The Narrow & Wide Gates in Matthew 7

All major cities in Jesus’ day had large walls surrounding them, the purpose being for privacy, defense, and protection from outsiders. Many had watchtowers or walkways on top to scout for problems, and maybe a surrounding ditch or moat at ground level, but all utilized gates to filter who passed through the walls — basically they acted as control mechanisms.¹

In even older times, the gates of the city would have been the common place for the public transaction of business, or any administration of justice, or as place for public markets. But by the time of Jesus, the gates were principally used just for making the city secure. And during times of peace, they were generally open to paths accessible to anyone entering or exiting the city.²

Jesus knew that telling a story using analogies of features common in their everyday life, would be better understood, and the city gates and outlying paths were something they would easily comprehend. Hence, in chapter seven of the Book of Matthew, Jesus tells a parable about people walking a narrow or wide path in life.

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it,” (Matthew 7:13-14, NRSV).³

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Jesus was explaining that the way of living the spirit-filled life that God’s kingdom required is like a road less traveled. This concept of two ways — one leading to life and the other leading to destruction — was common in the Old Testament, Greek and Roman literature, and even in writings found in the Dead Sea Scrolls.⁴

The comparison of meaning presented by the narrow and wide gates is but one of four points mentioned in the conclusion of our Lord’s famous Sermon on the Mount. Each of the four features is a contrast: broad or narrow gate and path (Matthew 7, verses 13-14); good or bad fruit (verses 15-20); lawlessness or righteousness (verses 21-23); houses built on rock or sand (verses 24-27).⁵

If you get a chance, read Matthew 7:13-27 for a better understanding of these four contrasting features. Or better yet, for a full refresher course, which emphasizes Jesus’ moral teachings, read his entire Sermon on the Mount. It is covered in Matthew chapters 5, 6, and 7.

There is a time coming very soon when people will have trouble hanging-on to their Christian faith, because the world as we know it will begin to change. We must do more than just know about Christ, we must also think and act like Christ, so it is important to become spiritually grounded in walking a narrow path now.

 

What did Jesus mean?

As expected with all of Jesus’ wisdom, there is more than meets the eye at first glance, but by giving some thought to the parable, a wealth of understanding comes forth, especially as one applies this truth to their own lives.⁶ We don’t just randomly windup on one path or the other. We are told what lies on the paths, so we make the personal decision by going through the gate of choice.

One way to compare the wide path and the narrow path is to analyze the characteristics of those walking both. Those that enter through the wide gate and travel the wide path are materialist and give priority to wealth, power, and celebrity. Their idea is to have more than required to survive and thrive and may even deceive others to obtain what they want. They are enticed and encouraged to buy what they do not need, instead of using what they already have. They tend to embark on sequences of short-term and opportunistic projects, rather than more carefully planned and enduring endeavors.⁷

For them, they tend to be in a constant competition to have more than others and will often sacrifice morality and righteousness to do so. If they possess any actual spiritual characteristics, they are buried deep under their secular values.⁸ The rewards they have accumulated from this life are all they will ever get and when they die, it will all vanish.

In direct contrast to these materialistic values, travelers who enter through the narrow gate and walk the narrow path are calmer and have an eternal nature arising from a deep-seated inner connectedness to the divine realm. This nature is cultivated through prayer and meditation, which are characteristics of a mature and selfless love. Their values depend upon an awareness of — and a close bond to — the planet and the cosmos and all who inhabit it. People on the narrow path love the truth and base their actions firmly on the ‘golden rule’ of doing to others only what they wish done to themselves (see Luke 6:31).⁹

Even when these narrow path travelers die in this life, they will still receive their promised reward of a resurrection to life in a cleansed world with no more pain, no more grief, and no more death. But, you may ask, “Will this be in heaven above, or will it be in a new heaven upon earth?”

Not all Christians believe we go to heaven upon death. One prominent theologian¹⁰ stated that the New Testament does not say what most people believe it says about heaven, that it is merely a place one goes after death. In truth, he says, it’s about creation being restored through God’s ever-advancing Kingdom.¹¹

He said the followers of Jesus saw ‘Heaven’ and ‘Earth’ — God’s space and ours — as the twin halves of God’s good creation (see Genesis 1:31). So, instead of taking people away from Earth, early Christians believed God was bringing Heaven and Earth together, making a new creation by correcting and restoring the world from its previous problems.¹²

And this is reasonable. The Bible is a history of humankind being created to live an everlasting life, but after sinning they lost that eternal life. “So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death,” (Romans 6:21).

But eternal life comes through repentance and submission to God. “But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord,” (Romans 6:22-23).

Our Creator is a God of Law. He deals with his people through a contract. He offers his protection and guidance if they will forsake their sinful ways and begin a life of righteousness. But besides just the two parties agreeing upon the terms, contract negotiations also require a third party, a mediator, and this position is held by Jesus Christ.¹³

So, in a new age to come, there will be a new heavenly connection when Jesus comes down to earth with a new city where he will mediate God’s law. The Apostle John describes this city in the Book of Revelation. “I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,” (Revelation 21:2a). It is not a city constructed upon earth or obtained by military victories, it is a gift brought down to the surface of the earth from heaven.¹⁴

 

How to tell what path someone is walking.

Someone once told me that they were too sinful to walk the narrow path along with all the good people. He said, “They wouldn’t understand how hard some people have it in this life.” I said, “Don’t you realize that every single traveler on that narrow path is a sinner like you and me? Maybe some are more so and some less so, but sinners all of them. The only difference is that they repented of their sinful ways and are willing to struggle and change.”

When the discussion turned to how to discern between good people and bad people and how to change our lives for the better, I mentioned that the Bible actually lists what traits to shed and what traits to cultivate to move off that wide path leading to death and start walking that narrow path that leads to life.¹⁵

The Apostle Paul points out the obvious in Galatians, chapter five. “Do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want,” (Galatians 5:16b-17).

The apostle advises us to not participate in those desires of the flesh. “Now the works of the flesh are obvious: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before: those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God,” (Galatians 5:19-21).

Then Paul tells about a new life available to all that want it, one inspired by the holy Spirit. He says, “By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another,” (Galatians 5:22-26).

When Paul says that those belonging to Christ have “crucified the flesh,” he means that we participate in Christ’s death and resurrection, leaving behind the old lifestyle of selfish desires. We must continually follow after the Spirit while resisting the flesh.¹⁶ This is a new life which is available for anyone who wants it.

So, there it is — observe how someone relates to you, to others, and to the world, and you will know upon which gate they went through and which path they walk. And if we are on that wide path, we know which attributes must be changed to walk the narrow path to life. Repent and be guided by the Spirit so we reflect the character of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Conclusion

The Christian life is sometimes neither easy, nor comfortable and there will be ups and downs, joys and sorrows, along that journey with Christ. Our journey along the narrow path may also sometimes be lonely, but it is transforming. Living a spiritual life is healing and grants salvation, thereby delivering us into an eternal life of rich rewards.

So, being on the correct path won’t mean that all is now smooth sailing, or that sin no longer looks attractive, but remember that God doesn’t set the width of those paths, humans do. Thankfully though, God has promised to help us and get us through to the end, no matter what. His strength will help us in our current weaknesses.¹⁷

Even so, there is a type of happiness that only those who have received our Lord’s grace and promises can express; it’s a happiness that only his love can give to us in this life, as we look forward to living with our savior and enjoying eternal life in the New Age to come. This thought is expressed in the music selection for this Bible study. The song is “I’m Lovin’ Life” by Christian artist Joseph Habedank, who is based in Tennessee, USA. Selected lyrics are below and a link to the music video is in References & Notes.¹⁸

You ask why there’s a smile all over my face,
Well I found abundant love and Amazing Grace.
It’s just as simple as Sweet Salvation —
I’ve got a heavenly reservation.

I can see forever from where I stand,
I’ll never walk again with out Him holding my hand,
I’ve just started living, I’m on cloud eleven,
Now I’m loving life because I’ve been forgiven.

Copyright © 2024, Dr. Ray Hermann
OutlawBibleStudent.org

 

** Feature photograph from flickr.com through Creative Commons License.

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References & Notes

1. Mark, Joshua J., “Wall”, (World History Encyclopedia, 2 September 2009), https://www.worldhistory.org/wall/
2. Warren, C., “GATE” in A Dictionary of the Bible: Dealing with Its Language, Literature, and Contents Including the Biblical Theology, (Ed.) by J. Hastings et al., (New York; Edinburgh: Charles Scribner’s Sons, T. & T. Clark, 1911–1912), vol. 2, pp. 110-111.
3. All scripture quoted is from The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989). Used with permission.
4. Mays, James Luther, (Ed.), Harper’s Bible Commentary, (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988), p. 960.
5. Barry, John D., et al., Faithlife Study Bible, (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), [Matthew 7:13–14].
6. Parke, Blair, “What Are the Wide and Narrow Gates in Matthew 7?” (Bible Study Tools, 31 July 2023), https://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/what-are-the-wide-and-narrow-gates-in-matthew-7.html
7. Culliford, Larry, “Worldly and Spiritual Values: Humankind May Depend on Rediscovering a Natural Balance”, (Psychology Today Magazine, 19 May 2011), https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/spiritual-wisdom-secular-times/201105/worldly-and-spiritual-values-humankind-may-depend
8. Ibid.
9. Ibid.
10. Wright, Nicholas Tom: English New Testament scholar, Pauline theologian, Anglican bishop, past research professor at St. Mary’s College, and research fellow at University of Oxford, UK.
    “N.T. Wright”, (Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 21 August 2024), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._T._Wright
11. Showalter, Brandon, “Most Christians misunderstand what Heaven really is, theologian NT Wright says”, (The Christian Post Magazine, 26 December 2019), https://www.christianpost.com/news/most-christians-misunderstand-what-heaven-really-is-theologian-nt-wright.html
12. Ibid.
13. MacDonald, William, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, (Ed.) Arthur Farstad, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), p. 1884.
14. Knowles, Andrew, (Ed.), The Bible Guide: An all-in-one Introduction to the Book of Books, (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2001), p. 708.
15. Hermann, Ray, “Fruit of the Spirit – Works of the Flesh”, (The Outlaw Bible Student, OBS, 11 June 2021), https://outlawbiblestudent.org/fruit-of-the-spirit-works-of-the-flesh/
16. Barry, John D., et al., Faithlife Study Bible, (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016), [Galatians 5:25].
17. “In what way is the path for salvation narrow? Why did God make salvation a narrow path?”, (Compelling Truth, Got Questions Ministries, retrieved 29 August 2024), https://www.compellingtruth.org/narrow-path.html
18. “I’m Lovin’ Life”, Artist: Joseph Habedank; CD/DVD: I’m Free: Songs That Wrote My Story; recorded live at Gaither Studios, Alexandria, IN, USA, August 2024; (© 2024 Gaither Music Group, LLC). Used under ‘fair use copyright’ for teaching under Section 107 of United States Copyright Act of 1976 – MUSIC VIDEO: https://youtu.be/qo0FqOsF2qY