Back in 1994, 128 runners lined up to compete in the NCAA cross-country championships in Riverside, California. Unfortunately, one of the turns on the 10,000-meter course was not well marked; only five of the 128 runners stayed on the correct path. Mike Delcavo was the first runner to notice the problem. He began waving at the other runners to follow him, but most refused. Can you blame them? One-hundred-and-twenty-three runners took the wrong path, only five took the right one. What did the 123 think of Delcavo? He commented later, "They thought it was funny that I went the right way." (1) We all like to think that we're on the right path; what a rude awakening it would be to discover we aren't.

In our Bible passage today, Jesus has been going through the towns and villages teaching and …