4 out of 5
Which person are you?
Many will not make it through Post #1 let alone make it to Post #9.
Just looking at the numbers should be enough to make one work out their salvation with fear and trembling.
3 out of 4 never make it to heaven. When Jesus said “few find it” He wasn’t kidding.
Put another way, 3/4 of the human race are sent rightly to hell based on the numbers in this scripture. Many times these individuals feel guilty for a time but they procrastinate long enough that God stops sending the guilt.
In other words, sit there and the sense of guilt will fade away.
1. General unrepentant population busy with life.
Path: The vast majority of mankind are those on the path of life. They will never pay attention to what Jesus said and the few who do actually take a moment to talk about the Words of Life will allow Satan to easily divert their attention.
2. Excited believer, but shallow.
Rock: The good preaching of life falls upon rocks and they become believers. However, in the time of testing they fall away. This doesn’t necessarily mean they stop going to church or caring about others. They just are no longer Disciples of Jesus because the walk got too tough for them. They loved their lives and themselves too much to be bothered with falling in love with Jesus.
3. Hearing correctly the full message, but never maturing.
Thorns: These are believers who locate a church they can feel comfortable in. Even among those who like a “hard message” it is just enough of the message of the cross to feel comfortable about suffering for Jesus. In the end they are comfortable with the amount of suffering they allow in their lives. Self never has to fall to the ground, die and loose control. Such believers will not venture out beyond their comfort zone of hating and despising money, hating their own life and forsaking all their wills and wants to follow hard after the Living God.
4. These individuals hear, retain and by persevering produce.
Good Soil: Aw, the blessedness of good soil ~ a holy church fellowship!
No Comfortable Church
Blessed are those who know the preaching of freedom and joy in facing many hardships to enter the kingdom of God.
Anything less of a gospel call is the wide gate and road to hell as these hardships are not what is common to man, but of God’s will in Jesus.
Only a church that is known for its fear and trembling when it comes to the matter of salvation and a holy walk unto fruit will be blessed with God’s “will and working.”
It is a matter of persevering in a good heart while soaking deeply in the Living Word of God unto actual real fruit.
So impossible, so narrow is the gate and so very narrow is the road that it is impossible for any man or woman to enter and walk the talk. It takes the power of God working the perseverance of His Son, Jesus, into your life for anyone to continue on without falling away.
Are you willing to fight against sin in the world and your own life by suffering against it?
If not. Do not dare claim the Name.
If so, then you will discover the joy of suffering in your body against sin.
References
But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. (Matthew 7:14)
But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; (John 16:7-9)
I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. (John 12:24)
The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. (John 12:25)
But now I am writing you that you must not associate with anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler. With such a man do not even eat. (1 Corinthians 5:11)
Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed–not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence–continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. (Philippians 2:12-13)
He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. (John 15:2)
Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because he who has suffered in his body is done with sin. As a result, he does not live the rest of his earthly life for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. (1 Peter 4:1-2)
