By
Rev. Juliet Schimpf
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Broadcast
Notes
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LINK to CFRA broadcast of
Sunday, November 1st, 2015)
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Our broadcast is sponsored, today, through the generous support of Sandy
Davidson, who would like to salute: “Christian Counselling, Ottawa”, an organization
that has been healing hearts and homes in Ottawa for close to forty years.
'The Church In Revelation'
· Of the 7 churches in Revelation, only 2 churches
receive 100% praise. Philadelphia is one
of them. No criticism at all.
· NAME, “PHILADELPHIA” MEANS “BROTHERLY LOVE”
· FOUNDED BY A KING—ADELLUS II—HE WAS KNOWN AS
“philadelphus” because he loved his brother deeply….
· 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”.
o
Philadelphia was situated where the borders of Mysia,
Lydia, and Phrygia met. It was a border
town. It was founded with the deliberate
intention that it might be a missionary of Greek culture and the Greek language
to Lydia and Phrygia; and so well did it do its work that by AD 19 the Lydians
had forgotten their own Lydian language and were all but Greeks.
· It was known as “little Athens”—so many gods!
· SMYRNA AND PHILADELPHIA ARE THE ONLY TWO CITIES
THAT EXIST TODAY—GOD PRESERVES HIS PEOPLE WHEN THEY OBEY!
1.
THE GIANT OBSTACLE
2.
THE GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY
3.
THE GLORIOUS OUTCOME
1.
THE GIANT OBSTACLE
NRSV
VERSE 7 "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are
the words of the holy one, the true one,”
·
In this valley, the
vineyards are lush and full—backbone of economy. They were so good, that they competed with
the vineyards in Rome. And so Domitian
said, tear yours out so that ours (in Rome) can be the front edge of
commerce. In doing that, he broke the
backbone of their economy. So they felt
deeply betrayed.
·
GOD OF
WINE—DYONISIUS—WAS WORSHIPED HERE
·
deep betrayal when
the Emperor Domitian decreed that all of the vineyards of this region should be
torn out.
·
The Christians here
also felt betrayed by the authorities.
·
HOLY = totally
“other” and “different” and “separate” and “perfect” and never do them wrong
·
TRUE = He would be
faithful to them; never neglect them, never betray them.
·
JESUS: “YOU CAN COUNT ON ME!
VERSE
8: “I know that you have but little
power… and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.”
OBSTACLE
1: verse 8 = lack of strength; small
church; small budget…
o
Apparently, this was not a large or a strong church. However, it was a faithful one. They were true to God’s Word and unafraid to
bear His name.
o
Hudson Taylor “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supplies.”-
o
Wiersbe: “It is
not the size or strength of a church that determines its ministry, but faith in
the call and command of the Lord…God’s commandments are God’s enablements…If
Jesus Christ gave them an open door, then He would see to it that they were
able to walk through it.
o
Hudson Taylor “God uses men who are weak and feeble enough
to lean on him.”
OBSTACLE 2: verse 9:
hostile Jews-- NRSV VERSE 9 “ will make those of the synagogue of Satan
who say that they are Jews and are not, but are lying--I will make them come
and bow down before your feet, and they will learn that I have loved you.”
o
1 Corinthians 16:9
“for a great and effective door has opened to me…and there are many
adversaries”
NRSV VERSE 7 “who has the key of David, who opens
and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens…”
· JESUS says he is the key of
David—
reference to Isaiah 22:22: New International Version
(©2011)
I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.9
I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.9
·
SHUT DOOR = the
Christians had been kicked out of the synagogues, and door had been slammed
shut behind them (which meant trouble for them).
·
Jews who were
persecuted fled throughout Asia Minor and would establish synagogues.
·
Early Christians
would meet in those synagogues.
·
But in time, as the
Christians reached the resurrection, and claimed Jesus to be the true messiah,
they were excluded from the synagogues.
·
This meant that the
Christians were cut off or alienated from family and friends. The synagogue was the centre of the social
life. Plus, they suffered shame (people
would say, “Hey, why aren’t you at the synagogue right now?”)
·
Early Christians, as
family gathered in synagogue, elder would close door. Someone would look
through peep hole and say, “No, you cannot enter.”
2.
THE GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY
WINSTON CHURCHILL A pessimist sees
the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every
difficulty.
NRSV VERSE 8 "I know your works. Look, I have
set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut.”
THE
MESSAGE: 8 “I see what you’ve done. Now see what I’ve done. I’ve opened a
door before you that no one can slam shut. You don’t have much strength, I know
that; you used what you had to keep my Word. You didn’t deny me when times were
rough.
· Wiersbe: “Unbelief sees the obstacles, but faith sees
the opportunites. And since the Lord
holds the keys, He is in control of the outcome. So what do we have to fear? obody can close the doors as long as He keeps
them open. Fear, unbelief, and delay
have caused the church to miss many God-given opportunities.”
HERE, THE “DOOR” REFERS TO SOMETHING ELSE—NAMELY,
THE OPPORTUNITY TO EVANGELIZE:
o 1 Corinthians 16:9 9 because a great door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many who oppose me
o 2 COR. 2:12 12 Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me,
o COL. 4:3 3 And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains.
JOHN STOTT: “Let us go in through the door of salvation, and out through the door of service.”
OPPORTUNITY IN PHILADELPHIA: The pax Romana permitted Christian evangelists
to go about their business with comparative freedom, speaking the common Greek
language, treading the fine Roman roads and using as their textbook the Septuagint
(Greek) version of the Old Testament.
What the city had been for Greek culture, it was
now to be for the Christian gospel.
·
Let me tell you a little bit
about the church in Philadelphia. It was a church-planting church. They sent
missionaries and church planters out. If you believe some of church history,
they actually started church planting all the way into India. Some of the first
church plants in India came from the church at Philadelphia.
·
Twelve hundred years the
Christian church stayed in Philadelphia. Earthquakes would hit, the church
would fall to the ground, and they would come out and rebuild it, for 1,200
years. They sent missionaries out to plant churches for 1,200 years. They
stayed faithful to Jesus for 1,200 years. That means over 1,200 years later—
the people who received this letter, if you showed up in the first century, you
would see the church and you would see people with certain last names. And if
you came back in 1300 AD, there would be people still in that church with the
same last name.
·
When he tells them in
Revelation 3, “You have not denied my name,” 1200 hundred years later the
church in Philadelphia, by the grace of God, did not deny the name of Jesus.
And they died. They were slaughtered in their own church. Women, children,
young, old, slaughtered. Put to death by the sword, in their church. That’s how
they shut down the church at Philadelphia. They had to murder all the
believers. This is an amazing church. This is an encouraging church. This is a
Spirit-filled church. And Jesus loves the church. Mars Hill, I’m not saying
we’re that kind of church. I’m saying, in the grace of God, we should aspire to
be.
3.
THE
GLORIOUS OUTCOME
NRSV
VERSE 10 “Because you have kept my word of patient endurance, I will keep you
from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world to test the
inhabitants of the earth. I am coming
soon; hold fast to what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.”
NRSV
VERSE 12 “If you conquer, I will make you a pillar in the temple of my God; you
will never go out of it. I will write on you the name of my God, and the name
of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem that comes down from my God out of
heaven, and my own new name. 13 Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the
Spirit is saying to the churches.”
·
Philadelphia was a
prosperous city.
·
Until 17 AD, when the
region was hit by a cataclysmic earthquake.
·
Rome exempted
Philadelphia from tribute for 5 years.
·
Philadelphia was
hoping for a bit more helpf (money) for rebuilding, which never arrived, and so
Philadelphians felt somewhat neglected by the Emperor.
· PILLARS: The symbolism in this verse would be
especially meaningful to people who lived in constant danger of
earthquakes: the stability of the
pillar, no need to out or to flee, a heavenly city that nothing could
destroy.
o
Ancient cities often honored great leaders by erecting
pillars with their names inscribed on them.
God’s pillars are not made of stone, because there is no temple in the
heavenly city (Rev. 21:22). His pillars
are faithful people who bear his name for His glory (Gal. 2:9)
o
When a priest had for a lifetime faithfully discharged
his duties, men honoured him, when he died, by erecting an new pillar in the
temple in which he had served, and by inscribing his name, and the name of his father
on it.
·
MIKE STACHURA: “The mark of a great church is not its
seating capacity, but its sending capacity.”
· WIERSBE: “If He opens the doors, we must work; if He
shuts the doors, we must wait. Above
all, we must be faithful to Him and see the opportunities, not the
obstacles. If we miss our opportunities,
we lose our rewards (crowns).”
· John Stott: “Christ has the keys. He opens the doors. Then let us not barge our way unceremoniously
through doors which are still closed. We
must wait for Him to make openings for us.
Damage is continually being done to the cause of Christ by rude or
blatant testimony. ….we are sometimes in a greater hurry than God. Be patient!
Pray hard, and love much, and wait expectantly for the opportunity of
witness.”
Let us pray:
Father, Thank you for
your Word, which is the light onto our feet, and we pray that you will help us.
If you open the door, we will work. And if you shut a door, we will wait. But, above
all, help us to be faithful to you and to see opportunities, and not obstacles.
In the name of the Father,
Son and Spirit, we pray; AMEN.
Rev. Juliet Schimpf
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