Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Revelation 3:20
In the above scripture, Jesus is not asking the unbelievers to open their hearts to Him. He is knocking on the door of His church, and He desires to come in and meet with His people. Jesus wants fellowship with us and desires to be part of our lives.
This a reminder of the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus visited them at their house (Luke 10:38-42). Martha was distracted with all the planning and preparing, but Mary sat at Jesus’ feet. Jesus told Martha that Mary had chosen the better thing.
Many congregations are too busy serving God that they have lost the intimacy with God. Having plans are not the problem. However, working on the plans without being open to hearing God’s voice is the issue. This causes our relationship to be only functional.
We cannot afford to ignore the Holy Spirit’s knock at the door. He is a gentleman and will not force Himself. If we let Him come in, He will transform our perspectives, will heal our hearts, and will deliver people from bondages. Isn’t that what we want in our services after all!? He is the ruler of His church and desires to minister uniquely to each person and touch His bride.
Have we lost the faith that God may speak in the midst of the service? Do we leave room for people to have few moments of personal worship without rushing them from one song to another? Can God show up without a three point sermon? Do leaders see themselves as the point person rather than pointing to Jesus?
Our intimacy with the Lord will grow when we give Him room to speak and are not always the ones doing the talking. We then give Him room to be our friend, lover, and counselor. His voice will affirm, encourage, and strengthen us. We need His presence and His voice to ensure we are staying in a living and growing relationship with God.
