Sanctuary
Go through his open gates with great thanksgiving; enter his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name. For the Lord is always good. He is always loving and kind, and his faithfulness goes on and on to each succeeding generation. ( Psalm 100:4-5 TLB ) Those gates are open! Open gates differ from shut ones in that one beckons to enter in - the other tells us we'd be trespassing if we did! I live in a neighborhood with six foot block walls all around the yards and gates that are either locked shut, or whose hinges just don't swing open all that often. The image given is that each one who makes this neighborhood their home appreciates (and even demands) their privacy. " No man is excluded from calling upon God, the gate of salvation is set open unto all men: neither is there any other thing which keepeth us back from entering in, save only our own unbelief." ( John Calvin) Entering in requires movement from where we are to within those gates. It ...