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Knocking at the Door

by Jerry Ousley  
10/01/2010 / Christian Living

The office in which I conduct my business is upstairs in our home. At one time it was in the basement. Then I moved it into a small cubby-hole upstairs because at that time our son still lived at home and the upstairs was also where his bedroom was. For a lot of years I would quietly slip upstairs into my cubby-hole and take care of business while he slept in his bed just across the room (our upstairs is one big room with no divider walls). The day came when he had graduated from college, got a job in Cleveland, Ohio, and moved there. After that the upstairs was all mine. I took over his room and now I have a large office. I was sorry to see him go but since he's not using it anymore, well no use in wasting that space!

The disadvantage to this arrangement is that if someone comes to the door while I'm working upstairs it's very hard to hear them. Sometimes they'll ring the door bell two or three times before I hear it, and get downstairs to the door.

I've had trouble with that too. Back in the days (and this was a long time ago) when I was an insurance salesman there were occasions I knocked several times, would turn to leave and finally someone would open the door. I've also had people pretend that they weren't home so I'd go away. It was pretty obvious that they were home because the kids were looking out the window at me. But that was okay I could take a hint.

A very famous verse of scripture that is often used at invitations to accept Christ is found in Revelation 3:20. It says, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and dine with him, and he with Me." It's a good picture of our Lord beckoning to the lost. But in the true context of this verse there's a problem with its normal and accepted use. You see, this is found in a letter to a church The Church of Laodicea. It is the seventh and last short epistle to churches given in the Revelation of Christ to the Apostle John while he was banished on the Island of Patmos.

It depicts a church that has shut out Christ. Isn't that a strange thing to say? Why would a church shut out the One it is supposed to be worshipping? It also represents the state of the Church just before the time of tribulation culminating in the return of our Lord. As briefly as I can state it, the scenario is a picture of the modern day, organized Church.

There are many born again believers who love the Lord Jesus Christ with all their heart, soul, and mind. These folks are found in every denomination in existence today. They may call themselves a Baptist, a Methodist, an Episcopalian or a Pentecostal. Their beliefs may vary somewhat but those who belong to Christ all agree that they have been saved by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ and folks, I don't care what denomination to which they may belong, if they have covered their sin by the blood of Jesus they belong to Him.

The organized church, on the other hand, is more concerned about programs, committees, buildings, lands, possessions, offerings, money and the list goes on and on. They have grown rich and think they need nothing. They form governments and some groups place tasks upon their members that are impossible to fulfill. I've heard of churches that have banished members because they can't give what is expected of them. While their leadership boasts of large salaries paid by these people, the parishioners go on barely scraping by. In fact, many of these groups have shut Christ out. He stands, as He did with Laodicea, at the door knocking, wanting to regain entry.

To me it is one of the most tragic scenes imaginable. To think that the very One they are to be promoting has been shut out, yet because of His mercy and love, He stands trying to regain entry. You see, in these last days there are really two Churches: The one true blood-bought Church made up of believers who know and love our Lord, and the organized church that goes through the motions but is lukewarm and near death. Jesus said that He would spit them out of His mouth.

If you have come to find out that you are in the organized church instead of the one true Church, answer the door. Open up to Christ. He has said that He will come in and dine with you and you with Him. Be quick to change your membership today from the dead, organized faade of a church to the real life-giving Church that knows, loves, and depends on Jesus Christ. He's knocking, waiting, hoping that you will open the door and let Him back in. All you've got to do is turn the knob.

Jerry D. Ousley is the author of ?Soul Challenge?, ?Soul Journey?, ?Ordeal?, ?The Spirit Bread Daily Devotional and his first novel ?The Shoe Tree.? Visit our website at spiritbread.com to download these and more completely free of charge.

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