“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 3:28 (KJV)
While the above verse is often quoted as referring to Jesus seeking a relationship with us, is it really understood? Jesus was speaking to the church of the Laodiceans. “I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Revelation 3:16-17 (KJV) Chilling words indeed!
Jesus said to the Church of Laodicean “Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked.” Revelation 3:17 (KJV). This seems to reflect the attitude of many in our country/world today and goes back again to man's persistent attempt to "do with his own way".
John 1:26-27, “John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not; He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to unloose.” How many today still don't know Jesus and the wonderful gift He gave us?
Attempting to compensate the giver of a gift given with love is to marginalize the love of the giver. Attempting to compensate God for the gift of grace so freely given to us is a form of rejection of the completed work by Jesus on the cross and to spit in God's eye. That gift cost so much more than just physical pain to Jesus; it was the extreme emotional pain of being separated from God for those last several hours. I don't think any of us could imagine the physical pain that the Romans would inflict on their victims or the horror to Jesus as God withdrew His presence. It has been my long held view that hell is a burning of the soul in complete despair of knowing you are for ever absent from God and are in eternal darkness.
Will Attempting to compensate God for His gift ultimately result in one being sent to a very dark place where no reasonable human being would want to be? I leave that to God to sort out; nevertheless, I am so grateful to God for His gift of love and salvation.
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