The Locked Door
by Peter Horrobin
4 January 2009
Next Day »This is one of the most well-known verses in Scripture. Thousands of evangelists have used these words, from Jesus’s letter to the Church at Laodicea, to close the deal, as it were, when making an appeal for people to accept Jesus as their Saviour by opening the door of their heart to Him. Countless millions must have come into the Kingdom of God, impacted by the Saviour’s words. I thank God for every single one of them.
There is, however, a big but about how this Scripture is often used! For, the message to the Church at Laodicea was to believers, not those who were outside the fellowship of the Church. This verse was, in reality, an appeal from Jesus to Christians to give Jesus access to all of their life. The Church at Laodicea thought it was rich, but the devastating words spoken to them in verse 17 said that far from being rich (in God’s eyes), they were poor, blind and naked!
Sometimes our perception of things is distorted by our own sinfulness, greed, pride and even arrogance, as was the case with the Laodiceans. An important prayer for each of us to pray is “Lord, open my eyes – that I may see things as you see them.” I rejoice that so many people have come into the Kingdom of God, challenged by evangelists to open the door of their heart. But I do wonder what would be the effect on the Church if all believers responded to the Lord by giving Him access to every area of their lives? It is well said that if Jesus is not Lord of all, he is not Lord at all.
I believe miracles would happen in all our churches, and even our nations, if we were to respond enthusiastically to the knocking of the Saviour on the door of His Church, turn the key in the lock and welcome Him in – giving Him His rightful place. What a challenge that is for each of us as we look to Him as the source of Life (in all its fullness) for 2009.
Prayer: Thank you Lord that you still knock on the door of our hearts, even when we have turned our back on you in the past. I want you to be Lord of my whole life and I invite you to come in and reign in every area of my being. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Peter Horrobin is the Founding and International Director of Ellel Ministries. The work was originally established in 1986 as a ministry of healing in the north-west of England, but today the work has spread round the world, with Ellel Centres in over thirty nations. Peter has been doing lots of writing recently, including the "Journey to Life" series which can be purchased online at sovereignworld.com.
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