Jesus was asked, “Lord, will those who are saved be few? And He said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able’” (Luke 13:23-24, ESV).
Narrow doorways are neither convenient nor easy. If you would take a tour of the U.S.S. York in Charleston, SC you would find the doors separating compartments are quite narrow and not very tall. Someone over six foot could very well knock themselves out if they don’t duck and turn slightly to one side.
Two words stand out in this verse, strive and seek. One seems aggressive and the other more passive. If they are aggressive verses passive then we have something to wrestle with and decide as we consider following Jesus. Could this be another cost of discipleship passage?
The word for “Strive” in verse 24, is the same word from which we get our English word “agonize.” Its basic meaning is striving for a goal and the goal is for a few to be saved. Another way to possibly put this term is “forcing your way into it” (Amplified version of NT).
If you read a complementary verse, 1Timothy 4:10, greater clarity is brought to Jesus’ words. “For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe” (ESV). In the context of this verse we see Paul the apostle using an energetic illustration to convey what a good servant of Jesus looks and acts like.
A few verses earlier Paul encourages Timothy to train himself for godliness, to become more like Jesus in an intensely focused way. When one trains his or her self for an athletic event, success comes from single-minded purpose; a fierce desire to be the best they can be.
Paul further encourages Timothy – “Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers” (1 Timothy 4:11-16, emphasis mine).
Paul is telling Timothy to make use of the teaching and wisdom he has gained from Paul, and to serve as an example of God’s grace and power.
Many people compare the Christian life to a marathon and that’s not a bad example, but given the obstacles we face throughout life, an Ironman Triathlon might be a little more accurate comparison.
An Ironman Triathlon is a 2.2-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride followed by a marathon. And these are done back to back to back. You would swim your 2.2 miles and then immediately run and change into your biking outfit on the run and then when you are finished with the 112 mile bike ride you immediately switch to your running shoes and run the marathon. Whew! It makes you sort of tired just writing about this.
The reason these extreme athletes can accomplish this is because of intense focus and much training. For the Christian life it is the same way; there must intense focus and much time training in the Scriptures and how to live them out.
Another major difference in the illustration here, is that the training for the Ironman is individualistic whereas training for the Christian life must be done en masse. We are to live life together, to see growth and maturity and the lessening of the devastating effects of sin in ourselves and each other. We grow together.
This is called the church, and the church (ecclesia) is plural made one. We definitely do not live on an island no matter how bad one would like to live like that at times, but the church is made up of many different individuals created by God for a specific purpose.
But what we do have in common is to “Strive to enter through the narrow door.” Let us begin living or continue living as the church and progress to greater conformity to the Author and Finisher of our faith – the Lord Jesus Christ!