The Narrow Door

I want you to turn this morning. We're going to study together Luke 13, 22-30. Now if you'll think back with me, that has led us up to this passage. One of the things we first looked at weeks back, it's amazing. From Luke 9, 51 all the way up through chapter 19 through verse 27. Jesus is intensifying His ministry, especially His ministry of teaching. Because He's on the road to Jerusalem.

He's been in Galilee, doing the Galilean ministry, and now He has set Himself in Luke 9, 51. He has set His eyes upon Jerusalem, and He is headed toward Jerusalem. The Judean ministry starts. And there's healings that take place, but there's a lot of preaching and teaching. It's what I call the red-letter edition. It gets really red-lettered from now on, because He wants the crowds to understand His message. Kurt and I were talking this week, and I'm glad Kurt reminded me of this.

He said, Dad, I've been reading ahead and trying to imagine what the crowd must have really been thinking and feeling. Because it was unique to that generation. Jesus was physically present, and He was physically healing, and casting out demons, and raising the dead, and teaching about the kingdom. He was physically there. You and I, we read about it. The Holy Spirit educates us about it, teaches us about it, guides us about it. But that generation had a unique experience, because it wasn't a presence just with them.

It was the very presence walking on the earth, right in front of them, doing the ministry. And Kurt said, I tried to put myself in the context of their day. When you read scripture, try to do that sometime. Because, you know, they were trying to figure it out as best they could. And some went completely off course with what He was teaching. But there was a remnant that understood. And I'll tell you today, there is a remnant on this earth, and even in the body of Christ, that has embraced the fullness of Jesus.

And that's their sole desire, is to walk in that power, in that spirit, that resurrection. And so we saw how Jesus was urgent to get to Jerusalem, to complete His mission, to die for our sins. He was ready to take the wrath of God, the judgment of God, upon Himself. To bleed on the cross, so that His blood could cleanse us from our sins. We saw how He called those to the urgency of repentance, when He talked about tragedies happening. You know, tragedies come from all kinds of directions. They come from the fall.

They come from us participating, and enjoying it in that fall. That we've all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. They come from the outside, from Satan himself.

Attacks, oppression, possession. All these things that are broken in our lives, they attack us. And so, bottom line, Jesus talked about that and said, well, the circumstance does not define you. Because we all need to repent. Or He says, likewise, we will all perish.

You hear what I'm saying there? Bottom line is, whatever befalls us, it does not eliminate us from our free will of choosing Him, and repenting, and following Him with all our hearts. He's teaching these things, and then last week we saw how He unloaded all about the kingdom of God. He gives a demonstration. First, we talked about that bent over woman for 18 years, and she was bent over because an evil spirit had oppressed her. It was an outside attack on her, and it bent her over. And what it did to her those 18 years, spiritually, and socially, and mentally, and emotionally, was devastating.

And what is so wonderful, and we talked about those steps. One of those steps, the action to the kingdom, was Jesus saw her. He saw her, and He spoke to her. He healed her, and He touched her. Action to the kingdom. I raise that question. Should that be, if we're kingdom people, should that be the mandate of our lives?

That we see people? Really see people? We look beyond the physical, into their spiritual hearts, to their brokenness, and their hurt, and their pain? Yes. Absolutely. Touch people.

You know, Jesus didn't always touch. But he touched this bent-over woman, and he said to her woman, and remember how I talked to you about it. He was affirming her womanhood. Her beauty. Women are different from us men. They're different. They're built different.

They read things differently. This woman's self-image of herself was devastated. And Jesus goes, woman, and he probably knew her name, but he said, woman, affirm your womanhood, your beauty. We laughed all week thinking about how last week I said about the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders coming to the Green Bowl in Childress, and they were at our church getting ready, and dressing, and wandering around the church in the Fellowship Hall. And Kurt, I asked Kurt last week, I said, Kurt and his three buddies showed up at the house. He got on his khaki pants and his dress-down collar and shirt.

He's 14, 15 years old, I don't know. You know, he'd never dress like that. I'd have to make him dress like that to go to church. They're voluntarily dressing up, and I said, where y'all going? We're going over to church. He said, last week, I said, you remember that guy? Yeah, I was old enough to notice the beauty of women.

Jesus saw the beauty of this woman, and he healed her. In any text, he tells us about two parables, about the small seed and the little bit of yeast, and how those small things exploded into greatness. You know, I thought about this woman, and I'll probably mention it here in a minute when I'm looking at the introduction here, but how she was so insignificant. She was a nobody, and all of a sudden, she's a somebody up, praising God. Every eye was upon her in that synagogue. She was somebody. And then he launches into this passage here, and I want to read it to you, because he's really narrowing in here.

Listen to it, 13, 22, 30. Kim will put it up on the screen here. And he was passing through from one city and village to another, teaching and proceeding on his way to Jerusalem. Now, there it is again. He's on his way to Jerusalem, and he's going in and out of these cities and these villages. Now, some biblical scholars will tell you that in the Galilean ministry, and when he entered the Judean ministry, that literally the ins and out of these cities and villages where he cast out demons and he healed people, that he literally rid the Israeli nation of sickness, that he eliminated it. He's in and out of these cities.

And someone said to him, What a question. Lord, are there just a few who are being saved? And he said to them, I want you to notice how Jesus answered this question. Strive to enter by the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock on the door saying, Lord, open it up to us, then he will answer and say to you, I do not know where you are from. I don't know you.

Then you will begin to say, We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets. And he will say, I tell you, I don't know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers. And there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth there when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God. But you yourselves will be cast 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. And behold, some are last who will be first.

And some are the first who will be last. Well, that's hard words, isn't it? Truthful words. He wants to atone for sin. He wants us to repent. He wants us to come into the kingdom. And he's defining what the kingdom is all about.

You know, when I was studying for this sermon, God dropped a scripture right into my spirit from Romans 8 and 9. And it says this. However, you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit. If, big word there, if indeed the Spirit of Christ dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him. You hear that? It's one thing to be with him.

It's another thing to belong to him. These that were cast out had been with him, but their hearts were not belonging to him. That's a hard word, but it's a true word. As soon as I read that passage, the Holy Spirit dropped this verse into my heart with this impression. Any authentic conversion starts with Jesus. You hear what I'm saying? It starts with Jesus.

Any religion without Jesus is a false religion. Now, that's a narrow statement, isn't it? But I didn't say it. I want to try to explain it. Jesus is passing through city after city and village after village on his way to Jerusalem. If you look back to 951 and read all the way to Luke 19 27, you see this Judean ministry. And if you jump on to verse 28, then you see Jesus making his triumphal entry into Jerusalem where he is, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

He has set firmly his face to the cross at Calvary. There's no waffling about what he's going to do and where he's headed. He is teaching and preaching about the kingdom of God. The listening crowds are primarily Jewish and yet interspersed within these Jews would be some Gentiles. Someone, and we do not know who, we don't even know if it was a person would certainly have probably been a serious follower of Jesus and yet maybe still on the fence. We don't know for certain if this person was present when Jesus healed the bent over woman as a demonstration of the power of the kingdom and the sovereign Lordship over the evil that had oppressed her for 18 years which led him to talk about how a small seed and a little bit of yeast could explode into greatness. This bent over woman had literally nothing to offer until the transformation of Jesus straightened her up.

Immediately, the Bible says, within seconds she went from nothing to glorifying God, from being insignificant to a posture where every eye in the synagogue was fixed upon her. This would-be disciple is trying to figure Jesus out. Jews expected the coming Messiah based on Old Testament prophecy to usher in a nationalistic salvation, a corporate government of power that would bow the Romans in Rome to a position of defeat and slavery. That was the twisting of those prophecies. Instead, the kingdom of Jesus had nothing to do with nation building. It had everything to deal with kingdom building, building a kingdom of people that are sold out to him 100%. It was about preaching the good news to the poor, proclaiming release to the captives of sin and the demon-possessed, to healing every kind of disease and blindness, and setting at liberty the oppressed and downtrodden.

His kingdom was offering a favorable experience of love, justice, and mercy one person at a time. Now, he will come back as king or king and Lord of lords and set up that kind of kingdom, but that was not his purpose at this time. They wanted to force him into that mold. Jesus wouldn't have anything to do with that. It's what put him on the cross. The question he asked is primarily about salvation, and secondly, it's about the scope of salvation. It's pretty clear here from the framework of this question that this person had already decided that only a few are really being saved.

This person had enough insight to know that this person already answered that question, but wanted Jesus to answer that question. The Greek word for salvation here is soso. It's used in the New Testament over 100 times. But its concept is the major theme of the entire Bible.

Luke 8, 12. Let me just read some of my favorite. And those beside the road are those who have heard. And then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart so they may not believe or be saved. Luke 8, 36. And those who had seen it reported to them that the man who was demon possessed had been made well. Greek word there? Saved. And he said to her daughter, your faith has made you well.

Greek word there again? Soso. You've been saved from hemorrhaging for 12 years.

Luke 8, 50. But when Jesus heard this, that Jairus' daughter had died, Jesus said to him, do not be afraid any longer. Only believe and she shall be made well. Heal. Soso. Save. Luke 9, 24.

Jesus said, for whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it. You hear that? But whoever loses his life for my sake, he is the one who will save it. Soso. Soso. I put Charlie Kirk's name on that today. He lost his life for Jesus, but he didn't lose it.

He gained it. Luke 9, 56. Jesus said, for the son of man did not come to destroy man's lives.

But to save them. Soso. In Matthew 1, 21. I love this one.

And she shall bear a son. And you shall call his name Jesus. For it is he who will save his people from their sins. Do you know soso in your life?

You know that? Ephesians 2, 8. For by grace you have been saved through faith. Soso is an all-encompassing word. It is about the start and the completion of atonement. You hear what I'm saying? He started that experience in your life and he will finish it when he takes you home.

And you will be at home forever with him. You are in the process of being saved for eternity. It's not just a one-time experience. You are in the process of being saved and it will ultimately climax. I want you to notice here. I laughed after I did this study. I thought, Jesus did not answer this person's question.

But he pushed it to a more important question. And here's what it is.

Are you really saved? Do you have assurance of your salvation? Over and over and over and over in my study of this passage, I heard preacher after preacher after preacher say, the summary, the summary is this.

Don't worry about the few. You better worry about you.

You hear what I'm saying? Now that doesn't mean we don't evangelize the lost. We do, but I can't give anything away I don't have. And that was Jesus' focus. He refocused that question upon the one asking the question. In fact, if you look at what it said there, he says to them, those that were listening in on that question, he says to the greater crowd, don't worry about the few, you better worry about you. You know, I laughed, I date myself here.

Some of you might even remember this, probably not. But back when I was growing up in black and white TV, they'd have this Uncle Sam. Y'all remember Uncle Sam and his finger? Uncle Sam wants you. And I can remember going, he don't want me. He don't want me, I'm going to college, I'm not going to Vietnam. But Uncle Sam wants you.

Matthew 7, 5, Jesus said, first take the log out of your own eye. And then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. That's a faded saying. Get engrossed. And then evangelize. Jesus refocuses. That's how he answers that question.

He refocuses what's most important. So what is Jesus telling these Jews? And maybe some of these interspersed Gentiles? I'm going to be able to get this done in five minutes. You won't believe it. Number one. The door is still open. Verse 24.

Jesus said, strive to enter by the narrow door. It's still open. That door has not been shut yet. It is still open. Now, some of us that really understand that salvation is by grace. We struggle with that word strive there. Because some try to interpret to mean, you do your part.

You pull yourself up by your bootstraps and you'll get into the kingdom. Y'all understand striving, don't you? But you go look at the Greek word there. We get our English word from it, agonize. Agonize. It's a wrestling term. What it means is, where Paul says, work out your salvation in fear and trembling.

To respect God's word. To tremble before God. Literally, to tremble before God.

It means, go to the mat. Y'all ever been in a wrestling competition in physical education? Or any of that where you wrestled on a mat? And you're just standing there struggling with each other, standing up. And you hear the coach say, go to the mat!

Go to the mat! Get on the mat!

That's where you'll win. Get on the mat. Jesus said, if you want to be my disciples, you'll take up your cross. You'll deny yourself. And you'll follow me. That's what striving means. It means that the intent of my heart is, I am going to go to the mat for Jesus.

It's not a work. It's not an effort. It's the intention of my will. I am going to the mat. I'm going to follow him. I'm going to lose myself. I'm going to live for him.

You see that? Go to the mat. Go to the mat. Charlie Kirk went to the mat all across this nation. He went to the mat, didn't he?

Even if it meant his life. Peter finally got to that place in his life, didn't he? After he got filled with the Holy Ghost. That's what I want to tell you. You'll never get on the mat until you get filled with the very Spirit of God. You have to be born of the Spirit. Then there's other experiences with the Spirit.

Baptizing the Spirit. And there's another experience. Filling with the Spirit every day.

You'll go to the mat every day for Jesus. If you will allow the Holy Spirit to invade your heart. Before your feet hit the floor every morning. Lord, I just want to do your will today. My whole heart is towards you. It talks about entering the narrow door. That's kind of threatening.

You know, we like to think of a wide door. I remember when I was at McMurray. And I think I've shared this with you. How in the world religion class. They put Christianity on the same pyramid. As all the other religions of the world. And basically told us.

We are working ourselves to this apex. And when we get up there. We experience peace. And I finally had all I could take of that. And I finally stood up and said. Wait a second. I've got a question to ask.

I just grew up in a little Methodist church. Just east of Lubbock. But I heard Jesus said. I am the way, the truth, and the life. And no man comes to the Father but through me. Now is that true? If it is.

Take him off that pyramid. Because that pyramid is working upward.

He came downward. The son of God. And dressed himself in flesh. To be the son of man. To bear my guilt and my sin.

It's not working upward. It's accepting his downward stance.

On the cross for me. That sets Christianity apart from any other religion. None have that way or pathway. To heaven. You hear what I'm saying? Sometimes you got to be narrow minded.

I got labeled that day. By the religion. The five religion profs that were teaching that course. He's a religion major.

We don't want him. We don't want him. And I ended up graduating with a business degree in economics. So they got their wish. But on that campus, they didn't get their wish. Because we stood firmly that Jesus was the only way to heaven. He is the only way guys.

When I sat down with that Islamic boy in my room, Kelly. And he accepted Jesus and then he called home and told his parents. He'd accepted Jesus. They said don't come back home.

Or we'll kill you. Now, I've lost track of Kelly. I don't know if he went back home and got killed. Or if he's still stateside. But he told me he wasn't going back home. But he was going to follow Jesus.

Jesus is the only way guys. The door is still open for us. Jesus said I am the door. If anyone enters through me. He shall be so so say. Number two, the door is open to all. Verse 29. Jesus said and they will come from the east and the west and from the north and the south and would climb at the table in the kingdom of God.

Who do you think that is? East from and the west and the north. That's us. That's Gentiles. That my gospel will be for all people. That my death and atonement will be for all people. They'll come from all these locations all over the world.

And come to me. And when I come back, they're going to have relationship with me and dine with me. They're going to be at the banquet eating feast. To be you'll probably be cooking. Amen. Amen. Lastly. This door will not always be open.

You hear that? Jesus said. For many I tell you will seek to enter.

And will be unable. Now, I did a lot of study about that unable and I'm just going to sum it up in theologians rhetoric. They could not because they would not and they would not because they could not. Because of the hardness of their hearts. Will be unable. Once the head of the house gets up and shuts the door. The door still open though.

The door still open. There's a couple of one of my friends and then. One of my relatives. You know, they've asked me to do their funerals. I don't know where they're at spiritually. But I'm going to tell you within the next 30 days. I'll have that conversation with both of them.

Because this passage said. You better do some work first. If you really believe this if you really believe that that door is going to be shut one of these days and it's still open.

And you don't know. Then you better speak up.

Whether it's family. Friends. The Bible firmly teaches that God does not want any to perish. But to be in relationship with him. You got somebody you need to talk to. We all do don't we? So here's my question.

Have you entered? The door. Once you're inside guys you're inside. Have you entered the door? And you won't stay inside. Unless you get filled with the Holy Ghost. You still have a free will once you're in.

But I want to tell you if you walk by the spirit you belong to him. Amen. In that apropos to the world we're living in right now. It sounds narrow but his love is large. It begins small. But it ends great. If you don't know assurance of your salvation go and read Romans 8.

The witness will bear witness with your spirit. That you are a child of God and you belong to him. Then get up and walk in the spirit. Lord I thank you for this time together this morning. For the ministry of the Holy Spirit in this place. Lord you've worked in our hearts. You've wrestled with us.

And Lord we pray. That we will be filled.

We will surrender. To you. Lord I belong to you. I pray that every person in here. Before this day ends if that question. Is in their heart. They'll settle it.

In coming to you. Accepting your grace and your forgiveness and your cleansing of sin and guilt. And being empowered with the Holy Spirit. Lord in Jesus name I pray. Amen.