Christ the Savior is God, but He’s also man. He comes to the door of our heart and asks all who claim to be His people, His bride, to open the door and welcome Him in. He presents Himself at the door of our heart because He wants to enjoy the friendship and fellowship of man. For all those who have come to love Him, His love is dynamic and His desire is strong. That’s why He makes this appeal to man. If He didn’t love those who proclaim His name, even His godly humility wouldn’t allow Him to wait forever at a door that’s always closed!
The Bridegroom knocks at the sleepy bride’s door. She represents the Church of Laodicea today (the “Modern Church”).
The Sleepy Bride (the “Modern Church”)
“I sleep, but my heart waketh: it is the voice of my Beloved that knocketh, saying, Open to Me, My sister, My love, My dove, My undefiled…” (Song of Solomon 5:2). The Bridegroom knocks at the sleepy bride’s door. She represents the Church of Laodicea today (the “Modern Church”).
She may wake up eventually and open the door to Him. But it will be too late then, because He has already been forced to leave, since she has been so negligent. “I opened to my Beloved; but my Beloved had withdrawn Himself, and was gone: my soul failed when He spake: I sought Him, but I could not find Him; I called Him, but He gave me no answer” (Song of Solomon 5:6).
“I stand at the door, and knock…” paints a picture of Christ earnestly and humbly asking to be admitted into the heart of His bride.
Christ Must Come to the Door of Those Who Love Him
People over most of the world have hated and rejected Christ, so now He must come to be admitted at the door of the one who claims to love Him. “I stand at the door, and knock…” paints a picture of Christ earnestly and humbly asking to be admitted into the heart of His bride. We must consider this to be a scene of sympathetic pity.
“If any man…” This refers to the Laodicean Church here, but it can also be applied to the whole world.
“Open the door…” Even though Christ is the all-powerful Lord, He will never force the door open.
“I will…” It is Christ’s will to knock. If it’s man’s will to open the door, then it is Christ’s will to come in.
“Sup…” means the main meal of the day—the evening dinner.
We Are His Host and He Is Our Guest
“with Him…” means we are His guest, and “He with me…” means that He is our guest, because we truly are His host. This is the supper of Christ and His bride, the Church. It is also called the marriage supper of the Lamb. It is symbolically repeated often here as the Lord’s Supper, but it will be fully concluded when the resurrection of the just takes place.
“Behold, I stand at the door…” The idea here is not to make the Church think of the continual presence of the Lord. It is meant to give us reassurance that He assumed a new position, that He’s present to judge, and that He’ll admit His people to the full enjoyment of His promised blessedness immediately once we open the door.
It’s time to realize that the Lord is standing at the door of our heart and therefore His presence is near.
Jesus is Standing at the Door of Our Heart
“…and knock…” (Revelation 3:20). Knocking shows us how near Jesus really is now, and that He is fully prepared to bless us. It’s time to realize that the Lord is standing at the door of our heart and therefore His presence is near.
“I will sup with him, and he with Me” should be read as one statement. This combination expresses both the joy and the glory of the world to come, where believers will be with the Lord forever. When we read the words of the Song of Solomon, we’re led to see how much festivity and joy there will be at the time of the Lord’s marriage to His Beloved, His Bride—His Church.
The Last Supper and the Marriage Supper
“And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God” (Revelation 19:9). We could also link the thought of the Last Supper in the Upper Room at Jerusalem with this supper. The Last Supper was not simply a memorial of Christ’s death. It was also a spiritual feast in which the life of the believer is most intimately bound up with that of his Lord, in which the union between them is the closest of all unions, that between the Bridegroom and the bride.
“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 [I] will sup with him, and he [will sup] with Me” (Revelation 3:20). This verse is often used to appeal to unbelievers to become believers, but it was primarily given to a Church. This group closed the door to the Lord, so the plea now has to be made to individuals within the assembly.
To “stand at the door” refers to Christ’s sudden coming to carry out judgment on this planet, a time which is very close. But so much religious tumult is occurring today that it’s very hard to hear His voice anymore.
…the Modern Church of these last days has made itself another door. Christ is now compelled to make an appeal to individuals, since He has been rejected by His own Church.
The Modern Church Is at the Door of Its Own Making
“…and open the door…” The true door is Christ. But the Modern Church of these last days has made itself another door. Christ is now compelled to make an appeal to individuals, since He has been rejected by His own Church. As a matter of fact, most of the human race around this world has rejected Him! But He knows what it will mean for us to lose Him. He knows how tragic our future will be without Him. Therefore, He continues to make this earnest appeal to us because He has such deep concern for us.
“I will come in to him…” means that Christ is willing to show Himself to us. He’s also willing to heal our backsliding, to pardon our iniquities, and to love us freely and forever.
Supper — The Last Meal Eaten Before the Day Opens
“…and will sup with him…” Supper refers to the evening meal, the last meal taken before the next day breaks. To sup with Christ before the morning comes means to be looking forward to His coming glory. It refers here to Christ having communion with us and feeding us with the bread of life—which is Him.
“…and he with Me…” means that Christ will eventually bring all the people who belong to Him to live with Him in glory forever.
The Final Call for Supper Before the Great Tribulation
“I sleep, but my heart waketh: it’s the voice of my beloved that knocketh…” (Song of Solomon 5:2). Christ is the “Beloved” of the Song of Solomon. His ardent, longing love for every one of us is gently uncovered here. Christ can be seen here in all His tenderness and devotion for His bride that is beyond calculation. He’s inviting the Church to the final evening meal—the marriage supper of Christ and His bride, the True Church. This will be the last call for supper before the terrible night of the Great Tribulation begins. It won’t be much longer now before the last day comes when Christ won’t knock anymore, when His Spirit will no longer strive with man.
His Voice and Knocking Is Aimed At Our Conscience and Spirit
Wherever Christ finds a closed heart, we’ll find Him outside knocking. His knockings and His voice are aimed at our conscience and our spirit. His Spirit is warning man, and sending direct invitations out to us, by both the written and spoken Word of God. What are these warnings? They’re anything that will convince our heart to give in to Him, to open the door to Him, and to put Him on the throne of our heart. To come into our heart is Christ’s uttermost desire.
We Must Show That We’re Ready to Receive Him
Christ is still coming to the door of our heart right now by both His Word and His Spirit. He is pleading with us to “open the door!” We are to be looking constantly and waiting for His coming, while we make ourselves ready as His bride to receive Him. We need to show Christ that we’re ready for Him to come. All those who willingly open to Him will find great joy in His loving presence.
Christ doesn’t try to get people to come to Him by using irresistible force.
“If any man hear….” We can’t hear on our own, but only as God’s grace draws us. Christ doesn’t try to get people to come to Him by using irresistible force. It can only happen through each person’s own choice.
We Must Make Up Our Mind To Receive Him or Not
Can you hear Christ as He calls loudly right now by His Word, by His Holy Spirit and by His faithful ministers? Are you listening and responding to His call? You need to be ready to welcome Him into your life. You must make up your mind whether you’ll receive Him or reject Him. The worst thing you can choose to do is to do nothing, because this will keep the door shut right in His face. Most of those who fail to reach Him did it this way. Those who decide to not do anything are keeping the Savior waiting outside the door. Yet, He is still standing patiently at your door right now, knocking and waiting for you.
If you were to find yourself shut out from where you have a right to be, what would you do? You’d either rise up to declare your rights, or you’d leave angry. But Christ isn’t like that! The One Who is meek and lowly of heart is making His gentle but final appeal to each and every individual heart. It has now been many centuries, but He’s still standing, patiently knocking and waiting at the door.
You could have opened the door right then if you had wanted to, and welcomed Him in. You already know that there is nobody and nothing keeping the door shut except you.
We Alone Are Keeping the Door of Our Heart Shut
Have you ever brought your heart and conscience into contact with the offer of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ? You could have opened the door right then if you had wanted to, and welcomed Him in. You already know that there is nobody and nothing keeping the door shut except you. He’s the Lord of all power, but He’ll never force the door open if you don’t open it voluntarily. You must make the decision for yourself. Right now is the time that we need to throw open the door to our heart, to make it clear that we’re ready for Christ to come in!
We Can Respond to Him Right Now
It will only be a little while longer and then the last trump will sound. This tells us that Christ’s coming for His own, His bride, is very, very near. We can respond to His knock right now and open the door of our heart to Him. If you’re willing to open it, He’s ready and willing to come in and bless you with His presence and undying love forever. Why not open the door of our heart and ask Him into our life today, while we still can!
For more information on how to open the door of our heart and let Him in please visit our page on The Way to God.
[Additional image credits: Featured image (when applicable) by Christoph Schütz from Pixabay; Opening Image from British Museum on Picryl (Public Domain Mark PDM)]
