Mail Call: Philadelphia
Revelation 3:7-13
March 25, 2012
I want to begin with a 2 question quiz! You can write your answers in your bulletin. You can’t look behind you or at your neighbor’s paper. Ready?
“How many doors are in the sanctuary?” How many ways in / out
Question #2 - “How many doors are in this entire building?”
Okay - - the answer to question #1 is 13. There are 13 doors in this sanctuary. How many got that one right? The answer to question #2 is “I have no clue.” There’s too many doors to count. I would estimate we have upwards of 100 doors. In any case, we have a lot of doors here don’t we?!
Don’t start counting the number of doors, because you’ll miss the message.
Part of this message today and next week will focus on doors. God opening, closing and knocking on doors. So, let’s start looking at the 6th of 7 churches the apostle John wrote letters to in Revelation 2-3.
Today we’re looking at the church in Philadelphia. Most people know it’s nickname as - - - the city of brotherly love. Why?
Philadelphia is made up of 2 Greek words – PHILOS means “love of a friend” and ADELPHOS means “brother.” Combine them and you get the city of brotherly love.
The quick history of Philadelphia was this - - - It was founded about 150 years before Jesus. The city was famous for its wines and hot springs. The purpose for the city was to spread the Greek culture, language and manner of life to the east. So, in a sense it was a missionary city.
This is why the city was known as the “Gateway to the East.” Philadelphia was also located near a fault line, and earthquakes were a reality and a constant threat.
Out of the 7 letters only the letters to the church in Smyrna and this one contained no points of condemnation. Let’s see what we can learn from this church.
Beginning in verse 7 of Revelation 3, Jesus said - - -
7 These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open.
What a great image of Jesus. John gives a quick description which could easily be the source of a number of messages, Jesus is holy and true!! Jesus is holy, which literally means He is “set apart” in the fact that He’s different. And He’s different because He was the only one who was sinless and pure, the One who could forgive us of our sinfulness. He was and is the Son of God!
And Jesus is true! Here is the true Son of God. He’s real and genuine. Its deeper meaning is - - - Jesus is who He says He is, He is Lord. In John, Jesus said - - -
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. - John 15:1
3 Jesus also said - - And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. - John 17:3
When Jesus proclaims - - -
6 I am the way and the truth and the life. - John 14:6 We believe Him. So we believe and trust Jesus is Holy and true.
So with that in mind, Jesus said He has the keys to the house. He’s the guard of the door. He’s the Good Shepherd He spoke of being in John 10. He guards and protects His sheep and only lets them in - - - and keeps out the enemy. He’s the doorkeeper, the guard of the doors. Jesus is going to open it and keep it open when He needs to; and He will shut it and keep it shut when He needs to.
In life, so many times we make comments like, “I’m praying God opens a door for me — — or “if God closes a door, He’ll open another one.”
It’s been my experience that sometimes the door is obvious and we just walk right through. Sometimes we run towards it, and sometimes we run away from it. And sometimes we need a little shove.
Now, let me be very clear here . . . if the message is something which is against God’s word, then you know that door was NOT opened by God. So, we have to use wisdom before we walk through the open door.
And sometimes we’re aided by family and friends, who give us great wisdom to guide us toward God’s plan. Or reading the Bible, worship, songs, can help give us the answer, if we’re willing to listen and be patient, trusting in God’s plan.
Now, the same is true about closed doors. We can easily use the closed door as an excuse about not making an effort. We can say, “well the door is closed” so I’ll just give up. But maybe God wanted to see how committed you were. There’s lots of biblical examples of God testing our persistence and perseverance.
Even when there’s an open door, we still need to summon up the courage and faith to go through the door and see what’s on the other side. Remembering and trusting that God will never abandon us.
Jesus has all authority to open doors for His people. It’s His job to open the doors. And here’s some really good news for you - - -
Jesus is really, really, really good at it! And even better - - - He doesn’t need our help! Our job is to go through the doors He opens, one step at a time, one foot in front of the other, going wherever He leads us.
Jesus is sovereign over the doors of life, because He has the plan, we don’t, so, as hard as it may be, we’re called to trust Him.
Jesus recognized the situation in the Philadelphian church, saying,
8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.
SLIDEI know that you have little strength, yet you have kept My word and have not denied My name.
What a great statement by Jesus for the church. Firstly, and we’ve talked about it, nothing is hidden before the eyes of Jesus . . . nothing! That’s really, really scary when we’re not doing good things in life. He knows what’s going on, nothing, absolutely nothing surprises Him.
Whatever situation you might be going through, as surprising as it is to you, it was not a surprise to Jesus. All of the good and bad, the seemingly mundane moments of life are not a surprise. That gives me confidence in His plan. Even when I don’t necessarily like it.
Jesus refers to that door again. He’s comforting and encouraging the church; and the encouragement is kind of like giving the people a push towards the door. You see, they’re a small church, they don’t have much influence and power in Philadelphia. They don’t have people in powerful political positions, they don’t have a large base of money. The building might not have been the best.
So, the odds are stacked against them, but Jesus is encouraging them, ‘HEY, I’VE GOT YOUR BACK! I’ve got the door, and when I hold the door open for you, nobody, absolutely nobody can make me close the door before it’s time. And nobody is going to get in who is not supposed to get in.’
Isn’t that great?! We need to hold onto this when we feel we’re being persecuted. When people are against us, we need to believe and trust Jesus has our back. He’ll hold the door open for us, we need to believe that and then walk right through the door. And to trust, He will also close the door behind us.
They were small, but they had great faith. We may not have the influence, the power, the money or the speaking ability like others, BUT, we can trust the Lord as well as anyone else.
Faith is not on a sliding scale according to what you have. It’s not based on income, savings, size of your home, or cars, or tech gadgets or even your good looks. We all have equal standing before the Lord, based on our faith.
God honors and God rewards — faith! And how much faith does He require? Not much. Faith like a mustard seed. Just a tiny amount of faith. A simple faith. Notice the two positive things Jesus says about this church ---
“You kept my word.”
“You have not denied my name.”
When Paul and Silas came to Thessalonica in Acts 17, their opponents tried to have them arrested. Look at what their charges were against them in Acts 17:6,
6 These men who have turned the world upside down have come here too.
How’s that for an insult? They had “turned the world upside down.” Isn’t that cool? Would anyone ever say that about us? They kept the word and proclaimed His name!!
This was meant as an accusation, but it’s really a compliment. What a great thing to have said about you, that you managed to turn the world upside down for Jesus. You were a change agent for Christ. Can you think of a greater compliment?
We live in the day of instant gratification, where waiting and pain aren’t supposed to be part of our lives. While in many respects life should be simple, that doesn’t mean it will be easy. Simple and easy have two different meanings. Most people want the easy life, a life which is comfortable, meaning there are no discomforts, where life just sails along. We want that in church, worship, at work, at school, in fact wherever we are and wherever we go.
Yet, the people in the church of Philadelphia never denied the name of God. They didn’t go for the easy life. They believed they were called to make a difference in the world, and whatever risk they had to endure, that’s what they were going to do, even if it meant death. They held onto God’s Word, which is what led them to proclaim, not deny the name of God.
How many people at your workplace or in school, know you’re a follower of Christ? Do they know that because you tell them, or because you’ve shown them? Have they experienced Christ living in you? It’s one thing to say I go to church, it’s a totally different thing to live the life, with all of the risks involved as to what others will say and how they will react. Are we turning the world upside down?
Of course, there were problems in the church, but they weren’t caused by the true followers of Christ. Jesus said - - -
9 I will make those who are of the synagogue of satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars —
I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you.
Jesus calls the Jews to be part of the synagogue of satan. He knows these Jews are persecuting the church. These are the people whom Jesus initially came for. They rejected Jesus, and now they’re making life really difficult for His followers.
Jesus says, they’re liars, if they were true / authentic Jews, they would be embracing Jesus, not against Him. The good news is that some day they will come to see who Jesus really is, and they will bow down at His feet and admit Jesus is the Messiah.
Remember the passage from Philippians 2, where Paul gives the Christ hymn telling us - - -
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Everyone will bow down and acknowledge Jesus is Lord! What a day that will be!!
Jesus continues with more good news - - -
10 Since you have kept My command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
The command from Jesus - is to be patient as they endured the storm. It’ not easy to be patient during the storms of life. We want an immediate solution. We want everything to return to normal. We want the problems, the storms to disappear.
Yet, sometimes, all we can do is wait it out, as patiently as possible. And even though that’s difficult, it’s to wait with patient endurance, knowing that somehow, if we don’t try to barge through the door Jesus already closed, we’ll be OK and we’ll find the open door.
So, when the time of trial comes, when Jesus returns to establish His kingdom on earth, those will be terrible days. There will be tremendous suffering, but Jesus encourages the church by telling them He will guard them so they won’t have to face and endure that trial. They’ve proven themselves by their faithful endurance.
Jesus tells the church more good news ---
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
The early church was fully convinced Jesus was coming back at any moment. This is part of what made their preaching and teaching so passionate. It was a matter of life and death, so they had to be quick and proclaim the message of Christ to the world. If they didn’t, they were taking the risk that someone would spend eternity without Christ . . . and that was unacceptable.
Can you imagine if we returned to living with that thought in heart and mind? We would be out everyday looking to help people come to know Jesus. Instead of petty squabbles, we would help others see and experience Jesus. Because of their faith and endurance, they have the crown of life, which only comes through Christ. When we hold onto Christ, and don’t waver in faith to Him, we will never lose what we’ve gained . . . the only hope of the world -- Jesus.
The final promise from Jesus is - - -
12 The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it.
Jesus is giving the church an image of victory like you would receive in going to court. When you go to court and win your case, you’re the victor. You’ve overcome, you’ve conquered and gained victory. That’s what Jesus is offering.
We are called to be victorious every single day because we have a lot to overcome:
Temptations all around us.
Frustrations on all sides.
Disagreeable / angry people.
Disappointments and difficult situations.
Unexpected setbacks.
Angry and bitter critics.
Internal discouragement.
Chronic pain, sickness and death.
Friends who aren’t friends.
Personal failures which haunt us.
There will always reasons to give up and quit, always plenty of excuses if we want them. But to those who persevere, who will not give up, even when they feel like it; even when everything in them says, “Walk away from this mess,” to those brave souls who keep on keeping on, Christ makes two incredible promises - -
Jesus promises they will be pillars in God’s temple, AND will never leave God’s presence. These words meant a great deal because Philadelphia had been destroyed by a terrible earthquake and the citizens were used to evacuating the city.
Pillars were synonymous with strength and permanence — so the people would have understood the picture Jesus was drawing for them. Those who trust in Jesus will be safe and secure forever.
Jesus was saying, “They may not like you in Philadelphia, but you’ve got a home with me in heaven. I’ll make you a pillar in my temple so that you will be close to me forever. Because I reside in my temple.”
Then Jesus adds,
I will write on them the name of My God and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from My God; and I will also write on them My new name.
The power to name is the power of ownership. Those whom God has redeemed will be named and claimed by Him. All the old titles won’t matter anymore:
Teacher. Farmer. Accountant. Politician. Retired Influencer
Coach. Banker. Homemaker Athlete. Actor Executive
Other names also won’t matter either:
gossip unforgiver
Felon. Failure. Hated. Abandoned. Liar Humiliated
Unappreciated. Adulterer. Lonely. Sickly Outcast Hungry
In that great day, the blood of Jesus will wash away all the “tags” by which we know each other. Our names won’t matter, because we will all stand on the same ground - - - redeemed, renewed, and renamed by our Lord.
We will be given the name of the new Jerusalem because that’s where we’ll spend eternity. When we go to the airport we need to pass through security. They check our tickets and our ID’s, and sometimes us. We get passports to tell where we came from and where we can go. We have ID’s and drivers licenses.
But all believers in Jesus have a passport stamped “Citizen of heaven” and a visa guaranteeing them permanent entrance. No one can stop us, no one can hinder us, no one can say, “You have no right to be here.” We enter by the blood of Jesus, and in His name we find our place in the heavenly city.
We may have no security down here. We lock our doors because thieves may enter, and we know the stock market may collapse tomorrow and gas prices may go up, and there may be a terrorist attack, and . . . . . .
. . . And if you want real security, eternal security, you can find it only in Jesus Christ. One day we will have a new name, and we will live in a city that cannot be shaken or taken. We long to be there, and as Jesus said, 13 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says.
Are you listening?
