When someone asked Jesus if only a few people were being saved, Jesus exhorted him and everyone else who could hear Him to strive to enter through the narrow door. Why do we need to strive to enter the kingdom? Because the door is narrow, because the door will soon be shut, and because the door will never be re-opened.
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Strive To Enter the Kingdom!
Luke 13:22-30
Verse 22 says that Jesus was passing through from one city and village to another, teaching and proceeding on His way to Jerusalem. Jesus is deliberately heading to Jerusalem, where He knows that suffering and death awaits Him. But He is on a divine timetable, and before that momentous day arrives, He has work to day. He must teach. But what is He teaching and preaching as He makes His way to Jerusalem. Well, I don’t think we need to wonder about it. What is it that He has just been teaching in verses 18-21? He has been teaching about the kingdom of God. He said it would start out very small and obscure and hidden, but in the end it would expand into a grew and mighty force in the world. Further, it would work like leaven in dough, fermenting, and expanding and bubbling up, until it had influenced people from all over the world. Jesus seemed to be always talking about the kingdom. Luke 8:1 is a good summary of His entire ministry, “Soon afterwards, He began going around from one city and village to another, proclaiming and preaching the kingdom of God.”
The kingdom was the primary subject of His teaching. Preaching the kingdom is really just another way of preaching salvation, for the kingdom is the sphere of those who are saved. The kingdom consists of all those who have submitted to Jesus as their King, and thus have been saved by His power and grace. We know that being in the kingdom is another way of talking about being saved because in verse 23 someone asks, “Lord, are there just a few who are being saved?”
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.” However, at this point, we need to ask, “What was Jesus telling them to strive to enter?” Well, we have the answer in verse 28 and 29: “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but yourselves being thrown out. And they will come from east and west and from north and south, and will recline at the table in the kingdom of God.” Jesus was urging His hearers to strive to enter the kingdom of God, because in entering the kingdom they would experience eternal salvation.
This guy asks if there are only a few being saved. Jesus doesn’t answer Him directly. He doesn’t say “Yes”, and He doesn’t say, “No”. Instead, He says, “don’t waste your time in trivial theological questions. Don’t spend your time wondering if there are many or few who are saved. Just make sure you are saved! The question is not, “Are few saved?” The question really is, “Are you saved?!” When it came to the eternal salvation of souls, Jesus Christ was in dead earnest. He would not put up with theological speculating when men’s souls were at stake.
Now, I think you will have to agree with me that Jesus’ method of giving evangelistic invitations was far different from the way we do it in America today. We tell people, “Just say this prayer”; “just repeat these words”; “just stand up and go down to the front”; “just accept Christ into your heart”; “just ask for forgiveness”. Did you notice that when this man asked if there were just a few who were being saved, Jesus didn’t say, “Make sure you are saved by praying this prayer”? In America today, we have reduced evangelism to getting a person to follow three easy steps – ABC. Admit, believe, confess. We tell lost people that to be saved is a very easy thing. It’s very simple. All you have to do admit you are a sinner, believe that Christ died for your sins, and confess that He is your personal Lord and Savior. Of course the problem with that is that millions of people have gone through that modern day ritual without ever being converted! Why? Because they still love their sins, and are the center of their universe. Their so-called “conversion” in many cases, is merely using Jesus to get all of their dreams and goals and plans fulfilled.
What are people saved from, when they are converted? Well, to listen to modern day preachers on TV and radio, you would come to the conclusion that we are saved from unfulfillment, and dissatisfaction, and poverty, and purposeless living. We want Jesus to fulfill our dreams and ambitions and goals. We want Him to do for us whatever we want. We think that if we just connect with God in some way, that He’ll fulfill all our dreams. That message sells really well, doesn’t it? No, true conversion means the end of your dreams and ambitions. Becoming a Christian means your old self dies! You can’t even become a Christian unless you are willing to deny yourself, take up your cross and follow Him. You can’t become a Christian unless you are willing to lose your life for Christ and the gospel. You can’t become a Christian unless you are willing to hate your father, mother, son or daughter, and give up all your own possessions. Conversion is not adding Jesus to your old life. It is the obliteration of your old life, and the creation of a brand life in which Jesus is the center of your universe.
Folks, when we are saved, what exactly are we saved from? Does Jesus save us from purposelessness, or dissatisfaction, or financial need, or sickness? Does the Bible ever say we are saved from those things? No! What does the Bible say we are saved or rescued from?
- 1:21 “from our sins”
- 1:13 “He rescued us from the domain of darkness”
- 1 Thess.1:10 “Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come”
Jesus did not come to save you from poverty or sickness or unfulfillment, or an unsatisfied life. He came to save you from Satan’s dominion and the penalty of your sins, and the everlasting wrath of God. That’s what the Bible teaches.
So, we need to come to terms with how Jesus evangelized. He didn’t give people a nice, neat, little 3-part formula. He didn’t tell folks it was simple and easy to be saved. He said they must strive to enter the kingdom! The word “strive” means “to agonize, or fight”. It is the same word Paul uses when he tells Timothy to “fight the good fight of faith.” It is the word used of athletes in the games as they gave it everything they had to win the prize. Jesus is saying if you want to be saved, you’ve got to fight for your soul. The war is on. The battle over your soul is raging. You must struggle and fight with all your might if your soul is ever to be saved. Many will seek to enter on that final day, and won’t be able. Why? Because they didn’t fight and conquer their love of sin, their self-righteousness, their flesh, their self-will. Paul says in Romans 8:13, “For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” What’s he saying? He’s saying that if you live according to your sinful flesh, you will end up in hell. Is your life characterized by living according to your flesh? If so, you are on your way to hell. But if your life is characterized by putting to death the sinful deeds of the body by the Spirit, you will end up in heaven. It’s just that clear cut. Remember Jesus’ words in the seven letters to the seven churches. In every one of those letters, He ends by saying, “To him who overcomes I will…” and then He gives a heavenly promise like eating of the tree of life which is in the Paradise of God, or he won’t be hurt by the second death. My friends, you must overcome the world and the flesh, if you hope to spend eternity in heaven.
Now, this striving is not the payment to gain admittance into the kingdom. This striving is to free you from those things that would enslave you and hold you back from salvation – the world, the flesh, and the devil. The world lures you away from salvation. The devil tempts you away from salvation. Your flesh hates repentance and thus keeps you from salvation. Looked at from one angle, salvation is a gift of God’s grace that none of us can ever earn or deserve. Looked at from another angle, every person who has received this grace must and will fight to overcome the world, the flesh, and the devil, thereby proving that He has truly received God’s grace.
Now, all of that is just introduction. I can finally come to my question that I have for you. “Why must we strive to enter the kingdom?” Jesus gives us three answers: 1) because the door is narrow, 2) because the door will so on be shut; and 3) because the door will never be re-opened.
1. Because The Door Is Narrow (24)
The reason we must strive to get through this door, is because it is narrow, and it is difficult to get into. It is constricted, so that we must struggle to squeeze through. Now, it is possible to get through the door, but it will be very difficult, and it will require a great struggle on your part. Why is this door so difficult to get through?
Because to enter this door, you must leave all of your sin behind. It simply won’t fit through this door. In other words, you can’t enter this door without repenting of sin. This doesn’t mean you never sin again, but it does mean that the love of sin is broken in your life, and is replaced with a love for Christ. You will never enter the kingdom without repenting of sin. This is exactly what Jesus taught earlier in the chapter. He told the people of His day that unless they repented, they would perish. You and I must have a complete change of mind and heart regarding our sin in order to be saved. We must know our sin, grieve over our sin, confess our sin, break off from our sin, and hate our sin.
Not only that, but we must leave all our righteousness behind as well. I should really say we must leave our self-righteousness behind, because prior to being saved, we have no righteousness of our own. Now, this keeps as many people out of the kingdom as the refusal to leave their sins behind. Your self-righteousness can’t fit through this narrow door, and as long as you have your self-righteousness strapped to your back, you’ll never get into the kingdom. Jesus once told a parable to those who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt. That is the problem right there. Many people trust in themselves that they are righteous. My friends, if that is you, you can’t be saved! I once had a very sobering and sad talk with my own father. I once asked him what his hope was that he would be in heaven. He told me it was because he was a righteous person. When he said that, it just stabbed me to the heart. That’s the worst possible answer he could have ever given me. What he was basically saying, is that he was trusting in himself, that he was righteous. This was the problem of the scribes and Pharisees. This was why Jesus often had such strong words for them, calling them hypocrites and saying, “woe to you, Pharisees, scribes.” These religious leaders could never be saved, unless they were willing to leave their self-righteousness behind, and cast themselves wholly upon the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
There is a parallel passage that might help us here. It is Matthew 7:13-14. There Jesus says, “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.” In Matthew Jesus speaks of a gate, while in Luke He speaks of a door, but He is speaking of the same thing. It is a small gate, and a narrow door. If you enter the wide gate, you enter on a broad way. You can take everything with you if you choose that path, because the gate is so wide. You don’t have to leave behind your sins or your righteousness. You can take it all. And the sign over that gate is “This way to Heaven.” The only problem is that it leads to Hell! The broad road leads to destruction, and many go that way. The narrow way leads to life, and only a few find it. So, here we have the answer to this man’s initial question, “Lord are there just a few being saved?” Jesus says many go down the broad way that leads to destruction, and few find the narrow way that leads to life. According to Jesus there will be many more that will choose the road to Hell, than those that choose the road to Heaven.
2. Because The Door Will Soon Be Shut (24b-27)
Many will seek to enter and will not be able. Now, what does this mean? Jesus is not saying that many people will seek to enter the kingdom in this life and won’t be able. He’s talking about Judgment Day. On that day, many will want to enter, but won’t be able. Why won’t they be able to enter?
The head of the house shuts the door. Who is the head of the house? Clearly, it is the Lord Jesus Christ. We know that because they say, “Lord, open up to us!” Also, they say, “We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.” They were saying that they were part of the “in group.” They were with Him, they even ate with Him. They heard Him teach and enjoyed it. Yet, Jesus Christ, as the head of the house, gets up and shuts the door. He must get up, because right now He is seated at the right hand of the Father. One day, He will rise from His throne, go over and shut the door. At that moment, there will be no more opportunity to be saved. The door to the kingdom may be narrow, but at least it is still open right now. There is coming a time, no one knows when, when it will be shut, and when the Lord shuts the door, no man can open it. This is what Jeremiah was talking about in Jer. 8:20, “Harvest is past, summer is ended, And we are not saved.”
Jesus has been telling His hearers this over and over. In His parable of the rich fool, the rich man never gave eternity a second thought. He was obsessed with obtaining and keeping his riches. Then, in the midst of this mad pursuit, he was cut off out of the land of the living. The door to the kingdom was shut for him. In chapter 13, Jesus tells of the Galileans who were killed by the sword by Pilate’s soldiers, and then he speaks of 18 people on whom the Tower of Siloam fell and killed. Again, these people were cut off suddenly and unexpectedly. The door to the kingdom was shut to them. Not only that, but in Luke 12:40, He said, “You too, be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect.” When Christ returns, the door to the kingdom will be shut forever. Both our death, and the return of Christ are outside of our control, and at both the door will be shut to us. That’s why we must strive to enter – we never know if we will have another opportunity to get into the kingdom. Therefore, we must struggle and fight to get into the kingdom while we can.
Knock on the door. In this picture, we can see the shock and surprise on the faces of those people who didn’t make it into the house before the door was shut. They are banging away on the door. They feel they have a right to be inside. They call Him, “Lord.” They tell Him that they ate with Him, and heard His teaching, but all to no avail. They are shut out from the kingdom, and it is too late for them to do anything about it. They associated with Jesus. They enjoyed hearing His teaching. Yet, they never surrendered completely to Him and followed Him. One of the most sobering thoughts is that there will be many, who will be absolutely shocked to find out that they are not saved and will be cast into hell. Can you imagine yourself, going to church, making a profession of faith, getting baptized, and then finding out at the end, that you were never saved and are about to be cast into hell?! J.C. Ryle said that hell is “truth known too late.” Imagine the horror of finding out that you had an opportunity of being saved, but you wouldn’t take it. You wouldn’t put your sin to death. You wouldn’t give up your self-righteousness. You wouldn’t give up control of your life to Christ. And now, it is too late!
Now, remember who Jesus is talking to. He’s talking to religious Jews. These folks believed in the One true and living God. They weren’t agnostics or atheists. They believed in the Hebrew Scriptures. These, by and large, were good people. They went to the synagogue on the Sabbath, heard the Law read, said their prayers, and tried to keep the Law. Yet, Jesus said that many of these religious people would find out too late that they weren’t saved. Folks, this was the church crowd. And, there are millions of people in America that are in the same position. They believe in God, attend church, live a decent life, and so expect to go to heaven. However, they have never surrendered completely to the Lord Jesus Christ, repented of sin, and put all their trust in Him. I believe there are literally millions of people in America who have a false assurance. They are self-deceived, and are false converts. My friends, don’t assume that you are saved simply because you believe in God and attend church. That’s the worst possible thing you can do. Take Jesus’ teaching to heart – strive to enter the kingdom! John Bunyan, in his immortal book The Pilgrim’s Progress, wrote, “Then I saw that there was a way to hell, even from the gates of heaven.”
I do not know where you are from. Now, what does Jesus mean by this? He means He doesn’t know their source, their origin. They don’t have their source in God, in Christ, in heaven, or the new birth. They are not a branch of His vine. He means He has no saving relationship with them. There is no living union between them. The person who has been saved is in Christ, and Christ is in Him. There is vital, living union, and a saving relationship between him and Christ. This person doesn’t just know about Jesus, he knows Jesus Himself. Jesus said in John 17:3, “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”
This is what Jesus was talking about in Mt. 7:23, “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.” It is not that Jesus knew them at one time, but then the relationship ended. He never knew them. What is the mark of someone whom He does not know. He is an evildoer. In Matthew 7, Jesus says they practice lawlessness. In other words, this is a person who loves their sin, and has never repented. They have never broken off from their sin. They have never killed their sin. Their basic nature has never changed. They are born with a sinful nature, as slaves of sin, and they died the same way. They have coddled sin, and enjoyed it, and made peace with it. If you love your sin and refuse to break off from it, woe to you! It’s interesting that Jesus doesn’t know evildoers. He doesn’t recognize them. They are not His friends, His servants, His sheep. They must all depart from Him forever.
3, Because The Door Will Never Be Re-Opened (28-30)
Weeping and gnashing of teeth. That is a definite description of what takes place in hell. This tells us very plainly that Jesus is describing those who are cast into hell. How do we know? In Matthew 13:42, where Jesus is explaining the parable of the wheat and the tares He says, “and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” In the parable of the wedding feast in Matthew 22:13, Jesus says, “Then the king said to the servants, `Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.´ In Matthew 24:51, when Jesus was teaching about the fate of leaders in the church that took advantage of others, He says “and will cut him in pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” So, weeping and gnashing of teeth takes place in the furnace of fire, in outer darkness, and where people are cut in pieces and assigned a place with hypocrites. Clearly, He is talking about hell. Why are they weeping and gnashing their teeth? Well, they are probably gnashing their teeth in anger at God who would send them to this horrible place. They are probably weeping, not only because of their pain and suffering, but because they had an opportunity to escape this horrible place, but didn’t take it.
Recline at the table in the kingdom of God. In this passage, Jesus likens the joys of heaven, to a great feast. In the ancient world, when the Jews really wanted to enjoy themselves they would hold a feast. Sometimes it was a religious festival, and sometimes it was a wedding feast. In order to picture the eternal joy of the redeemed, Jesus says it is like reclining at the table, with lots of good, delicious food and beverages, visiting and fellowshiping and laughing together. What a contrast – weeping and gnashing of teeth contrasted to reclining at the table at a great banquet! Doesn’t this point out the contrast between the eternal miseries of hell and the eternal delights of heaven?
Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets. Who will be in heaven? Well, Jesus tells us that the patriarchs will be there – Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They all surrendered to Jehovah and trusted His Word. All the prophets will be there – Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and the rest. They were the holy men of God who bravely spoke God’s words, in spite of the persecution they received. Further, verse 29 says that they will come from east, west, north, and south. That is speaking of the four corners of the globe. These will not just come from the land of Palestine. They will come from everywhere in the world. This is speaking of the Gentiles, who will pour into the kingdom during the Church age, where God is calling out a people for His name. They are the ones who are last, but will be first. And the religious Jews who perish in hell, are the first, who will be last.
Conclusion
1) Are you sure you are being saved? There will be many who will be shocked to find out they are to be cast into hell. How do you now you are saved? Is there any real evidence, that you have been born again, and are a new creation in Christ? You can’t depend on your religious rituals. These Jews heard Jesus’ teaching, and ate with Him. It won’t do to say you have joined the church, taken communion, and heard hundreds of sermons. Neither is mere outward morality a proof of salvation. There are many “good” people in the world, who have relatively high morals that they seek to live by. The question is, “Does Jesus know you?” and “Are you an evildoer?” Are you in Christ, and is He in you? Are you sure of it. Has He changed your nature, and given you a new, heavenly life, so that you have surrendered to Him as your King, and delight in Him as your Treasure? Folks, you don’t want to make a mistake here! There are lots of things that you can make a mistake on, and still come out okay. This is not one of them! Examine yourselves, to see if you are in the faith. Don’t flatter yourselves. Be rigorously honest about your condition.
2) Are you striving to enter the kingdom! My friend, the salvation of your soul needs to be the main business of your life. It should be your consuming interest. It shouldn’t be a matter of mild interest, or a half-hearted pursuit. You need to take great pains, and fight with all your might, to make sure you have entered the narrow door, and are walking on the narrow way. This is something you should be thinking about every day. It should govern everything you do. It should determine how you spend your time and money. This must be the main preoccupation of your life. Are you making every effort (agonizing) to further your way to heaven? Are you laying aside every encumbrance and sin that entangles you, and running with endurance the race set before you, fixing your eyes on Jesus? Are you forgetting what lies behind, and reaching forward to what lies ahead, so that you press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus? Are you sauntering through your Christian life, or are you striving? Are you meandering, or are you running with everything you have? Yes, it is true, salvation is a free gift. We do not strive to earn the kingdom. But we must strive to enter the kingdom. The world, the flesh, and the devil can hold us back from the kingdom. The gift is there for the taking, but in order to receive that gift, you must have an empty hand. You need to turn loose the world, and your fleshly lusts, and the temptations of the evil one. The Christian life involves diligence, sacrifice, self-discipline, mortification of sin, repentance, and holiness. Oh, brothers and sisters, we must strive! Strive! Strive!
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