On December 5th, the world lost one of its greatest statesmen, Nelson Mandela. As his death hit the Facebook and Twitter cyber-waves, over and over again I saw questions and statements like: “Will we ever see his equal again?” or “If we all could be a little more like Nelson Mandela, what a beautiful world…sigh.”
Indeed, it seems the likes of Nelson Mandela, Martin Lutheran King, Jr., Gandhi… greats among those who practiced non-violent resistance… are a rare breed indeed. And in Mr. Mandela’s case, he didn’t just arbitrarily claim Christianity (a life-long Methodist) as his faith – but lived it to the very best of his ability.
A man who, after being jailed the better part of 27 years for his work against apartheid in South Africa, rather than seeking revenge or retribution against those who incarcerated him – forgave his jailors. Forgave the injustices that had been done to him. And in turn, taught an entire continent – and the world for that matter – the beauty of forgiveness.
The sad part is, Nelson Mandela was not doing anything all that bizarre or strange from a Christian perspective. He was simply following the tenets of his faith. A faith that, according to population statistics, is adhered to by a third of the world.
Though you wouldn’t know it to look at us.
This reality made me begin to think of Jesus’ statement,
In fact, I think Jesus’ statement here has a far more urgent and worldly connotation that is applicable in the here and now – not just the afterlife. Instead, this teaching, when put in context, has very little to do with saying something like the sinner’s prayer or walking down to the front of the church to commit yourself to Christ either for the first time or the tenth time.
Rather, this statement is about taking that commitment and putting it into action. How does one follow and live out this faith they so passionately profess? This verse in scripture follows on the heels of Jesus’ teaching on the “golden rule,” (In everything do to others as you would have them do to you), judging others, bearing good fruit, self-deception and “hearers vs. doers.” Read all of Matthew 7 if you'd like to get a clearer picture of all these teachings put together.
The reason the gate and road that lead to life are so narrow is because it is, in fact, so difficult to follow. Its statement is so true. One path leads to life – one path leads to destruction. Simple as that. War, vengeance, violence, grudges, anger, greed, cruelty, hypocrisy, judging others… easier paths to be sure, but destructive paths in the end. Paths that send us into cycles of violence that we scarcely know how to begin to change. Paths that lead to anything but the kind of life God has envisioned for our world. The fruit that is produced from acts of love and forgiveness are very different kinds of fruit compared to those that are born of vengeance and violence. Few can argue that our world tends to bear the latter rather than the former.
And let’s face it – even many of us who claim to have faith in Christ are guilty of taking the wider road that leads to destruction… because how many of us are willing and able to follow much of what Jesus instructed and thus exemplified in his own life and ministry? Forgiveness, rather than revenge. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Don’t judge. Don’t deceive yourself into thinking you are somehow more “in” with God than another person or group of people because of your doctrinal stances.
When Jesus finishes this litany of teaching he follows it up with:
So when people ask, “Will we ever see his equal again,” my ardent hope is that the answer is YES! Given there are nearly 2 billion people that self-identify as followers of Christ, I would fervently pray and hope that among those 2 billion people, there are those who do indeed take the narrow, yet difficult, path. I’m fairly certain I haven’t always been one of them, finding the ways of the world at times easier than the ways of Christ.
Nelson Mandela was not a perfect man by any means, nor was he a man that always, 100%, held fast and true to his non-violent mantra. And there were many who worked while he sat in jail to help end the apartheid that go unnamed and unmentioned. But for the most part, I think it is fair to say that he strove to take the narrow path, and that despite the flaws, and at times even failures to live these ideals out perfectly - he made the most impact on the world during those times when he exemplified Christ's teachings.
Indeed, it seems the likes of Nelson Mandela, Martin Lutheran King, Jr., Gandhi… greats among those who practiced non-violent resistance… are a rare breed indeed. And in Mr. Mandela’s case, he didn’t just arbitrarily claim Christianity (a life-long Methodist) as his faith – but lived it to the very best of his ability.
A man who, after being jailed the better part of 27 years for his work against apartheid in South Africa, rather than seeking revenge or retribution against those who incarcerated him – forgave his jailors. Forgave the injustices that had been done to him. And in turn, taught an entire continent – and the world for that matter – the beauty of forgiveness. The sad part is, Nelson Mandela was not doing anything all that bizarre or strange from a Christian perspective. He was simply following the tenets of his faith. A faith that, according to population statistics, is adhered to by a third of the world.
Though you wouldn’t know it to look at us.
This reality made me begin to think of Jesus’ statement,
“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14)This passage in scripture many times gets quoted to talk about faith in general and how if you don’t believe in Jesus, then you’re headed down the path to destruction (aka hell in many interpretations). However, I don’t think “hell” – that fiery lake of sulfur and torment that many equate this statement to be referencing – is what Jesus is talking about at all.
In fact, I think Jesus’ statement here has a far more urgent and worldly connotation that is applicable in the here and now – not just the afterlife. Instead, this teaching, when put in context, has very little to do with saying something like the sinner’s prayer or walking down to the front of the church to commit yourself to Christ either for the first time or the tenth time.
Rather, this statement is about taking that commitment and putting it into action. How does one follow and live out this faith they so passionately profess? This verse in scripture follows on the heels of Jesus’ teaching on the “golden rule,” (In everything do to others as you would have them do to you), judging others, bearing good fruit, self-deception and “hearers vs. doers.” Read all of Matthew 7 if you'd like to get a clearer picture of all these teachings put together.
The reason the gate and road that lead to life are so narrow is because it is, in fact, so difficult to follow. Its statement is so true. One path leads to life – one path leads to destruction. Simple as that. War, vengeance, violence, grudges, anger, greed, cruelty, hypocrisy, judging others… easier paths to be sure, but destructive paths in the end. Paths that send us into cycles of violence that we scarcely know how to begin to change. Paths that lead to anything but the kind of life God has envisioned for our world. The fruit that is produced from acts of love and forgiveness are very different kinds of fruit compared to those that are born of vengeance and violence. Few can argue that our world tends to bear the latter rather than the former.
And let’s face it – even many of us who claim to have faith in Christ are guilty of taking the wider road that leads to destruction… because how many of us are willing and able to follow much of what Jesus instructed and thus exemplified in his own life and ministry? Forgiveness, rather than revenge. Treat others the way you want to be treated. Don’t judge. Don’t deceive yourself into thinking you are somehow more “in” with God than another person or group of people because of your doctrinal stances.
When Jesus finishes this litany of teaching he follows it up with:
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.”I think it is safe to say – Nelson Mandela heard Jesus’ words and acted upon them. In a world that has become ever-more fearful, where nations build walls and introduce intricate domestic spying networks on its citizens all in the name of “security,” Mandela serves as a stark reminder to us that the cause of peace and justice is not always found in military might, that our anger at how our governments work – even when they’re corrupt, unjust and greedy – is not always best dealt with in the form of armed resistance.
So when people ask, “Will we ever see his equal again,” my ardent hope is that the answer is YES! Given there are nearly 2 billion people that self-identify as followers of Christ, I would fervently pray and hope that among those 2 billion people, there are those who do indeed take the narrow, yet difficult, path. I’m fairly certain I haven’t always been one of them, finding the ways of the world at times easier than the ways of Christ.
Nelson Mandela was not a perfect man by any means, nor was he a man that always, 100%, held fast and true to his non-violent mantra. And there were many who worked while he sat in jail to help end the apartheid that go unnamed and unmentioned. But for the most part, I think it is fair to say that he strove to take the narrow path, and that despite the flaws, and at times even failures to live these ideals out perfectly - he made the most impact on the world during those times when he exemplified Christ's teachings.
“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35)
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