It's shocking to hear from Jesus that only a few with find eternal life. Thus, Luke 13:22-30 proves to be one of the most sobering sections of the Gospels for anyone — especially for those of us who think that we're already counted among the "few." Here, Jesus directs us to "Strive" to "Make Every Effort" to "Agonize (from the original Greek "Agonizomai") rather than to just "Try" as we fight to surrender our will to His will in true faith.

Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.” (Luke 13:22–30, NIV)