H.U.N.G.E.R. - U is for...

Uncommon. An interesting word to think about. Most of us like to think of ourselves as “uncommon” or special in some ways but we also want to think of ourselves as “common” in some ways - not like an outcast.

I chose this word because I believe that the sum total of what it tells us in the Bible about the Christian life is that it is “uncommon.” We live in the Bible Belt deep in the Heart of Dixie so it may not really feel that uncommon to be a Christian. However, I think that we feel it more frequently as our society continues to become more secular.

There are a couple of key passages in the Bible that refer to Christians as being “uncommon.” One key reference is where we are told that we must “enter through the narrow gate” and that the “road to destruction (hell) is wide.” I certainly don’t have all the answers on what Jesus was saying here but I think that we can connect some of the the dots:

Matthew 7:13-14  “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.

The Narrow Gate leading to eternal life with God.

Jesus also responded this way in Luke when He was asked a question about how many are going to be saved:

Luke 13:23-25 Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them. ‘Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’

These are powerful words that can be tough to wrestle with. In spite of that, God gives us the Bible for a reason and we must try to understand His message on this.

In the passage from Luke above, Jesus uses the word “strive” to enter through the narrow door/gate. Some may interpret that to mean that we should “strive” to be “good enough” to earn enhance through the “narrow gate.” This cannot be the case because we know that we can’t be saved by our works. Our works don’t earn our salvation, they are the evidence of our salvation.

So then what is this “striving” about as it relates to to gate?

Part of the striving is finding the right gate to enter. We should make every effort to make sure that we enter the right gate by seeking the truth. We cannot allow ourselves to be deluded by the false believes that this world offers. I am not referring just to other religions but also to false ideas of what Christianity is. Faulty theology can lead one through the wrong gate. Jesus is the narrow gate - the right gate for us to enter. There are no other avenues.

The striving and the battle is also against ourselves. Part of a saving faith is being willing “to deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” This was Jesus’s charge in Luke 9:23. A true saving faith points us to Jesus and not to just ourselves. The Christian life is not about self-fulfillment and using the Church to help us have a better life in this world. It’s about self-denial (submission) and the humility that comes with receiving the greatest gift that we could ever receive - entrance through the Narrow Gate.

Do you feel “uncommon” sometimes? A true Christian should. We are in this world but not “of it.” In fact, we were made for another world.

Stay hungry,

Big E