“I believe in God is perhaps one of the most meaningless statements that we can make today.” This is a statement by Erwin Lutzer, current senior Pastor at Moody Church in Chicago. He goes on to say in his book, Ten Lies About God, says “the word God has become a canvas on which each is free to paint his own portrait of the divine; like a boy scribbling on his desk, we can draw God according to whatever specifications we please. “ (page 3) I would agree with him in this statement –to say I believe in God is almost meaningless.
We live in a time when, in our Canadian culture, many people believe in God. Polls and surveys state a majority of people believe in God. But that definition of God varies quite widely. And that is why to simply say, I believe in God, is almost meaningless. God, by someone’s definition, can be anything from the God of the Bible to the God of Islam to the God of our inner self to the psychic energy that exists in the universe to, well, a door knob.
And in many ways to even say “I am a Christian” is almost meaningless. Now don’t get me wrong here, I tell you right now I am a Christian and I do believe in God. But there are many who say, I am a Christian but are not really followers of Jesus Christ. They are Christian because they were raised on a Christian home, or they live in Canada which they perceive to be a Christian country.
The danger, the very real and eternal danger, is that we can slip through life and into life after death and be suddenly faced with the truth that just saying we believe in God or that we are a Christian isn’t enough –in fact it is terrifyingly inadequate!
All we have to do is top and seriously look at the teachings of Jesus Himself, not some interpretation, not some preacher or religious guru or television evangelist but the very words of Jesus himself. We look this morning at the words of Jesus, the last bit of teaching that we find in his sermon on the mount found in Matthew 5-7. This morning we look at the last of that wonderful, enriching, deep and powerful teaching where Jesus give some very sobering warnings about being a true and authentic follower of Himself.
We read from Chapter 7 the following verses. (verses 15,16, 21-27.
Over the summer we have been going through what it means to be an authentic follower of Jesus Christ. We started with the beatitudes found in chapter 5. Jesus has been giving some good practical guidance and also some pretty hard teachings. But the overall focus has been the glory of the Father. All through the life and teachings of Jesus he has had that one central theme –the glory of the Father.
As he teaches this theme, although not overtly stated is underlying everything. We see elements of it in such verses as 5:16; 5:48; 6:4; 6:9-10; 6:24; 6:33. Jesus now ends his discourse with first the choice of entering the narrow gate or not. This narrow gate is Jesus Himself. In John 10 we read that Jesus said, I am the gate and whoever goes through him will be saved (verse 9). He later says in John 14:6 that he is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father but by him. We are given a choice –we can either accept Jesus as the way to the Father or not –we can enter the gate and become a follower of Jesus, have our sins forgiven, find our way to God the Father, or we do not. Simple choice –to believe that Jesus is the son of God, died for our sins, buried and risen again, to believe in Him as the only way and John 1:12 says all who receive him, accept him as Lord and savior, he gives the right to become the children of God.
That becomes the distinction between believing in God –a generic kind of faith in some higher power or the belief in the Eternal Father in heaven who gave his son. It makes the difference between being born into a Christian home or just going to church or even being a good person and having faith in the one and only way to the Father –Jesus Christ.
Belief is more than just mental ascent. Belief, as Jesus states here and elsewhere, is to live for the glory of the Father, to live in obedience to the teachings of Jesus, to show the fruit of our belief. Belief in Jesus is a transformative belief –it is a belief that is transforming us into the image of Jesus himself. Jesus says we are to follow Him, to submit to him, to “seek” him –to set our sights on Him and Him alone and pursue Him. We follow the narrow way –His way.
Jesus now gives a warning about three types of people who claim to be Christians, but are not. The first he names in verse 15 –false prophets. A prophet is someone who comes and claims to give a word from God. A prophet is not just someone who tells about future events, but speaks the words of God for the present day. We could put in the word preacher, evangelist, spiritual guru, any religious type that claims to speak for God or even about God.
These prophets, Jesus says, come looking like they belong –like sheep (note Jesus would in John 10 call those who follow him sheep and he is the shepherd –the same place he talks about being the gate. He even warns there about those who come to steal His sheep). But they are no teachers, or true speakers for Godt –they are wolves –they are seeking to distract, dissuade and destroy the followers of Jesus. How do they do this?
Paul talks about this in his letter to the Galatians. Let me read to you 1:6-9. Preaching or prophesying a false or different gospel. What is the gospel –Jesus Christ, the son of God, come to this earth, living a sinless life, dying on the cross for our sins, rising again on the third day, sitting at the right hand of God and someday to return. The gospel is this -believe in Him as the only way and you will be saved. The gospel is this we can have peace with God, eternity with the Heavenly father through Jesus Christ –only though Jesus Christ, completely through Jesus Christ, by faith in Jesus Christ and Christ alone! Any other message, any other gospel is, as Paul says, perverted, any other good news, Jesus says, is false!
There were those then and there are those today who will say just believe in God! You don’t really need Jesus. There are other paths other ways to God. Well, okay you can believe in Jesus AND do this or believe in that as well. You don’t need to believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus, just follow the law. Paul says let those who preach any other Gospel be condemned! Strong words, Yes Why? Because eternity is at stake! Your soul is at stake, your being in heaven with the heavenly father is at stake!
Back to the words of Jesus –Watch out! Their fruit is destruction! Listen again to the words of Jesus (19). What is the fruit? That God is glorified, That He is exalted, that His son Jesus is proclaimed and believed in. It is through Christ and Christ alone that we have salvation. It is through Christ and Christ alone that we can enter Haven. It is through Christ and Christ alone that we come to the Father. It is through Christ and Christ alone that we have any hope of eternity with the Heavenly Father. It is not Christ and, it is not Christ or - it is Christ and Christ alone. Any other message from a prophet or messenger is false. Jesus himself says watch out! They will seek to take you off the path –the narrow path Jesus talked about in verse 13 –the narrow path of following Him.
The second group Jesus cautions against are those who think they are on the path but are not. These people are good people, they do good things and do good works. Jesus here says that they are ones who have prophesied driven out demons and even performed miracles. But Jesus says, he will tell them “I never knew you. Away from me evil doers!” Those are pretty harsh words, very serious words, very sobering even scary words. These words should make everyone of us sit up and take note.
What does Jesus mean by this statement, “I never knew you?” We look again to John 10, the same passage where Jesus talks about being the gate or the door, about being the great shepherd and about thieves trying to steal his sheep. Let me read for you chapter 10 verses 14-15, 27.
His sheep, his followers, those he knows first know him. Not about him but know him. The word is not a mental or intellectual acknowledgement, but one of a deep relationship. To say I never knew you means there was never a relationship –a connection. Those who know Jesus know that he is the Christ, the son of God, they know that he has laid down His life for them, they know that he is the way the truth and the life and the only way to the father. They know in a personal relationship Jesus.
These are sheep –people, who have accepted Him as shepherd, who believe and have become the children of God. They have come by faith and given themselves in faith to Jesus Christ as the Good shepherd. It is not by their good deeds, not by their performing miracles, not by their speaking or doing good things –it is by faith they are saved, by faith they are his by faith they are on the narrow path. And Jesus adds in verse 27, they follow me.
There are a lot of good people, well intentioned people, people who believe in God and may even say they are Christian but they have never come to Jesus by faith and accepted him as the way, the truth and the life. They have never given themselves over to Him and follow Him. One of the deeply troubling things is that these are not just people who are outside the church but people who are in the church! And the horror the deep sadness is Jesus will say “I never knew you, away you evildoers!” Evil doers?
To understand this we need to look back a bit to verse 21 –those who will enter the kingdom of heaven are those who do the will of my Father in heaven. What is the will of the Father in heaven? Well, let’s catch a glimpse (and this glimpse is enough for today) of what this is from what Jesus has already said –the beatitudes, bringing praise and glory to the father (5:16), seeking His kingdom first (6:9-10, 33), serving Him alone (6:24), entering in through the narrow gate and following the narrow path (7:13-14), bearing good fruit. Evil doers are those who have the veneer of being a Christian but not the relationship with the Christ and do not live as a follower of Christ and for the glory of the Father –they do not seek the kingdom of God first and foremost!
As a pastor, as a prophet, as a messenger of God, judge my words by the words of Jesus, judge these things I say with what Jesus says –if you are not in a relationship with Jesus, if you have not submitted to Him as the shepherd, if you do not know the Him and are following him heed the words of Jesus –I will tell you plainly I never knew you –depart from me, you evil doers. I must tell you, Jesus is the only way –not good works, not being in a Christian family, not being baptized or going to church –faith in Christ and Christ alone is the way though the gate. The good news, the great news, the gospel message is this –to all believe in Him he gave the right to become the children of God.
The third group Jesus gives warning about are those who, as Jesus says here, hear the words of Jesus but do not put them into practice (verse 26). This may be where many of us are today and many in the church today. We hear and ignore or we hear and do not put into practice what Jesus teaches. And we do so at the peril of collapse.
The parable or example Jesus gives is a clear as can be –build on solid rock versus building on sand. Often we think of Jesus as the foundation –which he is –He is the rock, the solid rock. But that is not what Jesus is saying here. The context is one of hearing and doing. Listen again carefully to verse 24 –hear my words and put them into practice. Versus hear my words and do not put them into practice.
It comes down to a word we don’t much like to hear –obey. Jesus said, if you love me obey my commands He said this three times in his last night with his disciples. We have it just a few verses earlier in the warning about those who have good intentions but never give their lives to Christ. The ones who do the will of my Father.
Now we have those who appear to start the relationship but have no intention on following through with the obedience. The mark of an authentic disciple is one who has the relationship AND the obedience. If you love me obey what I command (John 14:15 and 23).
The words of Jesus are a time for us to take a serious look at our spiritual journey. There will be those who seek to distract, dissuade, and even destroy us in our pursuit of following Jesus. Jesus says Watch out! And there is the serious need for us to look at our relationship with the Father through the Son, Jesus Christ. Have we through faith confessed out separation and sin, have we through faith accepted the gift given through Jesus Christ, have we through faith, not of works but through the work of Jesus become a child of God? And even more, are we living out his commands and teachings –do we obey. The words of Jesus in warning against the false prophets are equally valid here –does our life show the fruit of our connection with Christ? Is our life being built up as a house on rock or sand?
To live as an authentic follower of Jesus Christ we look to Christ and Christ alone –he is our shepherd, our guide. IN him is truth and in focusing and knowing His truth we can stand against the false prophets. In Christ and His truth we can come into a relationship with the Father and be assured of our eternity with Him. In Christ and His truth we can live such godly lives that are built in the solid truth of Christ that we can withstand the storms, the winds, the surges of life that buffet against us. In Christ and His truth we can find the life that is blessed and glorifying to the Father in heaven. In Christ is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father but by Him. Praise be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Communion thoughts August 1, 2010
In a few moments we are going to have communion. Communion, or the Lord’s Supper, is a time of remembrance that Jesus called us to. Just before his going to the cross, Jesus met with His disciples in the upper room. There they had a last meal together before that fateful day when He would be taken, beaten, tried, nailed to a cross, lifted high and give up His life as a ransom for many. It was on the cross that he took our sin upon himself. It was on the cross that he took our guilt and became a guilt offering. It was on the cross that Jesus too our place of death and became death for us. It was on the cross that Jesus took our separation from God and became separated from God.
Thin on that for a moment –we, mankind, humanity, because of sin, are separated from God. The Bible describes it as being lost, even as being dead and in darkness. Jesus when he went to the cross, took all our sin and because he was now sin was separated from God!
But this is the good news –Jesus died and rose again! Jesus being separated from God was raised from the dead and now gives us the opportunity to come into a relationship with God, no longer separated but as his children! Jesus became and is the way to the Father! That all who receive him and believe in Him, he gives the right to become the children of the heavenly Father.
Do you believe? Have you received? Are you a child of the heavenly Father because you have believed and received the gift of life Offered by and through Jesus Christ? Communion is a time for followers of Jesus to affirm their faith. Then communion is a time of celebration and remembrance –it is a time to honor and worship Jesus Christ for who he is and what he has done. It is a time to affirm again your belief in Him.
If you are not a follower of Jesus, you have not yet believed and received, communion is a great time to become a follower –to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the only way to the Father, to accept the gift of life he offers through His death and resurrection. Communion is a great time to give your life to Jesus –to begin that journey to eternity with the Father.
Even more it is a time to renew your faith in Him. Sometimes we tend to wander, to go off of the narrow path Jesus talks about in Matthew 7. We take our eyes of Jesus and wander away. Perhaps not far, but far enough to know we are not following Jess as we should –as we need to, as He leads and commands. Communion is a time to remind us that Jesus dies for us, that He gave his life for us, that He was separated from God on our behalf in order to lead us back to the Father. Communion is a time to come back –find forgiveness, and find renewed strength. It is a time that the Bile calls to confess and to repent. Confess means to agree with God we are wrong. Repent means to turn from the way we are going and get back on track with Jesus.
But even more, communion is a time to come to the cross and lay your burdens down. Because Jesus died on the cross, because he rose again we can know that he is able, more than able, to carry not only our sins, but our burdens. In the Psalms we read that we are to cast our burdens before him and He will sustain you (55:11). Can God carry your burdens? Can he sustain you? The cross answers that with a resounding yes! Further in Psalm 68 we read that He daily bears our burdens (19).
Jesus himself offered us these words –“Come all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” What a great promise, what a great promise! But we must see the rest of this passage where Jesus says, “take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Mt. 11:24,ff)
Yes, Jesus takes our burdens. Yes, Jesus gives us rest. But He also walks with us! The yoke here is a beautiful picture of him walking beside us. When a new ox is being trained he is always paired with one that is stronger and more experienced. The experienced and stronger ox not only takes much of the burden, but also leads the way and shows the new ox where to go.
Jesus not only takes the burden of our sin, but the burdens of life. He shows us the way to the father, how we should go. As we walk with him towards the Father, as we walk that narrow path, he takes the burdens. And what does he give us? Oh, we know the promises –I give you my joy. I give you my peace. I give you my love. I give you my strength. I give you my spirit, the comforter, the teacher, the guide.
Communion is so much more than just a remembrance. It is a time of renewal, refreshing, recommitment and relief. Come all who are weary and I will give you rest!
Thin on that for a moment –we, mankind, humanity, because of sin, are separated from God. The Bible describes it as being lost, even as being dead and in darkness. Jesus when he went to the cross, took all our sin and because he was now sin was separated from God!
But this is the good news –Jesus died and rose again! Jesus being separated from God was raised from the dead and now gives us the opportunity to come into a relationship with God, no longer separated but as his children! Jesus became and is the way to the Father! That all who receive him and believe in Him, he gives the right to become the children of the heavenly Father.
Do you believe? Have you received? Are you a child of the heavenly Father because you have believed and received the gift of life Offered by and through Jesus Christ? Communion is a time for followers of Jesus to affirm their faith. Then communion is a time of celebration and remembrance –it is a time to honor and worship Jesus Christ for who he is and what he has done. It is a time to affirm again your belief in Him.
If you are not a follower of Jesus, you have not yet believed and received, communion is a great time to become a follower –to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the only way to the Father, to accept the gift of life he offers through His death and resurrection. Communion is a great time to give your life to Jesus –to begin that journey to eternity with the Father.
Even more it is a time to renew your faith in Him. Sometimes we tend to wander, to go off of the narrow path Jesus talks about in Matthew 7. We take our eyes of Jesus and wander away. Perhaps not far, but far enough to know we are not following Jess as we should –as we need to, as He leads and commands. Communion is a time to remind us that Jesus dies for us, that He gave his life for us, that He was separated from God on our behalf in order to lead us back to the Father. Communion is a time to come back –find forgiveness, and find renewed strength. It is a time that the Bile calls to confess and to repent. Confess means to agree with God we are wrong. Repent means to turn from the way we are going and get back on track with Jesus.
But even more, communion is a time to come to the cross and lay your burdens down. Because Jesus died on the cross, because he rose again we can know that he is able, more than able, to carry not only our sins, but our burdens. In the Psalms we read that we are to cast our burdens before him and He will sustain you (55:11). Can God carry your burdens? Can he sustain you? The cross answers that with a resounding yes! Further in Psalm 68 we read that He daily bears our burdens (19).
Jesus himself offered us these words –“Come all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.” What a great promise, what a great promise! But we must see the rest of this passage where Jesus says, “take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Mt. 11:24,ff)
Yes, Jesus takes our burdens. Yes, Jesus gives us rest. But He also walks with us! The yoke here is a beautiful picture of him walking beside us. When a new ox is being trained he is always paired with one that is stronger and more experienced. The experienced and stronger ox not only takes much of the burden, but also leads the way and shows the new ox where to go.
Jesus not only takes the burden of our sin, but the burdens of life. He shows us the way to the father, how we should go. As we walk with him towards the Father, as we walk that narrow path, he takes the burdens. And what does he give us? Oh, we know the promises –I give you my joy. I give you my peace. I give you my love. I give you my strength. I give you my spirit, the comforter, the teacher, the guide.
Communion is so much more than just a remembrance. It is a time of renewal, refreshing, recommitment and relief. Come all who are weary and I will give you rest!
Ask, seek, knock Mathew 7:7-12
One of the things that I found confusing, even discouraging over the years was asking God something in prayer. Now it may seem a little odd for a pastor to admit struggle about prayer, but let me give you some background.
I mostly grew up in a Christian environment. Not necessarily a Christian home, but my parents saw to it that my brother and sister and I went to Sunday School, Vacation Bible School and sometime to church. My grandparents were devotedly religious and whenever I was with them they took me to their church. And so I heard from an early age things like read your Bible pray every day, Jesus loves me, This little light of mine let it shine and memorized verses like John 3:16, the Lord’s prayer and psalm 23. Even verses and promises like that found in Matthew 7:7-8 were a part of my growing up.
But when things in my family went bad –like my dad’s alcoholism becoming more impacting on our family, I would ask God for things and found he didn’t seem to listen or perhaps not care enough to answer. As I grew older I found there were more verses and statements in the Bible like Matthew 7:7-8, where it Jesus, for example would say, ask anything in my name and it will be given to you. Even the Lord’s prayer or Psalm 23 seemed to give the impression that all I had to do was ask and “Poof” God would answer.
But I found it wasn’t so. Brook Shields (some may remember her) never did answer my letter to come and be my girl friend, I still haven’t been asked to make a movie, my songs haven’t made it on a CD, the Beatle’s didn’t get back together, I haven’t won the lottery, and well, you get the picture. Is it that God is not able to answer my prayers, unwilling to answer my prayers, uncaring about my wants, am I not getting the formula right –saying the right words? Why is this not working?
This morning we are going to touch on this area of prayer and God answering. It deserves a much longer and more detailed examination but for this morning we will look at this oft quoted and often misunderstood passage that Jesus gives found in Matthew 7:7-11. Please stand with me and read it out loud together.
Pray
Over the years I have sat with many people who have asked basically the same question: “why doesn’t God answer my prayer?” Many times I have sat by a hospital bed with someone dying or with family who ask why doesn’t God answer my prayer for healing? I have sat with men and women who ask why hasn’t God given me a job? I have had people hold open their Bible and point to this very verse or to John 16:24 which records Jesus as saying, “Ask anything in my name and it will receive.” And when the answers don’t seem to come, they wonder –does God still love me? Have I done something wrong? Does God not care? And yes, I admit, sometimes I come to that point too. God, why do my parents struggle so? When our prayer go unanswered (at least we think they are unanswered because they are not answered the way we want), it challenges our faith, our trust in God.
In looking at such passage as Matthew 7, we need to see not the verses or words of Jesus in isolation, but in the context of his life, ministry and teaching. Where we often end up in trouble or struggle, is when we take these verses out of context. And we know how that can change totally the meaning of something.
For example, several years ago a movie was playing and one of the reviews quoted in the advertisement was “…most amazing…” This gave the impression that the movie was really good. What the movie review actually said as, “This film is a most amazing waste of time ever produced for the big screen.”
When we come to this passage in Matthew 7:7-11, we must put things in context. Taken on its own, as it often is, we can get the impression that all we have to do is ask and God will give. The context is first the teaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the mount. Jesus is calling those who would follow Him to authentic discipleship. We’ve looked over the last several weeks on what this means, and bottom line is God first in all things. Rick Warren in his book The Purpose Driven Life says, “It’s all for Him. The ultimate goal of the universe is to show the glory of God. It is the reason for everything that exists, including ourselves. God made all for His glory.” (page 53). We need to see this as we look carefully at three key words in this passage
–ask, seek, knock. The key to understanding these important action words is this aspect of all for the glory of God and the key to our understanding about God answering our prayers.
First in the word ask we find the primacy of God. The word “Ask” which Jesus uses here, it is a word which in the Greek means to ask of a superior. And we must also keep in mind we ask according to His nature. God will not do anything which will go against his nature. (eg. someone to die). The apostle John further gives us insight as he writes in His letter I John 5:14 (ask –same word, anything according to His will.) When we “ask” we are placing ourselves in a position of submission –God is superior. Yes, Jesus refers to God as our heavenly Father and we are His children, but still the position is clear –ask our superior –someone greater than us, better, able to do what we cannot.
All through the sermon on the mount, in fact all through the life and teaching of Jesus, God the Father is first and foremost. One of the key verses we must take note of in understanding this 5:16 –the praise and glory of the Father was and is first and foremost for Jesus. The angels shouted out at the birth of Jesus, “Glory to God in the highest!”, Jesus we read in John 17 in his high prayer makes it very clear that he came to bring glory to the Father in coming to the earth and completing the work the Father gave him (verse 4). Even beyond the life and teaching of Jesus, the Bible is literally saturated with this focus –the glory of God. (Psalm 89:5-8 eg.)
He is the everlasting God, the Lord of all, creator of all. He is the almighty and eternal one. He is the holy God, most holy God. Even as we sit here, even as we struggle, even as we enjoy the lake or sit down to lunch, as we work and play cry and sing, as we run and leap or feel the ache of arthritis, even as we breath and pulse –God is everlasting, God is eternal, God is holy. Even as we pause to utter our prayer –to ask we must remember, we cannot forget he is a holy God sitting on his throne, high and exalt, whose glorified and to whom the angels continually praise “Holy holy Holy, Lord God almighty!” (Revelation 4 and Isaiah 6)
When we approach God in prayer –to ask or seek or find, this is the environment in which we enter –Imagine His throne high and exalted, angels flying around, the cacophony of praise and we, dare to come into his presence without recognizing this! We dare come before the almighty God to ask and not join in the praise?
Often when we come and ask God we come on the pretense of our rights, our goodness, our wants, our demands and we fail, we fall so far short of seeing He is our Father in heaven –hallowed is His name. Robert Dickie, in His book on worship, says “we have become man-centered rather than God centered in our worship [and in our prayers]. To pretend homage to God and intend only advantage to ourself is to mock God. When we believe that we could be satisfied rather than God glorified we set God below ourselves and that He should submit to us.” (page 23).
What Did Jesus say in the beatitudes? We are poor in spirit, we are mourning for our sin, we are meek and submit to the Father –then we see his kingdom and we are blessed!
The primacy of God is always kept in the forefront of our coming to God in prayer and asking Him. Ask, yes, ask, Jesus says to ask and keep on asking, but ask with the high view of God and His supremacy.
The second word seek has already been used by Jesus. We find it in chapter 6 verse 33. Jesus says we are to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and then he says “And all these things (food, shelter, provision, clothes) to you as well.” To seek is to put ones full attention towards, to earnestly pursue and deliberately strive. Set your mind fully on the kingdom of God, His righteousness. What this means is placing God first, making it our priority to live the way he requires. This means living under God’s kingship and God’s rule. Again we look to the Beatitudes –blessed are the meek. And then to the Lord’s prayer, Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
But this word, seek, has a further dimension that we may find helpful. It means to earnestly pursue and to follow with single mindedness. Jesus, in the days or weeks prior to the sermon on the mount, called to two fishermen Simon and Andrew. “Come follow me,” Jesus said. To follow is to come behind and focus on the one ahead. Earnestly pursue in following Jesus. Seek –keep your eyes steadfastly on Him. Seek, follow after his example. Seek his kingdom, his righteousness (not our own for we have none!) seek Jesus and you will find Jesus. And as you follow you will walk as Jesus walked, Yes, even to places of suffering, persecution and struggle!
Jesus knew struggle, Jesus knew thirst, Jesus knew hunger, Jesus knew persecution, Jesus knew loss of friends and family, Jesus knew the gamut of life and the stuff of life. Jesus knew suffering, even suffering to death on the cross. Keep this in mind when you listen to the words of Jesus. He had the cross before him, he knew he would suffer and die he knew that he could ask God to take that suffering away –to remove that cup –in fact He did. BUT he kept the glory of God first –your kingdom come your will be done! In all and through all he kept the Father first –your will, not mine, your glory not my comfort, your kingdom Father!
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be given –added, to you. Seek and you will find. Oh how often do we get that turned around. Why does God seem silent when we ask, why does God seem to not answer? Often I think this is because we ask for the things first –we give the foxhole prayers rather than the life of submission and seeking his kingdom.
Lord, give me a car then I will use it to serve you. Lord save me from this mess and I will go to church. Lord, let me pass this test and I will go to youth group. How backwards we have it, instead of following Jesus seeking Him and keeping our eyes on Him we look behind to see if he is following us to give us what we want! Seek, yes, Jesus says to seek and keep seeking, ut with His kingdom first.
Knock I believe, carries this same idea of seeking God’s kingdom and his glory first and foremost. We read knock and the door will be opened. In the Greek the verse actually reads “knock and opened to you.” The translators have used the parallel passage in Luke 11 to give us this idea of the door (read Luke 11:5-10). And this is a good understanding and helps us to picture what Jesus is saying here in Matthew.
There are two aspects from Luke that I would like to draw upon. The first is that the man who comes is a friend to the one inside –he knows him, there is a relationship. And this brings to mind the question, “What is our relationship to God?” The good news is this –God wants a relationship with us. Sin keeps us apart, but God provided a way for sin to be removed –Jesus died. God wants a relationship with us and it is not based on our efforts or works but in faith –for as many as received him and believe in His name (Jesus) he gave the right to become children of God!
The relationship we can have with God is as a friend –Jesus call us friends when we follow Him, but even more the relationship we can have with god is one of father. (refer to John 14:12-14)
The second aspect is that we can come with boldness. This boldness is not a brash or demanding pushing of our rights, but a confidence and assurance. It literally means lack of feeling shame. Without Christ we are lost –separate from God. We are sinners, dead. Not nice to hear, but true. We cannot approach the throne of God –we cannot even go to the door and knock! But in Christ, because he died on the cross, because he rose again, because he stands at the right hand of the father, when we come to faith in Him and are a follower –an authentic disciple, we are cleansed, alive, spotless, and have no shame –He is our father, he is our God, He is our provider and in Him we can trust.
And this brings us to the rest of the passage. Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. If a son asks for bread –he gets bread. If he asks for fish, he gets fish (the two main food staples of Galilee). And how much more will your father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask!
It has taken me a long time to come to being comfortable with seeming unanswered prayer. I may not always get the results I ask for but I have a confidence in my heavenly father to provide. I know he hears my prayers. I know he cares deeply for me. I know he will provide what I need. I know that He is Sovereign and all He does is for His glory. I know he is faithful, I know that as I seek first His kingdom and His righteousness all things I need will be given to me. I know I need to ask, seek and knock and to keep on asking, seeking and knocking. I know He works all things out for His glory and my good. I know I can approach with boldness because of Jesus and through Jesus and in Jesus’ name. I know My Heavenly Father will give me good gifts. I may not get what I want, when I want or how I want, but in faith I can know My God will provide. He is Jehovah Jirah, my provider, his grace is sufficient for me.
Prayer
All this now understood, we can come with an assurance and confidence in the words of Jesus. When we ask we will receive, When we seek we will find, when we knock it will be opened. God will give us good things, only good things always good things.
Jeovah Jirah –song!
I mostly grew up in a Christian environment. Not necessarily a Christian home, but my parents saw to it that my brother and sister and I went to Sunday School, Vacation Bible School and sometime to church. My grandparents were devotedly religious and whenever I was with them they took me to their church. And so I heard from an early age things like read your Bible pray every day, Jesus loves me, This little light of mine let it shine and memorized verses like John 3:16, the Lord’s prayer and psalm 23. Even verses and promises like that found in Matthew 7:7-8 were a part of my growing up.
But when things in my family went bad –like my dad’s alcoholism becoming more impacting on our family, I would ask God for things and found he didn’t seem to listen or perhaps not care enough to answer. As I grew older I found there were more verses and statements in the Bible like Matthew 7:7-8, where it Jesus, for example would say, ask anything in my name and it will be given to you. Even the Lord’s prayer or Psalm 23 seemed to give the impression that all I had to do was ask and “Poof” God would answer.
But I found it wasn’t so. Brook Shields (some may remember her) never did answer my letter to come and be my girl friend, I still haven’t been asked to make a movie, my songs haven’t made it on a CD, the Beatle’s didn’t get back together, I haven’t won the lottery, and well, you get the picture. Is it that God is not able to answer my prayers, unwilling to answer my prayers, uncaring about my wants, am I not getting the formula right –saying the right words? Why is this not working?
This morning we are going to touch on this area of prayer and God answering. It deserves a much longer and more detailed examination but for this morning we will look at this oft quoted and often misunderstood passage that Jesus gives found in Matthew 7:7-11. Please stand with me and read it out loud together.
Pray
Over the years I have sat with many people who have asked basically the same question: “why doesn’t God answer my prayer?” Many times I have sat by a hospital bed with someone dying or with family who ask why doesn’t God answer my prayer for healing? I have sat with men and women who ask why hasn’t God given me a job? I have had people hold open their Bible and point to this very verse or to John 16:24 which records Jesus as saying, “Ask anything in my name and it will receive.” And when the answers don’t seem to come, they wonder –does God still love me? Have I done something wrong? Does God not care? And yes, I admit, sometimes I come to that point too. God, why do my parents struggle so? When our prayer go unanswered (at least we think they are unanswered because they are not answered the way we want), it challenges our faith, our trust in God.
In looking at such passage as Matthew 7, we need to see not the verses or words of Jesus in isolation, but in the context of his life, ministry and teaching. Where we often end up in trouble or struggle, is when we take these verses out of context. And we know how that can change totally the meaning of something.
For example, several years ago a movie was playing and one of the reviews quoted in the advertisement was “…most amazing…” This gave the impression that the movie was really good. What the movie review actually said as, “This film is a most amazing waste of time ever produced for the big screen.”
When we come to this passage in Matthew 7:7-11, we must put things in context. Taken on its own, as it often is, we can get the impression that all we have to do is ask and God will give. The context is first the teaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the mount. Jesus is calling those who would follow Him to authentic discipleship. We’ve looked over the last several weeks on what this means, and bottom line is God first in all things. Rick Warren in his book The Purpose Driven Life says, “It’s all for Him. The ultimate goal of the universe is to show the glory of God. It is the reason for everything that exists, including ourselves. God made all for His glory.” (page 53). We need to see this as we look carefully at three key words in this passage
–ask, seek, knock. The key to understanding these important action words is this aspect of all for the glory of God and the key to our understanding about God answering our prayers.
First in the word ask we find the primacy of God. The word “Ask” which Jesus uses here, it is a word which in the Greek means to ask of a superior. And we must also keep in mind we ask according to His nature. God will not do anything which will go against his nature. (eg. someone to die). The apostle John further gives us insight as he writes in His letter I John 5:14 (ask –same word, anything according to His will.) When we “ask” we are placing ourselves in a position of submission –God is superior. Yes, Jesus refers to God as our heavenly Father and we are His children, but still the position is clear –ask our superior –someone greater than us, better, able to do what we cannot.
All through the sermon on the mount, in fact all through the life and teaching of Jesus, God the Father is first and foremost. One of the key verses we must take note of in understanding this 5:16 –the praise and glory of the Father was and is first and foremost for Jesus. The angels shouted out at the birth of Jesus, “Glory to God in the highest!”, Jesus we read in John 17 in his high prayer makes it very clear that he came to bring glory to the Father in coming to the earth and completing the work the Father gave him (verse 4). Even beyond the life and teaching of Jesus, the Bible is literally saturated with this focus –the glory of God. (Psalm 89:5-8 eg.)
He is the everlasting God, the Lord of all, creator of all. He is the almighty and eternal one. He is the holy God, most holy God. Even as we sit here, even as we struggle, even as we enjoy the lake or sit down to lunch, as we work and play cry and sing, as we run and leap or feel the ache of arthritis, even as we breath and pulse –God is everlasting, God is eternal, God is holy. Even as we pause to utter our prayer –to ask we must remember, we cannot forget he is a holy God sitting on his throne, high and exalt, whose glorified and to whom the angels continually praise “Holy holy Holy, Lord God almighty!” (Revelation 4 and Isaiah 6)
When we approach God in prayer –to ask or seek or find, this is the environment in which we enter –Imagine His throne high and exalted, angels flying around, the cacophony of praise and we, dare to come into his presence without recognizing this! We dare come before the almighty God to ask and not join in the praise?
Often when we come and ask God we come on the pretense of our rights, our goodness, our wants, our demands and we fail, we fall so far short of seeing He is our Father in heaven –hallowed is His name. Robert Dickie, in His book on worship, says “we have become man-centered rather than God centered in our worship [and in our prayers]. To pretend homage to God and intend only advantage to ourself is to mock God. When we believe that we could be satisfied rather than God glorified we set God below ourselves and that He should submit to us.” (page 23).
What Did Jesus say in the beatitudes? We are poor in spirit, we are mourning for our sin, we are meek and submit to the Father –then we see his kingdom and we are blessed!
The primacy of God is always kept in the forefront of our coming to God in prayer and asking Him. Ask, yes, ask, Jesus says to ask and keep on asking, but ask with the high view of God and His supremacy.
The second word seek has already been used by Jesus. We find it in chapter 6 verse 33. Jesus says we are to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and then he says “And all these things (food, shelter, provision, clothes) to you as well.” To seek is to put ones full attention towards, to earnestly pursue and deliberately strive. Set your mind fully on the kingdom of God, His righteousness. What this means is placing God first, making it our priority to live the way he requires. This means living under God’s kingship and God’s rule. Again we look to the Beatitudes –blessed are the meek. And then to the Lord’s prayer, Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
But this word, seek, has a further dimension that we may find helpful. It means to earnestly pursue and to follow with single mindedness. Jesus, in the days or weeks prior to the sermon on the mount, called to two fishermen Simon and Andrew. “Come follow me,” Jesus said. To follow is to come behind and focus on the one ahead. Earnestly pursue in following Jesus. Seek –keep your eyes steadfastly on Him. Seek, follow after his example. Seek his kingdom, his righteousness (not our own for we have none!) seek Jesus and you will find Jesus. And as you follow you will walk as Jesus walked, Yes, even to places of suffering, persecution and struggle!
Jesus knew struggle, Jesus knew thirst, Jesus knew hunger, Jesus knew persecution, Jesus knew loss of friends and family, Jesus knew the gamut of life and the stuff of life. Jesus knew suffering, even suffering to death on the cross. Keep this in mind when you listen to the words of Jesus. He had the cross before him, he knew he would suffer and die he knew that he could ask God to take that suffering away –to remove that cup –in fact He did. BUT he kept the glory of God first –your kingdom come your will be done! In all and through all he kept the Father first –your will, not mine, your glory not my comfort, your kingdom Father!
Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be given –added, to you. Seek and you will find. Oh how often do we get that turned around. Why does God seem silent when we ask, why does God seem to not answer? Often I think this is because we ask for the things first –we give the foxhole prayers rather than the life of submission and seeking his kingdom.
Lord, give me a car then I will use it to serve you. Lord save me from this mess and I will go to church. Lord, let me pass this test and I will go to youth group. How backwards we have it, instead of following Jesus seeking Him and keeping our eyes on Him we look behind to see if he is following us to give us what we want! Seek, yes, Jesus says to seek and keep seeking, ut with His kingdom first.
Knock I believe, carries this same idea of seeking God’s kingdom and his glory first and foremost. We read knock and the door will be opened. In the Greek the verse actually reads “knock and opened to you.” The translators have used the parallel passage in Luke 11 to give us this idea of the door (read Luke 11:5-10). And this is a good understanding and helps us to picture what Jesus is saying here in Matthew.
There are two aspects from Luke that I would like to draw upon. The first is that the man who comes is a friend to the one inside –he knows him, there is a relationship. And this brings to mind the question, “What is our relationship to God?” The good news is this –God wants a relationship with us. Sin keeps us apart, but God provided a way for sin to be removed –Jesus died. God wants a relationship with us and it is not based on our efforts or works but in faith –for as many as received him and believe in His name (Jesus) he gave the right to become children of God!
The relationship we can have with God is as a friend –Jesus call us friends when we follow Him, but even more the relationship we can have with god is one of father. (refer to John 14:12-14)
The second aspect is that we can come with boldness. This boldness is not a brash or demanding pushing of our rights, but a confidence and assurance. It literally means lack of feeling shame. Without Christ we are lost –separate from God. We are sinners, dead. Not nice to hear, but true. We cannot approach the throne of God –we cannot even go to the door and knock! But in Christ, because he died on the cross, because he rose again, because he stands at the right hand of the father, when we come to faith in Him and are a follower –an authentic disciple, we are cleansed, alive, spotless, and have no shame –He is our father, he is our God, He is our provider and in Him we can trust.
And this brings us to the rest of the passage. Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened. If a son asks for bread –he gets bread. If he asks for fish, he gets fish (the two main food staples of Galilee). And how much more will your father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask!
It has taken me a long time to come to being comfortable with seeming unanswered prayer. I may not always get the results I ask for but I have a confidence in my heavenly father to provide. I know he hears my prayers. I know he cares deeply for me. I know he will provide what I need. I know that He is Sovereign and all He does is for His glory. I know he is faithful, I know that as I seek first His kingdom and His righteousness all things I need will be given to me. I know I need to ask, seek and knock and to keep on asking, seeking and knocking. I know He works all things out for His glory and my good. I know I can approach with boldness because of Jesus and through Jesus and in Jesus’ name. I know My Heavenly Father will give me good gifts. I may not get what I want, when I want or how I want, but in faith I can know My God will provide. He is Jehovah Jirah, my provider, his grace is sufficient for me.
Prayer
All this now understood, we can come with an assurance and confidence in the words of Jesus. When we ask we will receive, When we seek we will find, when we knock it will be opened. God will give us good things, only good things always good things.
Jeovah Jirah –song!
Choices -Matthew 7:13-14
Choices. We have a lot of choices. This past week I heard on CBC how they are seeking to get more on-line movie accessibility in Canada for such things as Netflix. The commentator said this was to meet our “insatiable appetite for choice.” We want choice, we almost demand choice and see it as a right. When Jodi, Chris and I lived in Cameroon (more than 15 years ago) one of the things we found almost quite disconcerting was choice. There we have one channel on TV. There we had one type of cheese. There we have one type of tea. You go to a restaurant and you had chicken, fried Irish and greens. Yes, we had choice –take it or leave it. When we came back to the US, Jodi and I were almost stymied the first time we went to a supermarket. We wanted some cheese. Not a choice of one but dozen’s. And add to that high fat, low fat, aged or mild, and a host of other options on our options. TV –wow! Now there is so much it is easier to decide not to watch anything! And restaurants? Just think about the choices you have to make for lunch this afternoon! (no wait you have a BBQ here so your choice is limited!) sit down, take out. Fast food, slow food. Buffet, menu. 20 different entrée’s with choice of soup, or salad. Two choices of soup! And cup or bowl! And garden, chefs, Caesar, or Cole slaw! And on it goes. And in all of those choices, if there is something we might want and it is not on the menu –we grumble, complain or even leave.
Choices. Yes, we seem to have an insatiable appetite for choice. And we see that in our spiritual lives as well. We want choices –choices in what we believe, how we worship, who we believe in. And this problem goes back all through the history of God’s people. Choices. God said to Israel, “I am your God, you are my people.” They said, sure, can we worship Baal too? God said, “I am your king.” Yeah, sure, can we have someone like maybe Saul?
Even in the time of Jesus we see a society that was full of choices. Pharisee or Sadducee. Roman, Greek, Hebrew. Strict follower of law or loose interpreter. And many of these religious choices in Israel still are seen today –orthodox, ultra-orthodox, secular, moderate, liberal, progressive.
Jesus comes into this environment of choice and calls the people to something familiar yet harsh. It was a call that echoes back through the history of the people of God and continues to today: chose this day who you will serve.
Stand and read Matthew 7:13-15, 20. Pray
Jesus has already given us the choice of following or not. Over and over in this Sermon we find Jesus laying it clearly and in no uncertain terms either you follow the narrow path or not. Look back with me to some of the earlier statements made by Jesus.
-Blessed are the poor
-blessed are the meek
-let our works be to the glory of your Father in heaven
-live in obedience to the law of the father (not in so few words, but the main bulk of chapter 5 says this
-pray like this, “our Father –your kingdom come, your will done
-you cannot serve God and Money
-seek first the kingdom of God
Jesus would go one to make such definitive and strong statements –I am the way, no one comes to the father but by me. God so loved the world…Worship the Lord your God and serve only him.
Jesus wants to make it very clear –there are no other choices, no options, no alternatives. There are not many paths to God there is one, only one –a narrow path through a narrow gate. But, but that’s exclusionary –yes. It is discriminatory –yes it is. It is not politically correct –that’s right.
Scripture has made it clear, Jesus made it clear, God made it clear in this book –there is one way, a narrow way. I cannot get around it if I believe that this is the word of God –which I do. I cannot ignore it is this is God speaking –which I believe it is. There is only one gospel, one way, one gate, one path. There is a choice –very limited. And given our insatiable appetite for choice we chafe at this.
A former friend of mine, and I have to say former because he has never again spoken to me, did not like this narrow interpretation of the Bible (excuse the pun). I shared at a meeting of our ministerial (not in Kenora) as a devotional this passage. I said, one of the common things we have as ministers is that we proclaim and preach the same message –Jesus as the only way to the Father. This former friend took exception (yes he was a minister in the community). His response was something like this, “I don’t believe we can put God in a box like that. He has opened many paths to heaven and people of sincere faith, no matter what path they follow, will get to heaven. Jesus is just one of those paths. As a ministerial we cannot be exclusive and say there is only one way.” And he was right. As a ministerial we could not, but as a Christian ministerial, which we were, we could and should and must! That is the bedrock of our faith –Christ, the only begotten son, took on flesh, lived amoung us, died on a cross for our sins, was buried and rose again on the third day. Christ, who said, I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to the father but by me.
It was soon after that several of us formed an evangelical Christian ministerial group. My former friend became chairman of the ministerial but soon after left the community. I still pray for him.
Jesus in these verses in Matthew 7 presses us more and more to the point of evaluating our being an authentic follower. The first is what we have already touched on –making the choice to go through the narrow door and follow the narrow path. Choosing this is not easy nor popular. Jesus has already told us that in the beatitudes –there will be opposition –persecution. Our insatiable appetite for choice even rails against this and people become offended when you tell them that Jesus offers an exclusive.
In this passage there are several views as to the exact picture Jesus is drawing here. Two popular ones are that you can imagine yourself standing and looking at two gates –one going to the broad path, the other to the narrow. You choose. The other is that we are on the broad path and we see the narrow gate and choose to go through it going off the broad path. Either way the choice given by Jesus is clear –enter the narrow door that leads to life or go on the broad road that leads to destruction.
The choice is simple –the door to life –this door, or not. In Cameroon we had simple choices -cheese or not. TV channel one or not. Chicken or not. No smorgasbord; no satellite dish with 2,000,000 channels; no brae, Swiss, gorgonzola, light fat. Choose this door or not!
What is the door or gate? Well, more precisely who is the door or gate? We have already read some of Jesus own words on this but let me read to you from the gospel of John 10:9. “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.” That is the great news of the gospel. Anyone who believe, anyone who enters the gate, anyone who enters through me will be saved! That is the good news!
Enter through Christ into the kingdom. Enter though Christ to life eternal. Enter through Christ, the gate to a relationship with the heavenly father. We read in John 1 that all who receive him, to those who believe in His Name, he gave the right to become the children of God.
Over and over we have this wonderful promise, the great news. BUT we must choose to enter the gate! That is the choice –enter or not. Jesus or not. The narrow gate or not. Simple, demanding, exclusive –but open to all who will enter. You are not born inside the gate, you are not baptized to get in the get, you do not work your way inside the gate, there are no brownie points offered in life and if you have enough you get in it is a matter of faith, believe in his name –Jesus, the gate.
Now for many of us we have made that choice. And, I admit I am preaching to the converted in most cases. But there are some here today who have not made that choice. For whatever reason –perhaps you have never been given the choice, or had it presented that a choice needs to be made. There are those opportunities that come and somehow can slip by if we do not act.
Many times I have gone to a store and seen something I knew I should get. Oh, there’s plenty of them, lot of time –I’ll come back tomorrow and low and behold it is gone. Many people see the door of Jesus and hear the invitation but pass by –there’s plenty of time. My friend Allen when I was 10 came to a VBS and did not accept the invitation to enter the door. He told me after he wasn’t ready. Two days later he was killed as a pile of logs he was climbing on rolled. Or my friend Leanne in High School who came to youth group and was shown the door but said it was not for her, maybe when she was older and married –she died in a motorcycle accident just after graduation –I never knew if she had that chance again to go through the door. I could go on about many people who did not and have not. I still pray they may yet.
Jesus didn’t muddle it all up with a bunch of choices or options or alternatives. He made it clear –there is one way, the narrow gate -I am that gate, any who enter through me will be saved. If you haven’t yet, why not today? Spirit of the Living God, fall on us and move us to a deeper life with you –a life that today can begin by entering in the gate –Jesus.
Entering the door is not just an insurance policy for heaven –something we just do and then carry on as usual. Once we enter the gate we need to take serious what we have done. Entering the door is not just easy believism. The rest of the sermon gives warning to us who have entered. First and foremost is that the path itself is narrow.
Many people who have entered the gate believe that they can just go on the way they have been. They see the path as “broad” beyond the gate of Jesus. Jesus says that narrow is the way, the road that leads to life. Jesus gives us three challenges or obstacles that can keep us from that path. We are going to look at them in more detail next time, but they are something that every follower of Jesus, every person who had chosen to enter the door, every person who is on the narrow path needs to take serious.
The first is a warning about pretenders –those who are on the outside pretending to have entered the door but have not. The second is the warning of those who think they have entered but have not and the third is those who have entered but do not follow the path. Jesus gives strong words –even harsh words, that should cause each of us to seriously take note. Statements like verse 19 and 23. Again, we’ll look at these next time as we come to a close of the sermon on the mount.
This morning, we simply and deeply consider Jesus’ offer of entering the door accepting his call, his invitation to come into a restored relationship with the Father. Jesus is the only way, he is the door or gate and any who enter through will be saved. If you have not entered, today is the time, this is the time that the door is before you. Knock and it will be opened.
To those who have entered the door, entered the gate, now is a time to give thanks, to rejoice in the God of your salvation. Affirm your entering the gate, give praise to the Father for the life he has given you through Jesus Christ. Renew and recommit your life to follow the path of Jesus which leads to eternal life, and as e said at the beginning of the sermon on the mount –blessing! Seek the Lord while he may be found, seek first His kingdom and righteousness.
Choices. Yes, we seem to have an insatiable appetite for choice. And we see that in our spiritual lives as well. We want choices –choices in what we believe, how we worship, who we believe in. And this problem goes back all through the history of God’s people. Choices. God said to Israel, “I am your God, you are my people.” They said, sure, can we worship Baal too? God said, “I am your king.” Yeah, sure, can we have someone like maybe Saul?
Even in the time of Jesus we see a society that was full of choices. Pharisee or Sadducee. Roman, Greek, Hebrew. Strict follower of law or loose interpreter. And many of these religious choices in Israel still are seen today –orthodox, ultra-orthodox, secular, moderate, liberal, progressive.
Jesus comes into this environment of choice and calls the people to something familiar yet harsh. It was a call that echoes back through the history of the people of God and continues to today: chose this day who you will serve.
Stand and read Matthew 7:13-15, 20. Pray
Jesus has already given us the choice of following or not. Over and over in this Sermon we find Jesus laying it clearly and in no uncertain terms either you follow the narrow path or not. Look back with me to some of the earlier statements made by Jesus.
-Blessed are the poor
-blessed are the meek
-let our works be to the glory of your Father in heaven
-live in obedience to the law of the father (not in so few words, but the main bulk of chapter 5 says this
-pray like this, “our Father –your kingdom come, your will done
-you cannot serve God and Money
-seek first the kingdom of God
Jesus would go one to make such definitive and strong statements –I am the way, no one comes to the father but by me. God so loved the world…Worship the Lord your God and serve only him.
Jesus wants to make it very clear –there are no other choices, no options, no alternatives. There are not many paths to God there is one, only one –a narrow path through a narrow gate. But, but that’s exclusionary –yes. It is discriminatory –yes it is. It is not politically correct –that’s right.
Scripture has made it clear, Jesus made it clear, God made it clear in this book –there is one way, a narrow way. I cannot get around it if I believe that this is the word of God –which I do. I cannot ignore it is this is God speaking –which I believe it is. There is only one gospel, one way, one gate, one path. There is a choice –very limited. And given our insatiable appetite for choice we chafe at this.
A former friend of mine, and I have to say former because he has never again spoken to me, did not like this narrow interpretation of the Bible (excuse the pun). I shared at a meeting of our ministerial (not in Kenora) as a devotional this passage. I said, one of the common things we have as ministers is that we proclaim and preach the same message –Jesus as the only way to the Father. This former friend took exception (yes he was a minister in the community). His response was something like this, “I don’t believe we can put God in a box like that. He has opened many paths to heaven and people of sincere faith, no matter what path they follow, will get to heaven. Jesus is just one of those paths. As a ministerial we cannot be exclusive and say there is only one way.” And he was right. As a ministerial we could not, but as a Christian ministerial, which we were, we could and should and must! That is the bedrock of our faith –Christ, the only begotten son, took on flesh, lived amoung us, died on a cross for our sins, was buried and rose again on the third day. Christ, who said, I am the way the truth and the life and no one comes to the father but by me.
It was soon after that several of us formed an evangelical Christian ministerial group. My former friend became chairman of the ministerial but soon after left the community. I still pray for him.
Jesus in these verses in Matthew 7 presses us more and more to the point of evaluating our being an authentic follower. The first is what we have already touched on –making the choice to go through the narrow door and follow the narrow path. Choosing this is not easy nor popular. Jesus has already told us that in the beatitudes –there will be opposition –persecution. Our insatiable appetite for choice even rails against this and people become offended when you tell them that Jesus offers an exclusive.
In this passage there are several views as to the exact picture Jesus is drawing here. Two popular ones are that you can imagine yourself standing and looking at two gates –one going to the broad path, the other to the narrow. You choose. The other is that we are on the broad path and we see the narrow gate and choose to go through it going off the broad path. Either way the choice given by Jesus is clear –enter the narrow door that leads to life or go on the broad road that leads to destruction.
The choice is simple –the door to life –this door, or not. In Cameroon we had simple choices -cheese or not. TV channel one or not. Chicken or not. No smorgasbord; no satellite dish with 2,000,000 channels; no brae, Swiss, gorgonzola, light fat. Choose this door or not!
What is the door or gate? Well, more precisely who is the door or gate? We have already read some of Jesus own words on this but let me read to you from the gospel of John 10:9. “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.” That is the great news of the gospel. Anyone who believe, anyone who enters the gate, anyone who enters through me will be saved! That is the good news!
Enter through Christ into the kingdom. Enter though Christ to life eternal. Enter through Christ, the gate to a relationship with the heavenly father. We read in John 1 that all who receive him, to those who believe in His Name, he gave the right to become the children of God.
Over and over we have this wonderful promise, the great news. BUT we must choose to enter the gate! That is the choice –enter or not. Jesus or not. The narrow gate or not. Simple, demanding, exclusive –but open to all who will enter. You are not born inside the gate, you are not baptized to get in the get, you do not work your way inside the gate, there are no brownie points offered in life and if you have enough you get in it is a matter of faith, believe in his name –Jesus, the gate.
Now for many of us we have made that choice. And, I admit I am preaching to the converted in most cases. But there are some here today who have not made that choice. For whatever reason –perhaps you have never been given the choice, or had it presented that a choice needs to be made. There are those opportunities that come and somehow can slip by if we do not act.
Many times I have gone to a store and seen something I knew I should get. Oh, there’s plenty of them, lot of time –I’ll come back tomorrow and low and behold it is gone. Many people see the door of Jesus and hear the invitation but pass by –there’s plenty of time. My friend Allen when I was 10 came to a VBS and did not accept the invitation to enter the door. He told me after he wasn’t ready. Two days later he was killed as a pile of logs he was climbing on rolled. Or my friend Leanne in High School who came to youth group and was shown the door but said it was not for her, maybe when she was older and married –she died in a motorcycle accident just after graduation –I never knew if she had that chance again to go through the door. I could go on about many people who did not and have not. I still pray they may yet.
Jesus didn’t muddle it all up with a bunch of choices or options or alternatives. He made it clear –there is one way, the narrow gate -I am that gate, any who enter through me will be saved. If you haven’t yet, why not today? Spirit of the Living God, fall on us and move us to a deeper life with you –a life that today can begin by entering in the gate –Jesus.
Entering the door is not just an insurance policy for heaven –something we just do and then carry on as usual. Once we enter the gate we need to take serious what we have done. Entering the door is not just easy believism. The rest of the sermon gives warning to us who have entered. First and foremost is that the path itself is narrow.
Many people who have entered the gate believe that they can just go on the way they have been. They see the path as “broad” beyond the gate of Jesus. Jesus says that narrow is the way, the road that leads to life. Jesus gives us three challenges or obstacles that can keep us from that path. We are going to look at them in more detail next time, but they are something that every follower of Jesus, every person who had chosen to enter the door, every person who is on the narrow path needs to take serious.
The first is a warning about pretenders –those who are on the outside pretending to have entered the door but have not. The second is the warning of those who think they have entered but have not and the third is those who have entered but do not follow the path. Jesus gives strong words –even harsh words, that should cause each of us to seriously take note. Statements like verse 19 and 23. Again, we’ll look at these next time as we come to a close of the sermon on the mount.
This morning, we simply and deeply consider Jesus’ offer of entering the door accepting his call, his invitation to come into a restored relationship with the Father. Jesus is the only way, he is the door or gate and any who enter through will be saved. If you have not entered, today is the time, this is the time that the door is before you. Knock and it will be opened.
To those who have entered the door, entered the gate, now is a time to give thanks, to rejoice in the God of your salvation. Affirm your entering the gate, give praise to the Father for the life he has given you through Jesus Christ. Renew and recommit your life to follow the path of Jesus which leads to eternal life, and as e said at the beginning of the sermon on the mount –blessing! Seek the Lord while he may be found, seek first His kingdom and righteousness.
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