How Valuable Is Being Part Of The Church?

How Valuable Is Being Part of the Church?

Luke 13:22-30

Rabbi Rev. Dr. Michael H. Koplitz

Luke 13:22 And He was passing through one city and village after another,

teaching, and proceeding on His way to Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to Him,

“Lord, are there just a few who are being saved?” And He said to them, 24 “Strive

to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will

not be able. 25 “Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, and you

begin standing outside and knocking on the door, saying, ‘Lord, open up to us!’

and He then will answer and say to you, ‘I do not know where you are from.’ 26

“Then you will begin saying, ‘We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught

in our streets!’ 27 And yet He will say, ‘I do not know where you are from;

LEAVE ME, ALL YOU 2EVILDOERS.’ 28 “In that place there will be weeping

and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and all the prophets

in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. 29 “And they will come

from east and west, and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the

kingdom of God. 30 “And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are

first who will be last.”

In Luke 13:22–30, Jesus speaks of the narrow door—a powerful image of what it means

to enter the Kingdom of God. This isn’t about exclusivity for its own sake; it’s about

commitment. The narrow door reminds us that following Christ requires more than

casual interest—it calls for wholehearted devotion.

Before we go further, let’s clarify something important: when we say church, we’re not

talking about buildings. The word comes from the Greek term for a gathering of

believers united in worship and faith. The church is a living community of people who

trust in the saving work of Jesus Christ.

Let me give you a personal story that I think illustrates where I'm going with this

message. When I graduated from college, one of the things that I was told I had to get

was an American Express credit card. That was in 1980, and to qualify for an American

Express card, one had to earn at least $25,000 per year. Back then that was a massive

sum of money. It took me three years from leaving college to earn that kind of money.

As soon as I did earn $25,000 a year, I applied for the American Express card, and my

application was accepted. For several years after that I was so thrilled that I was doing

that well because in 1983 $25,000 was an excellent salary. I was a computer programmer

in an area that desperately needed computer programmers, so I made out well.

A few years later I was with my family of origin for Thanksgiving when my older brother

of one year pulled out his American Express card and flaunted it at me. I knew that he

was not making $25,000 a year. What I did discover was that American Express had

lowered the standards for getting the green card. When I got home later that day, I cut

the green card in half and canceled my American Express card. Why did I do that? It’

was because I put value into having an American Express card because it made me feel

good to know that I was being successful after graduating from college.

What I am also saying is that American Express lowered the bar for who could have

the card and who could not. They did this to get more people to have an American

Express card so that they could make more money. The prestige of holding an

American Express card when it was available to practically anyone dropped the value

of the card to me. What once felt valuable became ordinary.

The early church understood this truth and had a high bar for admission. Becoming

part of the Christian community wasn’t a casual decision. It involved deep instruction,

confession of sins, and a clear understanding of what faith in Christ meant.

The famous Bishop Augustine wrote a book titled “Confessions,” in which he explained

every sin he did throughout his life. He then said in the book that he confessed all the

sins in front of the church, and it took 2 ½ days to do it. He had to explain why he

abandoned all sinful things that the Roman world accepted and wanted to turn his life

around and worship God through Jesus Christ.

I like to call Augustine the Playboy of the ancient world. He even went so far as to have