DAY 95 - What Is Important?

Luke 13:22-29 (NIV) ²²Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. ²³Someone asked him, "Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?" He said to them, ²⁴"Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. ²⁵Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, 'Sir, open the door for us.' "But he will answer, 'I don't know you or where you come from.' ²⁶"Then you will say, 'We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.' ²⁷"But he will reply, 'I don't know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!' ²⁸"There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. ²⁹People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God."

Hebrews 12:1-2 (NASB) ¹Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, ²fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

What makes us believe that one thing is more important than another? What shapes and influences our sense of what is important? According to Jesus, there is only one thing that should stamp “important” on the decisions we make and the actions we take, and that one thing is the will of God. The will of God is the one thing that can guide us through the labyrinth of deciding more important and less important. Jesus consistently called men and women to focus their life on doing the will of God. But Jesus also consistently said that in every life there would be something that would hinder us from entering the narrow door. For the rich young ruler, it was his wealth. For the sinful woman at the well it was her denial of guilt. We can become so buried in the load we carry that the will of God simply is not important to us any more.

When is the Lord of the house going to rise and close the door? Any day? Every day? There is a sense of urgency and importance to making the daily decision to lay aside our encumbrances and to focus on God’s will.

It is the grace of God that slams the narrow door in our face and awakens us to the way we are weighing down our life. How does this slam of grace actually happen in our daily life? It happens in many ways, but primarily by urgent things replacing important things. When we focus on God’s will we begin experiencing the door being opened to banquet bliss – God’s clarifying guidance, forgiveness, love, freedom, power, and courage.

From a sermon preached by Henry Dobbs Pope June 3, 1990

© Rhonda Hinkle Mitchell Broyles