The Narrow Door: Best Efforts and God's Timing
Jesus stressed it fairly enough---"Do your best to enter the narrow door." Or "make every effort." He didn't say try to enter or consider praying for it. He said unequivocally to "do your best to enter." No less than best efforts. So, what effort have you spent on this so far? Photo above by Scott Evans on Unsplash.
Yet, you often see how it's the last thing most church folks would do. They'd do everything except enter the narrow door. In fact, a lot see it as a total waste--throwing off everything you'd worked for. Trashing your hard-earned trophies, achievements and everything you treasure in this world.
Here's the bible passage.
“Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’
Giving it every effort or making every effort to enter the narrow door is something that requires all our lives--plus more. Even if you put all efforts into it--beginning from the time you were pulled out of your mother's womb, until the day you die (say, you live to a hundred), your lifetime will NOT have been enough to be able to enter the narrow door. Salvation is free, wholly and sufficiently paid for by Jesus on the cross, but we still need to enter the narrow door. And this requires "best efforts."
Only the Life in Christ Can Make Us Enter
Thus, the spiritual dimension, the spiritual life. The time we spend in the natural is never enough. So God, in His grace and mercy, extended our chances by providing the spiritual life. He allowed us to start living in eternity NOW, even while on earth. Through it we have more time making every effort to enter. But the majority wastes time trying to do this in their own effort, in the earthly realm and time, wasting everything in church programs, activities and "ministries." That's the wide road to destruction, and many take it.
Now, don't get me wrong. We need to spread the Gospel and plant more churches (genuine churches, that is). But we need to do them while pursuing entering the narrow door. A lot today do their ministries through the broad way to destruction. They plant churches by attracting the world through its cravings (through what it wants) and that expands their denominational influence--so they'd be the most numerous denomination of all--rather than expand God's real Kingdom on earth.
It's easier to just give the world what it wants to make it join you than do things in God's ways and standards. But Paul said, we should do everything in God's ways alone so "that the body of Christ may be built up," says Ephesians 4.
The body of Christ is NOT your church denomination. It is the entire body of all true believers worldwide, including those who have gone to heaven ahead of us. Your church denomination (I don't care if you have millions of members) is just a finger or toe or strand of hair in the body of Christ. True ministry that enters the narrow door is devoted so "that the body of Christ may be built up."
The body of Christ is NOT your church denomination. It is the entire body of all true believers worldwide, including those who have gone to heaven ahead of us. Your church denomination (I don't care if you have millions of members) is just a finger or toe or strand of hair in the body of Christ. True ministry that enters the narrow door is devoted so "that the body of Christ may be built up."
Several Narrow Doors
Actually, there are several Narrow Doors in the spiritual life. The first is during salvation. To be saved from sin and hell, we choose to enter Life through the Narrow Door, which is the life of Jesus. He is the Door [John 10.9].
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. [Matt. 7]
But it doesn't end there. I believe that as we go on in the Lord through life, we need to choose the narrow road or gate or door as we serve him. A lot of ministers enrich themselves in ministry and begin to live the life of a millionaire and love the world and hang on to their wealth because along the way they chose to enter the broad way to destruction. As we journey through life, we meet intersections where we choose to either go right or left--the narrow or the broad way.
Sometimes it's even three-pronged. The broad door, the medium-sized door, and the narrow door. Often, Satan tricks us into choosing the medium or broad door (or gate or road) because, like the foul fruit of Eden, they look so good. We cannot see how they can end up in evil. They'd give us popularity and a grander undertaking--bigger business or bigger church. We'd be so successful. We love to be in the spotlight "for God."
And we give the Narrow Door a bad name. I mean, if an endeavor doesn't make us popular or great or moneyed, we give it a thumbs down. So we pay no attention to what Jesus said about doing things in secret so that the Father, who watched in secret, would reward us. It doesn't mean anything to us. We make sure everything we do is displayed in public.
Indeed, as Jesus said, only a few find (and are able to enter) the Narrow Door. The Narrow Door is like how Jesus emptied himself and took the form of a servant. You divest yourself of anything that feeds the ego in any way--first and foremost, be divested of sin and the world. Without sin and the world, the ego starves and dies.
The Big Myth on "Time Management"
Time is irrelevant in the Spirit dimension. You cannot be late or early there once you learn to simply flow with the Spirit of God. No need for schedules. Everything there is in God's perfect timing. When you're really late and miss God's will, it's because you operated in the flesh and in the time of the world.
Time is irrelevant in the Spirit dimension. You cannot be late or early there once you learn to simply flow with the Spirit of God. No need for schedules. Everything there is in God's perfect timing. When you're really late and miss God's will, it's because you operated in the flesh and in the time of the world.
Church people who fail to flow with the Spirit "plan" their programs well to avoid (in their words) "wasting time." That, to them, is being good stewards of time. If you feel or think that way, it only means you are still operating in a carnal manner, in the ways of this world, in your own efforts and perception. You're not yet in the dimension of (or led by) the Holy Spirit.
People thought Jesus was "late" when Lazarus was so ill and later died and Jesus had not yet arrived. However, he deliberately opted to be "late," said Scriptures. It was to demonstrate to all that in the Spirit dimension, there is no such thing as being late or early. God and his timing are sovereign. In the genuine spiritual life, there's only God's perfect timing. You follow no schedules but that. The world may think you're late, but you're always just on time in the Spirit realm--because in Christ, everything in your life and ministry is in God's hands. That is, if you're in Christ.
Late or Early Doesn't Matter. What Matters is God's Timing
If you're genuinely in Christ, God will sometimes work out things so you'd be "late" or "early" to make allowance for other things he's been preparing. And then he puts things together perfectly like a work of art. We better not interfere with our "well planned" programs or schedules. Let's leave it all to God to arrange everything in our lives.
People thought Jesus was "late" when Lazarus was so ill and later died and Jesus had not yet arrived. However, he deliberately opted to be "late," said Scriptures. It was to demonstrate to all that in the Spirit dimension, there is no such thing as being late or early. God and his timing are sovereign. In the genuine spiritual life, there's only God's perfect timing. You follow no schedules but that. The world may think you're late, but you're always just on time in the Spirit realm--because in Christ, everything in your life and ministry is in God's hands. That is, if you're in Christ.
Late or Early Doesn't Matter. What Matters is God's Timing
If you're genuinely in Christ, God will sometimes work out things so you'd be "late" or "early" to make allowance for other things he's been preparing. And then he puts things together perfectly like a work of art. We better not interfere with our "well planned" programs or schedules. Let's leave it all to God to arrange everything in our lives.
Unfortunately, it's a lost spiritual ability of the church--being led wholly by the Holy Spirit. Most of them don't know anymore how it is to be genuinely led by the Spirit. They sit down and plan and ask God to bless their plan. Being led means you go where God wants you to go and do what he wants you to do. It's not having your plan approved by God because He already has a plan. All we have to do is to be led to it. In short, see where he is at work and join him there.
Of course, this is hard for many people to believe or understand. It's part of the Narrow Road. The broad way gives them sovereignty and more control and assurance. Others really don't know a thing because they set goals like having 20 new members this year or a 200-strong membership by year 2025. These things are decided by God alone. Our only job is to preach the Gospel of the Kingdom. Period.
In another instance, Jesus was again "late," being delayed by a woman who had menstrual problems for 12 years. When he arrived at the home of the sick girl, she was already dead and being mourned for. Jesus told the parents, "Don't fear. Just believe!" And again, he proved that in the Spirit realms, there's no such thing as being late or early. There's only God's perfect timing. Operating in God's supernatural schedule in ministry is part of the Narrow Road, but only a few find it.
Late Through Laziness
But don't be late because you're just lazy to wake up and be about. What I mean is, be sensitive to God's leading. Sometimes, he may want you to break your well-planned schedules--or break the Sabbath Law, as it were--and want you to do an errand for him. He may suddenly want to spend time talking to you at that very moment you're on your way to a meeting or an appointment and you have to suddenly cancel it to give way to God, or take a detour for some important mission for him.
God may even allow you to get sick so you'd need to stay home and take a bed rest (pretty much like being swallowed by a big fish for 3 days or an angel being "detained" or forestalled by some spiritual prince so that answers to your prayers get "delayed") because he wants your full attention on him. That's what Daniel enjoyed while Gabriel was still on his way.
In another instance, Jesus was again "late," being delayed by a woman who had menstrual problems for 12 years. When he arrived at the home of the sick girl, she was already dead and being mourned for. Jesus told the parents, "Don't fear. Just believe!" And again, he proved that in the Spirit realms, there's no such thing as being late or early. There's only God's perfect timing. Operating in God's supernatural schedule in ministry is part of the Narrow Road, but only a few find it.
Late Through Laziness
But don't be late because you're just lazy to wake up and be about. What I mean is, be sensitive to God's leading. Sometimes, he may want you to break your well-planned schedules--or break the Sabbath Law, as it were--and want you to do an errand for him. He may suddenly want to spend time talking to you at that very moment you're on your way to a meeting or an appointment and you have to suddenly cancel it to give way to God, or take a detour for some important mission for him.
God may even allow you to get sick so you'd need to stay home and take a bed rest (pretty much like being swallowed by a big fish for 3 days or an angel being "detained" or forestalled by some spiritual prince so that answers to your prayers get "delayed") because he wants your full attention on him. That's what Daniel enjoyed while Gabriel was still on his way.
I do not worry about cancelling "really important" schedules or appointments when I sense God wants me all to himself all of a sudden. Resting or relaxing to me is never a waste of time. Jesus did say to come all you who are tired and he will give you rest. And Hebrews urged us to make every effort to rest in him. That rest is the Narrow Door.
If we understand this--that in the Spirit dimension we should operate in God's eternity, and in this eternity there's only God's perfect timing--we see that giving best efforts to entering the narrow door is not impossible. We can devote our entire lives, here and in eternity (and we should, this is not an option), into giving our best efforts going through the narrow door of Jesus Christ.
Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience. [4.11]Life that enters His rest. Click here.
If we understand this--that in the Spirit dimension we should operate in God's eternity, and in this eternity there's only God's perfect timing--we see that giving best efforts to entering the narrow door is not impossible. We can devote our entire lives, here and in eternity (and we should, this is not an option), into giving our best efforts going through the narrow door of Jesus Christ.