Lift up your heads, ye mighty gates,
Behold the King of glory waits;
The King of kings is drawing near,
The Savior of the world is here;
Fling wide the portals of your heart,
Make it a temple set apart
From earthly use for Heaven’s employ,
Adorned with prayer and love and joy.
Behold the King of glory waits;
The King of kings is drawing near,
The Savior of the world is here;
Fling wide the portals of your heart,
Make it a temple set apart
From earthly use for Heaven’s employ,
Adorned with prayer and love and joy.
Redeemer, come! I open wide
My heart to Thee—here, Lord, abide!
Let me Thy inner presence feel,
Thy grace and love in me reveal.
That last stanza hits home. The openness seen here is not something many of us are comfortable with. This is a vulnerable openness, an openness to all our fears and desires, an openness to whatever criticism may come. This is an uncomfortable openness, wide and open to whatever God wants without concern for our own desires.
It is akin to the English word Agape, open wide. It is also akin to the Greek word Agape, a deep sacrificial love like God's. The only way we can be so open and vulnerable is when we love beyond normal limits, when we truly live as if God is in control of ALL of our lives. It is our job to be the stewards of the world, the hands and feet of God who leads us as the head and heart of all things. God's love is both Agape and Agape, may we likewise this Advent season feel God at work by being wide open and vulnerable with each other while also loving each other with that sacrificial love that is signified in God becoming flesh.