The Restaurant Doorway

One helpful way to think of Jesus is to imagine a doorway leading into a nice restaurant. God is in the restaurant, and he has invited everyone to come eat with him. There is only one door, and Jesus is standing at it, holding it wide open and beckoning people to come through. The wrong illustration—though the one we often imagine and portray—is of Jesus blocking the door, like a bouncer, trying to keep most of the people outside. Yes, Jesus is the way—but he’s not standing in the way! Jesus is helping us get to God, not holding us back. Jesus has made the way, and it is standing open for all. Or, as pastor and author Brian McLaren puts it, “I have noticed that John 14:6 is often quoted out of context so that it seems to say, ‘I am in the way of your getting to truth and life. I will keep everyone from getting to the Father unless they get by me first.’”