I remember the first day of Biology class in college and being surprised to see an old person I went to High School with. After class, I went up to him and said, “Hi Cody. Good to see you. How have you been?” Looking puzzled, he said, “Do I know you?” I said, “Yeah, we went to High School together, remember?” He said, “No, we didn’t. I said, “Yeah, we did. We went to Wauconda High School. I sat next to you in Mr. Burton’s gym class.” Again, he said, “No, we didn’t.” Now puzzled myself, I said, “You played tight end on the football team, were good friends with Kyle, and dated Lyndsey. We went to the same school.” And what was his response? “We didn’t go to the same high school.” Later on, I overheard him tell someone, “See that guy over there? He swears we went to the same high school.” I just had to shake my head in disbelief, and chuckle. “Do I know you?” That is the theme and real question being asked in the Gospel text for today. However, it is not the first question that is asked in it.
As Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem, someone asks Him, “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” It is a good and fair question, isn’t it? It is probably one we have wondered for our country and state, as well as for the people that God has set in our lives. “Will those who are saved be few?” What does recent data say about that? I don’t think anyone would be surprised to hear that a recent pew survey reported that the number of Christians in our country is declining. Less than 65% of Americans identify as Christian, which is down 12% from the last decade. About 43% of people identify as Protestant, and 20% identify as Roman Catholic. Interestingly, though, the data reported a rising group. What is it? Nones. Not n-u-n-s, but n-o-n-e. Nones. Nones are those who are religiously unaffiliated and those who describe their religion as nothing in particular. They make up 26%, which is more than the number of Roman Catholics, and over half the number of Protestants. Not particularly a great trend.
How do these numbers look for Minnesota? Here, 74% identify as Christian, with 48% being Protestant, and 22% being Roman Catholic. Surprisingly, though, only 56% claim their belief in God is absolutely certain. It is worth noting that this stat says nothing about faith in Jesus, which would certainly be less. Only 46% of Minnesotans find religion “very important,” and hauntingly, 67% believe right or wrong depends on the scenario! Minnesota doesn’t necessarily paint a more optimistic picture. And, of course, our own lives are filled with family and friends that we are spiritually concerned about. It is a fair question to ask and ponder: “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” Interestingly, though, that is not the question Jesus asks and answers. He intensely personalizes it. “Do I know you?” is what He asks, and He does with a parable.
He starts by saying that one day the door will close. A few months into the pandemic, we adopted our dog Spritz. She is a red-heeler pix that came from an Indian Reservation in South Dakota. We learned she used to live outside and roamed the plains. As a result of that, she loves to be outside, and it is a struggle to get her to come in, even when it is hot. When she is outside for a bit, I often stand at the door, calling and encouraging her to come in, but she just looks at me. She lays her head back down to continuing sunning on the deck, or to lay in the grass. I keep calling and encouraging her to no avail. At some point, I have to close the door, and leave her outside for a bit longer. At some point, the door closes.
The same happens in life. “Strive to enter through the narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be able. When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door….” One day, Jesus says, that door will be closed and locked. The time will come in each person’s life, and in the history of the world, when the entrance to salvation will be closed. Jesus’ point is simple and serious: don’t delay, but strive to enter now! The time to repent and believe the Gospel is fleeting.
We might think that the door to eternal life is huge, wide, tall, and open, but, it is not. It is small and narrow. There is only one way to the Father, not many. There are not a few alternatives, but only one: Jesus. He is not one way, but the way. Jesus says in John, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me!” Jesus is the only way and path to salvation. There is no other person or religion that can get you there. All other hopes are misplaced and misguided. Jesus continues on with this door imagery, though, by explaining what happens when the door is closed.
If you have ever done a closing shift, you would know that there is always someone who comes in at the last moment, wanting help, or service. I remember when I worked in the library that people would come in a minute before closing and expect to come in. I would say, “I’m sorry, I can’t let you in, we’re closing!” That didn’t stop the excuses, though. Some would explain why they were late. Others would explain the need and urgency: “I need to get some books for my paper!” Or, “I need to print.” Others asked if they could come in because we were friends. What happens here?
Those locked out knock and say, “Lord, open to us!” They use His name! They ask Him to reconsider. But Jesus, the Master of the House, says, “I do not know where you come from.” He rejects them. He says, “No,” from behind the lock and chain. I have no memory of you, or any knowledge. We didn’t go to High School together. They plead, “We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our streets.” They say, “You know us. Remember that time we ate at Tiff’s house with you? I once heard you speak – it was really good!” However, they have just a surface knowledge. Luther explains it well by saying, “For even though you know He is God’s Son, that He died and rose again, and that He sits at the right hand of the Father, you have not yet learned to know Christ aright…until you also believe that He did all this for your sake, in order to help you.” They know, but they don’t believe. They know, but they don’t trust or receive. No wonder Jesus doesn’t know them. Again, Jesus says, “I tell you, I do not know where you come from. Depart from me, all you workers of unrighteousness.” Jesus affirms He doesn’t know them. They are not right with God, and they are still in their sin. The door closes, and they hear the click of the locks. “Lord, will those who are saved be few?” Jesus isn’t interested in that question. He is interested in, “Do I know you?” Does He know you?
The answer to that question is…yes! He does know you! Have no doubt! How? Through baptism, we have been united with Him in His death and resurrection. There, you have put Him on. How could He not know you? He knows us through the Word, for by it, He calls, gathers, enlightens, sanctifies, and keeps us in the one true faith. And the benefits of Him knowing us? We are righteous before Him! We are right with God! Why does that matter? St. John writes in Revelation 4:1, “After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven!” The door is open for you and me! And He really knows us, too!
Psalm 139 says, “You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether.” He knows all our doings, lives, needs, and directs our future! Psalm 56:8 “You have kept count of my tossings, put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?” He knows our troubles and sorrows. Luke 12:7, “Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.” He knows our most intimate details, and cares for us. Matthew 6:8, “Do not be like [the hypocrites], for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.” He knows, He knows! And Psalm 90:8, “You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.” He knows our sin, but that is a good thing because it means He can actually forgive them! Jesus knows you! Better than you know you! But, what about the others? Jesus says there is hope.
“And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the Kingdom of God.” The invitation is open. What does that mean? We keep praying for that son, spouse, grandchild, cousin, neighbor, co-worker, and friend. We pray that God would work in their hearts, or use an opportunity. Maybe that His Word would strike them, a conversation spark curiosity, or a desire to attend the Divine Service. We also keep tilling, planting, and watering the soil of faith. We don’t lose hope because the door is open! Sometimes, we might just remove the rocks, or prep the soil. We never know when that seed of faith will sprout. We might not see it this side of heaven. And this leads to what Jesus says next.
There will be pleasant surprises! We will be surprised about who we will see there. Our work will not be in vain. “And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.” I remember hearing a pastor speak at a conference, and he admitted that he was an absolute hellion growing up. He boasted that teachers would quit Sunday School before he reached their grade, and that he enjoyed being a pain for the pastor in confirmation class. He was the kid no one ever wanted, and he prided himself in that. However, later in his life, he got it, and he came to faith. He became a pastor, and served as a chaplain during the 9/11 clean-up work, going through the rubble, and finding bodies with the search teams. He eventually became a recruiter for Concordia Seminary. At the end of his presentation, I remember him saying, “Don’t write off those kids that are a pain in the butt. You never know when they will get it, or what they will become.” Maybe that was you, or someone you know. Surprises in heaven will be a good thing! In the end, it isn’t about how many will be saved, but does Jesus know you! And I know the answer to the second one, He does!