Narrow Road, Small Gate
Matthew 7:13-14
August 21, 2005
Introduction
This is one of those messages that fits in real well with the beliefs of our church and what the Bible teaches about God, Jesus, and heaven, but won’t win me any friends with people who think we’re narrow minded about such things.
And you know what? I am narrow- minded about some things. No question. And this is one of those things.
But the good news is that I’m in pretty good company. Because Jesus is narrow-minded about it too, as we’ll see in words we’re about to look at.
As we’ve worked our way through the gospel of Matthew, and in particular, the Sermon on the Mount, we’ve seen Jesus talk about a number of things, ranging from the beatitudes, to how to be salt and light to the world, murder, adultery, being "spiritual" for show, and judging people.
Today we see Jesus turning the corner into some warnings - about getting to heaven, false prophets, and other such things.
And in starting this, he starts by discussing two roads and two gates as he gives a warning about not missing the way to heaven.
Listen to his words, which are printed for you in the note-taking guide.
"Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it."
How many of you have gone to the Brown County Fair this week? I went yesterday. And you know what I discovered? They actually have roads that lead to different parking lots.
They’re kind of narrow, barely enough for two cars in some places, and never wide enough for three or more.
They also had places marked where you couldn’t even drive a car. They were too narrow for vehicles.
At the Brown County Fair, there are narrow roads and small gates.
If it’s important enough to use narrow roads and small gates at the county fair, can you imagine how important the issue is when it comes to heaven and how to get in there?
Let’s take a look at what we can learn from this passage, okay. But before we do that, let’s pray.
Here’s the first thing we can learn from these words of Jesus:
The gate is only one person wide: Jesus.
I’m starting with this point because I want to make sure that there is no missing it because it either got lost in the middle of the message or you were too tired to catch it near the end.
John 10:9 -
"I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved."
There is no room for anyone but Jesus, and there is no room for anyone with Jesus.
This is so important. In fact, this is one of those things that if you miss this, it will impact your eternal destiny.
I know that’s not very politically correct nowadays, but you know what? That’s not the issue. Because when your time comes, it won’t be the ACLU you’re standing in front of, it’ll be God Almighty.
He’s gonna ask you which gate you used. And if you didn’t use HIS gate, then you won’t be welcome in his heaven.
It’s that simple.
Jesus said in John 14:6 -
"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
The challenge has been around since the time Jesus was on earth:
Was he lying, was he insane, or was he telling the truth?
If you can’t believe that he was lying or insane, then the only other option you have is to believe he was telling the truth.
And then you have another choice to make: do you act on it now or do you wait until later?
And in considering that question, let me give you something else to consider: can you afford to put it off?
Are you sure that you will be around later so you can put your faith in Christ? I hope so, for your sake.
But make no mistake, some people are going to die today, and they weren’t planning on it. And if they have not put their faith in Christ, they are lost for eternity.
But let’s turn our attention to a question that I think is worth considering when we look at this passage, and that is...
Why do only a few find it?
I think this is a good, valid question. Why do only few find it? Has God hidden it? Is it only for the privileged few?
I don’t think so, especially here in the U.S., where access to the good news of Jesus is unparalleled anywhere else on earth. But I do think there are a number of reasons why few people find it, and we’re going to look at a few of these in a moment.
But I want to take a moment to dispel the myth that spiritual truth is some mystical thing hidden among the monks or found through trances or hidden meanings in paintings or novels.
Some people feel that if truth can be easily found, then it’s probably not really true. It’s only worth believing if you have to work to find it.
Well, the spiritual truths of God are contained in the Word of God - the Bible. It’s important to understand this because there is lots of stuff out there that claims to be truth. But it contradicts the Bible.
Given those thoughts, let’s take a look at just three reasons people don’t find the narrow road and narrow gate.
Three main reasons:
1. Some sheep are too stingy to give directions to the gate, or they just don’t care to tell others.
I think that some sheep see how green the pasture is, and they want to make sure that there is no competition for the food.
So they avoid opportunities to tell others about how to find forgiveness of sins and eternal life in heaven through Jesus.
But you know what? Instead of running out of grass, God multiplies the grass. But for some reason, some would rather just keep it and Jesus all to themselves.
Or they take the attitude that, "Eh - if they find it, they find it. Don’t bother me about helping them. That’s the pastor’s job, or Billy Graham’s, not mine.
And obviously, both of these attitudes make it hard for people to find the narrow road and narrow gate.
The second reason they’re hard to find is that...
2. People are ignorant of the way to the gate.
There’s a story about Billy Graham, early in his crusade ministry.
One day at a certain city he was trying to mail a letter. He stepped out of the hotel to find a post office and saw a small boy, who was kind enough to give Billy directions to the post office.
Once the boy finished, Billy said, "Come to the Coliseum tonight and I’ll tell you how to get to heaven."
The little boy replied, "Mister, you don’t even know how to get to the post office."
Well, ignorance about directions to the post office is one thing, but ignorance about how to get to heaven is another thing altogether, that’s for sure.
Some people are simply ignorant of the way to heaven. That doesn’t mean they’re stupid. They simply don’t know the way. They’ve either never heard it or didn’t understand it for one reason or another.
Let me focus on the first part of that - not having heard it.
I just read recently that Christianity is the fastest growing religion in terms of what we call "conversion growth." In other words, more people are putting their faith in Christ than are joining other religions.
That’s very encouraging, especially in light of the fact that this is exactly what Jesus was expecting when he commanded his followers to make disciples in every nation.
But the fact remains that there are still billions of people who still have not yet heard about Jesus. This is why missions is so important. The job’s not done yet, folks!
And you know what else? It’s very important to remember that Jesus expects US to continue the job of making disciples, both here and abroad.
There are people here in Aberdeen who are unaware of their need for Jesus. And it’s our responsibility to help them find the narrow way and the narrow gate.
Let’s move on to the last reason we’re going to look at this morning.
3. People refuse to look for it or refuse the directions given.
They’re either convinced that they already have the truth in some other religion, or they just don’t want to hear the truth about Jesus.
They may have even heard the directions before, but just decide that they’re way is better.
Some of these people are even mad at you for wanting to help give them directions. Can you believe it?
These people think the gate is wide and the road is wide. In a moment, I want to talk about some examples of this type of thinking.
There are more reasons that few people find the narrow way and the narrow gate, but these are the three I wanted to focus on today.
But before we move on, let me say something.
You and I have the responsibility to help people find the way to Christ. We have no business hoarding it for ourselves.
So whether you are actually telling people from the Scriptures about their need for Jesus, or you’re praying for their salvation, or you’re inviting them to church, or giving them literature that explains the good news of Jesus, you can have a part in helping people find the gate.
It’s our job - and Jesus expects his people to do it.
Let’s move on now to some...
Examples of "wide gate, broad road" thinking:
Here are some things that I’ve heard over the years. Maybe you’ve heard them too. The bottom line of all these things we’re going to look at today is that the road is not really narrow, and the gate is actually very wide. Here we go:
* "All roads lead to God."
I hear this one all the time. Many people believe that you can be a Muslim, a Hindu, a Jehovah’s Witness, a Mormon, a Buddhist, or whatever. It doesn’t matter, because religions are all a journey to God and God will just accept everyone who is religious in any way, shape, or form.
The problem with that thinking is that it makes Jesus a liar. We’ll look more at that in a minute.
But you have to understand that you can get to the top of the ladder of religion, which is what most of them require to get to heaven, just to find that you’re ladder is against the wrong wall.
Another example of "wide gate, broad road" thinking is this:
* "As long as I’m sincere, that’s all that matters."
This is sort of related to the first one - as long as someone sincerely believes in something, then it’s okay with God, and he’ll let you in.
There are a number of problems that can come up with this line of thinking, but let me just focus on one: you can be sincerely wrong about things.
I can sincerely believe that the law of gravity no longer applies to me, but if I jump off a tall building, I’m gonna find out that my sincerity does no good at all.
Or I can sincerely believe that I’m above the laws of the land, but if I try to rob a bank or kill someone, I’m gonna find out that all my sincerity won’t keep me from being arrested, and maybe face the death penalty myself.
Sincerity in being "spiritual" or "religious" just won’t cut it. There are lots of people who are sincere about their faith. But that doesn’t nullify what God says about what it takes to get to heaven.
Here’s a third example of "wide gate, broad road" thinking:
* "God and I have an understanding."
You know, I have yet to have anyone tell me this and give me an explanation for it.
I think what they really mean is that they’ve made some sort of "arrangement" or deal that basically says, "I’ll just be myself on earth and try not to embarrass you and then when I die, you’ll just let me in, okay?"
But here’s the problem: God doesn’t make deals. God’s not like some heavenly negotiator. God gives the terms for salvation - the only "deal" is for you to take it or leave it.
Let’s look at a fourth example of this type of thinking:
* "God wouldn’t really send anyone to hell."
This is actually an example of no gate thinking.
Why would any one need a gate if there was no possibility of hell?
But Jesus is very clear that there is a hell, and his descriptions of it are horrific.
We all know John 3:16 -
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."
And I also have a penchant for bringing up verse 17 as well -
"For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."
But you know what? There’s another verse right after that. Here’s what verse 18 has to say -
"Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son."
And who is doing the condemning here? God. And so there’s a problem here: this type of thinking makes God a liar.
Conclusion
Proverbs 14:21 -
There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.
The bottom line of all of this is that without Jesus, there is no hope of heaven.
Putting your trust in the human thinking = hell. Don’t be fooled. It’s the truth.
On the other hand, putting your trust in Jesus = heaven.
So here’s the question: where is your hope? What road and what gate are you trying to use to get to heaven?
If it’s not Jesus, then you’re on the wrong road, plain and simple.
(Gospel)
Let’s pray.
