The Gate & The Door

Jhn 10:7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
Jhn 10:8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
Jhn 10:9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
Mat 7:13 Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide [is] the gate, and broad [is] the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:
Mat 7:14 Because strait [is] the gate, and narrow [is] the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

The difference between the gate in Matt. 7.13 and the door in John 10.9 is that the door speaks of grace, whereas the gate speaks of the principles of the kingdom of heaven.

To "enter in" is a choice. "By the narrow gate" indicates a transaction. The "way" represents daily life.

"Narrow" refers to the strictness of the Lord's commandments. "Narrow" is a comparative term. The new law of Matt. 5.21-7.12 is a narrow gate, therefore must be more lenient, surpassing Mosaic law.

You can not enter the narrow path without first going through the narrow gate. The narrow path does not lead to the narrow gate; rather, it comes subsequent. A Christian can actually choose either gate as well as either pathway towards overcoming in Christ.

There are two gates and two ways. The right gate ascribes to right inward condition; the right way expresses right outward appearances.

If the term used is the effects of "perdition" (second death) that will be unclear for the broad way because if so, it could only be temporary, not eternal destruction. Therefore, this "destruction" for the wide gate and broad way is better indicated as being said "ruin" or "waste" because in such a case everything will be demolished and ruined which is not temporary. For a Christian, any holding onto sin, self, natural will be demolished for there is no sin in the new city in the new earth.

From the gate to the narrow path to the door that draws us into grace is the life a Christian ought to live. "Straight thy way" because only God can get through to you. In John 10.8 the sheep did not even hear the robbers and the thieves, so today let us not focus on the 41,000 adherents of the world, and instead keep our one eye on Christ at all times.

Truth is often found among the minority - "few are they that find it". Many do not even know these truths, that seem so obvious.
So, let us walk this Way (Acts 9.2; 19.9,23).

A lesson to be drawn from all this is that this is not about Christians and non-Christians, but Christians and Christians. Or in other words, overcomers overcoming and non-overcomers overcoming (delayed). Matt. 7.13-14 is not about the saved and the unsaved, but the overcomers and the non-overcomers.

I originally studied these two verses a few days ago, and misread Nee thinking it was about eternal ruin for the unsaved, but in actuality it was meaning eternal ruin for all those things a Christian still holds onto. No doubt Nee got it right. All this time I thought otherwise for several years now. Moreover, even when I read Nee in King and the Kingdom of Heaven on this very point I misread him. It was only after a second read that I came upon it again because I was looking for commentary on Christians needing to all go through the same pathway, yet that commentary was in the study notes to the NLT instead.

I stumbled upon my error when I discovered that Nee said on page 72 KKH, "A Christian may select whichever gate to enter and whatever way to travel." That is when it triggered in my spirit my mistake and immediately intuitively recognized my misreading. Now these verses fit better.

Many carnal believers will see just the saved and the unsaved in the Scriptures. They won't often see the unsaved, the carnal and the spiritual Christians: 3 groups.

Wow!, eh?