2010-01-01
Good Morning Dear Ones,
For the last few weeks, the Holy Spirit has directed me to write about the narrow gate to eternal life, using comparisons from other Scriptures to MT 7: 13-14 from the Sermon on the Mount. “Go in through the narrow gate because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there are many who travel it. But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard, and there are few people who find it.” I am no longer surprised that every word said by our Lord has far reaching ramifications. The Lord builds in layers of meaning in every thought He conveys, and it’s our job to study well, so that we can understand and believe them.
Let’s look at the same subject as expounded upon by Dr. Luke, in LK 13: 22-30. In the course of His teaching in town to town, Christ was asked, “Sir, will just a few people be saved?” (23 b). In (24), Christ’s answer was, “Do your best to go in through the narrow door; because many people will surely try to go in but will not be able.” This is not due to unfair cruelty by God, but instead because of their lack of faith or unwillingness to ignore temptations of the flesh. The owner of the house will refuse to open the door to a stranger coming to knock on it. He will accuse the believing stranger(s) of being wicked. Later the house owner will gnash his teeth when he sees Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob with all the prophets of the Kingdom of God, when he is thrown out. People from all over the world will sit down and partake of the feast in the Kingdom. Those who are now first will be last, and vice versa. The judgment here comes when the believers first knock at the door. It takes a willingness to make changes in the ways one sees things to become a believer. It takes discernment to recognize the teaching of God, that which comes from His word alone. Self-discipline in studying His word, willingness to “be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see” [HE 11: 1], i.e. faith. Praying for discernment when that door is first knocked upon is a wise thing. PS 119: 125, “I am your servant; give me understanding, so that I may know Your teachings.” Remember that most of the houses Christ visited belonged to traditional Jews. They should have known what the rabbis taught from the Tenach [OT in Hebrew]. A further prayer for wisdom could have been added to that. PS 51: 6, “Sincerity and truth are what You require; fill my mind with wisdom.” Had the owner of house known and believed Scripture, he would recognize the stranger at his door as a believer and opened the door to him immediately.
Even today, we must realize PS 111: 10, also from the OT. “The way to become wise is to have reverence for the Lord. He gives sound judgment to all who obey His commands. He is to be praised forever.” Once the believer is allowed in, this truth can be conveyed: 1 COR 1: 30, “But God has brought you into union with Christ Jesus, and God has made Christ to be our wisdom. By Him we are put right with God. We become God’s holy people and are set free.” Yes, we are free and empowered to walk that hard path that eventually leads to a blissful eternal life with the Father and the Son [Lamb of God]. The believer would have the chance to share this valuable information with listener. EPH 1: 17, “…Ask the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, to give you the Spirit, Who will make you wise and reveal God to you, so that you will know Him.” If the door remains shut in the face of the believer, none of this precious knowledge can be imparted, and the Holy Spirit is barred from giving the home owner faith.
And then, there are the people who once refuse to open the door, then they realize what they have missed and try to get it some other way. These will be turned away because their so-called “creative thinking” is really flawed rationalizing. In this group we find those who proclaim to believe when they really don’t understand God’s teaching, those who try to sneak into God’s Kingdom only find they can’t. We already know that due to the sinful nature of mankind, there will always be those who will go against God’s standards in one way or another. Only true repentance and willingness to learn and obey God’s teaching will gain entrance. The bottom line goes right back to what Les Feldick has always taught: FAITH + NOTHING = SALVATION. The gift of salvation comes to believers from the Lord. Nothing we can do will bring it, except genuine repentance of our sins and faith in Jesus Christ. JN 14: 6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me,” Christ said. He never lies. We must claim the truths of EPH 2: 8-10, “For it is by God’s grace that you are saved through faith. It is not the result of your own efforts, but God’s gift, so that no one can boast about it. God has made us what we are, and in our union with Christ Jesus, He has created us for a life of good deeds, which He has already prepared for us to do.” We must understand that a day will come that if we haven’t come to faith in Christ when it will be too late for us to enter His Kingdom. So, Dear Ones, right now is the time to dedicate ourselves to taking steps to deepen our faith and to reject temptation that comes from the evil one.
PRAYER: O Lord, it is said that confession is good for the soul. There have been times when we have given in to temptation to take the easy way. There have been times when we questioned Your commands, just as Jonah did when he was commanded by You to go to Nineveh, the capital city of Israel’s enemies, the Assyrians [JON 1: 3]. We all know he spent three days in the belly of the big fish, before God gave him another chance, and he was heaved out on to a beach [JON 2: 10]. There was a time in my own life when I questioned what I was learning from reading the Scriptures. But thankfully, God understood me better than I understood myself. The weight of the cost of becoming a believer in the Lord Jesus seemed unbearable to me. That was until I prayed in reverence to our Lord for help with it. Rejection by members of my own family only brought the truth home to me of Christ’s words in MT 10: 34-36, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the world. No, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. I came to set sons against their fathers, daughter against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law; a man’s worst enemies will be the members of his own family.” You have asked us to choose You over family members and have told us in MT 10: 38-39, “Whoever does not take up his cross and follow in My steps is not fit to be My disciple. Whoever tries to gain his own life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for my sake will gain it.” And yes, Lord, You really came through! The people who really mattered to me showed me their loving loyalty. My situation is only one small example of many others. We are all called upon in one way or another to remain loyal to You and Your teaching. We gain our wisdom and discernment from You and You alone. You allow us to recognize what is godly and what is not, who to listen and learn from and who to not. You are a wise, compassionate, and loving God. We praise and thank You for Who You are in our lives and what You do. These things we pray in the mighty and holy name of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Next week, the Spirit guides me to continue in this analysis of MT 7: 13-14 and LK 12: 22-30. We’ll take a closer look at those who deny the believer or even Christ Himself entrance into their homes. The very day that we “come clean” with Christ is the day that an amazing hope is inserted into our lives. What we did before we knew the truth was completely forgiven for eternity, once we genuinely repented and came to faith in Jesus Christ. In fact, the Lord’s words in HE 8: 12 are just the beginning. “I will forgive their sins and will no longer remember their wrongs.” The legalism of traditional Judaism and a host of other sins people commit are gone- to be replaced with a love so great that it is unparalleled by any from any other source. I am constantly reminded that we still are sinners living on earth, but there is a difference. We can understand God’s teaching, because the Holy Spirit has given us faith in Him. We gain wisdom from God’s word. PS 1: 1, “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law he meditates day and night.” This law is not expanded to 613 laws by legalistic rabbis of the first through third centuries AD. This law is based on love that comes from a loving, compassionate, and wise Lord, Who wants us to try as hard as we can to emulate Him without expecting us to be perfect. Perfection will eventually come from Him, as we go through the process of sanctification. Yes, we can live with the hope He gave us through His Atonement, the hope of the resurrection. There is no greater hope or gift that we can have than the hope of eternal life with Him. Praise and thanks to Him for this fabulous gift and His enduring perspective!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn