Doors figure prominently in Scripture. Jesus—the One who is holy and true—says He is the only door of salvation, the key to the door, and the keeper of the door and the Keys to the kingdom. This passage offers powerful and urgent insight for this very moment in time and is incredibly comforting for those of us in Christ.
In these verses, John the Revelator is writing to the ancient Philadelphian church and to the contemporary equivalents. The door he’s talking about here is the door to eternity. Jesus has opened the door, but one day soon, He will shut it. When it’s shut, John writes, it’s shut.
Yikes.
First, let me point out that verse 7 echoes Isaiah’s prophetic words from 700 B.C. (Isaiah 22:22), nearly 800 years before John wrote this. In Revelation 2 and 3, John issues praise and warnings to the seven churches of ancient Christendom, strikingly like modern-day churches.
I remind us that the church isn’t just that building we visit on Sunday. It’s us. We are the church. Reading these passages with that view in mind and the end-times orientation of the book of Revelation can illuminate God’s message to us today.
Let’s examine ourselves and our sticks-n-bricks churches for what we look like in light of Christ’s seven moral inventories, and repent and rejoice accordingly.
Good News
First, it’s great news that God loves us so much He really doesn’t want anyone to get stuck outside The Door to eternity, Jesus. He gives us repeated opportunities to answer His knock and receive Him (Revelation 3:20). He answers the door when we knock, seeking (Matthew 7:7-8).
Christ is the Door that's available even if you never walk through the door of a church. Really, the only door that matters.
What I also gratefully treasure about this passage that I only recently saw clearly is that little gold nugget about Jesus knowing we are weak, yet acknowledging that even in our weakness, some of us have not denied His name and have kept His word. I hope you’ll read the rest of this passage to see the priceless and uplifting promises Jesus makes to those of us who have “endured patiently.”
Christ will “keep us” from what’s coming, which is reported to be awful no matter how you interpret it. We’ll also enjoy a few other compelling perks, too, which I hope you’ll take the time to discover by reading for yourself.
There are all sorts of opinions on what “keeps us” means, but whatever it is, it’s surely good. Most especially given the alternative. This made me think of the Egyptian doorposts when God spared His people from His persuasive plague way back. More beautifully prophetic door imagery of divine protection in Christ.
Bad News
On the other hand, if we identify with some of the sins John highlights in each of the seven churches, we’re urged to heed the rather bracing warnings of rather terrifying consequences.
What does it mean to heed the warnings? God is clear: Repent! If we repent, he says, we're promised more…
Good News
The great news is John assures us:
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9)
That’s such wonderful news. Still, that’s a critical “if.”
Bad News
God says that once the door is shut, it’s shut. Nobody. Nobody. Can open it.
Good News
The door is currently open. ✨⚔️💖🕊