22 He went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and journeying toward Jerusalem. 23 And someone said to him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” And he said to them, 24 “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. 25 When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’ then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26 Then you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28 In that place 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 but you yourselves cast out. 29 And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. 30 And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.”
Section Overview
We can lose track of the journey motif in Luke’s Gospel since he does not provide many geographical markers, but the journey bears a literary and theological accent, emphasizing that Jesus is going to Jerusalem to die. The importance of being a disciple continues to be emphasized. Someone poses the question as to whether few will be saved. Jesus does not answer the question. Instead he emphasizes that everyone must strive to be saved because, if they delay too long, it will be too late. People will protest that they knew Jesus and that he lived among them, but he will not grant them admission into his presence, for evil has characterized their lives. Those excluded will be filled with regret and anguish when they see the patriarchs and prophets in the kingdom but themselves on the outside. Indeed, their sense of regret will be even greater when they see Gentiles included instead of themselves.
Section Outline
IV. Galilee to Jerusalem: Discipleship (9:51–19:27) . . .
B. The Journey Continues (13:22–17:10)
1. On the Way to Jerusalem (13:22–35)
a. Striving to Be Saved (13:22–30)
Response
Richard John Neuhaus once said that we could hope that everyone might be saved. Although we do not know for sure, he remarked, we could still hope that every last person might go on to experience eternal life. Neuhaus was influenced by Hans Urs von Balthasar, but the comprehensive two-volume work by Michael McClymond shows that such a view does not accord with Scripture.153 In this passage Jesus does not tell us how many will go to heaven or hell, but he clearly teaches that “many” will go to hell. We might think from this text that Jesus is teaching that only a few will be saved while most are damned, but he does not really answer the question. The issue for each one of us is “Am I entering through the narrow door?” No final numbers are given here. Like the Jews, though we may have great privileges, such as having heard the gospel from a young age, we may nevertheless fail to be saved ourselves. Life is serious, and some will suffer anguish forever. May we have an urgency to tell others the good news and be sure that we do not fail to enter the door ourselves.