Gatekeepers

by Andrew Cromwell

In the Bible in Matthew 16:19, Jesus says to Peter, “I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” Much has been said about what Jesus meant by this statement. Some scholars believe that at that moment, Jesus made Peter the head of the church. I am persuaded that Jesus was doing something slightly different.

When you have a key, you have the ability to open or close access to a locked location. Now, if everyone has a key, then it is not particularly special—you just have one more copy. But if not many keys have been made, then you become the gatekeeper. You have the ability to grant access because you hold the power in your possession.

Now, if you have the keys to the kingdom of heaven, you become a gatekeeper. Either you can welcome people in or you can keep people out. At one point during Jesus’ ministry (Matthew 23:13), He has a conversation with the religious leaders of the day and tells them, “Woe to you...for you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men....”

The religious teachers of Jesus’ day were good at making rules that kept people away from Father God. This is just the opposite of what spiritual leaders are supposed to do. Their whole job is to help people connect with God. But there is something in human nature that is twisted by knowledge and power. Isn’t it amazing that as soon as someone goes to school and gets a degree, he or she immediately starts to divide the world up into those worthy to hear their great wisdom and those that are not?

Peter’s keys were not to be used in this way. They were to be used to open the doors wide to all those who were seeking to reconnect with the Father. Later in Peter’s life, we see that he is instrumental in opening these doors to three distinct groups—first to the Jews (Acts 2), then to the Samarians (Acts 8) and finally to the rest of the world (Acts 10). Because Peter was generous with the message of God’s love for people, because he opened wide the doors to the kingdom, we today benefit from that message.

I believe we can draw two conclusions from this. First, if you don’t know God personally, the door is wide open. The Father has made a way for each of us to return back to him. The Bible says, “Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Second, if you do know God, you are also a gatekeeper. You can make it difficult for people to connect with Father God (just like those religious leaders in Jesus’ day did) or you can make it easy. You can unlock and swing wide the doors and shout the good news of a God that loves the world, or you can bury the key and keep your mouth shut.

This weekend the pastors in Kings County will be seeking to help people reconnect with God, make sure you’re in church and that you bring someone along!