ROAD TO RUIN

“But He looked at them and said, ‘Then what is the meaning of this Scripture: The stone that the builders rejected —this has become the cornerstone?  Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and if it falls on anyone, it will grind him to powder!’” (Luke 20:17-18 HCSB)

Bob Hope and Bing Crosby made a series of successful comedic movies with Dorothy Lamour often referred to as, “The Road Pictures.”  There were seven all total, with names like “Road to Singapore” and “Road to Zanzibar.”  An eighth movie was planned in the series when Crosby died of a heart attack in 1977.   Ironically, that movie was to be entitled, “Road to the Fountain of Youth.”  Bing Crosby died before he could get there!

I recall watching them as a child.  I saw them as they were rerun on TV.  Now, I can still do that, as I have some of them on DVD.  The difference is that years ago I watched them in black and white and now I can see them in color.  One thing never changed about those films—whatever road Bing Crosby and Bob Hope were on, it was funny!

There is another road which is no laughing matter.  This one many are travelling today—a well worn path.  It is deadly and destructive—eternally so.  It is the road to ruin.  That is the path that the religious leaders in Christ’s time had chosen.  The saddest part is that they were convinced they were on the right road and rejected the One who had come to turn them around and deliver them.

The vast majority of people are on the road to ruin.  Now, they may not take it seriously, but God does.  They may laugh and party and indulge their sensual desires—for today.  But, one day the laughter will end in lament, and the party will become the Pit, and the temporal pleasure will be lost in timeless pain.  The Lake of Fire is the destination of those who travel the road to ruin.

Observe that THE ROAD TO RUIN COMMENCES WITH CONFRONTATION in Luke 20:1-8.  Jesus confronts A WICKED SPIRIT.

“One day as He was teaching the people in the temple complex and proclaiming the good news, the chief priests and the scribes, with the elders, came up and said to Him: ‘Tell us, by what authority are You doing these things? Who is it who gave You this authority?’  He answered them, ‘I will also ask you a question. Tell Me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from men?’  They discussed it among themselves: ‘If we say, “From heaven,” He will say, “Why didn’t you believe him?”  But if we say, “From men,” all the people will stone us, because they are convinced that John was a prophet.’  So they answered that they did not know its origin.  And Jesus said to them, ‘Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.’”

The religious elite had come to this point: “We’ve made up our minds, don’t confuse us with facts!”  They had purposed to reject Him and nothing Jesus might say—no matter how Scripturally authoritative—and nothing He might do—no matter how supernaturally attested—would persuade them to change their minds.  In refusing to change their minds, they were refusing to change their course.  They shifted into overdrive on the road to ruin, as they determined to silence Jesus, intolerant of any rival to their authority.

They believed that authority was vested in them and that Jesus, not being a product of their rabbinical schools, had no authority.   The questioning of Christ’s authority disclosed the attitude of their rejection of God’s authority.  When a man sets himself up as the authority, he has disclosed his spirit of autonomy—that which turned Lucifer, Son of the      Morning, into Satan, Prince of Darkness. 

Rebellion is a contagious thing—the Serpent’s autonomy soon infected one third of heaven’s host and spread to earth, enticing Adam and Eve into sin.  Now, we have a human race held in the grip of moral anarchy.  “Every         man does that which is right in his own eyes” is the repeated drumbeat recorded in the Book of Judges and we recognize the sound echoing in our era.  That is the result of rejecting the rule of the Kingdom of Heaven. 

It is the road to ruin.

Jesus responds to their question concerning His authority with a question about the authority of John the Baptist’s message.  He turns the tables on them and the Pharisees find themselves on the horns of a dilemma. 

That’s where truth always places us.  It brings us to the point of decision.  There is no middle ground in this issue of authority—we bow to God or we set ourselves up as our own god.  There is but one throne in our heart—both God and self cannot occupy it simultaneously.

They rejected the King’s herald before they rejected the King—something Christ will underscore in the parable He will tell.  For now, Jesus is content to leave them twisting in the wind. 

Nothing would have suited them better than to openly attack the preaching of the uncouth John the Baptist.  He had dared to call them vipers and demand repentance!  He poured the gasoline of truth on the flame of their self-righteousness and it was incendiary in effect.  But, they let the fire die down and just smolder because they feared the common people who respected John.  Still, they will not give voice to their hatred of John.

They were religious politicians.  Their consuming purpose was to preserve their position and power with all its perks.  The supreme motivation was not the glory of God but their own.  These tried to use God as a stepping stone to fulfill their ambition.  Instead of following truth to its conclusion, they tailored it to fit their purposes.  That is the road to ruin.

Next we note that THE ROAD TO RUIN CONTINUES DESPITE CAUTION in Luke 20:9-15.  Jesus conveys A WARNING SIGN.

“Then He began to tell the people this parable: ‘A man planted a vineyard, leased it to tenant farmers, and went away for a long time.  At harvest time he sent a slave to the farmers so that they might give him some fruit from the vineyard. But the farmers beat him and sent him away empty-handed.  He sent yet another slave, but they beat that one too, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  And he sent yet a third, but they wounded this one too and threw him out. Then the owner of the vineyard said, “What should I do? I will send my beloved son. Perhaps they will respect him.”  But when the tenant farmers saw him, they discussed it among themselves and said, “This is the heir. Let’s kill him, so the inheritance will be ours! “  So they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.’ Therefore, what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?”

If you were on the road to ruin, would you not want someone to warn you—to try to stop you and turn you around?  But, the Pharisees and scribes would not heed the warning. 

Rather than receiving the Savior who had come, they had decided to devise a salvation of their own religion and ritual.  It was nothing new, as the Lord indicated in this parable.  They were heirs of a long-standing legacy of rejecting God’s authority.  It was in their spiritual DNA.

Look at the parable’s portrayal of their stubborn sinfulness. 

The man who planted a vineyard is God and the vineyard is the nation of Israel.  The tenant farmers were the religious leaders who had been charged with a stewardship to cultivate the spiritual welfare of the nation.  The slaves who were sent one after another and terribly abused—even killed—represent the prophets. 

They could find no spiritual fruit in Israel and called the people to repentance, wielding the sharp pruning shears of truth.  The religious establishment wanted no such painful penitence and so beat and butchered God’s messengers.  John was another in a long line of God’s messengers that the religious leaders spurned.  Prophets are never popular because they confront people with their sin and the seriousness of it.  They expose the ugly evil for the world to see and the wicked don’t want that! 

God made one last ditch effort in sending His Beloved Son—heir to the vineyard.  God the Father, gave His Son, the Lord Jesus, to be their Savior and their response would be to nail Him to a cross.  They throw Him out of the vineyard and kill Him—and so Jesus was taken outside the walls of Jerusalem to be crucified.

It was their choice.  They were warned that they were on the road to ruin, but they would not turn around.  This is the sad reality of millions today, marching with resolute steps down the road into the darkness of the Abyss.

Beckoning those on the death march to turn—standing at the crossroad—there is Jesus.  Our destination is determined by our decision in what we are going to do with Him.

Finally, THE ROAD TO RUIN CONCLUDES WITH CONDEMNATION in Luke 20:16-18.  Jesus communicates concerning A WRECKED SOUL.

“‘He will come and destroy those farmers and give the vineyard to others.’  But when they heard this they said, ‘No — never!’  But He looked at them and said, ‘Then what is the meaning of this Scripture: The stone that the builders rejected —this has become the cornerstone? Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and if it falls on anyone, it will grind him to powder!’”

The Pharisees rejected truth and supplanted it with their traditions.  They didn’t like what they saw in the mirror of God’s Word and despised it.  Jesus, in contrast, lived by the Book.  We witness Him here as He appeals to the authority of Scripture, quoting Psalm 118:22. 

God’s Word cannot be broken; His will cannot be thwarted.  In their very act of rejecting Christ, trying to deny fulfillment of God’s plan, they instead are bringing about the Lord’s sovereign purpose, as Christ becomes the cornerstone of salvation.  His very condemnation becomes the means of ushering in God’s plan of redemption. This fact did not alter their responsibility in making that decision, however. 

Again, we can look back into the Old Testament and find help in understanding this.  Nebuchadnezzar dreamed of a great image.  He was the head of gold, while the other various metals described, picture the kingdoms of men who would succeed him—one empire rising and then falling successively.  This is the course of the age—“The Times of the Gentiles.”   The king also saw in this dream a huge stone falling from heaven and crushing the image (Dan.2:34-35) showing the ultimate conclusion of man’s rebellion against God.  The kingdoms of men will give way to the kingdom of God (Rev.11:15). 

This is a picture not only of the destiny of nations but of each individual.  This is the choice before us.  We can fall on that Rock in repentance and Christ becomes our solid foundation, or we can let the Rock fall on us in our rebellion and Christ becomes our sure destruction.  There is a highway to heaven and a highway to hell.  Jesus stands at the intersection showing us the way to glory—He is the Way, the only way.

Are you on the road to ruin?  Turn around before it is too late!