Let Him In

The phrase that immediately jumped out at me this morning from Psalm 24 was

And be lifted up, O ancient doors,
That the King of glory may come in! (vs. 7)

The imagery is drawn from the city gates - gates that would need to be thrown wide open so that the King and his entourage might enter the city in regal fashion. The appeal of the last part of Psalm 24 is to welcome the king.

Almost as soon as this verse jumped out at me, I thought also of Revelation 3:20:

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.  

Both images are images of doors. Both images indicate the need for us to give a welcome to a God who is outside of us. Both images imply that this God wants to come. And both images imply that God's entrance into our lives is a good and glorious and fulfilling thing.

So how open am I to the activity of God this morning? How welcoming am I of God's activity and presence in my life? Have I thrown open the gates and thrown wide the door so that the King of glory can enter in? Have I laid out the welcome mat and responded to the grace of God's loving attention in my life?

Too often, I fear, I fail to throw the gates open wide. I may open them a crack so I can peer through, but I do not surrender the city of my heart to this Mighty King. Far too often I am sticking my hand out the door for a blessing rather than stepping back and letting God have his way.

But today, I pray with King David - and I hope you will join us - that the doors to our hearts, the doors to our families, the doors to our churches, and the doors to our communities will be thrown open wide in a glad surrender to the Almighty King! May the King of glory come in today!