In today’s passage from Luke 13:22–30, Jesus teaches about the narrow door, reminding us that faith isn’t about proximity to Him or checking the right religious boxes—it’s about truly knowing and following Him. Just like the mustard seed and yeast we looked at Friday, the Kingdom of God is His work, not ours. We don’t earn our way in; we enter through Jesus alone. The door may be narrow, but it’s open to everyone who comes by grace. So today, let’s make sure our faith isn’t built on doing things to look good or fit in, but on loving and following Jesus with sincere hearts. When we walk with Him daily, we find ourselves already living in the joy of His Kingdom here and now.

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Well, good morning! It’s good to see you and good to be with you on this Monday morning. I hope all is well as we kick off another great week together. I’m excited about another week studying God’s Word, so thanks for being here with me as we continue in Rooted.

Today, we’re in Luke 13, verses 22 through 30 — Jesus’ teaching on the narrow door. This is one of those passages that really connects a lot of dots when you read it in context. That’s one of the beauties of walking through Scripture section by section — you start to see how it all fits together. Nothing in Scripture stands alone. You’ve heard me say it a million times: context matters.

So let’s read it together — Luke 13:22–30 from the NRSV:

Jesus went through one town and village after another, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few be saved?” He said to them, “Strive to enter through the narrow door; for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. When once the owner of the house has got up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then in reply he will say to you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!’ There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and you yourselves thrown out. Then people will come from east and west, from north and south, and will eat in the kingdom of God. Indeed, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”

Now, this passage sounds familiar, doesn’t it? You’ve heard Jesus say similar things elsewhere — about the wide gate that leads to destruction and the narrow way that leads to life — but this isn’t that exact passage. This one has its own nuance.

Here, Jesus is describing people who think they belong inside but find the door shut. They cry, “Lord, Lord, open to us!” and He says, “I don’t know where you come from.” The old King James puts it memorably: “Depart from me, ye workers of iniquity.”

It’s a sobering image. And like most of Jesus’ teachings, it ties into what He said just before this. Remember on Friday, when we looked at the parables of the mustard seed and the yeast? Those were about the Kingdom of God — how it’s not something we build by our own effort, but something God Himself grows. The Kingdom is His, not ours.

So when Jesus says, “Strive to enter through the narrow door,” He’s really saying: Don’t presume you’re already in just because you think you belong there. In verse 28, He talks about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob — the patriarchs — already being in the Kingdom, while others who thought they were heirs of the promise are left outside.

He’s reminding His listeners that being part of God’s Kingdom isn’t about birthright. It’s not automatic. It’s about following Him — Jesus — who is the door.

And I love how He throws in that line: “People will come from east and west, from north and south.” That’s Jesus’ way of saying, “By the way, this isn’t just for one group of people.” The door is open to everyone — Jew and Gentile alike. But it’s only open through Him.

This is where my Wesley Study Bible comes in handy — it’s my favorite because the notes are so practical and deeply Wesleyan. It references one of John Wesley’s early sermons called The Almost Christian. Wesley had this wonderful (or maybe dangerous) way of preaching sermons that made everyone mad. He’d get invited to preach once — and never get invited back!

In that sermon, he talks about how there are people who can say all the right things, do all the right religious activities, and yet still miss the heart of it — still miss Jesus Himself. That’s what this passage is getting at. It’s not about being able to talk Christian or act religious. It’s about truly following Jesus.

Now, tying that back to the mustard seed and the yeast — remember, the Kingdom of God is God’s party. He sets the guest list. It’s not mine to decide who’s in or out. And we’re not in the Kingdom because we’ve earned it or because we’ve checked all the right boxes. We’re in the Kingdom because of God’s grace.

That’s what makes this passage both convicting and hopeful. The ones knocking on the door are saying, “But Lord, we were around you! We heard you teach! We saw you!” And Jesus says, “That’s not enough.” It’s not proximity — it’s relationship.

If our faith starts with us — with our goodness, our morality, our effort — we’re already off track. But if our faith starts with Jesus, then everything else flows out of that.

You can have two people living almost identical lives on the outside — both avoiding sin, both doing good things — but one is doing it to prove something, to look good, to be “right.” The other is doing it out of gratitude, out of love, out of a heart changed by grace. The outward actions may look similar, but the motivation is completely different.

That’s what Jesus is after here. A grace-driven life, not a legalistic one. The legalistic life says, “Look how good I am.” The grace-driven life says, “Look how good He is.”

So when Jesus says “enter through the narrow door,” He’s really saying, “Come through Me.” Follow Me. Let Me be Lord of your life — not just in words, but in your actions, your relationships, your decisions, your heart.

Because the narrow door isn’t about exclusion — it’s about direction. It’s about where your life is pointed.

C. S. Lewis once said, “Aim at heaven and you’ll get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you’ll get neither.” That’s the idea here. Aim at heaven. Aim at following Jesus. Let Him shape every part of your life — how you speak to others, how you parent, how you love your spouse, how you treat your coworkers and neighbors.

And when we do that — when we follow Him wholeheartedly — we’ll find ourselves already tasting the Kingdom here and now. A foretaste of the feast to come.

So today, don’t worry so much about getting everything right. Just follow Jesus. Because if you follow Him, you’ll end up where you need to be.

Thanks for being with me today. Tomorrow, we’re going to look at one of the more painful — but also one of the most beautiful — passages in Scripture, where we see Jesus’ great love on display. I’ll see you then.