Once again Jesus isn’t playing by the rules that most people wanted Him to. Jesus lets these people know that if you follow Him for your own selfish reasons or on your own terms you will not make it to the end. There were so many people who wanted to be around Jesus for various reasons but He says that few will actually want to follow Him. Way back in Chapter Seven He said that to follow Him would require taking up one’s own cross daily. Lots of people wanted to benefits of Jesus but by doing their own thing. Some wanted their own religious system, others wanted to overthrow the Romans, still others just loved the miracles, of healing and providing of food. All these kinds of people would be sorely disappointed. In the end they will not make it through the narrow door. It will be shut to them and Jesus will not let them in. Why are you following Jesus? Are you just trying Him on to see how He fits or are you willing to follow Him wherever He leads you? Do you follow Him because He gives you what you want, will you continue to follow Him when He asks you to follow Him through something very difficult? Will you follow Him when friends, family, church family do not? The door is narrow and few will enter, will you?
Jerusalem has seemingly often only wanted prophets who do and say what they want and not to actually lead and take care of God’s people and He intends. When these prophets aren’t what they expect or want, they abandon, mistreat and even kill them. In literature, boys and girls, this is called “foreshadowing of things to come”. Just like all the other prophets, they are going to kill Jesus when they realize He is not going to do things in their way or their time. Jesus loves them and wishes they would follow Him. He has sorrow that many will not. Jesus wants us to follow Him. He wants us to get off the easy path and to choose the narrow door. He wants us to live radically for Him, even if it’s hard or doesn’t always make worldly sense. He wants us to follow Him wherever He leads, because unlike us, He doesn’t get lost.
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