"I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved and will come in and go out and find pasture."
John 10:9, HCSB
I have said before many times, and I will say again many more, that there is indeed only one way to Heaven, and that is through Christ. I am going to be quite literal with that now, and openly ask you to think of Him as a doorway that you must cross through. There is no knob, and the key is found in the words of "You are the Son," and "please save me from myself." Those words, spoken to that door in the proper heart attitude, bring about a peace that passes all understanding. In that moment, one realizes that entrapment by the enemy is no longer possible.
I think about this verse and this Statement and I am forced to ponder on certain movies and stories where a gate could only be opened by using secret lingo. You had to say "Friend" to enter in one very, very famous trilogy of movies, and when the word was spoken aloud, the impenetrable stone wall just moved. It opened up and the group was allowed to enter. You might wonder what it was they left behind them, and you would find that it was a swamp of desolation and sadness. They entered into shelter and security... for the moment. We'll get to that, though.
Recently, I was faced with a personal choice of two doors, and I chose the incorrect one. In doing so, I harmed my relationship with my family, and I hurt my pride and my character... and, above all, I dishonored the Father. As a saved Christian, of course I know that God knew I would do this, and that He has forgiven me for this, as well as all the other stuff I'm still going to do later in life, but that doesn't excuse the action. I walked through the door of an inappropriate conversation, and should not have done so. I was caught in that conversation, and I am grateful for that. I should never have allowed it to happen, as I should have been peacefully asleep in bed at that point... but it happened, and, as foretold a few hours prior, my high-horse placement of myself was lowered quickly to the ground as I forced my own bucking off of that same horse. I should have looked to the other door.
I have apologized privately, and now I do so publicly. I apologize not only to my God, not only to my family, but also to the people who read through my ramblings.
Granted, since one cannot be saved more than once from eternal damnation, and I already have been, the thought of walking through this Door for this purpose is not a thought to bring salvation again. I reference walking through the Door to say and show that we can walk away from the temptations of the world, and into the grace that has been provided to and for us, thereby removing ourselves from the danger of a sinful moment and all that follows it. Please allow me to serve as an example of the wrong thing to do in this moment, and know that I am blessed to have been stopped so abruptly.
Jesus is the Door (some translations say "the Gate") that we must pass through in order to be saved. No other door can do this. And after you go through this Door, no other door really matters, locked or not. Some will be locked from the inside, and you could open them... but probably shouldn't, since they're locked. Some will be locked from the outside, keeping you from getting through, and those should be avoided, as well. Others, however, will be wide open already, requiring no effort to go through, and those doors would be the ones to great relationships with your family, your friends, your church, and, most importantly, Jesus!
God bless you all!!!
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