“What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.” [Luke 11.52]
According to this passage from Luke's Gospel, the key to knowledge for other people is to see believers enter the Kingdom.
What does this mean?
It means that for us to be effective in our presentation of God's Word to others, they must see God's Word at work in our lives.
And, what does that look like?
It looks like Jesus. And, it is summed up in Jesus' own words in Luke 4:
“The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.” [Luke 4.18-19]
Until people see us bring Good News to the poor, they are locked out of the Kingdom. Until people see us proclaim that captives will be released, they are locked out of the Kingdom. Until the blind see, they are locked out of the Kingdom. Until the oppressed are set free, they are locked out of the Kingdom. Until they are told the time of the Lord's favor has come, they are locked out of the Kingdom.
But wait! There's more! Jesus also said:
And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” [John 12.32]
Jesus was lifted up on His cross. That cross is the bridge between heaven and earth for all mankind. Jesus illuminated that bridge when He died on His cross establishing the model for us to do likewise:
Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. [Luke 9.23]
As fantastic and necessary as miracles are, nothing shows the world Jesus more than when we embrace our cross as Jesus embraced His. Think of it like this: we don't enter the Kingdom ourselves until we have embraced our own cross - until we have died to ourselves and yielded to the life of God found only in Jesus Christ.
My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. [Galatians 2.20]
The Gospel is hidden from those who see us until we embrace our own cross - they are locked out, without a key, to the knowledge and salvation of God's Kingdom in Jesus Christ.
Suddenly, just "going to church" is meaningless, and may do more harm than good, if people do not see Jesus as described in Luke 4.18-19, Luke 9.23 and Galatians 2.20.
Father, forgive us for Jesus-less (which is Kingdom-less) living, therefore removing the key to knowledge of the Kingdom from the people of the world. May our lives be surrendered to the life (Luke 4.18-19) and death (Luke 9.23) of Jesus Christ so that His resurrection in us (Galatians 2.20) might unlock His Kingdom for others to enter in.
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