Matthew 7:13-14
The Narrow and Wide Gates
13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Proverbs 14:6
Knowledge Looks for Good Judgment
6 The mocker seeks wisdom and finds none,
but knowledge comes easily to the discerning.
Matthew 7:1-6
Judging Others
1 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
6 “Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and then turn and tear you to pieces.
I think many would admit there are easy things in life for us to do, and there are more difficult tasks for each one of us...When reading and studying the Bible, there are easy passages, where I say I can do that, and there are more difficult passages, that I do understand that the road and gate are quite narrow for me...The hard path, the hard task is sometimes written...When we read the Bible, we should expect these things, of both hard and easy passages...But we should believe the Bible not because it is easy (or hard for that matter) for us to do the things that Jesus teaches, but we should believe in Him and the Bible, because it is true...
Jesus tells us that the path of righteousness is not the widest of paths...It is easier sometimes just to go about our day, as we see fit, and do the things we want to do...That path is as wide as we want to make it...When we enter through the narrow gate, both the gate and the path are paved by Jesus and it is only as wide as He has paved it...His way and path is not always our way and path...
The Proverbs teach us that the mocker seeks wisdom and finds none, while the one with knowledge comes to the one who has good judgment and is discerning...The mocker wants to do what he or she wants and usually what is easiest...They refuse to fear the LORD or accept His correction or teachings...They like the wide path in the road...
How easy it is, to do those things, we want without thinking about the LORD...How easy it is to judge others when we disagree with them, and want to correct them...It seems often opinions and criticism come easily for us, regardless of how we relate it to the Bible or Jesus' teachings...Our critiquing sometimes just falls off our tongues...When we give our opinion to others about someone, or criticize someone or something -have we really given others our true opinion...Or are we just speaking like the mocker?...Are we giving someone our attitude?...Are we actually giving them our true and thoughtful judgment...It maybe easier (we think) to find faults in others and to talk about them, than to appreciate them...We are in essence forgetting the narrow gate, and we are just going to do what is easiest for us to do...
Man is flawed...We sin...We can tell others of a politician or a celebrity who has made a mistake, but what about the plank that is in my own eye, and sticking out for everyone to see...How did I forget about that plank?...It is easier to talk about other's faults, than to think about our own...It seems we want to criticize others more than we want to correct ourselves...We sometimes fail to seek the wisdom that Jesus teaches us about ourselves...The wisdom of reflecting on our own inner perspectives and looking at our own soul and faith in following our Father...Jesus wants us not always to do the easiest thing and take the easiest path...He doesn't want us to rush to judgment...Some of the hardest things in life are to look at ourselves and the darkness of our own soul...No matter how hard somethings are, and no matter how dark things get sometimes, there is Light available...The darkest hour is just before dawn...When you walk in faith, the road is narrow...But on that road there is a Light, which makes the right things easier to see...