Which Road Will You Choose?

Short Talk (SHT019) Which road will you choose? © Jane Hulme 2015 SHORT TALK: “WHICH ROAD WILL YOU CHOOSE?” Aim of Short talk: Main themes: Biblical references: Props: (SHT019) To teach people that they have a choice of only two ways of living; following Jesus or not following him Choice, Narrow path, following Jesus, Matthew 7:13-14, John 10:9 Three different bars of chocolate, large piece of rope, large ladder ........................................................................................................................ The other day I went to the supermarket to buy a bar of chocolate and I counted nearly one hundred different types of chocolate bar.  What a huge choice we have don’t we? I have three bars of chocolate here..... (show three bars of chocolate)  Put your hands up if this is your favourite chocolate bar (show first bar of chocolate. Then give it to someone who has put up their hands)  Put your hands up if this is your favourite chocolate bar (show second bar of chocolate. Then give it to someone who has put up their hands)  Or this one? (show third bar of chocolate. Then give it to someone who has put up their hands) We have so much choice over the things that we eat don’t we?  We also have many choices over what to do with our spare time, when we aren’t working.  Some of us might choose to swim or play golf, or join an orchestra.  Others of us might choose to read a book, play a game on Xbox, or join a football team. Every day we will face many different choices;  Some are important,  some are not,  however there is one choice we have to make that affects our lives more than any other. We have to choose which way we are going to live,  and we only have a choice of two ways.  It is actually the biggest choice we will ever have to make. Jesus tells us in the Bible that we can choose to walk on what he calls the broad road,  or we can choose to walk on what he calls the narrow road. Jesus tells us that to get onto the broad road you go through a wide gate,  and to get onto the narrow road you go through a narrow gate. So let’s make a couple of gates shall we? I need two volunteers to come and help. © Jane Hulme 2015 2 Let’s begin by making a wide gate.......  I need you two to stand as far apart as possible.....and hold this piece of rope....(Have two people standing as far apart as possible across the front of the church, holding a piece of rope. You may want to put a tall ladder or something in between the people to lift up the rope so that it becomes like a gate) In front of this gate is the wide road.....  How easy do you think it is to find this wide gate and go through it onto the broad road?  That’s right.....it is very easy to find. Jesus said that lots of people will go through the wide gate and walk on the broad road.....  but He said that this road leads to destruction....  so it doesn’t sound like a very good road to walk on does it? It might look like an attractive road,  with lots of people walking on it,  but this road leads to destruction...... Now let’s make a narrow gate.......  We need two people to make a very small arch......(Make a small arch with two people that only one person can get through at the front of the church)  How easy do you think it is to find this narrow gate and go through it onto the narrow road?  That’s right....not very easy..... Jesus said that only a few people find the narrow gate,  and so not many people walk on the narrow road.....  but Jesus said that this road leads to life.... It might not look like an attractive road,  but it is the best road for it leads to life. So I wonder what these two roads are.....  Let me give you a clue.... Jesus said: “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved” (John 10:9)  so we are getting a clue now as to what these two roads in life are. If Jesus is the gate to life... the narrow road must be the road of following Jesus.....  because the narrow road leads to life. So if the narrow road is the road of following Jesus, the broad road must be the road of not following Jesus....  where we do what we want, when we want.....  ignoring Jesus and what He has done for us. I wonder which road you will choose to walk on through your life.....  you see you only have a choice of two! © Jane Hulme 2015 3