Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–

December 17– Evening

by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and edited by W. C. Neff

“I [Jesus] am the door; if any enters in, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.”

—John 10:9

Jesus, the great I AM, is the entrance into the true church, and the way of access to God himself. He gives to the man who comes to God by him four choice privileges.

First, the one who believes in Jesus will be saved. In the Old Testament, a man who had killed someone by mistake could flee to a City of Refuge; as soon as he entered the gate of that City, he was safe from his pursuer. Noah entered the door of the ark and was saved. No one will be lost who sees Jesus as the door to Heaven and enters through him by faith. Jesus is the only door, an open, wide, and safe door; blessed is the one who enters through him.

Secondly, the one who enters through Jesus goes inside. He will be privileged to live among God’s family, sharing the children’s bread and participating in all their honors and enjoyments. He will go into the chambers of communion, to the banquets of love, to the treasures of the covenant, to the storehouses of the promises. He will go in to the King of kings in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Thirdly, the one who enters through Jesus will also go out. This blessing is largely forgotten. We go out into the world to labor and suffer, but what a mercy to go in the name and power of Jesus! We are called to bear witness to the truth, to cheer the brokenhearted, to warn the careless, to win souls, and to glorify God. He gives us strength to go out and do his will.

Lastly, the one who believes will find pasture. The one who knows Jesus will never lack anything. In fellowship with God he will grow, and in watering others he will be watered. Having made Jesus his all, he will find all in Jesus. His soul will be like a watered garden and a well of water that never fails. [M&E]