From Matthew 7:13-14 / The Narrow Gate – We must bear in mind that this entire discourse is all about Christ’s Kingdom. When we refer to His Kingdom, not many today consider it in terms of His absolute rulership, His personal dominion.

To recap this Kingdom emphasis, consider: 5:1-12 / The Citizens of the Kingdom; 5:13-16 / The Role of the Citizens of the Kingdom in this present; 5:17-48 / The Character of the Kingdom and its Citizens; 6:1-24 / The Life of Service in the Kingdom; 6:25-34 / The Sufficiency of the Kingdom; 7: 1-5 / The Humility of the Kingdom; 7:6 / The Otherness of the Kingdom; 7:7-12 / The Privilege of the Kingdom; 7:13, 14 / The Entrance to the Kingdom; 7:15-27 / The Integrity of the Kingdom.

And so when we arrive at these 2 verses, we are confronted with something quite counter to the underlying assumption of so much so-called Gospel preaching today: That the way into the Kingdom is broad, and that the life of the Kingdom is easy. In truth, it is narrow and hard.

Verse 13 is a clear is a call to a very narrow focus in life. Believers are to be given over to the kingdom and not be distracted by the rest of life. Only then can you life in peace and joy unencumbered from this world. It is not that we are unmindful of the rest of the World and life around us, it is that we bring everything else into the context of the Kingdom of which we are now a part in Christ. We are Kingdom people now, living in the prospect of Christ’s full Kingdom due to dawn at any time. This colors and informs all we think, feel, say, do and purpose. We are His people, living under His Lordship now, waiting for His return, to serve Him in fidelity until He makes His rule manifest over all the earth.

But more, this very narrow focus is due to the exclusivity of Christ.

One must be in Christ by faith. There is no other entrance to the Kingdom of God but through He who is “The Door.” And the World hates that it is so restrictive. But Christ tells us that it is so. All roads do not lead to God. All religions are not basically the same. There are not many paths to the Kingdom. There is no other name under Heaven, given among men by which we must be saved (Acts 4:12). So Jesus Himself tells us in Luke 10:22 “All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” And then in John 5:22-23 “For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.” Those who does not honor Jesus Christ as God’s Son, and the one to whom all are accountable, also fail to honor the Father. Period.

Secondly, not only is the gate narrow, the way is hard. American Christianity has not just failed to think of the Christian life as hard, but actually opposes the very notion of it. Our preaching and teaching is all about how to make the walk easier rather than preparing Believers for a “difficult” road. We greatly err here.

In Acts 14, read about Paul and Barnabas, that “When they had preached the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”

Dying to self is hard. Denying the flesh is hard. Resisting the devil is hard. Holding to a Christianity the World that contradicts and mocks is hard. Challenging sin and prosecuting an ongoing war against its indwelling remnants is hard. Learning to walk in the Spirit is hard. Growing in grace takes effort. The soldier, the athlete and the farmer of 2 Tim. 2 are each noted for the suffering, rigor and sacrifice they involve. Keeping the mind set on spiritual things when all else distracts is hard. Forgiveness can be hard. Seeking the Kingdom of God and His righteousness as our first priority is hard. Fixing our hope completely on the grace that is to be brought to us at the revelation of Jesus Christ as opposed to earthly joys is hard. The Christian life is complex. Jesus didn’t die to make life easier, but to give an eternal life which far outstrips this one.

And Christ endured all this hardness and more, that He might ransom us from our sin.