“Narrow Is the Gate”

Jesus said to “enter by the narrow gate” if we’re seeking life. Why did He seemingly discourage people from becoming Christians? What makes the gate so narrow?

At the beginning of His ministry, thousands of disciples chased after Jesus Christ as they would a celebrity—but after His death, that number had dwindled to only a few hundred (Acts 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:6).

These disciples quickly learned that being a Christian was no walk in the park. Following in the footsteps of our Savior means more than just giving your heart to the Lord—it often means making difficult choices and doing difficult things.

Jesus warned His disciples about that while He was still alive. He told them, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

The narrow gate and the difficult way

“The narrow gate” is a fairly straightforward concept. A narrow gate is harder to pass through than one that is wide, and only a few people can go through a narrow gate at once.

Jesus was describing the pathway to life—true, eternal life—as something requiring effort and focus to enter. Only a relatively small number of people ever set foot on that path.

But getting onto the path is only the first step. When He said, “Difficult is the way which leads to life,” Jesus was explaining how hard being a Christian really is.

“Difficult” is from the Greek word thlibo, which means: “To press (as grapes), press hard upon; a compressed way; narrow straitened, contracted.” Metaphorically, the word can also mean “to trouble, afflict, distress.” If Jesus wanted to draw people to follow Him, why did He tell prospective disciples that doing so would bring them grief?

To understand what He meant, let’s examine a few of the passages where He seemingly discouraged people from following Him. Luke writes of three encounters Jesus had with would-be Christians as He and His disciples were traveling, and each of these encounters offers insight into what makes the gate so narrow and the way so difficult.

The narrow gate of uncertainty

One would-be follower made a dramatic statement of commitment, saying to Christ: “Lord, I will follow You wherever You go” (Luke 9:57).

Jesus didn’t reply, “Wonderful! Please join us!” Instead, He said something that, at the least, would have caused the man to have second thoughts or, at the most, would have turned him away completely: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head” (verse 58).

Jesus was conveying the uncertainty that could accompany the life of someone choosing to follow Him as a student in the first century. To follow Christ today, we must be also willing to accept a certain amount of difficulty and persecution—knowing that we will remain living in the world without remaining part of the world (John 17:9-19).

The narrow gate of priority

Luke’s narrative continues with Jesus turning to another person and telling him, “Follow Me” (verse 59). The man begged off, asking that he be allowed to first bury his father.

Since Jewish custom was to bury the dead as soon as possible, it is unlikely the man was out with the crowd around Jesus with a dead father at home. More likely, the man was asking to spend whatever remaining time he might have with an aging or perhaps ill father—a rather openended request.

Jesus could discern that this was a delay tactic, an excuse to not respond to Jesus’ calling now, but put it off to some indefinite time in the future when it would be more convenient.

The blunt record of Luke has Jesus responding to this man’s excuse, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God” (verse 60). Obviously, dead people do not bury anyone. Here, Jesus was referring to those who were spiritually dead—people who had not responded to His teaching.

Jesus was telling the potential Christian that his calling was infinitely more important. The same is true for us—we can’t dedicate ourselves to follow Christ if we keep putting vague, open-ended priorities in front of our calling.

The narrow gate of commitment

Then a third man, who was committed to becoming a disciple, made a seemingly reasonable request to first return home to say goodbye to whoever was at his house (verse 61). (It’s unclear if these people were family or guests.)

To this person, Jesus responded: “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (verse 62).

We cannot know with certainty, but this person may not have been as committed as his words make it sound. Jesus knew his heart and saw it necessary to remind the man that looking back was not an option.

The Bible records only the essence of the exchange—what we need to know to understand the main point. All three of these responses add clarity to Christ’s teaching that “narrow is the gate.”

In this third example, the added lesson was that Christians must continue to keep their eyes on the goal—God’s Kingdom.

An experienced plowman immediately recognizes the point of this analogy. When plowing, the farmer fixes his eyes on a rock, a hill or some other marker, so that he will plow straight furrows. Although modern farmers with vast fields often use GPS equipment to accomplish this, the principle remains the same!

Other narrow gates to consider

A few chapters later, we find another insightful account about what we must do to become followers of Jesus Christ.

With a huge number of people crowding around to hear Jesus’ every word, He gave more examples, not of how easy it is to become a Christian, but how heavy the obligation of becoming a Christian is.

You must hate your mother and father?

In Luke 14:26 Jesus said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.”

This instruction seems strange until we understand the meaning of the original language.

The NKJV Study Bible explains: “To ‘hate’ one’s family and even one’s life is rhetorical. It refers to desiring something less than something else” (2007, notes on Luke 14:26).

In other words, a Christian’s love for living God’s way of life has to be greater than the love he or she has for any human relationship, as well as for himself or herself.

Matthew captures this meaning as he quotes Jesus saying, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37).

Even clarified, the statement in Luke 14:26 is rather unexpected, and certainly becomes a narrow gate itself as we evaluate our most important relationships. The question is, Will we put our relationship with God above all other human relationships? Do we approach God’s calling with that kind of dedication and commitment?

You must overcome and endure trials

The next example was extremely graphic. Jesus said, “And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple” (verse 27).

To bear a cross, or a stake, in the Roman world was a death sentence— because after you were done carrying it where it needed to go, you would be nailed to it and die on it.

These words carry all the more weight when we consider that, when Jesus said this, He was well aware that very soon He would be bearing His own (literal) cross. The Son of God would die the death of a common criminal.

Just as condemned criminals were made to carry their execution device, we must be willing to endure and overcome whatever trials we may face as Christians. These trials are not optional or unexpected—they are as certain as the ultimate fate of someone bearing a cross.

This is a narrow gate, indeed.

You must “count the cost”

Next, Jesus spoke of a construction project. He pointed out that any responsible builder would consider the cost of the entire project from start to finish and would make sure he had the necessary funding to complete the project before he would even start.

Beginning a construction project without considering funding could result in an abandoned, partially complete building—a visual symbol of the builder’s lack of judgment (verses 28-30).

This principle can also be applied to the narrow gate of becoming a Christian. We need to understand the cost—the challenges and hardships— that are sure to come when we begin living God’s way of life.

If we enter onto the difficult path expecting only clear skies and happiness, we risk running out of steam when we have to deal with the challenging days that are sure to come.

Jesus wants us to have a realistic view of what’s ahead, not an impossibly optimistic one. True Christians must approach their calling clearly understanding the commitment and sacrifice that will be required of them. That’s why responding to God’s calling should not be a momentary decision driven by emotion.

You must consider your resources

Jesus then gave an illustration about going to war. Jesus said that a king or general counts his troops before engaging an enemy. He wants to know in advance that victory is possible. If he doesn’t have sufficient resources to win, he makes peace instead of going to war (verses 31-32).

As for Christians, our battles are spiritual in nature. In reality, it is impossible for us to win this war by ourselves. Upon becoming a Christian, we will need the help of God’s great power—His Holy Spirit—to achieve victory against overwhelming odds. But armed with that power, we can expect victory, and the narrow gate becomes worth entering.

You must “forsake all” that you have

Concluding His teaching on this occasion, Jesus said, “So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple” (verse 33).

The lesson here is that in order to truly follow Christ, this must become the most important thing in our lives. We must be willing to lose literally everything else in our lives if necessary to maintain our discipleship. It also shows us that there are certain things we will have to give up to become a Christian. Anything that is sinful or that tempts us to go down the pathway of sin, has to go.

Why would Jesus tell people that unless they met these undeniably stringent standards, they could not become His disciples, Christians? Because the gate is narrow, and the path is difficult. Jesus wanted to make that perfectly clear to anyone considering following Him.

The narrow gate is designed for quality, not quantity

Another insightful passage of Jesus’ teaching on becoming a Christian is found in John 6:25-66. This section of Scripture is a composite of interactions with a variety of people. Some wanted Jesus to repeat the miracle of producing food. Some were in audiences of synagogues at which Christ spoke. And some were Jewish leaders critical of Jesus.

Jesus began talking about physical manna and then explained that He was the true manna and that the way to salvation was by “eat[ing] My flesh and drink[ing] My blood” (verses 53-56).

Not understanding that He was talking about the Passover symbols of bread and wine, which represented His flesh and blood, many people abruptly stopped following Him (verse 66).

On the surface, it again appears that Christ’s approach seemed illogical, because His words did not entice people to join Him. Clearly, Christ did not want just numbers.

However, He wanted all who became His disciples—students or learners and members of the spiritual body called in Scripture “the Church of God” (Acts 20:28)—to make it through to the end. They needed to know that they would encounter the most difficult challenges of their lives. He would have been irresponsible had He failed to prepare the disciples.

By analogy, failing to counsel them on the challenges they would face if they became Christians would be like taking a group of average citizens and sending them on a military mission meant for an expert team such as the U.S. Navy SEALS or the British SAS.

Without proper training, the people would not likely survive such a mission. And it would be disastrous for the mission itself. God wants all to achieve their potential, and He wants Christians to understand the serious nature of their commitment to follow Him.

God must specifically call a person

There’s one more dimension of the “narrow gate” that we must understand. Jesus also made it clear that individuals cannot come to the Father on their own. God must initiate the process.

Jesus explained, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him” (John 6:44).

Jesus was describing the process by which the Father draws (or calls) a person to Himself. It includes God’s opening a person’s mind to understand spiritual truth, and it is literally an invitation to salvation for that individual.

How can you know if God is calling you—if you truly are being called to become a Christian and follow Jesus Christ? Answering the following questions will help:

• Have I accepted Christ as my personal Savior (for salvation from the death penalty for sin—breaking God’s laws)?

• Do I understand the Bible when I study it?

• Have I developed a relationship with God through prayer?

• Do I recognize that my natural inclination is to do things contrary to what God expects?

• Has my mind changed from resenting God’s laws to appreciating those laws as standards to live by?

• Do I recognize the need to live according to God’s laws in response to Jesus’ sacrifice for my sins?

• Do I put knowledge I gain from the Bible into action?

• Am I striving to obey God in every area of my life as I learn how He wants me to live?

• Have I discovered that the more I learn and act on biblical truths, the more I desire to learn still more?

God will not force anyone to respond to His calling against his or her will. He never does that. It is up to you whether you will respond to His invitation to be part of the “firstfruits,” the first group of humans who will be changed to spirit and enter His Kingdom.

The calling of God the Father is the only way to enter the “narrow gate”!

Christ never leaves those who commit to enter the narrow gate

Of course, God gave other counsel besides warnings about the challenge of becoming a Christian. He also promises those who do commit to this way of life, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5).

The NKJV Study Bible comments, “This quotation is one of the most emphatic statements in the NT. In Greek it contains two double negatives, similar to saying in English, ‘I will never, ever, ever forsake you.’ Jesus uses the same technique to express the certainty of eternal life for believers (see John 10:28).”

You may have heard the military saying, “Never leave a man behind!” Similarly, the Father and the Son are fully committed to those who respond to God’s calling.

Jesus made a similar promise after His resurrection, promising He would be with Church members always and forever, “even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

What path are you choosing?

So why would anyone choose the narrow gate and difficult path, symbolizing the way Christians must live, when it is such a difficult path compared to the smooth, easy way of the world?

On hikes, there are often adventures, thrills and vistas available only to those who take the difficult path. The difficult way brings rewards that those who remain on the smooth and easy way will never know!

Similarly, the experience of being in God’s Church is incomparably rewarding to those who are called of God. They become part of the family of God now. They serve in His work. They are energized by interacting with people of like mind.

They anticipate reigning with Christ in the coming Kingdom of God. They deeply appreciate being led by the Holy Spirit and understand that godliness has benefits for “the life that now is” and “that which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:8).

Which way are you choosing? Look at your level of commitment, which you can judge by how much you are putting into practice what you know God would have you do. Would “the narrow gate” describe the way you are choosing to live? Or are you choosing the smooth way, the path of least resistance?

The narrow gate will always be the more difficult option—but in the end, it’s the only path worth taking.