🕊️ PRAY HERE Devotion The Wide Gate vs. The Narrow Gate | Pt. 1 🕊️ “Everybody Not Going the Right Way”

Scripture: Matthew 7:13 (ESV)

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.”

Devotion : Have you ever tried to help somebody, warned them, prayed for them, talked to them, and gave them good advice…

…and they still did exactly what you warned them not to do?

Whewww! 😮‍💨

One of the most difficult things about being a parent, a disciple of Christ, a counselor, a minister, or simply someone who genuinely loves people is watching someone reject the help they need.

There is nothing more heartbreaking than seeing someone you warned eventually experience the very thing you were trying to save them from.

You tried to tell them.

You tried to show them.

You prayed for them.

You loved them.

But they wouldn’t listen.

And unfortunately, sometimes we don’t want to talk about this part of life because it is uncomfortable:

Everybody is not going the right way.

At funerals, we naturally want to believe everybody made it through the pearly gates. We want to believe everybody is with Jesus.

But the truth is, some people spent their lives heading toward the wrong gate.

Whew.

Some ignored the warnings.

Some rejected the truth that could have set them free.

Some rejected God’s love that could have changed their lives.

Some kept choosing the thing that was destroying them.

And some simply followed everybody else.

That’s a tough pill to swallow.

But Jesus talked about it.

Let’s look at today’s scripture.

Jesus says,

“Enter by the narrow gate.”

Notice there is no confusion about which gate Jesus instructed us to enter.

Enter the narrow gate.

Then He tells us something very important about the other gate.

It is wide.

That means there is plenty of room.

A LOT of people can travel that road.

And Jesus said many would go through it.

Look around us.

You don’t have to look very far to see how popular destructive lifestyles have become.

Drug addiction is being normalized.

Alcohol abuse is being excused.

Sexual immorality is being celebrated.

People are being encouraged to live solely according to their flesh.

“Do whatever makes you happy.”

“Follow your heart.”

“Do what feels good.”

“It’s your life.”

But what if what feels good is destroying you?

What if what feels good today costs you your peace tomorrow?

What if the thing that satisfies your flesh is slowly killing your purpose?

What if the temporary pleasure costs you your family, your health, your freedom, your finances, your mind, or your relationship with God?

Whewwww!

The wide gate has room for all of that.

It has room for greed.

Pride.

Hatred.

Unforgiveness.

Lust.

Addiction.

Violence.

Deception.

Gossip.

Jealousy.

Pettiness.

Revenge.

Selfishness.

People pleasing.

Dishonesty.

And anything else that keeps pulling us away from God’s will.

And then Jesus gives us another characteristic of this gate.

It’s easy.

My, my, my.

We have to stop thinking the easiest route is always the best route.

Sometimes the easy way is the road that leads you straight into trouble.

You’ve heard it before:

“Trouble is easy to get into but hard to get out of.”

Ask somebody sitting in prison because of one impulsive decision.

One bad decision.

One moment of anger.

One robbery.

One fight.

One opportunity to make quick money.

One decision they thought wouldn’t have serious consequences.

Now they’re paying for it years later.

Somebody sleeping in an early grave could probably co-sign that old saying too.

The easy road can have a hard ending.

And this is why the devil loves people who want something for nothing.

He knows how to tempt somebody who doesn’t want to wait.

Doesn’t want to work.

Doesn’t want discipline.

Doesn’t want correction.

Doesn’t want accountability.

He can offer quick money.

Quick pleasure.

Quick attention.

Quick success.

Quick satisfaction.

And if you’re not careful, you’ll trade something valuable and permanent for something temporary.

Whewww!

Some people will even choose churches, relationships, friendships, and environments that make them comfortable in their sin because the truth makes them uncomfortable.

They don’t want anybody challenging them.

They don’t want anybody correcting them.

They don’t want anybody telling them, “That’s not God’s way.”

So they find somewhere that will tell them exactly what they want to hear.

That’s the wide gate.

Everybody is going that way, so it must be right.

No.

Popular does not mean right.

Easy does not mean right.

Everybody doing it does not mean God approved it.

And just because a whole crowd is going in one direction doesn’t mean you should follow them.

Jesus said the broad way leads to destruction.

That means you can be surrounded by people and still be headed in the wrong direction.

You can be popular and be lost.

You can be successful and be lost.

You can be accepted by everybody and be going the wrong way.

Whewww!

So let me ask you something personal.

Which way are you going?

Not your mama.

Not your spouse.

Not your friends.

Not your church members.

You.

Are you on the road that Jesus instructed you to take?

Or have you been following the crowd because the road you’re on is easier?

Maybe you’re reading this right now and realizing,

“I’ve been heading toward the wide gate.”

If that’s you, don’t panic.

Turn around.

You still have time to change your route.

You can make a different decision today.

You can repent.

You can walk away.

You can ask God for help.

You can stop making excuses for the things that are destroying you.

You can choose obedience over convenience.

You can choose purpose over pleasure.

You can choose God’s way over the world’s way.

And most importantly…

You can choose the narrow gate.

Don’t let the fact that everybody else is going the wrong way convince you that you’re going the right way.

Everybody not going the right way.

And as hard as that truth may be to accept…

I’d rather walk the narrow road with Jesus than walk the wide road with everybody else.

Whewwwww! 🙌🏽

God bless you!

Reflect & Respond

Take a moment and honestly ask yourself:

What road am I currently traveling?

Is there anything in my life that I know is pulling me toward the wide gate?

What do I need to turn away from?

And what decision do I need to make today to get back on the road God instructed me to take?

Don’t just recognize the wrong road. Change your direction.

Prayer :

Father God, thank You for loving me enough to warn me when I am going the wrong way. Give me the wisdom to recognize the path that leads away from You and the courage to turn around when I have made the wrong choice. Help me not to follow the crowd just because everyone else is doing something. Give me strength to choose Your way even when it is difficult, unpopular, or inconvenient.

Lord, give me the discipline to resist temptation, the wisdom to recognize the enemy’s traps, and the courage to walk through the narrow gate You instructed me to enter. Remove anything from my life that is leading me toward destruction. Help me choose obedience over pleasure, truth over acceptance, and Your will over my own desires.

When the wrong road looks easier, remind me where it leads.

When the right road gets difficult, give me the strength to keep going.

Lord, keep me on the right path. I want to follow You. I want to make it through the narrow gate.

In Jesus’ name, Amen. 🙏🏼💙