Matthew 7:13-14 Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. (NASB)
When lecturing you about peer pressure or something foolish you did as a child, did your parents ever say to you, “If your friends were jumping off a bridge, would you jump too?” Maybe you have even used this line on your children. Most people would answer a resounding no to that question, however, there are a few people who would say yes. Let me explain.
I ran into a person who told me that because three people were treating him poorly and were seemingly getting away with unethical behavior that he should be entitled to use unethical practices (against a third-party) in his business. This is a person who would jump off the bridge after his comrades. But he is not the only one.
Adam in the Garden of Eden jumped too (Genesis 3:1-6). Adam knew what God told him and Eve about eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, yet when he saw his own wife jump, he jumped right after her, ignoring what God had clearly told them.
In the first case, the problem was that other people were gaining an unfair advantage by breaking the law. Assuming that there is no profit to be had in playing by the rules, this man decided that if others were getting away with breaking the rules and making a profit in the process that he should be able to do the same. Jesus said there is no glory in such practices because anyone can do that. Can just anyone make a profit while following the rules? It may be hard, yet I know businesses that have made out just fine.
In the second case, the problem was much more difficult. Here we have a spouse veering off course on a cosmic level. Adam was presented with an extremely difficult choice. He could abandon his wife and obey God, or abandon God and keep his wife happy temporarily. I often wonder what might have happened if Adam had said no to Eve and rejected temptation.
What lengths are we willing to go to, so that we can avoid sin and reject temptation? Are we courageous and strong enough to stand up to sin and to live a life patterned after Christ in a world that would have no use for rules? I especially like the words of Jesus in John 12:24-25: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal.”
Jesus tells us that following the easy road leads to destruction, and that following the hard road leads to a reward and a life well lived for God. Adam made the easiest decision in the moment, which was to make his wife happy temporarily. However, their disobedience of God turned out to be a disastrous move not only for them but for all humanity.
And the business owner who would choose to follow everyone else and break the rules to make a profit? One day he will have to answer for his personal decisions, just as you and I will too. We cannot do anything about or take the punishment for the other person. The only person you can control is you, and you must be prepared to accept whatever consequences (or reward) await you at the end of this life.
Remember, anyone can break the rules for an unfair advantage, but only the strong and courageous can follow the footsteps of Jesus Christ.
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