The Easy Road

“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. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."  Jesus in Matthew 7.

Today I went for a run at the gym.  I really like my gym.  I have my favorite treadmills scoped out, where I can be positioned under a fan, and where I can watch the TVs lined up along the wall while I listen to my ipod.  All in all, it's a pretty good life to be able to enjoy all those comforts while I get my runs in.

Though today, I came across a commercial on one of the TVs that got me to thinking.  The commercial was advertising this belt type thing that you wear across your waist and belly, and it promotes heat, so you essentially sweat your belly away.  They had all the usual before and after pictures, and a few people giving their testimonials about how well this product worked.

As I ran, sweating, on the treadmill, I thought of how many people would love to be thin by doing nothing more than sitting on the couch, wearing one of those things, without giving any effort whatsoever to their fitness.  That just really seems to be the easy way to something, with no cost, since you don't even have to change any exercise or eating patterns and can supposedly lose weight.  (Yes, I am skeptical of the products claims, but I think this is reflective of the overall society that we now live in, and yes, I recognize that I am saying this about the time when I am running in the air conditioned gym with my comforts of music and TV at my disposal.  I never have pretended to be the complete idealist!)

Jesus warns about taking the easy road, which leads to destruction.  Now, it may not be so easy to figure out what exactly Jesus is referring to here, since He has purchased us at the cost of His life and has made us His own through His suffering, death, and resurrection.  However, I tend to lean toward the understanding that the life we then live out as a redeemed, forgiven, purchased person isn't the life of ease or luxury, but rather, involves making tough decisions that may not necessarily make sense to the rest of the world.

I suppose, in some way, that's why I choose to run rather than try these questionable weight loss products that supposedly do their work without any exertion on our part.  The easy road may be easy, but I have also seen the value of hard work in my life.  There are many things that are worth doing, no matter what the cost may be, and they are rarely easy.  In fact, I've thought quite often that if something is worth doing, or if it's the right thing to do, it probably isn't going to be easy.

That's what we see in Jesus, who bore the cross for us to make us His own.  If God would have Jesus carry such a load, can we then expect that the easy road is God's preferred way for our lives?