A Graceful Entrance

Gospel: John 10: 1-10

Entering a building seems like a normal course of action in our lives; we don't think about it much.  But if we take a bit of time we come to realize there is a proper way to enter a room or building and others that are not acceptable.  If we were hosting an event at our home we would expect people to enter our main doorway and not through the ceiling tiles or windows.  

Our entrance into the reign of God is similar.  It is determined by our deeds and how we live in imitation of the Lord Jesus.  It does not consist in membership in an institution or participation in particular rituals; these exist to help us live like the Lord Jesus - they are not ends in themselves but means to an end.  We cannot buy our way into heaven by giving money to the church or any other place.  Our entire lives must be permeated with love and mercy for others as it was for Jesus.  

The doorway to heaven, then, is not a physical structure or a particular institution.  It is a way of living, a way of entering, the example for which Jesus provided for his in the way he lived and died.  Vicarious practices will not be of any help, nor will words of promise or creed.  Only a life lived in love, mercy, and service will serve as the gateway to the kingdom.