Newport weekly independent., 1902-08-22
THE TWO HIGHWAYS
One Leads to Life, the Other Ends
 in Destruction.
The Bible Is the Guide Book and Christ the Lcader-SermOn by the "Highway and Byway"
 Preacher.
[Copyright, 1902, by A. N. Kellogg News
 paper Col

Chicago, August F, 1902
 Text: Enter ye in at the strait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: be- cause strait is the gate. and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.-Matt 7:l3, IA.
 The Figure.-1n this text Christ has given us a figure which easily and clearly illustrates the thought that the soul in this life is moving on to- wards destiny which reaches beyond time into eternity. Two gateways and two roads are mentioned, each with its destination definitely fixed; one ending in the biackness of the bot tomless pit and the ether reaching the eternal glories of Heaven, where the soul is clothed upon with lmmortal- ity. One road is crowded with the many who press through the Wide Gate; the other echoes with the footsteps Of the few who have sought, and found the Strait Gate and entered in thereat. A command sounds forth in the hearing of all travellers entering these two ways which is authoritative and posi- tive. God meets every soul and crles: Enter ye in at the Strait Gate!" The many are so engrossed in chasing the butterfly of worldly gain and pleasure which fits just before them that they fail to hear and heed. The few stop to listen and then begin to seek; and in fulfillment of the Divine prom ise, "he that seeketh findeth," the ilt- tie wicket gate of Bunyan's Pilgrim is seen to lie just ahead, and knock at the door admits to the Narrow Way as it did to that earnest traveller whose journeyings we have followed with such absorbed interest.
 Broad is the road that leads to death,
 And thousands walk together there;
 But Wisdom shows a narrow path,
 With here and there traveller.
 Deny myself and take thy cross
 Is the Redeemers great command:
 All men must count their gold but dross,
 If they would gain the Heavenly land.'
 The Two Ways.-In the day in which the words of our text were spoken the roads or highways were the main ar- teries of communication and trade be- tween cities and there was generally but one road leading from point to point, so that our Lord used an illustra- tion which would appeal forcibly to His hearers. In this day, when the country is covered with it's network of railroads, and many excellent road ways lead from city to city, the figure has lost much of it's meaning. It is hard to find the city of any consider able size which is not reached by two or more roads or railroads, but in the days of our Lord there was the one road between cities over which the travel and commerce passed. Further more, the cities of those days were walled and gateways opened out upon the highway, and through these gate ways all must pass who sought to travel by that road.
 Rome had built her highways broad and long from the large cities of the then known world back to the hom. of the Caesars and the center of the worlds power. While the commercial life of the world was flowing over these splendid highways and the many were passing to and fro bent on the world ly ambitions and aims, with Rome as the center, the devout Jews thought and hope were centered in Jerusalem. and the narrow, rugged pathways of Palestine were travelled by the pill grims as they journeyed toward it to keep the feast days and worship the true God. May it not have been that the thought of the two ways first came to Jesus as He journeyed towards Je- rusalem when He was 12 years of age. and probably for the first time saw and crossed the great roadway built by Rome from Damascus to the south through Palestine? Here was Rome and her great highways on the one hand and Jerusalem and the narrow rugged road which led over the brow of Mount Olivet and on into the city to the temple gate on the other. There is a forcible contrast here which would have readily suggested itself to those who listened to our Lord as He spoke these words which would not at first occur to us.
 A Wide Gate and Broad Way char acteriZe the road which leads to de- struction, and Strait Gate and Mar row Way the road which leads to life. Why is it that mans way should be on such grand scale and appear so at tractive, and Gods way so limited and the Strait Gate thereto so hard to find |? The Broad Way spreads out into all the world and takes in everything and ends in destruction. The Narrow Way leads through the world to definite point