Revelation 3:20

Rev_3:20

Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

The Guest of the heart

I. The stranger-guest wanting to come in. Behold, I stand at the door, and knock.

1. When a stranger comes to your door, it matters a good deal to your feeling as a host whether he be a mean man or a great one. An inhospitable act done to your Queen might never vex you at all if it was only done to an obscure wanderer. Who, then, is this? Is He mean? or is He great? He does not look very great in the starlight. But He is. At home He is worshipped, and wields all command; and beings before whom the mightiest of the earth are as infants, only venture to bow themselves at His feet when their faces are shielded from the lustre of His glory.

2. When a stranger comes to your door, it is a consideration for you whether he has come to a door only, or to your door; whether he has come to your door by chance, or to yourself on purpose. Has this Stranger, then, just happened upon this cottage-door as one that serves His turn as well as any other? or does He mean to seek this very home and this very board, if haply He may be welcomed as a friend? How deeply does He mean it, and how tenderly!

3. When a stranger comes to your door, it is of some moment to you whether he has come but a short distance to see you, or has come from far. This waiting Stranger--whence comes He? From another country? He has come from another world. Through peril, through tribulation, He has come hither.

4. When a stranger comes to your door, it is a thing of influence with you whether your visitor is in earnest to get in, or shows indifference, and soon gives up the endeavour. A caller who knocks and goes off again before you have had reasonable time to answer.

5. When a stranger comes to your door, it is of every consequence to you what may be the character of himself, and the complexion of his errand. Is he good, and likely come for good? or is he evil, and likely come for evil? What far-brought tidings, what peace, what hopes, what aids, what influence, he fetches with him!

II. The stranger-guest getting in. If any man hear My voice, and open the door.

1. The Stranger did not force an entrance. It is from the inside, after all, that a mans heart opens to his Saviour-King.

2. At the same time it is of the utmost importance to note, that the transaction, with this indispensable element of free choice in it, is the veriest simplicity. If any man hear, and open--lo! it is accomplished, and the Son of God is within. Very natural it may be--after you have at last acknowledged the Voice by some beginnings of faith, and have arisen at its call to bustle long about the apartment in a process of rearranging, cleansing, tidying, adorning. Not less natural it may be to sit down, after a desponding glance around you, and endeavour to devise some plan by which you may entertain the Guest more worthily. All the while, and all the same, your Guest is standing without. The one luckless fact is the tardiness of your hospitality. The honour is done Him by nothing but by letting Him in. And more: your heart-home will only be made fit for His presence by His presence.

3. But there may be some one who is saying with a certain sincerity, I have tried to open my heart to Christ, and I could not--cannot! It will baffle your own strength. But what of your Guest Himself, and that power of His--so freely available now?

III. The stranger-guest in. I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me. It is a scene with much light in it, and an atmosphere of security and deep peace. (J. A. Kerr Bain, M. A.)

Christs loving earnestness

I. The love of Christ. It is free love. It is large love. It is love irrespective of goodness in us.

II. The patience of Christ. He stands, and He has stood, as the words imply--not afar off, but nigh, at the door. He stands. It is the attitude of waiting, of perseverance in waiting. He does not come and go; He stands. He does not sit down, or occupy Himself with other concerns. He has one object in view.

III. The earnestness of Christ. If the standing marks His patience, the knocking marks His earnestness--His unwearied earnestness.

1. How does He knock?

2. When does He knock?

IV. The appeal of Christ to the Laodiceans. If any man will hear My voice, and open the door. It is--

1. A loving appeal.

2. A personal appeal.

3. An honest appeal.

4. An earnest appeal.

V. The promise of Christ.

1. I will come in to Him. His standing on the outside is of no use to us. A mere outside Christ will profit us nothing. An outside cross will not pacify, nor heal, nor save.

2. I will sup with him. He comes in as a guest, to take a place at our poor table and to partake of our homely meal.

3. He shall sup with Me. Christ has a banquet in preparation. (H. Bonar, D. D.)

The Christ at the door

These wonderful words need no heightening of their impressiveness, and yet there are two considerations which add pathos and beauty to them. The one is that they are all but the last words which the seer in Patmos heard in his vision, from the lips of the exalted Christ. Parting words are ever impressive words; and this is the attitude in which Jesus desired to be thought of by all coming time. Another consideration intensifying the impressive-Hess of the utterance is that it is the speech of that Christ whose exalted glories are so marvellously portrayed in the first chapter of this book. The words are marvellous too, not only for that picture, but for the clear decisiveness with which they recognise the solemn power that men have of giving or refusing an entrance to Him; and still further, for the grandeur of their promises to the yielding heart which welcomes Him.

I. The exalted Christ asking to be let in to a mans heart. The latter words of the verse suggest the image of a banqueting hall. The chamber to which Christ desires entrance is full of feasters. There is room for everybody else there but Him. Now the plain sad truth which that stands for about us, is this: That we are more willing to let anybody and anything come into our thoughts, and find lodgment in our affections, than we are to let Jesus Christ come in. The next thought here is of the reality of this knocking. Every conviction, every impression, every half inclination towards Him that has risen in your hearts, though you fought against it, has been His knocking there. And think of what a revelation of Him that is! We are mostly too proud to sue for love, especially if once the petition has been repulsed; but He asks to be let into your heart because His nature and His name is Love, and being such, He yearns to be loved by you, and tie yearns to bless you.

II. Notice that awful power which is recognised here as residing in us, to let Him in or to keep Him out. It any man will open the door--the door has no handle on the outside. It opens from within. Christ knocks: we open. What we call faith is the opening of the door. And is it not plain that that simple condition is a condition not imposed by any arbitrary action on His part, but a condition indispensable from the very nature of the case?

III. The entrance of the Christ, with His hands full of blessing. It is the central gift and promise of the gospel that Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith. He Himself is the greatest of His gifts. He never comes empty-handed, but when He enters in He endows the soul with untold riches. We have here also Christs presence as a Guest. I will come in and sup with Him. What great and wonderful things are contained in that assurance! Can we present anything to Him that He can partake of? Yes! We may give Him our service and He will take that; we may give Him our love and He will take that, and regard it as dainty and delightsome food. We have here Christs presence not only as a Guest, but also as Host--I will sup with him and he with Me. As when some great prince offers to honour a poor subject with his presence, and let him provide some insignificant portion of the entertainment, whilst all the substantial and costly parts of it come in the retinue of the monarch, from the palace. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)

The heavenly Visitor

I. What is implied by the expression, I stand at the door.

1. That Christ is outside mans heart.

2. That He is deliberately excluded.

3. That He is excluded in favour of other guests.

4. That notwithstanding He wishes to enter.

5. That He recognises our liberty to admit Him.

II. By what means He makes His presence known.

III. The blessings to be enjoyed by those who admit Him.

1. Reconciliation.

2. Communion.

3. Refreshment. (Thos. Heath.)

Christ at the door

I. The person. The Greatest at the door of the meanest.

II. The attitude.

1. Service.

2. Waiting expectation.

3. Supplication.

III. The action.

IV. The object. (Homilist.)

The pleading Saviour

I. The Saviours humility and condescension.

1. Patience. Repeated application where rudely repulsed.

2. Desire to enter. Not for His own good or gratification, but for our salvation, because He delights in mercy.

II. The Saviours persistent efforts.

III. The Saviours proffered reward. The presence of Christ is the highest privilege man can desire. It involves--

1. Familiarity.

2. Reciprocity.

3. Unity.

4. Enjoyment. (Homilist.)

Christ at the door

I. The suppliant for admission. A strange reversal of the attitudes of the great and of the lowly, of the giver and of the receiver, of the Divine and of the human! Christ once said, Knock and it shall be opened unto you. But He has taken the suppliants place. So, then, there is here a revelation, not only of a universal truth, but a most tender and pathetic disclosure of Christs yearning love to each of us. What do you call that emotion which more than anything else desires that a heart should open and let it enter? We call it love when we find it in one another. Surely it bears the same name when it is sublimed into all but infinitude, and yet is as individualising and specific as it is great and universal, as it is found in Jesus Christ. And then, still further, in that thought of the suppliant waiting for admission there is the explanation for us all of a great many misunderstood facts in our experience. That sorrow that darkened your days and made your heart bleed, what was it but Christs hand on the door? Those blessings which pour into your life day by day beseech you, by the mercies of God, that ye yield yourselves living sacrifices. That unrest which dogs the steps of every man who has not found rest in Christ, what is it but the application of His hand to the obstinately-closed door? The stings of conscience, the movements of the Spirit, the definite proclamation of His Word, even by such lips as mine, what are they all except His appeals to us? And this is the deepest meaning of joys and sorrows, of gifts and losses, of fulfilled and disappointed hopes. If we understood better that all life was guided by Christ and that Christs guidance of life was guided by His desire that He should find a place in our hearts, we should less frequently wonder at sorrows, and should better understand our blessings.

II. The door opened. Jesus Christ knocks, but Jesus Christ cannot break the door open. The door is closed, and unless there be a definite act on your part it will not be opened, and He will not enter. So we come to this, that to do nothing is to keep your Saviour outside; and that is the way in which most men that miss Him do miss Him. The condition of His entrance is simple trust in Him, as the Saviour of my soul. That is opening the door, and if you will do that, then, just as when you open the shutters, in comes the sunshine; just as when you lift the sluice in flows the crystal stream into the slimy, empty lock; so He will enter in, wherever He is not shut out by unbelief and aversion of will.

III. The entrance and the feast. I will come in to him and sup with him, and he with Me. Well, that speaks to us in lovely, sympathetic language, of a close, familiar, happy communication between Christ and my poor self which shall make all life as a feast in company with Him. John, as he wrote down the words I will sup with him, and he with Me, perhaps remembered that upper room where, amidst all the bitter herbs, there was such strange joy and tranquility. But whether he did or no, may we not take the picture as suggesting to us the possibilities of loving fellowship, of quiet repose, of absolute satisfaction of all desires and needs, which will be ours if we open the door of our hearts by faith, and let Jesus Christ come in? (A. Maclaren, D. D.)

Relation to Christ of the human soul

I. His attitude towards the soul. He is constantly in contact with the soul. He does not come occasionally and then depart; He stands.

1. His deep concern. In the eye of Christ the soul is no trifling object: He knows its capabilities, relations, power, influence, interminable history.

2. His infinite condescension.

3. His wonderful patience.

II. His action upon the soul. He does not stand there as a statue doing nothing. He knocks: He knocks at the door of intellect with His philosophic truths; at the door of conscience, with His ethical principles; at the door of love, with His transcendent charms; at the door of hope, with His heavenly glories; at the door of fear, with the terrors of His law.

1. The moral power of the sinner. The soul has the power to shut out Christ. It can bolt itself against its Creator. This it does by directing its thoughts to other subjects, by deadening its convictions, by procrastinations.

2. The consummate folly of the sinner. Who is shut out? Not a foe or thief; but a friend, a physician, a deliverer.

3. The awful guiltiness of the sinner. It shuts out its proprietor, its rightful Lord.

III. His aim in reference to the soul. It is not to destroy it; but to come into it and identify Himself with all its feelings, aspirations, and interests.

1. Inhabitation. I will come unto him. We are perpetually letting people into our hearts. How pleased we are if some illustrious personage will enter our humble homes and sit down with us, etc.

2. Identification. Sup with him and he with Me. I will be at home with him, be one with him. A conventionally great man deems it a condescension to enter the house of an inferior--he never thinks of identifying himself with the humble inmate. Christ does this with the soul that lets Him in. He makes its cares His own. (Homilist.)

The illustrious Visitor

I. The great kindness of the Redeemer to man.

1. Compassion for man.

2. Condescension to man.

3. Communion with man. The Saviour does not come as a stranger, He comes as a friend and a guest.

4. The consummation of man. He takes possession of our spirits to make them perfect and glorious. This will be the perfecting of our humanity, the consummation of all our best and brightest hopes and capacities.

II. The great unkindness of man to the Redeemer.

1. Ignorance is the cause in some cases why the visit of the Saviour is not welcomed. If the ignorance be involuntary and unavoidable, then it is not culpable; but if it be the result of a voluntary refusal to know who the Saviour is, and what His knocking means, then it shows great unkindness to the Redeemer, and is regarded by Him as a great sin.

2. Another cause is indifference. Some know that it is the Saviour standing at the door of their hearts; but they are so absorbed with other engagements, they are so careless about the unseen and eternal, that they let Him stand outside, and make no effort to let Him in.

3. Another cause is unbelief.

4. Prejudice is another cause of the unkindness of man to the Redeemer. The Cross is an offence to many. Prejudice blinds the eyes and hardens the heart and prevents man seeing Jesus as He really is--the chief among ten thousand, and the altogether lovely.

5. The last cause of unkindness we will mention is ingratitude. (F. W. Brown.)

Christ at the door

I. Friendship with God is proposed as the grand privilege of the race.

1. The friendship which God offers is on entirely a human plane. Christian life is only a transfiguration of every-day life.

2. The friendship which God proposes is permanent in its continuance.

II. An undoubted proof of the Divine sincerity.

1. You see this in the fact that the entire proposal comes from Him. The grace of this transaction is absolutely marvellous.

2. You see this in the successive and persistent endeavours to bring this friendship within reach of the soul.

III. The assurance of the entire fulness of the atonement. There is no restriction in the offers of Divine grace.

1. There is no limit on the human side. If any man will open his heart, the Saviour will come in.

2. There is positively no limit on the Divine side either. The offer is made in terms utterly without restriction.

IV. An explicit recognition of human free agency under the plan of salvation by grace. It is well to inquire why it is He thus pauses on the threshold.

1. It is not because He is unable to force His way in. There is no opposition so violent that He could not crush it beneath His Omnipotent might.

2. The reason for the Divine forbearance is found in the inscrutable counsels of the Divine wisdom. In the beginning, He drew one line around His own action. He determined to create a class of beings who should have minds and hearts of their own. A free chance to choose between serving Him and resisting Him He now gives to every one of us. And when He had thus established men in being, He sovereignly decided never to interfere with the free-will He had bestowed.

V. If any man is finally lost, the responsibility rests upon his own soul. The Saviour has come so far, but it is perfectly clear He is coming no further.

1. Observe how unbeclouded is the final issue. There can be no mystery, there is no mistake about it. The Providence of God always clears the way up to the crisis, removing every side-consideration which can possibly confuse it. Education that fits for usefulness is a demand for usefulness; the love of our children is a hint for us to love God as children; social position, wealth, official station, accomplishments, popular favour; whoever has any of these ought to hear in them the accents of that quiet voice speaking to his heart: Behold, I stand at the door and knock.

2. Observe the ease of the condition required of us. It is only to open the door. Great things under the gospel are always simple.

3. Observe then, finally, what it is that keeps the Saviour out. Nothing but will. This is the inspired declaration: Ye will not come unto Me, that ye might have life. That is, you set a definite purpose against the purpose of grace. Christ came and you resisted Him. (C. S. Robinson, D. D.)

Christ knocking at the door of the soul

I. That there is in the human soul a door for the entrance of the truth.

1. The intellect. Is not the theology of the Bible in its broad outlines reasonable? Christ, in the evidence, enlightenment, and conviction of the truth, stands knocking at the mind of man, and the greater the knowledge of the truth, the louder is the appeal for entrance.

2. The heart. Man is endowed with the capability of love and sympathy. He has warm affections. He is so constituted as to be attracted by the pathetic and the beautiful. Hence, he looks out upon nature with admiring eye. And it is to this capability in man that the truth appeals. It presents to him an ideal beauty in the life of Christ, as recorded by the gospel narrative, which ought to win his spirit into an imitation of the same.

3. The conscience. Man has the ability to turn his natural judgment to moral and spiritual questions, and this is what we mean by conscience. To this faculty the truth presents its requirements; convinces of failure in the devotion of the inner life to Christ; and spreads out before it the threat of avenging justice.

4. But, strange to say, the door of the soul is closed to the entrance of the truth. The door of the mind is closed by error, by ignorance, and by prejudice. The door of the heart is shut by pride, by unbelief, and by wilful sin. The door of the conscience is barred by a continued habit of evil.

II. That at the door of the human soul truth makes continued appeals for entrance.

1. This appeal of truth is authoritative. Truth comes to men with authority, even with the claim of a sinless life, and with the emphasis of a Divine voice. Its distinguished character should gain for it an immediate and hearty welcome into the soul, as a king should be welcomed into a cottage. But truth comes to men not only with the authority of character, but also with the authority of right. The faculties of the human mind were made to receive it.

2. The appeal of Truth is patient. Other guests have entered--wealth in splendid apparel, ambition with loud clamour, and pride with haughty mien--but Christ with gentle spirit has remained without. His patience has been co-extensive with our neglect of Him. It is Divine.

3. The appeal of truth is benevolent. The truth does not seek to enter the soul of man merely to spy out its moral defilement, to pass woful sentence on its evil-doings, but to cleanse it by the Holy Spirit, to save it by grace, to enlighten it by knowledge, and to cheer it by love.

4. The appeal of truth is heard. And knock. Knocks at the door are generally heard. And certainly this is the case in reference to the advent of Christ to the soul. It is impossible to live in this land of religious light and agency without being conscious of Divine knockings at the portal of the soul.

III. That the human soul has the ability of choice as to whether it will open its door for the entrance of the truth or not.

1. The door of the soul will not be opened by any coercive methods. Does it not seem strange that Christ should have the key of the soul and yet stand without? This is only explained by the free agency of man. But though He enter not to dwell, the soul is visited by spiritual influences which are the universal heritage of man.

2. The door of the soul must be opened by moral methods. Calm reflection, earnest prayer, and a diligent study of the inspired Word, together with the gentle influences of the Divine Spirit, will open the soul to the entrance of Christ (Act_16:14).

IV. That if the human soul will open its door to the reception of the truth, Christ will enter into close communion with it.

1. Then Christ will inhabit the soul. I will come in to him. Thus, if Christ come into the soul He will dwell in its thoughts, in its affections, in its aspirations, in its aims, and in all its activities. He will elevate and consecrate them all. True religion just means this, Christ in the soul, and its language is (Gal_2:20).

2. Then Christ will be in sympathy with the soul. And will sup with him. It is impossible to have a feast in the soul unless Christ spreads the table; then the meal is festive. It removes sorrow; it inspires joy. While we are partaking of it we can relate to Christ all the perplexities of life. The good man carries a feast within him (Joh_4:32).

3. Then Christ will strengthen the soul. He will strengthen the moral nature by the food He will give, by the counsel He will impart, and by the hope He will inspire. The feast, the supply of holy energy will be resident within. (J. S. Exell, M. A.)

The self-invited Guest

I. That, in the dispensation of the Gospel, Christ is the uninvited guest, pleading for admission. Whatever acquaintance any of us may have with Jesus, the acquaintance began on His side: by Him are the first overtures invariably made.

1. The written gospel is a proof of it.

2. The Christian ministry is another proof.

3. The strivings of His Spirit are another instance of this. In the two former cases, His approach can more easily be avoided.

II. That consent alone is required, on our part, to give us a full participation in His friendship.

1. The consent which is required.

2. The friendship which is offered. (J. Jowett, M. A.)

Christ at the door of the heart

Behold! The sight is indeed a most astonishing one, which ought to fill our hearts with surprise and shame. God outside; He who ought to be recognised as Lord and Master of the human being, to whom we owe everything. I question whether there is any revelation made to us in the whole course of Gods Word that more strongly illustrates the persevering love of God. The love of God is not content with redeeming a guilty world, but He brings the redemption to the door of every human being. How, it is natural we should ask, is this extraordinary phenomenon to be explained? If we look at the context, we discover what the explanation is. Thou sayest, I am rich and increased with goods, and have need of nothing. Ah! it is in those words that the clue is found to the extraordinary spectacle. I cannot understand a man going on, year after year, realising his own inward want, and yet not accepting the supply which God has given. How is it that Satan prevents this? How is it that he brings us to the position which is indicated to us by this figure? By filling us with all sorts of things which are not God. What are they? Some make their religion a substitute for God. That is one of the very worst substitutes that we can possibly fix upon. Again, how many persons there are who find an excellent substitute for Christ in morality. A man may have kept all the Ten Commandments, and yet, all the while, be shutting the door of his heart against Christ, and if a man does that, he keeps the letter of the Commandments, but not the spirit. Again, how many there are who take worldly pleasures as a substitute for God. Another thing set up in the place of God is the love of wealth. What is there that money cannot do? Another man puts learning in the place of God. What is there that intelligence cannot do? All these attempts to create substitutes, what are they? They are simply so many sins against your own soul. It would not have been at all a thing to be marvelled at, if we had read this passage thus: The Lord once stood outside the door and knocked. Had the Lord Jesus Christ given us one offer of mercy, and given one loud, thundering knock, and, being refused, left us to take the consequence, left us to our own miserable doom, you know we should have deserved it. Oh, deafen not your ears, men and women, against His call: do not be so blind to your own interest as to keep Him standing there: listen to what He says, If any man hear My voice. Notice that. He does not say, If any man makes himself moral; if any man will try and make himself better. That is not it, thank God! If any man will shed oceans of tears. No, that is not it. If any man has deep sorrow. No, that is not it. If any man has powerful faith. No, that is not it, What is it He says? If any man will hear My voice. As the preacher is speaking now, say, God is speaking to my soul; He is speaking in all the infinity of His mercy: I cannot, I wont deafen my ear against Him. Well, as soon as the man hears the voice, he is on the highway to salvation. What more is wanted? Just one thing more. If any man hear My voice, and will open unto Me. It does not sound very much, does it? Ah, but, you say, faith is so difficult. One man says, faith is this, and another says it is another thing. Do you think the Lord Jesus Christ will stand back if you say that? I tell you, you will find those bolts and bars will fly back the moment you tell Him you are willing. Now, what are you going to do? Nay, what will He do? He says, If any man will open to Me, I will come in. Well, what will He do? Young man! you are thinking to yourself, I should like to have Jesus as my Saviour, but if He comes to my heart He will bring a funeral procession with Him; my countenance will fall, my life will be overshadowed, my joy will be gone; my youthful pleasures will disappear, and I shall become mournful and morose. I tell you that is the devils lie, not Gods truth. Wherever Jesus is, He carries a feast along with Him, and so He says to-night, If any man will open unto Me, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me. (W. H. M. H. Aitken, M. A.)

Christ at the door of the heart

This door, at which the Saviour knocks, is the heart of man. In the gospel there is more than enough to give full exercise to the most powerful intellect: yet the final aim is at the heart. What the heart is, that the man is; he who wins the heart has the whole man. The door is the sinners heart. That door is closed against Christ. He stands, and knocks. First, observe that it is the Lord who comes to us men, not we to Him. He not only comes to that door; He stands there waiting; nor doth He only stand and wait, but meekly standing thus and waiting, He knocks. So deeply does He long for entrance, that it is hard to make Him go. Canst thou not recall an hour, in which thy Saviour came to thee, and asked for entrance into thy thoughts and thy life? Many are called while yet children. The mind and heart of children are readier for the Lord than those of hardened men and women. Christ knocks at the hearts of children; if they do not open unto Him at that time, they may not do so until after many years; they may never do so, not even in the hour of death. If any man hear My voice! Can this be imagined, that any should not hear? or worse, that any would not hear? The voice of the Lord is mighty in operation, saith the psalmist: the voice of the Lord is a glorious voice. That voice may call; something within the heart may deaden the sound or shut it out. How dreadful is the state of such a soul! Marvel not, with this history before you, that the door is shut. The longer the heart is closed against its God, the harder to open it. The processes of nature have their due effect; the elements do their work in silence and surely; a work which every day makes more effectual. The bars, long stationary, rust in the staples; some time since, a child might have slipped them out and laid them aside; now, the strength of a man would essay the task in vain. The rains and snows of many a season have beaten into the lock and choked it up. In former days, a path led to this door; a path by which the good angels could reach it, and all honest Christian friends; a pathway, pleasant to the eye, fresh with flowers, clean of rubbish, and easy to be found. Alas! how great the change I The pathway now is rough with stones, or seems to be, for so rankly is it overgrown with weeds, that its outline is all but lost. Breasthigh on either hand are come up the briar and the thorn; the wall crumbles; it is grey with mould; an aspect of desolation weighs down the spirit as we gaze. Who would walk on yonder pathway? Who would try to approach that door? Yet there is One, who cometh up this way. He looks toward that closed and rusted door; He turns His holy feet to that forsaken path. His face is grave and sad, earnest, and full of love. He hath on Him the vesture of the High Priest who maketh intercession for sin. He is coming up the path. He has reached the gate. Behold, He standeth at the door. Without, around, all is silence. He knocks. Oh soul thus called by Jesus Christ, what answer wilt thou make? Perhaps there shall be no reply. The knock resounds within: the voice is heard outside; but within there is silence: neither knock nor voice can reach the ear of the spiritually dead. The door may shake in its rusty hinges; the bars may creak in the staples; but none comes to open. No wonder. There is nothing inside, save that worse than nothing, a dead soul; dead in sin, and buried in forgetfulness. (Morgan Dix, D. D.)

The Saviour knocking at the door

I. Who knocks? The Son of God, Immanuel, the Mediator betwixt God and man, the Prince of Peace, the Lord of glory, the Redeemer of the lost, Almighty to save, and all-sufficient to satisfy your souls. What hinders that you should not let Him in?

II. Different hearts are bolted with different bars. Some are closed by carelessness, and some by ignorance, and some by indolence, and some by frivolity, and some by prejudice, and some by pride, and some by strong besetting sins.

III. Were you to yield to the striving spirit--were you to withdraw these bolts, and admit into your soul a mighty and merciful Redeemer, what would be the consequence? Pardon of sin would come. Peace of conscience would come. The smile of God would come into your soul. (James Hamilton, D. D.)

Christ standing at the door

I. Who is he?

1. It is clear that He is some one of importance. Behold, He says, I stand at the door; I who could never have been expected to stand there. He speaks, you observe, as though His coming to us would surprise us; just as we might suppose a monarch to speak at a beggars door. And there is a reason for this. It is the glorious Redeemer who is here, the Monarch of earth and heaven. See then how this text sets forth at the very outset of it the Divine mercy. We think it a great thing that God should sit on a throne waiting for sinners to come to Him, but here He describes Himself as coming to sinners.

II. What is the Lord Jesus doing at our door?

1. On our part, it implies this mournful fact, that our hearts are all naturally shut against Christ, yea, fastened, bolted, and barred, against Him.

2. On Christs part, this expression implies a willingness to enter our hearts; and more than a willingness, an earnest desire to enter them.

III. What does this gracious stranger at our door wish us to do?

IV. What will this exalted being at our door do for us, if we let him in?

1. I will come in to him. There His presence is promised, and with it the light and comfort and bliss and glory of it.

2. I will sup with him, and he with Me. This implies a manifestation of Christ in the heart He dwells in, and intercourse and communion with it. (James Hamilton, M. A.)

At the door

I. Who stands? An ancient patriarch, by keeping open heart and open house for strangers, was privileged to entertain angels unawares. This day we may obtain s visit of the Lord of angels, if only we will let Him in.

II. How near he comes. Behold, I stand at the door. We are not much moved by anything that is far distant. Whether the visitant be coming for judgment or mercy, we take the matter lightly, as long as he is far away. A distant enemy does not make us tremble--a distant friend fails to make us glad. When your protector is distant, you tremble at danger; when he is near, you breathe freely again. How near the Son of God has come to us! He is our Brother: He touches us, and we touch Him, at all points.

III. How far off he is kept. At the door. He in great kindness comes to the door; we in great folly keep Him at the door. The sunlight travels far from its source in the deep of heaven--so far, that though it can be expressed in figures, the imagination fails to take in the magnitude of the sum; but when the rays of light have travelled unimpeded so far, and come to the door of my eye, if I shut that door--a thin film of flesh--the light is kept out, and I remain in darkness. Alas l the light that travelled so far, and came so near--the Light that sought entrance into my heart, and that I kept out--was the Light of life! If I keep out that Light, I abide in the darkness of death: there is no salvation in any other.

IV. He knocks for entrance. It is more than the kindness of His coming and the patience of His waiting. Besides coming near, He calls aloud: He does not permit us to forget His presence.

V. Many things hinder the hearing. Other thoughts occupy the mind; other sounds occupy the car. Either joy or grief may become a hindrance. The song of mirth and the wail of sorrow may both, by turns, drown the voice of that blessed Visitant who stands without and pleads for admission.

VI. Hear, and open. Hearing alone is not enough. It is not the wrath of God, but His mercy in Christ, that melts the iron fastenings and lifts up these shut gates, that the King of Glory may come in. The guilty refuse to open for Christ, even when they hear Him knocking. They have hard thoughts of Him. They think He comes to demand a righteousness which they cannot give, and to bind them over to the judgment because they cannot pay. God is love, and Christ is the outcome of His forgiving love to lost men. He comes to redeem you, and save you. It is when you know Him thus that you will open at His call. (W. Arnot, D. D.)

The heavenly Stranger received

I. If any man hear my voice.

1. That the voice of Christ is either external or internal; or, that which is addressed to the senses only, and that which reaches the heart.

2. The internal voice of Christ is various, according to the different circumstances of the persons to whom it is directed. To some it is an awakening voice: it rouses them from their carnal security. To those who are bowed down with a sense of sin, and wounded with the fiery darts of Divine wrath, it is a healing and comforting voice.

3. In order to hear His voice aright, our hearts must be renewed. Dead sinners cannot hear the voice of Christ; but His is a life-giving voice, and what it commands it communicates.

II. And open the door.

III. I will come in to him.

1. Nearness.

2. Possession.

3. Inhabitation.

He not only comes near to the soul to converse with it, but into it to dwell there, and becomes the vital principle of all holy obedience.

IV. And I will sup with him, and he with Me. (B. Beddome, M. A.)

The heart a house

Your heart is a house with many rooms; one apartment is decorated for the occupancy of pride; in another one covetousness may keep its iron safe; on the walls of another, perhaps, sensuality has hung some pictures that, if Christ enter, must be pulled down. Unbelief has chilled and darkened the whole house. Satan has a mortgage on the whole of it, and by and by will foreclose it. An enormous amount of sin has accumulated in every room and closet, for you have never had a house-cleaning since you were born. To that dwelling-place of sin, which may yet become a dwelling-place of endless anguish, my loving Saviour has come again. If you will stop the turmoil of business, or the noise of merriment long enough to listen, you will hear a marvellously sweet voice outside, Behold, I stand here and knock; if thou wilt open this door I will come in. Christ without means guilt; Christ within means pardon. Christ without means condemnation; Christ within means salvation. Christ shut out means hell; Christ admitted is the first instalment of heaven. (T. L. Cuyler, D. D.)

Christ dwelling in the heart

A widow woman lives by herself in a little cottage by the seashore. Of all whom she loved, only one survives--a lad at sea; all the rest have passed from sunshine to the sunless land. She has not set her eyes upon him for years. But her heart is full of him. She thinks of him by day, and dreams of him by night. His name is never missed out from her prayers. The winds speak about him; the stars speak about him; the waves speak about him, both in storm and calm. No one has difficulty in understanding how her boy dwells in her heart. Let that stand as a parable of what may be for every believer in the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (J. Culross, D. D.)

He knocks at our heart

Jesus stands at our gate and knocks, and there are many who never open to Him at all, and many more who open the door but slightly. The latter, while they may receive blessing, yet miss the fulness of Divine revealing which would flood their souls with love; the former miss altogether the sweetest benediction of life. (J. R. Miller, D. D.)

Christ standing

Whilst a man is standing He is going. (J. Trapp.)

Many fastenings to the sinners heart

When we were in Dublin, I went out one morning to an early meeting, and I found the servants had not opened the front door. So I pulled back a bolt, but I could not get the door open. Then I turned s key, but the door would not open. Then I found there was another bolt at the top, then I found there was another bolt at the bottom. Still the door would not open. Then I found there was a bar, and then I found a night-lock. I found there were five or six different fastenings. I am afraid that door represents every sinners heart. The door of his heart is locked, double-bolted, and barred. (D. L. Moody.)

The King slighted

When your King and Lord comes to claim the homage of your hearts, and to pay you a royal visit, you receive His message with coldness and indifference. You treat Him as the people of Alsace and Lorraine treated the Emperor of Germany and the Crown Prince after the Franco-Prussian war, when they pulled down their blinds, and locked and bolted their doors, and sat in gloomy silence as the emperor passed. They had some excuse for refusing to see him, as they were a conquered people, and his presence reminded them of their humiliation and defeat. But there is no excuse for you. (Isaac Marsden.)

God respects mans freedom

It was said by a celebrated orator in the House of Lords a century ago, that an Englishmans house is his castle, that the winds of heaven might enter by every window, that the rains might penetrate through every cranny, but that not even the sovereign of the land dare enter into it, however humble, without its owners permission. God treats you in the same way. He says, Willingly open your heart to Me, and I will give you every blessing; but I must be made welcome. (G. Warner.)

At the door

In Holman Hunts great picture called The Light of the World, we see One with gentle, patient face, standing at a door, which is ivy-covered, as if long closed. He is girt with the priestly breastplate. He bears in His hand the lamp of truth. He stands and knocks. There is no answer, and He still stands and knocks. His eye tells of love; His face beams with yearning. You look closely and you perceive that there is no knob or latch on the outside of the door. It can be opened only from within. Do you not see the meaning? (J. R. Miller, D. D.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Rev 3:20-21. Behold, I stand — Or, I have stood, as εστηκα literally signifies, namely, for a long time and I still stand, even at this instant; at the door — Of men’s hearts; and knock — Waiting for admittance: if any man hear my voice — With a due regard, namely, the voice of my providence, word, and Spirit; and open the door — Willingly receive me, or welcome me with the affection due to such a friend and Saviour; I will come in to him — And dwell in his heart by faith, (Eph 3:17,) how mean soever his circumstances in life may be, and how faulty soever his character may have been formerly; and will sup with him — Refreshing him with the gifts and graces of my Spirit, and delighting myself in what I have given; and he with me — As I will sup with him here, he shall sup with me in life everlasting hereafter. For to him that overcometh — The various temptations with which he is assaulted, and patiently bears the trials which he is called to pass through; will I grant to sit down with me on my throne — In unspeakable happiness and glory in the heavenly and eternal world; even as I also overcame — The enemies which violently assaulted me in the days of my flesh; and am set down with my Father in his throne — For all things that the Father hath are mine.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock; behold, I have stood (esthka) at the door, and am knocking (krouw). "These gracious words declare the long-suffering of Christ, as he waits for the conversion of sinners; (1Pe_3:20) and not alone the long-suffering which waits, but the love which seeks to bring that conversion about, which knocks." He at whose door we ought to stand, for he is the Door, (Joh_10:7) who, as such, has bidden us to knock, (Mat_7:7 Luk_11:9) is content that the whole relation between him and us should be reversed, and instead of our standing at his door, condescends himself to stand at ours" (Trench). The view, that stand at the door signifies "to come quickly" (Dusterdieck), as in Rev_2:5, 16 3:3, 11, is scarcely in accordance with the context, since the whole passage has changed from rebuke and menace to patient beseeching and loving exhortation. These words recall the frequent use by our Lord of this figure of knocking, and especially Luk_12:35, Luk_12:36, "Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; and ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately." If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. (see the parallel passage in So 5) Christ knocks and speaks. A distinction has been drawn in the work of conversion, corresponding to these two actions. The knocking is likened to the more outward calls of sickness, trouble, etc., by which he makes his presence known; while the voice, which interprets the knock and informs us of the Personality of him who knocks, is the voice of the Holy Spirit, speaking to us, and explaining the meaning of our trials. Man"s free will is here well and plainly set forth. Though the opening, to be effective, needs the help and presence of Christ, yet he does not forcibly effect an entrance; it is still within the power of man to disregard the knock, to refuse to hear the voice, to keep the door fast shut. To take food with any one is an outward sign of brotherly love and reconciliation. Christ will sup with those who do not drive him away, and they will sup with him. The whole figure is an image of the perfect nature of the sinner"s reconciliation with God, and of the wonderful goodness and condescension of Christ. But we may well see an allusion to the Holy Communion, by which we are reconciled to God through Christ, and by which we may even now have a foretaste of the final supper of the Lamb, which shall eventually last for ever.

The Saviour, the soul, and salvation.

"Behold, I stand at the door," etc. These words, so welt known and much loved, however their primary intention may have had regard to a sinful community like the Church at Laodicea, nevertheless lend themselves so aptly to the setting forth of Christ"s dealing with individual sinful souls, and have been so often used in this way, that once more we employ them for the like purpose. They supply three vivid pictures.

I OF OUR SAVIOR "Behold, I stand," etc.; and they reveal him to us in all his grace, he is represented:

1. As in constant nearness to the soul. He stands at the door. He does not come for once and then depart, but there he continues.

2. And he knocks at the door: not merely stands there. The soul is like a great palace that has many doors. And Christ knocks sometimes at the one door and sometimes at another. There is:

(1) The door of the intellect. To this he comes with the evidence of the reasonableness of his faith and claims.

(2) Of the conscience. To this he shows the goodness and righteousness of that which he asks; how he ought to be obeyed.

(3) Of love. He wakes up, or seeks to wake up, the spirit of gratitude in response to all he is and has done for the soul.

(4) Of fear. The alarm of the awakened conscience, the fearful looking for of judgment, are the means he uses.

(5) Of hope. The blessed prospect of eternal peace and purity and joy.

3. And he knocks in many ways.

(1) Sometimes by his Word. As it is quietly read in the sacred Scriptures, some text will arrest and arouse the soul. Or, as it is faithfully, lovingly, and earnestly preached: how often he knocks in this way! And

(2) sometimes by his providence. Sickness; bereavement; loss of wealth, or friends, or other earthly good; disaster; the approach of pestilence; nearness of death; trouble of mind, body, or estate; all are the Lord"s knockings. And

(3) sometimes by his Spirit. These more often than any. "The Spirit... says, Come.

1. And we know that he does this. Have we not been conscious of his appeals again and again?

2. See what all this reveals of him.

(1) His infinite patience. How long he has waited for some of us, year after year, and is not wearied yet!

(2) His gracious condescension. That he, our Lord and Saviour, should thus deal with us.

(3) And, above all, what infinite love! Behold, then, this portrait of our all-gracious Saviour and Lord, and let it draw your hearts to him as it should.

II OF THE SOUL the soul of each one of us. Our text shows the soul:

1. As the object of Christ"s anxious concern, He would not else be thus standing and knocking at the door of our hearts. And the reason is that he knows:

(1) The soul"s infinite value and preciousness. He knows its high capacities that it can love and worship, resemble, and rejoice in God.

(2) Its terrible peril. Were it not so, there would not be need for such anxious concern. It is in peril of losing eternal life and of incurring eternal death. It is nigh unto perishing a lost sheep, a lost piece of silver, a lost child.

2. As exercising its fearful Tower. Refusing Christ, keeping him outside the soul. Many other guests are admitted freely, but not Christ.

(1) The soul has this power of refusal. None other has. Not the stars of heaven, not the mighty sea, not the raging winds, not the devouring fire. All these obey. But the soul can refuse.

(2) And here it is exercising this power. That Christ is kept outside the soul is the testimony of:

(a) Scripture. Texts innumerable tell of the estrangement of the human heart from God.

(b) Conscience. Does not the ungodly man know that Christ does not dwell within him, that he has no room for him however it may be with other guests in his soul? And the strange, sad reluctancy to speak for Christ to others shows how partial is his possession of even Christian souls.

(c) Facts. See what men are and say and do; mark their conduct, their conversation, their character; examine the maxims, principles, and motives which regulate them, and see if Christ be in all or any of them. And this, not only in men brought up in ungodliness, but often in those trained in pious homes, and from whom you would have expected better things.

(3) And this is the soul"s own doing. It voluntarily excludes Christ. When his appeal is heard, and very often it is, men divert their thoughts, distract them with other themes; or deaden their convictions, by plunging into pleasure, business, sin; or delay obedience, procrastinating and putting off that which they ought promptly to perform. Ah, what guilt! Ah, what folly!

(4) And this is the sin "against the Holy Ghost, which hath never forgiveness." Not any one definite act, but this persistent exclusion of Christ. The. knocking of the Lord is heard more and more faintly, until at length, although it goes on, it is not heard at all. The sin has been committed, and the punishment has begun. But the text contemplates also the happier alternative.

3. The soul claiming its greatest privilege opening the door to Christ. He says, "If any man will open," thereby plainly teaching us that men may and should, and blessed be his Name some will, open that door.

(1) The soul can do this. It is part of its great prerogative. It could not say, "Yes," if it could not say, "No;" but because it can say, "No," it can also say, "Yes.

(2) And the opening the door depends upon its saying, "Yes." This is no contradiction to the truth that the Holy Spirit must open the heart. Both are essential; neither can be done without. It is a cooperative work, as consciousness and Scripture alike teach. But the Spirit ever does his part of the work; it is we only who fail in ours. May we be kept here from!

III SALVATION. The result of such opening the door is this, and the picture that is given of it is full of interest.

1. Christ becomes our Guest. "I will sup with him." Now, if we invite any one to our table, we have to provide the feast. But what have we to set before Christ that he will care for? Ah, what? "All our righteousnesses will they do? Not at all. In this spiritual banquet that which he will most joyfully accept is ourselves, coming in contrition and trust to rest upon his love. "The sacrifices of God," etc. (Ps 51) Let us bring them; they, but naught else, will be well pleasing to him. But the scene changes.

2. Christ becomes our]lost. "He with me." Ah! now what a difference! "Blest Jesus, what delicious fare! How sweet thine entertainments are!

This we shall soon realize.

(1) There is full, free pardon for every sin.

(2) Next, the assurance of his love, that he has accepted us.

(3) Power to become like him renewing, regenerating grace.

(4) His peace, so that in all trial and sorrow we may "rest in the Lord.

(5) Power to bless others, so that they shall be the better for having to do with us.

(6) Bright hope, blessed outlook to the eternal inheritance.

(7) And at last, in due time, that inheritance itself.

Such are some of the chief elements of that banquet at which Christ is the Host; and all the while there is sweet, blessed intercourse, hallowed communion, with himself. He is "known to us in the breaking of bread.

CONCLUSION. How, then, shall it be? Shall we still keep the door of our hearts barred against him? May he forbid! We can do this; alas! some will. But we can open the door. Do that. "In the silent midnight watches, List! thy bosom door! How it knocketh knocketh knocketh Knocketh evermore! Say not "tis thy pulse is beating: "Tis thy heart of sin; "Tis thy Saviour knocks and crieth, "Rise, and let me in." "Death comes on with reckless footsteps, To the hall and hut; Think you, Death will tarry knocking Where the door is shut? Jesus waiteth waiteth waiteth But the door is fast; Grieved, away thy Saviour goeth: Death breaks in at last. "Then "tis time to stand entreating Christ to let thee in; At the gate of heaven beating, Waiting for thy sin. Nay alas! thou guilty creature; Hast thou then forgot? Jesus waited long to know thee, Now he knows thee not. S.C.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Revelation

CHRIST AT THE DOOR

Rev 3:20.

Many of us are familiar, I dare say, with the devoutly imaginative rendering of the first part of these wonderful words, which we owe to the genius of a living painter. In it we see the fast shut door, with rusted hinges, all overgrown with rank, poisonous weeds, which tell how long it has been closed. There stands, amid the night dews and the darkness, the patient Son of man, one hand laid on the door, the other bearing a light, which may perchance flash through some of its chinks. In His face are love repelled, and pity all but wasted; in the touch of His hand are gentleness and authority.

But the picture pauses, of course, at the beginning of my text, and its sequel is quite as wonderful as its first part. ‘I will come in to him, and sup with him, and he with Me.’ What can surpass such words as these? I venture to take this great text, and ask you to look with me at the three things that lie in it; the suppliant for admission; the door opened; the entrance, and the feast.

I. Think, then, first of all, of that suppliant for admission.

I suppose that the briefest explanation of my text is sufficient. Who knocks? The exalted Christ. What is the door? This closed heart of man. What does He desire? Entrance. What are His knockings and His voice? All providences; all monitions of His Spirit in man’s spirit and conscience; the direct invitations of His written or spoken word; in brief, whatsoever sways our hearts to yield to Him and enthrone Him. This is the meaning, in the fewest possible words, of the great utterance of my text.

Here is a revelation of a universal truth, applying to every man and woman on the face of the earth; but more especially and manifestly to those of us who live within the sound of Christ’s gospel and of the written revelations of His grace. True, my text was originally spoken in reference to the unworthy members of a little church of early believers in Asia Minor, but it passes far beyond the limits of the lukewarm Laodiceans to whom it was addressed. And the ‘any man’ which follows is wide enough to warrant us in stretching out the representation as far as the bounds of humanity extend, and in believing that wherever there is a closed heart there is a knocking Christ, and that all men are lightened by that Light which came into the world.

Upon that I do not need to dwell, but I desire to enforce the individual bearing of the general truth upon our own consciences, and to come to each with this message: The saying is true about thee, and at the door of thy heart Jesus Christ stands, and there His gentle, mighty hand is laid, and on it the flashes of His light shine, and through the chinks of the unopened door of thy heart comes the beseeching voice, Open! Open unto Me.’ A strange reversal of the attitudes of the great and of the lowly, of the giver and of the receiver, of the Divine and of the human! Christ once said, Knock and it shall be opened unto you.’ But He has taken the suppliant’s place, and, standing by the side of each of us. He beseeches us that we let Him bless us, and enter in for our rest.

So, then, there is here a revelation, not only of a universal truth, but a most tender and pathetic disclosure of Christ’s yearning love to each of us. What do you call that emotion which more than anything else desires that a heart should open and let it enter? We call it love when we find it in one another. Surely it bears the same name when it is sublimed into all but infinitude, and yet it is as individualizing and specific as it is great and universal, as it is found in Jesus Christ. If it be true that He wants me, if it be true that in that great heart of His there are a thought and a wish about His relation to me, and mine to Him, then, then, each of us is grasped by a love that is like our human love, only perfected and purified from all its weaknesses.

Now we sometimes feel, I am afraid, as if all that talk about the love which Jesus Christ has to each of us was scarcely a prose fact. There is a woeful lack of belief among us in the things that we profess to believe most. You are all ready to admit, when I preach it, that it is true that Jesus Christ loves us. Have you ever tried to realize it, and lay it upon your hearts, that the sweetness and astoundingness of it may soak into you, and change your whole being? Oh! listen, not to my poor, rough notes, but to His infinitely sweet and tender melody of voice, when He says to you, as if your eyes needed to be opened to perceive it, ‘Behold! I stand at the door and knock.’

There is a revelation in the words, dear friends, of an infinite long-suffering and patience. The door has long been fastened; you and I have, like some lazy servant, thought that if we did not answer the knock, the Knocker would go away when He was weary. But we have miscalculated the elasticity and the unfailingness of that patient Christ’s lore. Rejected, He abides; spurned, He returns. There are men and women who all their lives long have known that Jesus Christ coveted their love, and yearned for a place in their hearts, and have steeled themselves against the knowledge, or frittered it away by worldliness, or darkened it by sensuality and sin. And they are once more brought into the presence of that rejected, patient, wooing Lord, who courts them for their souls, as if they were, which indeed they are, too precious to be lost, as long as there is a ghost of a chance that they may still listen to His voice. The patient Christ’s wonderfulness of long-suffering may well bow us all in thankfulness and in penitence. How often has He tapped or thundered at the door of your heart, dear friends, and how often have you neglected to open? Is it not of the Lord’s mercies that the rejected or neglected love is offered you once more? and the voice, so long deadened and deafened to your ears by the rush of passion, and the hurry of business, and the whispers of self, yet again appeals to you, as it does even through my poor translation of it.

And then, still further, in that thought of the suppliant waiting for admission there is the explanation for us all of a great many misunderstood facts in our experience. That sorrow that darkened your days and made your heart bleed, what was it but Christ’s hand on the door? Those blessings which pour into your life day by day ‘beseech you, by the mercies of God, that ye yield yourselves living sacrifices.’ That unrest which dogs the steps of every man who has not found rest in Christ, what is it but the application of His hand to the obstinately closed door? The stings of conscience, the movements of the Spirit, the definite proclamation of His Word, even by such lips as mine, what are they all except His appeals to us? And this is the deepest meaning of joys and sorrows, of gifts and losses, of fulfilled and disappointed hopes. This is the meaning of the yearning of Christless hearts, of the stings of conscience which come to us all. ‘Behold! I stand at the door and knock.’ If we understood better that all life was guided by Christ, and that Christ’s guidance of life was guided by His desire that He should find a place in our hearts, we should less frequently wonder at sorrows, and should better understand our blessings. /^ The boy Samuel, lying sleeping before the light in the inner sanctuary, heard the voice of God, and thought it was only the grey-bearded priest that spoke. We often make the same mistake, and confound the utterances of Christ Himself with the speech of men. Recognize who it is that pleads with you; and do not fancy that when Christ speaks it is Eli that is calling; but say, ‘Speak, Lord! for Thy servant heareth.’ ‘Lift up your heads, O ye gates, even lift them up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in.’

II. And that leads me, secondly, to ask you to look at the door opened.

I need not enlarge upon what I have already suggested, the universality of the wide promise here - ‘If any man open the door’; but what I want rather to notice is that, according to this representation, ‘the door’ has no handle outside, and is so hinged that it opens from within, outwards. Which, being taken out of metaphor and put into fact, means this, you are the only being that can open the door for Christ to come in. The whole responsibility, brother, of accepting or rejecting God’s gracious Word, which comes to you all in good faith, lies with yourself.

I am not going to plunge into theological puzzles, but I appeal to consciousness. You know as well as I do - better a great deal, for it is yourself that is in question - that at each time when your heart and conscience have been brought in contact with the offer of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, if you had liked you could have opened the door, and welcomed His entrance. And you know that nobody and nothing kept it fast except only yourselves. ‘Ye will not come to Me,’ said Christ, ‘that ye might have life.’ Men^ indeed, do pile up such mountains of rubbish against the door that it cannot be opened, but it was they that put them there; and they are responsible if the hinges are so rusty that they will not move, or the doorway is so clogged that there is no room for it to open. Jesus Christ knocks, but Jesus Christ cannot break the door open. It lies in your hands to decide whether you will take or whether you will reject that which He brings.

The door is closed, and unless there be a definite act on your parts it will not be opened, and He will not enter. So we come to this, that to do nothing is to keep your Saviour outside; and that is the way in which most men that miss Him do miss Him.

I suppose there are very few of us who have ever been conscious of a definite act by which, if I might adhere to the metaphor, we have laid hold of the door on the Inside, and held it tight lest it should be opened. But, I fear me, there are many who have sat in the inner chamber, and heard the gracious hand on the outer panel, and have kept their hands folded and their feet still, and done nothing. Ah! brethren, to do nothing is to do the most dreadful of things, for it is to keep the shut door shut in the face of Christ. No passionate antagonism is needed, no vehement rejection, no intellectual denial of His truth and His promises. If you want to ruin yourselves, you have simply to do nothing! All the dismal consequences will necessarily follow.

‘Well,’ you say, ‘but you are talking metaphors; let us come to plain facts. What do you want me to do? ‘I want you to listen to the message of an infinitely loving Christ who died on the Cross to bear the sins of the whole world, including you and me; and who now lives, pleading with each of us from heaven that we will take by simple faith, and keep by holy obedience, the gift of eternal life which He offers, and He alone can give. The condition of His entrance is simple \ trust in Him, as the Saviour of my soul. That is opening the door, and if you will do that, then, just as when you open the shutters, in comes the sunshine; just as when you lift the sluice in flows the crystal stream into the slimy, empty lock, so - I was going to say by gravitation, rather by the diffusive impulse that belongs to light, which is Christ - He will enter in, wherever He is not shut out by unbelief and aversion of will.

III. And so that brings me to my last point, viz., the entrance and the feast.

My text is a metaphor, but the declaration that ‘if any man open the door’ Jesus Christ ‘will come in to him,’ is not a metaphor, but is the very heart and centre of the Gospel, ‘I will come in to him,’ dwell in him, be really incorporated in his being, or inspirited, if I may so say, in his spirit. Now you may think that that is far too recondite and lofty a thought to be easily grasped by ordinary people, but its very loftiness should recommend it to us. I, for my part, believe that there is no more prose fact in the whole world than the actual dwelling of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who is in heaven, in the spirits of the people that love Him and trust Him. And this is one great part of the Gospel that I have to preach to you, that into our emptiness He will come with His fullness; that into our sinfulness He will come with His righteousness; that into our death He will come with His triumphant and immortal life; and He being in us and we in Him, we shall be full and pure and live for ever, and be blessed with the blessedness of Jesus. So remember that embedded in the midst of the wonderful metaphor of my text lies the fact, which is the very centre of the Gospel hope, the dwelling of Jesus Christ in the hearts even of poor sinful creatures like you and me.

But it comes into view here only as the basis of the subsequent promises, and on these I can only touch very briefly, ‘I will come in to him and sup with him, and he with Me.’ Well, that speaks to us in lovely, sympathetic language of a close, familiar, happy communication between Christ and my poor self, which shall make all life as a feast in company with Him. We remember who is the mouthpiece of Jesus Christ here. It is the disciple who knew most of what quietness of blessedness and serenity of adoring communion there were in leaning on Christ’s breast at supper, casting back his head on that loving bosom; looking into those deep sad eyes, and asking questions which were sure of answer. And John, as he wrote down the words ‘I will sup with him, and he with Me,’ perhaps remembered that upper room where, amidst all the bitter herbs, there was such strange joy and tranquility. But whether he did or no, may we not take the picture as suggesting to us the possibilities of loving fellowship, of quiet repose, of absolute satisfaction of all desires and needs, which will be ours if we open the door of our hearts by faith and let Jesus Christ come in?

But, note, when He does come He comes as guest. ‘I will sup with him.’ ‘He shall have the honour of providing that of which I partake.’ Just as upon earth He said to the Samaritan woman, ‘Give Me to drink,’ or sat at the table, at the modest village feast in Bethany, in honour of the miracle of a man raised from the dead, and smiled approval of Martha serving, as of Lazarus sitting at table, and of Mary anointing Him, so the humble viands, the poor man’s fare that our resources enable us to lay upon His table, are never so small or poor for Him to delight in. This King feasts in the neatherd’s cottage, and He will even condescend to turn the cakes. ‘I will sup with Him.’ We cannot bring anything so coarse, so poor, so unworthy, if a drop or two of love has been sprinkled over it, but that it will be well-pleasing in His sight, and He Himself will partake thereof. ‘He has gone to be a guest with a man that is a sinner.’

But more than that, where He is welcomed as guest. He assumes the place of host. ‘I will sup with him, and he with Me.’ You remember how, after the Resurrection, when the two disciples, moved to hospitality, implored the unknown Stranger to come in and partake of their humble fare, He yielded to their importunity, and when they were in the guest chamber, took His place at the head of the table, and blessed the bread and gave it to them. You remember how, in the beginning of His miracles, He manifested forth His glory in this, that, invited as a common guest to the rustic wedding, He provided the failing wine. And so, wherever a poor man opens his heart and says, ‘Come in,’ and I will give Thee my ‘best,’ Jesus Christ comes in, and gives the man His best, that the man may render it back to Him. He owes nothing to any man. He accepts the poorest from each, and He gives the richest to each. He is Guest and Host, and what He accepts from us is what He has first given to us.

The promise of my text is fulfilled immediately when the door of the heart is opened, but it shadows and prophesies a nobler fulfilment in the heavens. Here and now Christ and we may sit together, but the feast will be like the Passover, eaten with loins girt and staves in hand, and the Red Sea and wilderness waiting to be trodden. But there comes a more perfect form of the communion, which finds its parallel in that wonderful scene when the weary fishers, all of whose success had depended on their obedience to the Master’s direction, discerned at last, through the grey of the morning, who it was that stood upon the shore, and, struggling to His side, saw there a fire of coals, and fish laid thereon, and bread, to which they were bidden to add their modest contribution in the fish that they had caught; and the meal being thus prepared partly by His hand and partly by theirs, ennobled and filled by Him, His voice says, ‘Come and dine.’ So, brethren, Christ at the last will bring His servants to His table in His kingdom, and there their works shall follow them; and He and they shall sit together for ever, and for ever ‘rejoice in the fatness of Thy house, even of Thy holy temple.’

I beseech you, listen not to my poor voice, but to His that speaks through it, and when He knocks do you open, and Christ Himself shall come in. ‘If any man love Me he will keep My commandments, and My Father will love him, and We will come and make Our abode with him.’

Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

3:20 A person or a church must hear Jesus knocking and open the door to him. Christ provides a pattern of revival for a church that has grown spiritually weak and fallen out of fellowship with him. Simply opening the door can renew their former bond. • we will share a meal: A shared meal symbolizes acceptance, deep friendship, and a covenant relationship (19:9; see Gen 18:1-5, 16-19; Exod 12:1-31; 18:12; Matt 26:26-30).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Rev 3:20. Ἰδοὺ—, behold—) The observation respecting retrograde order depends almost entirely upon this very increase of close approach, respecting which see Erkl. Off.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Rev_3:20. If the epistle to the church at Laodicea be regarded as having a design differing in no essential point from that of the other epistles, neither can Rev_3:20 be regarded the epilogue,[1620] which rather comprises only Rev_3:21-22, nor can the eschatological sense in Rev_3:20, which is properly made prominent by Ebrard, be denied, as is usually done. The ἸΔΟΎ ἝΣΤΗΚΑ ἘΠῚ ΤῊΝ ΘΎΡΑΝ ΚΑῚ ΚΡΟΎΩ, Κ.Τ.Λ., is essentially nothing else than the ἘΡΧΟΜΑΙ ΤΑΧΎ, or ἭΞΩ with its paracletic applications.[1621] The door before which the Lord stands, and asks entrance by his knock (ΚΡΟΎΩ) and call (cf. ἈΚ. Τ. ΦΩΝῆς ΜΟΥ), is ordinarily understood as the door of the heart,[1622] and, accordingly, the ΚΡΟΎΕΙΝ, as the preaching of the gospel,[1623] the movements occasioned by the Holy Spirit,[1624] while special providential dispensations, are also added.[1625] The ἘΙΣΕΛΕΎΣΟΜΑΙ, Κ.Τ.Λ., is not then understood in its full personal sense,[1626] and the ΔΕΙΠΝΉΣΩ limited either entirely to the blessed communion of believers with the Lord in this life,[1627] or, as is entirely out of place, to the communion in the present and the future life.[1628] The latter reference Beng. obtains by understanding the ΔΕΙΠΝ. ΜΕΤʼ ΑὐΤΟῦ of the earthly, and the Κ. ΑὐΤ. ΜΕΤ ἘΜΟῦ of the heavenly life. In their peculiar nature the ΚΡΟΎΕΙΝ and the ΦΩΝΉ of the Lord, whereby he asks entrance, are not distinct from the ἘΛΈΓΧΕΙΝ and ΠΑΙΔΕΎΕΙΝ, Rev_3:19, just as it is from the same love that he does both the former and the latter. His coming is near; he stands already before the door. And he wishes the church at Laodicea also to be prepared to receive him, in order that he may not come in judgment,[1629] but to enter therein, and hold with it the feast of blessed communion.[1630] The sense, especially of the formula ΔΕΙΠΝ. ΜΕΤʼ ΑὐΤΟῦ Κ. ΑὐΤῸς ΜΕΤʼ ἘΜΟῪ, expressing the complete communion of the one with the other, is that of Joh_17:24; Col_3:4.[1631]

An immediate connection with Son_5:2[1632] is not discernible; although it is incorrectly asserted[1633] that in the N. T. in general, and in the Apoc. especially, no trace whatever of the Song of Solomon can be detected. Ebrard, appropriately: The figure (of the wedding), or this idea together with the general doctrine of the relation of Christ to his Church as bridegroom, depends upon the Song of Solomon. But in our passage the idea, in general, of Christ as bridegroom is not definitely expressed.[1634] [See Note XLI., p. 184.]

[1620] Vitr.

[1621] Rev_2:5; Rev_2:16, Rev_3:3; Rev_3:11. Cf. also Rev_2:10; Rev_2:22 sq.

[1622] N. de Lyra, C. a Lap., Stern, Aret., Grot., Calov., Vitr., Ew., De Wette, Hengstenb.

[1623] Aret, etc.

[1624] De Wette.

[1625] Hengstenb.

[1626] Grot.: Jesus Christ, where he sends his Spirit.

[1627] N. de Lyra, C. a Lap., Grot., Hengstenb., etc.

[1628] Vitr., Calov., Stern, etc.

[1629] Cf. Rev_3:3; Rev_2:5.

[1630] Cf. ch. 19; Mat_25:1 sqq.

[1631] Cf., on both passages, in the preceding verses, the corresponding description of the earthly fellowship of faith with the Lord.

[1632] Hengstenb.; several ancient expositors.

[1633] Ew., De Wette.

[1634] Especially against Eichh., Heinr.

NOTES BY THE AMERICAN EDITOR

XLI. Rev_3:20. ἰδοὺ ἔστηκα, κ.τ.λ.

Alford, on the contrary: The reference to Son_5:2 is too plain to be for a moment doubted; and, if so, the interpretation must be grounded in that conjugal relation between Christ and the Church,

Christ and the soul,of which that mysterious book is expressive. This being granted, we may well say that the vivid depiction of Christ standing at the door is introduced to bring home to the lukewarm and careless church the truth of his constant presence, which she was so deeply forgetting. His knocking was taking place, partly by the utterance of these very rebukes, partly by every interference in justice and mercy. Trench: The very language which Christ uses here, the κρούειν ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν, the summons ἀνοίγειν recurs. Nor is the relation between the one passage and the other merely superficial and verbal. The spiritual condition of the bride there is, in fact, precisely similar to that of the Laodicean angel here. Between sleeping and waking, she has been so slow to open the door, that, when at length she does so, the Bridegroom has withdrawn. This exactly corresponds to the lukewarmness of the angel here. Another proof of the connection between them is, that, although there has been no mention of any thing but a knocking here, Christ goes on to say, If any man hear my voice. What can this be but an allusion to the words in the canticle, which have just gone before: It is the voice of my beloved that knocketh?

The reference, by Bengel, of the δειπνήσω to the communion both in this life and the life to come, may have found, in the distinction between μετʼ αὐτοῦ and μετʼ ἐμοῦ, more than is intended; nevertheless, we can see, in this passage, only the blessed communion with God begun here on earth, and consummated in heaven,not two communions, but one, at two different stages. Gebhardt (p. 127) finds the thought of the Lords Supper suggested. Luthardts brief notes refer to Luk_12:36; interpreting the knocking as the impending return of the Lord, the opening of the door, by suggesting the familiar hymn of Paul Gerhardt,

Oh, how shall I receive thee?

and the supping, by the Lords Supper in the kingdom of God (Mat_26:29; Luk_22:29-30).

In connection with the ἐάν τις ἀκούσῃ τῆς φωνῆς, Trenchs remarks are important as to the incompatibility of this passage with any doctrine of irresistible grace; as well as his warning against the Pelagian error, as though men could open the door of their heart when they would, as though repentance was not itself a gift of the exalted Saviour (Act_5:31). They can only open when Christ knocks, and they would have no desire at all to open unless he knocked.… This is a drawing, not a dragging; a knocking at the door, not a breaking open the heart. So Gerhard (L. T., ii. 275): When God, by his word, knocks at the door of our heart, especially by the proclamation of his law, the grace of the Holy Spirit is at the same time present, who wishes to work conversion in our heart; and therefore, in his knocking, he not only stands without, but also works within.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Rev 3:20 . The language recalls Son 5:2 ( φωνὴ ἀδελφιδοῦ μου κρούει ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν · ἄνοιξον μοι , for contemporary evidence of the allegorical use of Canticles see Gunkel’s note on 4 Esdras. 5:20 f. and Bacher’s Agada d. Tannaiten , i. 109, 285 f. 425, etc.) interpreted in the eschatological sense ( γινώσκετε ὅτι ἐγγύς ἐστιν ἐπὶ θύραις Mar 13:29 = Mat 24:33 ) of the logion in Luk 12:35-38 upon the servants watching for their Lord, ἵνα ἐλθόντος καὶ κρούσαντος εὐθέως ἀνοίξωσιν αὐτῷ (whereupon, as here, he grants them intimate fellowship with himself and takes the lead in the matter). To eat with a person meant, for an Oriental, close confidence and affection. Hence future bliss ( cf. En. lxii. 14) was regularly conceived to be a feast ( cf. Dalman i. § 1, [910] . 4 a and Volz 331), or, as in Luk 22:29-30 and here ( cf. Rev 3:21 ), feasting and authority. This tells against the otherwise attractive hypothesis that the words merely refer to a present repentance on the part of the church or of some individuals in it (so e.g. de Wette, Alf., Weiss, Simcox, Scott), as if Christ sought to be no longer an outsider but a welcome inmate of the heart ( cf. Ruskin’s Sesame and Lilies , § 95). The context ( cf. 18 and 21), a comparison of Rev 16:15 (which may even have originally lain close to Rev 3:20 ), and the words of Jas 5:9 ( ἰδοὺ ὁ κριτὴς πρὸ τῶν θυρῶν ἕστηκεν ) corroborate the eschatological interpretation (so e.g. Düsterdieck, Pfleid., Bousset, Forbes, Baljon, Swete, Holtzmann), which makes this the last call of Christ to the church when he arrives on the last day, though here Christ stands at the door not as a judge but as a friend. Hence no reference is made to the fate of those who will not attend to him. In Rev 2:5 ; Rev 2:16 , ἔρχομαι σοι need not perhaps be eschatological, since the coming is conditional and special, but ἔρχομαι by itself (Rev 3:11 ) and ἥξω (Rev 2:25 ) must be, while Rev 3:3 probably is also, in view of the context and the thief-simile. The imminent threat of Rev 3:16 is thus balanced by the urgency of Rev 3:20 . For the eschatological ἰδού cf. Rev 1:7 , Rev 16:15 , Rev 21:3 , Rev 22:7 ; Rev 22:12 . φωνῆς , implying that the voice is well-known. To pay attention to it, in spite of self-engrossment and distraction, is one proof of the moral alertness ( ζήλευε ) which means repentance. For the metaphorical contrast (reflecting the eternal paradox of grace) between the enthroned Christ of 21 and the appealing Christ of 20, cf. the remarkable passage in Sap. 9:4; 9:6 f., 10 f ., where wisdom shares God’s throne and descends to toil among men; also Seneca’s Epp. lxi. (quemadmodum radii solis contingunt quidem terram, sed ibi sunt unde mittuntur; sic animus magnus et sacer conüersatur quidem nobiscum, sed haeret origini suae [Rev 5:6 ]: illinc pendet, illuc spectat ac nititur, nostris tanquam melior interest). By self-restraint, moderation, and patience, with regard to possessions, a man will be some day a worthy partner of the divine feast, says Epictetus ( Enchir. xv.): “but if you touch none of the dishes set before you and actually scorn them, τότε οὐ μόνον ἔσει συμπότης θεῶν ἀλλὰ καὶ συνάρχων .

[910] Codex Ephraemi (sæc. v.), the Paris palimpsest, edited by Tischendorf in 1843.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

This must be taken after the manner of an allegory, as John 14:23.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

stand--waiting in wonderful condescension and long-suffering.

knock-- (Sol 5:2). This is a further manifestation of His loving desire for the sinner's salvation. He who is Himself "the Door," and who bids us "knock" that it may be "opened unto" us, is first Himself to knock at the door of our hearts. If He did not knock first, we should never come to knock at His door. Compare Sol 5:4-6, which is plainly alluded to here; the Spirit thus in Revelation sealing the canonicity of that mystical book. The spiritual state of the bride there, between waking and sleeping, slow to open the door to her divine lover, answers to that of the lukewarm Laodicea here. "Love in regard to men emptied (humbled) God; for He does not remain in His place and call to Himself the servant whom He loved, but He comes down Himself to seek him, and He who is all-rich arrives at the lodging of the pauper, and with His own voice intimates His yearning love, and seeks a similar return, and withdraws not when disowned, and is not impatient at insult, and when persecuted still waits at the doors" [NICOLAUS CABASILAS in TRENCH].

my voice--He appeals to the sinner not only with His hand (His providences) knocking, but with His voice (His word read or heard; or rather, His Spirit inwardly applying to man's spirit the lessons to be drawn from His providence and His word). If we refuse to answer to His knocking at our door now, He will refuse to hear our knocking at His door hereafter. In respect to His second coming also, He is even now at the door, and we know not how soon He may knock: therefore we should always be ready to open to Him immediately.

if any man hear--for man is not compelled by irresistible force: Christ knocks, but does not break open the door, though the violent take heaven by the force of prayer (Mat 11:12): whosoever does hear, does so not of himself, but by the drawings of God's grace (Joh 6:44): repentance is Christ's gift (Act 5:31). He draws, not drags. The Sun of righteousness, like the natural sun, the moment that the door is opened, pours in His light, which could not previously find an entrance. Compare HILARY on Psa 118:19.

I will come in to him--as I did to Zaccheus.

sup with him, and he with me--Delightful reciprocity! Compare "dwelleth in me, and I in Him," Joh 6:56. Whereas, ordinarily, the admitted guest sups with the admitter, here the divine guest becomes Himself the host, for He is the bread of life, and the Giver of the marriage feast. Here again He alludes to the imagery of Sol 4:16, where the Bride invites Him to eat pleasant fruits, even as He had first prepared a feast for her, "His fruit was sweet to my taste." Compare the same interchange, Joh 21:9-13, the feast being made up of the viands that Jesus brought, and those which the disciples brought. The consummation of this blessed intercommunion shall be at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, of which the Lord's Supper is the earnest and foretaste.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 20. Behold, I stand at the door and knock] There are many sayings of this kind among the ancient rabbins; thus in Shir Hashirim Rabba, fol. 25, 1: "God said to the Israelites, My children, open to me one door of repentance, even so wide as the eye of a needle, and I will open to you doors through which calves and horned cattle may pass."

In Sohar Levit, fol. 8, col. 32, it is said: "If a man conceal his sin, and do not open it before the holy King, although he ask mercy, yet the door of repentance shall not be opened to him. But if he open it before the holy blessed God, God spares him, and mercy prevails over wrath; and when he laments, although all the doors were shut, yet they shall be opened to him, and his prayer shall be heard."

Christ stands - waits long, at the door of the sinner's heart; he knocks - uses judgments, mercies, reproofs, exhortations, c., to induce sinners to repent and turn to him he lifts up his voice - calls loudly by his word, ministers, and Spirit.

If any man hear] If the sinner will seriously consider his state, and attend to the voice of his Lord.

And open the door] This must be his own act, receiving power for this purpose from his offended Lord, who will not break open the door; he will make no forcible entry.

I will come in to him] I will manifest myself to him, heal all his backslidings, pardon all his iniquities, and love him freely.

Will sup with him] Hold communion with him, feed him with the bread of life.

And he with me.] I will bring him at last to dwell with me in everlasting glory.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

20. I stand at the door, and knock] The Lord expresses His affection, from which He has intimated that the Laodiceans are not excluded, by this figure of intense and condescending tenderness. It is intended to remind the readers of Son_5:2 : but the figure of the lover’s midnight visit is too delicate to bear being represented, as here, with a mixture of the thing signified with the image, especially since the visit is not to the Church, personified as a single female, but to any individual, and of either sex; so it is toned down into a visit from a familiar friend.

hear My voice] It is implied that anyone is sure to hear His knock, and be roused to ask who is there: but only those who love Him will know His voice (as Rhoda did St Peter’s, Act_12:14) when He says “It is I.”

will sup] The blessing promised is a secret one to the individual. There can thus hardly be a reference to the Holy Eucharist, which is shared publicly by the whole Church.

with him, and he with Me] The sense is, “I will take all he has to give Me, as though I had need of it, and benefited by it (cf. Mat_25:37-40): but at the same time, it will really be I that give the feast, and he that receives it.” There can hardly be a better illustration than a quaint and touching legend, given in a little book called Patranas, or Spanish Stories, with the title “Where one can dine, two can dine.”

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

He that hath an ear, let him hear,.... See Gill on Rev 2:7.

Next: Revelation Chapter 4

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

20 Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

Ver. 20. Behold, I stand] Christ stands, he doth not sit; now while a man is standing he is going. Christ is but a while with men in the opportunities of grace; he will not always wait their leisure. The Church sought him (when once gone) with many a heavy heart, Cant. iii.

And knock] By the hammer of my word and hand of my Spirit.

And open the door, &c.] sc. By teachableness and obedience. This is not spoken of the first act of conversion ( quae gratuita est et inopinata), but of the consequences of it; in which man, who being dead hath been made alive, ought to co-operate with God’s grace.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Behold, I stand at the door, and knock - Intimating that, though they had erred, the way of repentance and hope was not closed against them. He was still willing to be gracious, though their conduct had been such as to be loathsome, Rev 3:16. To see the real force of this language, we must remember how disgusting and offensive their conduct had been to him. And yet he was willing, notwithstanding this, to receive them to his favor; nay more, he stood and pled with them that he might be received with the hospitality that would be shown to a friend or stranger. The language here is so plain that it scarcely needs explanation. It is taken from an act when we approach a dwelling, and, by a well-understood sign - knocking - announce our presence, and ask for admission. The act of knocking implies two things:

(a)That we desire admittance; and,

(b)That we recognize the right of him who dwells in the house to open the door to us or not, as he shall please.

We would not obtrude upon him; we would not force his door; and if, after we are sure that we are heard, we are not admitted, we turn quietly away. Both of these things are implied here by the language used by the Saviour when he approaches man as represented under the image of knocking at the door: that he desires to be admitted to our friendship; and that he recognizes our freedom in the matter. He does not obtrude himself upon us, nor does he employ force to find admission to the heart. If admitted, he comes and dwells with us; if rejected, he turns quietly away - perhaps to return and knock again, perhaps never to come back. The language used here, also, may be understood as applicable to all persons, and to all the methods by which the Saviour seeks to come into the heart of a sinner. It would properly refer to anything which would announce his presence: his word; his Spirit; the solemn events of his providence; the invitations of his gospel. In these and in other methods he comes to man; and the manner in which these invitations ought to be estimated would be seen by supposing that he came to us personally and solicited our friendship, and proposed to be our Redeemer. It may be added here, that this expression proves that the attempt at reconciliation begins with the Saviour. It is not that the sinner goes out to meet him, or to seek for him; it is that the Saviour presents himself at the door of the heart, as if he were desirous to enjoy the friendship of man. This is in accordance with the uniform language of the New Testament, that “God so loved the world as to give his only-begotten Son”; that “Christ came to seek and to save the lost”; that the Saviour says, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden,” etc. Salvation, in the Scriptures, is never represented as originated by man.

If any man hear my voice - Perhaps referring to a custom then prevailing, that he who knocked spake, in order to let it be known who it was. This might be demanded in the night Luk 11:5, or when there was apprehension of danger, and it may have been the custom when John wrote. The language here, in accordance with the uniform usage in the Scriptures (compare Isa 55:1; Joh 7:37; Rev 22:17), is universal, and proves that the invitations of the gospel are made, and are to be made, not to a part only, but fully and freely to all people; for, although this originally had reference to the members of the church in Laodicea, yet the language chosen seems to have been of design so universal (ἐάν τις ean tis) as to be applicable to every human being; and anyone, of any age and in any land, would be authorized to apply this to himself, and, under the protection of this invitation, to come to the Saviour, and to plead this promise as one that fairly included himself. It may be observed further, that this also recognizes the freedom of man. It is submitted to him whether he will hear the voice of the Redeemer or not; and whether he will open the door and admit him or not. He speaks loud enough, and distinctly enough, to be heard, but he does not force the door if it is not voluntarily opened.

And open the door - As one would when a stranger or friend stood and knocked. The meaning here is simply, if anyone will admit me; that is, receive me as a friend. The act of receiving him is as voluntary on our part as it is when we rise and open the door to one who knocks. It may be added:

(1)That this is an easy thing. Nothing is more easy than to open the door when one knocks; and so everywhere in the Scriptures it is represented as an easy thing, if the heart is willing, to secure the salvation of the soul.

(2)This is a reasonable thing.

We invite him who knocks at the door to come in. We always assume, unless there is reason to suspect the contrary, that he applies for peaceful and friendly purposes. We deem it the height of rudeness to let one stand and knock long; or to let him go away with no friendly invitation to enter our dwelling. Yet how different does the sinner treat the Saviour! How long does he suffer him to knock at the door of his heart, with no invitation to enter - no act of common civility such as that with which he would greet even a stranger! And with how much coolness and indifference does he see him turn away - perhaps to come back no more, and with no desire that he ever should return!

I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me - This is an image denoting intimacy and friendship. Supper, with the ancients, was the principal social meal; and the idea here is, that between the Saviour and those who would receive him there would be the intimacy which subsists between those who sit down to a friendly meal together. In all countries and times, to eat together, to break bread together, has been the symbol of friendship, and this the Saviour promises here. The truths, then, which are taught in this verse, are:

(1)That the invitation of the gospel is made to all - “if any man hear my voice”;

(2)That the movement toward reconciliation and friendship is originated by the Saviour - “behold, I stand at the door and knock”;

(3)That there is a recognition of our own free agency in religion - “if any man will hear my voice, and open the door”;

(4)The ease of the terms of salvation, represented by “hearing his voice,” and “opening the door”; and,

(5)The blessedness of thus admitting him, arising from his friendship - “I will sup with him, and he with me.” What friend can man have who would confer so many benefits on him as the Lord Jesus Christ? Who is there that he should so gladly welcome to his bosom?

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

There is a double interpretation of this text, each of them claiming under very valuable interpreters; some making it a declaration of Christ’s readiness to come in to souls, and to give them a spiritual fellowship and communion with himself; others interpreting it of Christ’s readiness to come to the last judgment, and to take his saints into an eternal joyful fellowship and communion with himself: hence there is a different interpretation of every sentence in the text.

I stand at the door; either, in my gospel dispensations, I stand at the door of sinners’ hearts; or, I am ready to come to judge the world.

And knock, by the inward monitions and impressions of my Spirit, or my ministers more externally; or, I am about to knock, that is, I am ready to have the last trump sounded.

If any man hear my voice, and open the door; that is, if any man will hearken to the counsels and exhortations of my ministers, and to the monitions of my Spirit, and not resist my Holy Spirit; or, if any man hath heard my voice, and opened his heart to me.

I will come in to him; I will come in by my Spirit, and all the saving influences of my grace; or, I will come to him as a Judge to acquit him.

And will sup with him, and he with me; and I will have a communion with him in this life, he shall eat my flesh, and drink my blood; or, I will have an eternal fellowship and communion with him in my glory. The phrase seems rather to favour the first sense; the so frequent mention before of Christ’s coming to judgment, and the reward of another life, as arguments to persuade the angels of the churches to their duty, favours the latter sense.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

20. Behold—The apparently broken connexion between this and the former verses of this address will be restored, if we consider the verse as a quotation from Solomon’s Song, Son_5:2-6. The Church of Laodicea is represented by the sleepy bride at whose door the bridegroom knocks, but she is so remiss that she opens the door too late, for he is gone. She says, “It is the voice of my beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to me, my love; for my head is filled with dew, and my locks with the drops of the night.” The allusion shows to Laodicea the love between the Saviour and the Church, but the fearful danger of a deferred welcome to him.

I stand at the door, and knock—There is a wonderful pathos in the picture. It is the supplicator Christ. It is night, and the darkness and damps are falling upon him. He is rejected by the sons of men almost the entire world round, and comes for admission at the door of one who professes to love him.

If any man—Of the Laodicean Church immediately, of the whole world inferentially.

Open the door—For, though Lord of all power, he will never force the door open. There is a solemn if which every man must decide for himself.

I will—God’s will is to knock; and if man’s will is to open, then comes Christ’s will to come in.

Sup—The evening dinner, as we may say; the principal meal of the day.

With him—As his guest.

He with me—As my guest; I being truly his host. And, continuing the reference to Solomon’s Song, this is the supper of Christ and his bride, the Church; the marriage supper of the Lamb, which is symbolically ever repeating itself here, but plenarily consummated at the resurrection of the just. Note 19.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I stand at the door, and knock - Even at this instant; while he is speaking this word. If any man open - Willingly receive me. I will sup with him - Refreshing him with my graces and gifts, and delighting myself in what I have given. And he with me - In life everlasting.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

These words are very expressive of the tender love and gracious condescension of Christ towards poor sinners; full of heavenly rhetoric, to win and gain their hearts unto himself.

Here observe, That man’s heart is Christ’s door, that this door of the heart is naturally shut, yea, locked and barred against Christ by ignorance and infidelity; that, notwithstanding this, Christ knocks graciously at the door of men’s hearts by his word, by his rod, by his Spirit: knocking is a vehement motion, a reiterated motion, we knock again and again; a gradual motion, first more gently, then loudly; and it is a finite motion, men will not always continue knocking, but if none answer, they turn their backs and go their way. All the knocks 0f Christ will cease and end, his Spirit will not always strive.

Farther observe, Christ doth not only knock, but stands knocking; it denotes the assiduity of Christ in waiting upon sinners, and his patience in knocking; standing is a waiting posture, it denotes an earnest desire and patient expectation.

Observe, Though Christ knocks at the door of man’s heart, he doth not break it open, he doth not offer violence to men’s wills, and save them against their wills; but the Holy Spirit inclines them to hear Christ’s voice, and enables them to open the door to him, causing them to approve of and consent to the offer and call of Christ.

Observe, That the door is no sooner open, but Christ comes in, and sups with the sinner: his coming in denotes our union to him; his supping, our communion with him, imperfect on earth, complete in heaven; there is a mutual, sweet, and intimate communion between Christ and believers here on earth; there will be a perfect, complete, and uninterrupted communion with him in heaven, when they shall ever be with the Lord.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. The language implies that Christ is near. If they will open the door by repentance he is ready to enter and bless. If any man hear my voice. Hear and obey. Then the Lord will enter and they shall partake together of the richness of the feast.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

20. ἀκούσῃ τῆς φωνῆς μου καί. These words, attested by all MSS. and versions, are absent from four quotations of Origen, one of Hilary and one of Epiphanius.

ἀνοίξῃ. א reads ἀνοίξω.

εἰσελεύσομαι. With AP; Tisch[141] reads καὶ εἰσελεύσομαι with אB2.

[141] Tischendorf: eighth edition; where the text aud notes differ the latter are cited.

20. ἕστηκα ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν καὶ κρούω. The Lord expresses His affection, from which He has intimated that the Laodiceans are not excluded, by this figure of intense and condescending tenderness. It is intended to remind the readers of Son 5:2: but the figure of the lover’s midnight visit is too delicate to bear being represented, as here, with a mixture of the thing signified with the image, especially since the visit is not to the Church, personified as a single female, but to any individual, and of either sex; so it is toned down into a visit from a familiar friend.

ἐάν τις ἀκούσῃ τῆς φωνῆς μου. It is implied that anyone is sure to hear His knock, and be roused to ask who is there: but only those who love Him will know His voice (as Rhoda did St Peter’s, Act 12:14) when He says “It is I.”

δειπνήσω. The blessing promised is a secret one to the individual. There can thus hardly be a reference to the Holy Eucharist, which is shared publicly by the whole Church.

μετ ̓ αὐτοῦ καὶ αὐτὸς μετ ̓ ἐμοῦ. The sense is, “I will take all he has to give Me, as though I had need of it, and benefited by it (cf. Mat 25:37-40): but at the same time, it will really be I that give the feast, and he that receives it.” There can hardly be a better illustration than a quaint and touching legend, given in a little book called Patranas, or Spanish Stories, with the title “Where one can dine, two can dine.”

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

20.] Behold, I stand at the door (the construction with the prep. of motion after ἕστηκα, is perhaps owing to the idea of motion conveyed in the verb,—“I have placed myself.” See reff., especially ref. Luke) and knock (the reference to Son 5:2 is too plain to be for a moment doubted: and if so, the interpretation must be grounded in that conjugal relation between Christ and the church,—Christ and the soul,—of which that mysterious book is expressive. This being granted, we may well say, that the vivid depiction of Christ standing at the door is introduced, to bring home to the lukewarm and careless church the truth of His constant presence, which she was so deeply forgetting. His knocking was taking place partly by the utterance of these very rebukes (ἐλέγχω), partly by every interference in judgment and in mercy. Whenever His hand is heard, He is knocking at the door. But it is not His hand only that may be heard: see below): if any man hear my voice (here we have more than the mere sound of his knock: He speaks. See Act 12:13 f. κρούσαντος δὲ τοῦ Πέτρου τὴν θύραν … ἐπιγνοῦσα τὴν φωνὴν τοῦ Πέτρου. In that case we must conceive Rhoda to have asked “who is there?” and Peter to have answered. It may not be uninstructive to fill up this connexion in a similar manner. “It is I,” is an answer the soul may often hear, if it will enquire the reason of an unexpected knock at the door of its slumbers; or we may compare Son 5:2, φωνὴ ἀδελφιδοῦ μου κρούει ἐπὶ τὴν θύραν, Ἄνοιξόν μοι), and open the door (ἀκούσῃ, ἀνοίξῃ, aorists, because prior in time to the futures which follow: “shall have heard,” “shall have opened:” but it would be pedantry thus to render them in our language. On the sense, cf. Son 5:6.

Our verse is a striking and decisive testimony to the practical freedom of our will to receive or reject the heavenly Guest: without the recognition of which, the love and tenderness of the saying become a hideous mockery.

We then open the door to Christ, when we admit Him, His voice, His commands, His example, to a share in our inner counsels and sources of action. To say that this can be done without His grace, is ignorance: to say it is done only by that grace irresistibly exerted, is far worse—it is, to deprive His gracious pleadings of all meaning), [and] (this καί is superfluous in the sense, merely expressing the sequence: and may on that account have been omitted) I will enter in to him, and I will sup with him, and he with me (the imagery is taken from the usages of intimate hospitality. But whereas in these it would be merely the guest who would sup with the host who lets him in, here the guest becomes himself the host, because He is the bread of life, and the Giver of the great feast of fat things and of the great marriage supper (Mat 8:11, Mat 8:25:1 ff.; ch. 19:7, 9).

St. John is especially fond of reporting these sayings of reciprocity which our Lord uttered: cf. Joh 6:56 (10:38), 14:20, 15:4, 5, 17:21, 26. This blessed admission of Christ into our hearts will lead to His becoming our guest, ever present with us, and sharing in all our blessings—and, which is even more, to our being ever in close union with Him, partaking ever of His fulness, until we sit down at His table in his Kingdom).

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I stand at the door and knock. Compare Son 5:2, Krouw I knock was regarded as a less classical word than koptw. Krouw is to knock with the knuckles, to rap; koptw, with a heavy blow; yofein of the knocking of some one within the door, warning one without to withdraw when the door is opened. Compare Jas 5:9. "He at whose door we ought to stand (for He is the Door, who, as such, has bidden us to knock), is content that the whole relation between Him and us should be reversed, and, instead of our standing at His door, condescends Himself to stand at ours" (Trench). The Greeks had a word quraulein for a lover waiting at the door of his beloved. Trench cites a passage from Nicolaus Cabasilas, a Greek divine of the fourteenth century : "Love for men emptied God (Phi 2:7). For He doth not abide in His place and summon to Himself the servant whom He loved; but goes Himself and seeks him; and He who is rich comes to the dwelling of the poor, and discloses His love, and seeks an equal return; nor does He withdraw from him who repels Him, nor is He disgusted at his insolence; but, pursuing him, remains sitting at his doors, and that He may show him the one who loves him, He does all things, and sorrowing, bears and dies."

My voice. Christ not only knocks but speaks. "The voice very often will interpret and make intelligible the purpose of the knock" (Trench). Hear - open the door. No irresistible grace.

Will sup [δειπνησω] . See on Luk 14:12. For the image, compare Son 5:2 - 6; Son 4:16; Son 2:3. Christ is the Bread of Life, and invites to the great feast. See Mt 8:11; Mt 25:1 sqq. The consummation will be at the marriage - supper of the Lamb (Mr 14:25; Rev 19:7 - 9).

He with me. It is characteristic of John to note the sayings of Christ which express the reciprocal relations of Himself and His followers. See Joh 6:56; Joh 10:38; Joh 14:20; Joh 14:4, 5; Joh 17:21, 26. Compare Joh 14:23.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.