The Narrow Road to Freedom

Matthew 7:13-14 (NIV)

13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

It is the self-denial of the narrow road that brings true freedom.

The broad road offers immediate, but momentary, pleasure, comfort, happiness, and ease of life. This is what the serpent promised Eve. he said the fruit would make her like God, knowing good and evil. But being like God is not being God. Eve suddenly became aware of good and evil but she did not realize that by rejecting God, she had no power to resist the greater temptations that came with the forbidden fruit. As a result, she immediately turned and offered the same fruit to her husband. The forbidden fruit had become more important than God, than her husband, than her life. She was consumed by it.

Forbidden fruit promises the same things as God. The difference between the promises of forbidden fruit and God is that God’s promise comes with an ontological change within us that allows us to experience more of God, but with new power to resist the new temptations that always accompany blessing.

The more we pursue God, the greater the temptations. As life becomes better through His blessings, the temptation to forget Him increases. The temptation to arrogance and pride increases. The temptation to judge others who are not as far along spiritually increases. The temptation toward self-reliance also increases. However, as God gives us a better life as we reject the forbidden fruit, He also purifies our hearts to resist these greater temptations. 

The world offers instant euphoria in some way or another. However, the euphoria does not bring about a change that would enable us to resist the temptation to let it control our lives. Instead, we pursue what is forbidden with greater zeal without repentance. The more we eat the forbidden fruit, the more we want. Our sinful nature not only remains susceptible to sin, but our susceptibility increases all the more. The broad way of forbidden fruit enslaves us to what we thought was good. 

The narrow road of self-denial, serving Christ instead of self, brings about a change within that increases our resistance to temptation. We get stronger and stronger, being set free from the fleshly desires of immediate comfort, pleasure, and ease. And in the end, because we have Christ, the source of all blessing, we are free from any urge to go after any good thing more than Christ Himself. The narrow road sets us free from the fleshly desires of the broad way. 

Lord, thank You for the freedom found on the narrow road. Help me walk in the joy of self-denial that leads to life, not bondage. Teach me to treasure Your presence more than temporary pleasures, and give me strength to live each day in the liberty of obedience, trust, and wholehearted devotion to You. Amen.