Matthew 7:13-14
The Narrow and Wide Gates
“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.
On a wide six-lane highway, it is easy to crowd lots of cars onto the road. Entering the highway is pretty easy since ramps feed into the right lane every few miles. Conversely, staying on a narrow sheep path running from the pasture to the barn forces you to walk slowly with one foot directly in front of the other. The sheep path is a picture of the narrow way—God’s way—while the wide, six-lane thoroughfare illustrates the broad way—Satan’s road to destruction.
The broad way is as crowded as an expressway at rush hour. The majority of people choose this road because they love what it has to offer: no restraints on anything they want to try. Whatever brings pleasure, power, or prosperity is welcomed and practiced. God, the Bible, and church may be tolerated for a while but will eventually be supplanted in the heart of the broad road traveler. After all, everything is embraced here—all philosophies, all belief systems, all the passions of men and woman, and all habits promoting the idea of free choice.
The broad road is also the way of disappointment. No matter what the world promises, it will not satisfy because the broad way is an illusion. The flesh may be appeased temporarily, but the human heart cannot find peace on this road. Nothing the world thinks up or creates can fill the place in our hearts that God made only for Himself.
True fulfillment through God is found on the narrow path. Tomorrow we will see what is required to walk there.
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