“Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
Revelation 3:20 (KJV)
Earlier this year, a dear young friend was telling me about the beautiful Le Vian Chocolate Diamond engagement ring received from her fiancé on Valentine’s Day. I was happy for her.
She was excited about what would come next: choosing colors for bridesmaid dresses, searching through hundreds of ideas in Brides and the knot magazines for the perfect dress, flowers and honeymoon.
But when they started to attend pre-marital training at our church she realized being in covenant relationship was going to “cost her something.”
To live in intimate relationship, means learning how to share our lives – to be vulnerable enough to let someone else in, to lay down our lives for someone else.
As Christians, we say we want covenant relationship with God and we pray for greater intimacy with Jesus, but are we ready for that — really?
Jesus said in Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.
To sup in the Greek is a “metaphor of spiritual communion between Christ and the faithful believer.” (VINES) It is a beautiful picture of unashamed, joy-filled intimacy.
However, if you are like me, when someone knocks at my front door, I immediately begin fluffing pillows, organizing the papers on the my desk/dining room table in my small townhouse, and checking the guest bathroom to make sure there are clean hand towels.
Everything has to be just right for my guest to feel welcome, or I may feel exposed or judged.
But I thank God that Jesus’ desire to come in and to sup with me has little to do with the state of surroundings and everything to do with the state of my heart.
Once we accept Jesus as Savior – He is always with us.
He is with us in the secret places we think no one else can see.
He is with us in the mundaneness of life, in the besetting sins of pornography and addiction, in unforgivness, in the trauma of abuse, in rage, violence, grief and sorrow.
He is with us in disappointed expectations, draining relationships, and in the loneliness of chronic pain. He is there – at the door – knocking.
He wants us to acknowledge Him, to be intentional in communing with Him, to love Him with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, to live fully and unashamedly in covenant relationship with Him. He wants us to take His Yoke, which is light, in exchange for our burdens.
Yes, He will rearrange things, throw some things out, insist on total surrender, shine His light into the dark places of our hearts, and that will be challenging.
But in exchange He brings the renewed hope and freedom that comes through communing with Him on earth and the certainty of eternal communion with Him in Heaven.
Will you invite Him in?