"Look!
I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I
will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends." Revelation
3:20.........."We misconstrue His love - we may even be attracted to a
mere figment of our imagination - if we don't also sense fear. The One
who loves is the Holy One who wishes to make all unclean things
holy.That means the One we cannot stay away from is the same One who is
out to destroy those very habits, sins, notions, addictions, and
self-justifications that we think we cannot live without. And there are
times we feel as if Jesus is out to destroy us. It is a wonderful and a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the real Jesus." - Mark Galli
The picture many of us have of Jesus depicted in Revelation 3:20 is that of the Gentle Shepherd, patiently knocking at the door of our heart, softly calling us to let Him in. We think in terms of Jesus the Gentleman. He will not force Himself upon us. Neither the picture or the thought is wrong. But neither the picture or thought is complete. Jesus is far more than what pop Christianity has made Him to be. And if I can say something that may sound like blasphemy, I think if He were only that picture and thought, He would be a very boring and tepid Christ. I think this is borne out by the boring, tepid lives lived out by so many of us who call themselves His.
The picture many of us have of Jesus depicted in Revelation 3:20 is that of the Gentle Shepherd, patiently knocking at the door of our heart, softly calling us to let Him in. We think in terms of Jesus the Gentleman. He will not force Himself upon us. Neither the picture or the thought is wrong. But neither the picture or thought is complete. Jesus is far more than what pop Christianity has made Him to be. And if I can say something that may sound like blasphemy, I think if He were only that picture and thought, He would be a very boring and tepid Christ. I think this is borne out by the boring, tepid lives lived out by so many of us who call themselves His.
The above quote from Mark Galli comes from his book, Jesus Mean And Wild. That
title alone is bound to raise a few hackles on those who want to keep
Him a one dimensional Savior and Lord. In fact, it tends to just name
Him as Savior. His being Lord seems optional for many. Yet it's not an
option He offers. And if we insist on seeking to keep Him to such a
restricted viewpoint, we will surely find Him to be just that; Jesus
mean and wild. And a lot more besides.
It would be wonderful if, in His approach to our hearts, all He had to do is softly knock at the door, and just as softly call our name, and we would readily invite Him in. Wonderful, but highly unlikely. We are very hard of hearing, sometimes because the noise of life makes us deaf, but more often, we simply choose, like defiant children, to not listen. The thing is, Jesus is a determined Savior and Lord who is determined to get the door open. Even if it calls for Him to kick it in.
I know we don't readily accept that picture, but bear with me. There are some things, many things, that we will just not deal with. And Christ, in His love, is more than willing to bring us to a head - on collision with Himself in order to confront them. No matter how deeply they may be ingrained. He will kick the door in until all we can see in that doorway is Him. Jesus. Mean and Wild! Yes, we have free will, and yes, He will not force Himself upon us. But folks, I think it takes a mighty and deeply ingrained spirit of rebellion to defy such a Jesus. Such a love. Real Love. Real Jesus. Can we handle such a Christ? Be sure, He is more than able to handle us....and He will.
Is He out to destroy us? Yes, as concerns all in us that is against His Life and our well being. He is holy and His love demands that He make us so. Not in rule keeping, but in inner heart living. There is in all of us, some area(s) in our heart that He will confront. He stands at the door and knocks. Will we open? Or, does He have to kick the door in?
Blessings,
Pastor O
It would be wonderful if, in His approach to our hearts, all He had to do is softly knock at the door, and just as softly call our name, and we would readily invite Him in. Wonderful, but highly unlikely. We are very hard of hearing, sometimes because the noise of life makes us deaf, but more often, we simply choose, like defiant children, to not listen. The thing is, Jesus is a determined Savior and Lord who is determined to get the door open. Even if it calls for Him to kick it in.
I know we don't readily accept that picture, but bear with me. There are some things, many things, that we will just not deal with. And Christ, in His love, is more than willing to bring us to a head - on collision with Himself in order to confront them. No matter how deeply they may be ingrained. He will kick the door in until all we can see in that doorway is Him. Jesus. Mean and Wild! Yes, we have free will, and yes, He will not force Himself upon us. But folks, I think it takes a mighty and deeply ingrained spirit of rebellion to defy such a Jesus. Such a love. Real Love. Real Jesus. Can we handle such a Christ? Be sure, He is more than able to handle us....and He will.
Is He out to destroy us? Yes, as concerns all in us that is against His Life and our well being. He is holy and His love demands that He make us so. Not in rule keeping, but in inner heart living. There is in all of us, some area(s) in our heart that He will confront. He stands at the door and knocks. Will we open? Or, does He have to kick the door in?
Blessings,
Pastor O
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