Sermon -- 14th Sunday after Pentecost (September 11, 2022)

LUKE 13:22-30

THERE IS ONLY ONE DOOR INTO THE FEAST.

In the name + of Jesus.

     As Jesus was making his way to Jerusalem to suffer and die for the sins of the world, a man asked him a question: “Lord, will those who are saved be few” (Luke 13:23)?  It seems that this man was expecting a compliment.  Instead, he got a warning.  In fact, Jesus’ answer is alarming for anyone who hears it.  “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 13:24). 

     Jesus tells us not to worry about how many will be saved.  The Lord Jesus paid for the sins of the world, but many remain in their sinful unbelief and do not benefit from it.  How many?  It is not up to us to crunch numbers.  Jesus’ answer turns the focus away from “how many?” to “you, be concerned with yourself.”  “He said to them, ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door’” (Luke 13:24).  There is only one door into the feast.

     Jesus is the narrow door and the only way into the heavenly feast.  But the problem arises when we want to add something to Jesus.  There is always something in us that thinks we need to bring something to the table.  Yes, I believe in Jesus and I am a good person.  I believe in Jesus and I keep the Commandments.  I believe in Jesus and I have better church attendance than most.  When we add something to Jesus, we end up putting our trust in the “and something.”

     That’s the way the Pharisees were.  They believed in the Old Testament and took great pride in their ceremonial acts, their morality, and their wisdom.  To be fair, the Pharisees did act morally.  They did know their Bibles.  And they paid attention in great detail to the ceremonial conduct of their lives.  Many admired them for their pious behavior.  Sadly, that is where the Pharisees put their faith—in their own pious behavior.  From all outward appearances, they were better than most.  But that would not save them, and Jesus told them so.  They did not need congratulations for their virtues, but awareness of their need for a Savior.  There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door.

     Jesus’ words are chilling, even for us.  Those who argue that they deserve a place in the kingdom will be told: “‘I do not know where you come from.’  Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’  But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from.  Depart from me, all you workers of evil’” (Luke 13:25-27)!  It can happen to anyone whose faith is in Jesus and something else.  Faith ends up landing on “and something else.”  How many don’t bother with Jesus any longer because they still remember Sunday School lessons?  How many neglect Holy Communion because they think their confirmation certificate assures them of a fire-proof judgment?  How many figure that going to church for weddings and funerals is enough to satisfy Jesus?  Knowledge, ceremonies, and occasional church attendance might impress some, but they don’t get you through the narrow door.

     Years ago, on a family vacation to New Hampshire, we found a place with a bunch of caves in the White Mountains.  One particular cave was called the “Lemon Squeezer.”  It had a pinch point where only smaller people could squeeze through.  Thankfully, they also had a wooden frame outside the cave with a sign that alerted you, “If you can’t fit through this frame, you will not pass through this cave.”  Anyone with a backpack had to take it off.  There would be no camera around your chest.  You might have even had to empty your pockets, depending upon what you were carrying in them.  You had to cast off everything except what you were wearing if you wanted to pass through.  (Full disclosure: Even though I was much thinner then, I still did not fit through.) 

     There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door.  You are saved by faith in Jesus.  Putting your hope on anything else is carrying the extra stuff that will not allow you to enter.  It does not mean all that stuff is bad.  Virtue, honesty, modesty, church attendance, and Bible knowledge are good.  They are encouraged because they are God’s will.  But no one is so good that he always does God’s will.  You don’t gain anything by trusting in your good works.  On the contrary, if you carry your good works to present them to God for an award, you will not be able to pass through the narrow door. 

     There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door.  Thanks to Jesus, the sins that would keep you from entering are also taken away.  Jesus was cast out of God’s good presence with your sins clinging to him.  He was put to death under God’s horrible curse.  There, on that cross, there was weeping and gnashing of teeth as Jesus suffered the tortures of crucifixion and the torments of hell.  All this he did to take your sins off of you. 

     There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door.  You don’t have to convince God that your sins aren’t that bad.  Jesus has cast them away.  Nor do you have to convince God that you are better than you are.  Your good works do not speak for you; Jesus does.  He alone has earned God’s good pleasure because he alone has done God’s will perfectly and continually.  Through baptism into Jesus, you have been purified by his holy blood and have been dressed in Jesus’ innocence.  God does not condemn the innocent.  So, everything you need to enter the kingdom of God has been granted you by faith in Jesus.  There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door. 

     Jesus warned, “In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.  And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:28-29).  Once again, we get the idea that one’s place in the kingdom of heaven is earned, with the likes of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob present.  Surely, they were better than others, right?

     Would the feast in the kingdom of heaven really be enjoyed by someone who lies about his wife to protect himself?  Would the feast really be enjoyed by a man so desperate for son that he chose to sire his family through a slave woman?  Is there a place at the feast for a man who conned his father and swindled his brother?  For, this is Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

      Now, you might suppose that in the long run, they all earned their place.  Abraham obeyed God who commanded him to do difficult things like leaving his family for a strange land.  Jacob endured intense grief because his lying sons convinced him that his beloved Joseph was gored to death by a wild animal.  And Isaac?  Well, not much is reported about Isaac’s life, but we just assume he was better than others.  But they are not at the feast because they were so good or because they endured so much. 

     What do the Scriptures teach?  Moses wrote, Abraham “believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Genesis 15:6).  You notice that the Scriptures do not teach, “Abraham believed God and did everything he was told.”  They do not say, “Abraham believed God and was more noble than other people.”  They do not claim, “Abraham believed God and knew more about the Bible than other people did.”  No, the Scriptures show that Abraham was saved by faith alone.  So also with Isaac and Jacob.

     It is no different today.  Now, faith will make itself evident in your life by your words and actions.  If you believe in Jesus Christ and take his words to heart, then your life will reflect that.  You will strive to live according to the Ten Commandments—not in order to be saved.  But because you are saved, you recognize that God’s will expressed in those Commandments is good and right.  You will not come unraveled because of your sins—not because they don’t matter or aren’t serious.  But because you are saved, you know your sins are wicked, hurtful, and grieve God.  But you especially know that as far as the east is from the west, so far God has removed your sins from you.  You don’t have to prove that you are a better person than most, and you don’t have to convince yourself that your sins are not that bad.  The narrow door is not opened by clever arguments.  Jesus is the only way into the feast.  And the Bible promises you: “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).  That’s why Jesus is the narrow door.

     A man asked Jesus if only a few would be saved.  Jesus issued the warning, “Strive to enter through the narrow door.  For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.  When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from’” (Luke 13:24-25).  The people who thought they would have a place at the heavenly feast stood outside and pleaded for the master to let them in.  The question to consider is: Why weren’t they inside before the door was shut?  The particular excuses may vary, but the root cause is the same.  These people did not care to be with Jesus.  They were aware of him.  They had knowledge of him.  But they did not dwell with him.

     And here is the warning now for you.  Mere knowledge of Jesus does not save you.  Those who are saved want to be with Jesus already now.  Those who delight in his word come to hear it.  Those who are eager for the feast come to the feast already now.  Those who crave the mercy of the Lord come to receive it.  Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness come to be satisfied by Jesus.  The sheep long to be with the Good Shepherd.  The Bride desires to hear the voice of the Groom.  The Church prays, “Come, Lord Jesus,” because we yearn to be with him.  And when Jesus comes again in glory, those who desire the presence of the Lord will enter his presence forever.  For this is what faith truly desires, and your faith will not be disappointed.

     There is only one door into the feast, and Jesus is that narrow door.  He is the source of forgiveness.  He is the way to eternal life.  He is the only hope for sinners.  And that is why we long to be with him.  Amen, Come Lord Jesus.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.