From Pastor Mark's Jan. 23 sermon, "Jesus the Narrow Door": Salvation is one narrow door and that narrow door is Jesus. It is exclusive: there’s one door. It is inclusive: all are welcome. The narrow door divides heaven and hell and it is closing—there is no second chance for salvation after death. When you die, the door slams shut behind you and you will stand before Jesus. He is the one who will judge you. Now he is weeping, inviting you to run by faith through the door that he has suffered, died, and risen to open for you. The decision is yours.

God is better than us all. God owes us nothing and he’s opened a door. To be sure, it’s a narrow door. And in this regard—I will not lie to you—Christianity is an exclusive religion. There is no salvation apart from Jesus. There is no forgiveness of sin apart from Jesus. There is no eternal life apart from Jesus. The path to salvation, the door of salvation, it is, in fact, narrow. In that regard, it is exclusive. There is no hope for sinners other than Jesus Christ. But Christianity is also the most inclusive. All are welcome to pass through the narrow door. You see, in some religions you need to be of a particular race, ethnicity, or people group. However, all nations are welcome to pass through the narrow door. In some religions you need to learn Hebrew or Arabic. However, all languages are welcome to pass through the narrow door. In some religions you must be of a particular nationality, tribe, ethnicity, or culture. However, all tribes, tongues, languages, nations, and people are welcome to pass through the narrow door. … You will die. The question is when. When you die, the door slams shut behind you, and you stand before God to give an account. And you will be judged eternally. Are you ready? These people were not. He says that there are many, perhaps even some of you, that when they die and the door of opportunity slams shut, which means that every minute of every day that door is slowly closing on us as we near our end, they were astonished that they died on this side of that door. That’s not what they were anticipating. They were religious people and moral people and decent people and pious people. And they said, "Jesus, we knew about you and we had meals with you and we were familiar with your teaching. How in the world could we die on this side of the door?" Jesus says, "Because you knew about me, but you didn’t know me. You were so familiar with me that you overlooked me. You had spent so many years looking at the door, you neglected to pass through it by faith."

… The last will be what? The last will be what? First. This narrow door is open. It is exclusive: there’s one door. It is inclusive: all are welcome. And [Haitian] people with one leg and a third-grade education, sleeping in a tent are running through that door. Additionally, Jesus says that the first will be what? Last. Mars Hill, what are you? First. If you’ve called other nations, you know that you have to enter a country code before you dial a number. If you’re calling back to the States, you have enter our country code. What’s our country code? Number one. We are first. We are the first nation in the world. We are the most preeminent, prominent nation in the world. The first shall be what? Last. My exhortation, my invitation to you is this: Do not be too smart. Do not be too smug. Do not be too affluent. Do not be too busy. Do not be too critical. Do not be too moral. Do not be self-righteous and fail to run through that door. For some who are last, this life is as close to hell as they will ever get. And for some who fail to pass through the door, this is their heaven. Hell awaits them and this is as close—this is as close to the kingdom of God as you will ever be.

The world as we know it is not the world as God finished it. In Genesis 1:31 it says, "When God completed his work, he looked at all that he had made and he declared it to be very good." And the sin and the suffering and the sickness that we endure today is the result of our rebellion. We’ve passed through that door and we have created this world to be an absolute place of horror for us, but it is our doing, not God’s. And Jesus says that there is a kingdom and that he, in fact, is a king. And for those who pass through this narrow door, returning back to their king, there is a heavenly kingdom. Additionally, there is an eternal hell. There is an eternal hell. This is not a point for philosophical speculation. This is a fact. There is a real hell that will be full. Many will not pass through the narrow door. They will die on this side of that door and they will stand before God to be judged for their deeds and misdeeds. Some of you will say, "I don’t believe in that." Dear friend, come to Jesus or you will experience it. And if I’m wrong, I have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If you are wrong, you have nothing to gain and everything to lose. Many preachers are cowards. They don’t tell you this. My job is to love you well and tell you the truth. The Bible says that teachers will be judged more strictly and harshly. That means I need to stand before Jesus and give an account for even these words. I’m not going to lie to you. I’m not going to sell you. I’m not going to soften the blow. I will treat you as adults, and I want you to make your own decision. But I also want my hands to be clean of your blood, and I want you to make the decision, fully aware of the consequences of this opportunity that God sets before you.

To watch the full sermon (which this week includes footage of worship and baptisms) in SD or HD, download the transcript (also available in Spanish), or for more resources, visit the sermon page. For more baptism photos, go here or here.