Two Gates and Two Ways

Our reading of Scripture tonight is from the Gospels from Matthew chapter 7 verses 13-23.

Matthew 7:13–23

! This is the text upon which the sermon will be based.

!

And these are the words of Jesus.

Enter by the narrow gate, for the gate is wide, and the way is easy that leads to destruction.

And those who enter by it are many, for the gate is narrow, and the way is hard that leads to life.

And those who find it are few.

Beware of false prophets who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.

You will recognize them by their fruits.

Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thorn bushes?

So every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.

A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.

Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven,

but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

On that day many will say to me, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name,

and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name.

And then will I declare to them, I never knew you.

Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.

This is God's word.

It's great to be with you guys tonight.

All right, so I grew up in Alabama in the U.S.,

and I actually went through a bluegrass phase, bluegrass music,

which is actually not very typical even in Alabama to go through a bluegrass phase.

But I encountered a very unknown at that time young artist named Allison Krauss

and her band Union Station.

And there was a specific song that she did that to this day I still love.

And this started me on a bluegrass kick, and it was called Two Highways.

And the lyric goes,

Two highways lay before us.

Which one will I choose?

Down one lane I find happiness.

Down the other I would lose.

There is no one that I can trust.

I must decide alone.

The decision is an awful one.

Which one will lead me home?

Down the other I think.

That's actually a metaphor of something that we find very often in our culture,

whether it's a poem by Robert Frost called The Road Not Taken,

or The Matrix, where it's like take either the red pill or the blue pill.

This idea that we're coming to a crossroads or maybe a fork in the road,

and you've got to make a decision.

And this decision has lasting implications,

but you must make a decision.

Which one will you choose?

Even that song I mentioned by Alison Krauss,

like this is an awful decision.

Because if I make the wrong decision,

like what are the implications going to be?

But there are times in our lives where we must actually make a decision like that.

It becomes a crossroad or fork in the road.

And that is actually the metaphor that Jesus gives us in the first invitation here for the Sermon on the Mount.

So we've come to the end of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 7.

Matthew 7 · chapter mention

We're going to focus tonight specifically on verses 13 and 14,

those first two verses that Corey read.

And Jesus is actually going to give us three different metaphors that both kind of,

they all have the same idea.

And that is, you have two choices to make.

You have to make a choice of which one.

And he tells us in this passage in verse 13,

which one is the right choice.

He tells us, choose this one in his kind graciousness.

And it's one of those things that we're at a point,

it's like you've heard this sermon,

what is your response going to be?

Which road will you choose?

For those that like to talk about Jesus as a good teacher or a prophet or whatever,

and they're like, we like his teachings.

Jesus says, you can't just hear my teaching.

You have to make a choice.

Which road will you choose?

In our culture today, you might actually hear something that says,

you know, well, all roads lead to God.

And Jesus says, no, there are two roads.

One leads to God.

One leads to destruction.

And he tells us which one to choose.

Enter by the narrow gate, he says.

Enter by the narrow gate.

Jesus is pretty straightforward about this.

He tells us, enter by the narrow gate.

Life in the kingdom that he's been telling us about,

he's been laying out for what it looks like for human flourishing,

because this is the way life is meant to be lived according to God's way.

He says, this is how it is.

Now here's the invitation.

Enter the narrow gate.

To enter this life in the kingdom,

you must enter his way into the narrow gate.

He goes on to say,

for the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction.

So we're going to talk about two gates in two ways.

Two gates, two ways.

The first gate is what he calls the wide gate here.

There is one gate that is wide that has many people going through it.

Now, when I think about or hear about a wide gate,

we just went on a train trip to a lot of different places.

We were on a lot of trains and went through a lot of gates.

And we kind of were dragging our bags and we encountered that one gate.

Maybe this was user error and not the gate's fault.

But I get to it and it's like,

this thing does not want me and my bag to go through.

So I'm kind of stuck in this place where I have to kind of lift up the gate,

lift up the bag over the gate and put it in front of me.

And there were probably better ways to do that.

But I was like, I've got to get through this and this is what I have to do.

And I look over and there's this wide gate over there that it's like,

sometimes when they see it's a group or a family,

they will open it for you and let you go through it.

And it's so nice when you're carrying baggage to go through a wide gate.

And when we talk about here that the gate is wide,

there are many who want to go through it because they want to bring their bags with them.

What are we talking about when we're talking about bags?

What are some of the things that people have a hard time letting go of

because they want to take it through the gate that they want to choose?

And it's things like my demands of,

I will follow Jesus if.

I will follow him if he allows me to also do this.

If he gives me the life that I think I deserve,

I'm all on board with that.

Or, I could never believe in a God who fill in the blank.

I'll believe in him if he fits into what I want him to be like.

How could a loving God allow this to happen?

On my terms, I like this God.

People think that they can go in that way

because the wide gate lets in all kinds of things.

All kinds of beliefs.

Not many demands, if any demands.

But Jesus says,

to follow him you must deny yourself.

Take up his cross.

Take up your cross and follow him.

I've got to let go of my very self.

I've got to let go of my agenda,

my thoughts and dreams and plans for my life,

in order to adopt his will for my life.

We must let go of even the idea

that I can walk through this gate

on my own initiative and my own performance

and by my good works,

I will be accepted before God.

That's the wide gate

that allows anything to pass through.

But that is not what Jesus tells us.

So we have to be asking the question,

what are we holding on to

that Jesus would tell us

we must let go of in order to follow him?

The gate is wide

and most people are going through it.

So for us to choose the narrow gate,

we're going to have to do what's unpopular.

We're going to have to make

the uncomfortable decisions.

As Martin Luther,

Martin Luther,

Martin Lloyd-Jones says

that we can't go in the way

that the crowd is going.

That immediately Jesus is telling us

that there must be a break

with us and the world.

Entering the narrow gate

implies that

we're going to stand out as different.

The world and the flesh,

they don't like this, right?

So enter in the narrow gate

because the wide gate

lets a lot of stuff through.

And many are those who find it.

Some might think

that God would be more loving

if he would just widen the gate.

But he truly knows

what is for our good

and calls us to trust him in that.

To believe that he knows

what is for our good.

So that's one gate.

We've got the wide gate.

But then Jesus says

there's another gate.

The narrow gate.

The gate,

this entrance itself is narrow.

And this is kind of important

the way we think about evangelism.

Telling others the good news.

There have been trends

throughout history.

Even still happens in the U.S.

where it's like a just believe,

check this box,

say this prayer,

of whatever,

and you will be in the kingdom,

in the family of God.

We must be honest

about how we present

following the Lord Jesus.

It says it's a narrow gate

and few are those who find it

because it's got to be his way

and no other way.

It's not narrow

because it's some mystery

or hard to understand.

It's narrow

because it's hard.

The way is hard

that we'll talk about

in just a minute.

It's narrow

because we have to count

the cost in following Jesus.

And the crowds,

they're going through

the broad gate.

We must follow Jesus

on the narrow way.

So let's look at the two ways.

So we have two gates,

the wide gate

and the narrow gate.

We have two ways.

This idea of talking about

a way or a path,

that's pretty common

in the Bible

to talk about following God

in paths of obedience

and righteousness.

It's not a coincidence

that the early church,

you see this in the book of Acts,

that it was called,

Christianity was called

the way

because there was a way

to follow Jesus.

This idea of having two paths.

We see all throughout

the Old Testament,

even the first Psalm,

Psalm 1, verse 6,

Psalms 1:6

you see this contrast

between the way of righteousness

and the way of the wicked.

In Proverbs 4, verses 18 and 19

Proverbs 4:18

is a good illustration.

It says,

but the path of the righteous

is like the light of dawn

which shines brighter

and brighter until full day.

The way of the wicked, however,

is like deep darkness.

They do not know

over what they stumble.

So becoming a Christian

can be described

as entering into the kingdom of God

evidenced by a life

of following in His righteous ways.

You don't live a righteous life

in hope of getting through

the narrow gate.

It is we enter the narrow gate

through the life, death,

and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

He even says in John chapter 10

John 10 · chapter mention

that He's the door for the sheep.

We enter through Him

and after we follow Him

on the path of obedience

and the path of righteousness.

But the broad gate,

the wide gate,

also has a way that is easy.

It says here in the ESV.

This is the path of least resistance.

As I mentioned,

you can kind of believe

whatever you want

and do whatever you want to do

through this gate

and on this path.

Scripture even tells us

that it's a lot easier

to just live according to the flesh.

In Galatians chapter 5

Galatians 5 · chapter mention

and Romans chapter 7

Romans 7 · chapter mention

we see this picture

that the flesh is very strong

against us wanting to follow the Spirit

and there's an opposition going on.

The natural flesh,

He says in 1 Corinthians,

the natural man

even sees the things of Christ

and sees them as folly.

It seems foolishness

to our natural flesh

to follow the ways of Christ.

I mean,

just the natural man

wants to do things

on our own initiative.

Surely it's not a gift.

It's got to be earned, right?

It's not just as easy

as believing and following Jesus.

I've got to work my way

so that my good outweighs my bad.

That's the way the natural man thinks.

But the way of the wide gate,

the way is easy.

Now that word easy

literally means

to be broad or spacious.

It's only used one time

here in the New Testament

but used a lot in the Old Testament

where you might have

like Psalm 31

that says you have set my feet

in a broad place.

Wide and spacious.

Job 36.16 says

He also allured you

out of distress

into a broad place

where there's no cramping

and what was set on your table

was full of fatness.

So it's this idea

in the Old Testament

of broad and spacious

gives this idea of freedom.

It's this idea

of plenty

and abundance

and thriving.

And so the way

of the wide gate,

the broad way

promises freedom.

It looks like,

oh, this is what freedom looks like

where I can pursue

whatever I want to pursue

but it leads to destruction.

I mean,

we think about

the original temptation

back in the garden

where it says

that she saw

that the tree

was good for food

and that it was

a delight to the eyes.

It was desired

to make one wise

yet God said

it leads to death.

You see

in Proverbs 14.12

that there's a way

that seems right to man

but its end

leads to death.

Paul talks about this

in Philippians chapter 3

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

where he talks about

those whose end

is destruction.

It says

their God

is their belly

or their appetites

and they glory

in their shame.

They're proud about

things they should

be ashamed for.

Their minds

are set

on earthly things.

That is a great description

of the broad

and easy way.

Just follow your heart.

You do you.

Right?

It's the false promises

that if I can just

live up

to who I really

am inside

that's what true

freedom

and even life is

is learning

who I really am.

It's all about

finding that

inner journey.

There's a way

that seems right to man

but the end of it

leads to death.

It seems like

it would be great

to just pursue

and achieve success

fame

money

whatever it might be.

There's a great quote

from Jim Carrey

the American actor

for those of you

who are younger than me

you might know him

from like Sonic the Hedgehog

or something.

But Jim Carrey

said this

he said

I think everybody

should get rich

and famous

and do everything

they ever dreamed of

so that they can see

that it's not the answer.

It's emptiness.

There was a

a professional athlete

in

I coach

the American football team

at the University of Edinburgh

so I'm into

American football a lot

and

athlete after athlete

talk about getting

these big contracts

and

they're winning

Super Bowls

which is the highest honor

ultimate success

and they're asking

questions like

surely there's more

to life than this.

We think

that by pursuing

our dreams

and all these

having ultimate freedom

that I can do

whatever I want to

success

fame

money

fortune

all those things

that's going to lead

to happiness.

The end of it

leads to death.

We

choose this

wide path

by default

because it's a lot

easier that way

the way is easy

it promises

great things

but the end

is destruction.

But then Jesus

says in verse 14

the gate is narrow

and the way is hard

that leads

to life.

This is by the way

Jesus' way of giving

an invitation.

Hey the way is hard

the gate is narrow

few are those

who find it.

He says in Luke 14

like

look if you want

to follow me

like

you don't build

a tower

without counting

the cost.

A king doesn't

go to war

without first

making sure

he's going to have

all the troops

and logistics

that he needs.

You got to count

the cost

and make sure

that you understand

that I'm worth it.

you must count

the cost

to follow me.

This way

is the path

of resistance.

There's a lot

going against you

on the hard

way.

So we have to

ask the question

what makes

that way hard?

What makes it

hard to follow

Jesus and to

choose this path

to go through

the narrow

gate?

So this word

hard

it means

to compress

or to press

like a grape?

It's a word

that's often

used for

suffering

and affliction.

The way

of following

Christ

is often

found

with suffering

and tribulation

and when you're

squeezed

like that

your true

self

really comes

out.

When someone

is really

squeezed

and pressed

what's on

the inside

starts coming

on the outside.

We see a good

example of

what it means

to live

on this path

in the two

different ways.

We see this

in the parable

of the sower

actually

in Matthew

13

and Mark

Mark 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

where Jesus

talks about

that there

are four

kinds of soils

when someone

is sowing

the word

of God

the gospel

that the

seed lands

on four

different soils.

This is the

first one

lands on

the hard

path

and in

this parable

he said

birds come

and take

it away.

The second

seed falls

on rocky

ground

which is

basically

a thin

layer of

topsoil

with rock

underneath it

and it

says that

it immediately

springs up

but then

because it

can't grow

with its

roots

it can't

go deep

that it

immediately

dies.

he said

the third

soil

is the

seed that

falls among

thorns

where it

starts growing

but it's

choked out

by the

thorns

and then

the fourth

falls on

good soil

and when

it falls

on good

soil

it produces

fruit

thirty

sixty

hundred

fold

and then

Jesus

goes on

to explain

that parable

and he

says the

seed that

fell on

the hard

ground

on the

path

and said

the birds

came and

plucked it

up

that is

Satan

when he

comes

and he

snatches

the word

off the

hard ground

before it

has a

chance

to do

anything

so one

reason

why

the way

is hard

is there's

an enemy

who does

not want

you to

hear

the good

news

that wants

to snatch

the word

out of your

life before

it can take

any root

wants you

to be

distracted

and to

not hear

the voice

of the

Lord

the second

one

that falls

on rocky

soil

the one

that

couldn't

get

depth

Jesus

says

this is

when

tribulation

or persecution

comes

and people

fall away

so they

start out

well

and then

when things

get hard

they fall

away

one of the

reasons that

the way

is hard

is because

there's a

lot of

persecution

and things

that come

our way

that come

against us

this would

kind of be

like when

you're at

work

or at

school

and someone

says

something

and you

want to

say

something

according

to

Jesus

way

but you

kind of

like

oh

I

will

be

ridiculed

maybe

even

ostracized

if I

say that

so we

kind of

shrink back

you know

what I'm

talking about

that's what

we're talking

about

where there's

persecution

or tribulation

when things

get hard

falls away

the third

soil

was one

that came

among

thorns

Jesus

goes on

to say

that this

is the

cares

of this

world

the

deceitfulness

of riches

and the

desire

for other

things

that come

and choke

out the

word

and man

in the

west

don't we

feel that

one

that the

way is

hard

because the

cares of

this world

we're just

thinking about

other things

we're thinking

about what

am I going to

do this

weekend

what am I

going to spend

my money

on am I

going to have

enough money

to pay

for the

bills

we get

thinking

about all

the cares

of this

world

that distracts

us from

other things

or it could

be the

deceitfulness

of riches

if I just

had more

I would be

happy

more stuff

stuff

equals happiness

now again

I don't have

to be rich

as much

as comfortable

I want to

be comfortable

a desire

for the

riches

that are

deceitful

and then he

says the

desire for

other things

that's a

pretty broad

category here

but other

things

there are

just things

that are

vying for

our attention

and it

is really

coming after

us and

really what

Jesus is

getting at

is this

is the

things of

the world

we have

an enemy

who wants

to take

away the

word so

that you

do not

hear the

news of

Jesus

Christ

we're at

war with

Satan and

the forces

of darkness

that is a

reality

now

some of

us

are so

distracted

by the

other

things

that

maybe

you know

the enemy

doesn't feel

like he has

to spend a lot

of time on

us because

the other

things are

working better

but we have

an enemy

that's actively

working against

us

there's also

just going to be

tribulation

Jesus promises

it

Paul says

that all

who desire

to live a

godly life

in Christ

Jesus

will be

persecuted

but in the

sermon on the

mount

Jesus said

blessed are

you when

you're

persecuted

for the

sake of

righteousness

blessed are

you when

others revile

you on

my account

that's a

blessed life

that's a

life of

thriving

when we're

persecuted

for Jesus

sake

the world

is against

us

our own

flesh

is against

us

our own

flesh wants

to do the

easy thing

wants to

go the

way of

the world

and that's

hard

we will

sometimes call

this the

evil trinity

satan

the world

and our

own flesh

and when

those things

are against

us

it makes

it really

hard

it just

does

so the

way is

hard

that leads

to life

but Jesus

says

it's worth

it

to follow

Jesus

is to

follow

him

down

the

path

of

resistance

and

if

you

find

it

hard

at

times

to

follow

Jesus

that's

a good

thing

it means

you're probably

going in the

right way

but if

you find

following

Jesus

pretty easy

and

comfortable

there's a

chance

you're not

following

him

because

he says

following

me

is the

hard

way

the

way

the

world

is

going

the

way

our

flesh

wants

to

go

that's

the

easy

way

but he

says

the gate

is

narrow

and the

way

is

hard

that

leads

to

life

and

few

are

those

who

find

it

so

how

will

we

respond

to

the

sermon

on

the

mount

when

Jesus

says

enter

into

the

narrow

gate

there

are

some

of

us

here

maybe

you

are

exploring

Jesus

maybe

you're

not

sure

where

you

stand

with

him

there

can

be

many

misconceptions

of how

to

properly

respond

to

Jesus

it's

not

just

a

mental

ascent

it

is

a

giving

your

life

to

follow

him

it

is

a

!

repent

and

believe

the

gospel

then

follow

me

down

this

hard

and

narrow

way

Jesus

is

saying

the

king

is

here

and

a

decision

must

be

made

in

the

passage

that

Corey

read

a few

verses

down

Jesus

also

says

there

are

many

who

will

say

to

me

that

day

Lord

Lord

who

will

not

enter

the

kingdom

of

heaven

he

says

there

are

many

who

will

say

to

me

on

that

day

Lord

Lord

did

we

not

prophesy

in

your

name

and

cast

out

demons

and

perform

mighty

works

in

your

name

and

he

said

and

I

will

say

to

them

on

that

day

depart

from

me

you

workers

of

lawlessness

for

I

never

knew

you

you

mean

there

are

some

who

are

going

to

say

I

live

my

life

for

you

Jesus

who

are

not

in

the

kingdom

of

heaven

Jesus

says

yeah

there

will

be

many

who

do

things

saying

it's

in

my

name

but

you're

not

following

me

maybe

it's

because

you're

doing

it

for

reputation

to

be

seen

by

others

which

Jesus

talked

about

in

Matthew

Matthew 6 · chapter mention

chapter

6

maybe

it's

that

you

are

doing

things

on

the

outside

but

the

inside

is

not

there

like

he

talked

about

in

chapter

5

but

he

says

you

must

follow

me

on

this

narrow

!

path

it

is

those

who

do

the

will

of

my

father

who

is

in

heaven

it's

not

just

outward

obedience

it's

inward

heart

as

well

and

it's

about

being

on

this

path

we

realize

I'm

blew

it

I

can't

live

this

way

yes

only

Jesus

can

and

so

we

by

faith

give

our

lives

to

him

to

follow

him

we

follow

him

in

faith

and

we

repent

of

our

sin

repent

of

our

good

works

that

we

are

trying

to

do

to

earn

his

favor

but

there

are

many

of

us

in

here

who

are

also

followers

of

Christ

that

we

would

say

stay

the

path

he

is

with

us

it

can

be

hard

when

you

see

the

things

that

are

happening

in

our

culture

that

celebrate

death

instead

of

life

there

are

so

many

ways

that

the

world

is

trying

to

lure

you

into

its

thinking

to

get

you

to

follow

the

ways

of

the

world

the

enemy

is

attacking

in

ways

that

we

don't

even

see

to

try

to

discourage

and accuse

the

brethren

to deceive

us

don't

give

in to

the

flesh

believe

the

gospel

that

Jesus

lived

the

life

that

you

couldn't

live

and

he

died

the

death

that

you

deserve

to

die

so

that

through

faith

in

him

we

can

have

life

the

end

of

the

hard

way

entering

through

the

narrow

gate

leads

to

life

so

live

that

life

of

repentance

whenever

I

hear

about

kind

of a

fork

in

the

road

or

cross

roads

or

you

got

to

pick

the

path

to

choose

Jim

Elliott

if you

ever

heard

that

name

was

a

missionary

from

America

went to

the

Akka

Indians

in

South

America

and

one

of

my

favorite

quotes

he

had

a

book

kind

of

his

biography

written

by

his

wife

called

The

Shadow

of

the

Almighty

this

quote

stuck

with

me

where

he

says

father

make

of

me

a

crisis

man

bring

those

I

contact

to

a

decision

let

me

not

be

a

mile

post

on

a

single

road

but

make

me

a

fork

that

men

must

turn

one

way

or

another

on

facing

Christ

in

me

in

other

words

for those

of you

who are

following

Jesus

let us

live a

life

that

is

so

bearing

the

image

the

image

of

Jesus

that

is

so

we're

the

hands

and

feet

of

Jesus

that

we

are

following

him

in

such

a

way

that

people

when

they

come

in

contact

with

us

they've

got

to

make

a

decision

am

I

going

to

follow

that

way

of

Jesus

or

turn

the

other

way

let

our

lives

be

such

that

people

even

face

a

little

bit

of

conviction

followers

let's

pray

father

we

thank

you

so

much

that

Jesus

gave

us

these

words

that

he

gave

us

really

a

hard

saying

after

such

an

incredible

sermon

showing

what

life

in the

kingdom

is

like

life

of

thriving

in a

way

that

lives

for

your

glory

and

honors

you

both

from

the

outside

and

the

inside

how

to

live

from

the

heart

how

to

pray

there

are

so

many

incredible

things

that

Jesus

gave

us

thank

you

that

he

gave

us

this

invitation

to

enter

the

narrow

gate

Lord

Jesus

thank

you

for

giving

us

this

way

to

follow

you

and

Lord

what

you

call

us

to

you

give

us

the

strength

to

obey

you

gave

us

your

spirit

so

that

we

could

follow

you

on

this

path

may

we