AM Sermon preached at Central Christian Church November 5, 2006
The Letter to the Church at Philadelphia Rev. 3:7-13 The Door of Opportunity
[SERMON SERIES SLIDE---WILL AUTOMATICALLY MOVE TO TITLE SLIDE THEN TO BLANK SLIDE]
Let’s see how well you recognize the following landmarks by their entrances or doors…
[SLIDE #4] It’s just across the river. That’s right. It’s the entrance to Union Station.
[SLIDE #5]
Like you don’t know this one… [SLIDE #6]
[SLIDE #7] That’s right it’s the new Busch Stadium. Oops! Sorry. Left that slide in there.
[SLIDE #8] Aw come on and give a Cub fan a break, will ya?
Here’s just about everyone will recognize. [SLIDE #9]
Yes, it’s the White House. [SLIDE #10]
Here’s a landmark our old timers can readily identify. [SLIDE #11]
[SLIDE #12] The old outhouse.
From the Windy City here’s a shot of.. [SLIDE #13]
What you don’t recognize it? It’s the home of the good guys. That’s right Wrigley field! [SLIDE #14]
This one may be a little tougher. [SLIDE #15]
Can’t fool you guys---it’s this building. [SLIDE #16]
Three more and we’ll move on. This one ought to be familiar to some of our guys with wings. [SLIDE #17] That’s right. [SLIDE #18] It’s the Air Force Academy Cathedral.
Here’s another from Chicagoland. [SLIDE #19] It’s the McCormick Place Convention Center. [SLIDE #20]
Last one… Ever drive by this local landmark? [SLIDE #21]
[SLIDE #22] It’s the McCormick Place in Belleville.
Well, enough of that. Moving on to more important matters…Do you realize that there are lots of open doors spoken of in the Bible and that they almost always refer to some type of opportunity?
For example, the opportunity for a traveler to receive overnight lodging in Job’s house is spoken of as an open door. [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] "my door was always open to the traveler-" Job 31:32 The open door idea is used to describe the opportunity to speak freely about Christ. Paul writes in Colossians, [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] "And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains." Colossians 4:3 And in 2 Corinthians when Paul journeyed to Troas to preach he [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] "found that the Lord had opened a door" for him. 2 Cor. 2:12
And near the end of Revelation 3, later in this chapter that has the letter to the church at Philadelphia in it, there’s an open door imagery that speaks of entering into a meaningful intimate relationship with Jesus. In verse 20 we find Jesus saying: [SCRIPTURE SLIDE] Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” [BLANK—SLIDE #27]
So when Jesus says to the first century church at Philadelphia, "I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut." He is in essence saying “I want you to make the most of the opportunities I’m giving you.” And what Jesus wanted for them back then He wants for us today---Rather than miss out on the opportunities He places before us, He wants us to make the most of them. Let’s take a few moments and read the scripture passage in which Jesus words about the open door are found. They appear in His letter to the church at Philadelphia which is recorded for us in Revelation 3:7-12… [SCRIPTURE SLIDES]
7 "To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 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.
8 I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
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.
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 upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
12 Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him 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 him my new name.
13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
[1ST SERMON POINT SLIDE ---SLIDE #36]
Jesus says, “I’ve put an open door before you---an opportunity I don’t want you to miss…”
Opportunities are missed either because they aren’t recognized or because they are rejected. Thomas Edison pretty much said the same thing only he used more colorful language to say it---according to Edison, “Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.”
I love the story inspirational speaker Zig Zigler tells of this boy that went with his mother to the old general store. He liked to sneak away from his mother and when no one was looking he would dip his finger into the large barrel of molasses.
The storekeeper caught him doing this and decided to teach the boy a lesson. He picked up the boy by his britches and dunked him head first into the barrel of molasses and then set him out on the front porch of the store. But instead of crying the boy was out there praying, “God, give me the tongue to equal this opportunity.”
Alexander Graham Bell once said, "When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long and so regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us." Not that little guy who went with his mom to the old general store. What a great attitude! What resiliency! That young fella wasn’t about to miss out on what he recognized as an extraordinary opportunity.
As I was working on this morning’s message, thinking on and reading what others had written about the opportunities God gives us I came to the conclusion that the opportunities God gives us seem to fall into one of two categories. [SLIDE] God gives us opportunities to show our love for Him. And He gives us opportunities to show our love for others.
Think for a moment about the countless opportunities God gives us to show our love for Him. Each and every day, from the time we wake up in the morning until that time we go back to sleep at night, the opportunities flow before us. At practically any moment we can whisper a prayer. We can sing to Him, if not with our voices at least in our hearts. We can read from His word. We can admire His handiwork. We can with gratitude focus in on the blessing of the moment. We can give of our time, our energy, our money. We can regularly and joyfully attend worship services. We can resist a temptation. We can obey a command. On and on we could go listing ways to show our love for God.
The same thing holds true when we’re talking about showing love to others. The Roman philosopher Seneca taught “Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.” And that is so true.
Kirk Nowery in his book, “The Stewardship of Life” writes “As I look back on the opportunities God has already given me (and for which I must one day answer to Him), I see that the majority fall into three categories: Opportunities to Evangelize, Opportunities to Empathize and Opportunities to Energize.” As Kirk goes into greater detail he explains that opportunities to evangelize are opportunities to talk to unbelievers about Jesus---opportunities to empathize are opportunities to react to people’s hardships; to feel for and care for the hurting---and opportunities to energize are opportunities to proactively and intentionally set out to bring about good in the lives of other people---to build others up.
Translating all this into our daily lives---- we can show love by talking to others about Jesus. By inviting unchurched people to Central’s worship services. By dropping by the hospital, by visiting those in nursing homes. By going visitations and funerals. Through a handshake, a hug, a pat on the back, a genuine compliment. Things as simple as opening a door for someone whose arms are full---as helping someone get the frost off their windshield or letting them go in front of you in line---simply things like that can send out the subtle unspoken message “God has taught me to love you and see you as are a person of worth.”
Jesus says to every Christian here “I’ve opened the doors for you to show your love to me and for you to show your love to others….now it’s up to you to walk through them and make the most of the opportunities.” And to every Christian here Jesus also says [SLIDE WITH 2ND SERMON POINT] “Hold on tight to your relationship with me.”
To the first century Christians at Philadelphia, Jesus wrote “"Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him that overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him 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 him my new name." Jesus reminded the people at the church of Philadelphia that God’s got a lot of wonderful blessings in store for those who remain faithful to Him---one of them being a permanent home in heaven. Take a quick look at these pictures of ancient ruins…[ONCE YOU PULL UP THE FIRST SLIDE THE OTHERS SHOULD AUTOMATICALLY ADVANCE TO A BLANK SLIDE]
…notice something they all share in common? The pillars are still standing. After hundreds of years---after thousands of storms, after fires and earthquakes and wars, the pillars of these ancient ruins are still standing. When Jesus promised the Philadelphian Christians that He would "make overcomers a pillar in the temple of my God" they knew what He meant. They knew He was saying to them "Get to heaven and you’ll be there for eternity."
And Jesus’ talk of writing on overcomers the name of God and the name of the city of God and writing on them a new name is all about the fact that we’ll have a very personal intimate relationship with God in heaven. What we have here is similar to the idea of a bride taking on her husband’s last name or an adopted child taking on the name of his adoptive parents. Folks when that happens, when God gives us His name, it will be a wonderful moment that will forever enhance and solidify our relationship to Him. So, Jesus is saying to us---no matter what happens in your life, no matter how difficult it is at times to follow me, hold on to our relationship. I promise you, it will be worth it!”
Now while Jesus’ letter was written specifically to Christians, there’s a very clear message to non-Christians here that I am compelled to share. [SLIDE WITH 3RD SERMON POINT] 3. Jesus says to those who still haven’t put their hope and trust in him---return to me while you still can! Choose to follow me and give your heart to me now before it’s too late. Run through the open door of salvation now, before I close it forever. Many of us have seen the statement "When God closes a door, He always opens a window." In fact we used to have a refrigerator magnet with that statement on it. It’s a neat little saying that gives us a warm fuzzy feeling inside when we hear it. "When God closes a door, He always opens a window." The problem is that that statement simply isn’t true. When God closes a door He doesn’t always open a window. When God closes a door, He sometimes opens a window---and sometimes He doesn’t.
Remember the flood in Noah’s day? Noah didn’t build the ark overnight. No, it took him decades to build the ark. And while he was working away at it, he often warned people of God’s anger and the coming flood. Those who heard Noah had the opportunity to repent of their ways and join up with Noah and his family but the people he preached to ignored and even mocked his words. Then came the time when the ark was finished and Noah, his family and the animals were inside. At that point according to Genesis 7:16 God shut the door to the ark. Then the rains came. And the water began to rise. Now I can’t help but wonder if some people didn’t rush to the ark hoping they could get in when they realized Noah’s prophecies were coming true. If they did they found that the door had been closed. I wonder if they beat on the door with their fists until their knuckles bled. I wonder if they tried to pry it open or use a log as a battering ram against it. And when they couldn’t get in through the closed door, I wonder if they looked for an open window. They didn’t find one. I wonder if in a final desperate measure the strongest among men clung to the sides of the ship until their strength gave out?
Remember the visit of the death angel to Egypt? God had instructed Moses that the last plague was going to involve the death of the first born children in the land. God told Moses to have the Israelites spread the blood of a lamb around the door frames of their homes that way when the death angel came he would pass over their house. That night when the death angel came he passed over the homes where blood had been applied. But he visited every home where there was no lamb’s blood. Egyptians who heard the screaming of their neighbors as they found their first born dead and who realized that something terrible was taking place in the night, may have tried to barricade their doors to keep out whatever it was out there that was bringing all the pain and sorrow---but it was of no use. The death angel came anyway.
And then there’s the story of the ten virgins found in Matthew 25? Remember it? As He told that story Jesus said---when the bridegroom returned, the five prepared virgins were allowed into the wedding celebration....the five unprepared were shut out from it.
The account in Genesis of Noah and the flood, the record of Moses and the plagues on Egypt, the parable of the ten virgins----and these words we read today about Jesus opening doors and closing them---they all have a common thread running through them---a warning concerning salvation---the fact that once God’s shut the door to salvation, it’s shut ---whether he closes it by our death or by Christ’s return it doesn’t really matter, once its closed, it’s closed. No more chances to accept Christ will be given once those doors are closed. No amount of pleading, begging or crying will change the outcomes of those who are shut outside. And that’s why Jesus makes His appeal through this letter and through stories he told and comments He made for us to return to Him while we can.
[SLIDE] Right now the door of opportunity concerning salvation is open. [SLIDE] It won’t stay that way forever.
I urge you to think about Jesus words. Listen with your heart for the voice of His Spirit. What is it that Jesus is saying to you? Are you a Christian who’s been giving less than your best and who’s been missing out on a lot of opportunities and is He saying to you---come on, give me your best, you can make a difference. Are you a tired or discouraged Christian---are you someone who’s been laboring and laboring away for years still waiting for the reinforcements to arrive---do you feel unappreciated or as if no one notices or cares about the things you do behind the scenes---are you feeling like throwing in the towel and giving up on the church maybe even giving up on God---and is the Spirit saying to you “hang in there! Hold on! You’re doing more good than you can imagine. Keep fighting, keep serving, don’t lose heart. Soon the battle will be over and you’ll be home, safe with me.” Is that what Jesus is saying to you? Or are you someone who’s heard the good news about the forgiveness Jesus makes possible but hasn’t yet become a Christian and is God saying to your heart---please return to me now before it’s too late? I encourage you today—don’t just hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches, hear what the Spirit is saying to you. And respond the way He is encouraging you to respond. And in the next few moments as we stand and sing the invitation hymn, if you believe the Spirit is leading you to make a public decision for Christ, please come forward and meet with me down here in front of the stage… [SONG SLIDES]
NOTE TO THOSE WHO READ AND OR CHOOSE TO MAKE USE OF ANY OR ALL OF THIS SERMON: I am sharing this sermon with the hopes it will be an encouragement to others. I apologize for any blatant typing errors! If you find any I’d appreciate hearing from you so I can correct them. I try to give credit where credit is due, noting writers and or sources to the best of my ability. I have for years been drawing from a wealth of sources including this website. I recognize that my mind and writing processes are fallible. I may occasionally fail to properly identify a source. Please do not take offense if you see anything of this nature. I never intend to plagiarize. Having said that I want you to feel free to draw from my message. When appropriate I hope you will give credit as I do. But most of all I hope Christ will be lifted up and God will receive the glory in all things.
