Matthew 7 Verses 13 to 14 The Path That Leads to Life June 16, 2024

Matthew 7 Verses 13 to 14 The Path That Leads to Life June 16, 2024

Lesson 11 Sermon on the Mount Class Presentation Notes AAAA

Background Scriptures:

· Joshua 24:14-15 (NKJV) 14 "Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! 15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD."

· 1 Kings 18:21 (NKJV) 21 And Elijah came to all the people, and said, "How long will you falter between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people answered him not a word.

· Luke 13:1-5 (NKJV) 1 There were present at that season some who told Him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 And Jesus answered and said to them, "Do you suppose that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered such things? 3 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish. 4 Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them, do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem? 5 I tell you, no; but unless you repent you will all likewise perish."

· Luke 13:23-24 (NKJV) 23 Then one said to Him, "Lord, are there few who are saved?" And He said to them, 24 "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.

Main Idea:

· The life Jesus described in the Sermon on the Mount doesn’t happen automatically. It requires decision.

Study Aim:

· We must recognize that true freedom and life come from the abundant life found only in Christ.

Create Interest:

· Our culture overwhelms us with choices. Even soft drink vending machines in restaurants are now offering up to 127 choices. Choices may encourage our individuality, but choices—especially too many choices—can be stressful. The biggest choice we must make, however, does not need to be too hard. Life boils down to one choice with two options: take the road that leads to life in Christ or take the road that leads to destruction.[1]

Lesson in Historical Context:

· There is always a certain dramatic quality about life, for, as it has been said, “all life concentrates on man at the cross-roads.” In every action of life man is confronted with a choice; and he can never evade the choice, because he can never stand still. He must always take one way or the other. Because of that, it has always been one of the supreme functions of the great men of history that they should confront men with that inevitable choice.

· As the end drew near, Moses spoke to the people: “See, I have set before you this day life and good, and death and evil. … Therefore, choose life, that you and your descendants may live” (Deuteronomy 30:15–20). When Joshua was laying down the leadership of the nation at the end of his life, he presented them with the same choice: “Choose this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:15). Jeremiah heard the voice of God saying to him, “And to this people you will say, Thus says the Lord: Behold I set before you the way of life and the way of death” (Jeremiah 21:8).

· That is the choice with which Jesus is confronting men in this passage.

o There is a broad way, and there are many who take it; but the end of it is ruin.

o There is a narrow and a hard way, and there are few who take it; but the end of it if life.

o Cebes, the disciple of Socrates, writes in the Tabula: “Dost thou see a little door, and a way in front of the door, which is not much crowded, but the travelers are few? That is the way that leadeth to true instruction.” Let us examine the difference between the two ways.[2]

Bible Study:

Matthew 7:13-14 (NKJV) 13 "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. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

· Matthew’s use of the figure is a bit ambiguous in that it combines both gates and roads. Does one enter through a gate onto a road (v. 13), or does a road lead ultimately to a gate (v. 14)? Most writers hold that Matthew has blended two sayings, one referring to a door or gate (cf. Luke 13:24) and the other to two ways. However that may be, the essential idea is relatively clear. One way is broad and easy. It is the way of self-centeredness, and the majority travel that road. The other way is narrow and hard to find. Only a few travel the road of personal commitment and discipline. One road leads to destruction and the other to eternal life.

o The saying is primarily eschatological, although it speaks as well of life here and now. It describes two ways to live: two ways that separate and lead to two distinct destinies. The choice is clear: follow the crowd with its characteristic bent toward taking the path of least resistance or join the few who accept the limiting demands of loyalty. The easy way will turn out hard (it ends in destruction), whereas the hard way will lead to eternal joy (life).[3]

· The narrow gate signifies literally what we call a wicket, a little door in a large gate. Gate, among the Jews, signifies the entrance, introduction, or means of acquiring anything.

o So, they talk of the gate of repentance, the gate of prayers, and the gate of tears.

· The Savior also referred here to the roads of the ancient cities. They were surrounded with walls and entered through gates. Some of those, connected with the great avenues to the city, were broad, and admitted a throng of people. Others, for more private purposes, were narrow, and few would be seen entering them. The public roads were allowed to be sixteen cubits (24 feet) broad, the private ways only four (6 feet). Christ compares the way to Heaven and Hell by using this illustration.

· The old walled city of Jerusalem still has several gates, some with wide roadways, others with steep, narrow steps so that only pedestrians, animals and small handcarts can pass. Jesus’ hearers would have been familiar with many towns and cities like that.

o Some city gates would be wide enough for several people to go in and out at once; at others you would have to wait your turn.

o Jesus sets his face against any idea that you can simply ‘go with the flow’, allowing the crowd to set the pace and the direction.

· You really have to want to get in through this gate. If you just drift, allowing the current to take you where it will, you’ll miss it.

o But this gate leads to life, and the other sort all lead to destruction.

Note:

· The choice is spelled out at last, and there’s no avoiding it, no softening of the hard line.

o Choices matter; actions and motives matter. Learning to follow Jesus and to know God as Father matter. Eternal issues are at stake.

o ‘Heaven’, as I have stressed, is God’s dimension, God’s sphere of existence, in the present, not simply a destination in the future.

§ But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t future destinies, or that yours is not going to be shaped by the choices you make in the present.

§ And as soon as you hear a little voice saying, ‘maybe Jesus didn’t mean it—surely he can’t have been that strict—maybe it’ll all come right in the end no matter what we do’, you need the next warning.[4]

· Jesus says, “Enter you in at the narrow gate.” That is pretty specific and dogmatic, but such is the nature of truth. Truth is specific and dogmatic. The words in the original Greek are very emphatic.

o John 14:6 (NKJV) 6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

o The word “enter”is in the aorist imperative tense, which means it demands a definite and specific action. We are to enter through THIS gate. The command is not to admire or to ponder the gate, but to enter it. It is not enough to listen to preaching about the gate. You must enter through it. There can be no neutrality.

· You will never go through the narrow gate by accident or being unaware. You must enter it decisively, thoughtfully and purposely.

o Many people admire the principles of the Sermon on the Mount but never follow those principles.

o Many people respect and praise Jesus Christ, but never receive Him as Lord and Savior. He is in their head, but not their heart. He, they think, is just a prophet or a good man, but they do not recognize Him as the Son of God and the Savior of the world. They do not enter the Door of Heaven … Jesus Christ.

§ John 10:9 (NKJV) 9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

· Jesus’ command is not simply to enter somegate but to enter the narrow gate. Every person enters one gate or the other; that is unavoidable.

o Jesus pleads for men to enter the right gate, God’s gate, the only gate that leads to life and to the streets of gold in Heaven.

o The person who enters the narrow gate must enter alone. We can bring no one else and nothing else with us. People do not come into the kingdom in groups, but singly.

§ The Jews had the mistaken notion that they were all in God’s kingdom together by racial salvation, signified by circumcision.

· Furthermore, God’s gate is so narrow that we must go through it without the things of this world. It is the gate of self-denial, through which one cannot carry the baggage of sin and self-will. When we sing, “Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to Thy cross I cling,” we are testifying to the way of the Gospel. The way of Christ is the way of the cross, and the way of the cross is the way of self-denial.

§ Matthew 16:24-25 (NKJV) 24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. 25 For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

· The way that is narrow is the hard way, the demanding way, the way of self-denial and the way of the cross. Jesus makes no bones about it. He is above board and tells us it is strait.[5]

Thoughts to soak on:

· The two ways (vv. 13–14). These are, of course, the way to heaven and the way to hell. The broad way is the easy way; it is the popular way. But we must not judge spiritual profession by statistics; the majority is not always right. The fact that “everybody does it” is no proof that what they are doing is right.

· Quite the contrary is true: God’s people have always been a remnant, a small minority in this world. The reason is not difficult to discover: The way of life is narrow, lonely, and costly. We can walk on the broad way and keep our “baggage” of sin and worldliness. But if we enter the narrow way, we must give up those things.

· Here, then, is the first test: Did your profession of faith in Christ cost you anything? If not, then it was not a true profession.

o Many people who “trust” Jesus Christ never leave the broad road with its appetites and associations.

o They have an easy Christianity that makes no demands on them.

o Yet Jesus said that the narrow way was hard. We cannot walk on two roads, in two different directions, at the same time[6].

As we close this lesson let’s compile our thoughts and decide what to do with this information

· There are two ends. The broad way ends in destruction and in death. In fact, even as a person walks along the broad way, he is said to be perishing[apoleian].

· The narrow way ends in life, that is, in “the fulness of life” and in “the highest ideal of life” (Jn. 10:10)

o John 10:10 (NKJV) 10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

o 1 Corinthians 1:18 (NKJV) 18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

· People are placed into one of two categories here, perishing or being saved. They go through life having one of these two experiences: he/she is either perishing, moving ever downward toward the grave; or he is being saved, moving ever upward toward eternal life.

o In the Greek, both words are continuous action; that is, a man is perishing or is being saved. The words are not static; a man is not sitting still. He is ever “perishing,” more and more being gripped by the flesh and being conditioned to accept a perishing, dying world; or he is ever “being saved,” more and more being freed to walk righteously and godly in this present world.[7]

· The broad way or road ends. There is an end to it, but the traveler does not pay any attention to its end. The road appears to be so broad and long as he travels day by day that he figures he will know when he comes to the end.There is little chance he can miss it, so he thinks.

o But he overlooks one thing.

o The broad road has so many side attractions to draw and embrace the traveler’s attention that he often runs upon the end without knowing it. He fails to see that the end is immediately ahead; therefore, he runs off the end without having prepared himself to face the abyss.

§ Romans 6:23 (NKJV) 23 For the wages of sin isdeath, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

§ Proverbs 14:12 (NKJV) 12 There is a way that seemsright to a man, But its end is the way of death.

· The narrow way does not end. It leads to a glorious world that is yet unseen, but it opens up an unbelievable life to the traveler.

§ John 3:16 (NKJV) 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Blessings to each of you this day,

😊

[1]Ronald K. Brown, Bible Studies for Life, Summer 2016, Herschel Hobbs Commentary (LifeWay Christian Resources, 2016), 58. [2]William Barclay, ed., The Gospel of Matthew, vol. 1, The Daily Study Bible Series (Philadelphia, PA: The Westminster John Knox Press, 1976), 277–278. [3]Robert H. Mounce, Matthew, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2011), 67. [4]Tom Wright, Matthew for Everyone, Part 1: Chapters 1-15 (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), 76. [5]Rod Mattoon, Treasures from the Sermon on the Mount, vol. 2, Treasures from Scripture Series (Springfield, IL: Rod Mattoon, 2007), 234–235. [6]Warren W. Wiersbe, The Bible Exposition Commentary, vol. 1 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1996), 30–31. [7]Leadership Ministries Worldwide, The First & Second Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians, The Preacher’s Outline & Sermon Bible (Chattanooga, TN: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 1996), 20.