Central Theme: God does not depend upon man's strength, numbers, resources, or abilities to accomplish His purposes. What He requires of His people is faith, humility, obedience, and the willingness to trust Him even when His instructions do not seem reasonable by human standards. When Less Becomes More We live in a world today that teaches us that bigger is better. We measure success by numbers. A successful business is one that has more customers. A successful nation has a stronger military. Successful organizations are one’s that has more members, more money, and more influence. And sometimes, sometimes, if we’re not careful, we can bring that same way of thinking into the Lord's church. We look at congregations with hundreds of members and assume they must be doing something right. We look at a congregation with twenty or thirty members and sometimes wonder whether it can accomplish anything meaningful. And we are even fewer that that here at Axton. But I want us to conside...
Our primary text is taken from Matthew, 7: 13–14 “ 13 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. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.” Matthew 7:13-14 Here Jesus describes two gates, two roads, two groups of travelers, and two destinations. One road is broad. There’s plenty of room for whatever a person wants to bring along. It accommodates popular opinion, personal preference, and unrepented sin. Many people travel that road. The other road, however, is narrow. We do not set its boundaries. We don’t decide where it leads or what God requires of those who walk it. We enter on His terms and follow His Son. Notice that Jesus does not tell us to choose the road with the most travelers. He does not tell us to choose the road that feels easiest. He tells us to choose the road that leads to life. The important question is no...