The Narrow Gate

08-18-2019Weekly ReflectionFr. Bing Colasito

The Gospel says strive to enter the narrow door (Lk. 13, 22-30). In heaven, there is no trespassing, no one can gate crash their way to enter heaven. Sometimes we would think that a merit system works in heaven, through good work or acts of goodness. Worse, some think they can buy their way to heaven. Remember, the road to hell is a highway, and the road to heaven is a stairway. Salvation is God’s grace, mercy and a blessing. To have faith is to enter the narrow door, to take the stairway rather than the highway. The journey of life is not a matter of taking the fastest lane that would lead us to the farthest destination. The journey maybe slow, the distance short, with a lot of inconvenience, and at times difficult. To have faith, is making a personal choice to stay in the stairway. Many times, we think we know how to save ourselves. It is for God to save, and it is for us only to enter the narrow door and stay in the course of the stairway.

The narrow door is a standard, everyone is expected to meet the standard. Sometimes it’s a Canon, a list, a rule, and a measurement. Lawyers, doctors, teachers, civil servants, service crew, and many others follow and meet a certain standard, even just to be considered good. It’s not a free for all, do what ever one wishes to do, standard free world. There is always a standard, at least a minimum standard, that is the narrow door.

The Narrow Door: “Grace is when God gives us good things we don’t deserve; Mercy is when He spares us from bad things we deserve; Blessings are when the Lord generously gives us His grace and mercy.”

Narrow door or stairway, a thought for the journey: “Remember that you’ll always have more blessings than problems; problems seem more because you count, measure, and analyze them every day; when you count your blessings, you realize that they always outnumber your problems.” Again, trespassers and gatecrashers are not allowed into heaven. Everyone must enter through the narrow door. For this Lord, help us to get there with Your grace, mercy, blessing and with our faithful obedience.