Featured Behold!... I Stand At The Door And Knock

'Preachers' in the past will be shown to have used this for that. If preachers in the past can be shown to have used in for lost sinners, does that make it right, or advisable, or O.K., in some way.

Noooooope.

This is bad enough, what He had just told Sardis; "I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.

2 "Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God."

They were 'dead' (their works and name) and 'ready to die' (as a church Candlestick). Was their Candlestick of Jesus' Presence about to be removed?

Then, in the Church in Laodicea, Jesus tells them,

15 "I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

16 "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.

They are "Lukewarm" but that makes Jesus sick even more, to want to puke them out.

Did they already lose their Candlestick? Jesus was in the mist of the Candlesticks. What is Jesus doing OUTSIDE? Had they already, as a church body, died?

Had His Supernatural Presence of The Shekinah Glory been removed?

HAS HE WRITTEN, "ICHABOD" OVER THEIR DOORPOST?

Mine? Ours?

Yours?

"And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband." 1 Samuel 4:21

Jesus is saying He will, "sup". That's to "have communion and fellowship with His children there." Since, apparently, His special Presence to them as "a habitation of God through the Spirit may have been no more.

Jesus compels His blood-bought children

18 "I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous, therefore, and repent."

Communion with God.
JOHN GILL

COMMUNION WITH GOD THE FATHER, SON, AND HOLY GHOST
JOHN OWEN

Correct.

Whether in "take the next step" toward 'salvation, or "now it is up to the sinner to take the next step and join the triumphant church" as if joining a church was part of their next step toward 'salvation'?

No. Nope, neither is a part of the Spiritually Reality revealed in God's Revelation.

 

Had they already had their Candlestick removed,
making them a dead church assembly?

 

O.K., cool, I got it though, thanks a couple of million!

 

*Revelation 3:14-22*
“And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: ‘The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s creation. “‘I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent. 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. The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”

Look at the context and see to whom Jesus is addressing these words. It is to His Church. It is not addressed to "Babylon."
Here Jesus reminds His Church that He disciples those whom He loves, so...when Jesus comes to knock on your door with a word of discipline... don't keep the door shut. Don't hide, like Adam and Eve. Don't try to ignore God, like Jonah. Open the door. Let Jesus bring His word and his blessed food that will nourish you in the task of perseverance so that you can conquer over sin.
When you persevere and fight in the power of Christ, you sit with Christ in the Temple. (Ephesians 1:15-2:10)

Let he who has ears to hear, hear what the Spirit says to the Church.

 

You're right. It turns out almost ALL the preachers of the past used it for that. And it was a favorite of Owen, both for encouraging believers, as Austin says above, and for teaching and warning non-believers. Just get a Kindle version of his works and plug in "knock" in the word search and you get all the instances and locations.

What I get from the old preachers is that they preached their hearts out and would use any verse that the average person was familiar with to try to win souls. Even the Calvinist Puritans were not above begging people to come to Christ. I don't think it was due to lack of ability in exegeting scripture as much as they were overcome as fellow humans with the brevity of life and when they looked out over a congregation they knew many of the folks were lost. Remember, church was practically mandatory in Owen's day and you probably had a higher percentage of unsaved people in the congregation than even nowadays.

 

"And they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day..." Genesis 3:8a

 

The Handle is on the Other Side

 

I thought of this one, too, like Brother Glen did.

It is the previous verse;

19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten:
be zealous, therefore, and repent."

like;

As many as I love/ saved church members,

I rebuke and chasten as to their being carnal/ poor, wrenched and blind to their needing help for their sins:

be zealous to overcome their sins;

therefore, and repent to sit with Christ/ and rule and reign with Him, now, through our prayers, if we repent, as He Intercedes from His Throne and answers our prayers.

"And hath raised us up together
and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:"
Ephesians 2:6.

 

Jon, you bring up a different topic that I won't explore here, except to insert that Covenant Theology teaches a person can be under the Covenant, yet not saved. This is why Presbyterians can baptize their children into the Covenant, yet wait and observe to see if they remain under the Covenant or fall out of the Covenant by not believing.

 

Same thing happened to the writer of the story, above, about a painting 37818 posted;

"This painting was based on Jesus’ own words, recorded in our word for today from the Word of God, Revelation 3:20. It was a statement made originally to believers who had left Jesus out. But it also provides a wonderful word picture of the process by which any person begins a personal relationship with Jesus Christ."

One day they are interpreting "a statement made originally to believers who had left Jesus out."

The next day they are looking at a painting and make an application from the painting as if the Bible supports this 'word picture' and it's additions to the text about a handle being on the inside.

How about Total Depravity? to be calculated into our Bible and painting interpretations?

This is a pure denial of it.

Maybe starting with a presupposition of the denial of Total Depravity, in the first place.

"To which the artist simply replied, "Oh! No, I didn’t forget the handle. When Jesus knocks on the door of your heart - the handle’s on the INSIDE."

"A lot of people have come that far. But Jesus is still outside. Jesus said, "If anyone opens the door, I will come in." And notice who opens the door. Jesus doesn’t push His way in. He waits for you to open the door. The handle’s on the inside. And it may be that you have never opened that door."

So, if Jesus waits for a Totally Depraved sinner to 'open the door' they will, instead, open their eyes one day in torment.

If one doesn't 'believe' in Total Depravity and starts basing Eternal Salvation on fantastic paintings of the imagination, then they wind up just deceiving lost souls AND CALLING IT THE BIBLE, provided Total Depravity is actually a part of God's revelation.

If one doesn't 'believe' in Total Depravity, why not?

What did they get 'saved from'?

Saved from (?) thinking they have 'a handle on the inside'?

I hope so. The lost soul does need to be saved from that and to see themselves the way Jesus sees them.

The way I hear servants of the Lord give as their testimony.

That they knew they were lost, helpless, without strength and they agree with God on that.

The only other thing is Paganism and watching Satan draw us extra-Biblical pictures of the lost soul's Supernatural Divine capabilties that God says and knows nothing of.

I've never seen anyone who denies Total Depravity handle the milk of the Word without spilling it all over Creation.

And, of course, we can suppose all lost souls deny it.

Total Depravity is the starting point for anyone to understand how God Saves people IMHO, much less to chew on meat.

 

Does God plead to let lost people into "sup"?
Where else is anything like that taught?

That would involve lost sinners being Totally Depraved and, then, the rest of the Bible teachings on "if any man come to Me"...it is because God calls and draws them, etc., etc., etc.

After all, the context IS: "19 "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten:
be zealous, therefore, and repent."

Like? John 10? This is a parable and Jesus says,
"he that entereth in by the door
is the shepherd of the sheep".

What about that?

Jesus said He enters in by the door, in this parable.

Revelation 3 is an Apocalyptic Vision Prophecy,
written in a letter to a church;
and Jesus says, "

"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."

You can't mix a Parable's teaching with the Apocalyptic genre,
but it's a little bit niffy to think about, anyway.

Although, I guess I am "making an application from the initial interpretation
that "he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep"
is The same Lord that will enter in the door He is knocking on.

That's better than making TWO INTERPRETATIONS (which there never are),
one to the saved and one to the lost AND Having to INVENT a FALSE DOCTRINE along the way, to accommodate the latter, i.e., that "lost people have a handle on the inside"!!!

But then, Gill mixes in the "wise virgins"
and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb", though below.

That is "mixing two applications" of what "wise virgins"
and the Marriage Supper of the Lamb" mean,
with "21 "To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne,
even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne"
and what that means.


James 5:9; Grudge not one against another, brethren,
lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.

Was Jesus about to Judge the Laodicians, if they did not repent?

Sounds like it.

"...I would thou wert cold or hot.

16 So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot,
I will spue thee out of my mouth.

Go to guy, Gill: "his knocking may signify the notice that will be given of" Judgment.

"and open the door;
or show a readiness for the coming of Christ, look and wait for it,
and be like such that will receive him with a welcome:

"I will come unto him, and sup with him, and he with me;
to and among these will Christ appear when he comes in person; and these being like wise virgins, ready, having his grace in their hearts, and his righteousness upon them, he will take them at once into the marriage chamber, and shut the door upon the rest..."

I think Jesus is talking to His sheep;

22 "He that hath an ear,
let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.

...

"how that has been taken to mean prior to Judgment people exist as sheep..."

John 10 is prior to Judgment;

1 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.

2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.

3 To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice:
and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.

4 And when he putteth forth his own sheep,
he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.

5 And a stranger will they not follow but will flee from him:
for they know not the voice of strangers.

6 This parable spake Jesus unto them:
but they understood not what things they were
which he spake unto them.

7 Then said Jesus unto them again,
Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.

8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers:
but the sheep did not hear them.

...11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.

13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.

14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.

15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.

16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

...26 But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you.

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me:

 

There is a difference between being the elect and being under the common grace of the New Covenant, just as there was a difference between being an elect person who had faith in the Promised One and a person who was born into the Mosaic Covenant as an Israelite.

The elect have always been secure.

The elect are the only ones who actually open the door. Those who lived under the Covenant (think your children and others in the church that are not saved) but don't believe, will not open the door. They are spit out. They are the tares among the wheat. They are the goats among the sheep.

Much of Revelation is God revealing His process of separating the wheat from the tares, even now.