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"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear god fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven."
- Matthew 7:13-21
In the Lectionary cycle, we are reading through the Sermon on the Mount. We have read The Beatitudes; Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven; Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven; I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment; Let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect; Do not be like the hypocrites; Our Father in heaven, Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also; and Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Yesterday, Jesus taught: "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you. And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me remove the speck from your eye'; and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye. Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces. Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets."
"Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." My study bible says here: "This description of the two ways is widespread in Judaism (Deut. 30:15-20; Ps. 1; Prov. 4:18-19, 12:28, 14:24; Sir. 15:17), and in early Christian writings (Didache, Barnabas). Luke's version (Luke 13:24-30) is more eschatological, referring to the end of the age. Because we wrestle against human sins and weaknesses, as well as the spiritual forces of evil (Eph. 6:12), entering the Kingdom involves difficult labor and struggle (11:12)."
"Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves." A note says, "Jesus charges us to beware because it is possible to be deceived by those who wear a mask of virtue but are false prophets (24:4, 24), or wolves, who live corrupt lives (10:16; Zeph 3:3; John 10:12; Acts 20:29)."
"You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles? Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear god fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Therefore by their fruits you will know them." My study bible tells us, "As long as a person is living in wickedness, he will not be able to bear good fruit. But Jesus does not say that there is no way for the wicked to change, or for the good to fall away. (See also 12:33-35)." It adds of the last verse here that John the Baptist made the same statement (3:10)."
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven." My study bible points out that Jesus testifies of His divinity here, first by referring to those who call Him "Lord, Lord", secondly by speaking of the will of His Father in heaven, which He fully knows and shares. In tomorrow's reading, this theme expands to more clearly indicate that Judgment is in His hands.
In the parable of the Wheat and the Weeds (which we will read in Matthew's 13th chapter), Jesus presents a picture in which the good wheat grows side by side with weeds (or tares) that resemble the wheat, but are not the true good grain. In this picture, Judgment is the harvest that comes at the end of the age. But in the meantime, "good" and "bad" live side by side. Jesus' healing mission assures us also that we may become either one; we have the choice offered to us throughout our lives. (A good reason why Judgment belongs to Him, and at the end of the age.) In today's reading, Jesus emphasizes our own work in this respect. What do we choose to be? In emphasizing the "narrow gate" Jesus is trying to get us down to brass tacks. We devote ourselves to the will of His Father. This is the narrow gate. What's our real intention in making decisions? Where do we plant our feet in life? And in that spirit, He teaches us to beware, to be awake and realize that some of that "false wheat" may be among us as well. It's part of our job to be aware of what is going on around us. He doesn't say it's our job to judge, but it is our job to be aware, to be the rational sheep. Here He tells us about fruits, and bearing fruit. He speaks of the inside of such a person who would falsely lead as like a ravenous wolf. We get the picture of the predatory, the selfish and greedy, those who don't love the sheep as He does but wish instead to prey on them for their own selfish or material-minded ends. When He tells us that not everyone who calls Him "Lord, Lord" will enter into His kingdom, it expands on this teaching but also brings it home to us. What do we choose? What's our true intention? What are the fruits we produce? It goes back, in some sense, to the speck in our neighbor's eye, which Jesus spoke of in yesterday's reading. Unless we work on the plank in our own eye, we can't really help others to work on the speck we notice. Here, He addresses our own understanding of this narrow gate, that we watch where we step, how we follow Him. And at the same time, we're to be fully aware of what's going on around us, who we follow in His name, and not be misled. As He does elsewhere, Jesus calls us to be more aware of ourselves, and aware of what is going on around ourselves. We're to be self-responsible on this road; we're not blind sheep. He's taught us His precepts, we are to hold them in high honor, to understand them and take them seriously, and to evaluate our lives by them -- and not to live by mere appearances (such as "wolves in sheep's clothing") and be misled by them. Our Lord throughout this Sermon has called on us for a high level of accountability and self-awareness. Let us see today how He extends that to our awareness as deeply as possible to what is within us, and also to what is around us. We are the rational sheep, and our Teacher prepares us for His narrow gate, and the good fruits He wants from us.
