Wednesday 27 February 2019

Psalm: Psalm 85

Background

The gate in today's reading could mean Jesus. In other places in the Bible Jesus is also called the door (John 10:7-9). We are told that the wide gate is the easy gate but this gate leads to destruction. Why must the easy things bring destruction and not lead us to the kingdom?

In Jesus’ day many were going through the wide gate, trusting false prophets who were not teaching the truth. For this they were making the wrong choices, walking through the wide gate. They were not following Christ (the narrow gate) who leads to ‘communion of faith in Christ Jesus’ and a relationship with God.

It would seem that to truly reach God there must be challenges and struggles and for the people at the time this may have been the case. To follow Jesus was not easy and in some cases against the law, so after Jesus’ resurrection many had to worship Christ in secret.

The wide gate feels like the escalator on the London underground. Everyone takes the easy route when beside the escalator are some stairs that take you to the same place, but are narrower and takes much more effort to complete.

Image a crowd of people all racing to get through two different gates. Of course, a crowd will go through the wide gates as it appears more will get through quickly. To go through the narrow gate means to be patient, to walk and not run, also means you notice your surroundings.

The route to heaven is like getting through a narrow gate, it’s harder and takes time. This might be where our dedication and discipline comes in because our discipleship allows us to learn more about ourselves and God.

Jesus warns us and the original listeners against false prophets and hypocrites for the sake of the kingdom. It is the kingdom that we seek and the kingdom we pray and fight for.

To Ponder:

• What do you find hard as a Christian? Pray to Jesus for guidance and strength.
• As you reflect, listen to 'Intentional' by Travis Greene.
• Pray that you may be guided by this reading today.