The Gate

Joh 10:9  I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for--will 

	freely go in and out, and find pasture. 


	There is this place that can be found where a river with fresh, cool water 

is always flowing. This river is running through a beautiful meadow that has all 

that could be wanted for a nice day on the outside. Growing from the river-

watered soil is a continual feast of healthy grass. If you were really hungry, 

you could just stroll around all day, grazing and having that hunger continually 

filled. If you're more inclined to playing games, though, there is plenty of 

space in a large, flat area where many different games can be enjoyed at once. 

For those that would just like to be productive and work hard, there is a never-

ending amount of maintenance to be done in the surrounding gardens and 

vineyards. With something for everyone and a continual source of food and 

entertainment, it would be so tempting to just stay here without ever leaving at 

all. 


	There is also this other place that is a great contrast to the 

pastureland. Instead of the open, expansive views of the trees and fields, this 

place is confined and enclosed by walls. There isn't a lot of room for athletic 

games, and there aren't many munchies laying around for continual consumption. 

It's really not a bad place at all, though; because there are things to be found 

here that could never be found in the other place. It has an area where the body 

and garments can be cleaned and made to smell new and fresh. After bathing and 

cleaning, there is a bed, where sleep comes peacefully underneath the down-

filled comforter. This could also become a place where you might be tempted to 

just stay and enjoy. Always clean and rested, there would really be no need to 

go get dirty and weary ever again. 


	While both of these places are great by themselves, they are directly 

related and connected. Neither one of them can be fully enjoyed or appreciated 

for any extended period of time without requiring the need for the other. To 

just remain in either place would become old and unhealthy. The highly 

productive, entertaining, and dining activities of the fields would become 

tiring after a while, and soiled body and clothing would become unbearable. On 

the other hand, the continual bathing and resting in the enclosed place would 

become unhealthy for the mind and skin, and there would be an ever-growing 

hunger that would demand satisfaction. To really enjoy what both place has to 

offer, they must each be consistently accessed and utilized, without ever 

remaining too long in one of them. Learning how to make this transition from one 

to the other is the key then to fully enjoying all that each one has to offer. 

The passageway connecting the two must become familiar and easily found. Not 

knowing the way could cause great discomfort and distress. 


	There is a life of abundance for us in the way that's been given us in 

Christ. There are fields of abundance and pleasure where we are to function to 

the full potential of our gifts and desires. There is also the place in Him 

where we find rest and are cleansed from any impurities. While both areas of 

life bring great pleasure and fulfillment, there is a strong connection between 

them that disallows the complete enjoyment of either one without the other. 

There is much to be consumed and enjoyed in Him as we feast on the Word and 

learn to function in the gifts He's given us, but there is a time when all of 

our activities must be set aside as we go through the Gate that takes us to the 

resting place. Becoming familiar with this Gate, then, becomes so very essential 

to our healthy life. There will be no true passage from where we are without 

knowing and going through this Gate that is Jesus. He must become our entrance 

into either place, as our focus is first on Him. As we take Him with us into 

either place and He is always at our side, there is immediate access for us to 

the other place that will be our necessity. As He is allowed to take us from one 

to the other, we will be cared for in every area of life and never be lacking 

for anything. As we enjoy and become occupied with the pleasures and fulfillment 

in either place, our awareness must always remain on the One who has brought us 

there and the One who will take us out once again- our Gate. 




6/1/04