Most people loved playing spot the difference as children, and some still do even as adults. Two pictures are presented which are almost identical, but there are some key differences. The hunt is on to find the differences!
The last section of the Sermon on the Mount is a bit like a spot the difference. In Matthew 7:13-27, Jesus presents four vignettes, with two people or groups appearing in each. At first glance, they look identical, and yet Jesus teaches that there's a key difference in each situation, which leads to a very different outcome.
Here's a quick table I designed for our Fellowship Group tonight which sets out the differences and the final outcomes of each.
We're all on a journey, but some are on the broad and easy way that leads to destruction while others are on the narrow way that leads to life. We're called to watch out for false teachers who look good and sound right, but are wolves on the inside, like bad trees which will only produce bad fruit. We're warned that many who call Jesus "Lord" and have lots of amazing experiences will not enter the kingdom because they didn't do the will of God and Jesus never knew them. We're reminded that to hear Jesus' words and not do them is like a foolish builder siting his house on the sand, which will fall when the storms come. Judgement exposes what's on the inside, and there will be surprises on the last day.
[Spot the difference image from here]
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