SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/5/2021 11:43 AM
My Worship Time
Focus: PT-1 “Two Ways”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew 7:13-14
Message of the verses: “13 "Enter
through the narrow gate; for
the gate is wide and the
way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter
through it. 14 “For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life,
and there are few who find it.”
As
we look at the two gates they are actually two ways. The gate that is wide leads t the way that is
broad; and then the narrow gate, which is small, leads to the way that is
narrow. It is not hard to figure out
that the narrow way is the way of the godly, and the broad was is the way of
the ungodly, and these are the two ways in which men can travel. We will look at Psalm 1:1-4 to help us better
understand this: “1 How blessed is the
man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of
sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day
and night. 3 He
will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its
fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he
prospers. 4 The wicked are not so,
But they are like chaff
which the wind drives away.” We
can see the difference between the two ways from this section of Psalm 1.
The
way that is broad is the way of the world, for it is easy, attractive,
inclusive, indulgent, permissive, and is self-oriented. That is the way of the world. In the world there are few rules, few
restrictions, and few requirements. If
you profess Jesus or at least be religious, and then you are readily accepted
in that large and diverse group where sin is tolerated, but truth is moderated,
and humility is ignored. You can praise
the Word of God, but certainly you don’t need to study it, why waste your time
doing that. There is no spiritual
maturity that is required, no commitment, and no sacrifice. It is like floating down stream and that is
an easy thing to do. Actually the leader
of this is the prince of the power of the air, for after all Satan is very
religious and wants others to be that way too, trying to make it on your
own. Proverbs 14:12 states “There is a
way which seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.”
MacArthur
writes “A West Indian who had chosen Islam over Christianity said his reason
was that Islam ‘is a noble, broad path.
There is room for a man and his sins on it. The way of Christ is too narrow.’ It seems that many preachers today do not see
that issue as clearly as that unbelieving Muslim.”
The
way that is narrow is a hard way that is a demanding way, the way that has
self-denial and has the cross. MacArthur
writes “Stenos (‘narrow’) comes from
a root that means ‘to groan,’ as from being under pressure, and is used figuratively
to represent a restriction or constriction.
It is the word from which we get stenography, writing that is
abbreviated or compressed.”
Jesus
states that “few are those who find” God’s way or the narrow way, and so this
implies that it is to be sought diligently.
“’You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all
your heart” (Jer. 29:13). There is no
one who has stumbled into the kingdom of God or wandered through the narrow
gate by some kind of accident. In Luke
13:23-34 we see someone asking Jesus a question and then his answer to that
question: “23 And someone said to Him,
"Lord, are there just
a few who are being saved?" And He said to them, 24 "Strive to enter through the narrow
door; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” One of the few Greek words that I am familiar
with is the word “agonizomai” and the word “strive” in this passage is from
that Greek word which means it is difficult, as it takes conscious, purposeful,
and intense effort. Agonize is how we
can describe this word. This word is
also found in Romans 15:30 “Now I urge you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ
and by the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in your prayers to
God for me,” where we see “strive together.”
Here is what I have written in my special prayer list for our Pastors on
this verse: “The word ‘to strive together,’ sunagonizomai, the
word ‘agony’ is in the middle of that word to agonize, sunis that compounding
preposition that intensifies the verb.”
Now we also find this word in John 18:36 where just agonizomai is used “Jesus answered, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this
world, then My servants would be fighting so that I would not be handed over to
the Jews; but as it is, My kingdom is not of this realm.’” The word in this passage is “fighting,” as
Jesus wants us to agonize when we are praying.
1 Timothy 6:12 tells us to “fight the good fight of faith (literally,
struggles the good struggle). In 1 Cor.
9:25 we see Paul describing an athlete who agonizes (“competes”) to win the
race. MacArthur writes “The requirements
for kingdom citizenship are great, demanding, clearly defined, and allow for no
deviation or departure. Luke 16:16 says,
‘Everyone is forcing his way into [the] kingdom,’ implying conflict and effort
(cf. Acts 14:22).” “strengthening the
souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying,
"Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.’”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: Living the Christian life is actually
impossible, impossible to do it on your own, and that is why we need the Holy
Spirit to help us through the ups and downs of our walk with the Lord as
sometimes, no probably many times it is agonizing.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Continue to get back up when I am knocked
down as I believe that the Lord desires revival in my life, and revival in my
families lives along with our Sunday school class, and our church, and then see
how far the Spirit of God will take it from there.
2/5/2021 12:28 PM
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