Go! And Open The Door To Jesus Series

Go! And Open the Door to Jesus

Introduction — The Knock That Changes Everything

If you’ve ever been at home and heard an unexpected knock at the door, you know the feeling. Your heart jumps a little — Who could it be? You peek through the curtains, maybe even stand there debating whether to answer.

Now imagine this: The One at the door is Jesus Christ Himself. The King of kings. The Creator of the universe. The Saviour who died for you. And He is waiting… for you… to open the door.

Our text today is from the letter to the church in Laodicea. This is not a call to the unbelieving world. This is a call to a church. And it is not a gentle “If you get a moment, let’s talk.” It is urgent. It is personal. And it is eternally important.

Revelation 3:14, 20 (NLT): 14 “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Laodicea. This is the message from the one who is the Amen—the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God’s new creation:

20 “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”

1. The Voice of the One Who Knocks (v. 14)

The opening of verse 14 sets the authority of the message. Jesus identifies Himself in three profound ways:

“The Amen” — In Hebrew, amen means “truly” or “so be it.” In Greek (amen), it carries the same sense of certainty and finality. When Jesus says He is “The Amen,” He is declaring Himself the ultimate affirmation of God’s promises. Paul affirms this in 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NLT): “For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding ‘Yes!’ And through Christ, our ‘Amen’ ascends to God for his glory.”

“The faithful and true witness” — This tells us that what Jesus says is not only accurate but utterly reliable. The Greek martys (witness) is where we get “martyr” — the one who testifies even at the cost of life.

“The beginning of God’s new creation” — The Greek arche can mean “beginning,” “source,” or “origin.” This is not saying Jesus was created but that He is the source of creation itself (see John 1:3).

John Piper: “When Christ speaks, He speaks with the authority of God and the tenderness of a Saviour.”

When we grasp who is knocking, ignoring Him becomes unthinkable.

2. The Condition of the Church in Laodicea

The Laodiceans were lukewarm — spiritually complacent. Laodicea was a wealthy city, famous for banking, textile production, and a medical school. But its water supply was tepid — neither hot like nearby Hierapolis nor cold like Colossae. Jesus uses this to describe their faith — neither refreshingly cold nor healingly hot (Revelation 3:15–16).

Chliaros (lukewarm) conveys the sense of “tepid, lacking force.”

Matthew 6:24 (NLT): “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other…”

Jesus is saying that half-hearted discipleship is unacceptable.

R.T. Kendall: “A lukewarm church is more offensive to God than a hostile world.”

3. The Knock and the Voice (v. 20)

“Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice…”

This is deeply personal. The Greek for “look” (idou) is an attention-grabber — “Behold!” Jesus is not passive. He is pursuing. The knocking is persistent. The speaking is continual.

I once read of a man who, for years, ignored letters from his estranged father. One day, the father stood at his door. The son looked through the window… and didn’t answer. Weeks later, the father died. That son never forgot the knock he didn’t answer.

Every time the Gospel is preached, Jesus knocks.

4. The Invitation to Fellowship

“…I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.”

The Greek word here for “share a meal” is deipneo — the main meal of the day, unhurried, intimate. This is not a quick snack. This is relational. It points us toward the eternal fellowship promised in the kingdom of God (Luke 22:29–30).

Tim Keller: “The Gospel is not just the ABC of the Christian life, but the A to Z — it is the meal, not just the menu.”

5. The Gospel Connection

Why is Jesus outside the door of His own church? Sin. Self-reliance. Pride.

The Gospel tells us that Jesus came — fully God, fully man — lived a sinless life, died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day. By His blood, He paid the penalty for our sin (Romans 5:8, 1 Corinthians 15:3–4).

If you’ve never opened the door to Him, the urgency could not be greater.

D.L. Moody once said, “Tomorrow is the devil’s day. Today is God’s.” Moody learned that the hard way when he once delayed an invitation to Christ — and some of his hearers died that night in the Great Chicago Fire.