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032 - Upon our Lords Sermon on the Mount Discourse XI · Sermons on Several Occasions, First Series

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  Speaker 1: Section thirty one of Sermons on Several Occasions First Series.
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  Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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  Speaker 1: the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
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  Speaker 1: visit LibriVox dot org. Sermons on Several Occasions First Series
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  Speaker 1: by John Wesley, Sermon thirty one upon Our Lord's Sermon
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  Speaker 1: on the Mount, Discourse eleven. Enter, ye Inn at the
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  Speaker 1: straight gate, For wide is the gate, and broad is
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  Speaker 1: the way which leadeth to destruction. And many there be
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  Speaker 1: which go in thereat, because straight is the gate, and
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  Speaker 1: narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few
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  Speaker 1: there be that find it. Matthew Chapter seven, Verses thirteen
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  Speaker 1: and fourteen. Our Lord, having warned us of the dangers
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  Speaker 1: which easily beset us at our first entrance upon real religion,
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  Speaker 1: the hindrances which naturally arise from within from the wickedness
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  Speaker 1: of our hears arts, now proceeds to apprise us of
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  Speaker 1: the hindrances from without, particularly ill example and ill advice
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  Speaker 1: by one or the other of these thousands who once
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  Speaker 1: ran well have drawn back unto perdition. YEA, many of
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  Speaker 1: those who were not novices in religion, who had made
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  Speaker 1: some progress in righteousness his caution. Therefore, against these he
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  Speaker 1: presses upon us with all possible earnestness, and repeats again
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  Speaker 1: and again in variety of expressions, lest by any means
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  Speaker 1: we should let it slip. Thus effectually to guard us
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  Speaker 1: against the former, Enter ye in saith He at the
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  Speaker 1: straight gate, for wide is the gate, and broad is
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  Speaker 1: the way that leadeth to destruction. And many there be
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  Speaker 1: which go in thereat. Because straight is the gate, and
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  Speaker 1: narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few
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  Speaker 1: there be the finder to secure us from the latter. Beware,
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  Speaker 1: saith He, of false prophets. We shall at present consider
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  Speaker 1: the former. Only. Enter ye in Saith, our blessed Lord,
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  Speaker 1: at the strait gate. For wide is the gate, and
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  Speaker 1: broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, And many
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  Speaker 1: there be which go in thereat, because straight is the gate,
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  Speaker 1: and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and
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  Speaker 1: few there be that find it. In these words we
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  Speaker 1: may observe first the inseparable properties of the way to hell.
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  Speaker 1: Why does the gate broad is the way that leadeth
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  Speaker 1: to destruction, and many there be that go in thereat. Secondly,
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  Speaker 1: the inseparable properties of the way to Heaven. Straight is
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  Speaker 1: that gait, and few there be that find it. Thirdly,
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  Speaker 1: a serious exhortation grounded thereon, Enter ye in at the
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  Speaker 1: straight gate, we may observe first the inseparable properties of
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  Speaker 1: the way to hell. Whyde is the gate, and broad
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  Speaker 1: is the way that leadeth to destruction? And many there
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  Speaker 1: be that go in their ats. Wide indeed is the gate,
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  Speaker 1: and broad the way that leadeth to destruction. For sin
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  Speaker 1: is the gate of hell, and wickedness the way to destruction.
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  Speaker 1: And how wide a gate is that of sin? How
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  Speaker 1: broad is the way of wickedness? The commandment of God
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  Speaker 1: is exceeding broad, as extending not only to all our actions,
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  Speaker 1: but to every word which goeth out of our lips. Yea,
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  Speaker 1: every thought that rises in our heart. And sin is
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  Speaker 1: equally broad with the commandment. Seeing any breach of the
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  Speaker 1: commandment is sin, yea. Rather it is a thousand times broader,
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  Speaker 1: since there is only one way of keeping the commandment,
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  Speaker 1: For we do not properly keep it unless both the
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  Speaker 1: thing done, the manner of doing it, and all the
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  Speaker 1: other circumstances are right. But there are a thousand ways
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  Speaker 1: of breaking every commandment, so that this gait is wide. Indeed,
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  Speaker 1: to consider this a little more particularly, how wide do
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  Speaker 1: those parent sins extend from which all the rest derive
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  Speaker 1: their being, that carnal mind which is enmity against God,
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  Speaker 1: pride of heart, self, will, and love of the world.
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  Speaker 1: Can we fix any bounds to them? Do they not
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  Speaker 1: diffuse themselves through all our thoughts and mingle with all
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  Speaker 1: our tempers? Are they not the leaven which leavens more
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  Speaker 1: or less the whole mass of our affections? May we not,
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  Speaker 1: on a close and faithful examination of ourselves, perceive these
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  Speaker 1: roots of bitterness continually springing up, infecting all our words
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  Speaker 1: and tainting all our actions. And how innumerable an offspring
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  Speaker 1: do they bring forth in every age and nation, even
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  Speaker 1: enough to cover the whole earth with darkness and cruel habitations? Oh,
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  Speaker 1: who is able to reckon up their accursed fruits? To
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  Speaker 1: count all the sins, whether against God or our neighbor,
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  Speaker 1: not which imagination my paint, but which may be matter
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  Speaker 1: of daily melancholy experience. Nor need we range over all
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  Speaker 1: the earth to find them. Survey any one kingdom, any
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  Speaker 1: single country, or city or town. And how plenteous is
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  Speaker 1: this harvest? And let it not be one of those
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  Speaker 1: which are still overspread with Mahometan or pagan darkness, but
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  Speaker 1: one of those which name the name of Christ, which
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  Speaker 1: profess to see the light of His glorious gospel. Go
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  Speaker 1: no farther than the kingdom to which we belong, the
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  Speaker 1: city wherein we are now we call ourselves Christians. Yea,
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  Speaker 1: and that of the purest sort we are Protestants, reformed Christians.
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  Speaker 1: But alas who shall carry on the reformation of our
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  Speaker 1: opinions into our hearts and lives? Is there not a cause?
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  Speaker 1: For how innumerable are our sins and those of the
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  Speaker 1: deepest dye, do not the grossest abominations of every kind
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  Speaker 1: abound among us from day to day? Do not sins
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  Speaker 1: of every sort cover the land as the waters cover
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  Speaker 1: the sea? Who can count them? Rather go and count
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  Speaker 1: the drops of rain or the sands on the seashore.
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  Speaker 1: So wide is the gate, so broad is the way
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  Speaker 1: that leadeth to destruction. And many there are who go
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  Speaker 1: in at that gate. Many who walk in that way,
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  Speaker 1: almost as many as go in at the gate of death,
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  Speaker 1: as sink into the chambers of the grave. For it
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  Speaker 1: cannot be denied, though neither can we acknowledge it, but
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  Speaker 1: with shame and sorrow of heart, that even in this
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  Speaker 1: which is called a Christian country, the generality of every
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  Speaker 1: age and sex, of every profession and employment, of every
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  Speaker 1: rank and degree, high and low, rich and poor, are
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  Speaker 1: walking in the way of destruction. The far greater part
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  Speaker 1: of the inhabitants of this city to this day live
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  Speaker 1: in sin, in some palpable habitual, known transgression of the
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  Speaker 1: law they profess to observe, yea in some outward transgression,
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  Speaker 1: some gross visible kind of ungodliness or unrighteousness, some open
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  Speaker 1: violation of their duty, either to God or Man. These,
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  Speaker 1: then none can deny, are all in the way that
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  Speaker 1: leadeth to destruction. Add to these those who have a name,
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  Speaker 1: indeed that they live, but were never yet alive to God.
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  Speaker 1: Those that outwardly appear fair to men, but are inwardly
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  Speaker 1: full of all uncleanness, full of pride or vanity, of anger,
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  Speaker 1: or revenge, of ambition, or covetousness, lovers of themselves, lovers
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  Speaker 1: of the world, lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God.
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  Speaker 1: These indeed may be highly esteemed of men, but they
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  Speaker 1: are an abomination to the life Lord. And how greatly
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  Speaker 1: will these saints of the world swell the number of
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  Speaker 1: the children of hell, YEA, add all whatever they be
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  Speaker 1: in other respects, whether they have more or less in
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  Speaker 1: the form of godliness, who, being ignorant of God's righteousness,
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  Speaker 1: and seeking to establish their own righteousness as the ground
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  Speaker 1: of their reconciliation to God and acceptance with Him of consequence,
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  Speaker 1: have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness which is of
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  Speaker 1: God by faith. Now all these things join together in
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  Speaker 1: one How terribly true is our Lord's assertion. Wide is
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  Speaker 1: the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction.
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  Speaker 1: And many there be who go in thereat. Nor does
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  Speaker 1: this only concern the vulgar herd, the poor, base, stupid
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  Speaker 1: part of mankind. Men of eminence in the world, men
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  Speaker 1: who have many fields and yoke of oxen, do not
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  Speaker 1: desire to be excused from this on them. In the contrary,
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  Speaker 1: many wise men after the flesh, according to the human
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  Speaker 1: methods of judging, Many mighty in power encourage in riches.
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  Speaker 1: Many noble are called called into the broad way by
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  Speaker 1: the world, the flesh and the devil, and they are
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  Speaker 1: not disobedient to that calling. Yea, the higher they are
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  Speaker 1: raised in fortune and power. The deeper do they sink
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  Speaker 1: into wickedness, the more blessings they have received from God.
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  Speaker 1: The more sins do they commit using their honor or riches,
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  Speaker 1: their learning or wisdom, not as means of working out
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  Speaker 1: their salvation, but rather of excelling in vice and so
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  Speaker 1: insuring their own destruction. And the very reason why many
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  Speaker 1: of these go on so securely in the broad way
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  Speaker 1: is because it is broad, not considering that this is
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  Speaker 1: the inseparable property of the way to destruction. Many there
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  Speaker 1: be saith our Lord, which go in thereat, for the
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  Speaker 1: very reason why they should flee from it, even because
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  Speaker 1: us straight is the gait, and narrow the way that
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  Speaker 1: leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
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  Speaker 1: This is an inseparable property of the way to heaven.
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  Speaker 1: So narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, unto
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  Speaker 1: life everlasting, So straight the gait that nothing unclean, nothing unholy,
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  Speaker 1: can enter. No sinner can pass through that gait until
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  Speaker 1: he is saved from all his sins, not only from
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  Speaker 1: his outward sins, from his evil conversation received by tradition
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  Speaker 1: from his fathers. It will not suffice that he hath
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  Speaker 1: ceased to do evil and learn to do well. He
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  Speaker 1: must not only be saved from all sinful actions and
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  Speaker 1: from all evil and useless discourse, but inwardly changed, thoroughly
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  Speaker 1: renewed in the spirit of his mind. Otherwise he cannot
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  Speaker 1: pass through the gate of life. He cannot enter into glory.
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  Speaker 1: For narrow is the way that leadeth unto life, the
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  Speaker 1: way of universal holiness, narrow, indeed is the way of
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  Speaker 1: poverty of spirit, the way of holy mourning, the way
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  Speaker 1: of meekness, and that of hungering and thirsting. After righteousness,
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  Speaker 1: narrow is the way of mercifulness, of love unfeigned, the
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  Speaker 1: way of purity of heart, of doing good unto all men,
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  Speaker 1: and of gladly suffering evil all manner of evil for
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  Speaker 1: righteousness sake. And few there be the finded alas, how
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  Speaker 1: few find even the way of heathen honesty. How few
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  Speaker 1: are there that do nothing to another which they would
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  Speaker 1: not another should do unto them. How few that are
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  Speaker 1: clean before God from acts either of injustice or unkindness.
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  Speaker 1: How few that do not offend with their tongue, that
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  Speaker 1: speak nothing unkind, nothing untrue. What a small proportion of
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  Speaker 1: mankind are innocent even of outward transgres. And how much
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  Speaker 1: smaller a proportion have their hearts right before God, clean
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  Speaker 1: and holy in His sight? Where are they whom his
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  Speaker 1: all searching eye discerns to be truly humble, to abhor
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  Speaker 1: themselves in dust and ashes in the presence of God
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  Speaker 1: their Savior, to be deeply and steadily serious, feeling their wants,
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  Speaker 1: and passing the time of their sojourning with fear, truly
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  Speaker 1: meek and gentle, never overcome of evil, but overcoming evil
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  Speaker 1: with good, thoroughly athirst for God and continually panting after
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  Speaker 1: a renewal in His likeness. How thinly are they scattered
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  Speaker 1: over the earth whose souls are enlarged in love to
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  Speaker 1: all mankind, and who love God with all their strength,
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  Speaker 1: who have given Him their hearts and desire nothing else
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  Speaker 1: in earth or heaven. How few are those lovers of
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  Speaker 1: God and Man that spend their whole strength in doing
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  Speaker 1: good unto all men, and are ready to suffer things
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  Speaker 1: yea death itself, to save one soul from eternal death.
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  Speaker 1: But while so few are found in the way of life,
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  Speaker 1: and so many in the way of destruction, there is
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  Speaker 1: great danger lest the torrent of example should bear us
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  Speaker 1: away with them. Even a single example, if it be
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  Speaker 1: always in our sight, is apt to make much impression
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  Speaker 1: upon us, especially when it has nature on its side,
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  Speaker 1: when it falls in with our own inclinations. How great,
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  Speaker 1: then must be the force of so numerous examples, continually
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  Speaker 1: before our eyes, and all conspiring together with our own hearts,
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  Speaker 1: to carry us down the stream of nature. How difficult
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  Speaker 1: must it be to stem the tide and to keep
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  Speaker 1: ourselves unspotted in the world. What heightens the difficulty still
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  Speaker 1: more is that they are not the rude and senseless
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  Speaker 1: part of mankind, at least, not these alone who set
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  Speaker 1: us the example, whose wrong the downward way. But the polite,
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  Speaker 1: the well bred, the genteel, the wise, the men who
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  Speaker 1: understand the world, the men of knowledge, of deep and
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  Speaker 1: various learning, the rational, the eloquent. These are all, or
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  Speaker 1: nearly all against us. And how shall we stand against these?
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  Speaker 1: Do not their tongues drop manna? And have they not
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  Speaker 1: learned all the arts of soft persuasion and of reasoning? Too?
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  Speaker 1: For these are versed in all controversies and strife of words.
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  Speaker 1: It is therefore a small thing with them to prove
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  Speaker 1: that the way is right, because it is broad that
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  Speaker 1: he who follows a multitude cannot do evil, but only
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  Speaker 1: he who will not follow them. That your way must
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  Speaker 1: be wrong because it is narrow, and because there are
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  Speaker 1: so few that find it. These will make it clearer
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  Speaker 1: to a demonstration that evil is good and good is evil.
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  Speaker 1: That the way of holiness is the way of destruction,
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  Speaker 1: and the way the world the only way to heaven. Oh,
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  Speaker 1: how can unlearned and ignorant men maintain their cause against
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  Speaker 1: such opponents. And yet these are not all with whom
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  Speaker 1: they must contend, however, unequal to the task. For there
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  Speaker 1: are many mighty and noble and powerful men, as well
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  Speaker 1: as wise, in the road that leadeth to destruction. And
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  Speaker 1: these have a shorter way of confuting than that of
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  Speaker 1: reason and argument. They usually apply not to the understanding,
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  Speaker 1: but to the fears of any that oppose them, a
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  Speaker 1: method that seldom fails of success, even where argument profits nothing,
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  Speaker 1: as lying level to the capacities of all men. For
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  Speaker 1: all can fear whether they can reason or know, And
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  Speaker 1: all who have not affirm trust in God a sure
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  Speaker 1: reliance both on his power and love, cannot but fear
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  Speaker 1: to give any disgust to those who have the power
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  Speaker 1: of the world in their hands. What wonder, therefore, if
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  Speaker 1: the example of these is a law to all who
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  Speaker 1: know not God, many rich are likewise in the broad way.
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  Speaker 1: And these apply to the hopes of men and to
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  Speaker 1: all their foolish desires, as strongly and effectually as the
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  Speaker 1: mighty and noble to their fears. So that hardly can
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  Speaker 1: you hold on in the way of the kingdom unless
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  Speaker 1: you are dead to all below, unless you are crucified
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  Speaker 1: to the world, and the world crucified to you, unless
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  Speaker 1: you desire nothing more but God. For how dark, how uncomfortable,
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  Speaker 1: how forbidding is the prospect on the opposite side, a
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  Speaker 1: straight gait, a narrow way, and few finding that gait,
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  Speaker 1: few walking in the way. Besides, even those few are
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  Speaker 1: not wise men, not men of learning or eloquence. They
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  Speaker 1: are not able to reason, either strongly or clearly. They
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  Speaker 1: cannot propose an argument to any advantage. They know not
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  Speaker 1: how to prove what they profess to believe, or to
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  Speaker 1: explain even what they say they expect e f buriance. Surely,
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  Speaker 1: such advocates as these will never recommend, but rather discredit
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  Speaker 1: the cause they have espoused. Add to this that they
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  Speaker 1: are not noble not honorable men. If they were, you
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  Speaker 1: might bear with their folly. They are men of no interest,
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  Speaker 1: no authority, of no account in the world. They are
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  Speaker 1: mean and base, low in life, and such as have
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  Speaker 1: no power if they had the will to hurt you.
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  Speaker 1: Therefore there is nothing at all to be feared from them,
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  Speaker 1: and there is nothing at all to hope for the
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  Speaker 1: greater part of them. May say, silver and gold have
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  Speaker 1: I none, at least a very moderate share. Nay, some
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  Speaker 1: of them have scarce food to eat or raiment to
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  Speaker 1: put on. For this reason, as well as because their
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  Speaker 1: ways are not like those of other men, they are
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  Speaker 1: everywhere spoken against, are despised, have their names cast out
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  Speaker 1: as evil, are variously persecuted, and treated as the filth
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  Speaker 1: and off scouring of the world. So that both your fears,
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  Speaker 1: your hopes, and all your desires, except those which you
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  Speaker 1: have immediately from God, Yea, all your natural passions continually
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  Speaker 1: incline you to return into the broad Way. Therefore it
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  Speaker 1: is that our Lord so earnestly exhorts us enter ye
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  Speaker 1: in at the strait gate, or, as the same exhortation
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  Speaker 1: is elsewhere expressed, strive to enter in a gonness s
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  Speaker 1: thee I sell thee nay strive as in an agony,
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  Speaker 1: for many saith our Lord shall seek to enter in
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  Speaker 1: indolently strive, and shall not be able. It is true
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  Speaker 1: he intimates what may seem another reason for this, for
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  Speaker 1: their not being able to enter in, in the words
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  Speaker 1: which immediately follow these. For after he had said many,
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  Speaker 1: I say unto you will seek to enter in and
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  Speaker 1: shall not be able, he subjoins, when once the master
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  Speaker 1: of the house is risen up and hath shut to
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  Speaker 1: the door, and ye begin to stand without arks s
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  Speaker 1: they xo s tanai. Rather ye stand without for arks
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  Speaker 1: s they seems to be only an elegant expletive. And
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  Speaker 1: to knock at the door, saying, Lord Lord, open unto us,
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  Speaker 1: He shall answer and say, unto you, I know you
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  Speaker 1: not depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. Loup,
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  Speaker 1: Chapter thirteen, verse twenty four. It may appear, upon a
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  Speaker 1: transient view of these words, that their delaying to seek
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  Speaker 1: at all, rather than their manner of seeking, was the
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  Speaker 1: reason why they were not able to enter in. But
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  Speaker 1: it comes in effect to the same thing. They were
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  Speaker 1: therefore commanded to depart because they had been workers of iniquity,
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  Speaker 1: because they had walked in the broad road. In other words,
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  Speaker 1: because they had not agonized to enter in at the
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  Speaker 1: straight gate. Probably they did seek before the door was shut,
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  Speaker 1: but that did not suffice, And they did strive after
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  Speaker 1: the door was shut, but then it was too late. Therefore,
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  Speaker 1: strive you now in this your day, to enter in
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  Speaker 1: at the straight gate, and in order there too, settle
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  Speaker 1: it in your heart, and let it be ever uppermost
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  Speaker 1: in your thoughts, that if you are in a broad way,
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  Speaker 1: you are in the way that leadeth to destruction. If
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  Speaker 1: many go with you, be sure, as God is true,
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  Speaker 1: both they and you are going to hell. If you
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  Speaker 1: are walking as the generality of men walk, you are
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  Speaker 1: walking to the bottomless pit. Are many wise, many rich,
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  Speaker 1: many mighty or noble traveling with you in the same way?
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  Speaker 1: By this token, without going any farther, you know it
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  Speaker 1: does not lead to life. Here is a short, a plain,
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  Speaker 1: and infallible rule. Before you enter into particulars in whatever
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  Speaker 1: profession you are engaged, you must be singular, or be damned.
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: The way to Hell has nothing singular in it, but
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: the way to Heaven is singularity all over. If you
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: move but one step toward God. You are not as
• 21:08
  Speaker 1: other men are, But regard not this. It is far
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: better to stand alone than to fall into the pit.
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: Run then, with patience the race which is set before thee.
• 21:18
  Speaker 1: Though thy companions therein are but few, they will not
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: always be so. Yet a little while, and thou wilt
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: come to an innumerable company of angels, to the general
• 21:29
  Speaker 1: assembly and Church of the first Born, and to the
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: spirits of just men made perfect. Now then strive to
• 21:38
  Speaker 1: enter in at the straight gate, being penetrated with the
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: deepest sense of the inexpressible danger your soul is in,
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: so long as you are in a broad way, so
• 21:48
  Speaker 1: long as you are void of poverty of spirit, and
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: all that inward religion which the many, the rich, the wise,
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: account madness, strive to enter in, being pierced with sorrow
• 22:01
  Speaker 1: and shame for having so long run on with the
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: unthinking crowd, utterly neglecting, if not despising, that holiness without
• 22:11
  Speaker 1: which no man can see the Lord. Strive as in
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: an agony of holy fear, lest a promise being made
• 22:18
  Speaker 1: you of entering into His rest, even that rest which
• 22:22
  Speaker 1: remaineth for the people of God, you should nevertheless come
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: short of it. Strive in all the fervor of desire,
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: with groanings which cannot be uttered. Strive by prayer without ceasing,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: at all times, in all places, lifting up your heart
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: to God and giving him no rest till you awake
• 22:42
  Speaker 1: up after His likeness and are satisfied with it. To conclude,
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: strive to enter in at the strait gate, not only
• 22:51
  Speaker 1: by this agony of soul, of conviction, of sorrow, of shame,
• 22:56
  Speaker 1: of desire, of fear, of unceasing prayer, but likewise by
• 23:02
  Speaker 1: ordering thy conversation aright, by walking with all thy strength
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: in all the ways of God, the way of innocence,
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: of piety, and of mercy. Abstain from all appearance of evil,
• 23:15
  Speaker 1: Do all possible good to all men. Deny thyself thy
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: own will in all things, and take up thy cross daily.
• 23:23
  Speaker 1: Be ready to cut off thy right hand, to pluck
• 23:26
  Speaker 1: out thy right eye, and cast it from thee to
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: suffer the loss of goods, friends, health, all things on earth,
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: so thou mayst enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. End
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: of section thirty one. Recording by Melaura