St. John Lutheran Church
Chester, Illinois
August 24/25, 2013
Pentecost 14 (Proper 16C)
Luke 13:22-30
Strive to Enter
And someone said to him, "Lord, will those who are saved be few?" And
he said to them, 24 "Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell
you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” (Luke 13:23-24 ESV)
In the Name of Jesus, the only Savior of the world,
Have you ever noticed that Jesus seldom answers a question directly?
Instead, He often answers the real question, or the question behind the
question. Or He answers the question that should have been asked. That’s what
He does in today’s Gospel.
As Jesus continued on His way to Jerusalem to suffer and die for the sins
of the world, someone asked Him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” Jesus
could very well have given a yes or no answer. But He doesn’t. Instead, He
turns the question around and makes it personal.
Now it’s hard to determine just what the real question was. Was the
questioner hoping to hear that only a few, the Jews perhaps, would be saved?
Was he hoping to hear that certain others would be excluded? Was he asking if
most, if not all, would be saved? Or was he perhaps hoping that he would be
among those who would be saved? We don’t really know.
But we do have Jesus’ answer, and it is an answer for us too. God grant
that we hear it and take it to heart. “Strive to enter through the narrow door.
For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” That’s the
summary of this Gospel.
Jesus makes the answer quite specific. “Strive to enter through the narrow
door.” In other words, do all that you can to be sure that you get in. Instead
of being so concerned about an abstract “How many?”, Jesus says, “YOU strive to
get in.” Instead of wondering about others, check yourself. Will you be saved?
Will you enter the kingdom of God? Will you recline at table with Abraham,
Isaac, Jacob and all the prophets? Or will you be cast out and left on the
outside where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth? Will you hear those
dreadful words, “I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me,
all you workers of evil!”?
Why would we ask such questions? Because they have eternal ramifications.
For Jesus makes it very clear that many will not make it into God’s kingdom.
There will be many excluded from heaven and the wedding supper of the Lamb.
And this despite their pleading, “Lord, open to us. . . . We ate and drank
in your presence, and you taught in our streets.” Lord, I’ve been a Lutheran my
whole life. Lord, I’ve been a member here since I was a baby, and so were my
parents and grandparents. I was baptized here, confirmed here, got married
here. I came to church and Sunday School – most of the time. I listened to the
preacher – some of the time. I served on boards and committees. I gave a lot of
money to this church. I even ate and drank Your Supper. Surely You won’t keep
me out!
Instead of thinking such things, take our Lord’s words to heart, "Strive to
enter through the narrow gate." Now Jesus isn't saying that we can work or earn
our way into heaven. Indeed, He was on His way to complete that task for us.
What He *is* saying is that once we’re baptized, once saving faith has been
created in our hearts, we are engaged in a terrible struggle to keep it. We
must guard it and wrestle against everything that threatens to destroy it. And
to show just how difficult it is, the Greek word which is translated "struggle"
or "strive" is the word from which we get the word "agony." And indeed, such a
struggle is agony. It’s hard and it’s constant.
And what do we agonize over? Certainly our own sinful condition and the
fact that we fall short of God's glory. Our sinful nature is constantly at war
with our new nature, clamoring to follow the desires of our sinful heart. So,
do we agonize over that? Do we know the agony of fighting against our sin? Or
have we become comfortable with our sin, doing whatever we want without fearing
God’s wrath? Do we give in to sin too easily thinking it’s okay because God
will forgive me anyway? Beloved, such should not be. As God’s beloved children
we must strive against our sin with every ounce of our strength. And to show
the extent to which that struggle goes, consider today’s Epistle,“In your
struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your
blood.” (Heb. 12:4). No, we haven’t, yet such struggle must be our aim.
And if that weren’t bad enough, Satan will do whatever he can to destroy
our faith. And that makes the struggle doubly tough. We don't *see* the devil.
But we still have to fight against him. And that struggle doesn’t end until we
rest in peace - in Christ. We agonize over sin and temptation, the devil, the
world and our own sinful flesh, until we are laid to rest in the grave where we
will lie until the resurrection of all flesh.
Now, of course, we do not strive or struggle alone. For we have One who HAS
resisted sin to the point of shedding His blood. Our Lord Jesus went to the
cross and suffered the ultimate agony over sin – for you. He shed His holy,
precious blood as He agonized and died for your sins – every one of them. He
grants you forgiveness for your sins so that you may live as His dear child now
and dwell with Him forever.
That’s why we struggle "to enter through the narrow door" or gate. For it
is only through *that* door that we enter the Kingdom of God. Now we know that
Jesus Himself is the door for He told us, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am
the door of the sheep. . . . I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be
saved" (John 10:7-9). Furthermore, “there is no other name under heaven given
among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12). It's only through faith in
Jesus as the only Savior of the world that anyone can enter the door of heaven.
Indeed, it's only through Jesus' death on the cross and His resurrection from
the dead that the door is open at all.
So how do we enter this narrow door? Only through Jesus, of course. By
God’s grace and power, repent of your sins, confess them, receive Christ’s
forgiveness, and believe His promises of eternal life. You can’t enter on the
strength of your own efforts. Rather you enter only in the arms of Jesus as He
carries you in. Thus your striving to enter is to receive Jesus and all that He
has done for you even as you strive against the sins which would entice you
away from Him.
Now in the upside down, inside out, topsy-turvy way of the Gospel, those in
heaven and out will be surprised. Many of those on the outside will say, "I
don't deserve this." But of course they do because they refused the gift of
life when if was offered to them or they gave up in their struggle against sin
and entering the narrow door. Perhaps they even looked for another way in.
Those on the inside will also say, "I don't deserve this." And they are
absolutely correct. They don't deserve it. By God's grace in Jesus’ death on
the cross, all the sins of the world are atoned for. By God's grace and as a
free gift, He created faith in you. And it's that faith that will get you
through the door, for it clings only to Jesus and His forgiveness. That's why
it's so important to guard your gift of faith. That's why it's important to be
diligent and faithful in attending the services of God’s House. For in the
Absolution, the preaching of the Gospel, the partaking of the Lord's Supper you
receive the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. And it’s that feeding on
Christ’s Word and His Body and Blood, which strengthens and empowers you to
continue your struggle against sin. That’s what we’re doing here today. Thank
God for that golden privilege to believe, and confess His name, His death, His
resurrection and His love for sinners like us.
In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus said, “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. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to
life, and those who find it are few. ” (Matt. 7:13-14). By the grace and mercy
of God, the narrow door is open. Through Word and Sacrament you are empowered
to strive to enter through that door. By the power of Jesus' death and
resurrection you will continue to struggle against sin, your flesh and the
devil. And by the grace of God you will persevere and enter through the narrow
door and recline at the banquet table and eat with the Master of the house, God
Himself. God grant it for Jesus' sake. Amen.
The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus.
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