“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” Matthew 7:13-14.
In ancient times, most cities were surrounded by walls, where gates were used as places of entry. These gates varied in size, some being large, allowing easy passage in for many, while others were small and narrow, requiring much effort to pass through. Jesus used these pictures to illustrate the two spiritual paths we have.
Imagine there are two roads we have available to reach the end of our life. The first is a new six lane highway with easy access. The speed limit is sixty-five miles per hour, and provides a comfortable journey from point A to point B. The second is a very narrow road, barely two lanes, with difficult access to it. The speed limit is twenty five miles per hour, and we need to be careful to avoid driving off the road. Suppose we are told that both roads lead to the same destination. Which one would you choose? Most, if not all would choose the easy road. Sounds like a no-brainer, as long as both go to the same place. But regarding our spiritual life do they? I will say, not at all.
There are two views people have of this Christian walk, and Jesus denotes these views by roads in what I consider the greatest sermon ever preached, recorded in Matthew 5–7. Many have the belief that both roads lead to the same place, however, in reality they lead to totally different destinations. The narrow road is the harder way that leads to life, the other is a much easier road which leads to destruction. The question is, what is meant by easy and hard? The answer to this question will make clear what this Christian life is versus what it is not. There are many areas where we find contrasts. I will list several scriptures which describe these major differences. In looking at these in preparation for writing this post, I found myself examining my walk to see if I measure up. It is a humbling exercise, but one that is necessary for our Christian walk. In Lamentations we see the necessity of examining where we are in our faith.
“Let us test and examine our ways and return to the LORD!” Lamentations 3:40.
If we find areas where we fall short, this is the time to repent and get back on track. Looking first in Romans we see the following,
“that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;” Romans 10:9.
This scripture is very clear. Allowing Christ to be our Lord is a requirement to true salvation. And in this verse, saying it and believing it is doing it. What does this mean? The Greek word for Lord in the above verse is kurion, meaning supreme ruler, worthy of our service and obedience. Christ is to be our supreme ruler. There can be no other in any area of our lives. We are to obey Him no matter what. Our desires, goals and dreams must become secondary to His. And His will must be first, everything else is unimportant in comparison.
Those on the easy road do what they believe is right, attributing it as God’s will. Those on this road may feign obedience, however, they believe the path of least resistance is the way to go. Their belief is that as long as they try to do the right thing, then all is well. They will do what God says as long as it does not interfere with their lives, thus making their comfort and schedules the arbiter of God’s will. They see Christ as their savior, but not their Lord.
Those on the hard road truly make Christ their Lord. They are always seeking God’s will in all they do placing their own desires in the background. They do not seek the easy path, but are willing to sacrifice all, meaning their possessions, family, hopes, dreams and their very lives for Him. They see themselves as a child of God and servant of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Second, not only should Christ be our Lord, but our love for Him should be greater than our love for anyone or anything else.
“And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:30-31.
And
“He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.” Matthew 10:37-38.
Jesus said loving God and loving others are the two greatest commandments. This tells us love should govern everything we do and think. Nothing should come between us and God. Whatever we allow to come between ourselves and Him we love more than Him. It is that simple. We can love others, but God must be first. Jesus was saying, if we love anyone more than Him, than we are not worthy of Him. And we are called to
”Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than ourselves.” Philippians 2:3.
Our lives should be focused first on God, then others, and then ourselves. This is not easy, but it is a picture of true love.
Those on the easy road probably love God, but not more than everyone or everything. They feign love for God and others; however, it is themselves they love the most. They are unwilling to deny themselves for the sake of their love for Christ or their neighbor. They talk much of love, but their heart says something different.
Those on the hard road deny themselves, placing God and others before themselves. They humbly look at the welfare of others before themselves and are willing to forgive all those who wrong them. God is number one to them, no question. They recognize what God has done for them, and are totally thankful and grateful, which then exhibits itself in true devotion to Him.
Are we on the hard road, or the easy road? Is Christ our absolute Lord, or are there area’s we are not relinquishing to Him? Do we seek His will at all times, or only when it is convenient? Do we love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, or are we half-hearted in our love for Him? Do we look to other’s welfare before our own, trusting that God will take care of us, or do we seek our own welfare over others? These are hard questions, but the answer to these questions will help us determine what road we are on. We must desire with all our heart to live a life of love and serve God as a servant serves his Lord. Sometimes we are unaware of how we are to live; however, the scriptures make it plain, and it is up to us to search the scriptures under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, so that we can understand how the Christian life is to be lived and then change our lives to truly live it as such. If we find ourselves on the broad road, we must make the necessary changes and get on the narrow way, for that road leads to eternal life with the triune God and our brothers and sister who travel the same road. The broad road leads to a place that is less desirable.
Be First to Comment