Who is Jesus Knocking For?
Scripture Focus: Revelation 3:20 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me."
The Context
We have likely all heard Revelation 3:20 used as a gentle invitation for salvation—a picture of Jesus waiting for a non-believer to invite Him into their heart. While the sentiment of Jesus desiring us is true, the context of this verse reveals a much more challenging message for us as believers.
As the text above reminds us, this letter wasn't written to the lost; it was written to the church at Laodicea. These were people who already claimed the name of Christ but had become "lukewarm." They weren't cold to the things of God, but they weren't on fire either. They were comfortable, complacent, and undisturbed by their spiritual stagnation.
The Challenge for Us
Jesus wasn't knocking on a stranger's door. He was knocking on the door of His own people—believers who had effectively shut Him out of their daily fellowship. He was asking to be let back in to sit on the throne of their hearts.
This changes the verse from a comforting invitation for "someone else" to a piercing question for us:
Have we, as Christians, become lukewarm?
Have we become so busy or self-sufficient that Jesus is standing on the outside of our daily lives, waiting to be invited back into fellowship?
True Salvation
If we want to share how to become a Christian, Scripture gives us clear paths in passages like Acts 2:38 or Acts 8:37—repentance, confession, and baptism. But Revelation 3:20 is a call to revival for those already saved.
Reflection
Let’s stop misusing this verse as just a salvation text and start letting it do its intended work: convicting the church. Do not be content with a lukewarm faith. If you hear His knock today, it’s a call to intimacy. Open the door, repent of complacency, and dine with the King once again.
Prayer
Lord, forgive us for the times we have kept You at the door of our lives. We don't want to be lukewarm Christians who are comfortable without Your active presence. We open the door today. Come in, take Your rightful place, and rekindle the fire in our hearts. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.