Christians habitually weep and pray over beautiful truth, only to draw back from that same truth when it comes to the difficult job of putting it into practice! Actually, the average church simply does not dare to check its practices against biblical precepts. It tolerates things that are diametrically opposed to the will of God, and if the matter is pointed out to its leaders, they will defend its unscriptural practices with a casuistry equal to the verbal dodgings of the Roman moralists. Can it be that there is no vital connection between the emotional and the volitional departments of life" Since Christ makes His appeal directly to the will, are we justified in wondering whether or not these divided souls have ever made a true commitment to the Lord" Or whether they have been inwardly renewed" It does appear that too many Christians want to enjoy the thrill of feeling right but not willing to endure the inconvenience of being right! Jesus Himself left a warning: "Thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead" (Revelation 3:lb).

A.W. Tozer's materials are a mainstay in Evangelical churches in our day and he is one of the most quoted authors. He was a prophet in his day and his writings are even more influential in our day. One of his books: The Pursuit of God, has had over 1 million copies sold world-wide.

Morning and Evening with A.W. Tozer

PRACTICING THE TRUTH

DEEP INSIDE EVERY MAN there is a private sanctum where dwells the mysterious essence of his being. This far-in reality is that in the man which is what it is of itself without reference to any other part of the man's complex nature. It is the man's "I Am," a gift from the I AM who created him.The I AM which is God is underived and selfexistent; the "I Am" which is man is derived from God and dependent every moment upon His creative fiat for its continued existence. One is the Creator, high over all, ancient of days, dwelling in light unapproachable. The other is a creature and, though privileged beyond all others, is still but a creature, a pensioner on God's bounty and a suppliant before His throne.The deep-in human entity of which we speak is called in the Scriptures the spirit of man. "For what man knoweth the things of man, save the spirit of man which is in him" even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God" (1 Corinthians 2:11) . As God's self-knowledge lies in the eternal Spirit, so man's selfknowledge is by his own spirit, and his knowledge of God is by the direct impression of the Spirit of God upon the spirit of man.The importance of all this cannot be overestimated as we think and study and pray. It reveals the essential spirituality of mankind. It denies that man is a creature having a spirit and declares that he is a spirit having a body. That which makes him a human being is not his body but his spirit, in which the image of God originally lay.One of the most liberating declarations in the New Testament is this: "The true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth" (John 4:23,24) . Here the nature of worship is shown to be wholly spiritual. True religion is removed from diet and days, from garments and ceremonies, and placed where it belongs-in the union of the spirit of man with the Spirit of God.From man's standpoint the most tragic loss suffered in the Fall was the vacating of this inner sanctum by the Spirit of God. At the far-in hidden center of man's being is a bush fitted to be the dwelling place of the Triune God. There God planned to rest and glow with moral and spiritual fire. Man by his sin forfeited this indescribably wonderful privilege and must now dwell there alone. For so intimately private is the place that no creature can intrude; no one can enter but Christ; and He will enter only by the invitation of faith. "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 will sup with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20).By the mysterious operation of the Spirit in the new birth, that which is called by Peter "the divine nature" enters the deep-in core of the believer's heart and establishes residence there. "If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his," for "the Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God" (Romans 8:9,16). Such a one is a true Christian, and only such. Baptism, confirmation, the receiving of the sacraments, church membership-these mean nothing unless the supreme act of God in regeneration also takes place. Religious externals may have a meaning for the God-inhabited soul; for any others they are not only useless but may actually become snares, deceiving them into a false and perilous sense of security."Keep thy heart with all diligence" is more than a wise saying; it is a solemn charge laid upon us by the One who cares most about us. To it we should give the most careful heed lest at any time we should let it slip.

Man - The Dwelling Place of God - Dwelling Place of God

For Reading and Meditation:      John 6:60-71The next aspect of Christian uniqueness we consider is the Person of our Lord Himself. "Christianity is Christ," said one great preacher. "He is not just the Founder of Christianity but its very foundation. On Him rests the weight of bringing all men and women to God." It is important to reflect at this point, as John Stott reminds us, that Christians must claim uniqueness and finality only for Christ, not for Christianity. We have to admit that over the centuries things have been done in the name of Christianity of which our Lord would not approve. The historical figure of Jesus and His teaching is the criterion by which everything must be measured. "Jesus Christ," said Bishop Stephen Neill, "is not in the least like anyone else who has ever lived." No one else in history can be compared to Him. You do not select Jesus Christ from rivals; He stands alone. He is not the first of a class; He occupies the category all by Himself. Simon Peter realized this, as we see from the passage before us today. When Christ's followers started to drift away because He began to disappoint the hopes they had of Him, it seems the disciples started reconsidering their position too. Jesus knew what was going on in their minds and broke in on their thoughts with the question: "You do not want to leave too, do you?" (v. 67). Somehow that question seemed to clarify their minds. They saw in a flash His inevitability. Peter answered for them all: "To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (v. 68). O God, drive this thought more deeply than ever into my soul that there is just no substitute for Jesus. He has no rivals. How glad I am that I belong to Him and He belongs to me. May the wonder of this fact grow and glow within me day by day. Amen.<div class="tl-lightgrey mt20 pt20 flexbox-row-wrap jc-around"><div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">AdditionalVerses</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>Philippians 1:21</li><li>Colossians 1:27</li><li>Revelation 3:20</li></ul></div>

<div><div class="fs-17 fg-mustard bold center-it">Questions to Consider</div><ul style="margin-top:0px"><li>What is the hope of glory?</li><li>What has Christ promised to those who respond to His voice?</li></ul></div></div>

Let a little light into your soul every day with this wonderful devotional from English pastor Selwyn Hughes.

Every Day Light with Selwyn Hughes

"From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him." (v. 66) 

What is your desire this evening? Is it set upon heavenly things? Do you long to enjoy the high doctrine of eternal love? Do you desire liberty in very close communion with God? Do you aspire to know the heights, and depths, and lengths, and breadths? Then you must draw near to Jesus; you must get a clear sight of him in his preciousness and completeness: you must view him in his work, in his offices, in his person. He who understands Christ, receives an anointing from the Holy One, by which he knows all things. Christ is the great master-key of all the chambers of God: there is no treasure-house of God which will not open and yield up all its wealth to the soul that lives near to Jesus. Are you saying, "O that he would dwell in my bosom?" "Would that he would make my heart his dwelling-place for ever?" Open the door, beloved, and he will come into your souls. He has long been knocking, and all with this object, that he may sup with you, and you with him. He sups with you because you find the house or the heart, and you with him because he brings the provision. He could not sup with you if it were not in your heart, you finding the house; nor could you sup with him, for you have a bare cupboard, if he did not bring provision with him. Fling wide, then, the portals of your soul. He will come with that love which you long to feel; he will come with that joy into which you cannot work your poor depressed spirit; he will bring the peace which now you have not; he will come with his flagons of wine and sweet apples of love, and cheer you till you have no other sickness but that of "love o'erpowering, love divine. " Only open the door to him, drive out his enemies, give him the keys of your heart, and he will dwell there for ever. Oh, wondrous love, that brings such a guest to dwell in such a heart!

This timeless classic from Charles Spurgeon will help to both start and end your day with wonderful insight into God's Word.

Charles Spurgeon's Morning & Evening

"If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him." - Revelation 3:20

Evening Devotional

That is the Gospel in brief. Listen! There's Someone at the door. Who is it? It's none other than the Lord of life and glory, the One who died as a Substitute for us and rose again the third day - the One who is now enthroned in glory and coming soon to take His people home to be with Himself. Tell Him to come in!

With reverence, humor and skill, William MacDonald wove a daily devotional tapestry that challenges the reader to think deeply and Biblically, and apply God's Word to their lives.

Truths to Live By - One Day at a Time

"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 will sup with him, and he with me (Revelation 3:20)

As many as I love. Is this the voice which has just been giving expression to such intensity of holy disgust? "Well may we marvel at the modulations of which it is susceptible. Ah, if there had not been love somewhere in thy heart, thou wouldst not have threatened the Laodiceans with ignominious ejection, but wouldst have cast them forth without any words of condescending reproach. Thou sawest how that confusion and alarm were being borne by thy words to their hearts, and how they began to exclaim, " Whither shall we flee from his presence? Who shall stand before him? For the day of his wrath is come." Thy words were mighty to tear down the palace of delight in which they had enshrined themselves; to tear it down for some at least. Even among these Laodiceans were some who had no idea of parting with Christ; and who, as soon as they saw that they had been building for themselves an edifice that Christ approved not, looked upon it with detestation, and loathed themselves for their inconsiderateness; they were appalled at the thought that Christ had perhaps had enough of them and had cast them clean off forever. So powerfully indeed was this view impressed upon them by the discovery of their folly, that they were fast giving way to a conviction that hope and they had parted company eternally. But the Saviour draws them from the brink of despair with the cords of love. " As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zealous, therefore, and repent." Knowing the terrors of the Lord, we persuade men: The love of Christ constraineth us. To those that are lukewarm, both the language of stern rebuke and the language of encouragement are necessary. Without experience of his indignation, they will derive no profit from the exhibition of his love. Too many churches, perhaps, derive no benefit from the preaching of Christ's love; from week to week, and from year to year, they only sink deeper in their spiritual apathy. They need to be brought acquainted with Christ's glance of fire, and to get their own indignation against themselves kindled by his indignation. There is nothing like the mingled indignation and love of the Saviour, for inspiring the soul with a genuine zeal to do his will. The indignation does not diminish the love, for it is the indignation of love, of wounded love. And when the heart has begun to burn with a steady zeal, then the indignation may withdraw into the past, and be looked at by memory, and the soul's uninterrupted experience be of love. Well for us, if we allow ourselves to hear the chastening rebuke of Christ contained in his word, and do not constrain him to clothe it in afflictive providences. Let us beware how we hide our conscience from the light of any portion of God's truth. At the door of many how long does Jesus stand and knock, while they hear not. They read, from time to time, the very words which express his deep dissatisfaction with the iniquity which they are regarding in their hearts; read, hear, but never discern the voice of Christ addressed to themselves. When in a rougher fashion he at length knocks at their door, they become aware that such a forcible appeal has been made necessary by their strange and long-protracted spiritual deafness. It is the office of conscience to rebuke. It does this, not as the enemy of the soul, but as the guardian of the soul's highest interests. It has, however, participated in the general ruin of our nature; and seldom speaks as the sincere servant of truth. But Christ is formed in us the hope of glory. Our conscience puts on Christ. The great need of the Christian is, that Christ and his conscience should be identified; that the rebuke of his conscience may ever be the rebuke of Christ. To this end let him give utmost heed to such rebukes; and by cords of love enchain his whole nature to the new Christ-conscience coming forth from the sepulcher of his dead nature.

A daily devotional written by a Baptist Missionary to India, Reverend George Bowen (1816-1888) over 150 years ago.

Bowen's Daily Meditations

"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten; be zealous therefore and repent. 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 will sup with him and he with me." - Revelation 3:19-20. 

In manifold ways, Christ reveals unto men that he is willing and ready to enter into relations with them; and to those who have already some knowledge of him, he gives many a token that he is ready to enter into more intimate and hallowed relations with them. He does not wait, that men should seek him; he does not send word that he is waiting for them; he comes to them. He does not merely come: he stands and knocks. The door is for the purpose of excluding enemies, and those whose visits are unwelcome; and you quickly rise when you hear the voice of a friend, and hasten to open the door that there may be no barrier between him and you. Another person might easily discover your feelings towards the one that knocks, by the response you make. Your countenance, your movements, all would show the feelings you entertain. Christ stands and knocks, and men are not aware of it. They are so busy hearkening to voices of earth, the world makes such a sound in their ears, or the slumber of unbelief is so heavy, that they hear not the Saviour's knock. Blessed are they who cultivate the faculty of quickly detecting the foot-fall of Christ, and start up as soon as they hear his knock. He knocks by his providence, as when he takes away your property, or your health, or your bosom friend; when he places you in new and trying circumstances with many and wide branching responsibilities; when he takes you away from loved scenes; when some mighty display of his power in the natural world, arrests your attention; - by his servants, moving them to address you in the language of exhortation or admonition; - by his word, with its gracious promises or tender upbraiding; - by a manifest work of grace in the heart of another. I say unto you, hearken; hearken diligently, turning away from the vain babbling of the world ; and you shall hear the knock of Christ. You shall never be without an intimation from him, that he is nigh and ready to bless. Show hospitality to him in the world and he will receive you into everlasting habitations; receive him into your heart and he will give you an abundant entrance into the glorious mansions of his Father. How wise was it in that poor woman to share her supper with Elijah; famine was just then coming over the threshold to install himself at her board ; but was compelled to take an everlasting flight. " If any man hear my voice, and open unto me," says Christ, " I will come in and sup with him and he with me; I will come and make his earthly lot glad with my presence, and he shall come and participate with me the glory and felicity of the heavenly life."

" Behold, I stand at the door and knock." - Revelation 3:20. 

We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. § Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. § At that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise … But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, … having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

Daily Light on the Daily Path or Daily Light is a Christian daily devotional scripture reading published by Bagster & Sons about 1875. It has been reprinted continually since then. It consists of brief groupings of scripture passages which speak to prominent Biblical themes—two themes (morning and evening) for each day of the year. It appends no commentary, but simply allows scripture to speak for itself.

Morning Daily Light

 This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat it. 

Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. I sleep, but my heart is awake; it is the voice of my beloved! He knocks, saying, “Open for me, my sister, my love, my dove, my perfect one.”… I opened for my beloved, but my beloved had turned away and was gone. My heart leaped up when he spoke. I sought him, but I could not find him; I  called him, but he gave me no answer. Speak, for Your servant hears. § When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and saw him, and said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste and came down, and received Him joyfully. § I will hear what God the Lord will speak, for He will speak peace to His people and to His saints; but let them not turn back to folly.

Evening Daily Light

 My sheep hear My voice. 

In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. § To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne. Thus says the High and Lofty One who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. § How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.

 “Rabbi . . . where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come and see.” 

20 <woj>Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.</woj>

<woj>Here I am! I stand at the door<cr>1</cr> and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,<cr>2</cr> I will come in<cr>3</cr> and eat with that person, and they with me.</woj><pb/>

Revelation 3:20

 20 Here I am! I stand at the door   and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,   I will come in   and eat with that person, and they with me. 

From Wikipedia: 

The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Bible first published in 1978 by Biblica (formerly the International Bible Society). The NIV was published to meet the need for a modern translation done by Bible scholars using the earliest, highest quality manuscripts available. Of equal importance was that the Bible be expressed in broadly understood modern English.

The NIV is published by Zondervan in the United States and Hodder & Stoughton in the UK. The NIV was updated in 1984 and 2011 and has become one of the most popular and best-selling modern translations.

OT: Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia; additional sources;
NT: UBS Greek New Testament; Novum Testamentum Graece; additional sources;

New International Version

 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. 

<woj>Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me.</woj>

 Here I am! I stand at the door   and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,   I will come in   and eat with that person, and they with me. 

Bible Verse of the Day

March 22, 2022

Revelation 3:20 NIV

Verse by Verse Bible Study

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