The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 7:13-14

The gate to life, the Lord tells us is “narrow” and there are “few who find it.” One of the saddest passages in the entire gospels is the one in the gospel of St. John which says: “He came to his own, and his own received him not.” Jesus, the Son of God, was rejected by his own people when he walked on earth, and he continues to be rejected by most people, even today. The fault is not with the message or the messenger; the fault is with fallen human nature that tends to follow the broad and easy road to destruction rather than enter the narrow gate that leads to life.

Jesus is the narrow gate that leads to life. It is not easy to embrace the new life that Jesus offers for it means stripping away and casting off the baggage of worldly attachments that prevent us from being spiritually free. C.S. Lewis. writing in ‘The Great Divorce’, compares today’s lost humanity to people in a dark subway riding a shuttle train to nowhere. Most people are doing this; the majority of people lead unexamined or unaware lives; but that does not make it right.

Jesus never promised us a rose garden; he never said it would be easy to follow him. When some of his disciples were looking for an easy life, he reprimanded them and offered them a life of sacrifice and love in order to follow him through the narrow gate. Wherever there is love, there also will be sacrifice. Jesus offers both.

Every day, a good Christian experiences temptations of every kind; temptations to love or reject a neighbor; temptations to help someone in need or to pass that person by like the unfeeling priest in the parable of the Good Samaritan. A good Christian faces decisions daily about observing the commandments; about promoting peace, protecting the environment, and fostering reconciliation. In many cases, a good Christian has to endure outright persecution because he or she has chosen to follow the narrow way of the gospel.

Is it worth it? Does it make sense to follow the narrow way of the gospel when “everyone else” is following the broad road to destruction? You bet it is! It is worth it because you are doing something special with your life and you are not alone. Jesus is at your side. He is at your side and He is helping you all the way.

He will not abandon you.

Fr. Hugh Duffy