Yes, the door may be small, and the path narrow for those who follow Christ, but it is worthwhile.
Of course, the door is opened for those who knock on it, as promised in the Bible, but the fact, that the door is small, and the path narrow, should not discourage you and me, to try to enter through it. The reason the door is small, is not in order to make it difficult for any Christian to pass through it, but because many people in this world, have chosen to go, through the wide big gate of life, and the motorway of life, which leads to destruction. But only a few are those, who have chosen to follow Christ, and therefore, the door does not need to be big, and the road leading to heaven, does not need to be wide. You see, there is more soil on this earth, than gold and silver. There is more soil on this earth, than there are diamonds. There are golden vessels and silver vessels, and there are vessels made just from clay. The golden and the silver vessels are much more valuable to their owner, than the vessels made from clay. We as Christians, are those vessels, made from gold and silver, useful for the Master, our Lord Jesus Christ. And the vessels made from clay, are always more than the vessels made from silver and gold. And the vessels made from silver and gold, are much more expensive to buy, than the vessels of clay. The golden and silver vessels, are much more appreciated by their owners, than the vessels of clay, because they have more value. So it is with us as Christians. We are God's own possession, precious in his own eyes, bought for his purpose, sanctified by his Holy Spirit, bringing glory to him. The fact that the road is narrow, and the door small, that leads to heaven, should not discourage us, and make us think, that we are not so important in this world, in the eyes of the world. People of this world, who do not know God, walk on the motorway of life, and pass through big gates in their life, and they look at us Christians, walking on a small, narrow ways of life, and entering through small, 'insignificant' in their eyes doors, and perhaps mocking us for that, but they do not realise, that the motorway they walk on, and the big gates they pass through, are leading them straightway to hell and destruction. We may struggle sometimes, walking on a narrow small road, and trying to squeeze ourselves, through the narrow door or life, but at least, we get to heaven.
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Are you discouraged, by some events in your life? If you are, you are not alone.
There are many Christians around the world, who have felt discouraged in their life, in one way or another, by what has happened in their life, or by what is happening now. Perhaps you are one of them. You see, we all pass through discouraging and difficult situations in our life, from time to time, not because God wants us to suffer, but because of many factors in this world, and our life. There always are people or circumstances and various things, which can cause our hearts to be sad, and painful. We leave in a world, which is full with people, who do not know God, and do not like to know him, and because of that, all they have, is the sinful nature in their bodies, which is often dictating what they do or say. And we have natural disasters and pandemics, which add to our suffering. Another one, who has come to steal, kill and destroy, is the enemy of our souls, who is having only one purpose, to destroy as many people as he can, so that people can not go to heaven, but join him in hell, because he hates people going to heaven, the place where he was kicked out by God. We wonder sometimes, if God is good, why does he allow so many people to suffer, and Christians to suffer too. But we should not forget, that Jesus gave us a clear promise, in the Gospels, that in this world, we would have trouble. But he did not say just that. He also said that he has overcome the world. And he said, that we should not allow our hearts to be troubled. Why did he say that? Because he has overcome the world, and if he did, so can we, because he lives in us. Jesus did not promise us a problem free life. No. He promised to be with us, in the midst of our problems, and not just be with us, but to help us and comfort us, by either delivering us from our troubles, or by giving us grace, to endure and go through them. If we read 2 Thessalonians 2:17, that God will encourage our hearts, and strengthen us in every good word and deed. But notice that it first says that God will encourage our hearts. How can do and encourage other people, if we are discouraged? Before we do the good work of encouraging somebody, we need to be comforted and encouraged by God ourselves first. Then when we have the encouragement and the comfort from God, we can encourage other people, and they can see it easily, if we are discouraged or encouraged and comforted by God ourselves. They can notice if we are full with comfort and encouragement from heaven, or full with discouragement and sadness. Some more literal translations of the Bible, like the New American Standard and the King James version, use the word 'comfort', instead of 'encourage', for the 2 Thessalonians 2:17. No matter how many discouraging and depressing news you watch on the TV everyday, God has promised to encourage and comfort your heart, so that you can cut like knife through butter, through all those depressing TV news, and though any challenges you face, in your daily life. If you are a born again Christian, then heaven has a good plan for your future. The Bible says in Proverbs 10:28, that if you are a righteous person, then you have hope, and the end of your hope is joy.
Now, perhaps you are looking at your situation and circumstances, and perhaps you are going through some very difficult situation in your life, or perhaps of the Covid 19 pandemic, life has become worse for your personally, in many aspects. Yes, those are all facts, and you can not deny them, neither should you. But despite of all that you are passing through, and despite the challenging and difficult situation you find yourself into, because of circumstances in your life, know this, that God has joy planned for your future. If you are a righteous person, and if you are Christian, you can not escape from the pan and purpose of God for you, and your life, because you have the righteousness of God, as a gift from God to you, because of what Jesus Christ has done for you, by his death on the cross, for your and my sins. Because of that, you are a righteous person, in the eyes of God, and therefore, Proverbs 10:28, completely applies to you! That is one of the promises of God for you! Take hold of it, confess it daily, keep it in your mind, write it on your phone, meditate on it, and thank God for it. If God has said it, that belongs to you, as a Christian. You see the promises of God, are the most powerful thing we have in this world, but unless we take hold of them, and use them, and apply them in our life, for our own situation, they are fruitless for our life. If you do not use and apply the promises of God on a regular basis, daily in your life and situation, they remain inactive, and they can not produce a miracle. Yes, the Bible says that the Word of God is living and active, but it can not be active in your life, if you do not use it and apply it not just once, but on a regular basis. It is like a medicine, which you need to take every day, for a period of time, to see the result of healing, if you have been sick. God wants us to use and apply his promises in his Word, in the situations in our life, and sometimes daily, on a regular basis. Knowing all the promises of God, is not enough. Applying and putting in action those promises of God, is what makes the difference. Holding a medicine in your hand does not help and can not heal. Applying that medicine will heal you! So, Proverbs 10:28 can promise you that your hope for the future, and your future prospect is joy, if you are a righteous person, but unless you believe it, and apply with faith that promise of God in the challenging and difficult situation in your life, I doubt, if there would be any positive result. The doers of the Word of God are blessed, not just the knowing of the Word of God. Remember, the enemy also knows the Word of God, but he does not obey it, but only twists it for his own purpose, just as he did, when he quoted Psalm 91, to tempt Jesus in the wilderness. |
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