“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the
gate and broad is the way that leads to
destruction, and there are many who go in by
it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult
is the way which leads to life, and there
are few who find it”(Matthew 7:13-14 NKJV).
The road to Silinge, Nepal is a narrow rocky track that sometimes follows a boulder-strewn river bed, and at other times straddles high narrow ridges with drop-offs of hundreds of feet. As it climbs the hills it is often steep and very curvy.
The only way a car can make the climb is to push hard, using accumulated momentum to overcome the grade, trusting the driver’s skill to handle any slides or skids on the curves and rough surface. It is not a ride for the faint-hearted.
One person who made that trip came back with the determination to never ride up that road in a car again. That of course is a rational choice and one that should not be questioned.
However, the fact is that in making that choice the person is also determining not to visit Silinge again, or at least not until a different route is established or the road is substantially improved.
Yes, theoretically one could walk, but it is a very long way. Practically speaking, if you want to go to Silinge, you are presently limited to that road only.
Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount make a spiritual application of this same concept. If one desires to reach the destination called “life,” he is limited to the one road which leads there. There is no other way (John 14:6).
Modern religions offer easy short-cuts to salvation.
Faith only, free grace, emphasis only upon God’s love and mercy–all of these and others appeal to our desire to reach Heaven with minimum effort or sacrifice.
In stark contrast, Jesus’ statement continues to echo through the ages, “Narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life.”
These words cannot be explained away. We dare not overlook them. The Christian life is nowhere described as cheap or easy. Rather we are told to “count the cost” (Luke 14:26-29), to see if we are able to finish what we begin.
When one group of Christians complained about the suffering they had endured, the inspired writer of Hebrews rebuked them:
“You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin. And you have forgotten the exhortation which speaks to you as to sons” (Hebrews 12:4-5).
In other words, what God had required of them was not unreasonable, nor had they suffered as much as others who had continued faithfully in Christ. They should stop complaining and prepare themselves to finish their course (Hebrews 12:1-2).
As Christians we are to love God “with all our hearts, with all our souls and with all our minds” (Matthew 22:37). We are to put him above everything else in our lives, including our families (Luke 14:26), our property (Matthew 19:21), our bodies (Romans 12:1), and even our lives (Matthew 16:24-26).
Jesus promised the apostles that they would be hated by ungodly humans, just as he himself was (John 15:19-20).
Paul stated without qualification, “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12).
The road to Heaven is steep, narrow, and difficult. It is not easy to travel. But there is no other way to our destination.
Only those willing to deny themselves and travel in the footsteps of Jesus will find an eternal home with him.
That is not a popular doctrine and the majority will refuse to accept it. Nevertheless, it is true.