Enter By the Narrow Gate

“All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the LORD.” (Proverbs 16:2 NIV)

Let’s get right down to it. This whole Narrow Gate thing is really nifty and hip, but whats the bottom-line? Whats the point? We talked last Sunday about how the two gates that Matthew presents us can be viewed as decisions we make in our lives. The broad gate leads to destruction, while the narrow gate leads to life along with persecution. Regardless each gate leads to something, the gates are only a means to an end NOT the end in itself.

This verse in proverbs sheds even more light on the narrow gate. We see here that God weighs the motives of a man. Its not just about what you do, but also why you’re doing it. Is the right thing still the right thing if it’s done for the wrong reason? We can go through the motions a lot of times, but our hearts are still far from God.

This is the toughest of the tough! The reasons and motives behind why we do things are so deep and hidden from the outside world. You can fake it easily! I know because I do it a lot. Truly only God knows whats on our hearts and its not the norm to open up with people and tell them the actual reasons and convictions behind our actions and choices.

When you’re faced with your next narrow gate vs broad gate moment, take a step back and ask yourself: am I doing this because I really do want to glorify God and grow closer to Him?

I’ll leave you with one more verse: “This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world? Only he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.” (1 John 5:3-5 NIV)