Revelation 3:7

Revelation 3:7

[Read Scripture]

Sometime back, I was having a conversation with a lady and the church she attended. She loved her church that God had placed her in and was telling me and others some of the things God was doing within their congregation. It was marvelous to hear the excitement in her voice as she shared with us. Then she told me something that I found fascinating. She shared that up to recently, they had always left their church unlocked. Meaning, that if you wanted to go into the church late at night, there would be nothing to stop you. The door was always open.

Well, they have since started locking the doors of the building, as we live in a time where people will rob the Lord’s house just like any other home. But in a way, this paints a picture of what we see with Revelation 3; as we start to look at the sixth church in our journey, the church of Philadelphia.

“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write,”

· Philadelphia was a city located in the province of Asia Minor, and it is located 27-30 miles from Sardis. Located in an earthquake prone area, that now is named Allah-shear.

· The region was very fertile as it laid in a volcanic valley that had experienced eruptions in the past and causing the ground to become super-fertilized. Crops would grow very quickly in this area. But laying in such an active place, earthquakes were prominent in the area. In fact, it experienced a devastating earthquake during the reign of Tiberius, in 17 AD.

· It was a city that was influenced heavily by Greek culture and was instrumental in spreading the language to the east.

· The letter however is not written to the city of Philadelphia, but instead the church that was located there. Now little is known about the actual church, but from our initial reading, we might can determine that this was a small church as the Lord says they have a little strength.

· Now Philadelphia is a Greek word, that means brotherly love, and here was a small church that carried that name literally.

· It should be said about every church that is a true follower of Christ, that the people within it should have brotherly love. That a helping hand would be extended. That the church is not made up of strangers, but instead of people who know and care for one another.

· Society has conditioned us to live in fear of people instead of love. We are weary of becoming close to those outside of our immediate family, but a church that belongs to the Lord, ought to have people who actually care for one another.

“These things saith he that is holy,”

· Now the focus shifts, and we are introduced to the one who is actually giving this letter to the church. And the author is described as he that is holy.

· When we hear the word holy, it should immediately remind us of God. For it is He that is truly Holy. Isaiah 6:3 “And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.”

· It is his Holiness that reveals sin, it his Holiness that is pure. The Holiness of God is so wonderful, in the fact that it is a testament of God’s perfection.

· Now when the Holiness of God came to Earth, it impacted this world. Think for a moment as we read Exodus 3:5 “And he said, Draw not nigh hither; put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.”

· The Holiness of God impacted the very earth, the dirt that was on that mountainside. It became holy because the Lord had touched it with his presence.

· It is that same holiness that we must have in our lives as well. In 1 Peter 1:15-16 “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

· So, when the author is identifying himself to this Philadelphia church, he is telling them that this God, specifically, this is Jesus who is speaking to them directly.

· Now it is important to realize that Holiness is not a feeling, it is a state of being. It is not a feeling of being good, holiness encompasses that which is good. For us to understand holiness, is us having a personal relationship with Christ.

“He that is true”

· Again, the author reveals more about himself. Stating that he that is true. This name is the name that the Lord identified himself to us by in John 14:6 “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

· I want you to realize that there is no falsehood when it comes to Christ. The things we read in the Bible are accurate and trustworthy. To often in this world, we are led to believe in a lie. And more and more we see it within our culture and media.

· Well, Jesus is not a lie. He is true. Coming to church and worshipping Christ is not something we do to make our conscience feel better, no, we come and worship because Jesus is a true being and he affirms that to this church.

· No doubt, there were those in the Philadelphia city that casted the notion that Jesus wasn’t real. This kind of doubt and lie is still being taught by the world today. Jesus however clears up the doubt by affirming who he is.

· This world does not want you to believe in the truth. It wants you to believe in what it says is truth. But the things the world says is true, are just man-made ideas and theories that are so ridiculous that it would take more faith to believe in them, than it would God’s Word.

· Yet, many people are believing the lies and disregarding the truth. Disregarding Jesus. Focusing in on the here and now, rather than the hear after.

· Now you might be saying, I do not believe the lies that are being told out there but let me say to you. Many people said the same thing and slowly they were conditioned, and they gave in to the lies. We must remain in the Word, the truth.

“He that hath the key of David”

· Again, the Lord goes even further with his identity as he states that it is, he that has the key of David. To understand what the Lord means, we must understand who David was.

· David was the ancient king of Israel. He was the king who united Israel and led them through a time of victory over the enemies. His leadership and rule were so outstanding, that even today the Jews revere King David. Well, David was promised that his lineage would rule Israel forever. How would that be?

· The answer of course is found through Jesus Christ. He is the key. He unlocked the kingdom, and it will be the Lord who will sit upon the throne.

· The kingdom is locked right now. There is no king that sits on the throne of Israel now. But that does not mean there is not one who can. The key has been handed to the Lord and all he must do is go and unlock the kingdom and take his place on the throne.

· So, the key is figurative language to describe the Lord’s position and authority. It will be by his authority that the scrolls will be opened, and the judgment brought upon the world.

“He that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;”

· Now as we come to the closing of this opening verse, the Lord makes a statement about openings. Previously, he had described himself with the key. Now what do keys do? They open doors, and they lock doors.

· We try to open doors that the Lord may not want opened, and we try to close doors that the Lord wants us to go through. But we must remember that we can’t open any door unless the Lord deems it so.

· It is the Lord who will open the doors of opportunity and it is the Lord that can close those opportunities for us. We just must be ready to move when the Lord opens that door.

· Now some people get caught up when there are multiple doors opened to them. They are wondering which one is the one they should take. I believe that we should always follow the Lord path that is going to bring us closer to him. If it is going to take us away from our walk with the Lord, that is a door that we do not need to go through.

· There is an old saying “The Grace of God will Never Lead You Where He Cannot Keep You.” If a door has been opened, make sure it is a door that the Lord opened for you. Otherwise, you might find yourself lost in a maze of endless problems.