Matthew 7:13, 14 The Straight and Narrow Way



CHRIST INSTRUCTS THE MULTITUDE

IN THEIR

TRAVELS TO A NEVER ENDING ETERNITY.

Matthew 7: 13, 14

New Year’s Day Sermon by:

Rev. L. Roth.

PUBLISHED BY THE

PUBLICATIONS COMMITTEE

OF THE

FREE REFORMED CHURCHES OF NORTH AMERICA.

(December 2007)

LITURGY:

Votum

Psalter 275: 1, 2, 3

Scripture Reading: Matthew 7: 1 – 14

Text: Matthew 7: 13, 14

Confession of Faith – Canons Head 1, Art 1 – 4

Psalter 1: 1, 2, 5

Congregational Prayer

Offerings

Psalter 428: 1, 2, 5

Sermon

Psalter 439: 3, 4

Thanksgiving Prayer

Psalter 347: 1, 2, 4

Doxology: Psalter 197

Matthew 7:13, 14 The Straight and Narrow Way

Beloved Congregation.

Whenever we embark upon a trip to a destination where we have never been before we take a map as a guide. Not only does that provide us with the route we need to take but the various place names we come across confirm that we are indeed traveling in the right direction. Well now, how important this is for our life when we begin a New Year. We do not know what the future holds for us in this Year 2008. That is hid from us. How important it is that we have a sure guide which is able to bring us through all the difficulties and dangers which may lie upon our life’s path. For only then will all our travels be sure as we continue upon life’s path to our long home, to a never-ending eternity.

Well now, let us seek to understand the words of our text on this first day of the New Year under the following theme, CHRIST INSTRUCTS THE MULTITUDE IN THEIR TRAVELS TO A NEVER ENDING ETERNITY. In the first place let us consider A Narrow Gate. In the second place let us regard A Broad Way. In the third place let us examine A Narrow Way.

In the first place let us consider A Narrow Gate. As we consider this well known passage from the Sermon on the Mount, beloved, we must be careful that we do not divorce this passage from the teaching Christ gave before. The Lord Jesus has given instruction to His fellow countrymen concerning Christian living, what it is to be living a life consecrated unto God. That means, for one thing, that our righteousness will be different than that of the Pharisees who prided themselves in their works.

True religion is of the heart. That also means that a right hand may have to be cut off and a right eye plucked out. Yes, then our prayers and alms giving will be done in secret. Then the treasures of this world will have lost their luster and one’s hope in this life will be upon the Lord also for the daily necessities of life. Coming to our text Chapter, the Lord Jesus speaks of not being judgmental of other people and of looking to the Lord for all the needs we have, for He is more able and willing to bestow His blessings upon a people than they are willing to receive them. And then we come to the words of our text. Here we come to a critical point. If we fail here, all the foregoing instruction will be lost.

At this critical juncture the Lord Jesus declares, Enter ye in at the strait gate. All the foregoing depends on this. There is a Dutch saying, A good beginning is half the job done. In other words, if one’s beginning in seeking to perform a certain work is good and on a firm foundation, then the rest will fall into place even though the beginning may represent only 10% of the whole job. But when our beginning is tentative and not at all firmly based, then we will be continually plagued with uncertainties and difficulties which can cause much havoc. Well now, in our text the Lord declares, Enter ye in at the strait gate. The word used in the original here gives the picture of a narrow gate through which only one person can go through at a time as opposed to the much wider way through which a multitude streams through. Some people have compared it to a turnstile. Only one person can go through such a turnstile at a time and no more. Moreover, such a turnstile does not allow you to take any baggage with you as you go through it. The gate into God’s Kingdom and into heaven is a narrow one.

Let us try to understand what that implies. In the first place we need to understand, congregation, that we are all traveling to our long home. Whether we realize it or not, since we have been given life to live in this world we are on the path of life.

And that path upon which we are all on by nature, is the broad way which leads to eternal destruction. But in our text we are placed by the Lord before a narrow gate. Why? Because, except you go through that strait and narrow gate you will never see the Kingdom of God. You may receive a share of many blessings in this life, even experiencing much wealth and honor in this life in the way of many earthy goods and esteem from your fellow man. But, you will not partake of the blessings of God which are lasting. Christ declares, Enter ye in at the strait gate.

What does that actually mean? When we enter something that means that we are leaving something else. For example, when you see the entrance to a department store or something as simple as a public bathroom, then you are leaving another area. Well now, here the Lord Jesus commands His hearers, for He uses the imperative, to enter in at the narrow gate. And very remarkably, the Lord uses the plural form here. You see, the multitude may have listened to Christ’s Sermon on the Mount, but for those vital truths to find entrance into their hearts they need to go through this narrow gate. And that means that sacrifices will have to be made. That will require many aspects of our life which we hold near and dear will have to be let go of.

You see, to come back to comparing the narrow gate to a turnstile, to go through such a turnstile one has to leave his baggage behind. Try to imagine a tourist trying to go through an airport turnstile with some luggage on wheels, a few large shopping bags including a large umbrella trying to get through such a narrow turnstile. No matter what he tries, one by one all his extra baggage has to be dropped and left behind before he can gain entrance to board his plane home. Well now, that’s just a weak illustration of what has to take place if we are to be given an entrance into the Kingdom of God through the narrow gate.

For that to take place, everything which we desire to hang on to outside of the perfect righteousness earned by Christ must be let go of.

In general terms, that means that we have to say goodbye to the world and all that it stands for. Then the things we are so naturally interested in have to fall by the wayside. For the one it is the world of sport. For another it is the desire to be on the cutting edge of technology. A third has to let go of seeking to keep up with the latest fashions and driving the latest car. Coming perhaps closer to home, maybe you have to let go of your children and grand children so that they do not take the first place in your life. In general, all that we are and all that we have must been seen as goods which the Lord has given to us on loan, as stewards of His blessings. Just think of the rich young ruler who thought that he had done so much to receive God’s blessing but who went away sorrowful because he could not part from his temporal goods.

But we need to go a step further. If we are to enter into the strait and narrow way, then we need to leave our “self” outside. And this is where perhaps we meet the greatest stumbling block of all. Why? Because while there are various aspects to this, the greatest of them all is the mother sin, pride. Remember, except your and my righteousness exceed that of the Pharisees we shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. The Lord said at the beginning of His Sermon on the Mount, Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Oh to be given the powerful work of the Holy Spirit by which we are made small and insignificant in ourselves, beloved, through Whom the blessed Savior and His finished work become the first desire and longing of our heart, that is true life.

And so, besides being stripped of ourselves, dear friends, entrance into the Kingdom of God requires being born again from above.

You must be born again will you ever be given entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. And so, in a sense we can say that the narrow gate itself is regeneration and conversion. One could also say that the narrow gate is conversion and faith. To enter into God’s Kingdom we must leave something behind, namely, our old nature, our old self. Oh yes, here below it is but in principle, a small beginning of the new obedience. But when that is there, sinners begin to hunger and thirst after righteousness. May it indeed be there, by the Spirit’s grace, beloved, may it be there. For there is no greater blessing than to experience new life in the blessed Savior. For His perfect righteousness is able to free you and I from the bondage of this world and all that is in it. Which brings us to our second thought, A Broad Way.

We have spoken about the strait and narrow gate which leads to life. For anyone to find it and to enter in, then he or she needs to be born again by the Spirit of God. What a blessing, that the Lord has given to us this gate! For, let us realize that we have closed, so to speak, the Gate of Paradise behind us through the sin of our first parents. Remember children how that Cherubim with flaming swords were placed at the entrance to the Garden of Eden to prevent man from taking fruit from the Tree of Life? But the Lord opened another way to be restored to Him, namely, through the strait and narrow gate proclaimed in our text. However, just knowing about this door and perhaps standing before it will not give us an entrance into it; on the contrary, but we must press into it by the Spirit’s power and grace. And as we saw, this will require denial of ourselves. And the reason for this is that we not only do not know the way to this door, but we do not have the insight nor the strength to enter into it of our own selves.

Well now, let us try to understand the reason why this is so by turning to the words of our text.

We are confronted with the preposition “for”; for, wide is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction and so on. What is the Lord saying here? Well, very simply said, there are many who are traveling to a never-ending eternity upon the broad way. By nature, we are all on that way due to the depraved condition in which we were born. Notice that, when the Lord speaks of the wide gate, He immediately adds to it the broad way. They are pretty well synonymous. For we are all traveling on that way if we just continue to live our lives as we have been born. And therefore it is so important that we learn to know the narrow way which leads to life. For, as our text indicates the wide gate and the broad way lead to destruction.

Let us try to understand how this way differs from the narrow way. In the first place it differs so much with respect to the place to where the wide gate and broad way leads. Our text says that it leads to destruction. Plainly said, congregation, this way leads straight to hell. It is the gate way of Satan, of the world and sin. There is nothing which you need to do but to live your life as naturally as you want. For the one it may be in taking their fill in the ways of what we term “worldly sins”. And for another it may mean living a decent outward life in which you pay all your dues to mankind. But in both of these cases, whether we live a outwardly decent life or live in the world taking our fill of its pleasures, our hearts are still alienated from God and enemies of His grace and favor. Yes, then unbelief characterizes our life which is the opposite of a life of faith and hope in the Lord and His Christ.

Yes, dear friends, the gate of unbelief is a very wide one and admits many people through it at one and the same time. It allows you to take all kinds of baggage along. The ways of sin are painted in rose colored hues, so attractive and alluring, as if there are no consequences in taking our fill of them. Oh, that wide gate that leads to the ways of sin is made to look so attractive as possible by the arch enemy.

He makes it so alluring and it takes very little to enter into it. Oh yes, one may feel a twinge of conscience due to one’s upbringing. Perhaps, we may be a little hesitant due to the teaching of the Word itself. Maybe even a warning from our parents can make us hesitate for a moment. And yet, and yet, you continue to go through the wide gate on to the broad way. The world with all its allurements continues to beckon you and you find yourself drawn into its whirl pool motion unable to escape its clutches. You are not able to free yourself from its power.

Wide is the gate of unbelief, congregation. You and I so readily rush through it. But, besides this gate which virtually offers no resistance, millions upon millions of people are traveling on the broad way to which it leads. These are people who are out to enjoy life to its fullest, who try to get out of life what they can. They are people who are broad minded you know, who don’t allow narrow mindedness to interfere with their lives. This is seen in the music they listen to, the clothes they wear and their whole demeanor in life. Everything goes there. Oh yes, some of these people may belong to a church and even attend services regularly. But come Monday morning or perhaps even on Sunday afternoon they are back full swing on the broad way watching sports events on the television set, feeding the desires of their own depraved heart.

Oh that broad way is so alluring, congregation. But it leads to eternal death. It all seems so innocent. There are many “decent” people on that way who are really good neighbors and would do anything to help a friend in need. And yet they do not know anything about self-denial in the Biblical sense. They may perform some good works as man counts these but their hearts are set upon the things of this life. They may be very interested in culture and history and politics and many more good and important things, so that they can speak very intelligently about them. They may be financially conservative and very well mannered and behaved. But one thing they have no knowledge of; when it comes to the ways of the Lord and the blessed work of the Savior, they have nothing to say. They cannot associate with vital godliness. Oh yes, they may be able to speak about minister A, B, & C but they cannot speak out of the grace and power of God. Why? Because they are still strangers to God’s grace.

Well now, how is that with us, beloved? Do you know of God’s mercy being revealed in your life? Have you already been convinced that the broad way with all its enchantments cannot satisfy? Or, are there any here perhaps who are still halting between two opinions. On the one hand, deep in your heart you know that the natural inclinations of your heart are not good. For by nature man runs away from the Lord and His will and ways. That’s too constrictive, you know. Then one feels like a little fish in a gold fish bowl.

But such thoughts, dear friends, come from the pit of hell. They are not true at all! For when you are taken from off of that broad way that leads to destruction, it is only then that you begin to understand what life is all about. Only then do you begin to experience true freedom. For truly, when you remain on the broad way, you are enslaved to the ways of sin and unbelief. Then this life is nothing but a continual death, of separation from your Creator and covenant keeping God. That means then, that the wrath of God remains upon you even while you live, according to John 3:36. And except you are born from above you are going to perish forever and ever in your sins. Think upon that my unconverted friend and cry out to God for mercy, for His favor while it is still the acceptable time, the time of grace.

But thanks be to God the Lord still has His people in our midst as well. The world and all that is in it can not satisfy your soul. Instead, you have learned to thirst after God and His grace. You have seen that this life is nothing but a mirage, even a continual death because it cannot satisfy the deepest yearnings of your heart. Only God in Christ can do so. He has said, I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; I am the Door. If any man enter in by Me, he shall be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture.

Oh, to be counted as a sheep of God’s flock, beloved, that is to experience life as it was meant to be. How blessed to only be a little lamb that experiences the care of the Good Shepherd and that has learned to hear His voice. For that means, then, that you have been placed upon the narrow way that leads to life. Yes, then you may also have a blessed hope for this New Year, 2008, and for a never-ending eternity. Which brings us to our final thought, A Narrow Way.

The Lord Jesus has taught the multitude including His disciples the way of life. He has pointed out to them two distinct ways. There is a strait and narrow gate as well as a very wide gate. The one entrance allows but one person at a time. Moreover, those that do so must enter in by him or herself. Not only can you and I not take a dear relative or friend with us, but we must leave all our baggage behind. You and I must enter that gate stripped naked and bare, with only our sin and guilt remaining. And it is to that end that the Lord also issues the command, Enter ye in at the strait gate. By it, He as it were commands sinners to flee from the wrath to come.

Yes, beloved, over against the negative truth concerning the broad way of sin and evil which leads to death the Savior places the narrow way of everlasting life, of heavenly blessings. But even more than that, the Lord Jesus gives the command, enter ye in at the strait gate. You know, there are some who declare two ways, the broad way and the narrow way but speak of the second as if, while opposite of the other, it is not really attainable unto man. But that is not true as we read in verse 13 of our text. The Lord gives the command to enter in at the strait gate.

However, having said that, the last part of our text does emphasize the difficulty of entering in for as Christ says, Few there be that find it. Why do you suppose that there are few who find the strait gate and narrow way? What does this really mean? Well, for one thing, congregation, thereby we are shown that salvation is of God from the very beginning to the end. While not a few may have heard of the way of salvation and may even be able to speak about it as it is revealed in God’s own Word, yet there are relatively speaking, few that actually go in through the strait gate upon the narrow way. Why is that? The reason for this is because there are but few that find it. No, this is not because that gate is camouflaged in one way or another and therefore difficult to find, oh no. The Lord has declared that way very plainly during His own ministry. I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man cometh to the Father but by Me. And so the way is plain enough.

But, the difficulty lies in the fact that this way is so different from the natural way of life. Just think of how the Lord says that whosoever would save his life shall lose it and whosoever shall lose his life for the sake of Christ shall find it. Or, think of Christ’s saying that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the Kingdom of God. And then we also have the saying, Except a man take up his cross and follow after Me cannot be My disciple. What do all these sayings have in common, congregation? What is the golden thread that links them together? Is it not this, That the strait gate and the narrow way that leads to life requires the absolute denial of ourselves? Remember the idea of the turnstile, dear friends; only one at a time may enter into God’s Kingdom. And…it requires that we leave everything we have behind. Why? So that it is all of grace.

You see, beloved, as the Lord Jesus also said during His own ministry, I am the Door. Only through Him can we gain entrance into the Kingdom of Heaven. That means that the gateway into the Kingdom is only for poor, needy, naked, and empty sinners who have nothing, nothing at all to offer unto the Lord but, to their shame, their sin and guilt. To enter through the narrow gate and to walk upon the narrow way that leads unto life, we need to leave everything upon which we so naturally set our hearts, behind, namely, the world and its attractions, the lusts of our flesh, the pride of life, our own righteousnesses which are nothing more than tinsel and sparkling sins;

yes, beloved, we need to lose ourselves totally and to cast ourselves upon the sheer mercy of God revealed in Christ Jesus and His perfect righteousness.

That means then, dear friends, when we have indeed entered in at the strait gate and embarked upon the narrow way that leads to life then our whole manner of life will have been turned around. Instead serving ourselves with all our affections and lusts, we must wage war against a threefold enemy, the world, our flesh , and the powers of darkness. Yes, then the affections of the heart are set upon the things which are from above. Then your friends change and the whole sphere of your life. Yes, then the desire of your heart is to be with the Lord’s people, to gather at His House around His Word, to meditate upon the blessed Savior and His finished work because that has then become your heavenly food and drink. In one word, Christ and His righteousness becomes the longing of your life. And as a result, His people and His House also receive the love of your heart.

The Lord Jesus has given an earnest command. Enter into the strait gate. But then, at the end of our text He says, Few there be that find it. And take notice, beloved, the Lord does not speak of seekers, but finders. Why is that? Well, by putting it in this way all of God’s children will be convinced that it was not because they were so diligent or because they were so willing to seek the Lord that they became finders, oh no. But it is only due to His sovereign grace and mercy. Remember what John writes in this regard, beloved? We love Him, because He loved us first. Oh, how blessed when our beginning may be in the Lord as well as our ending. What a mercy to be counted among those few who become true finders. For then God the Lord in Jesus Christ will be our all in all. Oh that the words of the poet would be the conviction of all our hearts,

‘Tis not that I did choose Thee, For, Lord that could not be;

This heart would still refuse Thee, Hadst Thou not chosen me

Thou from the sin that stained me, Hast cleansed and set me free.

Of old Thou hast ordained me, That I should live to Thee.

‘Twas sovereign mercy called me, And taught my opening mind;

The world had else enthralled me, To heavenly glories blind.

My heart owns none before Thee, For Thy rich grace I thirst;

This knowing, if I love Thee, Thou must have loved me first.

When that has indeed become true in our lives, then we have entered through the straight and narrow gate; then to God be all the glory! For He, and He alone is worthy! Amen.

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