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Monday, May 16, 2016

The Golden Rule and the Narrow Gate (Matt. 7:12-14)

Outline: Matthew 7:12-14
  1. The Principle: The Golden Rule (v.12)
  2. The Picture: The narrow gate (vv.13-14)
Summary: With the word "so" in Matt. 7:12,  Jesus signals that He is drawing His sermon to conclusion as well as summarizing what He as been preaching up to this point.  He summarizes the Sermon in a principle known as the Golden Rule (GR), which He also says is a faithful, boiled-down summary of all that is written in the Law and the Prophets.  So Jesus commands His followers to live out the GR (just as He did; cf. 5:17). This principle, though simple, is deep, profound and demanding.  The rigor called for in living out the GR is pictured in Jesus' parallel command to "Enter by the narrow gate." To follow Jesus example of living out the GR, one must be a pilgrim who is willing to enter by the narrow gate and travel the hard road accompanied by few people.  But while the demands are great, so is the payoff when the Lord's pilgrims reach the end of their road and enter into eternal life, a place where every heart is golden, a place where living out the GR comes easy.

Main Point: Treat others they way you would want to be treated. Living out this principle, though certainly demanding, is the path that leads to eternal life.

Discussion Questions:
  • Meditate on the following equation: The Law and Prophets (shorthand for the OT) = Love God and People (Matt. 22:36-40; Mark 12:28-31) = the GR (Matt. 7:12).
  • How does the fact that Jesus Christ came, lived, died, rose, and gave the Holy Spirit shape the way we think about living out the GR?
  • How much of a priority should the GR have in the life of a Christ-follower? 
  •  What is so golden about the GR? What makes it so universally effective in relationships?  
  • How does treating others the way we would like to be treated help bring much-needed moral clarity and focus in our relationships with others? (cf. Eph. 5:28-29).
  • Practice applying the GR to some scenarios that you would like to think through:
    • How would I want to be treated if I was  _____? 
    • Would I like it if someone ______ ? 
  • Compare the two gates/ways described in vv.13-14.
    • Option #1: "though the gate be conveniently wide and the journey 
      seductively
       
      easy and the travel companions comfortingly many, their end will be eternally destructive."
    • Option #2: The rugged Man who traveled a rugged road who hung on a rugged cross tells dear His pilgrims to enter the narrow gate, travel the hard road, accompanied by few people who who are headed for eternal life. Think through the key words: narrow, hard, few, life and explain why what is to come is worth all the present struggle.    
Application Questions:
  • How often do I actually apply the GR by "putting myself in other people's shoes"?  What is Jesus teaching me about the priority the GR should have in my life? 
  • Are the choices that I make on my earthly pilgrimage based mainly on what is convenient, easy, and what others think of me or on a living faith in Jesus, a determination to do what pleases Him no matter how hard life gets, and a commitment to travel this journey with a band of fellow pilgrims who have the same commitment? Explain.   
Prayer Points:
  • Confess ways you've been failing to live out the GR and for ways you have slipped off the narrow path in favor of what is convenient, easy, and accepted by the majority 
  • Wash in that "river" of gospel grace which mirrors at every point the rugged road of obedience
  • Ask the Holy Spirit to empower you to treat others they way you would like to be treated
  • Ask for greater sensitivity to the Holy Spirit's promptings, the inner whispers that remind us to "follow the harder road instead."