The Narrow and wide Gate

There is a hill near the city of Tauranga called Pukehinahina. On the top of this hill stands the Anglican Church of St George’s. The area is better known as Gate Pa and is a suburb of Tauranga On April 30th 1864 the battle of Gate Pa took place 3000 British army and navel forces attacked 160 odd Maori and lost. Two months later at a place called Pyes Pa some five miles or so inland towards Rotorua the was a second battle at which the British army won a decisive victory. During the battle at Pyes Pa the chief Henare Taratoa was killed. On his body written in English they found his battle orders

Do not shoot at women and Children

Do not shoot at anyone running away

Do not attack the wounded

Do not attack anyone without a weapon

and as well the bible verse from Romans 12:20.

Romans 12:20 NIV

On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”

The battle of Gate Pa is famous not because of who won and lost, it is famous due to the actions of a woman Heni Te Kiri Karamu gave water from a nearby stream to the Colonel and other wounded during the night.

The church on the hill now has become a symbol of reconciliation with a large carved wooden cross the same as my bone carving that I am wearing on the entrance wall and above the doors into the church the words

Let all who enter here be reconciled

As we have journeyed through the sermon on the mount and looked at the ethical concerns that it raises for the believer we discover that Jesus deals in simple either/ or questions Now as we enter what many see as the conclusion to the sermon on the Mount. Jesus emphasis here is even more strongly based on the necessity of choice.

Enter by the narrow gate he begins

This is the contrast between righteousness and devotion

This is the contrast between the two treasures

This is the contrast between the two masters and

this is the contrast between the two ambitions which have been presented to us

Now we are being called by Jesus to decide - Is it to be the kingdom of Satan or the kingdom of God. We can be left in no doubt as Jesus continues to present alternates to us

The Two ways [Broad or Narrow]

This is found in the old testament Ps 1 which contrasts the way of the righteous[ who delight in Gods law, bear fruit, and prosper]with the way of the wicked[who are driven before the wind like chaff and perish]

The two Gates

There is no limit to the luggage we can take through the wide gate, we can even take our sins, self righteousness and pride. The narrow gate is also described elsewhere in scripture as the eye of the needle. To get through it we have to leave everything behind. No one can follow Christ who hasnot first denied Themselves

The two teachers [True or False]

The two pleas [Words or Deeds]

and finally

The two foundations [Sand or Rock]

I can remember often getting pulled up for saying that was good on the basis that only God is good, however in the creation narrative at the end of each day God looked at what he had made and declared as in Genesis 1:31.

Genesis 1:31 NIV

God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.

Some would say that is not a choice about being either Good or Evil. rather it is a choice between being Good or Godly

While it is true that many fine people live good lives and have a high level of commitment to the attributes of honesty and integrity we need to ask ourselves which gate will they be looking to walk through. Or even to get closer to home which gate will I walk through

It may seem harsh for Jesus to suggest that the narrow gate is only for a few, and we need to be aware that in using the words “many” and “few” Jesus is not talking a numbers game. He is talking a faith game

It is having as a base a creedal statement such as

I believe in Jesus Christ the risen Son of God - and then going on to prove the validity of it.

Heni Te Kiri Karamu believed the creedal statement and built on it by taking water to her enemy, thus it became word and action. The average person would be want to say “what a good action she did”whereas you and I both know it was a godly action by a believer. We need to be aware that we are not talking about the difference between good and evil.

We know that we are sinners and Paul tells us that all have sinned and this has to be our starting place to approach our God.

It is far to easy to approach God from a cultural perspective rather than a biblical one that allows us to express the joy that we are forgiven

Jesus did not die on the cross for us to be good, he died that we may find life, a life that reflects salvation.

When we share the cup we do for the forgiveness of sins, being forgiven is far more important than being blessed

As Joshua reminds us in Joshua 24:14-15.

Joshua 24:14–15 NIV

“Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

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