Sermon Tone Analysis

Being a faithful church

Being a faithful Church

, 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.

“‘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.

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.

I am coming soon.

Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.

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.

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

“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.

“‘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.

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.

I am coming soon.

Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.

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.

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’

There is a war for the soul of the UMC.

People on both sides feel strongly about their positions, and I don’t see how they can live together as church any longer.

Many who look to the Scriptures for answers see a clear solution in the words of , “Do two walk together, unless they have agreed to meet?

Progressive and traditionalist churches are pledging to leave the church if the outcome does not go the way they want.

The “One Church Plan” that the denomination is proposing feels like a shotgun wedding when what really needs to happen here is for both sides to just walk away.

Yes can clearly see in the recent history of the Episcopal Church, ELCA, and the PCUSA when they dealt with this same question about same-sex marriage and clergy and it suggests that the best way to avoid either a scorched-earth campaign or a slow death with a steady stream of churches departing is to agree to separate amicably.

The real challenges for the Methodist Church are that their divisions run much deeper than gay marriage and the ordination of practicing homosexuals.

There are divisions are over (1) the interpretation and authority of Scripture, (2) the status of the Book of Discipline and (3) the authority of the General Conference, and (4) the very mission of the church.

I want you to really think about what I just said!

When you cannot even agree on these fundamentals, it’s time to part ways.

(a) How could the General Conference continue to define doctrine for a church that no longer agrees on core theological principles?

(b) How can you maintain connectionism when some believe the General Conference’s pronouncements need no longer be considered binding?

(c) How could there be a consistent theology of marriage and sexuality one-way or the other when there is no standard?

Come on guys, game over, either you believe God is sovereign, sacred, and sufficient or you do not.

The issue of Gay marriage signifies the final triumph of the Sexual Revolution and the dethroning of Christianity because it denies the core concept of Christian anthropology.

In classical Christian teaching, the divinely sanctioned union of male and female is an icon of the relationship of Christ to His church and ultimately of God to His creation.

This is why gay marriage negates Christian cosmology, because it denies the origin and general structure of God’s universe.

It is from God’s universe and God’s plan that we derive our modern concept of human rights and other fundamental goods of modernity.

Whether we can keep them in the post-Christian era remains to be seen.

There is no question that the Church has lost this battle in the culture.

The only question now is whether or not; the church will lose its culture within itself.

If a church flips on the gay marriage question (and on sexual morality more broadly), then the church will surrendered more than it can afford to.

For same-sex relationships to be rightly ordered in the eyes of the God of the Bible, too many things about Christianity would have to become untrue.

So, it’s not at all merely a matter of sexual ethics, or just Scriptural authority (as important as that is).

This issue is at the level of anthropology — that is, of what a human being is, as a bearer of the divine image of God.

If we are to be the church of Jesus Christ, faithful and true then we must stand up for what the Bible stands for, regardless of the cost to our reputations and the concerns of those who want to rebuke the truth of Scripture.

We must be a faithful church; God has given certain commands to the faithful church.

God has given certain credentials to the faithful church and God will give a crown to the faithful church.

We must be about the business of being a faithful church.

Let us pray…

(1) God has given commands to the faithful church

As most people know, Philadelphia means, “love of the brethren.”

Certainly, brotherly love is an important mark of the Christianity.

We are “taught of God to love one another” ,

We are taught by God the Father that, “We love because He first loved us ().

We are taught by God the Son, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another ().

And we are taught by God the Spirit, “And hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us”().

But it is not enough to love God and our fellow believers; we must also love a lost world and seek to reach unbelievers with the Good News of the Cross.

This church had a vision to reach a lost world, and God set before them an open door.

Philadelphia was situated in a strategic place on the main route of the Imperial Post from Rome to the East, and thus was called “the gateway to the East.”

It was also called “little Athens” because of the many temples in the city.

The church was certainly located in a place of tremendous opportunity.

The only major problem with the location was that the area was prone to earthquakes.

Philadelphia sat on a geological fault, and in 17 B.C. a severe earthquake that also destroyed Sardis and ten other cities destroyed it.

Afterward, some of the citizens refused to move back into the city and remained in the surrounding countryside, which they called “the burnt land.”

There did not seem to be much security in the city of brotherly love!

Our text tells us this, , “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia writes”, who is the angel of the church in Philadelphia?

The word here is “Angelos”, means angel, which is a supernatural being created by God to serve the church and to function as a messenger.

However, sometimes this word is applied to human messengers of God’s Word: John the Baptist is called an “angelos” in , This is he of whom it is written, “‘Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you.’

Some scholars interpret the angels of as heavenly beings.

But most view them as the human messengers who bore John’s letter.

Most scholars identify them as those who actually read the message to the congregations, that is, church leaders such as pastors, elders, or bishops.

Because a pastor of a church functions as a “messenger” for God, delivering God’s Word to the congregation.

I clearly believe this text refers to them.

But let’s look at the evidence.

If the angels of the seven churches are heavenly beings, then that would perhaps mean that each church had a “guardian angel” or some type of heavenly being associated with each congregation.

This idea does not fit in the immediate context of the passage; it makes this a difficult interpretation.

Think about it, John was writing the letters to them.

Why should John write letters to angels—were the letters going to be read to the congregations by celestial beings?

That is highly doubtful.

A better view is that the “angels” here are envoys sent to John.

During the time that the apostle was exiled on the Isle of Patmos, it is possible that local congregations sent delegates, pastors to him to inquire of his condition.

These delegates could be the “angels” or “messengers” that were entrusted with the letters on their return trip.

Probably the best interpretation, however, is that the seven angels of the seven churches are the human leaders—the bishops, elders, or pastors—in the churches.

Jesus used the apostle John to write messages addressed to seven notable church leaders, and these leaders would then share the messages with the rest of the church.

The fact that the “stars” are held in Jesus’ “right hand” is significant (; ) adds further evidence.

For it is the Lord Himself protects, upholds, and guides the leaders of the church with His strength and wisdom.

The text goes on to say,

“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.”

Jesus Christ here presents Himself to the church at Philadelphia as “He that is holy.”

These words of the holy one and the true one, are tantamount to declaring that Jesus is God, which, of course, He is.

Jesus Christ is holy in His character, His words, His actions, and all of His purposes.

As the Holy One, Jesus is uniquely set apart from everything else, and nothing can be compared to Him.

But He is also the One who is true—that is, for He is the truth and He is genuine.

He is the original, not a copy; He is the authentic God and not a manufactured one.

In their day there were hundreds of false gods and goddesses.