In response to the question, “Are only a few people going to be saved?”,  (After all there were only eight people saved on the ark) Jesus responded by telling them that it is a narrow door and many will try to enter and not be able to. Many say, “I came to church, I took communion, I served, I listened.” But did they really? Was it just “lip service”? Delusional involvement? What does God say about that? 

Each one of us must weigh in our hearts what God wants us to do. “For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks.” We speak and act from an attitude of our hearts.

For many of us, serving may not mean serving inside the walls of the church, it may be serving and witnessing on the job, in our homes, in our families, in our neighborhoods, in small fellowship groups.

“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.”
These words are found also in Psalm 118 the center chapter of the Bible – the heart of the Bible you might say. It is a prophecy of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, the beginning of Holy Week. He enters through the east gate of Jerusalem. Jesus calls Himself the gate. Psalm 118 says we will enter the gates of righteousness which Jesus will open for us.

In the parable of place of honor Jesus is teaching basic humility.  He is also giving us a glimpse into levels of rewards both in the Millennial kingdom and in eternity.

Jesus says to invite the poor, etc. and you will be blessed. If we give expecting something in return and get it we have already received our reward, but it is better to give not expecting anything in return, then our reward will come later.

Parable of the Great Banquet
Jesus is making the illustration of salvation and the invitations given to us. We have all received the invitation. The master of the banquet says to the servant to go to those who have been invited (the Jews) and tell them to come, everything is ready. But they are too busy with things of this world. Then the master says to go into the streets and bring in the poor, etc. (the tribes of Israel). The servant does so and they come to the banquet but there is still room for more. The master says to go into the country lanes (everybody else, the rest of the world) and make them come in until his house is full.

The first invitation was to those who were directly and selectively invited- the Jews. (Romans 1:16) The second invitation was to bring in (to lead into) the people in the streets and alleys (the other tribes of Israel). This invitation was a little more persuasive. The third invitation was to make them come in. This word "make" means "to compel, to necessitate with an implication of distress". In other words, this invitation came with an exclamation mark! The objective was to fill the house. There is a certain number of souls to be saved. There is a finite number written in the Book of Life. John 1:35-51.
There is another way to understand this parable.  There are three groups of people.  The entire world has been invited and given their entire lifetime to accept salvation through Jesus. These are the "excuse-makers" who refuse salvation. During the year-long Day of the Lord, when Jesus comes with His holy ones to harvest the earth, there are many who will have a "come-to-Jesus" moment.  Then on the final Day of the Lord, there will be more who will "come-to-Jesus".

What did Jesus mean when He said we must hate our family or we can’t be His disciple? To hate in this case means to love less. Compared to our love for God it should be so much greater than our love for anything else that is off the scale. We must love everything else less than our love for Jesus. There is a difference between a Believer and a disciple.  A person can be a Believer in Jesus but not be willing to be a true disciple, giving up everything to follow Him.

What does it mean for a person to carry his cross?

We may not be called to die for Jesus, but we have all been called to live for Him!

Parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin
Jesus says there is rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents, and there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of heaven over one sinner who repents. The only time the Bible says the angels sing is when they sing the new song. (KJV records the angels say)

Parable of the Lost Son
The son wanted his reward now. He still is the son of his father and will inherit but his rewards will be less. Our salvation is secure. We can store up treasures in heaven or use them up here on earth. The lost son was not removed from the family, even though the older son thought he should be. The older son could be compared to “cradle” Christians who have been Believers in Jesus most of their lives and have lived for Him and served Him. (2 Corinthians 3)

Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man - also known as a midrash
There are a couple of lessons to be learned:
1. There comes a point in time when there is no second chance! When the door is shut, the door is shut!
2. Someone needs to go evangelize those who are not saved and are facing eternal death.
3. There are some who will not believe even if someone rises from the dead to tell them about it.
When Jesus told this midrash, the Pharisees would have been familiar with the story, it was in their oral traditional writings.  Jesus knew that many of them would not believe who He was, even when He rose from the dead.

…the kingdom of God is within you.” The Holy Spirit dwells within every believer.

Parable of the Persistent Widow
The unjust judge gave the widow justice, not because she deserved it, but because he was annoyed with her.  Jesus contrasted God with the unjust judge. Jesus is telling the disciples they should always pray. God will bring about justice for his chosen ones who pray to him.  God does not answer our prayers because He is annoyed with our persistence, as the unjust judge did.  He answers our prayers within the bounds of His will and in His time.

Parable of the Vineyard Workers
Many come to salvation at the 11^th hour, but still receive salvation. “Cradle” Christians should not look down on “criminal on the cross” conversions.

When all is said and done, what matters is that we find that narrow gate to eternal life with Him!

For an explanation of the parables in greater detail see Parables to Ponder by Phil and Patti Moore available on Amazon.