Enter through the narrow gate! (Matthew 7:12-23)

[Stephan Choe]

March 5, 2026

Key verse 13: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.”

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Jesus taught us various things in his Sermon on the Mount. Chapters 5-7 recount these.

Today's teaching is considered the conclusion of his Sermon on the Mount. He tells us that we should put his teaching into practice.

Many people today believe that if they intellectually understand the teachings of the Bible, they will be saved and enter the Kingdom of Heaven, even though they do not follow his teachings.

However, Jesus teaches us in this passage that intellectual knowledge alone cannot lead us to the Kingdom of Heaven, but that we should believe in our hearts and act from the heart.

Because this misunderstanding of the path to salvation is so widespread today, Jesus' teaching is very important.

May God help us to leave the path to damnation and choose the path to eternal life.

1. The Narrow Gate and the Narrow Way (12-14)

Jesus summarizes his Sermon on the Mount this way: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets” (12).

In other words, “Treat others as you would have them treat you.” This short teaching is considered not only a summary of the Sermon on the Mount but also a summary of the entire Bible.

I didn't come to faith until I was 20. But God had prepared my heart for the gospel through various people. My third and fourth sisters prayed persistently for my conversion. My old friends Jae-Bun Lee, Eun-Chun Lee, and Yeon-Soo Park were kind and honest to me, so I developed a desire to become a Christian. Then, when I was 20, God led me to the church in Daejeon through Peter Suh and Sumin Lee. And Lydia Cho explained to me how to pray. Peter Suh from Korea and Lydia Cho (now "Bang") from Australia attended the 2014 summer conference. I was delighted about that. I want to say here that both sharing the gospel and living an honest, kind life as a disciple of Jesus are good and necessary for the salvation of others.

Jesus says to us, “Do unto others as we would have them do unto us.”

It’s easy to say this. But it’s not easy to put this teaching into practice in our lives. If it were easy, many tragedies, such as conflict, crime, or war, would never have arisen. There would be hardly any court cases. Prisons would be empty. Many police officers and soldiers would be superfluous.

Saying it is easy, but obeying this teaching is difficult. Why? Because I consider myself the most important person in the whole world. That I am the most important person—that’s often true. But this statement has two sides: my side and another side. Everyone often only thinks about their own situation and doesn’t think about the situation of others. I think about my needs and my desires, but I rarely think about the situation of others and their needs. For me, it’s not easy to do what other people want me to do. That’s how people become egocentric.

That’s how people are egocentric. Did Jesus know that it is very difficult for us to follow his teachings?

Yes! That is why he said, “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it” (13-14).

The road to life is not a walk in the park. It is a narrow, arduous path. That is why Jesus says that a person enters the kingdom through their own good deeds—this is much more difficult than a camel going through the eye of a needle (cf. Mt. 19:24). But Jesus reveals the way of salvation to us: “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible” (Mt. 19:26). Through our own efforts, it is impossible to enter the kingdom of heaven. But with the grace of God, our salvation is effortless and certain.

Despite this certainty, we first want to learn about and understand Jesus' teaching on our responsibility.

Jesus offers us two choices: either an easy and broad path or a difficult and narrow one. Most people, of course, choose the seemingly easy, broad path. What the majority thinks—that is the truth for them. Therefore, they follow the majority opinion and ignore the Word of God. Following the Word of God seems too difficult and uncomfortable for them. Appearances are deceit. It is, in reality, a dangerous path. This path gives us no peace of mind. It leads us to catastrophe and damnation.

Unfortunately, most people choose the seemingly broad, easy path. But Jesus urgently admonishes us: Enter through the narrow gate onto the narrow path!

Why does he admonish us to enter through the narrow gate onto a seemingly narrow, difficult path? Because this path leads us to life and peace. The other path leads us to catastrophe and hell. The easy, convenient way means ignoring God's word and living according to our own desires. This may seem convenient at first, but its ultimate destination is disaster and eternal damnation.

What does the alternative path look like? It appears narrow and arduous. But it is the only path that leads us to blessed, eternal life. Isn't this teaching difficult? Apparently so! Not only the teaching itself, but also the consequences of our choice seem very harsh. Many so-called Christian teachers teach something different and claim, "We can live however we want because we are freed from sin. The main thing is that we believe in Jesus Christ. Then our salvation is guaranteed."

But their claim is only half true. The Bible teaches us both our assurance of salvation in Jesus Christ and our own responsibility for living a holy life. We should therefore hold fast to our assurance of salvation and also strive to live a holy life. We are not saved by our good deeds, but by the grace of God. This is a wonderful grace from God. Out of gratitude for God's grace, we should live a holy life and pass through the narrow gate on the narrow path. That is our responsibility. This is the way to eternal life.

Unfortunately, it has become fashionable today to ignore Christ's teaching about our responsibility and to teach only an easy way out. The Bible is taught one-sidedly, while the holy life is ignored. But we should hold fast to the sound, wholesome teaching of the Bible. We should hold fast to our assurance of salvation and follow the teaching of the Bible.

2. Not Our Words, But Our Fruits! (15-20)

Jesus says in verse 15, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

Those who preach a broad, easy way out are like wolves in sheep's clothing. They believe that one can attain eternal life through an easy lifestyle. They call themselves Christian teachers, pastors, or professors. They teach a false path that leads us to disaster and hell.

How can we tell if a teacher is a false teacher or a good one?

Jesus gives us the answer, “By their fruits you will recognize them. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit” (16-18).

A person is not judged by their words but by their deeds. Those who speak well of others but do evil are called hypocrites.

About ten years ago, I learned about a man named Byeong-Eon Yoo. He was said to be the true owner of the ship Sewol, which ran aground and sank in the southwestern Korean Sea on April 16, 2014. The shipping company was transporting far more cargo than legally permitted. Yoo was allegedly the actual leader of the “Saved” sect. His church claims that a Christian, after being saved, is never lost again, even if they do much worse things and do not repent. This church is considered a cult in Korea because it ignores the teachings of vigilance. The shipwreck can be seen as a consequence of its one-sided doctrine. According to newspaper reports, the company barely made a profit because Yoo misappropriated a lot of money. This meant the company hardly had to pay any taxes. Yoo thus remained true to his rescue theory.

In other words, we can recognize whether people are good teachers or false teachers by the fruits of their lives.

We should both accept the teaching of assurance of salvation and properly fulfill our duty of living a sanctified life. We must not become one-sided.

3. Do God's Will (21-23)

Jesus says in verse 21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

Different people will stand before Jesus Christ on the Day of Judgment. Some of them will say to him, “Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?” (22)

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. But their miracles, unfortunately, cannot help them enter the Kingdom of Heaven because they have done evil, as Jesus says in verse 23, “Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Although they performed many miracles, they did not obey God’s will. Therefore, they cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

It is a great danger for everyone to become a “talkative Christian,” someone who calls themselves a Christian but does not obey Christ’s teachings in their daily life, instead following their own selfishness. God wants us to live holy lives and share the Gospel with others. We should be honest and kind to our families and fellow human beings and share the Gospel with them. In doing so, we should bring God many fruits of faith.

Some, however, might think that Jesus teaches salvation through works righteousness in this passage. By works righteousness, I mean that we would be recognized by God as righteous and admitted to the Kingdom of Heaven through our good deeds. But we cannot be saved by our deeds alone. Our salvation comes solely through the grace of God. But God's grace is one side of our life of faith. And our responsibility as God's people is the other side of our life of faith. These two sides are like the two sides of a coin. God's grace and our responsibility seem to contradict each other. But in reality, they don't contradict each other at all. Why? Therein lies a mystery of faith. Whoever fails to recognize this duality of faith will lead a one-sided life of faith: they will emphasize only grace and ignore their own responsibility, or only their own responsibility and ignore God's grace.

As long as we live on this earth, we can never be perfect and can never enter the Kingdom of Heaven through our own good deeds. Rather, we must confess that we are guilty before God and desperately need the grace of forgiveness through Christ's sacrificial death. For Jesus Christ has already received all divine punishment for our sins. That is why God can forgive us. Jesus wants us not to be mere lip service Christians. Rather, he wants us to obey God's will with a grateful heart. He wants us to bear much good fruit in our lives and glorify God. Because we are saved from damnation and hell, we should have a grateful heart for the Lord and do His will wholeheartedly. In this way, we should practice Jesus' teachings. In this way, we can glorify God and lead others to blessed, eternal life.

Decision Today!

Today's Bible reading is very serious. Jesus tells us that we must consider whether we obey him wholeheartedly. He wants us to make a clear decision today. If we obey his word out of gratitude, we will be blessed with the Kingdom of Heaven. I hope that everyone will make this decision today and experience God's blessing.