Greg Chandler
Two doors stand near the Bible’s beginning and its conclusion. Outside the first door, a croucher lurks. As Cain’s anger raged to the point of contemplating fratricide, God came seeking to change his direction. He warned, “If you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it” (Genesis 4:7b). This croucher is described in ominous terms; like a ravenous lion or a coiled serpent, it waits for the opportune time to strike. Its ambition is nothing less than to rule over its unsuspecting victim. Ignoring the Lord’s good advice, Cain chose not to rule over this foe but instead to be ruled by it.
Near the end of the Bible, the Lord Jesus addresses seven of His churches. Coming to the lukewarm church of Laodicea, He seeks to change its direction. He admonishes, “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). Whether this group of self-sufficient saints changed their ways is unknown; still, the warning was given.
Two wait outside the door, yet how different they are. The first is an adversary who seeks destruction. Its success depends on shock and surprise, hoping to catch the victim off guard. The goal is entrapment—seeking to rule over the one in its clutches. The second has no intention of shocking; He stands knocking, waiting for the door to be opened to Him. He does not seek to overpower but to be welcomed. He does not seek to rule over the one who opens the door, but instead to rule with him. To the Laodiceans He stated, “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on My throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on His throne” (Revelation 3:21). The contrast is unmistakable.
The response to these two at the door determines one’s eternal destiny. While identified simply as sin in Genesis 4, the croucher’s full identity is later revealed by the Apostle John: “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him” (Revelation 12:9). Though beastly and dangerous, his ability to deceive causes many to unsuspectingly walk out the door and into danger. As he did with the first human family, so he has done with their many offspring: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
The Lord Jesus stands ready to save humanity from the trickery of the croucher. Indeed, He not only stands at the door; He is the door: “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture” (John 10:9). While the adversary seeks to make his victim the main course, Jesus promises that He will dine with the one who opens to Him (Revelation 3:20). This is the promise of fellowship—a place at the table of God for those who receive His gracious invitation of salvation.
Sadly, most people take neither of the two at the door seriously. This works well with the croucher’s plans; viewing the devil as myth and sin as an antiquated belief makes one easily overpowered. Jesus, however, refuses to enter the house of one who does not take Him seriously. Though the Laodiceans bore His name, their tepid attitude brought the warning that unless change occurred quickly, He would vomit them out of His mouth (Revelation 3:16).
Salvation and the life lived for Jesus require sobriety when considering the great price paid for redemption. The door is opened to Jesus when one understands how that price was paid through His sacrifice for sin. Confessing belief that He is the Son of God and being baptized for the forgiveness of sins demonstrates dissatisfaction with remaining in the croucher’s grasp and acceptance of God’s great gift. Concerning this, the Apostle Paul wrote, “He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:13–14). Far from flippancy, understanding what has been done for salvation should bring one into a continual state of thanksgiving and praise.
Two stand at the door. To whom will you open?
