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Past Ponderings

Friday, January 7, 2022

Will You Walk Through The Doors He Opens This Year? (Revelation 3:8-13)

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Will You Walk Through The Doors He Opens This Year? (Revelation 3:8-13)

GIST: Stay faithful, walk through the doors He opens, and remember His truth is unshakeable.

Commercials for cars topped with bows have officially been replaced by advertisements for discounted gym memberships and in-home workout equipment. It’s a new year, and pandemics aside, that still brings anticipation and a resolution to do better or be better…or spend money to make ourselves feel better. 

After spending two weeks on more “Christmasy” messages, we’re coming back to our Revelation. Picking back up in Chapter 3, we’re looking at the second half of Jesus’ letter to the small but faithful congregation in Philadelphia. They were surrounded by opposition, but because they were faithfully striving to serve Him, He promised them hope. If this is true of our lives, we can have that same hope.  Let’s read the whole letter for context (since it’s been a bit) then we’ll dive in. 


“7 "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. 8 "'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. 9 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. 10 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. 11 I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. 12 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. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'”


Focusing in on the second part of the letter, which is really packed with encouragement, I want us to see this gist, which to me at least, seemed rather appropriate for a “New Year’s” message ☺️: Stay faithful, walk through the doors He opens, and remember His truth is unshakeable.


I. Stay Faithful

“10 … you have kept My word about patient endurance”

If you were here three weeks ago, this is basically the ground we covered, so I won’t rehash it too much here. The summary basically went like this: We all want to enjoy these encouragements, but we’re not all living like Philadelphia. Don’t neglect Jesus in your heart and look for Him to bless and use you in your life. Put Him first. Prioritize time with Him as you dig into His word. Prioritize time with the body of Christ. Serve Him faithfully and strive to love like He loves. It’s in that context, and only that context, you’ll be prepared to→ 


II. Walk Through His Open Doors

“8 I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut…”

If you remember back to the opening portion of this letter, Jesus says when He opens doors, they’re open. Period. He then tells this church He’s opened such a door for them—which they appear to be faithful in walking through, as well.

There is a broad application for us here. If we’re walking with Jesus, He’ll open doors for us to be part of His mission. Oh, we love the idea of open doors, right? They present us with opportunities. They welcome us to come in. They promise something on the other side. But, they also present us with unknowns. Benefiting from an open door requires actually walking through it, and that brings a degree of risk. Let me just make these brief observations. 

1. These doors won’t always be what you were expecting. We all have doors we would love to see opened in our lives. Career opportunities. Relationship goals. Family blessings. Remember, this isn’t a game show. You don’t get to pick the door. 

2. These doors won’t always be where you were expecting. We have our comfort zones, our cozy corners of the world where we feel growth should happen most appropriately. Even our “resolutions” tend to fall into stretching ourselves only as far as we’d like. That could be why they don’t work…

3. These doors won’t always happen how you were expecting. You have God-given gifts and talents. Maybe you’ve been dreaming of ways to use those—very specific, closed-door kind of ways. I’m guilty of this. I want to see God move, and I have an awesome outline for how that should work! Surprisingly, He has never asked for my notes.

4. These doors will always be an opportunity to be part of what He’s doing, where He’s doing it, and how He’s getting it done! That means they will be better than what you would have chosen. In fact, to paraphrase Tim Keller, they will be precisely what you would have chosen if you knew everything God knows! All that being said, look for these doors to share His good news, and don’t limit God to how you want Him to move in your life. Instead, pray to be part of what He’s doing, and keep your eyes (and hearts) open.


III. And Remember His Truth Is Unshakeable.

The rest of the letter sets up a beautiful contrast. If you remember, this city was famous for being destroyed by earthquakes. Additionally, from a worldly point of view, this was an insignificant little congregation. Jesus reminds them→ “10 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. 11 I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. 12 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. 13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

As usual, there is a lot we could break down here, so I’ll try to streamline this a bit. Though there’s a lot we could digest here, let’s take three observations.

1. He will hold you regardless of surrounding tribulation. For many, it’s hard to hear the word tribulation in Revelation without immediately associating it with what is known as the “great tribulation”. Because of that, often when this passage is being taught, it is used to point to Christians being taken into Heaven before things start getting really bad here on earth. Though I’m willing to be wrong here, I don’t think that’s what Revelation teaches, and I don’t think that’s the primary message to this church either. Remember, though meant to be applicable for all of us, these letters had an immediate audience, and these Christians weren’t removed from Philadelphia. 

Therefore, I think primarily we have a spiritual promise here. They have kept His word faithfully, and He will keep them faithful admist great trials to come. Much like Jesus prayed in John 17:15: “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.” The point of this tribulation is to try/test the whole world. Philadelphia has already been proven faithful, and He’s just told them He would make those who called them false realize the truth. I think these thoughts are connected. Because of their faithful, continual witness—letting their light shine before men—the world will see and know…even when things start getting rough. 

And, there is another promise here→ 

2. He is coming! In essence, He's saying: “I am keeping you; be kept; I'm on my way!” This isn't a warning; it's a fact. He's coming. Now, for the church in Sardis, it came with implications of urgency ("don't wait to wake up!"), but  for Philadelphia, it's a call to hope. Jesus sees this struggling congregation who has remained faithful, and He tells them to hang in there because it’s all going to be worth it!

Oh, the love of the Father! I can't help but picture my kids when I think about this. If they were struggling, I would want nothing more than to sweep in and carry them through. Jesus wants the same, but as a good Father knows when to do it. Remember James 1? “2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

The difference, then, between this promise for a church like Sardis and a church like Philadelphia is this. Sardis has been unfaithful with what God has given them, so knowing He’s returning is a call to wake up and start living for Him. However, Philadelphia has been faithful. Hearing of his return fills them with joy. They’re weary, but He’s coming, so it’s worth it. We need to persevere knowing a day is coming when He will sweep in and wrap us up in His arms. 

That's what we see in these last promises. The rest of the letter really gives this reminder of His strength in their lives because→ 

3. His salvation is permanent! As always, these promises are pictures of Heaven customized for the individual churches. This church was small and set in a physically shaken location. Here’s what He tells them.

“Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” This promise isn’t implying theft of their crowns is possible, but rather that holding on to Jesus secures their place with Him because He won’t let go!

“12 The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God. Never shall he go out of it….” They are weak and live in a physically shaken land, but God will make them a pillar. Now, this is not a physical promise. There is no physical temple in Heaven (Revelation 21:22), and these people aren’t going to transform into architecture ☺️. Jesus is the temple. The picture here is one of their, and our, security in Him. "Never shall he go out of it". Permanence. 

That pillar will have some writing on it too→ “... 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.” Remember when the city had been so grateful to Rome they wanted to rename themselves Neocaesarea? This name is SO much greater. They have been doubted, but there will be no doubting now. They are and will forever be His. They will be known by belonging to Him!13 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

That was a lot this morning, so let’s recap in our→ 


TAKEAWAYS

  1. Stay faithful. 

  2. Walk through the doors God opens. I love this. God opened doors for this body of believers and they were walking through them. God gives us opportunities, as well. He also closes doors (which no one can open). We need to be in His Word, faithfully growing in our walk with Him. Then, when we see Him moving--we need to join Him there. There are so many ways this happens in life. Sometimes, He sends you to the ends of the earth. Sometimes, He moves in a conversation you're having with an unsaved colleague or peer. Either way, when you see Him giving you a chance to be His witness—which should be happening every day— do it.

  3. Remember, His Truth is Unshakeable!

    1. He will hold you regardless of surrounding tribulation. 

    2. He’s coming!

    3. His salvation is permanent. 

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