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The Seven Churches Of Revelation Part 6: Philadelphia

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The Seven Churches Of Revelation Part 6: Philadelphia

Revelation 3:7-10
“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write,
“These things says He who is holy, He who is true, ‘He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”: 
“I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie–indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
–
Though Jesus had no word of rebuke for the senior pastor of the Church of Smyrna, Philadelphia not only was not rebuked as well but praised by Him.

Key Of David.
Jesus first mentions that His is holy, i.e. “Set apart,” and “True.”  Then He, Who CANNOT lie, tells the pastor that He has “The key of David, who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens.”  If Jesus opens a door to us, no one can shut it.  Likewise, if there is a door that leads to something that is not good for us, He will shut it and no one can open it. What is it this “Key of David?” 
–
This key is mentioned in the Old Testament in the passage below:

Isaiah 22:22-24
 
       22 The key of the house of David
             I will lay on his shoulder; 
            So he shall open, and no one shall shut; 
            And he shall shut, and no one shall open.
       23 I will fasten him as a peg in a secure place, 
           And he will become a glorious throne to his father’s house.

24 ‘They will hang on him all the glory of his father’s house, the offspring and the posterity, all vessels of small quantity, from the cups to all the pitchers. 25 In that day,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘the peg that is fastened in the secure place will be removed and be cut down and fall, and the burden that was on it will be cut off; for the Lord has spoken.’ “

How amazing God is in that the first mention of the Key of David is here, in the 22nd verse of the 22 chapter of Isaiah.  22, in Bible numerics, means “Light, revelation.”  Other than the book of Revelation, this is the only place where this key is mentioned!
–
When God opens doors, no one can shut them.  When He shuts doors, no one can open them!

The Tabernacle of David.

David’s Heart.
David was a man after God’s own heart because all he wanted to do was make sure that the Ark, a picture of Jesus, was at the center of worship in Jerusalem.  It wasn’t until after he became king of Israel that he was at last able to realize his life-long dream. 

Notice in the picture above there is no veil separating the worshippers from the Ark.  There is no separation between God and His beloved.  Why?

David means “Beloved.”  It’s a picture of pure grace.  David knew God’s heart.  That’s why he was not afraid to bring the Ark to Jerusalem and worship before it.  ♥️

Philadelphia Remembered.
The Church at Philadelphia knew God’s heart.  There were things about Christ that they remembered that the others had forgotten: 

#1. They kept Jesus’ word and loved to talk about Him, about revelations of Who He is and what He does for us.  
Knowledge about Jesus is not enough, as in the case when the wise men came to King Herod to find out where Jesus would be born.  The Pharisees were able to tell the king but not so Jesus could be worshiped but to be killed.  That’s not the kind of Bible knowledge you want.  It must be revelation about Christ:  His person, His glory, His majesty, His work, and so on.

–

#2. They did not deny His Name. 

They were a church that loved to mention the Name, “Jesus.”  The Bible tells us that in the end times, like now, there will be a pervasive spirit of antiChrist.  Notice it’s the spirit of “AntiChrist,” not “AntiGod.”  These people are for God but against Christ.
–
Many talk about the Names of God, Elohim, Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah Rapha, and so on.  Yes, it’s OK to talk about the many names of God, but remember it was Jesus Who died for us.  He is the Christ, our Messiah.  Don’t be afraid to speak out His Name:  Lord Jesus Christ.

–

#3. They held on to His patience. 

In the midst of trials and tribulations, they held on in His patience, persevering in the face of them by not blaming God.  They recognized that those things are not from Him; that He turns every trial into a triumph and makes all things turn out for good to us.  They prayed, “Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” 

Now, there are many things that God will keep us from going through.  If you never go through anything, how will you know you were delivered from it?  That’s why God will allow us to go through some testings and trials so that we will know what it means to be delivered out of them.  That’s when we give Him praise because we don’t know the things from which we have been saved.  Thank God for the things you don’t know about because they didn’t happen to you.

Key of David.

Key To Open Doors.
There’s a key in Jesus’ nail-pierced hand for you and I.  What kind of doors does His key open?  Let’s look at a few scriptures.
– 
Key To The Door Of Faith.
Acts 14:27-28  
“27 Now when they had come and gathered the church together, they reported all that God had done with them, and that He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 So they stayed there a long time with the disciples.”

Even for faith, we are fully dependent on God to open the door to us so we can walk in the way He wants us to.  God is our supply!  God has the key!

Keys To Death And Hell.
Revelation 1:18  “18 I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.”
–
In the garden, it was Adam who committed high treason, bowed his knee to the outlaw spirit, satan, who brought in death, sickness, disease, poverty, every curse that became our heritage.  But when Jesus died, He bought back those keys of death and hell in His hand.  HALLELUJAH!!!  

In the original Greek, the above order is reversed.  It says, “Death and Hell, or Hades.”  Death comes first, then hell, unless you are born again.  Then you can never experience hell!  You are saved for all eternity.  Nothing you can do or say to reverse that.  (See John 10:25-30)

Key To The Door Of Effective Ministry.
1 Corinthians 16:9 “For a great (mega) and effective (energés) door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.”

The word in Greek for great is “Mega,” and effective or productive is the word “Energés,” where we get our word for “Energy.”  A door opened to Paul for great energy to do miracles, witnessing, preaching, etc.  

Good thing because there were many enemies. You need great energy to be effective against adversaries on every side.  God provides that for his servants who are called to minister.  Whenever you have an effective ministry or area of service you are going to have people who are jealous, who want to see you fail, who work to try and make you fail TO NO AVAIL!

Door Of Utterance.
Colossians 4:3-4 (KJV)  “3 Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:
4 That I may make it manifest, as I ought to speak.”

The Bible is ALL about One Person: Our Lord Jesus Christ!

Those who preach and teach want to make sure they pray this prayer that God will speak His truth through you as you preach and teach others.  How often, as preaching is going on, do some of the things which are said by the pastor are things he or she didn’t plan to say?  They just “Happen,” to be included and lives were changed. 

What was spoken that reached out and touched someone, unbeknownst to the one preaching, was the Holy Spirit taking over the teaching!  Even as a parent, when you are speaking to your child, the Lord will open to you wisdom on how to reach your young one. 

Sometimes as I am writing on a topic, I can hear the Holy Spirit giving fresh revelation.  He’s an amazing teacher!

The sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light.

Revelation 3:9-11 

“9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie–indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. (Great Tribulation) 11 Behold, I am coming quickly!Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.  

When the Great Tribulation hits planet earth, it will be the worst of times ever before experienced in history.  We, Church, will not be here during these dark days.  We will have been taken out of this world in the greatest disappearance of all time:  The Rapture!

Promises To All Believers

Revelation 3:12-13

12 He who overcomes, (1) I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. (2) 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. (3) And I will write on him My new name.”

All those who put their trust in Christ will become a pillar in the temple of God, we will have a new name, and Jesus will write on us that new name.  The Church of brotherly love, “Philadelphia,” not only knew and understood all these things, they meditated on them to the point that they were non-plussed by their culture.  Their focus was right where it should be:  Squarely on Jesus!  
–
That’s how they remained faithful through trials.  That’s why Jesus said all those things about them.  That’s why for this pastor there was no only no rebuke, there was praise for who they were and what they were doing.
–

13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’

6 responses to “The Seven Churches Of Revelation Part 6: Philadelphia”

  1. The Seven Churches Of Revelation Part 5: Sardis – emmausroadministries Avatar
    The Seven Churches Of Revelation Part 5: Sardis – emmausroadministries

    […] Located on the banks of the Pactolus River, Sardis was 60 miles inland from Ephesus and Smyrna. The city was home to the famous bishop Melito in the 2nd century. – – Artemis was the main goddess of the city and the temple dedicated to her in Sardis was one of the seven largest Greek temples (more than double the size of the Parthenon).  Artemis, known as Diana by the Romans, was the daughter of Zeus and twin of Apollo. She was the goddess of the hunt, the moon and fertility. – Dead (Nekros) Works. As you can see, there was a lot of pagan worship surrounding the Church in Sardis.  Some of her people had strayed from God, indulging in dead works as opposed to good works, as Paul talks about in the book of Hebrews: Hebrews 5:12-14 “12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is,those who by reason of [d]use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” – Hebrews 6:1-3  Therefore, leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead (nekros) works and of faith toward God, 2 of the doctrine of baptisms, of laying on of hands, of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this we will do if God permits.” – The word in the opening scripture for “Dead” is the same word as used to refer to dead, as in a corpse, but also “Dead works.”  James deals with this same topic, giving even more light to this topic: – James 2:14-17 14 What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? 17 Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. –   – Faith And Works. “Faith Without Works Is Dead.”  Ever heard that before?  I’m sure most of you have heard a message or two expounded on from time to time.  Unfortunately, this passage is often taken out of context to make you believe you need to do good works in order to be pleasing God, to be acceptable to Him, or to prove your love for Him.  The implication, of course, is that the lack of them “proves” that either you don’t love Him enough or, even worse, maybe you’re not even be saved!  Now there’s a frightening thought! Of course, just to be sure, you run up to the altar during the inevitable altar call to get “Saved,” all over again.  This is not a scriptural concept.  It’s another in a long line of deceptions form you know who:  The devil. – Context Is King. Since the Bible is its own best commentary, let’s see what it has to say.  We’re going to have to look at this passage it’s proper context.  As you’ll see, CONTEXT IS KING.  Any time you take the TEXT out of it’s CONTEXT, you are left with a CON. – Who Is It Written TO? First of all, the entire book of James was written to, and I quote:  “The twelve tribes that are scattered abroad.”  (See ch. 1, vs. 1).  Paul is writing TO THE JEWS OF THE DISPERSION. – Notice that he is admonishing them not to neglect caring for other believers in need.  THAT is the CONTEXT of his remarks.  It doesn’t have anything whatever to do with your relationship to God.  That is a done deal.  – Remember Widows And Orphans. At the end of chapter one, James is reminding these Jews not to forget widows and orphans.  Chapter 2 also encourages these same Jewish believers not to show favoritism to those who are wealthy over those of lesser means, and that they are not justified by works before God but before men.  Remember, THEY (the world) will know us by our love.  The entire book of James is teaching about relating to others, not about being acceptable to God. – Apparently, the pastor at the Church at Sardis had forgotten that good works do not justify us before God, but show the world the God is love.  They are a witness to the unsaved to draw them to want to know this wonderful Jesus for themselves.  That’s what “They will know us by our love,” means. – Forever Secure. Church, your good works cannot save you.  They have nothing to do with maintaining your salvation.  The lack of them will not cause you to lose your salvation or be left behind in the rapture, as some have more than hinted.  AS IF! Do not be afraid:  You are forever safe and secure in Jesus!  You can NEVER lose your salvation!  Call it “Eternal Security” or whatever you want.  I put my faith in the FINISHED work of JESUS! – False Teaching. That (false) “teaching” is a cheap scare tactic.  It is an abuse of the privilege of the pulpit.  The person teaching it is using his own self effort to try and manipulate people into living holy lives.  It is a dead work. (For more on the subject of holiness follow this link: https://emmausroadministries.wordpress.com/2016/08/13/the-opposite-of-holiness/) – – Transformed By Beholding. The one thing that would be most effective in helping people live holy lives seems to be the one thing many don’t seem to want to preach.  And what is that?  Beholding Jesus in His beauty and glory, not our ugliness and gory. But if you go to church and during the sermon Jesus’ Name is hardly even mentioned, let along His beauty unveiled, how can you be transformed?  The answer is, “YOU CAN’T.”  The Holy Spirit, Who actually does the transforming, has nothing to work with.  Give Him the raw materials He need and your people will be changed effortlessly. – – Repent: Metanoia. So Jesus wanted this Pastor to “ Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent.’  In other words, “Change his mind” about what he taught his people that our good works are not to make us acceptable to God, but as a witness before the ungodly that there is a God in heaven Who loves them. – If there are some who thought they were saved by doing good works, let the truth be told that Jesus is THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Live.  No one becomes acceptable to the Father without being cleansed by the precious blood of Jesus. –  “He who overcomes (has been cleansed by the blood) shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. 6 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”  – Please follow the link below to part 6: https://emmausroadministries.international/2019/01/17/the-seven-churches-of-revelation-philadelphia/ […]

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  2. Yolanda Parnell Avatar
    Yolanda Parnell

    Good Morning

    I have a few questions I thought you may be able to give guidance on. I am curious if there is a resource that will help explain the original meaning behind the original manuscripts. I have a few I use, but they aren’t helping me with deeper understanding, which I crave. I use BLB, but I don’t understand the tenses and they give so many definitions that I am not understanding better. I may be confusing myself actually 😂

    My second question is the rapture. I have read the scripture everyone quotes, but I see the second coming. Definitely not saying I understand correctly, but I do want to understand. In the OT we see Enoch being taken, Methuselah, and Noah. In order. Is Enoch a typology of Christ, the Methuselah a type of the long church age- by Gods Grace. Then Noah, made righteous in Christ (Ark). If so Noah appears to be protected from the judgement on the earth in Christ – but not taken out of the tribulation. I know as believers we have no more judgement.

    I don’t always express my thoughts well, but I’d appreciate any thoughts you would share.

    Thank You

    Your sister in Christ Jesus

    Yolanda

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    1. emmausroadministries Avatar
      emmausroadministries

      I have learned a lot about the meaning of the original manuscripts from preachers like Joseph Prince, Chaim BenTorah, and Jim Richards. The first thing to remember is that the Holy Spirit it The Author and He is telling the timeless story of Jesus over and over again in types, shadows, in the meaning of names, and in the Hebrew letters themselves. I write (hopefully) in such a way as to help others understand how they can see Jesus in all the scriptures concerning Himself and unlock the meaning of each book and of the entire Bible. Jesus is the main theme but the Jewish rabbis have identified 4 layers of biblical interpretation. I have articles on all the above which I will try to post here.
      Secondly, there is both a rapture AND a second coming. They are clearly delineating in the scriptures in both the Old and New covenants. Easier to find in the New as it is the Old revealed but everting in the New is hidden somewhere in the old.

      I’m not sure if that answers your questions. I can tell you this: The Holy Spirit is a wonderful Teacher and loves to help those who are hungry to know more find answers. Ask Him. He’ll love it!

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    2. emmausroadministries Avatar
      emmausroadministries

      Promissory Notes: Passover Series Part 10

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    3. emmausroadministries Avatar
      emmausroadministries

      Signs Of The Times: Passover Series Part 5

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    4. emmausroadministries Avatar
      emmausroadministries

      This is a link to a part 1 of a series on Joseph. His story, more than any other, showcases the life of Jesus more than any other, though there are many others.

      Coat Of Many Colors: Story Of Joseph Part 1

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