On the “Jesus Christ Way”? or the “way of the flesh”? Jesus Christ’s Way is the narrow way. It leads to heaven. In heaven there will be no sorrow nor pain, but joy and consolation together with Jesus and the holy angels.
The way of the flesh is the broad way. It leads to destruction—to hell, where there will be pain, weeping, and gnashing of teeth.
In order to walk on this Jesus Christ Way we must forsake the way of the flesh. Jesus said: “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24).
What does self-denial mean?
Self-denial means to abstain from doing evil or harmful things. We refuse to do carnal things—things our fleshly nature desires to do—things that rob the soul of the blessings our Father in Heaven wishes to bestow. The Apostle Paul writes in Galatians 5:19-21, “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations (ambitious competition), wrath, strife, sedition, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like . . . they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” Today the world is very mixed up with many evil things, such as pride, seeking worldly honor, not speaking the truth, daily anxiety to gain riches by any means, divorcing and separating at will, smoking, and engaging in secret societies—to name a few. These are contrary to the will of God, and will perish with the world. In order to be victorious against these evils we must pray earnestly to the Lord Jesus every day that He may show us the wrong of these habits and evils. We must ask Him to give us strength to keep from doing such things.
You that have Christian names such as Gabriel, Abraham, Isaac, Matthew, Deborah, Mary, or Martha, or you that have been born in a Christian home and think that makes you a Christian, or you that have maybe even been baptized many years ago without being converted—Please, let it be known to you, that you cannot be saved by any of these! You must deny yourselves and follow in the Jesus Way.
What do we do when we deny ourselves?
The first thing we do when we deny ourselves is to firmly say “No” to our own carnal desires. The second thing we do is to take up our cross and begin to walk in the Jesus Way. For some of you, taking up your cross may mean forsaking father, mother, brother, sister, wife, husband, or friend—and take a stand for Christ!
To become a Christian you must search yourself and find out whether you have erred or sinned in any of the commandments of our Lord. You must repent of the evils you are guilty of.
Repentance means that you become sorry for the wrong things you did and you will confess them to God or Jesus Christ and you will also confess to your fellowmen where you have sinned against them.
Don’t be discouraged. Jesus will forgive you if you come to Him with your whole heart. He says: “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). He wants to save you. He denied Himself and died on the cross for the sins of the whole world so that whoever will come to Him can be saved.
Remember that everyone, great or small, has to give an account for what he has done or spoken here in this life (Matthew 12:36, 37).
Consider the ladders on the last pages and choose which one you would like to climb—or fall from. Be sure to choose rightly. Be assured—one is the Jesus Christ Way which leads to heaven—eternal glory. The other is the devil’s way—ending in hell.
The Jesus Christ Way humbly starts from the bottom and ascends to heaven. The devil’s way starts proudly at the top and goes straight down to the bottomless pit.
HEAVEN ETERNAL—HOW GLORIOUS!
Faithfulness to the end
Abstaining from evil
Good works—following that which is good
Truthfulness
Faithfulness
Meekness, kindness
Love, growing in Christian virtues
Prayer life—Obedience
Denying self—take up the cross and follow Christ
Have joy and peace
Repent—Accept Jesus as Savior
THE JESUS CHRIST WAY
The narrow way—”Few there be that
find it” (Matthew 7:14).
THE WAY OF THE FLESH
The broad way which leads to destruction.
Many travel on it. (Matthew 7:13)
Not accepting the Jesus Christ Way
Indifference—Disobedience
Pride
Walking in the lust of the flesh
Carnality
Smoking—Drinking Liquor
Lying, Cheating, Stealing
Divorce
Corruption
Fornication
Adultery—More than one wife
Idolatry—worshiping idols
Murder
No hope in Christ
LOST IN HELL—FOREVER—
HOW TERRIBLE!!