The Narrow Gate
“Go in through the narrow gate, becausethe gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there aremany who travel it. But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to itis hard, and there are few people who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14, Good NewsTranslation)
These verses remind me of Robert Frost’s poem “TheRoad Not Taken.” You know the one. It ends with “I took the one less traveledby, And that has made all the difference.”
Both of these, however, make me think of a fork in theroad. There’s a road to the left and a road to the right, and which one shouldyou take?
Hubby left a random fork on our washing machine last night.When I picked it up, it dawned on me. A fork usually has four tines, which tomy mind means four choices. I know an eating utensil is a totally differentfork than the one in the road, but bear with me.
People who take the far-left fork blatantly commit allthe sins with no remorse. They lie, cheat, steal, have affairs, and maybe evenkill. They don’t know Jesus at all and they use His name in vain.
People who choose the next road over try to be goodpeople. They heard about the Ten Commandments and thought it would make senseto at least keep the biggies, like killing and stealing. They provide for theirfamilies and try to help out people in need. But no matter how good they are,they don’t know Jesus as their Savior.
The tine second from the right is the one people pickwho go to church, try to keep all of the Commandments, and usually ask forforgiveness. They say their prayers and help out strangers. The problem iseverything they are doing is just stuff they do. They say their prayers to someinvisible God because they have been told to. They haven’t asked Jesus intotheir lives; they don’t have a relationship with Him.
Lastly, the path to the far right, the road less taken,the one through the narrow gate. The one which the fewest people choose, butthose are the people who try to keep the Commandments, who ask for forgiveness,who have asked Jesus Christ into their lives, and have a personal relationshipwith Him.
Which path have you chosen?
