The Gatekeeper

Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”

John 14:6 (NLT)

In college, I had one of the most tedious, mind-numbing jobs during registration. You see, back in ye old times, before online registration, students piled into the gym to sign up for which classes they wanted to take for a particular quarter. Of course, letting 2,000 students loose at once wouldn’t work. (It would be madness!) So, the college devised a system of ranking students by seniority (what year they were currently in) and then major. Based on this criteria, students were assigned a time at which point they could enter the gym and race to the specific department table to snag a class. Let me clarify this even further. Small groups of students, about 10 or so, were assigned a literal time, down to the minute, that they could enter the gym. My job? To call out every minute between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM and only allow those whose registration card displayed the correct time to enter. I was both the clock and the gatekeeper. I kid you not, I literally called out every minute that day.

The only slightly comical aspect is when a student wasn’t paying attention and then realized that I was calling out numbers five or so minutes past when they could get in. Did they own it? No. They would complain to me that I had not called their minute, or that I didn’t state it loud enough to be heard. Strange, the rest of your cohort heard and are already registered!

Family, there is a time in the not so distant future when this world will come to an end, and the enteral Kingdom of God reigns. It’s a time that only God himself knows. But, as Christians, we are told to be ready for it. But, how do we do that? It’s simple. You gotta know the gatekeeper.

In one of Jesus’s most famous verses, he stated that He alone gives us access to the Father. He alone has the keys to the gates of Heaven. He alone can lead us down the path and through those pearly gates. In other words, we need to make sure we have a strong, secure relationship with Jesus, as he is the Gatekeeper. We need to be listening for his voice. Following his directions. Communicating with him daily. In short, we need to cling tightly to Jesus so when that wonderful day comes, we’ll hear his voice call us home loud and clear.