Philadelphia
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Today we will explore the sixth letter sent by Jesus to the seven churches.
The Letter to the Church of Philadelphia.
Philadelphia was around 189 years before the birth of Christ.
It was founded by King Eumenes II of Pergamon established the city in 189 BC.
He named it Philadelphia after his brother Attalus II, who was known by his nickname "Philadelphos" (meaning "one who loves his brother").
So it is the city of brotherly love.
I was an independent Christian church for a very long while, even lasting up to the 14th century where it was finally taken over by the Turks.
7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”: 8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie—indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. 12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. 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 out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name. 13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’
Taking the Futurist view, is an exploration of the sixth of seven church ages laid out before us through the seven letters to the seven churches.
The churches of
Ephesus- The church of the Apostolic age.
Smyrna- The age of church persecution
Pergamos- The age of Mixed or perverted marriages
Thyatira- The age of incorporation of paganism
Sardis- The birth of denominationalism and the dead church
Philadelphia- The age of brotherly love, the great missionary movement.
Laodicea
The first thing we read is
7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”:
Jesus is Holy and is True.
There’s no doubt among Christians about that point, but then He says, He has the key of David.
You see, right off the bat, we see Jesus declaring to the church of Philadelphia, that He is the one Holy, and True God.
And that he has the authority to do what He wishes.
Namely, he has the keys to the everything, and He can open and shut at will.
Referencing a prophecy in
20 ‘Then it shall be in that day, That I will call My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah; 21 I will clothe him with your robe And strengthen him with your belt; I will commit your responsibility into his hand. He shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem And to the house of Judah. 22 The key of the house of David I will lay on his shoulder; So he shall open, and no one shall shut; And he shall shut, and no one shall open. 23 I will fasten him as a peg in a secure place, And he will become a glorious throne to his father’s house.
Here is where there is some differences of opinions between protestants and Christians.
In
18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
So, the argument is, “Well how can Jesus have the keys if He’s given them to Peter?
To clarify this, I put it this way,
“Eliakim was a servant Priest of the King. King David.
Eliakim wasn’t the King, himself, just a servant.
Everything that Eliakim opened with those keys, belonged to the King.
Well, so it is with Jesus and Peter,
Jesus opened this letter clarifying His authority about Him being the Holy and True God.
So, everything that Peter could’ve opened, or closed, belong to Jesus whom endowed him with the keys in the first place.
The keys belong to the King, and the King can pass them to whomever He wants, Amen
Jesus is both The King and the Priest, Amen to that.
In
8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.
We have the changing of the guard so-to-speak.
The last church age before this one was called by Jesus the Dead Church.
Since the Protestant Reformation, there sprung up a plethora of different denominations.
Most were consumed with defining their doctrine and worship that they grew cold and dead in their service to the Lord.
But, one thing good that came from all of that in fighting and separation from the dominant church of that time was the printing of the Bible in many different languages.
As all the denominations were developing, they took advantage of the newest invention, the Printing press.
And soon after, everyone was printing Bibles, in multiple languages.
So guess what happened.
People started to read the Bible for themselves.
Not long ago I was talking among friends around our table at home about some whom claimed to read the Bible, but remained unchanged.
We all agreed, its impossible to read the entire Bible, Sincerely, and finish the Book unchanged.
Well, that’s exactly what happened around the mid 1700’s.
People began coming back from the dead,
From the dead churched thats is.
From those multiple denominations, people were reading the Bible for themselves and taking on the Great Commission of taking the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Jesus indeed had opened the doors of nations and peoples that had been shut.
During the Iron curtain in Russia they tried their best to keep the door to Christianity shut but instead collapsed.
Even now, we have the Bamboo curtain from placed like communist China who despite all their oppression and persecution, has one of the largest growing Christian populations on the planet right now.
Nations began to change, people began to change, and many began to respond to the call.
and Revival broke out in America, then Ireland, Great Britain, South Africa and all over the World.
Churches began sending those who were being called as Missionaries to all over the planet.
People like Adoniram Judson, Sir David Livingstone,
In the mid 1800’s there were so many converting and wanting baptism that a group of men cut out a large square in a frozen lake and began baptizing many in that freezing water.
Now that is dedication.
I personally was baptized in an African American black church in Chicago Illinois, when I was 26 years, old,
I was the only Caucasian in the building if memory serves me.
I often wonder what that Pastor would say, if he found out that this goofy half hispanic and half white whom he baptized in his church under his pastorate,
wound up becoming a pastor himself, and is now baptizing people into the kingdom as he has?
Im sure he would be as encouraged as I am when I retell that story.
I have personally baptized people in cold water, Cattle run-off water, Hotel Swimming Pools, Lakes, and as Sister Sharon recently reminded me of, I’ve even baptized to middle aged brothers in an apartment’s bathtub.
So, I have Baptized in some awkward places, but a frozen lake water?
No, I have not done that yet. I hope I never have to, if the Lord wills,
But I would consider it a privilege, if it meant someone has their name written in the Lambs book I life,
If a new Revival were to break out again over these countries.
No doubt, this church age kicked off what is referred to as the Modern Missionary Movement, or the Faith Missionary Movement.
9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie—indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.
Although Philadelphia was an independent Christian city, there were still those who resented the preaching in the name of Jesus,
These people were supposed Jews that worshipped together in the synagogue, but Jesus called them out as saying that aside from criticizing those with faith in Him, they were even sincere Jews either but rather a synagogue of satan.
They were imposters.
Unfortunately even the modern church age, we have many in the church who claim to be Christians, but their actions and lifestyles are far from God
Pauls mentions that same complaint in
6 But it is not that the word of God has taken no effect. For they are not all Israel who are of Israel,
They, as Jesus said, are of their father the devil.
44 You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do…
This is a stinging indictment to those who claim to be believers but aren’t.
10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.
Back in the age of the perverted church of Pergamos, around the third century, with the new influx of interpretations and the like, a literal view of the millennial reign of Jesus return turned into a hyperbolic view, or metaphoric view,
And so, A-Millennialism was brought into the church and accepted.
And what most of the early church fathers accepted as the coming Rapture event was dismissed and even buried for a time.
But because of the printing press, and the return of fervent scouring of the scriptures by those who could read for themselves,
This Philadelphia church age birthed a renewed fervor and interest for the study of the second coming of our Lord Jesus,
and with that a literal view of the His promise in verse 10,
The He would keep the church from the hour of trial coming upon the whole earth.
Pre-millennialism resurfaced and had now become the leading view of end times prophecy interpretations.
11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. 12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. 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 out of heaven from My God. And I will write on him My new name. 13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’
As I prepared this study for this message about the church of Philadelphia, I couldn’t help but keep coming back to a certain point that I noticed over and over again.
All of this change happened because people began reading the Bible for themselves.
Thats right.
The church world was in chaos,
So how did God fix that problem?
He split the churches, and gave them the Bible in their own languages.
People started reading the Word for themselves which had been not only kept from the regular people, but threatened with death to those who dared to read the Bible without the interpretation of the Catholic Priests
Brothers and Sisters here in Anna First Baptist, or hearing my voice right now.
I want you to know something.
If your life is out of control, if your life is out of whack,
Or if your life seems to not have any meaning for you whatsoever, or if you lack joy in the your life,
Or if you simply want a change in your life,
Start by reading the Bible for yourself.
There is no excuse,
There in the palm of your hands is access to every Bible every written and every language available.
And to those who can longer read, of who could never read, the Bible is now even recorded in Audio version, some even in dramatic acting out of each verse.
There is no excuse.
If you want change, If you want to be a part of the change, read the Bible, and you’ll start a revival in your own heart, and prayerfully will spread to the rest of the world once again as it did in the church age of Philadelphia.
Jesus said to the church of Philadelphia, that He knows of their little strength,
But with God with us, we become tough.
And what is that saying,
When the going gets tough, the tough gets going.
If we are tough with Jesus by our side, then let’s us get going by taking the gospel all over the world.
Soon, this coming July, Anna First Baptist Church has nine missionaries traveling to the state of Durango Mexico, to assist on the ground
With our partner Church, whom you all have met last year when they came to visit us.
Casa De Gracia.
This is an opportunity to put your faith where you mouth is,
If you truly believe what Jesus said, He also said
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
This is your opportunity to bring a change either in your life or in the lives of the missionaries representing your home church here, or in the lives of the people in Durango Mexico, that your missionaries will reach.
And may the Lord bless you and multiply your blessings for your obedient hearts.
Whether you choose to sponsor a missionary in full, donate to their mission, or commit prayerfully for their effectiveness and for their safety.
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Mexico Mission Trip Donations wanted.
