Revelation 3:7-13, “Holding Fast to Our Identity in Christ”
Following Christ our Head • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Philadelphia (the one in the Bible) was a city with an identity crisis.
The city named in honor of King Attalus II who had a close relationship with his brother, Eumenes II, king of Pergamum. Attalus refused to overthrow his brother to take power, and waited his turn until his brother passed to succeed him on the throne. Philadelphia was named in honor of this brotherly love. But volatility in their circumstances tested this identity.
The city was prone to earthquakes. After one of these, Tiberias Caesar helped them rebuild and they renamed the city “Neo-Caesarea” in his honor. Later, to please the Flavian dynasty ruling Rome, they renamed the city again “Flavia”. And because they built a temple to Caesar, they were known as “neokoros”. And because of the number of temples to honor every god imaginable, the city was also known as Little Athens.
Identity crisis hits when we experience some trauma or failure and we begin to wonder, who am I now? Psychologists use these diagnostic questions.
Do you feel confused about who you are and what matters to you?
Do you struggle to answer questions about yourself or question your decisions?
Have recent life changes caused confusion about what direction your life should take?
Are your values, beliefs or lifestyle in conflict with others around you?
Are you feeling overwhelmed, restless or discontent with life?
Do you often change yourself to suit any environment, situation, or relationship?
Any of us can experience an identity crisis. But we are living in an age in which it seems like everyone is having identity crisis. Conferences are being held to ask, “what does it mean to be human?” People struggle with how they should identify themselves as LGBTQIA and which pronoun to use for themselves. Corporations are constantly rebranding themselves to shed bad reputations and keep customers happy.
But if the church forgets her identity in Christ, we will become discouraged, distracted, and lose our purpose. Many churches have fallen into the trap of constant rebranding to be more accepted by those outside the church.
Jesus writes this letter to encourage the Christians in Philadelphia and us, “Hold fast to your identity in Me”. The letter drips with reminders and promises of their identity in Christ. It is essential that we hold fast to our identity in Christ if we are going to conquer the volatility of our world and redeem the time for His gospel.
The first encouragement this letter offers is that out of all the voices trying to tell you who you should be, Jesus has already spoken and continues to speak words of affirmation to you and me, to us as a church.
Listen to Jesus Because of Who He Is
Listen to Jesus Because of Who He Is
Why should we listen to Jesus? First, because of His identity.
“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.
Who is Jesus? He uses two titles for Himself that were used for God in the Hebrew scriptures: the holy one and the true one. He is the Eternal God who is true and cannot lie.
Then Jesus from Isaiah, referring to a guy taking a new job as steward in the house of king Hezekiah, the descendant of David, the line of the Messiah. This steward would have authority to grant entrance to the king’s presence and his household.
And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.
Jesus has all the authority in the kingdom of God. If He says “enter” the Father’s house, you can enter. If He closes the door to you, no one can open it to you. He promised over and over again to His disciples, if you abide in Me through faith, I am the door to the fold of God. The Jews can close the door to the synagogue, but they cannot keep you out of the Father’s house.
Listen to Jesus Because He Knows You Like No One Else
Listen to Jesus Because He Knows You Like No One Else
“ ‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you.
You are loved by God. If you hear nothing else today, hear this. God loves you just as you are, not as you should be.
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Anyone who confesses this is true has this assurance: I was a sinner loved by God and Christ died for me. And if God loves me like that, there is nothing that can separate me from His love. Many people are still living without that assurance, and even though they might seem self-assured, if their identity is other this one, they will waste their life trying to maintain a false identity created by men.
The Jews claimed to be God’s people, but had rejected God’s Messiah. They were working for Satan. They had a false identity.
Jesus knows what you have done even in secret out of love for God and love for others. He knows how others will misrepresent us. And He knows what is true about us - the things no one else sees or understands. He wants the Christians in Philadelphia to see what He sees.
Listen to Jesus Because He Gives Us Vision
Listen to Jesus Because He Gives Us Vision
Every pastor has a vision for his or her church. But Jesus is the Head of the church. He tells the church three times to “behold”, open your eyes to His vision for the church.
“ ‘I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
Open your eyes to the open door I have given you. This has two implications. The first is our heavenly citizenship. Open your eyes to your heavenly citizenship. If Jesus has opened the door to the heavenly kingdom to you, no one is able to shut that to you. Our physical eyes may perceive we have little power in this world, but we have the authority of heaven.
Along with this citizenship comes a calling on our lives to be ambassadors for Christ in this world. The image of the open door was one way the apostles described opportunities God had given them to share the gospel with more people. If the church will keep Jesus’ word, stay true to the gospel, obey His word and refuse to deny His name, He can open a door for the word to them to spread the gospel.
The city of Philadelphia was thought to be the door to the east for Greek culture and religion, what we call Hellenism. They had built more temples than almost any other city in Asia. They were missionaries for Hellenism. In the same way, Christians living as citizens of the heavenly kingdom in Philadelphia, will be missionaries for Jesus, ambassadors for Christ.
Community of Grace is a church of missionaries for Jesus in Westbrook, Portland, Windham, Falmouth, South Portland, Gorham, Scarborough, Casco, Biddeford, Saco. Our prayer is that God would open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ in all these communities.
Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ,
The next behold, Jesus says, is, “Open your eyes to the truth amid the lies” To be a Christian is almost always to be misunderstood by others outside the faith. Those people can often seem more confident, more powerful and influential, and more comfortable in this world. Jesus says, “not all is as it seems.”
Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you.
The Jews that had rejected Jesus as Messiah and were excommunicating Christians from synagogue, might seem to have spiritual authority, but they lie. So, don’t listen to what they say.
This can go two ways for Christians right now. Some get discouraged when others don’t agree with their faith and values and they hold back from proclaiming the gospel. Others feel like they have to correct every lie and false claim that is spoken about our faith. But here’s Jesus saying, I see the lies. And I have plans for those that oppose Me.
The third “behold” is to open our eyes to our vindication. Our vindication is not vengeance against our enemies. But that Jesus loves us. See what Jesus says. His plans for the persecutors of the church are to humble them at the feet of His beloved. Shouldn’t this make us less anxious, more at peace, more filled with grace? The way Jesus will humble the enemies of the church is making them bow before the weak, poor, misunderstood, misrepresented people He has redeemed by His love.
Jesus’ vision for the church is a community whose victory is holding fast what they have in Christ. They may feel like they have little strength, but God is more interested with faithfulness than success. Knowing our identity in Christ is our strength when we feel powerless and vulnerable in society.
Finally, Jesus makes seven promises to this church, more than any of the others.
Listen to Jesus’ Promises More Than the Lies of the Enemy
Listen to Jesus’ Promises More Than the Lies of the Enemy
If the church changes who they are to suit those around them, they will end up denying Jesus. But this church, which is suffering rejection and anticipating more trouble to come is conquering by holding fast to Jesus. And Jesus promises:
Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth.
Some believe this means Jesus will take the church out of the world before the final great tribulation, and it could mean that. But also, just like the Israelites in Egypt when the plagues came, God can preserve the faithful through any hour of trial if they will listen to Jesus’ words and patiently endure. How is your patience these days?
The second promise is that He is coming soon.
I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.
Some of the churches have heard Jesus say, “I am coming soon,” and trembled. Jesus warned them they needed to repent or He would come against them. This time, Jesus is promising this church that has remained faithful, “Your suffering will not last forever.” In the eternal perspective, it is just a moment.
The final five promises all have to do with being established as permanent members of God’s house. In this city that was shaken by earthquakes and changing its identity for every new emperor and fad, those who hold fast to their identity in Christ will never be shaken. In this city, the doors to the temples and synagogues were closed to Christians, but for those whom Jesus loves, they are pillars in the temple of God.
The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.
The pillars in Solomon’s temple had names. Jachin means “He establishes”, and Boaz means, “in Him is strength.” These pillars weren’t necessary to hold the temple together. They were symbols of the promise of God to the worshipper. If you come in faith, God establishes you in His presence and He is your strength. This is your identity, established in the strength of God.
Jesus follows this with the punchline, never will you go out. Philadelphians had fled their city during earthquakes. Christians were unwelcomed in the temples and synagogue. But you have a permanent place in the temple of God.
The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.
To make their identity even more clear, while the names of Christians were being erased from the synagogue membership and citizenship rolls in Roman cities like Philadelphia, God writes His name on them. They may not belong to the city of Philadelphia, the city of their birth. But they belong to the heavenly city, the city of their new birth, the city that cannot be shaken.
And the final promise is that Jesus writes on us His own new name. On the cross, Jesus established a covenant with God the Father. He would redeem, purchase all sinners who would trust in His sacrifice for their sins. We are His.
You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.
If we are secure in our identity in Christ, we will have confidence in our victory over a world that favors image, popularity, power, wealth, and influence. We don’t need any of those things if we truly know the love of Jesus that would adopt us into the household of the Father.
Communion
Questions for Discussion
What is one way you can praise God for His work in your life?
Have you ever had an identity crisis? What was that like? How did you resolve it?
What are some ways affliction can cause us to doubt our identity in Christ? What are some ways it can solidify our identity in Christ?
What do we learn about Jesus in our passage?
What do we learn about ourselves in the passage?
How would you define our identity in Christ?
Why does Jesus want this church to understand the open door (verse 1) and the permanent place for them (verse 12) in God’s household? How does that apply to our lives?
What is the open door Jesus has set before the church?
What does it mean to have the name of God, His city, and the name of Jesus written on us?
How will you apply this passage to your life this week?
Who is someone you can share this passage with this week?
