HE'S A PERFECT GENTLEMAN -- Devotional for January 27, from "Good Seeds"

Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him and he with Me (Revelation 3:20).

This favorite Bible verse is often used to urge UNBELIEVERS to invite Christ into their lives. But astute Bible teachers point out that this is a faulty interpretation, since the verses before and after are all about the relationship between Jesus and His CHURCH. A dependable rule of Bible interpretation is: “A text without a context is a pretext.” Nevertheless, it’s no pretext to say that Christ calls out to all –- to the lost world of Christ-rejecters right along with the miserable world of arrogant religionists –- for we hear His beckoning voice not only in the pages of Scripture but in the quiet places of our heart. Still, we are glad to know that Revelation 3:20 is specifically for us Christians, so we snuggle down with our Bibles and a hot cup of coffee to hear the sweet words of our Gentle Shepherd! But the comfort soon fades, as we read some pretty harsh words of admonition directed at a particular body of believers, those Lukewarm Laodiceans. They weren’t vile sinners, just complacent ones. Their peaceful, struggle-free lives gave them the illusion that they had arrived spiritually. But Jesus tells them just how far from pleasing God they actually were and, to make His point, uses a pretty vivid metaphor: “You make me want to throw up!” (How would you feel if someone you loved said that to you?) “Well, enough of Revelation 3!” we say. “Let’s mosey on over to John 3, or maybe Psalm 23!” No, please! Stay a moment! Hear Him out, as He continues: “Those I love I discipline. I’m not your Judge, condemning you; I’m your loving Father, calling to you, waiting for you to return to Me, longing to rejoice with a prodigal son who’s finally come home.” But the prodigal lives of most Christians match more that of the older son, for who among us can say we’ve never thought or spoken like him, or like the Pharisee in the temple: “I thank You, Lord, that I’m not like these dirty sinners I have to rub shoulders with day after day!” The Laodiceans were “older brothers” – Pharisees of the first order. But how different are we who hover and hobnob in the holy huddles that dot the planet today? Jesus' rebuke is surely to us as well. He urges us to hear His knock; beckons to us to seek His face; and pleads with us to open wide our closed hearts, that He may come in to us, “to forgive our sin and heal our land” (II Chronicles 7:14). But He waits to be invited. Jesus will not break down the door and barge in. He’s a perfect Gentleman! Will you not invite Him in…today?