Getting In

Jesus talks about getting in or entering. In our text, becoming like a child is a requirement for getting in. In our day of inclusiveness, access, non-discrimination, ADA rules, and affirmative action it is not nice to talk about keeping people out. We want 15 year olds to have access to Plan B so they can ignore God's Plan A. We want gays to have access to marriage. We want immigrants to have access to the benefits of America regardless of how they came to be here. It is not nice to tell someone they do not belong here or that there is a "requirement" to getting services. Jesus speaks of entering the Kingdom of God or Heaven, the gate, the life, the joy of the Master, His glory, and the sheepfold. It seems to me that all of these are a place I would want to be and a place I would not want anyone telling me I could not be. Jesus is very clear that the alternative to entering these wonderful places is entering hell, eternal fire, and destruction. Pretty harsh contrasts. Aren't there some more moderate alternatives? Nope. This is it. Jesus says some have more difficulty than others getting in. He is particularly hard on three groups, i.e. religious establishment, rich folks, and habitual unrepentant sinners. Regarding the religious establishment they are particularly good at making it difficult for those who want to enter to do so. They put obstacles in one's path to trip them up so they cannot meet the entrance requirements. They are good at creating "hoops" for folks to jump through. But, others are just as dangerous because of the lip-service game. "Lord, Lord" is their mantra without much action to back it up. Jesus talks of the price we should be willing to pay to get in, like plucking out our eyes and cutting off our hands.

So what does Jesus say is necessary in order to get in? First, we have to have a righteousness that exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees. This kind of righteousness is one of faith not works, one of sincerity not hypocrisy, one of commitment to Jesus not to self. It is one given and conferred and not earned. Second, we have to be born of water and the Spirit to get in. Nicodemus did not understand this. Repentance and baptism is part of this birth process. A person cannot get in without identification with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The blood must be contacted, and we must experience forgiveness and rebirth. Third, we also must be investing our resources into the kingdom. Only two of the three in Matt.25 were able to enter because they took what was given and invested it in kingdom business. Those who care nothing for the kingdom will not get to share in the joys of it, now or then.

This little child was a powerful illustration not just of humility but of the type of person who gets in. The disciples were busy trying to see who could sit where after they got in, and Jesus was about telling us about being concerned about just getting in. Where I will sit on the plane is irrelevant if I am not on board the plane. Which is more difficult? For Jesus to assign seating in the kingdom or for Jesus to make it possible for any of us to get in? We might so take for granted that we have a ticket that we focus our attention on how nice the flight will be. That boarding pass is pretty important and it must match your ID. Not everyone gets to board. Let's get that firmly in our minds. Not everyone will enter. Sobering isn't it? The list is kept in heaven.