Hope for Life Blog

The sex was good, the rival eliminated, the baby bump was beginning to show and the whispers and gossip were flying. Then with a point of an aged finger and words that must have caused his head and heart to quake, “you are that man” everyone knew.

From the smug smile that flashed, “I’ve got this under control”, to the horrible realization that he was an adulterer, murderer, deceiver, liar, and betrayer, his world was reduced to the cesspool of reality that he was drowning in.

At that moment only the answers to two questions mattered. What does God say you should do? Are you going to do it?

What appears to be a script for a movie or TV show is a story from ancient times, sadly acted out over and over in the centuries since.

David, second king of Israel, had it all and lost it when lust controlled him. It is then that he answers those two most fundamental of questions. His answer can be read in the 51st Psalm.

Have mercy upon me, Oh God, according to Your loving kindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.

David betrayed God, asked for forgiveness and is granted it, yet David still suffered the consequences of that sin (two of his sons die). In spite of all this both the prophet Samuel and Luke describe David as a man after God’s own heart.

If there was forgiveness for David, then there is nothing you can do that God can’t forgive!

Those two questions remain for you to answer. What does God say you should do? and Are you going to do it?

Which of those two is the hardest to answer?

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20)

Behold I stand at the door and knock …

It’s a process, you know. Rarely does a person move away from God all at once. Like an ember dying slowly in a fireplace, faith slowly disappears and is replaced by cynicism or, even worse, apathy. Instead of deciding to stop believing in God, most people just give up caring.

I stand at the door and knock …

Sin is often a gradual process as well. It starts with a temptation, like money left out at the store or an attractive co-worker who shows too much attention. Our thoughts focus on that temptation until desire takes over. A small sin leads to a bigger sin which eventually leads to a lifestyle. We look up one day and don’t recognize the person we’ve become.

If anyone hears my voice …

Even as we begin to give up on ourselves, God never does. He knocks. He calls. He seeks us out. Remember, this passage in Revelation was written to Christians. People who knew God, but had wandered away from Him. Like the shepherd looking for the lost lamb, God goes looking for His people.

If anyone hears my voice and opens the door …

God wants to get back into our lives, but He won’t force His way in. We have to open the door. We have to respond to His call. We have to say, “Yes, I want you back in my life.” God is the Almighty Creator, yet He cares enough about His children to go looking for them. He also cares enough for them to allow them the right to choose. He knocks. He calls. We have to open the door.

I will come in to him …

It’s what God wants. He wants to be in relationship with us, even when we’ve wandered away, even when we’ve done things that we’re ashamed to remember. No sin is too great. No distance is too far. There is no door that cannot be opened. All we have to do is turn back to Him and open the door.

I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.

There is something deeply personal about sharing a meal together. The Lord of the Universe wants to come to us, sit down and eat with us. He wants a loving relationship with us. So He knocks. And calls. And waits for us to open the door.

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.” (Revelation 3:20)

Open the door. Let Him come to you. Let Him wipe away your past and give you a fresh start with Him.