18/05/2026
“Strive to Enter In”: A Message from Luke 13:24, KJV
1. “Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” These are the words of Christ Himself, spoken to a crowd that assumed salvation was automatic. Jesus does not soften the reality. The gate into the kingdom is narrow, and entrance requires effort, urgency, and a decisive turning of the will toward Him.
2. The word “strive” translates the Greek _agonizomai_, from which we get “agonize.” It speaks of athletic contest, of wrestling, of the kind of intensity an athlete uses to win a race. Christ is not describing a casual interest in religion. He is calling for a wholehearted pursuit of God that leaves no room for apathy. The Christian life is not a drift; it is a contest against sin, self, and the world.
3. Notice the gate is “strait,” meaning narrow, constricted. It is not a broad way that accommodates every opinion and lifestyle. The strait gate is Christ Himself. In John 10:9 He says, “I am the door.” There is only one entrance into the kingdom, and it is through repentance and faith in Him. The narrowness is not cruelty; it is mercy, because it protects us from false ways that lead to destruction.
4. Jesus warns that “many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” To seek is not enough. Many will try to enter on their own terms—through good works, family heritage, religious ritual, or moral living. But the gate does not yield to human effort apart from surrender to Christ. Seeking without striving, desire without obedience, ends in being shut out.
5. The urgency of the text lies in the word “now.” The opportunity to enter is present, but it will not remain open forever. Luke 13:25 immediately follows with the image of the householder rising up and shutting the door. There comes a point when the door of mercy closes. The time to strive is today, while the Spirit is calling and the gospel is preached.
6. What does it mean to strive practically? It means to mortify sin, to take up the cross daily, to crucify the flesh with its affections and lusts. Romans 8:13 says, “if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” Striving is not earning salvation; it is responding to grace by warring against everything that would keep us from Christ.
7. The strait gate also implies that something must be left behind. A wide load cannot pass through a narrow gate. We must lay aside pride, secret sin, love of the world, and self-reliance. Hebrews 12:1 calls us to lay aside “every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us.” The gate is narrow so that Christ alone can be our boast.
8. There is comfort in the command. Christ would not tell us to strive if it were impossible. The same Spirit who calls us to enter gives us the power to do so. Philippians 2:12-13 joins the command “work out your own salvation” with the promise “for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” Striving is human responsibility empowered by divine grace.
9. The warning is serious because the consequences are eternal. Those who fail to enter will stand outside, knocking and saying, “Lord, Lord, open unto us.” But He will answer, “I know you not whence ye are.” Familiarity with religion is not the same as knowing Christ. The question is not whether we have heard Him, but whether we have entered through Him.
10. Therefore, hear the call of Christ today. Do not delay, do not presume, do not try to widen the gate to fit your life. Come as a sinner, stripped of excuses, and cast yourself on Him who is the Door. Strive to enter in, for He is faithful to receive all who come to Him by faith. And to those who enter, He promises that they shall go in and out and find pasture, and that no one shall pluck them out of His hand.
