The Way to Heaven (Luke 13)

by | Sep 1, 2024 | Church, Daily Devotionals, Death, Devotional, Doctrine, Evangelism, Faith, Hillsdale Baptist Church, Hope, Luke, Ministry, New Testament, Salvation, The Gospels, Trust

The Way to Heaven (Luke 13)

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Scripture reading – Luke 13

Our timeline in the Gospels is rapidly approaching our LORD’s appointment with the Cross. You will notice the enemies of Jesus pressing upon Him as He withstood the traditions of the Pharisees with the authority of God’s Law and Commandments. Our Scripture reading is Luke 13, and today’s Bible study focuses on the closing verses of that chapter.

Luke 13 – Shut Out of Heaven

Jesus was making His final journey to Jerusalem, and along the way, He taught the people in cities and villages (Luke 13:22). One came to Him and asked, “Lord, are there few that be saved?” Jesus then answered the question with an invitation reminiscent of the truths He taught in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:13-14).  Contrary to false teachers who suggest “many ways” to come to God, the LORD made it clear there is only one way (John 14:6).

The Gate to Heaven
Christ taught that the way to heaven is not the “broad way” (Matthew 7:13-14) but the “strait gate,” which is narrow and without twists and turns (Luke 13:24). What or who is the “strait gate” to salvation and eternal life? It is Christ and Him alone. Jesus said of Himself in John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved.”

Identifying Himself as “the master of the house” (Luke 13:25), Jesus warned that the door to salvation is temporal. When He shuts the door to a man’s heart, there will be no more opportunity to enter His kingdom (Luke 13:25). Tragically, in eternity, many will have waited too late to turn from their sins and trust Christ. Many are religious, but few are righteous.

Speaking figuratively, in eternity, some will stand without knocking on the door to heaven and calling to the LORD, saying, “Open unto us.” They will hear Jesus say, “I know you not” (Luke 13:25). Some will boast they fellowshipped with Him and listened as He taught (Luke 13:26). Yet, Christ will answer, “I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity” (Luke 13:27).

Workers of Iniquity

Unlike the patriarchs who believed and will be “in the kingdom of God,” those who waited too late will find their eternal destiny is hell, where “there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Luke 13:28).

Closing thoughts –

Those who listened and followed Jesus as He taught were numbered among the children of Abraham. Though they were the first to be chosen, the citizens of heaven will be from all nations and people.

They “shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north, and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God” (Luke 13:28). So it will be that the “last which shall be first, and there are first which shall be last” (Luke 13:30).

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Copyright © 2024 – Travis D. Smith 

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