture walk by faith.

Without faith, it's impossible to please them.

Now, if you look in the natural, you know the ten came back with a negative report, right?

Everybody remember that from Sunday school.

But we can say negative, but actually, they told the people what they saw with their eyes.

They were big, they didn't, they weren't giants, they were strong, and just looking at them, no, they could not defeat them.

But old Joshua and Caleb.

Woo! Joshua and Caleb, like, no, no, no.

We can step to them.

In fact, Joshua and Caleb, they almost stoned them.

Like, oh no.

They turned and and ten people turned, they said about a million plus.

They turned that million plus and they followed them.

But what did Jesus do?

Ford and under, they died, they didn't get a chance to see the promised land.

They did not get a chance to see the promised land.

Yes, for it and over.

Yes.

But now this was the thing.

Go back to my covenant again.

Now, God had told their father, Abraham, it was his chosen people, he had a land for them.

And so what Joshua and Caleb did, they looked at the word that they had heard from God.

They didn't walk by sight.

And I'm guilty of walking by sight, so I can't be hard on them.

They didn't walk by sight, but they walked about what the word said.

And to stay on this narrow path, if we're gonna stay on it, we gotta let it still.

That's why you just can't come to church all Sundays and Wednesdays.

Come on.

This gotta be a lifestyle.

He that hunger and thirsts for righteousness shall be filled.

It has to be a lifestyle.

Now, this path is full of wisdom too.

And because of the wisdom, it actually will add years to your life.

And wisdom is important.

It talks about it in Proverbs 4 and 10.

It says, uh, get wisdom and get an understanding.

Forget it not, neither decline the words of my mouth.

And you want wisdom, I'm telling you, Pastor Dana talks about it all the time.

All you gotta do, Proverbs.

It's 31.

Try to read a Proverb today.

It is full of wisdom.

And what's so amazing about it, this book was written many, many years ago.

It's relevant to what's going on now when you're talking about wisdom.

Now it's great to go to college, that's intellect.

But godly wisdom, nothing.

Nothing compared to that wisdom.

Absolutely nothing.

Now the last point I want to bring about that narrow path, like I told you, each path has a leader.

And the leader of the narrow path is Jesus.

And you gotta know it.

Now we just done a study on the tabernacle here recently.

And we turned this church into a tabernacle, it was beautiful.

You know, it was seven pieces of furniture, but that first piece of furniture was the brazen altar.

And it was symbolic enough, that cross.

It was all about Jesus and his substitutionary death, where they took an innocent person in the Old Testament, an innocent lamb, and had to be spotless without a blemish.

And they sacrificed it for the sin.

Because God is a holy God, He's a righteous God.

He can't be around sin.

Because that's what happened when Adam first sinned.

He had direct communion with it, but it put a shell up.

God can't be around sin for nature.

And in the Old Testament, by doing the blood sacrifice, there was a way that God would allow, it was just a temporary fix, just temporary, a way that he would forgive the sins because it takes bloodshed.

Yes, it takes bloodshed.

So now that that is done with the blood shed in the Old Testament, and they use that spotless lamb, Jesus came on the scene.

And you got to remember, everything, everything was for shell in Jesus.

This perfect lamb, this perfect sacrifice was for shell in Jesus.

Because he was gonna be that perfect lamb.

But now, just like he taught us in the tabernacle, when the high priest went in, it only atoned his sin for what?

One year.

So every year he had to come back.

But this Jesus that we know of and speak of, oh, it just took one time.

He died on that cross for my sins and your sins.

Just one time.

That's all it took.

One time.

That's why John the Baptist, when he saw him coming, he said, Behold, the Lamb of God is coming.

That Lamb of God, that perfect sacrifice.

And he died on that cross.

That we may have life and have it forever.

Now that's real life.

But when you talk about sacrifice, you remember I was telling you God wanted a perfect sacrifice.

That's where you cry for the people.

So when they sacrifice it, they just couldn't sacrifice, you know, how people just I'll give my leftovers.

No, he wanted perfect.

But now God is a God that He led by example.

Let me tell you how He led by example.

Go to John 3.16.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.

So that whosoever believe in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

That was his only son.

That wasn't no left over.

That was the only one he had.

Now many of us have children.

Now, how many people gonna give their only child for sin?

That's substitution and death.

Jesus died for sin that he didn't do, he didn't commit, he was flawless.

But it was by love.

It showed how much he loves us and he loves us all.

He loves us all.

And in order to get on this path, the last thing, you gotta repent.

That's what John, that's what John the Baptist went through.

Repent! Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

Now let's go to uh Matthew the seventh chapter, the 15th through the 21st verse.

Okay, now you have these two paths.

I've talked about the two paths.

So now how do you authenticate someone that's following Jesus?

So it says in uh Matthew 7, 15 through 21, be a be aware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are raven wolves.

Ye shall know them by the fruits.

Do men gather grapes or thorns or figs or thistles?

Even so, every good tree bringeth forth good fruit, but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring it forth good fruit.

Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hemmed down and cast into the fire.

Wherefore, by their fruits ye shall know them.

Now everyone that says unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom.

Ooh.

Now, remember I was telling you about the audience?

He's not talking to, you know, like it's nothing wrong with going out and you want to witness and let's say you want to go out to the baseball field and you know it's loaded with unbelievers.

Or even if if a group of you guys try to go to a club and your goal is to witness to unbelievers, he's talking to church people.

He's talking to people that go to church, people that pay tithes, people that go visit the sick.

And I'm like, woo.

And the first thing came to me was false prophets.

He said, Woe unto men who speak well of you, for so did the fathers of the false prophets.

See, now once you become in the minute, once you get in the ministry, it's not about a popularity contest.

There are some people not gonna like you, but that's fine because you're in the book, because you got to preach the word, but you do it with love.

It's all about love.

The word is not made to beat anyone up, but you have to tell them the truth.

The Bible says they should know the truth, and the truth should set them free.

You gotta tell them the truth in love.

And it talks about the division too.

When it comes to false prophets, like uh Romans 16 and 7.

It's a you got to watch those people that call division, they preach another gospel.

And they have them out here.

And one thing Pastor Dan and I, we always talk about, and he's mentioned it several times in this pulpit.

It's in 1 John 1 and 4, where it talks about uh if they are false prophet, they will not confess Jesus is Lord, and he came in the flesh.

So that's what if you have a doubt on anybody, you need to ask, do you believe in that Jesus is Lord and He came as man in the flesh?

That's a question you need to ask.

And then it goes on down and talks about the fruit.

And fruit is important because everybody said, Well, don't judge me, don't judge me.

Read the book.

Read the book.

The book said you're gonna know them by the fruits.

It should be some fruit.

Now, y'all remember the uh high priest that he had a picture of?

Uh we actually had the high priest up here.

Now, he had on the ephod, but at the hymn in his garment, it was some fruit, a pomegranate.

It's some fruit.

You ought to see some fruit.

Once a person gets saved, it ought to be some fruit.

I read the 2 Corinthians 5 and 17.

If any man be in Christ, he's a new creature.

Old things are passed away.

Now, I can remember back when uh I first got saved.

One of the things I struggled with, and I shared it with many of you, I grew up in a church home, but I joined the military and I became addicted to alcohol.

So for four years straight, I mean I parted with the best of them, and I drank a lot.

But once I met Jesus and rededicated my life to Jesus, uh I haven't had a drink in this is the third year.

And I didn't go to a clinic, but God changed me.

Now, I'm not sitting there telling you now I'm perfect because every person in here we have the capacity to sin.

Because we still have this fallen nature, this flesh.

However, we shouldn't be habitual sinners, though.

Over and over and over, because you can't play God, you can't play God.

Yes, it's got to be done daily.

Let's go down to the 22nd verse.

I like what he said.

He said, uh Matthew 7, 22.

He said, Many were said to me in that day, Lord, Lord, Lord, have I not prophesied in our name and cast you out the devil, and thy name done wonderful works.

Now listen, listen what they're saying.

It's all about them.

Me.

Look what I did.

I prayed for him, raised him from the dead.

I laid hands on him, he got healed.

Now, if you go back to the beginning part of Matthew's, I remember the uh the Pharisees, they were trying to question Jesus about adultery, and he even broke it down.

Everybody know what adultery is.

That's um when you have sex and you're not with your spouse, your husband and wife.

But now, so the Pharisees was asking them about that, and Jesus said, No, no, it's not about you actually having sex with that person between the man and woman, but now if you just look with your eyes, so now we're talking about the heart.

So it's it comes down to your motive.

So that's why nobody could, nobody could live up to that law.

Nobody could.

And see what we had to be careful now, and it starts with it said prophecy members, so that's people like me in the pulpit.

They said those you have a zeal for God, but are not according to knowledge.

See, anytime you go to a place, they lift themselves up.

The word says, if I be lifted up, if Jesus be lifted up, I will draw all men.

It's all about him.

I know we're getting ready for Easter, it's all about that cross.

Everything happened on that cross.

I don't care.

You know, like now I read they say young people don't like church no more.

It's different ways we gotta change the methodology.

And I understand that.

Because a whole different, that's why people we're on social media, Facebook.

But you can't change that cross, though.

It's gotta be about that cross and that blood.

That's right.

It's gotta be about that cross and that blood.

Now, like I said, this thing really got to me because we're talking about religious people and the doctrine we teach and to me.

I saw it as preachers.

Like, wow.

Because now I do really believe there are people sitting in a they sitting in a building that says a church today, but they not getting the word.

Now, why do you say that, Sylvester?

I'm glad you asked.

Let's go to 1 Corinthians, well, Corinthians the 15th chapter in the first verse.

Because, see, what church is about, whoever you're under, you better ensure that they're telling you how to get on this right path and how to stay on this right path.

You can jump and shout, and I'm all for it.

I'm Pentecostal, I'll run all the way around this church.

But I've learned it's okay to run around the church and shout, but you need to know why you're running around and shouting.

Because you do have an enemy.

Because when you come down your little spiritual high, Lucifer is there.

So if you can't do like Jesus said, it is written, man should not live off of bread alone.

You gotta beat him, you gotta defeat him with the word.

You gotta defeat him with the word.

Now we're in 1 Corinthians.

Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preach, and this is Paul talking, which ye have received, and which ye stand by, which ye also are saved.

If you keep in memory what I preach unto you, save, if you keep in memory that I preach unto you, unless you have believed in vain.

For I deliver unto you first of all that which is I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scripture.

He was buried, and he rose again the third day, according to the scripture.

So the main three points of the gospel is.

The death, the burial, and the resurrection.

I'm gonna say that again.

The death, the burial, and the resurrection.

So you can change all the different methodology to get the young kids in, switch the music, but do not forget about the death, the burial, and the resurrection.

Because I'm telling you, I am determined to get in.

Now, I like to read the message version too.

So what I did, I went to Luke.

Luke has this same passage in it, by the way, by the narrow path.

And this is what Luke said in the message edition.

I don't know if he was able to get it up, but I'm gonna try to read it to you.

This is Luke 13, 23 through 25.

If you don't have, I want you to check it out when you get home.

Many of you have iPhones.

Luke 13, 23 through 25.

But read it in the message version, not the King James or the New King James, in the Message version.

This is what it says.

A bystander said, Master, will only a few be saved?

He said, Whether it be few or many, it's none of your business.

Put your mind on your life, Sylvester.

The way to live, the way to live to God is vigorous and requires your total attention.

A lot of you are gonna assume because you're sitting down at God's salvation banquet, just because you've been hanging around the neighborhood all your lives, one day that you're going in, but one day you're gonna be banging on the door, wanting to get in, but you will find the door locked.

And the master saying, sorry, you're not on the guest list.

Now I had never heard that like that.

Now, y'all do know it's a guest list, right?

Now I said it was a guest list.

Now, now you have books, but it's a book that people on the narrow path.

Name is written the Lamb Book of Life.

That's the guest list.

That's the list you want to be on.

The guest list.

But like I said, it's a narrow path now.

And both sides have religious people on.

So God told me, this is not just for you.

Make sure you're on the right path, Sylvester.

Ensure that you're on the right path.

Because we all know that we lost grannant a couple weeks ago and we went to the funeral, and then I went to somebody else's funeral.

But let me tell you what was good.

Granted had it right with the Lord.

I had talked to David, she was ready to go to see her Savior.

And the question, and you know, every time you go to a funeral, I mean, you had to touch yourself, like, okay, one day that's gonna be me.

And then I went back the next week to another funeral.

I said, wow.

And now I was reading this message, and I was getting ready for this message and say, I have to ensure that I'm on the right path.

That I'm gonna teach the gospel.

I don't care who don't like it.

Because we really have an audience of one.

Because I read in the word, every knee gonna bow, every tongue gonna confess that he is Lord.

That's rich man, poor man, middle class, it doesn't matter.

That's the one I had to be ready for.

Now I told you at the end of the past, they lead to a destination.

It's called judgment.

Judgment.

That's it.

I know we want to live forever, but just like you say, Hebrew 9 27, that's where I was going.

And it's appointed to me and wants to die.

But after that, the judgment.

That's everybody in here.

Young, old, don't go to sleep now.

If you've been asleep, wake up.

Wake up.

Not a good time to take a nap.

Bump your neighbor.

So wake up.

This is important here.

You might not want to miss this part.

Preach, buddy.

Preach.

When it's all over with, we're gonna come to the end of the path.

And we're gonna have judgment.

And it said, and the only people on this narrow path is that those who have chosen a narrow path will come before Jesus.

Bloodwashed, holy, righteous.

Because they got faith in him.

Not because of their perfect, because they have faith in Jesus of what he done on the cross.

See, he took his righteousness and imputed to a non-believer like myself.

It was his righteousness.

Now that is love.

That is love.

But on the other side, for the people who didn't, that destination is gonna be hell.

And like the preacher did when I gave my life to Christ, I'm gonna be straight up with you.

He scared the hell out of me.

And I'm gonna tell you why.

I was he was an old Pentecostal preacher, and he preached about hell, and he said, Well, let me tell you about hell.

You're gonna burn and you're gonna burn and you're gonna burn.

And I got to thinking.

I said, Well, I'm 22 years old.

It's taking a long time for me.

Become 22.

And this guy is telling me I'm gonna burn forever.

I'm telling you, it scared me.

And I had to get some fire insurance.

So I gave my life to Christ.

Now I'm not telling you to do that because of that, but uh, you are gonna come to the end of the path.

Enjoy it.

Yes.

Now, remember all throughout I was sharing with you about God is a God of covenant.

He's a covenant God.

And he is a covenant God.

All throughout the Old Testament, there were covenants.

Even in the New Testament, it's covenant.

We're in a covenant now.

But God liked to like He likes to announce something in the future that's called like prophecy.

So you even had Brother Jeremiah prophesy about the new covenant.

Let's talk about this new covenant with Jeremiah.

It's Jeremiah in the 31st chapter, 31 through 33.

And it says no secret.

Okay.

No, I wanted, I can't see up that far, brother.

Thank you.

But no.

Okay, what are you talking about here?

He predicted, he talked about the covenant, but then he said, I'm picking up like the probably about the third of the chapter.

But this shall be the covenant I will make with the house of Israel.

After those days, says the Lord, I will put my law in the inward parts and write it in their hearts, and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

Now, this is in the Old Testament with Jeremiah.

Now, you fast forward, let's go to the New Testament.

And I can see here, I can't see that far, brother.

Thank you.

And it's glass, so they just we're not even gonna talk about.

Let's go to Hebrews the 8th chapter, the 10th verse.

Now, Jeremiah talked about this and told the children of Israel about this in the Old Testament, but now we're in Hebrews, the New Testament.

It said, For this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days, said the Lord.

I will put my laws in their mind, and I will write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God, and they shall be my people.

Now let me tell you when he said, Write the hearts in the laws, the heart.

He can't get in your heart, he's talking about your spirit.

Now, with that said, now let's talk about how this came to fruition.

So that's the covenant, and now we're in the New Testament with this.

So what happened is in the book of Acts, go to the first chapter of Acts, Jesus is talking to the disciples.

Remember, I told you about the death, the burial, and the resurrection.

Death, burial, and the resurrection.

He's been risen from the dead.

He walked around on earth for 40 days.

Ate fish, preaching.

He ate fish, he walked through walls.

He had many infallible proofs.

And it was full of testimony.

He wanted people to see him.

It's reported over 500 people saw him while he walked around for those 40 days.

But at the end of the 40 days, he got to talking to his disciples.

He's like, okay, fellas, I gotta leave you.

But I want you to be a witness to me here in Jerusalem.

But before you do it, you gotta get the Holy Spirit.

I'm gonna send the Holy Spirit.

But let me tell you something I thought was strange though.

Now, he told the disciples he wanted them to be a witness.

Now you know Jesus was, I mean, he's God.

He knew everything.

Now, everybody know what a witness is.

That's if if if I saw uh my brother over here say hurt a man, I can say, yes, I saw him do it.

I saw Darrell uh hit the man and he left.

Now, for Jesus to tell his disciples, they gotta wait for the Holy Spirit before they can be a witness.

Think about the disciples.

Now, you and I might need to wait for the Holy Spirit before we can start preaching, but the disciples, they saw him walk on water, raise the dead, heal people, feed 5,000, all of that.

And here it is, he's telling me he wants them to wait.

But let me, I'm gonna share with you why he wanted them to wait.

And so he told them to wait.

Now that's actually you you know Easter started the day he was risen, and then now we're 40 days out.

Ten days later, they was waiting.

Day of Pentecost, 50.

They was waiting and praying in the upper room, and then that Holy Spirit came down and it shook them.

It was a sound whirlwind.

And it just shook the area, and then you know the story, they started speaking in tongues, but it wasn't about speaking in tongues, it was about that power that came on the inside of them, and they never was the same.

I'm here to tell you if you're not on the right path today, if you allow the Holy Spirit to come on the inside of you, you'll never be the same.

Now, while Jesus was speaking, he started descending up.

He just started ascending up in heaven, and angels accomplish him on the left and right.

Now, y'all remember the angels, don't you?

Y'all remember the mercy seat?

What was on the side of the mercy seat?

What angels?

Oh my God.

Well, where he started descending up, and one angel said, Don't worry, he's coming back.

He's coming back, he's coming back.

The same way he ascended, he's gonna descend.

In the clouds, and the angels are gonna accomplish him again.

But guess what?

Because he's a covenant keeping God, only the people that's on a narrow path gonna be able to go back with it.

Only the people that's on that narrow path.

So when is he coming back?

I don't know.

But I will I will tell you this when you study the Bible, you see there's a lot of stuff with numbers, and everything uh adds up when it comes to numbers.

I mean, it's just a foreshadow or something.

When you look at the holies of holies, it's 10 by 10 by 20.

That's 2,000.

Now, some people try to say he was gonna come in 2,000.

Nobody knows the hour or the time, but be ready.

Be ready.

Know what path you're on, know what path you're on.

And today, if you're on the wrong path, we'll share with you how you can get on the right path.

Amen.

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We pray that your life has been changed.

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