Feeding Sheep S1E10 “Sermon on the Mount: Prayer, The Golden Rule & Two Gates”

We are continuing steady in Season 1 titled “Back to the Basics.” Episode 10, Prayer, The Golden Rule, & Two Gates, which will take us through the last few steps of how we are to love God and people, how we are to interact with them, and segway us into walking out our salvation in practical manners with the introduction of the gates..

We go over “Ask, Seek & Knock” to begin with, finding that it doesn’t just mean do each of these three things one time and it’s a done deal, but the literal translation actually means, “keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking.” In doing so, while we are waiting to receive, find, and walk through the open door, we are coming into alignment with God’s desires and His heart for us. So if our asking, seeking, or knocking is in the wrong direction or amiss, we have time for Holy Spirit to work in our hearts to bring us back to the same page as God. It helps to keep us in His perfect will for our lives.

The Golden Rule—treat others the way you would have them treat you! It is not an old wives tale, but it is actually scripture. We must remember that if we wouldn’t want it done to us, then we shouldn’t do it to our brothers and sisters. Jesus is serious about it! How we carry each other, or handle each other really matters. We’re not just caring for “people,” we are caring for His creation! People who are made in the very image and likeness of God. 

Then we are introduced to the two gates. The Narrow Gate which leads to life, and the Broad Gate which leads to destruction. Gates have always been important in scripture. They set up a boundary and guard what the walls protect. Everything must be checked at the gate because there are just some things that DO NOT belong in the city. Gates are also places of exchange. They are points of transaction. Our old life must be left outside of the Narrow Gate. Sin does not belong past its entrance. The transaction is salvation that takes place at the Narrow Gate. A laying down of my old life to pick up a new one in Christ. 

Next we will be talking about how we walk once we get past the gate! I’m excited, and I hope you will join me. Only two more episodes left before we finish Season 1! Man how time flies!!

I hope you enjoy this episode and will continue to follow along with us as we endeavor to walk this path together, and sit at the table of the Lord and feast together!

Please feel free to reach out with any questions or comments that you may have. We will do our best to answer in a timely manner either in writing or on another future episode! But we do want to hear from you and be able to interact with you. 

May God bless you! Can’t wait to see where we grow from here. It’s an honor to be able to speak into your lives, and I don’t take it for granted!

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:08

Good morning. Welcome to Feeding Sheep Podcast. We are going to be in episode 10 of season one, back to the basics. And today we are going to be talking about prayer, the golden rule, and the two gates. We are almost finished with our season one series, Back to the Basics, The Sermon on the Mount. And we have this episode and two more behind it. So as we are closing in, I'm getting excited about what the next season is going to bring, but want to make sure that we remain fully present in this one because we don't want to miss one nugget of what the Lord has presented in the Sermon on the Mount, his first ever address to the people as the Messiah, as the one who does miracles and has come on the scene. He's no longer just Joseph and Mary's son. He's no longer just the carpenter, but he has performed a miracle at the wedding at Cana. He's been baptized. He has been through the wilderness temptation, and he has emerged as the Son of God and is bringing people and is currently bringing people to the saving knowledge of who he is. He is taking the law and the Ten Commandments, and He is bringing it from a head knowledge to a heart knowledge, how we serve God, how we love God, how we love people, how we carry them, and how we walk this walk, which is prayer and the golden rule and the narrow and wide gates are going to lead us into the last two episodes about bearing good and bad fruit, false and true prophets, and rock and sand foundation, which is all going to be about how we walk practically with him every step of the way. So we've got to know how to treat God, what he requires of us, how to treat others, and then lastly how to walk with him. So today's episode is kind of going to be the transition, the last little bit of how we love God and love others, and then next week we will be transitioning into how we walk with the Lord in practical application every single day. So without any further ado, let's get started. Matthew seven, beginning in verse seven, says, Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock, and it will be open to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who when his son asks for a loaf will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask him? In everything therefore treat people the same way that you want them to treat you, for this is the law and the prophets. Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it, for the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it. So we are first going to address um uh something that's preached a lot, ask, seek, and knock. Um, I've preached it a lot myself, and um love that sermon because prayer is key. Um talking to the Lord, how are we going to get something if we never ask for it? How are we going to find something if we never go looking for it? And how do we expect a door to be opened if we do not, in fact, knock on it? Um, so the Lord is kind of putting things into perspective that he is a very present help in the time of trouble. David told us this in the Psalms. He said, My God, my Lord, the Lord is a very present help in the time of trouble, and that help is ready to help, but he's not going to overstep. So we need to ask, we need to give invitation for him to come in, for him to be able to move and work in our lives. We need to seek him first, going back to seek him first in his righteousness, and then all of these other things will be added unto you. Um seek him and we will find him. Knock and it shall be opened unto us. So if we're not asking, seeking, and knocking, nothing will ever be given, found, or opened. So um those that's just a good basic rule of thumb. Call upon the Lord, pray to him because he's listening, he wants to hear from you, he wants to be invited into your situation. He doesn't always want to be the pursuer, he wants to be pursued as well. Um, he wants, he doesn't only want to be the only one that knocks, he wants to um hear you knocking at his door as well. So um he's giving us this thing that it's not, it's not a one-way street. This is a relationship, this is a covenant partnership. This is um, this is not just God and me. This is us, this is this is uh communication, this is every day, all the time, um not just reserved for Sundays or whatever time we deem holy. This is around the clock, always come to him. Um, and something really cool about this is that if you go into the um to the literal translation um in the Greek and the Aramaic of these words, ask, seek, and knock, um, you will see that ask, seek, and knock are in the present imperative tense, which means that it's not just ask. What it means is keep asking. It's not just seek, it's keep seeking. It's not just knock, it's keep knocking. So it is implying that there is a continuous and persistent action rather than a one-time request. And I'm saying all this because in my notes, I wrote this down. So if you Google it, you're gonna find the same exact notes that I did. But I wanted to say it like this because I thought it was such a good explanation. Um, we are not just, we're not just asking one time. We keep asking until it is given. We keep seeking until it is found, we keep knocking until it is opened up. Um, it's not just, well, I asked one time and so God, you should perform. Um, because sometimes we just need to stay in that mindset. Sometimes you ask one time and then you forget and you never think about it again. Um and if you can ask one time and never think about it again, chances are that wasn't really something that you needed in your life anyway. Um, if I continue to ask, if I continue to seek, if I continue to knock, that means that I am in constant communication with him. And when I'm in constant communication with him, the more uh likely it is that I'm actually coming into alignment with him. Because if I'm talking to him, that gives him opportunity to not only hear me, but to speak back into me. So if I'm asking something that's not in his will, he can come to me and he can say, I know you're asking for this, but let's shift your heart a little bit and ask this way. Ask what is my way. Seek what I want you to find, knock where I want you to enter into. Um, so it's it's amazing. It's not just about asking God that he's this genie that just pours out what we want, but it's us coming into alignment with him and our desires lining up with his desires for us. We start asking him for what he wants for us. We start seeking what he wants for us and knocking on the doors that he wants us to knock on so that when we receive, when we find, and when it is opened, we are right in the middle, in the very center of his perfect will for our lives. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened to them. It's not um sometimes it takes a minute, sometimes um it takes a little while. Sometimes he doesn't ask immediately because he's trying to get us into alignment or the time of fruition for that thing. It's not because he doesn't want to give it to us. There's just some things that have to happen first in order to line everything up for us to get what we um what we desire, which hopefully is his desire for us. And um, hopefully during the time of the continual prayer, the continual asking, seeking, and knocking, we have aligned ourselves with his will for our lives. And when we receive, we receive what we want and what he wants for us because our heart has been turned towards him and we've come into agreement with him. It's really beautiful because our steps are ordered of the Lord. He's already laid the path out for our life, and it's not his desire that we live in this constant struggle with him, um, praying what I want, you know, and in essence, praying against what he wants for me. It's me coming into alignment with him, my desires becoming his desires, or his desires becoming my desires. There you go. Um, we're not gonna change the heart of God with what we want because he knows what's best for us. He's gonna hold firm to what he has already planned from the beginning, um, and he is going to do everything uh that he can to show us that his desires for us are good, that his desires for us are right and correct, and give us that opportunity to come into alignment. He said, Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. When I delight myself in him, I am coming into alignment with him, and so his desires become my desires. And then once that is delivered, when I'm ready to receive it, when I've gone through all the things, when I've been through the process, when the time is fulfilled and I receive those things, the Lord is glad and I am glad. Um, he is um he is rejoicing and I am fulfilled because I am fulfilled through him and what he has for me. Um and he says this what man is there among you who when his son asks for a loaf will give him a stone, or if he asks for a fish, will he he will not give him a snake, will he? If you being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your father who is in heaven give what is good to those who ask him? And so literally he's just saying here, he's he's um he's really pushing the point. I'm a good father. If you can be good and there is no good in you whatsoever, if you can be good to the people that you love, if you can be good to your own children, I'm perfect in all of my ways. How much more am I going to be good and righteous to those who belong to me? Um, so he's just he's just solidifying his goodness and giving us a comparison here. Like if you can be good to the people that you care about, of course I'm gonna be good and even better than you can imagine. Um and so I would take courage in that. Not everybody has good parent experiences in their life. God is not what you experience through your parents if it was a bad time. Um and so I would take hope in this scripture that he is better. He is good and he is better than what you've been through, what you've what you've experienced, uh what you've survived. Um he is a good father, he is listening, and he may not give you what you want, but he will, when your desires begin to line up with his desires, he will pour out his blessings upon you because whether you believe or not, he knows what's best for you, and he will direct your path. And um so then we get to verse 12, which we call um we have coined in the world, we have called it the golden rule. It says, and everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the law and the prophets. In another place in Scripture, Jesus says that the law and the prophets hinge upon these two things. Love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. If you do these two things, you don't have to worry about fulfilling the commandments. Because if you love God, you're not gonna want to go against his heart. You're not gonna want to do things that are outside of his character. If you love your neighbor, you're not going to want to harm them or sin or trespass against them. You are going to want to carry them well, to love well, uh, because this is God's will for all of us, because he is love and he wants the love that he has given into us, that we've received of him, to also flow out to others, so that there is a clear image of him still in the earth today, where we become his hands and feet, where we become his mouthpiece, and heaven gets into earth because we have allowed ourselves to be a vessel, to be a conduit where heaven can flow in and out. So um treat people the way that you want to be treated. If you don't want it done to you, don't do it to other people. It's so very simple. Um, but a lot of times we forget it and we do to others as they have done to us instead of taking the high road and doing unto them what we would want done to us. So let's remember that as we go about uh the rest of our day and the rest of this weekend and the time that is to come that the Lord gives us is that however we act or however we handle or carry others, let it be the way that we would want to be treated, carried, or handled. Amen. And then uh last but not least, we are going to uh transition from not um transition from our heart posture and how we are loving God, how we are loving one another, treating one another, interacting with one another into our literal walk with Christ every day. And uh we're transitioning in verse 13 and 14, and we are getting now on the path that He has for us and the way that we enter into that path. There are two choices heaven or hell, Christ or Satan, good, evil, light, dark. Um, it's it's two options. And that's it. There is no middle ground, there is no other way. I I saw a sermon clip um from uh Bishop Kevin Wallace the other day, and he said, you know, there's one way to heaven. There's not a Christian way to heaven, and then a Jewish way to heaven, or a Muslim way to heaven, or there is one way that everybody is going to get to heaven, and his name is Jesus Christ. He is the way, he is the truth, he is the life. And I I stand in firm and total agreement with that. And you can like it, you can lump it, you can turn off the you can turn off the podcast now. Amen. But the truth will set you free. And it's there is no other doctrine. I mean, there there are lots of doctrines, but there is no other doctrine that is rooted in the truth that is Jesus Christ. He said, I am the way, I am the truth, and I am the life. He didn't say, I'm one of the ways, I'm some of the truth, or partial, uh, I'm part of the truth, or I am some of the life. He said, I'm the, I'm the way, the truth, the life. That means there is no other. And so verse 13 and 14, he is telling the people, he said, Enter through the narrow gate, for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few that find it. There are two paths, and those two paths have an entrance, and there is a gate. Gate in scripture, gates in scripture are points of exchange. They are where transactions take place. Um, if you're going to get in the gate of a city, it's because you are going to bring something in that's going to benefit. Um, and if you don't, you're not going to gain access or interest, um, entrance. Um, people would come to the gate and they would buy and sell their goods because there are some things that just don't belong inside of the city. There are some things that can only come so far, and either they're going to be allowed in or they're going to be rejected. And so uh gates are very, very important. Um, and there is, if you're going to walk this narrow way, there is a gate. Um, there is a door, if you will. Jesus said, I am the door to the sheepfold. No one else can get into the sheepfold any other way. If he tries to climb up the wall, if he tries to go underneath the fence, if he tries to come in any other way, he is a thief and a robber. There is a point of exchange. And the exchange to get in the narrow gate is that I must be born again. I must come into agreement. I must lay down my old life. There is a transaction. I will lay down my old life so that I may inherit eternal life. Um, I must die to my old self so that I can be born again and resurrected into newness of life. So there is an exchange of an old life to a new life. And that's what's going to happen at the narrow gate. And the way that I get into the narrow path, the path that many people do not choose, because there is, there's a lot of resistance to this narrow way. Um, because everything can't fit through the narrow way. I can't take all of the sins and all of the burdens of my life through the narrow gate. It won't fit. I've got to lay them out down outside of the gate. I've got to bury them and leave them there and walk through with pretty much nothing that I brought with me and everything that I need on this narrow path, he will add unto me as it's necessary. Um, but I can't take old things into a new way. So the narrow gate is it is small, and it is small for a reason. It's narrow for a reason. And then he says, There is a broad gate. Many enter through the broad gate. Why? Because anything goes in the broad way. The gates never shut, it's always wide open. People, people there is an illusion, if you will, of freedom in the broad gate. Um, because the gate remains open, so it looks as if I can come and go anytime I want to. But when I live in a broad way, when there is no narrow path, it means that anything goes. And when anything goes, it gives me opportunity to stay lost and living in circles. The enemy will have you living in a prison with a door wide open, but he will make it so comfortable and he will make it so appealing and appetizing that you will not walk out. Um, and so it's very dangerous. He said the gate is small, the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few that find it because so many are getting lost in the broad way. So be one who says, I want to follow Jesus. I want to go down this narrow path. I realize that I must lay down my old life, and the narrow way is gonna cause me to leave the baggage that has been wrapped around me for all of my life, and it's going to cause me to pick up a cross. See, the baggage is everywhere. It's it looks like a Santa Claus, you know, Christmas bag, you know, all over my back. I'm carrying the burdens of 38 years of living, and I'm gonna try to finagle it through this narrow way, and it's not working. And uh, so I have to lay down that bag in order to pick up a cross. And a cross is heavy, but it's thin, it's narrow. I pick up my cross, and the only thing that can go through that narrow gate with me is the cross that I pick up. I deny myself, I pick up my cross, and I follow him in the path that he has laid out for me. Uh, scripture tells us that the steps of a good man, they are ordered of the Lord, and he delights in his way. Um, there is a narrow path that has been preordained for our lives, that we would find it and we would walk in that way. The steps of a good man, the path of a good man, it's not just a good person, but the good man in the original translation is a warrior, is a soldier. The steps of a soldier, the steps of a warrior, they are ordained by the Lord, and he delights in his way. And if I am a warrior, that means that my life is not my own, that I am under submission to the commanding officer, if you will, that is over my life. And that commanding officer, that general, that king, that supreme authority is Jesus Christ. So the life that I live is no longer my own way. All of the options have been narrowed down to this is the path, walk in it. This is the narrow gate. There's not a lot of room to to to roam and do all of the things. But once I submit myself to that narrow way, I realize that all of the roaming never did anything for me, but keep me delayed, keep me hurt, and keep me hostage in a place that I never was meant to be. It was pleasurable for a season, but ultimately it was empty and it was vain. But this narrow way, though it is narrow, though it is not crowded, though it is lonely, it brings me to life everlasting. It's going to lead me to the one that I love. It's going to lead me to his face. And that's the point, is to get from where I was to where he is and to be transformed into his likeness and into his image along the way. And so next week we are going to talk about more practical things when we walk with him, what we will encounter, how to deal with those things, how we are to build our lives upon the foundation of who he is, all the while still loving the Lord, still loving our neighbors, keeping everything in the right perspective, in the right priority slots, so that we can live a life that is pleasing according to his word. I'm telling you, the basics of everything that we will need. If we can master Matthew 5, Matthew 6, Matthew 7, the Christian walk would be so much easier for us because everything that we need is encapsulated in these three chapters. And God, I mean, Jesus laid the secrets of the kingdom out day one, when the first message he ever preached, he's like, this is the pattern, this is the way. If you can get this, you've got the rest of it. And so it just makes me really excited that this is the first thing to be able to share with you in this podcast, feeding sheep, in this opportunity to not just speak to women, but to speak to whosoever will listen. Um, men, women, boys, girls, um, whatever, all age groups, all denominations, all walks of life. Um, if it was good enough for Jesus to share this right off the bat, I believe that this is the perfect starting point for the conversations that we'll be having, for the teachings that will be set into our lives from this point, um, for our growth, for discipleship, for uh continuation. And so I'm just excited about what the Lord is doing. And I just thank you for joining us. I um, you know, I say us because it's me and all of your brothers and sisters that are that are listening. Um I pray that that we finish out this season strong, that we take in these lessons that Jesus has laid out for us as a foundation, and that we master um the teachings that he has preached and that he has laid out so that we can move on to perfection, knowing that the basics are solidified, the building blocks that we need are solidified in our lives, and that everything we build from his foundation, and then using these blocks that he's laid out for us, that everything we build from here on out will be stable and steadfast and secure and not easily moved because we have founded it upon Jesus Christ and upon his immutable word and upon his promises that are yes and in him. They are amen. I hope you have a wonderful Friday. Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Um let's continue to be persistent in prayer. We don't get anything if we don't ask, we don't find anything if we don't keep seeking, and we don't have anything open to us unless we keep knocking. Let's love one another like we would want to be loved and treat one another the way we would want to be treated. And for the love of everything that is holy, let us find the narrow gate and the straight way, and let us turn aside from the broad gate and the wide gate that leads to destruction. Have a blessed one. Talk to you later. Bye bye.