Fling Wide the Door (ELW 259, focus on verse 4)
1 Fling wide the door, unbar the gate;
the King of glory comes in state;
the Lord of lords and King of kings,
the Savior of the world who brings
his great salvation to the earth.
So raise a shout of holy mirth
and praise our God and Lord,
Creator, Spirit, Word.
2 He is the rock of our belief,
the heart of mercy’s gentle self.
His kingly crown is holiness;
his scepter is his loveliness;
he brings our sorrows to an end.
Now gladly praise our king and friend,
and worship him with song
for saving us from wrong.
3 Oh, happy towns and blessed lands
that live by their true king’s commands.
And blessed be the hearts he rules,
the humble places where he dwells.
He is the rightful Son of bliss
who fills our lives and makes us his,
creator of the world,
our only strength for good.
4 Come, Lord, our Savior, Jesus Christ;
our hearts are open wide in trust.
Oh, show us now your lovely grace,
upon our sorrows shine your face,
and let your Holy Spirit guide
our journey in your grace so wide.
We praise your holy name,
from age to age the same!
Text: Georg Weissel, 1590-1635; tr. Gracia Grindal, b. 1943
Text © 1978 Lutheran Book of Worship, admin. Augsburg Fortress.
Reprinted under OneLicense.net #A730924
Devotion
The verse in front of us makes it clear that by flinging open our doors, we are also opening up our homes and our hearts to Jesus and his Holy Spirit, who dwell among us. Just the gesture of opening a door is a welcoming gesture. It does not require us to accept everything about the visitor who enters in. In fact, we don’t even have to be mentally or emotionally ready to let our visitors in, or even to let Jesus in. God does not demand that we erase our sorrows before God appears in our doorway and shines God’s lovely face upon us. God’s grace is wide enough, broad enough, and expansive enough to hold in its loving care a myriad of human feelings, interactions, and relationships, regardless of our own capacities to understand them all.
Prayer
Dear God, thank you for shining your face upon us even when we are not ready to look into its bright grace. Thank you for taking us as we are. In your Holy Spirit we pray, Amen.