And He went through the
cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem. Then one
said to Him, "Lord, are there few who are saved?"
(Luke 13:22-23).
There are not many people in this world who
could give the correct answer to the question Jesus was asked on this
occasion. I doubt that very many know the answer Jesus gave, and many of
those who know it won't accept it.
Of course, Jesus knew the right answer to
the question. After all, He is not only the Savior, He is also the Judge
who will sit on His throne and determine who will be saved and who will be
lost (Mt
25:31-33). So, He is best qualified
to answer whether or not there are few who are saved.
What was His answer? He said to them,
"Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek
to enter and will not be able"
(Luke 13:24).
Elsewhere He said, "narrow is the gate and
difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it"
(Matthew 7:14).
And on more than one occasion He
declared that "many are called but few are chosen"
(Mt 20:16; 22:14).
Clearly, few will be saved.
How many does it take to make up "a
few"? In Noah's day, "a few, that is, eight souls, were save through water"
(1 Peter 3:20).
That's not many. It's not most. It's certainly not all.
It is false comfort to go through life
believing that everyone we know -- all our friends, neighbors and relatives
and all of their friends, neighbors and relatives, along with our favorite
celebrities, politicians and football coaches -- will be saved. We wish
they would be. So does God. He "desires all men to be saved and to come to
the knowledge of the truth."
(1 Timothy 2:4).
But it is not going to happen.
Accepting the fact that there are few who
are saved will help us in a couple of important ways.
· First,
we will make a better effort to be among the few who are saved. Jesus
commanded us to strive to enter through the narrow gate. When we see just
how narrow it is, and perceive just how few will find it, we will give even
more diligence to make our calling and election sure
(2 Peter 1:10).
· Second,
we will be more fervent in persuading others to obey the gospel. In
2 Corinthians 5:11
the apostle Paul said, "Knowing
therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men." If few are saved, many
are lost. Only the gospel can save them. We must share it!
Other Articles by Steve Klein
What to Give the
Spiritually Hungry
Gullibility
Legalism -- the Un-Sin
