The Narrow Way and Broad Way — Zac Poonen

The Narrow Gate and the Narrow Way

I want to read a verse in Matthew's Gospel. We are all familiar with, we spoke about it the first day, about the narrow way and the broad way. All Christians have heard about the narrow way and the broad way, but many people do not know what the narrow way is and what the broad way is.

So if we take a verse all by itself, we won't understand it. One of the bad habits of Christians is to read a verse all by itself. So let me humbly give you some advice. After 52 years of studying the Bible, when you read a verse, see the context before and after.

Read it like you read a letter or a book. Don't take one sentence out of page 6 or 7. You may get a wrong understanding. You must read the whole thing. You can get a completely wrong understanding. So where does it say narrow way and broad way?

That's in Matthew 7, verses 13 -14. So when we read about the narrow gate and the narrow way, remember there are two things. A narrow gate and a narrow way. It's exactly like we said earlier. There's a starting line, there's a way in the marathon race, and the finishing line.

There is a starting line. That's a narrow gate. Then there's a narrow way. It's not only a gate, it's not only a way. It's a gate and a way. That leads to life. And there's a broad gate and a broad way that goes to destruction.

So when we see where this verse comes, we can understand its meaning. Jesus had spoken what we know as the Sermon on the Mount. That is the most important teaching of Jesus in all the Gospels. Matthew 5, 6 and 7.

And he finished everything by verse 12. That was the end. Matthew 7, 12. After that, he gives three illustrations. One is two ways, narrow and broad. And then he speaks about two types of trees. Verse 17 onwards, good tree, bad tree.

And then he speaks, the third illustration is of two types of houses. Verse 24 to 27. Built on sand or built on the rock. So, those are three concluding examples. Two ways, two trees, two houses. And that is to illustrate what he had said earlier in Matthew 5, 6 and 7.

The Two Houses and Obedience to Christ

The two houses, we can say, are a picture of two types of churches. One man, it's a picture of a life, it's a picture of a home and a church. If I hear these words of Jesus, Matthew 7, 24, and I do them, then I'm a wise man building on a rock.

If I hear these words and don't do them, then I'm like a foolish man building on sand. So, the narrow gate and the narrow way also are referring to the same thing. Jesus started speaking in Matthew 5, verse 3 and ended in Matthew 7, verse 12.

Matthew 5, 3 to 7, 12 is the Sermon on the Mount. And then he said, if I were to paraphrase his words, it means this. What I have said till now is the narrow way. If you walk this way, which I have just spoken from 5, 3 to 7, 12, you will enter life.

If you follow these words that I have spoken, your house will be built on the rock. If you allow the Holy Spirit to work in your life and give you my nature, a good tree, it will bring forth the fruit mentioned in Matthew 5, 6 and 7.

Righteousness Greater Than the Pharisees

Now, as I said, the law was different. Look at Matthew 5, verse 20. This is a very important verse. I say to you, unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.

Read it slowly. The righteousness of the Pharisees was quite a high standard of righteousness. And he said, unless your righteousness is more than that, you won't even enter the kingdom of heaven. So, supposing somebody were to ask me, Brother Zach, how can I enter the kingdom of heaven?

Ok, I'll tell you what Jesus said. The answer to the question is, how shall I enter the kingdom of heaven? Your righteousness must be more than the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees. Have you ever given that answer to somebody who asks you how to enter the kingdom of heaven?

No. We say, oh, just believe in Jesus. Just ask him to come into your heart. That's true. But if it is really taking place, if the divine nature is really coming in, the proof should be that my righteousness becomes more than the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.

In what way? That's the important question. Not that I have to do more than them in external things. It doesn't mean they fasted twice a week, I must fast four times a week. They prayed three times daily, I must pray five times daily.

They gave ten, fifteen percent, I must give thirty percent. Jesus was not speaking about quantity. Human beings always think of quantity. More work means more spiritual. No. It can be plenty of wood, plenty of hay, plenty of straw, workless.

Little bit of gold, silver, and precious stones. Plenty of wood, hay, and straw. Which is more valuable? This little bit of gold, silver, and precious stones. Quality. That is quantity. Your righteousness must exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees.

Not in quantity, but in quality. How? He said, I'll explain to you. The Pharisee's righteousness is like this. Next verse. He was explaining verse 20 in the rest of chapter 5 and chapter 6. Look at chapter 5 and chapter 6 as an explanation of chapter 5, verse 20.

Supposing the disciples stopped Jesus when he said verse 20. And said, Lord, wait. How should my righteousness exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees? Without their asking, he answered the question.

The Pharisee's righteousness was, don't murder. I say to you, verse 22, don't get angry. Another example. The Pharisee's righteousness was, verse 27, don't commit adultery. I say to you, don't look at a woman with lust.

I say to you, verse 32, don't divorce your wife. Another example. The Pharisee's righteousness was, verse 33, don't make a false vow. That means when you put your hand on the Bible, you must speak the truth.

That's a vow like they do in the court. Jesus said, I say to you, even if your hand is not on the Bible, always speak the truth. Where yes must be yes, verse 37, your no must be no. The Pharisee's righteousness was, verse 43, love your neighbor and hate your enemy.

But I say to you, you must love your enemies also. The Pharisee's righteousness was, give alms to the poor, verse 2, chapter 6, verse 2. Give money to God or the poor. But it doesn't matter if other people see it, or you tell people what you gave.

But I say to you, don't let anybody know what you did. Like that with prayer and fasting. The Pharisee's righteousness was, even if men see it, you get their honor, it doesn't matter. But I say it does matter, you should not seek the honor of men.

Law, Grace, and the Divine Nature

So the Pharisee's righteousness was an external righteousness. It didn't change the nature. But Paul says the law was very good. Do you know that because of the Ten Commandments, Israel was the most upright nation in the whole world for 1 ,500 years?

They may have had many faults, but they were 100 times better than all the other nations. Why? Because they had ten commandments. It didn't change their nature. They looked clean. To use an illustration, supposing you have a pig and you want to keep that pig clean when you're walking through a very dirty path.

Like God wanted to keep the Israelites clean through a dirty world. What do you do? You tie ten ropes on the pig. Those are the Ten Commandments. And then you hold those ropes and make the pig go through that dirty road.

When it wants to go here, you pull it. When it wants to go there, you pull it. And at the end of ten miles, ten kilometers, the pig is clean. And you say, boy, what a wonderful pig. It is so clean. Why was it clean?

Because all these ropes. That is the law. It was good because it kept the pig clean. But if you take away the ropes, the pig becomes dirty in 30 seconds. Now, take another example. You're taking a cat through this dirty road.

You don't need any ropes. The cat is not tempted to go this side or that side. If it accidentally falls into the mud one side, it jumps out immediately and licks itself clean. That's right. I think Italian cats, Romanian cats, Indian cats are all the same.

They all cleanse themselves as soon as they are dirty. They are so eager to cleanse themselves, they are licking themselves. Who taught the cat to do that? When a cat has a little kitten, does the cat say to the kitten, no, you must lick yourself every day?

No. It just licks itself. Why? It's nature. Not a law. Do you see the difference between nature and law? Now, here is a church where there is a lot of temptation for people to commit all types of sins.

And a pastor wants to keep everybody clean. Make some laws. Ropes. Pull, pull, pull, pull. 10 laws or 100 laws. And everybody in the church looks very holy. Just like the pigs walking through the dirty road.

They look clean, but they are not clean inside. A better way is to bring them to the divine nature. If God does a miracle and puts the nature of a cat inside that pig, then you can take off all the ropes.

That is the difference between law and grace. Jesus came with grace. Moses came with the law. You can keep yourself clean by a hundred rules, like a pig held with a hundred ropes. Or you can be clean because of a divine nature.

This is the real meaning of being filled with the Holy Spirit. You know, the Spirit of God has got many qualities. He is very compassionate. The Spirit of God is full of love. The Spirit of God is humble.

The Spirit of God is full of wisdom. Full of knowledge. Full of power. We could have called him by many names. They would all have been correct. Father, Son, and Loving Spirit. Or Father, Son, and Humble Spirit.

Or Father, Son, and Powerful Spirit. Father, Son, and Wise Spirit. All these and many other names. Why did God choose Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? Because that is the main gift of the Spirit. He wants to give us holiness.

You know, when the angels covered their faces in Isaiah 6, instead of saying, Holy, Holy, Holy, they could have said, Love, Love, Love is the Lord of Hosts. Humble, Humble, Humble is the Lord of Hosts.

Wise, Wise, Wise is the Lord of Hosts. Almighty, Almighty, Almighty is the Lord of Hosts. It would all have been correct, but they said, Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts. All these scriptures teach us one thing, that God wants to make us partakers of his holiness.

That is how our righteousness must be greater than the righteousness of the Pharisees. The Pharisees were like pigs held with ten ropes, and their leaders tied these ten ropes on all the others, and they kept them clean.

But they didn't change their nature. Then Jesus came, and he said, I'll show you a better way. I'll do a miracle and change their nature. You don't need any rules. You know, when the divine nature comes in, you won't need a law that says you should not see that movie.

The Holy Spirit will tell you. Don't do that. You don't need any law. You know, one of the pictures of sin in the Bible is leprosy. We read that in Leviticus 14. Leprosy is a picture of sin. Now, I know a little bit about leprosy because my wife is a medical doctor who worked among lepers.

Sin, Life, and the Need for the Holy Spirit

For many years, she worked among people with leprosy. One of the things I learned about leprosy is that people with leprosy lose sensation. If they touch a hot plate, they won't feel anything, because they lost sensation.

And their hand will get burned. It's a dangerous disease. There are actual cases of lepers who go to sleep at night, and they wake up in the morning, one of their toes is missing. What happened? A rat came and ate off that toe at night.

They didn't feel anything, because they lost sensation. Do you think that can happen to you? Do you think your rat can eat off your toe at night? No, because at the first bite, you'll wake up. But a leper has got no sensation.

A thorn can get into his foot. You won't feel a thing. And that is why lepers are taught in India, before you go to bed at night, rule number one, look at the bottom of your feet. See if there are any thorns there.

Do you need a law like that? Why don't you need a law? Because you've got nature. You've got a life that feels even if one thorn gets in. But lepers don't feel that. They can have ten thorns in their foot, they don't feel it.

So you have to give them a law. Look at your feet before you go to bed. Make sure all the holes are closed in the room, so that no rats come inside. Otherwise, you might find a toe missing in the morning.

Do you need a rule like that? No, because you've got sensation. You know, we think pain is a bad thing. Pain is the greatest blessing in your body. Go and ask any leper. It's because he doesn't feel pain that his toe gets bitten off.

Pain is an indication that something is wrong. But only if you have sensation. Another law for the leper. When you are going near a hot plate in the kitchen, see if it is turned on. Put some paper there and see if it is hot.

Don't accidentally go and put your hand there. Do you need a law like that? Supposing you accidentally put your hand on a hot plate. You'll take it off immediately. Because you've got sensation. But the leper keeps it there.

He stands there for half an hour until his whole hand is burned. So lepers need laws. So many laws. I just told you two or three of them, but I can tell you many more. That is the only way they can keep their body intact.

Otherwise they lose their hands, lose their feet, lose everything. Why is it you don't need any laws? Because you've got life. In your skin there is life. In the skin of the leper there is death. Where there is death you need laws.

Where there is life you don't need a law saying don't put your hand on a hot plate. You don't need a law saying pull out the thorns at night from your feet. I hope you understand this. Laws are needed when there is death.

Something better is life. Jesus came with grace to give us life and the Holy Spirit. As soon as you want to say something to hurt somebody, the life will rise up in you and say don't say it. Keep your mouth shut.

It's a wonderful thing to live by the Holy Spirit. Now if you don't live by the Holy Spirit, then brother you need laws. Otherwise you'll become thoroughly worldly and become worse than the unbelievers.

So every church that does not lead people to the real fullness of the Holy Spirit, that does not lead people to the divine nature, my recommendation to them is to make at least a hundred laws. Otherwise that congregation will be worse than the worst unbelievers.

Because it's better to have law than to be without law, unless you have life. So grace is better than law. The new covenant is better than the old covenant. Jesus abolished the old covenant and established a new covenant.

The New Covenant and Freedom from the Law

Let me show you that in Hebrews chapter 8. Hebrews chapter 8, verse 7. If the first covenant was faultless, there would be no need for a second one. But he found fault with that first covenant. Finding fault with it, verse 8.

He said I will effect a new covenant. Yes. He found fault with that first covenant. I will effect a new covenant, he said. So God abolished the old covenant, verse 13. When he said a new covenant, he has made the first obsolete.

Do you know that God has abolished the old covenant? Do you remember Romania before the revolution? How many of you want to go back to that? I don't think anybody wants to go back. The old covenant is like that.

Do you want to go back to that? We are in a new covenant with this freedom. But if you don't live in the new covenant, then it's better to go back to the old covenant, under the law. Otherwise you will end up with no covenant.

So there are three possibilities. No covenant, old covenant, which is rules and regulations, or new covenant, which is grace and the divine nature. That is the best. New covenant is the best, where you have God's nature and life.

As soon as you touch sin, you will pull your hand away. As soon as sin gets into your hand, you will pull it out. That's the best. But if you don't want to live there, you've got leprosy here all over, then you must live under the old covenant.

Laws. Don't watch this, don't do this, don't do this, don't do this. Otherwise, you will go to no covenant. Like so many people who have given up the laws, given up rules, and they live in sin. They are worldly worse than the unbelievers.

What does the Bible say? Galatians chapter 5. It's a very clear word. Verse 18. Please remember this verse. If you are led by the Holy Spirit, you are not under the law. Did you read that in your Bibles?

If you come into real life in the Holy Spirit, which is new covenant life, where the divine nature comes in, you don't need the law. Let me give you an example. Supposing I, by the grace of God and the power of the Holy Spirit, I've decided I'm not going to lust after women.

Do I need a law which says don't commit adultery? I don't need it, because I'm dealing with it inside. Another example. Supposing, by the grace of God, I decide that by the power of the Spirit I can overcome my anger against people and forgive people immediately, as soon as they provoke me.

Do I need a law which says don't commit murder? No. I don't need it, because it's taken care of inside. Do I need a law which says don't let the bad fruit come on the tree? If I'm cutting out the root, as soon as the root comes, I cut it out.

How can the bad fruit come when I'm cutting it out at the root level? We can say the old covenant was like a pair of scissors. As soon as a bad fruit comes, cut it off. That is living under the law, rules.

Supposing you have no interest in the real Spirit-filled life, no interest in partaking of God's nature. In other words, you don't want to be like the cat, you want to be like the pig. And this bad fruit comes out.

You need a pair of scissors. Cut it out. When another bad fruit comes there, cut it out. And you have to live with this pair of scissors all the time. But another brother, he takes what John the Baptist says.

Jesus has come to lay the axe to the root of the tree. Jesus, Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, lay the axe to the root of the tree and shine. He doesn't need the scissors because the root is pulled out. Or, I like to think in illustrations because Jesus used illustrations.

So let me use another illustration. Supposing I have a sickness which is always producing sores in my body. It's a picture of sin. I'm using an illustration. So I have a tube of ointment which a doctor has given me.

He says, whenever it comes, put it. And I rub the ointment. Praise God, the sores are gone. But tomorrow it comes in this hand. Again, I take the ointment and rub it here. Praise God, it goes away after a few days.

Then it comes on my leg. Again, I take out the ointment. This is like living by rules. Because if you don't have the ointment, you'll be full of sores. If you don't have these laws and rules, you'll be more worldly than anybody in the world.

But one day the doctor calls me. I have some good news for you. A scientist has discovered an antibiotic. Now you don't need the ointment. Take the antibiotic inside. It'll kill the root of this disease inside.

It's unbelievable. I spent so many years with this tube of ointment, I said, this can't be true. Just like when we talk about God's nature, people say, this can't be true. Brother, it can't be true. It can't be true.

We must have rules and regulations. We must take many tubes of ointment. So the doctor says, try it. Takes three times a day for five days and see what happens. Amazing. For the first time in my life, I'm not getting these sores.

That is a picture of grace, of divine nature. Do you know what the antibiotic does? It deals with the root of the sickness inside the body, before it comes out. It deals with the anger in the heart, before it comes out in murder.

It deals with the lust in the heart, before it comes out in adultery. That is the message of the gospel. So it's not just a question of behaving nicely. Behaving nicely, even in these companies and all, they invite motivational speakers to speak, to tell people how to behave better.

Jesus was not a motivational speaker trying to improve people's behavior. Many people who come to church, they listen to a motivational message to make them behave better. The gospel is gaining the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.

That is the gospel. Not just behaving better on the outside. It's the Holy Spirit filling my inner being. That's why we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit, so that my whole inner being gets filled with the Holy Spirit.

Growth in Holiness and a Spiritual Inheritance

So that I begin to look at people the way Jesus looked at them. I begin to speak like Jesus. I'm not perfect, but better and better and better every day. Like the marathon runner coming closer and closer and closer to the finishing line.

When he's completed 20 kilometers, you ask him, have you finished? Oh no, I've still got a long way to go. Much better than when I started one hour ago. Can you say that? That marathon runner, every minute he's getting closer and closer and closer to his goal.

Forget every minute. Every year, are you getting closer and closer to your goal? Is your relationship with your husband and wife more peaceful than it was last year? Much better than two years ago. I'm not asking you whether you've become perfect.

That's the finishing line. I'm saying, is it better? Are you an overcomer? Is that white circle becoming bigger and bigger and bigger? Is your home becoming more and more like heaven? You know, in heaven, there is no shouting and yelling and all that.

There's peace. Is your home becoming like that? That was my great desire. I said, Lord, I'm not a millionaire to give a lot of money to my children. We live very simply at home. I rode a scooter for 42 years.

But I said, Lord, I can give my children something better than millions of dollars. I can give my children an inheritance of a home where there was peace, so that I can say to my children, you saw how I lived with your mother.

That is my inheritance to you. Go and produce another home like that. That is better than millions of dollars. And so many people with millions of dollars are fighting and quarreling with each other every day.

What is the inheritance you're giving your children? Don't you want to leave an inheritance with them? Why not give them a spiritual inheritance? Money won't solve all their problems. Give them an inheritance of faith, so that you can tell your children, remember the situations we faced in our life?

This situation, this situation, that situation? This problem, that problem? When our neighbors troubled us? Or you had some sickness? What did we do? We prayed. And Jesus did something. That, my children, is my inheritance for you.

When we have God's nature, that is what we can give to our children. I don't want to give my children a bunch of rules. I want them to partake of God's nature. Let me show you another verse. Do you know the meaning of this verse?

Sabbath Rest in the New Covenant

Hebrews chapter 4. A lot of people have misunderstood this. Verse 4. God has said somewhere concerning the seventh day, God rested on the seventh day from all his works. Hebrews 4, verse 4. You know, that is in Genesis chapter 2.

God made the earth in six days, and the seventh day he rested. And so he told Israel, this is a sign. Let me show you that verse. Exodus 31, verse 17. 16, 16. Or maybe we should begin at 15, then we'll understand it.

Exodus 31, 15. Six days work must be done, the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest. If you do any work, you shall be put to death. Now, that's the law. Some people say they are following that law, but they don't put to death those who disobey the Sabbath.

But let me go further. So the sons of Israel must observe the Sabbath throughout their generations. Now listen to this, a very important verse. This is a sign, not between me and all the people in the world, it's a sign between me and the sons of Israel forever.

It's not a sign between God and Christians. It is so clear. It is a sign between me and the sons of Israel. People ask me, why don't you keep the Sabbath? I say, I'm not one of the sons of Israel. I'm a son of God.

Ezekiel 20, verse 12. I gave them, that is the Israelites, my Sabbaths as a sign between me and them. Ezekiel 20, verse 12. Out of the ten commandments, only one was a sign. The others were not signs.

One was a sign between God and the sons of Israel. That's why Jesus kept on doing work on the Sabbath day. And the Pharisees were chasing him, saying, why are you working on the Sabbath day? Because Jesus was leading us into a new covenant.

And in this new covenant, Hebrews chapter 4, it says what the meaning of the Sabbath is. Hebrews 4, verse 9. There remains therefore a Sabbath rest for the people of God. What is this Sabbath rest? Turn to Matthew chapter 11, verse 28.

Come to me, all you who are weary and heavy laden. I will give you the Sabbath rest. This is the Sabbath rest. How do I get it? Verse 29. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me. Learn gentleness and humility in heart from me, and you will find a Sabbath rest inside.

That is the Sabbath rest for the New Testament Christians. And after saying that, you read in the next verses, he kept on destroying the old Sabbath. Chapter 12, verse 1 to 7. His disciples were picking grain on the Sabbath day, and the Pharisees said, hey, hey, they are breaking the Sabbath.

And Jesus said, that's not the real Sabbath. And then he went into the synagogue, verse 8 and 9. The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath, verse 8. My head is the Lord of the Sabbath. My head, Jesus Christ, is the Lord of the Sabbath.

And from there he went to a synagogue, and again a problem with the Sabbath. They said, is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath day? And he said, yes, it's right, it's lawful, verse 12, to do good on the Sabbath day.

So what did Jesus do on the Sabbath day? When he died on the cross, he put an end to the law, and on that Saturday Sabbath, he buried the Sabbath once for all. And that was the end of that, when he buried that Sabbath on the Sabbath day, after he died on the cross.

And he rose up from the dead on the first day of the week, to bring us into this real rest of God. Not on Saturday, but Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday. This is nature. When God's nature takes possession of us, one of the marks is rest.

Let me say that to you. I have taught this for many years to people. Dear brother, sister, whenever you feel agitated in your heart, you're irritated with somebody. Somebody has provoked you, and you're agitated.

You need to enter into the Sabbath rest. Something is wrong. You need to have a Sabbath rest in your heart. And if you are humble, Jesus said, learn humility from me, and you will find rest. I have made that a law in my life.

I tell people, supposing something goes wrong in your house, and you're agitated, please don't open your mouth, because the devil will come through there. You will say something, or do something. If you cannot control your anger, the best thing to do is to go and lie down in your bed for some time.

You know the Bible says that? Psalm 4, verse 4, tremble, but do not sin. That verse is quoted in Ephesians 4, 26, as be angry, but don't sin. And here in the margin it says, tremble with anger, but don't sin.

How do we overcome it in the New Covenant? By the power of the Holy Spirit. I put that anger to death, and there's rest. But in the Old Covenant, when they did not have the power of the Holy Spirit, and a man is angry, what should he do?

Verse 4, go and lie down on your bed and meditate. What wonderful practical advice. When you're angry with your wife, please go and lie down on your bed. Immediately, when you're angry with your husband, go and lie down on your bed.

This is Scripture, Old Covenant. The best is New Covenant, where the power of the Holy Spirit kills that anger, and you enter into a Sabbath rest. And that is how we know whether we are in the Spirit or not.

The Spirit's Leading and the Peace of Conscience

See, for example, if you're praying about something. Shall I marry this person or that person? Shall I take this job or that job? Shall I do this or that? Many times I have to pray, what shall I speak on, Lord?

Give me a word. How to know the mind of the Holy Spirit? Romans 8, 6. The mind set on the Spirit, last part, is life and peace. I know that I have the mind of the Spirit when I'm in Sabbath rest in my heart.

That is the way God speaks to us. When I'm considering doing something, and God knows that is not good for me, there will be an unrest in my heart. The divine nature is there. And I say, no, I can't do it.

I remember once a brother in our church wanted me to sign as a witness to a document. So I said, let me read through the document. And it looked all right, 99%. But there was a little 1 unrest in my heart.

There's something in that which is not absolutely true. So I said, brother, I love you very much, but sorry, I can't sign that. I feel an unrest in my heart. And if you follow that unrest, God will guide you.

It was a document to buy a house. So I said, I'm not telling you not to do it. I can't sign. Because the Spirit brought unrest. He said, okay, brother Zach, if you say that, then I won't do it. I won't buy that house.

I said, that's a big decision. But if you feel like that, God will honor you. So he didn't buy that house. A little later, God gave him a much better house. What do we learn from that? When you have a little unrest in your spirit, don't go against that.

That is the voice of God saying, you are going in the wrong direction. So you young people, when your friends tell you to do this or do that, try this, try that, you feel a little uneasiness. Don't go with them.