"Prayer Power"
April 2007
I Am – The Door of the Sheep
Number 18
The picture hangs over the altar of my childhood church. It fascinated me from the first time I saw it. Jesus is waiting in a darkened garden, knocking on a door that has no outside handle. Superimposed upon the door is light in the shape of a heart.
As a child I didn’t understand what the picture depicted. However, I do now.
The Bible says Jesus is not only standing at the door of our hearts, but He is
the only Door, the only gateway to eternal life.
· 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. (Rev. 3:20)
· Jesus therefore said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. (John 10:7)
· I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” (John 10:9)
Jesus invites us to “come in” to eternal life through the only door - Himself.
Through His death on the cross He opened the doorway to Heaven. He took the punishment for our sin and made His righteousness available to all mankind. We become cleansed of sin by repenting and choosing His righteousness. He then forgives our sin; we are now clean and can enter Heaven through Him, the door of perfect sacrifice.
As a child I sang this song:
One door and only one, though its sides are two.
Inside and outside, on which side are you?
One door and only one, though its sides are two.
I’m on the inside, on which side are you?
(unknown author)
Believe His Word. Come in to eternal life through this door, Jesus. The handle is on your side. The choice is yours. If you do not choose to enter through Jesus, you are choosing eternal death.
Holy Scripture says:
· …He had opened to the Gentiles a door of faith (in Jesus as the Messiah, through Whom we obtain salvation in the kingdom of God). (Acts 14:27)
If God is opening a door of faith to you, are you not foolish to ignore it?
· Strive to enter by the narrow door (force yourselves through it), for many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able. (Luke 13:24)
Why will many “try to enter and will not be able”? It is because you will try to come to eternal life by another way, another door, other than Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. There is salvation in no other.
And there is salvation in and through no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by and in which we must be saved.
(Acts 4:12)
· Look! The Judge is (already) standing at the very door. (James 5:9)
Pray to Jesus, invite Him into your life. Open your heart’s door to Him by saying, “Come in Jesus, forgive my sin, be my Lord and Savior. I believe You are the only door to Heaven and eternal life. Just as You have chosen me, I choose you. Amen.”
Now that’s true PrayerPower!
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Petey Prater is a Beaverton, OR, writer and speaker and can be reached at peteyprater@yahoo.com. She writes articles, poetry, and devotionals, and has contributed to three books.
Prayers for Troubled Times compiled by Jeannie St John Taylor, AMG Publishers and
101 Stories of Answered Prayer by Jeannie St John Taylor, AMG Publishers