Open to me the gates of righteousness; I will go through them, and I will praise the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord, through which the righteous shall enter. I will praise You, for You have answered me, and have become my salvation (Psalms 118:19-21)

The Bible tells us about two gates. One is the gate of hell, and the other is the gate of righteousness. The Lord told Peter that the gates of hell could not prevail against him. However, before he received this ultimate protection he had to confess the revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ openly.

The Lord asked Peter to tell Him what he heard people said about Him. Peter told Christ that some people said that He was Elijah while others claimed that He was John the Baptiste, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.

When the spirit of God is moving in your life, people will notice and speculate. They will have many things to say about you. They will call you names and may even accuse you wrongfully. However, it does not matter what people say about you; the most important thing is that you are confident of who you are in God.

Thus, the Lord Jesus Christ asked Peter directly, “who do you say that I am.”

Peter boldly announced to the world,

“You are Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Christ immediately established His church upon the solid rock of this truth. The church is therefore instituted upon the foundation of Jesus Christ the Son of the living God.

When you confess and live this revelation in your life, you will enter the gates of righteousness, and the gates of hell will never be able to prevail against you.

The gates of righteousness are your life that has become a praise to God. The Lord will speak marvelous things about you because He loves the gates of Zion.

The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God! Selah “I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me; (Psalms 87:2-4)

The city of David was called the city of Zion where the Ark of the Covenant dwells. Hence, the Lord lives in the city of Zion. When Solomon built the Temple of God, the Ark was removed from the city of David to the inner sanctuary of the Temple in the most Holy Place under the wings of the cherubim.

The Lord would descend from heaven and sit on the mercy seat of the Ark in the Holy of Holies. The sanctified priest would enter the presence of the Lord once per year with the sacrificial blood of an animal to make atonement for the sins of himself, his household and the people.

This ritual demonstrated the physical worship to God. The death and resurrection of the Son of God replaced the animal sacrifices. He represents us as our High Priest, who atoned for our sins. Consequently, the Lord does not live in the physical Ark of the Covenant He lives in our heart, so our bodies are His Temple.

However, our heart must be holy for Him to take residence. When you enter the gates of righteousness, you are allowing the Lord to take residence in your heart. The Lord will place you under the wings of His holy angels in heaven who are continuously shouting His praise in heaven,

“Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!” (Revelation 4:8)

Your life, therefore, becomes praise and glory to God because you have become the gates of Zion that the Lord loves.

Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands! Serve the Lord with gladness; Come before His presence with singing. Know that the Lord, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, and into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endures to all generations. (Psalms 100)

Your jubilant songs and shouts, and your thanksgiving as you enter into His gates of righteousness will attract the glory of the Lord upon your life. As you worship together in one accord, the glory of the Lord will be seen as a cloud in your praise and worship gathering.

During this Christmas season, I want you to enter the gates of righteousness. Have a holy and blessed Christmas.

References: Matthew 16:13-20

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