By his teaching we are not only nineteen centuries behind the present age, but we come in at the back of all the ages of human history. It was on the road of the imperial postal service, which left the coast at Troas, came to Philadelphia via Pergamum, Thyatira and Sardis, and joined the great road out to Phrygia. palliated most by those who owe their professional status to this frightfully corrupt and corrupting influence. "[49] The looming persecution against the church is starkly evident in all the New Testament books, and hardly any of them failed to address the situation. Such land is fertile; and Philadelphia was the centre of a great grape-growing area and a famous producer of wines. This seems to imply His own willingness to die, as indeed He became what did not belong to Him personally, and what in short seemed extraordinarily incongruous with the glorious person that had been already described. It is not now to bring them whether or not servants out of that position or even worse, and entitling them to take the place of children of God. The Roman Christians are men who have been brought from death to life ( Romans 6:13). But the Protestant principle is a very different one. Here we find Jezebel later. Never but here occurs an address to a certain number of assemblies, particularly one so definite and significant symbolically as seven. John says, "And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. (a) We see the pleading of Christ. It is in vain therefore to look for a formal obliteration of these co-ordinate conditions, which cannot be till the Lord comes. More, however, is meant than simply loving the word, though that is no small thing. Be eager, therefore, and repent. [Note: Beasley-Murray, p. Not only is the same principle general or constant, but it is remarkably characteristic of John's own writings. The address is to the overcomer, who is accordingly put before the call to hear. What a solemn conjunction, that there should be this close proximity between Satan's throne without, but withal the mercy of God still maintaining that fundamental faith of Christ's own personal glory! This Means You ( Revelation 3:14-22 Continued). Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I will also keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth." Philadelphia, Inheritors Of The Promise ( Revelation 3:7-13 Continued). They have slipped into the world, and share its fears and anxieties. I will cause the enemies of the truth to leave you alone. But no man knows when eternity will invade his life and God will bid him rise and come; and that must warn the careless to prepare to meet his God and cheer the oppressed with the thought of the coming glory of the faithful soul. Nor is it confined to prophecy, for the same force holds good wherever symbol is employed. Take no notice of anything I say if it cannot be supported by the word of divine truth. It could mean, either, that Jesus was the first person to be created or that he began the process of creation, as Trench put it, "dynamically the beginning." It is "the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him." 3:10 + is correct [that the church will be guarded and preserved during God's testing of earth-dwellers during the Tribulation], then one is left with the colossal problem of reconciling the fact that multitudes of believers will die under the fierce persecution of Antichrist during the Tribulation and yet God supposedly will preserve His people physically through the Tribulation."Keith H. Essex, "The Rapture and the Book of Revelation," in . Good men have many conflicts, let us minister to their comfort. Oh, dear child of God, you may be very little in Israel; but if you love the word of God there is a something about you in which God takes delight. I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou were cold or hot. What had these Philadelphian believers done that they should be praised? Jesus himself tells of the wicked servant, who took advantage of his master's absence to conduct himself evilly and to whom the master made a sudden return that brought judgment. "Let us keep awake and be sober" ( 1 Thessalonians 5:6). ( Rev. 11 [ b]Behold,I am coming quickly!Hold fast what you have, that no one may takeyour crown. "Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life." "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein.". God is testing you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? Thus the place taken here is of course that of a Christian; but that is put forward which belonged to others who would not be in the same corporate standing as ourselves. (ii) He is the witness on whom we can rely and who is true. This was that in the new age, all nations would do humble homage to the Jews. He didn't want to become one with the Gentile. If you have kept God's word you may be wielding an influence far beyond what you imagine. It is all a mistake, therefore, to suppose that this is a singular distinction, It amounts to this that the Lord will hold, after all, to His own truth, spite of unfaithfulness. III. "He that denies me before men," Jesus said, "I will deny before my Father, but if you confess Me before men, I will confess you before my Father which is in heaven." True grace, though weak, has the divine approbation; but, though Christ accepts a little strength, yet believers should not rest satisfied in a little, but should strive to grow in grace, to be strong in faith, giving glory to God. In the introduction to this letter the Risen Christ is called by three great titles, each of which implies a tremendous claim. The verse seems intended to comfort the whole church rather than to challenge unfaithful or potentially unfaithful Christians. (ii) Their names will not be wiped out of the Book of Life. Let them cry "Lo here, or lo there," but believe them not. (i) He is he who has the seven Spirits of God. It set out along the valley of the River Maeander until it reached what were known as the Gates of Phrygia. Two things emerge here. Dead Protestantism. He will eat supper with you.Now, the Jew would not eat with the Gentile. Like an Israelite? Greatest of the Sardian kings was Croesus, whose name is still commemorated in the proverb, "As rich as Croesus." Christ is revealed now, not only in the all-discerning power of moral judgment, but also judicially prepared to act against evil "His feet like fine brass." The holy pilgrims were not so rude as to tell him to go; they only talked about heavenly things, which he did not understand, and he went of his own accord. In the writing to the angel of the church in Smyrna, a totally different state of things meets us. A man should live every day as if it were his last. Does anyone in his senses think so? Its purpose is to demonstrate the quality of those who "dwell upon the earth." All this I have spoken to the people of God, but I am not ignorant that there are some here who do not know God's word, nor love it. I cannot but think that this state of things is referred to here: "Thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth." Login Register. Revelation 3:10, NASB : Because you have kept Myword of perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of thetesting, that hour which is about to come upon the wholeworld, totest those who live on the earth. God could no longer recognise them as His own. "I know thy works, and thy labour, and patience, and that thou canst not bear evil [men]; and thou didst try them which say they are apostles and are not, and didst find them liars." People will be willing to hear what you have to say, and, what is more, people will be converted by what you say, for God has set before you this open door, and no man can shut it. You have been steadfast; therefore I will employ you." [2.] Assemblies that worship God in spirit and in truth are the Israel of God; assemblies that either worship false gods, or the true God in a false manner, are the synagogues of Satan: though they may profess to be the only people of God, their profession is a lie. Then comes the salutation. He is not under law but under grace. Here too all is as peculiar as it is suitable to the book on which we enter: "John to the seven churches which are in Asia." But that cannot happen if every day a man lives in the presence of Christ; he who walks hand-in-hand with Christ cannot be taken unawares by his coming. "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shall shut; and shutteth, and no man shall open." The new name of Christ, the Mediator, the Redeemer, the captain of our salvation; by this it will appear under whose banner this conquering believer had enlisted, under whose conduct he acted, by whose example he was encouraged, and under whose influence he fought the good fight, and came off victorious. If I am a servant, I ought to behave like a servant. There was failure in this respect. But you have a few people in Sardis who have not defiled their garments and they will walk with me in white raiment, because they are worthy. how loyally He accepts, and will not speak inconsistently with, the place of man to which He stooped. I am coming quickly. and the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews and are not, but a synagogue of Satan." When a bushel is full of wheat the good corn keeps the chaff out of the measure. As Beasley-Murray said, "This is not a designation of a period of time, but of the trial itself. The unique new fact that Christianity brought into this world is that God is the seeker of men. It was picked up by the Protestants. I believe that that open door will be open to us until the Lord comes. The Pastoral Epistles describe those who had drifted away from the true faith by saying that they had a form of godliness but denied its power ( 2 Timothy 3:5). Because thou didst keep the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of trial, that hour which is to come upon the whole world, to try them that dwell on the earth. May it always be so; even if you have but little strength, see to it that you keep Christ's word. It was theirs, they read it and searched it and made it their own. A Church with a positive message is bound to be one to which there will be opposition. Ephesus does not, nor Smyrna, nor Pergamos: the only semblance of it is in threats of present judgment. As God bears testimony in his word to his own dear Son, believe that testimony; accept the Saviour whom he has given, and find immediate salvation: find it to-night. ", It often happens that, when a great earthquake comes, people meet it with courage and self-possession, but ever. Here is your anchorage. Hence all the fulness of divine light that had come out in Christ's person and work, as well as by the Spirit in the church of God, is necessary to be taken into account in order to give the Apocalypse its just bearing. Here we have to remark that Christ is seen in a judicial point of view. Besides He is "the beginning of the creation of God." The names of Paul's fellow-labourers for God are written in the book of life ( Php_4:3 ). Overstreet, pp. "And the Spirit of Jehovah shall rest," etc. There make your mark, and put your foot down. 2. Read commentary on this popular Bible verse and understand the real meaning behind God's Word using John Gill's Exposition of the Bible. "What thou seest, write in a book, and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea. How came this? The warden of Angola prison, Burl Cain, also a believer in Jesus, took the hand of Antonio James and said, 'Antonio, the chariot is here; get ready for the ride. See, I am just a coming to relieve them under the trial, to reward their fidelity, and to punish those who fall away; they shall lose that crown which they once seemed to have a right to, which they hoped for, and pleased themselves with the thoughts of. It is possible that when Jesus Christ is called the Amen it is a reminiscence of his own way of speaking. It is not a question of someone stealing their crown but of God taking it from them and giving it to someone else, because they were not worthy to wear it.