Scriptures: John 10, Hebrews 9
In the same way that Jesus hinted his identity as the Son of David by quoting David and doing what David did, Jesus hinted at his ancient identity through the “I am” statements recorded by the Apostle John. When the religious leaders and guards came to arrest Jesus, and asked which one of them was Jesus the Nazarene, Jesus responded by using the name God told Moses to say to the Israelites when explaining God’s identity: I AM. John 18:6 tells us that when Jesus said this, they drew back and fell to the ground. When Jesus, the Word of God speaks the name of God, every knee will bow! Not only is Jesus one with I AM, he came to reveal I AM to us. The book of John contains Jesus’ “I am” statements which point us to the Old Testament scriptures revealing the Messiah.
In John 10:7 Jesus declares, “I am the door of the sheep” (ESV). He’s talking about a sheep pen where he takes care of God’s flock. “If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9). At first glance, it looks like Jesus is simply saying we get to go to heaven by receiving Jesus as our Lord and Savior, which is true. But Jesus said we would go in and out of the Door. If the Door is salvation only, why would we ever go out? The Door is not merely salvation from death and the final judgment, he is the doorway though which we access God’s presence so we can enjoy a relationship with the Father while we are here on earth.
Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). The “way” to the Father is through the shed blood of Jesus’ sacrifice. The way the priests were consecrated to God, which enabled them to enter God’s presence in the tabernacle, was by being sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice. In the Old Testament, God’s presence dwelled above the ark of the covenant in the tabernacle God instructed Moses to build. Hebrews tells us this tabernacle was patterned after God’s dwelling place in heaven. The way to the Father is the same in heaven as on earth. Every item in the tabernacle points to Jesus and is fulfilled in him because Jesus is the way to the Father.
In the outer court was the altar of sacrifice and wash basin for the priests. Only the priests could go through the door to the next room, the Holy Place. In the Holy Place was the seven-branched lampstand, a table with twelve loaves of bread – one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel – called the Bread of the Presence, and an altar of incense. There was a veil separating that room from the Most Holy Place where God’s presence dwelt above the ark. Only the high priest could go in there and only on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Not only did the veil tear the moment Jesus was crucified, indicating that there was no longer going to be a separation between God and man, Jewish sages record that around that same time the door to the Holy Place began mysteriously opening by itself. God was welcoming all who would receive Jesus to become a royal priesthood.
Jesus came to give us access to personal communion with God like Moses enjoyed, so we can go into his presence through the Door to the Holy Place to ask the Father for what we need, then go back out into the world with God’s provision. The Holy Place on earth is now inside believers in Jesus, where God’s Spirit dwells, because we are now God’s temple. To go in, we have to first receive Jesus as the sacrifice for our sins at the altar and be sprinkled by his blood. Everything in the tabernacle was sprinkled with the blood of animals because without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin (Hebrews 9:21-22). By receiving Jesus’ shed blood on our behalf, we receive the Father’s forgiveness and are welcomed into his presence without guilt or shame.
Next, we go to the wash basin where the priests would get clean before going into the Holy Place, representing the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit” (John 3:5). Jesus is the fountain of living water. Just as we were physically born by coming out of the waters of our mother’s womb, we are reborn through water baptism. We die to self when we go down into the water so we can come up out of the water reborn as a new creation. Jesus makes us holy and cleanses us “by the washing with water through the word” (Ephesians 5:26). The word is revelation. Jesus, the Word, gave us the revelation of the Father who receives us with joy when we repent, so we need not fear entering his presence. Repentance isn’t just turning away from sin but turning toward God, which is something we do daily.
On the night Jesus was arrested, he washed his disciples’ feet and instructed them to do likewise. Even though we are clean through baptism, our feet still connect us to this broken world, so we need to continually wash off of each other the dirt that accumulates in daily living. We wash off offense, bitterness, pride, fear of man, unforgiveness, unbelief – anything that would hinder us from entering God’s presence to worship and receive from the Lord as his beloved child. When we find ourselves struggling to connect with God, it doesn’t mean we’re no longer saved. We just need to meet Jesus at the altar and thank him for his sacrifice, then ask him to wash us with his word by revealing anything that’s hindering our belief so we can go into the Holy Place of communion with the Father who loves us.
Another way to translate the word door in John 10 is gate. Jesus is the Gate who allows his sheep into the Father’s flock and keeps the unruly goats out. The Word is the gate to our heart, deciding which thoughts and emotions get in. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 10:5 to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ. When the world or the enemy presents a thought that is contrary to what the Bible says, we stop at the Gate, Jesus, and ask him to examine it before bringing it into our heart. If Jesus says it doesn’t line up with truth, it stops at the Gate and is not allowed to enter. Philippians 4 tells us to bring anxious thoughts before the Lord in prayer with thanksgiving. “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:7). Jesus is the guardian of our heart and mind who will keep us in peace when we take our troubles to him. He washes us with his word and ushers us into God’s presence where we find grace and mercy.
When we receive salvation through the blood and are reborn by the Spirit, we can enter into God’s presence through Jesus, the Door. We don’t wait to access his presence when we die; it is for right now! Just as Moses spoke with God in the tabernacle, Hebrews 10:19-25 tells us, “Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.”
Jesus came to make a way for us to worship God in spirit and in truth, enjoying his presence daily. We enter God’s presence through Jesus so we can draw near to God and receive what we need from him. Then we go out to encourage others, washing their feet and inviting them to join us in worship.
Response:
Thank you, Father, for sending Jesus to make a way for me to have a daily relationship with you. Thank you, Jesus, for your blood and for the living water of your Spirit that you have poured into me to wash me continually with your word. I come through the Door now to worship, listen, and receive from you.
