When You Come to a Fork in the Road, Take it

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WHAT IS A FORK IN THE ROAD?

A fork in the road is literally a junction in which one road becomes two divergent roads. But a fork in the road also serves as a metaphor for a choice of options at a critical moment in life.

 Yogi Berra, a baseball player whose fame transcended the ballpark, became well known for his “Yogi-isms.” For instance, he once advised, “When you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

Behind the humor of this Yogi-ism hides a bit of practical wisdom. A fork in the road always presents a third option: indecision, or simply “not taking it,” as Yogi would say. Some excuse themselves from making critical decisions by claiming to “leave their options open.” But in so doing, they make a choice.

CHOOSING NOT TO CHOOSE IS A CHOICE

The prophet Elijah staged a showdown on Mount Carmel between his God and the idol god Baal. He held out a choice for those in attendance (1 Kings 18:21).

And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word.

The gathered crowd chose not to choose. However, not choosing became a choice. A choice that put the assembly squarely on the side of the Baalites.

During the last days of Judah, the people of Edom, who were descendants of Esau, watched as Babylon razed the nation with whom they shared a common ancestor. In doing so, they bought for themselves a divine reprimand that stands as a principle to this day (Obadiah 1:10-11).

For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them. 

When Edom chose not to enter the battle, to remain neutral, the people chose the side of the enemy.

Christ’s words stand against Edom’s attempt at neutrality when he said, “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters” (Matthew 12:30). Choosing to ignore the options puts one in direct opposition to Christ.

LIFE AND DEATH AT THE FORK IN THE ROAD

After the fall of Judah, Jeremiah faced a personal fork in the road. One signpost read “Life” and the other, “Death.”

Nebuzaradan, a Babylonian captain of the guard, released Jeremiah from the chains with which he’d been bound as a prisoner. The high officer reminded Jeremiah of his own prophesy: “The Lord your God pronounced this disaster against this place” (Jeremiah 40:1-3). Then he gave Jeremiah a choice between going to Babylon or remaining in the ravaged land upon which the judgment of God had fallen.

Now, behold, I release you today from the chains on your hands. If it seems good to you to come with me to Babylon, come, and I will look after you well, but if it seems wrong to you to come with me to Babylon, do not come. See, the whole land is before you; go wherever you think it good and right to go (Jeremiah 40:4).

The two options were even weightier when viewed against the backdrop of an ultimatum from God that Jeremiah had previously put before the people (Jeremiah 21:8-9).

And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death. He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: but he that goeth out, and falleth to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey.

The decision to stay or leave crystalizes into an unequivocal matter of life or death: I set before you the way of life, and the way of death. But here’s an example of the easy way (life in Babylon) and the hard way (probable death in Jerusalem). For the Prophet, choosing life meant death to his calling and purpose in life. Choosing death by remaining in Judah meant keeping alive the work to which he was called.

This sheds light on Jesus’ teaching about deceptiveness at the fork in the road.

BROAD WAY AND NARROW WAY

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul?

These words of Jesus, found in Matthew 16:24-26, tell us the cross is an instrument of death. Bearing a cross and following Jesus means dying, just as staying with the oppressed Judahites represented a manner of dying for Jeremiah. “I am crucified with Christ,” Paul wrote, “nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me”.

When Jesus says, “Follow me,” He brings us to the eternal fork in the road. The grace of God, through the influence of the implanted Holy Spirit, leads one to choose the road marked life that yields death to the old man. According to Matthew 7:13, 14, following what appears to the natural eyes as the safest option leads one down the path of death. No neutrality.

Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Choosing neither means choosing the broad way taken by all who, in their natural state, are led by sin to destruction.

Back to Jeremiah. Following Nebuzaradan to Babylon with the promise of a better life was, on the surface, the prudent choice for Jeremiah. But taking the easy road to improve one’s situation doesn’t always end well. “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it” (Mark 8:35). One might gain the world, but at the cost of everything.

Jeremiah offered no immediate response to the choices presented to him. Nebuzaradan, sensing the difficulty but also the direction the prophet was leaning, prompted him by rephrasing the options and placing him again at a figurative fork in the road. Go wherever you think it right to go (Jeremiah 40:5). The captain then gave him provisions for the journey and let him go.

Jeremiah then set out for Mizpah to dwell among the people that were left in the land (Jeremiah 40:6). He chose what would mean physical death but life as a prophet to a desolate people.

Following Nebuzaradan to Babylon with the promise of a better life was, on the surface, the prudent choice for Jeremiah. But taking the easy road to improve one’s situation doesn’t always end well. “For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it” (Mark 8:35). One might gain the world, but at the cost of everything.

A CHOICE ALL MUST MAKE

If you came to a fork in the road like the one Jeremiah stood before, what choice would you make? The fact is, we all stand there, from the greatest to the least of us. The same challenge Jeremiah delivered to the people of Judah comes down through the ages to you and me.

Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein. Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken. (Jeremiah 6:16, 17)

When the people stood in the ways (the fork in the road) and declared, We will not walk in it and We will not hearken, they rejected what appeared to be the difficult, life-altering road of obedience to God, and chose what appeared to be safest and easiest way. They couldn’t have been more wrong.

Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them. Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it Jeremiah 6:18-19.

When you come to the fork in the road, take it. You have no third option. It’s the way of life or the way of death. The Gospel leaves no room for neutrality. It’s yes to the one or yes to the other.

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Core Values and Beliefs

core values and beliefs

The cardinal tenets listed in Elder Sylvester Hassell’s voluminous “History of the Church of God,” express, as well as any document, the core values and beliefs of the Primitive Baptist Church.

The exclusive and supreme authority of the Holy Scriptures; the exclusive headship of Christ over His church; the three-oneness of God as Father, Son, and Spirit; the total depravity of all mankind since the fall of Adam; the special and effectual electing love of God the Father, redeeming love of God the Son, and regenerating love of God the Spirit, manifested, in due time, to all the vessels of mercy.

The baptism of believers, and the partaking of the Lord’s supper by those properly baptized and in gospel order; salvation by grace and faith alone; a regenerated and orderly-walking church membership; the universal priesthood and brotherhood of believers; the divine call and divine qualification and equality of the ministry, who feed and care for the flock of God among them, not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind, nor as being lords over God’s heritage, but as ensamples to the flock…

The independence and yet cordial brotherly association of gospel churches; the separation of the church from the world, and the notions—such corrupting associations being pointedly forbidden in both the Old and New Testament Scriptures; the separation of church and state; the liberty of every human being, so far as other people are concerned, to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience…

The resurrection of bodies both of the just and the unjust; the final and general judgment of the world by the Lord Jesus Christ; the everlasting blessedness of the righteous, and the everlasting punishment of the wicked.

Elder Sylvester Hassell (1842-1928)

From the introduction to History of the Church of God, 1886

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The True Church

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The true church is a universal church, often referred to as invisible. It consists of the whole number of God’s people, redeemed by the blood of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

Invisible because humankind can’t know its number. Only God knows all His people everywhere and through all the ages of the Earth. “The foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his” (2 Timothy 2:19).

We know the true Church as the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27), the Bride of Christ (2 Corinthians 11:2; Revelation 21:2), the Children of God (Romans 8:16), and many other appellations in the Scriptures.

All persons throughout the world, born again of the Spirit, make up the whole Church of God. Among this population, those professing the faith of the Gospel and practicing obedience unto our Lord according to His Word may be called the visible Church. These are they who have been called to the fellowship of other believers (1 Corinthians 1:9) and identified as a Church or congregation of believers. Paul and other apostles addressed these bodies of believers as the Church of God.

Now, within the community of believers around the world, another sub-group exists that consists of those bodies where Christ is the true Head of the Church, in Whom by appointment of the Father (Ephesians 1:22, 23), all authority resides in matters of faith and practice (Colossians 1:18, 19). Adherence to the Gospel characterizes these bodies. They have roots traceable to the times of the Apostles, albeit through myriad historical paths, but evidenced by their similarity to the early Church as described in the Book of Acts and the Epistles. 

Pastor and author John MacArthur provides a condensed overview of such a Church.

What marks a true church? It begins with the absolute authority of Scripture. It begins with a commitment to the absolute authority of Scripture.

The second thing that marks a church is a commitment to worship. It is God-centered, it is Christ-centered. It focuses outside itself on the one who is the object of worship.

Thirdly, it is doctrinally clear. A church is a collection of the people of God who know what they believe. There’s nothing vague about it. There’s nothing wavering about it. There’s nothing simplistic about it. It is clear, it is profound, and it is marked by strong conviction about what it believes.

A fourth element that flows out of this in the life of the church is that it’s marked by spiritual discernment. The church, the body of Christ, the people of God, are able to look at the world and understand it. They have the capability to sort out the things that are happening all around them, both in the realm of the physical world, as well as the spiritual. A true church is marked by discernment.

Another characteristic of the true church is the pursuit of holiness, the pursuit of holiness–true spirituality, not legalism; Christ’s likeness. Another characteristic is submission to the divine will. Another characteristic is devotion to discipleship. Another characteristic is that it submits to a plurality of godly leaders. Another characteristic is mutual love. And another characteristic is consistent service. And another characteristic is passionate evangelism.

The glue that holds these attributes together is the Headship of Jesus Christ. With Christ in the center, all else falls into place. And how do we know that Christ holds this position among bodies of believers? Jesus said, “where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). In my name, that’s the key. We must meet in His name; worship in his Name; preach and teach in His name; Pray in His name; fellowship in his name; do the work and business of the Church in His name, and above all live Godly lives in His name.

These and all other identifying marks of a true Church are only possible when Christ and His Word govern the body and believers. When leaders are servants who serve. When the disciples argued among themselves about who was the greatest, Christ’s answer was a short course on leadership for the ages (Luke 22:24-27):

And there was also a strife among them, which of them should be accounted the greatest. And he said unto them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and they that exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. But ye shall not be so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth.

Primitive Baptists have a greater opportunity to mold themselves into the Biblical pattern discussed above than the great majority of denominations in the world today. Historically, we have no centralized ecclesiastical hierarchy that governs the business of the local Church. Each congregation enjoys autonomy with the right and privilege to conduct themselves according to their faith and the Word of God. This, of course, can be abused but the benefits of localized governing far outweigh the bonds placed on bodies of believers under the authority of an ecclesiastical organization.

An error one finds in Church histories regarding Primitive Baptists is that they broke away from mainstream Baptists because of opposition to missionary efforts. The opposition that created the first open schism between among Baptists had nothing to do with carrying the Word of God to all the nations, but rather societies and committees and institutions that dictated how to carry out such efforts. This encroachment into the autonomy of the local Churches created a division out of which the Primitive Baptists emerged. But beyond that, the break among Baptists was rooted in the diminishing of the faith as relating to the sovereignty of God as men and their organizations assumed more authority in Church matters.

Primitive Baptist Churches sprung up primarily throughout the south, but in time expanded into other regions from Georgia to California and Florida to Maine. Despite suffering from divisions among themselves regarding practices, Primitive Baptists have generally maintained agreement in matters of the Faith once delivered to the saints.

In these days, when Churches too often resemble corporations and preach and teach the inventions of men, Primitive Baptists seek those who desire to worship in reverence and simplicity in the manner of the early Church. Paul feared the breakdown of the church in this regard. “I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

That is both our fear and our incentive for holding fast to God’s Word and maintaining the good traditions of those in whose paths we tread, that great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1) Of whom the world was not worthy (Hebrews 12:38). As Primitive Baptists, that is our hope and prayer. To God be the glory. Amen.

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Primitive Baptist Home

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Welcome home to the online home of Primitive Baptist churches throughout the world. Here, you will find information about people deeply rooted in the doctrines of salvation by grace.

In a time of liberal, humanistic approaches by mainstream Christianity, Primitive Baptists provide a refreshing return to the conservative values and teachings and purposes articulated in Jude 1:3.

Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.

As this website grows, we hope you will check back often. To receive occasional notifications of updates, please visit the “Contact” page.

Thank you for visiting, and welcome home.

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