If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
- 1 John 1:8-10
“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.”
- Luke 11:24-26
I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. They will come in and go out, and find pasture.
- John 10:9
“Peter got up and walked across the room, holding his open Bible in his hand. ‘God taught me that if a Christian walks in the light then the blood of Iesus Christ cleanses him from all sin, making his life a closed circle and protecting him from all outside dark powers. But—’ he turned and emphatically jabbed his finger into the pages of the Bible-‘if there is unconfessed sin in that life, the circle has an opening in it—a gap-and this allows the dark powers to come back in.’
“Ah, I thought, Peter has really learned a truth from the Lord.
“ ‘Tante Corrie,’ Peter continued, ‘even though I was able to cast out the demon in Jan’s life, it always crept back in through the opening in the circle-the opening of Jan’s unconfessed sin. But when I led Jan to confess this sin, then the circle was closed and the dark powers could no longer return.’
“That same week the wife of a good friend came to me for counseling. After I had fixed her a cup of tea she began to tell me about all the people who had prayed for her, yet she was still experiencing horrible dreams at night.
“I interrupted her conversation and drew a circle on a piece of paper. ‘Mary,’ I said, ‘do you have unconfessed sin in your life? Is this the reason the circle is still open?”
“Mary said nothing, sitting with her head down, her hands tightly clasped in her lap, her feet together. I could see there was a strong battle going on in her life-a battle between spiritual forces.”
- Corrie ten Boom, Tramp for the Lord
Corrie ten Boom was able to help the woman only after the woman had confessed her sin. But then she went on to talk about how she was so committed to missionary work and evangelism within women’s groups that she found herself being rude to another sweet lady. When Tante Corrie caught herself, she apologized, and the woman made excuses. But Tante Corrie insisted that she had been rude. And in so confessing, a weight lifted from her, and her friend accepted her apology.
I have not heard the concept of a gap in the circle. I have heard it as the open door. Jesus makes the “I AM” statement in John 10. “I AM the gate.” But in earlier translations, and in a couple of the modern translations, the translation states “I AM the door.” When we, in modern times, look at sheep in an enclosure, we do not think of a house, but some kind of pen. Thus, going through a gate to find safety and security is the mental image. Some places in the world still have the animals on the first floor and the people use the heat given off by the animals’ bodies at night to help heat the human living quarters on the second floor.
“Door” still has its place, and due to this statement, I have heard pastors talk about a sin in someone’s life that cannot be released, but God can do anything. Thus, there must be a door that is left open. Again, this is metaphor. It could be a door or window or the chimney.
And there may be doors that we do not think about. One of my favorite Justin Wilson stories was about the local bar. The first patron brags on the bar owner for fixing up his place. They argue a bit. Then the owner makes a twenty dollar bet that the bar does not have four doors. Then the patron says, one at a time for dramatic effect: You got the front door, the behind door, your name is Isadore, and there in the corner you have a cuspidor. The patron takes the money, but the owner sees the dumbest man in town walk in. He was determined to get his money back. The same argument in reverse down to the owner proving he has four doors. The owner says: I got the front door, the behind door, my name is Isadore, and see that brass thing in the corner? That’s a, a, a … That spittoon done cost me forty dollars today!”
My point in bringing the joke up is that we watch our front door and our behind door (although most people call it the back door), but we often forget the other means of entry. These days, evil information can be had on the internet, through the computer or the phone or the television or the radio.
As Tante Corrie points out. We need to confess our sin in order to shut that door, but we need to be on guard that we do not leave another entry point for not just the demon to return, but to bring seven more demons along.
My wife had sin in her life, and she was true to the immigrant stereotype. Do not open your mouth about any wrongdoing or they might ship us back to the Old Country. She would never verbalize her sin, but she would make sure the doors were shut. It then was upon me to understand that the changes in her behavior were due to wanting to be more like Jesus … whether I liked it or not. Some people might think that anything between a husband and wife was done to the glory of God, but if one of the two has sinful thoughts about things in their lives, maybe prior to marrying, they will not cross that line. What I am trying to say is that something that could be wonderful might bring back bad memories that go to a painful place. I wish she could have verbalized those so that I did not take so long in understanding.
But in the end, only God can hold the door closed when the enemy attacks. We confess our sins. Yes. We repent, but when evil tries to enter through a door or window, we have to rely on God’s strength to keep evil from entering by a different path.
Lord, strengthen me. Help us find those sins that are keeping us from making better strides to be more like Jesus. Help us to find those entry points that entice us to allow that sin to return. And help us to see the struggles of our fellow travelers along this journey of faith so that we can help them and honor their decisions as they struggle to keep a gate or door shut. In Your name I pray. Amen.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley 
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