Thinking of life as a journey with many doors, you will already have passed through more than you can remember and passed by even more than you have noticed. Some have been very significant doors that you can bring to mind – the first day at secondary school, your first job, your decision to marry or the birth of a child. Others may come to mind that have brought you sorrow – an accident, a diagnosis, a redundancy, a death or a divorce. It’s hard to believe that this was the front door to a barn – locked from the inside, sealed up and forgotten, the ivy is closing over it and in time will completely hide it. You too will have doors that you may have forgotten – when did you last open them, what was the reason for closing them, where did they lead to? In 1854, artist William Holman Hunt painted the most famous contribution to art of his 54 paintings. Entitled ‘The Light of the World’, it depicted Jesus outside a door much like the one in this picture which is overgrown and has no external handle. The painting shows Jesus carrying a lantern and knocking on the door which symbolises the most important door, that of the heart.
- ‘When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us’ – Alexander Graham Bell
- ‘Beware of missing chances; otherwise it may be altogether too late some day’ – Franz Liszt
- ‘The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable’ – Brennan Manning
- ‘There are many men who are forgotten, who are despised, and who are trampled on by their fellows, but there never was a man who was so despised as the everlasting God has been!’ – Charles Spurgeon
The fancy name for Ivy is Hedera. Typically, it will grow 9 to 12 inches a year and can choke trees, accelerate rot, attract mosquitoes and cause mature trees to fall down during storms. It can also damage walls and weaken the structure of buildings if it is not cleared. Neglecting those first spreading stems like those pictured would lead to the door being covered and the door becoming forgotten. In the instance of Holman Hunt’s door, it represents a human heart that is hardened to the knocking of Christ as he asks to be let in. The handle is on the inside. A delivery person will not be overly persistent in knocking a door whereas Christ gently keeps on knocking. The problem is not that he stops knocking but that we stop hearing. Those who do open the door for a conversation with him are wise. Those who ask to check his ID are shrewd and will not be disappointed. Those who are initially intrigued but ask him to return at a more convenient time are in danger of shutting the door, becoming deaf to his knock and letting the ivy grow over the door.
- ‘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’ – Revelation 3:20
Elsewhere, there is a description of a door that opens into heaven but Jesus warns that there is a time limit on entry.
- ‘Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened’ – Matthew 7:7-8
- ‘Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, “Sir, open the door for us.” But he will answer, “I don’t know you or where you come from” – Luke 13:24-25
- ‘Then those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast, and the door was locked. Later, when the other five bridesmaids returned, they stood outside, calling, “Lord! Lord! Open the door for us!” But he called back, “Believe me, I don’t know you!” So you, too, must keep watch! For you do not know the day or hour of my return’ – Matthew 25:10-13
Take a look to see if there are any doors in your life that have covered over with ivy and become forgotten. If you find one, listen carefully and you may well hear a faint knocking. Jesus describes himself to be ‘the way, the truth and the life’ through which we come to God – he is the ‘gateway’ we must take care not to miss or dismiss. You might even find a long-forgotten door like that in The Chronicles of Narnia (C S Lewis) – it was vitally important for the ‘adventurers’ for it was the way back to safety.
Dallán Forgaill, was an early Christian Irish poet born in 530AD who wrote the famous hymn, ‘Be Thou My Vision’. Here it is sung by Keith & Kristyn Getty (look carefully for the door as you think about this Booster written with you in mind):
For more reading: The Gateway – Connect4Life