21

21

Lord’s return, his Master’s return. The Lord would have in mind

that the doorkeeper would be vigilant; he would be alert all the

time, that when his Master returns the door would be opened.

Now, beloved, what about the manifestation of the Lord Jesus

as coming to local assemblies?

Have we only our own interests at heart in coming to the

meetings, or are we so alert as doorkeepers that we are ready

to open for the Lord to come in? I will leave it with the

brethren.

Then, too, the door-keeper has many other responsibilities.

One is to be alert to allow interested and exercised persons to

come in. A person might have come in at Corinth and said,

“God is indeed amongst you”, 1 Corinthians 14: 24. Let us be

on the look-out and as door-keepers watch for interested

persons. Then in Revelation it says, “Blessed are they that

wash their robes, that they may have right to the tree of life,

and that they should go in by the gates into the city”

(Revelation 22: 14). That is a question of gate-keeping, but it

would apply to door-keeping; that we are to be on the alert all

the time. In John 20 the doors were shut through fear of the

Jews. How tender the affections of those disciples would have

been at that time. Think of the actual murder and hatred there

was in Jerusalem; they had just crucified and slain their

Saviour, Jesus. Then, too, we need to see that the Jew in our

own hearts is kept out. The religious man has no place in the

house; we are to be our own door-keepers. The woman in 2

Kings 4 shut the door on herself; we need to be our own door-

keepers. We need to be watchful all the time so that we do not

bring anything into the house that would militate against the

Lord’s rights or His pleasure.

How many things have come into local assemblies; the shame

of it we feel; think of worldly things that have come in. I believe

they rob the Lord of His pleasure among the saints. As we

have said, He must have the first place in all things. Let us,