Chapter 4

The Strait Gate and the Narrow Way

Matt 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: 14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Why is it that few there be that find it?  Is it because the strait gate is hidden and disguised?  Is it because the Savior is an elitist and only wants a few to enter into his exclusive club?

The use of the strait gate and the narrow path is used approximately sixteen (16) times in the scriptures.  Given its repetitive use, it must be important.  Why should we enter into the strait gate?  Because it leadeth unto life.  Many think that the gates, the strait and the wide ones, are death and the grave.  By going through these gates of death, we either go on to destruction or to life eternal.  For the few righteous, the strait gate will be their reward for a good life following death and the narrow way will be a quick path into heaven.  For the many wicked, it will be a traffic jam of people who are going to hell.

We shall see that the strait gate to which Jesus refers bypasses death and leads directly to life.  Very few find it, not because it is intentionally hidden from their view by Jesus, but because of their dullness of heart, their blindness and deafness.

For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Their refusal to be healed is brought about by their hard hearts that are so set upon the things of this world, that they cannot see the brilliant light at noonday.

But behold, verily I say unto you, that there are many who have been ordained among you, whom I have called but few of them are ^achosen.

They who are not chosen have sinned a very grievous sin, in that they are ^awalking in ^bdarkness at noon-day.

Who are the few who are chosen?  The ones who have found the strait gate and the narrow way. The ones who have chosen by their own free agency to comprehend the light.   What is the darkness?  The false traditions that we have been taught that the miracles of Jesus are not accessible to us, that they were only to be performed by him and to the lucky few who were in the right place at the right time to be in his presence. 

The darkness and broad path teaches that man-made technology is the only answer.  That we must learn and obey thousands, if not millions, of commandments, laws, rules and regulations if we want to survive and have order in our lives.  That we must rely on certain leaders and prophets who are the mouthpieces of God and that they have more power and authority to communicate with the Lord than does the average person. 

The wide gate is similar to swallowing a camel.  It is wide from swallowing the camel.  It is made wide by all of the man-made laws, rules, regulations and false traditions.  It is wide because it trusts in the arm of flesh.  It is wide to allow the great and gluttonous whore of the world to pass through it.

Rev 19 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication,

It is wide to accommodate the many workers of iniquity.  Iniquity means “unequal, unjust”.  These are they that ignore the poor, or worse, seek to use the poor, the ignorant, the weak and the innocent to get gain and through inequality and devious means (not hard work), become richer while the poor become poorer and the weak, weaker.

What is the grievous sin?  They have chosen darkness over light.  They prefer darkness because it is more rewarding, or so they think.  Grievous comes from the word gravus, meaning “weighty”.  It is weighty because it is a choice.  One can sin in ignorance but it becomes more weighty when it is done by choice. 

What is the noon-day?  The light and love of the Son and the Father that is shed forth on all who would receive it.  It is his word.  It is the first and great commandment, to love him with all of our hearts, minds, strength and all of our beings.  The first great commandment is the strait gate.  The second great commandment is the narrow way that allows us to keep and fulfill the first great commandment.  We love the Lord our God by loving our neighbor,

Matt 25:37Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? 38When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? 39Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? 40And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

41Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: 42For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: 43I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. 44Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? 45Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. 46And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

Through these scriptures, we get a clearer understanding of the narrow and broad ways.  The narrow way is not well known even unto the righteous.  They had to ask His Majesty, the King, how they could have possibly seen him as a naked, hungry and wretched person, after all, he is a mighty king in a beautiful palace in fine clothes.  Because of their righteousness, they had loved their neighbor, even the wretched refuse of humanity.  It is anybody who notices the homeless, the obscure, the downtrodden and then out of love, helps them. 

On the other hand, the broad path is the one where many people pass by the beggar, that reject the odd looking homeless person, the disabled, the extreme poor going through the garbage cans or even the nerd or social outcast in high school.  They did not love their King, because they did not love their neighbor.  They are led to destruction.  Destruction represents death and corruption. They will have to face enemies who will seek their destruction, they will not have the protection that the righteous have.  They are the workers of iniquity.  They are the wolves in sheep’s clothing, the hypocrites who pretend to be righteous but in secret commit atrocities, murders, lies and make devious plans.

Because the gate is strait and the path narrow, does not mean it is especially difficult.  In fact, I propose that the strait gate is actually easier to pass through than the wide gate.  Strait means “tight, close, narrow” and it also means “strict”.  It is easier because it is not confusing.  It is tight and close because you enter it without a lot of burdens upon you.  You are not like the camel trying to enter the eye of a needle.  You are free of the burdens of this world because you have come unto Jesus and learned of him, for his burdens are light and easy to bear.  You have a broken heart and a contrite spirit that has been polished, ready to pass through the gate that has been prepared for you. 

In many ways, the strait gate and the narrow way are like our mother’s birth canal which brought us into the world.  Now, we are being reborn and returning to our Heavenly Parents.  It is the reverse process of birth into mortality.  We have been reborn, we do not pass through death but we return to our mother’s womb through the strait gate, through the narrow birth canal and then into the womb representing eternal life and the rest of the Savior.  The coming to and going from this world for the righteous, is a beautiful process.  The woman’s body is symbolic of the Lord’s plan for eternal life.  A righteous woman is a fruitful bough.  The Savior is the mediator, the facilitator, the midwife per se, in helping us enter the strait gate, pass through the narrow canal and then return to the womb representing safety and rest but not inactivity and boredom.   In this case, it is not a painful process but a glorious one, one that is sweet and wonderful.

In this journey through strait gate and narrow way, Jesus didn’t say there was no burden, but that it was light and easy to bear.  Some try to avoid any burden at all by just tuning out, turning off to religion and turning on to their worldly pursuits.  For the eat, drink and be merry folks, there is still a burden, but Jesus has promised that it is an easy one.   And it is so easy, it only just requires giving your “all”.