Sermon – Revelation 3 – Philadelphia

  • This is our next to last week of looking at the Churches in Revelation in which Christ had a message for.  Today, we will look at the Church in Philadelphia; and next week we will look at Laodicea.
  • So far, we’ve looked the Churches in:
    • Ephesus                 passionless                  or        busy church vs loving church
    • Smyrna                  suffering                      or        persecuted church vs the accepted church
    • Pergamum            compromising            or        compromising church vs the faithful church
    • Thyatira                 tolerating                    or         the tolerating church vs the loyal church
    • Sardis                    dying                           or        the healthy church vs the dead church
  • Philadelphia, like Smyrna, doesn’t receive a complaint – and dealt with the Synagogue of Satan.
    • They hadn’t lost their first love … They hadn’t buckled under pressure … They didn’t tolerate falsehoods … They were not dead.
  • The city of Philadelphia lasted longer than any of the others mentioned; and there was a church there when the Turks invaded.  The city was founded around 160 BC – 140 BC and was a Greek mission city.  Jesus praises this Church; and reminds them and encourages them to remain faithful.
  • Revelation 3:7-13 (NLT) … (7) Write this letter to angel of the church in Philadelphia. This is the message from the one who is holy and true, the one who has the key of David.  What he opens, no one can close; and what he closes, no one can open. (8) I know all the things you do, and I have opened a door for you that no one can close.  You have little strength, yet you obeyed my word and did not deny me.  (9) Look, I will force those who belong to Satan’s synagogue – those liars who say they are Jews but are not – to come and bow down at your feet.  They will acknowledge that you are the ones I love. (10) Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.  (11) I am coming soon.  Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown. (12) All who are victorious will become pillars in the Temple of my God, and they will never have to leave it. And I will write on them the name of my God, and they will be citizens in the city of my God – the new Jerusalem that comes down from heaven from my God.  And I will also write on them my new name.  (13) Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches.
  • This message is the from the One who is Holy and True; and who has the key of David.
  • We know Jesus is Holy and True – even the Truth according to John 14:6, but what does it mean that He has the key of David?
  • This refers to Isaiah 22:20-22 where Eliakim, King Hilkiah’s steward is mentioned.  He had the highest position in the royal court and could open and close doors without anyone else undoing what he had done.
  • Jesus is claiming this same authority.  He can open and close doors as He pleases; and nobody can open what He has shut; or shut what He has opened.
  • Just like last week, when we looked at the Church in Sardis … Jesus also tells the Church in Philadelphia, that He knows their works / deeds / actions.  Since no complaint exists, their works must have been positive and their motives pure.  Assuming that is the reason, then we must ask ourselves if our works are selfless and pure as well.
  • Jesus tells them that He has opened a door that nobody can close; but what is this door?
  • An easy answer is found in Matthew 7:13-14 … Jesus says the only way you can enter is through the narrow gate; and that this gate is very narrow, difficult, and few find it.
  • Nobody can stop you from being saved – it is a personal choice.  Nobody can stop you from walking through the open door/gate and being saved … (but persecution is another story … after we walk through the open door of salvation, we will face some of it.) 
  • Paul wrote in 1stCorinthians 16:9 that there was a wide-open door for a great work, but many opposed him.  Have you felt that way?  You have a calling, but are faced with opposition and those telling you can’t do it or you have to do it alone; and that can come from “church people” too.
  • Paul also wrote in Colossians 4:3 that he wanted prayer support, so they could proclaim the Gospel.  We too, should be praying for and looking for doors to open, so we can share the Gospel and what God has done for us – our testimonies.
  • This Church had little strength, but they still had some.  Even their numbers might have been small, but they still existed.  They didn’t allow outside pressure or persecution to stop them.  They didn’t allow their small numbers to stop them, (assuming that was the case too).  
  • This church – or any similar one – shouldn’t allow the world or fear or doubt stop us from fulfilling our calling.  We shouldn’t let the fact that numbers might not be where they were or where we would like them to stop us … with that attitude, nobody else will get saved or join us.
  • We must focus on the task at hand – that being faithful to Jesus Himself, His teachings, and the command to make new disciples.  Each and every day we have the opportunity to serve the Lord and others … do we do that?
  • Just like in Smyrna, the Church in Philadelphia had to deal with the Synagogue of Satan.  One widely accepted theory is that they were a group of Jews who were opposed to Jesus.  If you are opposed to Jesus, then by default, you would be in league with the devil.  The Synagogue of Satan, then and now, would be opposed to the Church’s mission and message … and they will do whatever they can to silence, shut down, and discredit the truth and those that proclaim it.  
  • Just like there was a distinction between ethnic and faithful Jews … not all descendants from Israel are Israel … fleshly vs heart circumcision … there is a difference between faithful Christians and false or cultural ones. One endures and does the right things with the right motive; and the other just goes through the motions … false believers are like those in the Synagogue of Satan – they will try to limit, discredit, or slander those who are living and teaching truth. 
  • In the end, those that oppose the Kingdom – and those that live and work for it (true Christians) – will have false teachers, scoffers, liars, slanderers, religious hypocrites, and the like bow before them … then they will know the truth we preach is real and not made up and not a fairy tale or kids story … they will know we were trying to warn them … they will understand that Christ loves us.
  • Since these believers were faithful – because they endured patiently – that they would be kept from the hour of testing – the tribulation – that would come upon the whole earth.
  • Two theories exist here … either believers will be whisked away, or they will be protected.
  • Regardless of what will happen; or what we would prefer to happen, we must trust God and believe either way – that we will be kept safe … assuming we keep the faith.
  • Jesus is coming soon … this is just another verse (3:11) that says He is coming back and another encouragement to hold on and endure and persevere … always remain faithful and loyal to Jesus … always obey His commands … always be praying and reaching out … give others the same introduction to Jesus that you had … GO PREACH AND MAKE DISCIPLES
  • This message ends with Three Blessings:
  • Honor – Pillar in the Temple
  • The city of Philadelphia honored “heroes” by naming a pillar (in a pagan Temple) after and/or engraving that pillar with the name of a that “hero” … Jesus takes this further, and these believers won’t just get a pillar named after them, they WILL BE a pillar in God’s Temple, not a pagan one.
  • Security – citizens of the New Jerusalem 
  • The city of Philadelphia was built near a volcano – so they were endanger from eruptions and earthquakes.  They had to flee the city quite often, but would return when things settled down. In the new City of God – in the New Jerusalem, they would never have to flee; as they would be in perfect peace.
  • Identity – a new name 
  • These believers would receive a new name – like the believers in Pergamum that received a white stone with a new name.  In AD 17, the city was destroyed by an earthquake and was renamed “Neo-Caesarea” or the new city of Caesar.  The people there would have known about what a new name meant and the honor behind it. They would be named after someone far greater than a human emperor – they would be named after the Almighty God.
  • This message ends, just like the others with a warning to not ignore what the Holy Spirit says.
  • As we go through the rest of this day, week, year, and our lives … faithfully endure in the faith – do what is right for the right reasons, even if faced with opposition and persecution … pray for doors to be opened and when they are walk through them in hope of fulfilling the Great Commission.