The Unlocked Door

A group of friends went to see an old church building which was of great historical interest. They applied for admission and the caretaker gave them the key, saying, “You go on ahead and go in, and I will be over in just a minute.”

They went to the door of the building, put the key in the lock, but they could not turn the key. They turned and twisted to no avail, and were ready to give up when the caretaker arrived. “We can’t make the lock work," said one of the party. “Oh, I beg your pardon for causing you so much trouble,” the man said. “I forgot to tell you that the door is not locked at all during these hours. All you need to do is turn the knob and walk in.”

A great many people today are like this group of friends—

How many there are who try by their own efforts to unlock the door of salvation, but all they do is a waste of time and in vain. Our Lord Jesus Christ long ago unlocked the door by His death and resurrection, making the way open into the heavenly house of God. All one needs to do is to simply turn the knob of faith and walk in!

When Jesus was asked, “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?” Jesus answered, “This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He hath sent” (John 6:28,29). Yes, dear reader, the door is open. TODAY is the hour of salvation. Jesus says, “I am the Door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved” (John 10:9).

Let this incident be a warning, too, that any direction for admission into the Kingdom of God is according to truth with nothing added and nothing taken away. Prove all things by the Word of God. “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death” (Proverbs 14:12). How important to emphasize God’s way: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8,9).