STRIVE TO ENTER (PDF)

STRIVE TO ENTER
Lk. 13:22 Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to
Jerusalem.
Lk. 13:23 Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them,
Lk. 13:24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try
to enter and will not be able to.
Lk. 13:25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking
and pleading, `Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, `I don’t know you or where you
come from.’
Jesus likens entrance to the kingdom of heaven to a narrow door. What is the kingdom
of heaven or kingdom of God? The kingdom of God is the family of God. Entrance into
the kingdom of God is to become an eternal son of God.
Ro. 8:29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son,
that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
Ro. 8:30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he
justified, he also glorified.
The entrance or door to the kingdom of heaven is narrow. In Lk. 13:24, Jesus says that
in order to be able to go through the narrow door, a person must make every effort. He
went on to say that many will try to enter, but will not be able to. A lot of the people that
go to various churches today do whatever their pastors tell them to do in order to make
heaven. But Jesus says that many of these Christians will not become eternal sons of
God. Why? Well, you have to locate the narrow door and then make every effort to enter.

The narrow Door
Let us locate the narrow door. The narrow door is all about a covenant that God
established between Himself and mankind.
He. 9:15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may
receive the promised eternal inheritance — now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from
the sins committed under the first covenant.
He. 9:16 In the case of a will, [Same Greek word as covenant; also in verse 17] it is necessary to
prove the death of the one who made it,
He. 9:17 because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the
one who made it is living.
Jesus Christ mediated a covenant between God and mankind. Since a covenant or will
can only go into effect when the person who made it has died and because God cannot
die, God had to represent Himself with His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus died in place of God,
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so that God’s will for man can go into effect. What are the terms of this covenant between
God and mankind?
Jn. 6:28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
Jn. 6:29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Jn. 6:40 For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have
eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”
The terms of the covenant between God and mankind is that everyone who looks to Jesus
and believes in him shall become an eternal son of God.
He. 12:2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set
before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of
God.
Lk. 9:23 Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take
up his cross daily and follow me.
First of all, do you believe that this covenant between God and mankind is real? If you
believe, then you realize that God has set before you an opportunity to be glorified. In
order to attain the glory, you must fix your eyes on Jesus and endure the cross as he did.
Well, you will not have to endure the physical cross like he did, but you will surely endure
the emotional cross like he did.
Fixing your eyes on Jesus Christ means to seek to live the way Jesus Christ lived and to
obey His words. Jesus began his earthly ministry by going to the man of God of his time,
John the Baptist, for baptism in water and in the Holy Spirit. You must begin your journey
to the kingdom of God exactly the same way: go to a real man of God and get baptized
in water and then let the man of God pray the Holy Spirit into you.
Lk. 16:13 “No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he
will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.”
Col. 3:2 Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
Col. 3:3 For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.
Col. 3:4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
If you want to seek the kingdom of God, you must kill aspirations for worldly greatness.
Consider yourself dead to worldly aspirations. Sometime in 1989, I was a young engineer
with a new telecoms company in Lagos, Nigeria. Our MD left the company in the hands
of we three young engineers and concentrated his attention on his Estate Surveying
company. So, we three young engineers were jostling for prominence. Then I was a
member of the Deeper Life Bible Church and Kumuyi was the Pastor of the only Deeper
Life church in Lagos then. On a certain day I went for the weekly Bible Study. As Kumuyi
was ministering, he suddenly shouted, “Some of you claim to be children of God, but in
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your offices you struggle for position.” The word struck my heart like an arrow and I
immediately repented. My colleagues in the office noticed a sudden change in my attitude
and the change became permanent. I now believe that Kumuyi’s word may have saved
my life, because struggle for position leads to all sorts of things. That was when I began
to practice dying to the ways of this world in order to become a real child of God.

Win God’s approval
Make every effort to win God’s approval, that he may admit you into His kingdom. If you
seek the world’s approval, you cannot get God’s approval.
Jn. 14:21 Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves
me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”
Jn. 14:23 Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our home with him.
1Ti. 2:3 This is good, and pleases God our Saviour,
1Ti. 2:4 who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth.
God wants all human beings to know the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Are you
participating in getting people to know the truth? That is a very important way to win
God’s approval.
Mk. 16:17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out
demons; they will speak in new tongues;
Mk. 16:18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not
hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well.”
It is easy to know if you are progressing towards the kingdom of God. If you are making
progress, the signs of Mk.6:17-18 will be visible in your life. In Jn. 14:21,23, Jesus
promises anyone who loves him continual presence of God. You know if the presence of
God is always with you. If you are making progress towards the kingdom of God, the
presence of God will continually be with you. I am a witness.

Closing of the door

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Re. 12:1 A great and wondrous sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the
moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.
Re. 12:2 She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth.
Re. 12:5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron sceptre.
And her child was snatched up to God and to his throne.
The sign of Re. 12:1-5 is an astronomical sign that marks the time of the adoption of the
sons of God. Modern Astronomy has enabled us to know that the sign of Re. 12:1-2 will
occur in the sky on 23rd September, 2017. The sons of God will be adopted in November,
2017; that is when the rapture will take place.
Make every effort to win God’s approval before the door closes.

Paul Nosike
Divine Nature Evangelism, Awka
ikesinenu@gmail.com

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