I remember the excitement we felt when we had signed stacks of papers, exchanged the final thank-you’s and were handed the keys to our first home. Oh, we’d rented apartments before, but now we’d signed papers saying we owned our own place. (OK, the bank owned it, but it was “ours.”) Holding those keys in hand represented something special!
We could paint the walls, hang pictures without worrying about a landlord’s rules, and I could even dream about what I’d like the yard to look like. Did I want a flower garden, or would there be enough sun for a few vegetables? (Pansies were planted in a kitchen window flower box that afternoon!)
Keys represent the right to come and go, to open a gate or door at will, and often to even invite others inside if an owner chooses to do so. The flip side is also true; the door may be closed up tight.
Long ago, Isaiah wrote, “I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.“ The theme is echoed in the ancient Advent prayer of longing. One part is translated into English:
O come, thou Key of David, come, And open wide our heavenly home; Make safe the way that leads on high, And close the path to misery.
Jesus, this “Key of David,” has not only opened the door. He is the only way to the Father, and is the Door by which one must enter. There is no other way. Praise God with me today for his gracious provision through Jesus Christ, the Key of David.
Father, there was no way for me to come to you, except through Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending him to open the way. Help me to be ready and willing to show others the way by my life. When I stumble, pick me up and set my feet on a firm path I pray. Help me walk faithfully in your ways. Amen.
Song of Reflection: Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me by CityAlight