Doors: Part 3

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear His voice; and He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.  Then Jesus said to them again, "Most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
All who ever came the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” 
John 10: 1-4 & 7-11

In 2017 I  read a book by Phillip Keller titled “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.”  I have not enjoyed a non-fiction book as much as this one (not counting the bible, of course).  Keller preaches the Truth so eloquently that it struck me to the core.   Keller opened up the world of shepherds I never knew.  After reading his book, the 23rd Psalm, as well as the fact that Jesus refers to Himself as our Good Shepherd, makes this comparison so much more meaningful.  Real sheep 100% rely on their shepherd to properly care for them.  A bad shepherd has underfed sheep full of parasites living in dying pastures.  Just like Jesus, a good shepherd takes care of His sheep’s every need.  He takes great care moving his sheep from pasture to pasture in order to assure they always have plenty of green grass.  He anticipates their every need.  (Please read Keller’s book, he says it so much better and you will see the bible in a completely new light.)

Only our True Shepherd may enter through the correct door to our hearts.  The thief and robber, Satan, may try to gain access, but the sheep (the true believer) will not recognize his voice, and will not let him in.  Or should not let Satan enter.  When we resist the devil in the name of Jesus, he will flee.  Our Good Shepherd protects not only the doors to our heart, but literally laid His life down for us. 

Jesus is the door of life.  Jesus longs only for good things for our lives (see Jeremiah 29:11), and desires that we may lie down in green, lush, beautiful pastures next to still waters.  He longs for a life full of abundance, or full of plentiful blessings.   

Satan is the door of death.  Why would you choose to walk through a dark and twisted door that would only steal, kill, and destroy your soul? 

Do not waste your life waiting to decide whom you will follow and allow access to the door of your heart.  Choose today whom you will serve.  Make Jesus Lord of your heart, mind, body, and soul.  Lock the door of your heart to the sins of this world, and do your very best to walk down paths of righteousness.    

Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! James 5:9

As I have previously mentioned, my blogs are not just for the sake of lecturing strangers.  What I write often ministers to me as well.  I do my very best to practice what I preach.  Therefore, I will not be a hypocrite as I attempt to preach how vital it is for us not to grumble. Instead, I will admit this is a huge flaw of mine that the Lord wants me to change.

Although the passage in James specifically mentions grumbling against one another, I am going to go a step farther by stating any type of complaining against the Lord is a sin.

Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.
Do all things without complaining and disputing,
that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world,
 holding fast the word of life. Philippians 2:12-15

I am not talking about getting annoyed because you live in an area that has seven months of winter or feel frustrated when you get hurt at work and are forced to quit a decent job.  These feelings are normal.  The bible says it is okay to be angry as long as we do not sin in our anger (Ephesians 4:26).  It becomes a sin when we take our anger out on God and have the nerve to address the Holy of Holies with, “How dare You do this to me!”  Or, “Why did You allow this to happen?”  In the midst of physical or emotional pain, it is often difficult to see the hand of God in the situation.  Nevertheless, God is always there.  Remember how I just wrote a few moments ago that our Good Shepherd only wants the best for us?  Of course you do!  God does not will for us to fall on the ice and further damage a fragile spine.  Bad things happen because we have a free will and life happens at a normal pace. We do not live in a bubble. Just because God did not prevent a much beloved animal from being taken away from you, does not mean He wanted your heart to be shattered.  Psalm 56:8 tells us that God keeps our tears in a bottle.  This means He sees us weeping alone in the night and has compassion for His children.   

I Corinthians 13:12 reminds us that our human knowledge is dimmed, and we very well may never understand the bad things that happen to us (and others) this side of eternity, but when we see Jesus face to face, all things will be made clear.  It is hard to imagine such clarity, but I have heard several testimonies of those who have died, went to heaven, and then were sent back to earth, say that while they were in heaven, all things suddenly made perfect sense.  Never had they felt such an amazing awareness and understanding of all things.  Yet, once they came back to their mortal body, the crystal clear knowledge left them.  My point is that God is fully aware of all that happens, and we can have peace knowing all things truly do work together for our own good because God is in control.  When I let this sink in, I grumble a lot less and can simply rest in knowing God has had the details of my life worked out since before I was born (see Psalm 1391:16 & Jeremiah 1:5). 

Now back to what James says about grumbling against others.  I am intolerant of those who are intolerant.  I am critical of those who are critical.  I want to change those who always want to change everyone else.  I cannot stand self-centered people because they don’t care if they hurt my feelings.  Why it took me 44 years to realize how hypocritical my grumblings are is a testament to just how stubborn I can be (I am now 47 year old).  I try to justify my hard heart by saying these people do not care whom they hurt and besides, God does not call me to like everyone.  While both these statements are true, God does expect me to love His creation, and this is difficult to do when all I see are their flaws.  I have a heart of compassion for people in general and care deeply about their souls (which is why I write a blog), so I am not saying I ever cease to care about someone’s spiritual condition, nor do I ever want anything bad to happen to anyone (even those who have hurt me).  I am not a cold person and typically care about other’s feelings, and have often been told I am too soft and tender-hearted.  With that said, there are certain personality traits I try to avoid.  Moreover, the list of people I would rather not be in the same room with is a bit too long.  In short, I spend too many hours grumbling to my husband about past and present wrongs and personality flaws of others.

“You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.' But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' [or dumb head] shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.” Matthew 5:21-22

When a reckless driver nearly causes an accident with you or someone else, I doubt the first words out of your mouth are, “Well, God bless him.”  Mine either.  It is usually something more like, “Idiot!”  The bible makes it very clear that we are not to use such insulting language.  I know this is not an easy command to follow.  For 4 1/2 years we lived in the mountains with narrow, windy roads.  To top it off, there were two very popular lakes in our county (I believe the one that is within walking distance from our house is the second most popular in the state).  Therefore, the combination of treacherous roads and excessive traffic creates a deadly combination.  I once had a deputy sheriff tell me that our county has a very high mortality rate on the roads due to this issue.  Not only do we hear and see Life Flight helicopters anywhere from two to seven times a week (the small hospital is literally behind our house), but when we are on the roads, we see and experience near-accidents almost every day.  Therefore, I will say it again, it is difficult for the cruel words not to shoot out of my mouth when a careless driver nearly costs someone their life. I learned to replace my words of anger with a prayer of thanks that no one was injured.  Focus on the positive, not the negative.  (By the way, Mel and I always pray for the person requiring helicopter transport and their family each time Life Flight lands behind our house.)

The truth is, people in general are rude, selfish, greedy, jealous, dishonest, and full of carnality.  We have all been wounded by people close to us based on all the above reasons.  The cruel and heartless actions of others are the excuses we (I) use to justify the anger and resentment that is so difficult to get rid of.  But we are not responsible for any one’s sins other than our own.  We cannot control our friends’, co-workers’, or family members’ actions.  Instead, we can allow the Holy Spirit to guide and control our own hearts and forgive those that have harmed our spouse or us.  We do not have to let harmful people back into our lives, but we do have to remove the root of bitterness choking out our relationship with Christ.  This is very difficult, and we can only be successful when we admit and confess that this is an issue of sin in our lives, repent, and then allow the love of Jesus to rule our hearts and let Him change us.   

Perhaps one of the reasons God placed it on my heart to write about the different doors in our lives was so I could be reminded that I need an attitude adjustment.  God is always  dealing with me on the heart issue of grumbling. With His help, I know I can have a softer heart.  I fully accept that God the Judge is always standing at the door to my heart, and I will always be held accountable for my negative attitudes.   

Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties;
and see if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Psalm 139:23-24

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit.  Psalm 51:7, 10-12