In the name of Christ Jesus, dear fellow redeemed people of God,

When Jesus came to Matthew's tax collector's booth and said, "Follow me," he was calling Matthew to follow him as a full-time disciple. If you look up the word, "disciple" in the dictionary, you learn that a disciple is a student. When Jesus said, "Follow me," he was calling Matthew to spend time with him and to learn. Matthew would be a special kind of disciple; he would be one of the 12 apostles. Yet, in the book of Acts, all of the believers were called disciples. Jesus calls all believers to follow him as disciples, to be his students. Apply these words to yourself. Picture Jesus coming up to you and saying, "Follow me." Hear the word of the Lord:

1. LEAVE THE PATH OF SIN.

There are plenty of paths to choose from in this life. The problem is finding the right path, the path that leads to heaven. Let's take a closer look at Matthew. Earlier in his life, this tax collector had followed a path of sin. Now, he was leaving that path to follow Jesus. What about you? Are you on the right path? If you are graduating and just starting out, you might be confused about which path to take. You have so many options before you. There are different schools. There are different courses of study. There are different occupations to aim for. Sometimes it is hard to know which path to take. Others of you have already traveled a ways on a certain path in life. Perhaps it is time that you consider this question: Are you on the right path in life?

There are many wrong paths. These are the paths of sin. Let's consider a few of them. There is the path of selfishness, when you let selfish thoughts dominate your existence. A selfish person wakes up every day asking, "What's in it for ME?" A selfish person constantly thinks of what others can do for him. If that is you, you are on the wrong path. Ask not what others can do for you; ask what you can do for others! Another sinful path is greed, where money is most important. A greedy person lives for money, for the job, for getting ahead and becoming rich, but then what? Look ahead to the end of your life. You can't buy your way into heaven! You can't take it with you. How long can you keep it then? Another path of sin is lust. Some people live to experience life's sensual pleasures. They watch pornographic material on the Internet. Lust dominates their thinking. But, where does that end? Is that the way that leads to eternal life in heaven? No, these are paths that lead to slavery, slavery to sin. These are paths that lead to eternal condemnation. If you are on a path like that, you need to change course!

Maybe you will recognize that you have occasionally strayed from the straight and narrow path and ventured onto some sinful paths in your life. Perhaps you want God to be the most important person in your life, but as you look at your life, at your thoughts and words and actions, you realize that sometimes he really isn't the most important person, is he? Maybe you have set out to be more faithful in worship and Bible study, but you find that you have fallen short of your goal. Maybe you wanted to be a more caring and loving person, but when you examine your own life, you realize that you haven't always loved your neighbor as yourself. Maybe you ignored a visitor who was here. Maybe you failed to reach out to a relative when you could have. These are not minor mishaps. These are not just poor choices. These are genuine, authentic sins. Just one of these is enough to send us to hell forever! We need to repent! We need to say, with the Psalmist, "I hate every wrong path" (Ps 119:104). Every single one of us stands guilty as charged. Each single one of us has sinned! The Bible says, "All have sinned." Everybody has sinned. Are we all going to hell? Well, if it was up to us, we would all perish. But God has provided a way of salvation. You see, there are many trails in life, but one trail leads to heaven. And that trail is the way of faith in Jesus Christ, our Savior.

2. BELIEVE IN JESUS.

As we learn in today's gospel reading, Jesus came to save sinners. Scripture says, (Isa 53:6) "We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all." We have all sinned, but the LORD has laid on Jesus all of our sins. Jesus came to redeem us all. He came to live a perfect life for us and then to die on the cross [+] as the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours, but for the sins of the whole world. Then, Jesus rose from death and that means that you are forgiven through Christ. If you feel guilty because you have traveled on sinful paths, then hear the Word of the Lord, your sins are forgiven. Jesus died on the cross to take away your sins! If you are troubled about your sins and wonder if God still loves you, then hear the Word of the Lord, God does love you and that's why Jesus came and took your sins away. You are forgiven! Go in peace and joy! Yes, rejoice and be glad in your salvation. After all, Jesus said, "whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved!" Believe in Jesus and heaven is yours.

It is sad that not everyone believes in Jesus. Those "holier than thou" Pharisees saw no need for a Savior. They thought that they were good enough, but they weren't. They were not perfect, and neither is anyone today. It is sad that there are still people like the Pharisees around today who sense no need for a Savior from sin. You're not one of those are you? The final judgment will not be about whether or not you were a good enough person to earn heaven. That is not the path that leads to heaven! No, the path to heaven is through repentance and faith in Jesus. Jesus was glad to spend time with people like Matthew, who had repented of their sins and believed in Jesus. These people had not lived exemplary lives. But now they were on the path to heaven. God had turned them from their sinful paths and now they were walking the path of faith in Jesus. And it didn't stop there. These believers kept on following Jesus. Matthew's life would never be the same again. He would follow Jesus as a disciple for the rest of his life. He was on the path of following Jesus by faith, and that path ends in eternal glory. May we also:

3. FOLLOW JESUS ALL THROUGH LIFE.

Jesus said it again and again. It was one of our Savior's most common statements. He said, simply, "Follow me." He said it to Matthew, the tax collector. He said it to others as well. Today, he's saying it to you. FOLLOW JESUS, for the rest of your life! Don't be satisfied with a one-day commitment. Don't be satisfied to just promise to follow. No, really follow him all through life!

Matthew left the path of sin and followed Jesus. He believed in Jesus as his Savior from sin. He continued to hear Jesus' Word as a disciple. For years, Matthew would spend precious moments with Jesus, listening to the Master teach the saving Word of God. He would be a witness. After seeing the life, death, and resurrection of our victorious Redeemer, Matthew would be inspired by God the Holy Spirit to write this book of the Bible! He left behind a lucrative career as a tax collector, but now Matthew is world famous as one of Christ's 12 apostles, and the first book of the New Testament bears his name. Who knows what God can accomplish in your life?!

If you haven't been following Jesus, follow him now. If you have been following Jesus, don't stop! Keep on hearing his Word! The way to see the right path and be certain about it is to shine the light of God's Word, for Scripture says, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path" (Ps 119:105). Now, what good is a flashlight if you turn it off? Don't let the light of God's Word go out in your life. Keep hearing it afresh and anew. Don't stop. Don't leave your Savior behind. Follow Jesus because he is our Savior, and because his path leads to heaven. You have not yet crossed the finish line. There is still plenty in the Bible for all of us to study and ponder and apply and believe. Follow Jesus all through life, you will never regret it for all eternity. You will not look back at your life and say, "I wasted my years! What good was it?!" No, I guarantee that when you get to heaven, you will be glad for all eternity that, by God's grace, you followed Jesus.

Just one final thought: If it weren't for Jesus, there would be NO path to heaven. But, thanks to Jesus, and his redeeming work on the cross, there is ONE path that leads to heaven. I'll tell you what that path is, right now. Are you ready? Believe in Jesus as your Savior from sin and you will enjoy eternal life in heaven. May God help each one of us to follow Jesus faithfully all through life so that we arrive safely in heaven. Amen.