What Are the Wide and Narrow Gates in Matthew 7?
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Matthew 7 is a chapter that overflows with nuggets of wisdom and understanding about how to view your relationship with God. Many quote verses from this chapter, especially the most popular verse from Matthew 7:7 of asking, seeking, and knocking to find out what God has planned for you.
But Matthew 7:13-14 paints a clear picture of what it means to live a godly life, one that is not always easy and not always a favorite among those around you. Matthew 7:13-14 depicts two separate gates, one narrow and one wide, that have different outcomes for those who venture through them:
“Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
But what could be meant by these gates? What happens to those who go through them, and how does the metaphor apply to our lives now?
Just as with all of Jesus’s parables and words of spiritual wisdom, there is more than meets the eye at first glance. But, with some thought, a wealth of understanding will come forth when one applies this truth to their lives.
What Is the Context of Matthew 7?
The book of Matthew is the first book of the four Gospels to appear in the Bible. It shares firsthand accounts of Jesus’s sermons, miracles, and regular interactions with the disciples and believers, as well as those against Him. The book was written by the apostle Matthew.
The words within Matthew 7 are part of a well-known sermon Jesus was sharing with His disciples, along with a multitude of people following Him: The Sermon on the Mount. The Beatitudes were shared in this sermon, as well as the discussions about being salt and light, loving your enemies, how best to pray and fast, and building your house on rock instead of sand (foundation on God and His Word) (Matt. 5-7).
As always, everyone listening to the Sermon on the Mount was impacted, from His faithful disciples who had heard many of His teachings to the newer believers who were learning of His guidance for the first time that day. Yet all were equally inspired by His words from God, knowing this was truly the way to live their lives pleasing to the Lord.
What Are the Gates That This Verse Describes?
Matthew 7:13-14 is found toward the end of Matthew’s account of the Sermon on the Mount, after Jesus reminded the listening crowd to believe God would bless them immensely just as a human father lovingly blesses his son.
The gates reflect the understanding that one gate is leads to self-destruction from our own hands, while the other gate is a life directed by God and leading to everlasting life. Jesus described the gate of destruction as “wide” and the way “broad,” meaning that it represents several ways to live our lives for ourselves, believing our efforts will be enough to have good lives and get into heaven.
He then stated that the narrow gate was “difficult” and that few would go through it, while many travel through the wide gate of destruction. This reflects the clear differences between the two ways of living life on this earth.
Why Is the Path to Destruction Wide, and the Path to Life Narrow?
The paths are different not just in size, but in reasons for why they are this way. The path to destruction is seen as wide because in our fallen world, sin is plentiful and can be found everywhere. We are encouraged, at times, to focus on ourselves rather than others and that greed, pride, and power are all worthy attributes to have. Many will go through this gate because it is easy, enticing, and fulfills all their needs and wants, even if temporarily.
The gate of life is narrow because, as Jesus said, few will go through it. The gate of life is the gate to salvation, of surrendering one’s life to God and following a path that can be challenging but rewarding at times. You will grow more spiritually while on this path, and realize that the world (offered through the wide gate) doesn’t have as much to offer you as the narrow gate does.
Luke 13:24 also sheds insight into the narrow gate metaphor. As Jesus stated, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.” What Jesus referred to here is that salvation has only one way through, and that is believing Jesus died and was resurrected to save us from our sins and reunite us with the Lord. Many will try to enter it through their own works, but only accepting Jesus into our hearts will open the gate.
Why Do Only a Few Follow the Path to Life?
Many will think they can get to heaven on their own good efforts, or because they do what God wants without inviting Him into their lives. But Jesus makes it clear in these verses that following the true Christian lifestyle is not one that is easy or one that uses our good works to get there.
The path of salvation, the path of surrendering and trusting God’s will, is not easy and will test our faith, our beliefs, and our awareness of God and the world. It will be tedious to walk this path, made more difficult when we experience delays, losses, and disappointments as others experience blessings we feel we should have too.
But the few who choose to follow the path of life will have peace on the path they are on, knowing they are walking in tandem with the heavenly Father, following the footsteps of the Savior, and guided by the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
What Does This Verse Mean for Us Today?
Matthew 7:13-14 reminds us today that as we go through difficult times, in anticipation of Jesus’s return, the gate of destruction will become more alluring than the challenging gate to life.
However, as easy as the gate of destruction might be, and no matter how many you know (and love) who are going through that gate, the gate leading to God is the one that will bring the most peace, the most grace, and the most rewards, both while on earth and in our heavenly home.
So today, when it seems it is better to leave God out of your decisions for the day or think that the way He is leading you is not exactly the best way, make the step toward trusting Him and seeing how He can lead you through the narrow gate with the least amount of difficulty. You might find you are getting through the struggles of your day with unexpected blessings in the process.
Jesus Is Worth More
Matthew 7 is a goldmine of valuable wisdom to use in our daily lives, especially Matthew 7:13-14. These verses remind us that the choice of which gate to enter could change the trajectory of our lives forever.
Jesus shared, in the Sermon of Mount, that the gate of destruction is wide and easy but dangerous, while the gate of life is narrow and difficult but rewarding on so many levels. Though we may know many going through the gate of destruction, and having a blast while doing it, the end result is that God will not be by their side on their journeys as much as He will for those who chose the narrow gate.
Though living the Christian life can have its challenges and its blessings, the knowledge that Jesus died so we could have God with us is more than anything this world can offer.
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