Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
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Openness
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The Church of the Open Door
God may close one door but it’s for the purpose of pointing us toward the OPEN one!
Destination—Philadelphia
was established in 189 BC by King Eumenes II of Pergamon (197–160 BC).
Eumenes II named the city for the love of his brother, who would be his successor, Attalus II (159–138 BC), whose loyalty earned him the nickname, "Philadelphos", literally meaning "one who loves his brother
Almost totally destroyed by an earthquake in AD 17
Roman Emperor Tiberius exempted the city from taxation in order to help it rebuild
The area close by was particularly known for it’s fine vineyards of grapes
The early church actually met in Jewish places of worship.
in Acts, the met in the temple courtyard
Evidence that they even met in synagogues
They were considered a Jewish sect
But as the years went by and it became more evident that their claims and beliefs were exclusive and could not be compromised, they started to be shoved out of Jewish society
It was never really a question of being accepted into Roman or Greek culture.
The differences between them were great.
But the painful reality for them was being ostracized from Jewish culture.
This was what was happening in places like Philadelphia
Literally, the door was shut in their faces.
Revelation 3:7-13
Things to notice about this letter:
Introduction:
This is the first time that the resurrected LORD is introduced using words that are not found in the beginning of the vision
Content:
There is no rebuke, no correction, no warning, no judgement
Only acknowledgement of their struggle, encouragement, and the promise of reward
Was Philadelphia a big church?
Seems that they weren’t
You have little strenght (vs 8)
Does this mean that Philadelphia is a perfect Church?
Certainly not!
There’s no such thing as a perfect church
Church is made up of people like me who are far from perfect
But Philadelphia was an approved church
The way that they were living, the way that they were fighting and enduring, Jesus approved of them
Exegesis
These are the words of Him who is Holy and True
These words describe the very character of the speaker, the essence of who the person is.
Both descriptive words indicate that this is Someone whom you can trust
..”who holds the Key of David.
What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts, no one can open.”
words used almost verbatim centuries before of Eliakim, son of Hilkiah during the days of King Hezekiah
Was prophesied that Eliakim would take the place of Shebna, the palace administrator
The Bible does refer to him as after that as the palace administrator
perhaps it was like the President’s Chief of Staff
Wields extraordinary power in regard to what the other staff do
And who has access to the president
in a sense he has keys to the president
Maybe these were physical keys to the king’s palace
But symbolically they were the power to shut people out of the kingdom and out of the covenants that God had made with his people
So now here is Jesus saying that I have the keys
And I have set before you an OPEN DOOR (Literally, an openED door!)
Door--Such a rich imagery
Closed doors can have negative imagery (not always
Rejection—she shut the door in my face
Solitude—I just need to get away for a bit
Secrecy—No one knows what goes on behind closed doors
Open doors—almost always positive imagery
Welcome—the door is flung open; eg.
Christian arriving at the Celestial City
Revelation
Opportunity—The door of opportunity
who, by the way, are actually the synagogue of Satan
What a change in language from biblical themes of God’s redemptive work for the Jews
Bringing them out of slavery
Establishing a home land
redeeming them from exile
Sending the promised Messiah
Jesus said that he had come to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
The Jews persisted in their unbelief and deception
So much so that Jesus is now referring to them as the synagogue of Satan, the deceiver.
No longer were they holding to the truth
Jesus says to the young church at Philadelphia “They are actually of the synagogue of Satan
in a sense, “You are my true followers, those who are holding on to the truth.
Jesus is introduced as He who holds the keys of David
They claim to have the truth and are marginalizing you but I have the keys to the house of David
I say who gets in and who stays out
“I have put before you an open door which no one can shut”
To this perhaps small, struggling, marginalized church, these are welcome words
Jesus is a LORD of the open door!
All are welcome.
You may be on the outskirts.
You may be suffering rejection from your family, your community, your church
I hope not your church, but it’s possible
But you are welcome to Jesus.
His door is open
no one can shut this door.
By his sacrifice on the cross, all are welcome.
He is not willing that any should perish but that all come to repentence
This is an incredible picture of welcome and acceptance
Those who have rejected you are going to come and fall at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you
THE OPEN DOOR
The Door of Welcome
Jesus said, “I AM the Door”.
I am the only way to the Father
This church was facing exclusion and marginalization from “The Synagogue of Satan”
Those who say they are Jews but are not
(NIV) 28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical.
29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.
Such a person’s praise is not from other people, but from God.
These Jews were saying, “Hey, we are the true Jews”.
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