[Special - Seven Churches] The Church of Philadelphia (2) - A Letter of the Lord to the Church in Philadelphia (2)
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September 25, 2011 |
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* The Church of Ephesus
* The Church of Smyrna
* The Church of Pergamum
* The Church of Thyatira
* The Church of Sardis
* The Church of Philadelphia (2)
* The Church of Laodicea
 Senior Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee
Chairman, The United Holiness Church of Jesus Christ
Permanent President, The World Christianity Revival Mission Association
Joint President, Association of Lovers of National Assembly and Prayers for the Country
Founder & Board Chairman, Global Christian Network
Founder & Board Chairman, World Christian Doctors Network
Founder & Board Chairman, Manmin International Seminary
Founder & Board Chairman, The Alliance Holiness Theological Seminary
Doctorate of Ministry, and Honorary Doctorate of Divinity
Senior Pastor, Manmin Central Church
His sermons were broadcast by the Far East Broadcasting Company and the Asia Broadcast Station
His Christian columns appear on The Chosun Ilbo, The Hankook Ilbo, The JoongAng Daily, The Dong-A Ilbo, The Munhwa Ilbo, The Seoul Shinmun, The Kyunghyang Shinmun, The Hankyoreh Shinmun, The Korea Economic Daily, The Korea Herald, The Shisa News, and The Christian Press.
He conducted crusades in Tanzania; Argentina; Los Angeles, Baltimore, Hawaii, and New York City of the USA; Uganda; Japan; Pakistan; Kenya; the Philippines; Honduras; India; Russia; Germany; Peru; the Democratic Republic of the Congo; Israel; and Estonia.
A Letter of the Lord to the Church in Philadelphia (2)
"Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you. Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; 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 out of heaven from My God, and My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches." (Revelation 3:9-13)
Revelation 3:8 reads, "I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name." What words of blessings and advice were received by the Church of Philadelphia who had only a little power yet kept the word of the Lord?
1. I make them know that I have loved you
In the Bible, those who were loved by God could show clear evidences that God was with them. God shows in various ways the evidences to those churches and pastors He loves.
First, God shows countless works evidencing that He is the living God. Also in the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, God interprets the deep secrets of the spiritual realm that no man can understand. The enemy devil may try to disturb and disrupt them, but God shows the evidences by protecting them.
Sometimes, God allows His beloved children to undergo persecutions or trials in the process of refining them. But in the end it turns out to be a blessing, and there will surely be evidences. On the other hand, those who persecute or bring troubles to them will face judgment in justice. That's because standing in opposition of a person or a church that God loves and guarantees is standing against God Himself.
Revelation 3:9 reads, "Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie I will make them come and bow down at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you."
"The synagogue of Satan" is a group of two or more that speaks against the truth and causes trouble within the church. 'One who lies' is the one who denies Christ Jesus, and he is the antichrist as said 1 John 2:22.
But there are some who lie even though they say that they believe. They say they believe, but do not actually live by the word of God as recorded in 1 John 1:6. Such people are those who "say that they are Jews and are not." They say they believe in God, but belong to the synagogue of Satan. They hinder the kingdom of God.
They call themselves God's children with their lips, but they don't live in the truth, and they gossip, judge, and condemn others. They just bring troubles and arguments to the church. They may even condemn churches that reveal the glory of God through miraculous wonders and signs if something said or done is not in accordance with their ideas or frameworks of thought and belief. They even condemn the churches as heretical. They say they believe, but they cause trials for churches and hinder the kingdom of God.
The Church in Philadelphia also suffered persecutions and difficulties from those who said they were Jews and were not. But God caused such people to repent before the church. He showed the evidence that He loved the church. The Lord made some of them come and bow down at the feet of the Church in Philadelphia. By doing so, God made sure that they knew the church was loved by Him.
But not all of them repented and turned back. They already committed the sin of speaking against the Holy Spirit, opposing Him, and disgracing Him. It's never easy for them to repent, turn back, and be forgiven (Ref: Matthew 12:31-32)
But among those who call themselves Jews, there are some who have good hearts. When they hear the word of the truth and see the works of God's power, they will realize their sins and repent.
2. I also will keep you from the hour of testing
Though they possessed only a little power the believers in the Church of Philadelphia kept the word of God and did not deny the name of the Lord. They also kept God's word of perseverance, and they were kept from the hour of testing as stated in Revelation 3:10. Why does it say 'word of perseverance'? In order to keep the word of God, it sometimes requires much perseverance.
It is especially true when we have only a little power, or 'weak faith'. Since in the phase of weak faith, the attributes to follow the untruth are stronger in our hearts than the attributes to follow goodness and truth, in order to overcome it and to fight against sin and follow the truth, we must endure steadily with praying and fasting. But when the heart of the truth grows to be stronger than that of the untruth, then following the truth becomes much easier.
But we should not let our heart rest just because the heart of the truth is stronger than that of the untruth. Until we cast off every form of evil, we must endure with perseverance and keep control over what might come out of us.
When we try to endure with perseverance and do our best to live by the word of God according to our measure of faith, God considers our effort as the deeds of faith. God protects such children and blesses them in the avoidance of trials.
Here, 'hour of testing' means the time when the enemy devil and Satan bring tests to those who don't live in the truth and betray and leave the Lord. It also indicates more specifically, the time of the Seven-year Great Tribulation.
As we live in these end times of the world, we have to stay awake and lead a sober life in faith so that we may not fall in the hour of testing. If we just attend church but do not practice the word of God and if we befriend the world, then we will not be caught up into the air when our Lord comes back. Instead, we will fall into the Seven-year Great Tribulation.
But, if we keep the word in perseverance, we will not only escape from the hour of testing, but also enter the Seven-year Great Tribulation Wedding Banquet held in the air together with the Lord. When the Lord comes back again in the air, those who are asleep in the Lord will rise first. Then, those who are alive and have accepted the Lord will put on the resurrected body and participate in the Seven-year Wedding Banquet in the air.
During that time, the Holy Spirit will be taken away from this earth. The world will enter into the Seven-year Great Tribulation. The anti-Christ will appear. His people will find those who try to keep their faith in Jesus Christ and try to make them deny the Lord with severe torturing.
In order to avoid this hour of the Seven-year Great Tribulation, we have to be awake, pray, and adorn ourselves as the brides of the Lord. Namely, we have to cast off all forms of evil to accomplish the heart of the Lord. As much as we live in the word and in the light, God protects us from the authority of the darkness.
When the children of God live in the truth, God will protect them so they can avoid trials and afflictions. Even when they face trials, God makes everything work for the good (Romans 8:28). So if we are not protected by God and suffer trials and afflictions, we have to look back and examine whether we have walked properly in the sight of God.
If we face trials, even though we have lived a proper Christian life, it is a trial that God allows in order to give us blessing. But there are some who pass judgment and gossip thinking they are discerning in the truth when they see a person suffering trials.
However, we should not judge those who suffer trials. It is the same when faithful Christians are persecuted and even martyred. It is not that they were not protected by God. It is rather the case that they overcame the trials. This is because they can receive the glory that cannot be compared with the passing sufferings on earth as stated in Romans 8:18.
3. Hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown
Since the Church of Philadelphia kept the word with perseverance from the time they had but a little power, the Lord opened the gate of blessings for them and showed them the evidence of His love. Moreover, He told them He was coming quickly, and how they had to behave in Revelation 3:11.
Now, the promise of our Lord, "I am coming quickly!" not only applied 2,000 years ago, but also applies in the same way today. Some may say, "He said He's coming quickly, but why is He so slow to come?" But actually He is not slow to come. Most people live for only seventy or eighty years with health, and then they met the Lord who said "I am coming quickly." (2 Peter 3:9-10) So, we should prepare ourselves well enough to welcome the Lord at any time.
The 'Lord who will come quickly' gave these words of advice to the Church in Philadelphia. The Lord said, "Hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown" in Revelation 3:11.
Our Lord once told the Church in Thyatira, "Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come." (Revelation 2:25) It means that they should keep their faith that they had, so that they might not lose the chance of salvation. But when the Lord said to the Church in Philadelphia, "Hold fast what you have," it is not just about the matter of salvation.
From the time that they had only the little power of their small faith, the members of the Church in Philadelphia kept the word of God. Here, what is meant is that they were able to fulfill their God-given duties properly so that they would be able to receive the crowns and rewards that God had promised to give them in Heaven. If we truly have faith and hope for Heaven, to keep from losing the crowns promised to us, we must neither neglect our God-given duties nor give them up.
Also, we must not have arrogant minds in our duties thinking, "It cannot be done without me." Because of arrogance, the lampstand can be removed. We should keep the humble attitude, the first love, and our initial fervor.
4. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God
The Lord gave His assurance to the Church of Philadelphia that He would make them pillars in the temple of God when they fulfilled their duties well and were able to overcome. (Revelation 3:12) 'The temple of My God' here indicates the place housing the throne of God. This is New Jerusalem. To become a pillar in New Jerusalem means to become an important figure in New Jerusalem.
The members of the Church in Philadelphia had but a little faith, but they kept the word of God and never denied the name of the Lord. Accordingly, as their faith grew, they could practice the truths unchangingly and reach complete sanctification. They were also able to faithfully fulfill their God-given duties. He whose faith is recognized as perfect by the Lord will become a pillar of New Jerusalem.
But even though God has given the promise of blessings to us, if we do not hold fast His promise and keep our heart, the promises of blessing will be forfeited. When we unchangingly fulfill our duties and overcome until the given word is made real, we can receive the promised crowns and rewards and also the blessing to become pillars in New Jerusalem. Because God is never-changing, He never takes away these blessing from those who are qualified.
The Lord guaranteed eternal blessings saying "And he will not go out from it anymore." Also, the Lord made sure the blessing of becoming a pillar of the temple of God saying, "I will write on him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem."
The new name of our Lord is "The King of kings and the Lord of lords." It is the glorious name given to the Lord Jesus who completed the providence of human salvation by redeeming us from our sins, and who resurrected and ascended into Heaven (Philippians 2:9-11).
Only those who are completely sanctified and faithful on this earth can enter into New Jerusalem. There, God will allow to them eternal glory. That is why it is called the 'City of Glory.'
The promise of this hope does not apply only to the Church in Philadelphia, but to all the churches and believers who act like the Church in Philadelphia and its members. We cannot enter the Holy City, New Jerusalem if we are not faithful to the utmost degree with full measure of faith. We have to accomplish complete sanctification and we must be faithful in all God's house. We can enter there only with the highest level of faith.
Reaching this level of faith cannot be done only with our own strength either. In the Bible, those fathers of faith who were considered to be worthy of entering New Jerusalem came forth as pure gold through severe trials of refinement in the providence of God. They fulfilled their duties that could not be done by common people, even to the point of death. Only then could they be qualified to enter New Jerusalem.
Dear brothers and sisters, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will receive blessings of becoming a pillar of New Jerusalem by keeping the word of perseverance even with a little power, becoming wholly sanctified, and being faithful in all God's household.
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