new church life: jan uary/february 2017
them to keep more than just the literal
statement. And He told the rich young
ruler who had kept the commandments
to go and sell all that he had. The list
could go on and on.
Throughout Scripture there is
praise and hope for the Lord to be
powerful. Jehovah is frequently thanked
for bringing the Children of Israel out
of Egypt “by a mighty hand and by an
outstretched arm.” (Deuteronomy 7:8)
In the Lord’s Prayer we conclude with,
“Yours is the kingdom and the power
and glory forever,” declaring we want
Him to have Divine power to lead us,
to save us. (Matthew 6:13) And we admit our weakness when say, “God is our
refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)
In fact, when we turn to the Lord for help, what are we asking for? Money?
Success? Everything to go smoothly? As we know so well, those types of prayers
are rarely, if ever answered. But prayers that ask the Lord to affect us, to touch
our hearts so we can deal with difficulty, are more likely to enable the Lord to
be present and help. So we are, in effect, requesting the Lord be present in our
thoughts and affections, holding them and leading them.
So the image of the Lord knocking at the door is actually one of the Lord
knocking loud enough, long enough, and insistently enough to do whatever He
can to get our attention. In fact, the Heavenly Doctrines occasionally depict it
as the Lord knocking and us resisting Him by holding the door closed! (Divine
Providence 33:2, 233:3; Apocalypse Explained 412:20)
It is not surprising that the Lord makes such a racket knocking on our
doors. We might ignore Him and what is good otherwise, for our innate
freedom is at odds with His goals for us: “Divine providence continually
operates counter to and in conflict with a person’s will.” (Divine Providence 234;
see also Arcana Coelestia 2406:2, 4612:3, 6474, 7042; Heavenly Doctrine 183;
Heaven and Hell 296, 523; Divine Providence 211, 219:4; Spiritual Experiences
1256) In fact, everyone is so drawn to evil that a person “cannot be torn away
except by force.” (Arcana Coelestia 6368)
The image of the Lord
knocking at the door
is actually one of the
Lord knocking loud
enough, long enough,
and insistently enough
to do whatever He can
to get our attention.
Bending and not Breaking
If we are so oppositional to the Lord’s leading, beyond knocking on our doors,
how does He do it? Not by compulsion, but by an interior bending.
A bruised reed shall He not break, and the smoking flax shall He not quench; He
12