Access Granted
“…Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep…I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.”
John 10:7, 9 (NKJV)
Have you noticed just how much of our lives are governed by passwords? I need a password to log on to my computer; a password to shop on-line and a password to carry out internet banking. That can be a bit of a problem if you are prone to forgetting your password. One elderly lady, who kept forgetting her password, decided to use the word ‘incorrect’, so that when she typed in a wrong word her computer would tell her ‘your password is incorrect’. Have you ever tried to change your password only to be told it’s in the wrong format? One person who typed a word only to be told, ‘it needs to be 8 characters’, decided to use ‘Snow White and the seven dwarfs’.
I jest, of course, but forgetting your password or being unable to configure it in the right format is no laughing matter; it can deny you access to what you are trying to get into and achieve. One of the greatest questions we can ever ask is, “If God exists, how do we gain access to Him?” Religions have come up with all kinds of solutions. There are rules to follow, sins to repent of and good works to do. If we could just amass enough spiritual points then we will have earned the right to be given the secret password and the door into God’s presence would be opened to us.
The Christian gospel shows another way. At the death of Jesus Christ on the cross the dividing curtain between us and God was torn from top to bottom (Matthew 27:51) signifying that access to God was opened up to all. As the writer of Hebrews tells us: “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…”(Hebrews 10:19-22).
Christ is the door through whom we can come into the presence of God and, by believing and trusting in his sacrifice, we are granted access. We don’t have to earn points to gain access. There is an eternal password freely given to each one of us and it is Jesus. As Peter said, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”(Acts 4:12 NIV)
So don’t forget the password; it’s in exactly the right configuration. Just open the door and boldly enter God’s presence.
Prayer
Father, thank you for sending your Son to us to be the way into your presence. Let us now approach your throne with confidence knowing that we will find grace in our time of need.
Amen
Study by Barry Robinson
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About the Author:
Barry Robinson is an Elder in and pastoral worker in the Greater London area, particularly the Camberwell and North London congregations of the Worldwide Church of God UK.
Local Congregation:
Worldwide Church of God London
Indian YMCA
Mahatma Gandhi Hall
41 Fitzroy Square
LONDON
W1T 6AQ
Meeting time:
Saturday 2:30pm
Local Congregational Contact:
Martin Ryan
Phone: 020 8202 3998
Email: martin_ryan@wcg.org.uk