A story is told of a king who held a wedding for his son. When invites were sent out, the invited made light of it and gave excuses as to why they could not attend the wedding. Some of them even killed the couriers!

The king therefore told his servants to invite whomever they would find on the streets. So the servants went out into the streets and gathered together all whom they found and filled the wedding hall. But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, “Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?” The man was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, “Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness.”

The Story-Teller was none other than Jesus. He concluded His narration by saying, “For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matthew 22:14). The point He was making by this parable is that there are two reasons why people will not enter the kingdom of God to which everyone has been invited. One group will not enter the kingdom of God because it simply will not be interested. Another group will not enter the kingdom of God because, although it accepted the call to salvation, it did not have on the proper kingdom garments. These Christians were not “arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright . . . the righteous acts of the saints” (Revelation 19:8).

Many Christians who received Jesus as Lord (Master) will be shown the exit because they did not live like Jesus was indeed their Master. They disobeyed the instructions of the Master who they had, of their free will, chosen to follow. That is why Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ (Matthew 7:21-23)

There is reason why we Christians are instructed in 2 Peter 1 to make our calling and election sure by bearing the fruit of the Spirit. The reason is that it is only to the fruit-bearers that it is said: “an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 1:11).

In the words of Jesus (John 15:1-6), every unfruitful branch in the Vine will be cut off by the Vine-Dresser and thrown into the fire. This, which really needs no interpretation, means that any one who is part of the body of Christ but does not bear fruit will indeed be cut off from Christ by God the Father and thrown in hell. We must therefore work out our salvation with fear and trembling. We must make our calling and election sure by bearing the fruit of the Spirit – by doing the righteous works that accompany salvation (Hebrews 6:9).

It is difficult to, but it must be said: “Few Christians are actually going to heaven!” This is so because Christians, especially in these last days before Jesus returns, have bought into a doctrine of demons dubiously called the gospel of grace, which despises any call to holiness and righteousness. In fact, these days, many Christians feel embarrassed to even mention those words. But we should always remember the words of our Story-Teller: “Many are called but few are chosen.” The chosen few are those who will be found arrayed in clean bright fine linen, which is righteous acts (Revelation 19:8).

Therefore my dear brothers and sisters, “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

God bless you.