Many will come from East and West

Isaiah 66:18-21; Psalm 117:1, 2; Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13; Luke 13:22-30

Many of us can say with great confidence, “I am a member of the Christian faith.” Many of us can also say: “I love Jesus Christ. He is my Lord and Saviour.” These declarations are crucial and fundamental. But today’s readings want to remind us that paper membership is not enough. We must know the shepherd and hold his values and show these values in our actions and attitudes.

There are two images in today’s gospel. We have the image of the door and the image of the heavenly banquet. Strive to enter by the narrow door. The Greek word for strive here is “agonizesthe.” It means “exercise”, “effort”, “fight”, “struggle.” Strive means cooperating with the grace of God. Strive means not taking it for granted. Strive and not presume… It is a word used by Paul on many occasions in his letters for example in1Cor 9:25; (Every Athlete exercises self-control in all things) 1Tim 4:10; (We toil and strive, because have our hope set on the living God) 6:12 (Fight the good fight of Faith); 2Tim 4:7 (I have fought a good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith). Strive, keep fighting, keep struggling to enter by the narrow door is the main emphasis in today’s readings. It means that we should not relax and feel that we are saved already.

The second image is the image of the heavenly banquet. The Prophet Isaiah 43:5-6 speaks of God bringing Israel’s descendants back from the east and from the west, the north and the south. And Isaiah 25:6 speaks of the Lord providing a feast of rich foods and choice wines for all people on his holy mountain. With this image, Jesus invites us to be welcoming and open-minded to all peoples not minding their background, social standing just as God extends this warm welcome to everyone. To be a follower of Jesus is to be open. Being a faithful disciple of Christ also means being always alert to the dangers of taking our membership of God’s family for granted.

The answer to the question if only a few will be saved is no. In the end, many will be saved, but many who thought they would be saved will not be saved. The parable is a prophetic warning to repentance to enter the kingdom. Anyone who thinks they’ve already arrived at holiness, ought to be very humble and very careful. Discipleship in Christ demands constant vigilance, a humble openness of heart and mind.


God will say, “I know you,” when we have – throughout our lives and actions – shown that we really do know Jesus, that we comprehend the person, message and values of Jesus – by how we live it. The invitation is for everyone, all are invited to the banquet; unfortunately, only those who strive, who are disciplined, who persevere will eventually be saved. There are no reserved privileges for a selected few…