DOORS

DOORS

                To the church of Philadelphia Jesus says, “Behold I have set before you an open door.” Rev. 3:8 But to the church at Laodicea Jesus says, “Behold I stand at the door and knock.” Rev. 3:20

                In is becoming increasingly important for us as individuals, as a church and as a nation to understand the principle of doors, or gates. And it doesn’t much matter whether we are talking about our own personal lives, or our church as a whole, or even the nation. It can be said of us either that we have before us an open door to Jesus, or a closed door.

                We often say that we can’t hear His voice when in fact He is talking to us all of the time. We know very well when we shut a door to Him. We may say with our lips that we have opened the door to Jesus, but most of the time we place limitations on how far He can come. You may say,”I will let you into my heart this much Lord, but if you are actually expecting me to lay down my whole life for you to be guided moment by moment by Your voice… well Lord, that just isn’t practical… and if you expect me to speak out against the evils of this world… well that just isn’t politically correct. I will be labeled as a bigot, or a radical fundamentalist or a homophobe, or a danger to society. Don’t make me go there Lord.

                But the church’s silence has in many cases been seen as acquiescence and the truth of the matter is many churches have actually come out in support of legislation that sneers in the face of God. But those are the big and obvious issues. Today I want to talk about those intimate issues of the heart that involve our marriage to Christ. After all, we are betrothed to Him and betrothal means that we have become faithful to the One.

                It is impossible to close a door to Jesus without at the same time opening a door to Satan. We are ruled by one power or the other. We may think that there is a large area of neutral ground where good people can live without total commitment in either direction, but that which appears neutral is called the flesh and Paul says that to live by the flesh is death.

                “For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace.” Romans 8:5, 6

                Most human neurosis, turmoil, confusion and depression stems from the fact that our spirit and our soul are not aligned with each other. Our spirit knows the mind of Christ, but our flesh knows and craves the spirit of this world, and when we know one thing in our spirit, but we are doing something else in the flesh…. we are living in a state of neurosis and inner conflict. If our flesh is acting contrary to our spirit, then there is a war going on inside of us that manifests as turmoil, guilt, confusion, depression, despair, hopelessness or discontent. And if we continue on in this war between spirit and flesh it will tend toward mental illness, sickness and death.

                This is what is meant when Paul speaks of partaking of the communion in an unworthy manner. It basically means that we are partaking of a covenant that we have no intention of fully honoring and Paul said: “But let a man examine himself and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick and a number sleep.” 1 Cor. 11:28-30. The communion service is a covenant of betrothal and marriage. So if we partake of it with no intention of being a bondservant or a faithful bride, then we will be caught in that inner conflict that leads to sickness and death.

                As we approach the end of the age, (and we are indeed approaching the end), moral and spiritual issues increase exponentially in their conflict. We live in a world of extremes today. We see it physically in the extremes of nature… extreme floods, extreme droughts, extreme fires, extreme earthquakes and volcanos. Extreme upheaval in the animal kingdom as millions of animals and fish die unexplainably.

                We see it in red tides and the death of our oceans. We see it in solar extremes and in disturbances in our cosmos. But more than anything, we see it in the polarization of our political, moral and spiritual positions. In other words, just like an individual that suffers neurosis because mind and spirit are in conflict, so a nation suffers national neurosis as it becomes embroiled in a growing dichotomy between those who choose the Word and Spirit of God, verses those who are increasingly siding with the goals and aspirations of Lucifer and His approaching global government. We are being ripped apart by a conflict of spirits.

                As these antichrist spirits and attitudes take over our planet, we as Christians find ourselves in a hot spot of pressure. We are being forced either to stand as Daniel and His companions stood in the midst of Babylon, or to just flow along with the wide road that leads to destruction. Are we going to listen to Jeremiah or Balaam?

                If you want to follow the true prophets, look for those who are being stoned, or ignored. Many are the prophets that are painting a picture of glory for the church today and few are the prophets that are warning us of imminent danger. Prophets are like gatekeepers who open one door or the other for us and we must choose wisely which prophets we follow.

                But it largely boils down to which voices we are listening to in the intimacy of our own hearts. Who are we listening to on the inside? Which doors have we opened on the inside? Have we opened to the flesh, or the devil, or have we allowed Jesus Christ to set before us a door that no man can shut?

                Remember if you will what Jesus said: “I know your deeds. Behold I have set before you an open door which no one can shut, BECAUSE YOU HAVE A LITTLE POWER AND HAVE KEPT MY WORD  AND HAVE NOT DENIED MY NAME.” Rev 3:8

                But this one text says a whole lot more than we might think. Let’s list the things that make a Jesus kind of Christian:

1.       OUR DEEDS WILL REFLECT OUR HEARTS:  Have we become bondservants of Jesus, or are we still living for ourselves? A bond servant gives up all rights to Himself and he lives only to serve his master. A regular servant may get paid, take vacations, marry whom he wants, have days off, or be fired if he doesn’t ‘perform to his masters liking.

                                But a bond-servant has waved all of those rights. He has become a part of the family. He              lives only for His master and in turn, his master takes care of his needs. It is an all-out relationship.

2.       A BONDSERVANT WALKS THROUGH HIS MASTER’S OPEN DOORS: He doesn’t pick and choose which doors of service he will walk through. He isn’t looking for the doors that lead to fame or notoriety, or easy living. He isn’t looking for his own comfort. He walks through the doors that his master opens for him and he knows full well when an imposter opens a door for him, because it will lead him away from the will and loving care of his master.

3.       THE BOND SERVANT HAS A LITTLE POWER:  He shares the Spirit of His master and he operates under the authority of his master. His purpose is to carry out his master’s will and therefore he operates under the master’s power and authority. When he goes to the market to purchase the master’s food, he wears the signet ring of his master and so whatever he does in his master’s name he does it with his master’s authority.

4.       HE KEEPS HIS MASTER’S WORD:  In the Jewish economy of Jesus’ day, a servant could serve to pay off a debt that he couldn’t otherwise pay. That is called being an indentured servant. So when that debt had been paid, he was entitled to leave. Likewise all servants were entitled to leave their masters on a Jubilee. But if a servant loved his master and decided to wave all rights and to become a family servant for life, the master would take an awl, stand the servant up next to a wooden door and drive the awl through the lobe of the servant’s ear. The servant may even wear the master’s ring in his ear. But this hole in his ear marked him as a bondservant.

                                This hole in the servant’s ear had great significance because from then on he would only              have ears for his master’s voice. To keep his master’s word included the idea that he first heard    his master’s voice and in hearing, he obeyed without question because he loved and trusted his        master.

5.       LASTLY, THE BOND SERVANT WOULD NOT DENY HIS MASTER’S NAME:  If his master had enemies who spoke evil against his master he would defend his master’s integrity and defend his name. The bond servant was known to represent his master’s name and so in the market place, his master’s name would only be whispered in secret by those who grumbled. They knew that to speak in front of the bond servant was the same as speaking in front of his master. And if his master was a man of nobility and integrity, then the bond servant would be known for the same nobility     and integrity. The bond servant would never do anything to bring dishonor to his master’s name. He would not take his master’s name in vain, but would only do business in accordance with the authority of that name.

                Do we begin to get a picture of what Paul meant when he said that he was a bondservant of Jesus Christ? Do we know what it means to us if we want to be members of the church of Philadelphia in these last days? Our master is the Creator and King of this universe, but there is an imposter seeking to rule this world in our master’s name. He is trying to steal back the kingdom that our Master paid for with His blood. Like Jesus has said in his parables, He has left His bond servants here to do business in His name until He returns. Mt. 25:24-28. How are we doing?

                Do our deeds show it? Have we walked through His open doors? Have we learned how to operate with His power and authority?  Do we have ears that hear His Word and obey? Have we brought honor to His name? Do we defend His name in a world that is increasingly hating and rebelling against Him? Does the world know that we are bondservants of Jesus Christ… that we will stand for Him even if it means sharing in His suffering?

                The church of Laodicea thought they were doing okay. They thought they were serving their Master, when in fact they had shut the door to Him and left Him standing on the outside knocking. To them He said those fateful words, “If anyone has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.” Rev. 3:20. If we open the door He will come in, but we will not open the door if we no longer have ears to hear.

                We live in the age of Laodicea my friends, but if we want to belong to the church of Philadelphia, we must give up our rights as servants. We must let our Master make a hole in our ear so that we will hear only His voice. We must become bond servants of Jesus Christ in these closing hours of earth’s history.

                We must move beyond the outer court of the temple and into the place of intimacy and obedience. The secret place of the Most High lies in the Most Holy Place and only those bondservants with clean hands and pure hearts can enter therein. Only bond servants can stand without shame in the presence of Almighty God. We want to be found with His ring in our ear… faithful servants that do everything in His name.

                Today He has set before us an open door…