Open the Door

Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord.” John 20:18

Few of us can say we have seen the Lord, but I have a friend who swears Jesus came to her bedside when she was young. Then there is the famous CNN sportscaster, Nick Charles, who died of bladder cancer. He too was visited by Jesus who sat with him while he was struggling with pain. “It wasn’t a hallucination,” he said. He told Jesus he was ready to go home, but Jesus said, “Not yet.” 

The thing is most of the time, we need to do things our way and refuse to open the door. Celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain had a dream job, traveling around the world, and eating all kinds of food with interesting people. He really lived up to what he believed, “Your body is not a temple, it’s an amusement park. Enjoy the ride!” Perhaps if he had been more open to what the Bible had to say, he wouldn’t have committed suicide in a luxury hotel in France. “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself.” (1 Cor. 6:19)

During Holy Week, I saw a Facebook post of Mel Gibson talking to a bloody and battered Jim Caviezel, who acted the part of Jesus in the blockbuster movie, “The Passion of the Christ”. Mel Gibson looked like he was having a deep conversation with Jesus. The thing is, Jesus is always waiting for us to talk to Him. “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.” (Revelation 3:20) That is a promise we should claim again and again. To make a friend of Jesus who is willing to get bloodied and battered for us! If we open the door every day, one day we will say with excitement, “I have seen the Lord and it was awesome!”