Matthew 7:13 “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose that way.14 But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.
There are two gates Jesus talks about in the above verses and in comparison we can see that our choices in which gate to take are very important. If you want to get to God's Kingdom or heaven, then you must choose the narrow gate. It may seem too narrow for you at the time, but when you walk through that gate it opens you up to see a much bigger picture of the life you want to live. Then you can see the abundance of life that Jesus spoke about in John 10:10. Abundance in our lives points us to a life of victory and purpose that is unparalleled by anything the world has to offer. By the way, the world offers a wide gate that leads to destruction. In reality, if you love God you will seek out God's will and follow that way. Proverbs 8:17 says 17 “I love all who love me. Those who search will surely find me.
Our society has put a nail in the coffin and tried to kill the fine-tuned life by saying that anything is acceptable. When I say fine-tined I am lining up with the narrow gateway of looking at life. Our Christian life is not meant to be subjective to how we feel about things because that will change almost minute by minute. The narrow gate is the ultimate fine-tuning of the perfect plan God has for our life. Whatever God says we do it. No compromising on our part because our thoughts and reasoning only water down the purity of God's word. I believe this so much that if I hear someone say "I think what God meant here is this" I will immediately seek God's Word for His truth on the matter. We cannot assume anything less than the pure truth of God's perfect word.
If our world is going a certain way that is even remotely contrary to the teachings of God's Word we should reject it in every situation. The broad gate is full of our "impressions" of what it means and that is all poisoned by our weak interpretation of life because it is according to our personal experiences. If I get burnt by a certain thing happening to me I cannot make that my life course because it has "me" in the middle. My reasoning has to bow before the perfect word of God and if we will seek God as the scripture above says we will find His way, and that way will be narrow.
When Jesus sent out the disciples He told them to be focused on their purpose and not stray from the path He had set them on. It was a narrow path to victory for those who heard the very pointed message they took with them. This message is found in John 3:3 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.” 4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” 5 Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. 7 So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You[d] must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
If you are searching for the narrow gate then it is easy to find and it is Jesus and Jesus alone. Jesus said this in John 14:6 Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. Joshua 24:15 15 But if you refuse to serve the Lord, then choose today whom you will serve. Make sure you go through the narrow gate because that gate is Jesus. Romans 10:13 For “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
The Pilgrimage Continues..
David Warren