Critics of this portion of Jesus' " Sermon on the Mount" will complain that our Lord is being "exclusive."  There are correct -- the Christian way is in fact rightly an exclusive one!  Praise God, it is also a way (THE way -- John 14:6) that is also completely INCLUSIVE to all who will accept it!

 

For context (there's that word again), read Matthew 7:13-27. Here God reveals to us that we only two options: We will either follow Christ wholeheartedly ("all in") along the "narrow" 4-wheel drive road that ultimately leads to heaven or we will go down the wide, 8-lane highway to destruction (ultimately hell). There can be no half-hearted commitment to Jesus! If we are not on the narrow road of biblical discipleship, then we are on the wide road to eternal damnation.

Likewise, those of us serving in our God-ordained profession (Romans 13:1-4) of law enforcement will embrace the fact that surviving an academy or making it through field training and our first years on the road is a narrow, difficult path indeed! 

 

Now understand that salvation is by grace through faith and not of works (we can't "badge" or earn our way into heaven -- Ephesians2:8-10). However, good works, including our confession of Jesus and our obedience to His commands, follow necessarily from a changed heart (v. 10). Here's the text: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them .

 

The Narrow Way

The phrase "narrow is the gate" is fairly easy to understand (especially for anyone who has owned a boat -- LOL). A narrow gate is harder to pass through than one that is wide, and only a few people can go through a narrow gate at once. In saying "difficult is the way which leads to life," Jesus was explaining how hard being a genuine Christian really is. The word "difficult" as used here comes from the  Greek word  thlibo , which means: "to press" -- as in a wine press; press hard upon; narrow, contracted; completing a really heavy bench "press." The word can also be used metaphorically to mean "trouble, afflict, distress."    

 

The Broad Way 

This is the life that most seek after and are more "comfortable" with: having our own way; maintaining a private life that suits us; seeking after the things of "the world" over the things of God; focusing on "happiness" (vs. joy); compromise; doing what "feels right" (see Proverbs 14:12). Clearly, the  wide, easy gate is also much less exclusive as it allows for human effort (worldly "goodness"), modern "culture" and all other religions.

The gate to heaven is "narrow" in the sense of having an exclusive requirement for entrance-faith in Jesus Christ. Salvation is found only in the Person of Jesus Christ; He alone is " the way, the truth and life" and that "no one" (that means NO one) "comes to the Father" (heaven) but through Him (see Jo hn 14:6 and "Radical" Pastor David Platt's great devo on this -- The Exclusivity of Christ).

Dr. Luke in Luke 13:23-24 adds even more context:  " And someone said to Him, 'Lord, will those who are saved be few?' And He said to them, 'Strive  to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.'"

Jesus says that the narrow gate -- like a cop's life -- leads to a "hard" road, one that will take us through hardships and difficulties (what the Bible calls "trials and tribulations"). God's word also reveals that following Jesus requires crucifying our flesh; living by faith; enduring trials with Christlike patience and living a lifestyle separate from the world.  When faced with the choice between a narrow, bumpy 4-wheel drive road and a wide, paved highway, most of us will choose the wide, easier one that offers worldly comfort and pleasure. When faced with the reality of denying themselves to follow Jesus, most people turn away ( John 6:66).  Jesus never sugar-coats the truth, and the truth is that not many people are willing to pay the price to follow Him (with the understanding that He paid the ULTIMATE price -- death on the cross -- so that we could).

The "inclusive" part is that God offers salvation to everyone who accepts it, but ONLY on His terms (the "exclusive" part). We must come to salvation via "the way" He has provided and versus doing it our own way (a pathway of our own choosing).  Nor can we come to a holy God based on our own efforts, being "good" or our service in law enforcement. Compared to His righteousness, we are all filthy (Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:10). God cannot simply overlook our sin. He is merciful, but He is also just. Justice requires that sin be paid for. At great cost to Himself, Jesus paid that price. Without the blood of Jesus covering our sin, we stand guilty before a just and holy God whom we rejected (Romans 1).

Clearly, we all deserve to stay on the "wide road that leads to destruction." But God loved us enough to provide the path (the ONLY path) to eternal life anyway (John 3:16). However, He also knows that in our self-centered, sin-saturated world there are not many who will desire Him enough to come to Him on His terms: Jeremiah 29:13 (right after the oft-MISquoted v. 11) says, "You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart."

Satan has paved the highway to hell with fleshly temptations, worldly attractions, and moral compromises. Most people allow their feelings, passions and desires to dictate the course of their lives. They choose temporary, earthly pleasure over the self-sacrifice required in following Jesus. The narrow gate is ignored. Most people would rather create their own religions and design their own gods. So it was with sorrow (and not discrimination), that Jesus declared that the road to eternal life is "narrow, and only a few find it."

Pastor and noted Bible commentator Matthew Henry summarizes Jesus' teaching in today's passage: "We must endure hardship, must wrestle and be in agony, must watch in all things, and walk with care and circumspection. We must go through much tribulation."

Sadly, those who do consider the narrow way often conclude that Jesus' teaching is too tough because of the obedience that is required. Difficult? Yes, but by no means impossible!  As born again believers we have the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit to help us and the rewards are ultimately both unimaginably awesome and eternal. Do YOU have that?

 

Clearly, the wide way is an easy road, full of options and latitude. The wide way is the way of self. People on the wide way live as they please. They may be moral or immoral, nice or mean, good or bad, religious or non-religious. But, without Christ, NONE of the "good" will matter.  In the end, the ONLY thing that matters will be if you've trusted Christ as your Lord and Savior and, in His power, are following Him on "the narrow way."  

For more on this, see "The Roman Road" (yes, it's rough and narrow but with incredible engineering, "views" and rewards) and then watch this 10-minute segment of Paul Washer's sermon on "The Narrow Way"