Route 66 - God's Way

[ A sermon given by Lou Hodapp at the Missouri Veteran's Home on February 12, 2012 ]

It’s good to be with you veterans on this coldest morning of the year here in St. Louis. You have a nice warm facility here. Give thanks to God  for it.

Most of you veterans can remember the 1960s. Some bad things happened then – the Cuban missile crisis, John Kennedy’s assassination, the start of the Vietnam war. But some good things happened in the 60s too. Two of my children were born then – Sandy and Richard – and they are here with me this morning.  

Also, the construction of the Interstate Highway System began. By the way, did you know that the first national pouring of concrete for the Interstate system was for I-70 here in St. Charles County? I know because I was there that day.

Before they changed the numbering system on highways, there was a Route 66. Nat King Cole made Route 66 famous.

If you ever plan to motor west –

Travel my way, take the highway that’s the best –

Get your kicks on Route 66.

It winds from Chicago to LA,

More than 2,000 miles all the way –

Get your kicks on Route 66.

Now you go through St. Louie,

Joplin, Missouri,

Oklahoma City is mighty pretty.

You see Amarillo,

Gallup, New Mexico,

Flagstaff, Arizona,

Don’t forget Winona,

Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino.

Won’t you get hip to this timely tip,

When you make that California trip,

Get your kicks on Route 66.

I can hear you saying, “What’s this guy doing? This is a church service. You’re supposed to talk about God. He’s singing about highways!” Well don’t worry. Here comes the God talk.

Let’s look at it this way: Say you’ve lived a wild life in Chicago. You’ve repented and truly, truly called out to God for Jesus to be your Savior and Lord. You become born again. Instantly you become, not just a creature of God but a child in God’s Family. Jesus Christ comes to live within you joined eternally to your human spirit.

God then makes you a solemn promise that He will get you to that heavenly, beautiful California coast. Like in the gold-rush days, He in effect says, “Go West, young man, go West!”

Up until this time on your road of life, you’ve been traveling alone and without a map.  Oh, others HAVE influenced your journey – a wife, a boss, friends. But you have basically made the choice of direction yourself. But now Jesus hops into you car, and tells you that He is with you from now on. And He makes you a supernatural promise that He WILL get you to California.

The best way, His way, is Route 66. But there is nothing to stop you from making a side trip off the highway, either accidently or deliberately. These side trips can temporarily mess you up. But you will be corrected back to the highway.

You could take a side trip north to the Rocky mountains and get stalled by snow and ice. You could take a side trip south to Mexico and get held up by bandidos. You need to travel God’s way – on Route 66.

You know how these GPS navigation systems work. When you get off their route, that woman’s voice in the box tells you, “Recalculating – recalculating!” That’s like the Holy Spirit coaxing you back to the highway.

What happens if I die along the way to California? Christ will pick me up and whisk me right there in an instant. Because He promised He would get me there.

Now there are many ways to go from Chicago to Los Angeles. The best way, the most direct way, the safest way is Route 66, Christ’s way. But Jesus is now in the car with you to influence and guide you. You can still choose to make wrong turns because you are doing the driving. You may choose a path that gets you into trouble. Jesus doesn’t leave the car. He reminds you to get back on the safe 66 route. Or, Jesus may influence you to turn OFF OF 66 for a time because there is a need in some small town that you should take time to fill.

The key is that once you are born again by making Christ the Savior and Lord of your life, you are going to get to California one way or another. Jesus has promised that He will never leave us or forsake us.

I have a little plaque that sits on my bathroom shelf quoting Romans 8:28. I look at it every morning as I start my day. It says, “All things work for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

“All things” is not being used loosely. All things means everything – not only when natural troubles smack us, but also when we choose to sin. God will turn our side trips of sin back to Route 66. 

Too often, people think this message gives believers license to continue in sin.
Bob George, in his book, “Classic Christianity” states it this way:

QUOTE - “Wherever the pure message of God’s love and acceptance in Jesus Christ has been shared, people have raised the same objection: “But you’re giving people a license to sin.” It is an absurd question when you understand the love and grace of God and know about Christ living in you. I like to answer with an illustration.

Imagine that you owned a fine cafeteria. One day, you hear this tremendous commotion out in the alley where the garbage dumpsters are. You open the back door to see what’s going on, and you see the most pitiful-looking human being you have ever seen in your life – ME – fighting with several stray cats over the food scraps in the dumpster. I am a virtual living skeleton. It’s obvious that I am living on the edge of starvation, and probably have been for a long time. There is nothing about me to provoke liking or affection in you, but you are moved to pity.

“Hey, hey!” you yell. “Get out of the garbage. Don’t eat that stuff! Come over here.” I trudge over to you, half-seeing you through hopeless eyes.

Listen,” you say. “I can’t stand to see you eating garbage like that. Come into my cafeteria and eat.”

“But I don’t have any money,” I reply.

“It doesn’t matter,” you say. “My chain of restaurants has done very well, and I can afford it. I want you to eat here every day from now on, absolutely free of charge!”

You take my arm and lead me inside the restaurant. I cannot believe my eyes. I have never seen a cafeteria line before. With huge, unbelieving eyes I stare at the spread: vegetables, salads, fruits, beef, fish, chicken, cakes, pies. In my wildest dreams I have never even imagined that such things could be.

I look at you intently. “Are you saying I can eat ANYTHING I want?”

“Yes, anything.”

Then slowly, with a gleam in my eye, I ask, “Can I eat some GARBAGE?’

What would you think of me? You would think I was insane, wouldn’t you? In the face of all that delicious food, all I can think of to ask is whether I can eat garbage. But that is exactly how I feel when people ask me if they can sin because they are under grace!

Are you ready for a really shocking statement? The goal of the Christian life is not to stop sinning! The Christian world is obsessed with sin. It’s all we talk about. Most of our teaching and preaching is directed toward getting people to quit sinning. It’s like a person following a starving man around saying, “You stay out of the garbage! Do you hear me? Don’t eat the garbage! You stay out of there!” LOOK, WHEN YOU’RE TRULY HUNGRY, YOU’LL EAT ANYTHING – EVEN GARBAGE.

What should you do? I promise you: If you will get that man into the cafeteria line, and he begins experiencing what real, good food is like, he won’t be nostalgically dreaming about the garbage out back.”

Unquote - from Bob George!

In conclusion, veterans, let’s remember two things: Remember Route 66. God says, “travel MY way.”

And remember that name on the church I am from: GRACE CHURCH. We are saved by God’s unconditional grace in Chicago when we accept Christ as Lord. We are saved by grace and brought back to Route 66 when we make side trips of sin.

And we are saved by grace ultimately and finally when we reach that beautiful and heavenly California coast. Yes – it’s God’s unconditional grace and love all the way as we make that California trip – on Route 66.

Let’s pray –

Father – we whole-heartedly accept the gift of eternal life you have freely given us. We understand that Jesus has come to jump in the car and live in us to lead us and we trust Him to do it. We know we are going to slip up and sin, but we understand now that you will not condemn us and eternally punish us since we are now your children and we sure don’t want to eat that garbage!

Holy Spirit, help us to grow daily in the lifestyle of God’s Family. We thank you for doing this – we love you for it and for everything else you have given us. In Jesus name, Amen.