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Revelation 3:20 - An Invitation for Relationship with Divinity.Revelation 3:20 (NKJV) 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.INTRODUCTION This Supreme Gift is a phenomenal, priceless treasure beyond all measure! It's a relationship with Deity that leads to eternity. COMMENTARY PEARL God gave you a heart, and he has placed in you passions, desires, and dreams. But unless they are under his control, they will be misused, they will be abused, they will be misapplied, they will be misdirected, and they will be wasted in your life. All around the world, there are millions of passionate people with interests and dreams and ambitions that are being misused and abused. And it breaks God's heart. That's why, in spite of their talent and their passion, those people are unhappy. When your passions are misused, it makes you miserable. Some of you might be thinking, "I'm not really passionate about anything right now." You know what that means, don't you? It means you are disconnected from God. You cannot be connected to God and dispassionate. When you are plugged in to God, it's like plugging in to 220 volts. You get passionate! God is a passionate God; he's emotional. The only reason you have emotions is because you're made in his image. God has loved you with an everlasting love. And he gets jealous when he sees you ignoring him for something else. But no matter what you've done, he will always love you. That's passion! When You Spend Time With God On A Daily Basis And You Get Plugged In To Him, You Can't Help But Be Passionate. You Start To Develop God's Heart For The World. You Start To Feel The Way He Does. That's Because You Become Like Whoever You Hang Out With. Would you like to have more energy in life? More enthusiasm? More get-up-and-go? Let me tell you where to get it. The word "enthusiasm" comes from the Greek words en and theos - en meaning "in" and theos meaning "God." When you get en theos, you're going to be enthusiastic. The Closer You Get To God, The More Energy, Vitality, And Passion You Will Have In Life. The Further Away You Get From God, The More Bored And Apathetic You Become. But opening your heart to God is a choice. In Revelation 3:20, Jesus says, "Look, I'm standing at the door and knocking. If anyone listens to my voice and opens the door, I'll come in and we'll eat together" (GW). Jesus Christ has been standing and knocking at the door of your life for a long time. But he's a gentleman. He's not going to bust the door down. You've got to open it up. [Daily Devotional by Rick Warren: https://pastorrick.com/devotional/] COMMENTARY Pray in your closet and as you go about your daily labor let your heart be often uplifted to God. It was thus that Enoch walked with God. These silent prayers rise like precious incense before the throne of grace. Satan cannot overcome him whose heart is thus stayed upon God. There is no time or place in which it is inappropriate to offer up a petition to God. There is nothing that can prevent us from lifting up our hearts in the spirit of earnest prayer. In the crowds of the street, in the midst of a business engagement, we may send up a petition to God and plead for divine guidance. A Closet Of Communion May Be Found Wherever We Are. We Should Have The Door Of The Heart Open Continually And Our Invitation Going Up That Jesus May Come And Abide As A Heavenly Guest In The Soul.... live in the pure air of heaven.... Those whose hearts are open to receive the support and blessing of God will walk in a holier atmosphere than that of earth and will have constant communion with heaven.... Let the soul be drawn out and upward, that God may grant us a breath of the heavenly atmosphere. We May Keep So Near To God That In Every Unexpected Trial Our Thoughts Will Turn To Him As Naturally As The Flower Turns To The Sun. SC98-100 When love fills the heart, it will flow out to others, not because of favors received from them, but because love is the principle of action. Love modifies the character, governs the impulses, subdues enmity, and ennobles the affections. This love is as broad as the universe, and is in harmony with that of the angel workers. Cherished in the heart, it sweetens the entire life and sheds its blessing upon all around. MB 38 CLOSING THOUGHT By the time you finish reading this sentence, roughly three trillion neutrinos, the lightest of all subatomic particles, will have passed through your body. Three trillion! And yet - you didn't feel a thing, did you? At the same time, how many Wi-Fi and cell tower waves are also moving through your body without a trace? You know they are there, but you feel nothing. In short, if ever there were a generation that should be able to believe in the existence of unseen realities, it is ours. Which is one reason why our text for today should be especially meaningful. Think about what it promises regarding the presence, the nearness, of God. He is standing at the door, meaning the door of your heart, and is knocking. To do that, He must be close to you - even if, like subatomic particles from space or radio waves, you can't see Him. As the apostle Paul told the pagans in Rome about God, "He is not far from each one of us" (Acts 17:27). Indeed, He Is Even At The Door. And If You Would But Open The Door, He Would Come In And, He Says, Dine With You. To Dine With Someone Implies Closeness, Fellowship, Relationship. God, Then, Is Not Just Near To You; He Wants You To Let Him Into Your Life So That You Can Experience His Love. Jesus is knocking at the door, not kicking it in. You must, day by day, choose to open it and let Him enter. Lord Jesus, As I Hear You Knock, I Seek To Open The Door And Dine With You, Morning, Noon, And Night. [The Most Amazing Bible Promises by Amazing Facts] POPULAR SONG ON GOD'S LOVE FOR US The Truth by Megan Woods (Official Lyric Video) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fSVWVYkh2A Pastor Reacts to "The Truth" by Megan Woods https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QcW8yFepJE Megan Woods Testimony https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lspw1OoRJLQ LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY Revelation 3:20 - An Invitation For Relationship With Divinity. https://www.abible.com/devotions/2024/20240315-0841.html https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230317-0828.html http://www.abible.com/devotions/2022/20220506-0938.html LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT https://abible.com/links/ |