Friday 19 October 2012

The door to abundant life


I am 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.  – John 10.9-10

I enjoy seeing all of times where Jesus uses the words ‘I am.’ Not all of them of course have the same meaning or impact as the simple but profound ‘I AM’ but they do tell is much about Him. 'I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life' and many other examples. And here He says, 'I am the door.'

Here Jesus made a very simple statement. He set the standard. He made it all clear. There are not many doors to heaven. There is one door and He is that door. The wonderful thing is that the door is open to anyone. It is not a closed door. There is not a secret password. ‘If anyone enters the door through Christ he will be saved, will go in, and find pasture. He doesn’t even have to wait for heaven, the pasture is there at salvation.

There it is in black and white (or red and white is you use a red letter Bible) – Jesus is the door to salvation. Anyone who wants can enter through Him and find eternal life.

But not only is it eternal life. There is also abundant life.

We all know that there are times when our lives are not materially abundant. Possessions come and good and we face good times and bad times. Situations change. We may be on top of the mountain one day and in the deepest valley the next.

No matter what we face though we can fall back on the spiritual abundance that Jesus provides. There have been times in my life when if the here and now and the ‘things that are seen’ were all I had I would have given up hope. The abundance in my life is not from those things. It is from the ‘things unseen’ that last for eternity. My abundance comes in the fact that no matter what I face Jesus is there with me. My abundance comes in knowing that this is not all there is.

Praise God that Jesus not only gave me life forever, but He gave and gives and will give it abundantly forever and ever. 

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