By Doug Redford
Some people (often retired folks) live in what are called gated communities. A gate opens to let the residents in and out, and sturdy walls and/or fences surround the facility. In many cases, security guards at the main gate allow entrance to and exit from the area only to residents and to visitors approved by the residents. Such a gate provides those who live in the community a sense of security and peace of mind.
Any church can be considered a gated community, even though people may not enter through a gate when they come on the church’s property; and they don’t pass through a gate when they leave. This is because the church consists of those who have chosen to follow Jesus and to enter his sheepfold, the church, by means of the gate—and Jesus is that gate, as he described himself in John 10:7-9.
There is, of course, another gated community that stands in constant opposition to the church. Jesus referred to it the first time he mentioned the church, according to the Gospel accounts. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus promised to build his church, “and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” As the realm of the dead, Hades represents death; thus, the Good News Translation, for example, renders Jesus’ words as “not even death will ever be able to overcome it.” Jesus’ gated community stands for and proclaims life—life “to the full,” as Jesus said (John 10:10).
The Lord’s Supper may be considered our “community meal” during which we anticipate Jesus’ return and the establishment of another “gated community,” where “on no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there” (Revelation 21:25). Jesus’ triumph over death will be complete for eternity.
In the meantime, let’s remember Jesus’ promise in John 10:9: “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.” Between Sundays, we may spend a good part of our days coming into and going out of various places. Most of those entrances and exits are probably not that important. But it is in the daily routines of life, those seemingly unsacred moments, that the Lord’s presence will sustain us whenever the “gates of Hades” and their leader (Satan) pose a threat. Each and every day, we still belong to the “gated community.”
Doug Redford has served in the preaching ministry, as an editor of adult Sunday school curriculum, and as a Bible college professor. Now retired, he continues to write and speak as opportunities arise.
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