Church in Philadelphia
Author: Pat Aman…
““To the angel of the ““To the angel of the church in Philadelphia So He promises the faithful church, first of all, the door is open to salvation and the Kingdom, the door is open to blessing, and the door is open to opportunity for service and evangelism write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Revelation 3:7-13
Philadelphia is written to a church that needs no warning, that needs no chastening, that needs no threatening because here you have a true church. Two of the seven churches have nothing condemning them in the letter because they are the regenerate church. The church at Smyrna, the church at Philadelphia were faithful, godly, loyal, effective. And we see these two churches as the models throughout all of church history of good, solid, regenerate, faithful churches.
I don’t want to make a point that really isn’t here, but it does strike me that the blood-bought, redeemed, saved church is in a chaotic mixture. Did you notice that? Only two out of seven – only two out of seven were completely faithful. Now, if that’s some kind of a typical percentage, then the weak, sinful church is the more common church. But this church is a blessing. Let’s read the letter.
Here He encourages the Philadelphia folks by saying, “I am absolutely holy, and I put a premium on truth, and my holiness and my truth have scrutinized you, and there is nothing to condemn.” And that poses the reality for me and for all of us that it is possible for a church, a human church, a church with people like us, to be looked at by the holy One and the true One and to be commended. And while we want to admit that we are human and that we fail and we struggle and we sin, we must see in this the graciousness of our God and of our Lord to see in us something to be commended.
I think again sometimes we assume that the Lord is never happy with any of His churches. Not so. There’s no such thing as a perfect church because there’s no such thing as a perfect person, and if there’s not even one perfect person, then every church is an assembly of a whole lot of imperfect people. So the problem is significantly compounded.
But it is possible, it is within the realm of reason and biblical revelation to assume that the Lord can look at a church and feel like it is worth celebrating. How encouraging. He introduces Himself as the One who can unlock the treasure house, and by His sovereign authority and His sovereign power, open up its riches to those He chooses. He has the key to all the riches, and He will dispense them at His own discretion. There’s a note of sovereignty in this, by the way. There goes along with that authority a certain amount of sovereignty. He can determine who gets into the treasure house to experience the blessings.
This little group had some power. They may have been few in number, most likely were; probably poor; probably low class; probably general, run-of-the-mill, undistinguished citizenry.
This was a saved church. These people obeyed the Lord.
So He promises the faithful church, first of all, the door is open to salvation and the Kingdom, the door is open to blessing, and the door is open to opportunity for service and evangelism.
Tonight let each of us be the kind of saints as the church in Philadelphia.
Devotion Written By: Pastor Pat Aman Book © 1996/2020, “Coffee With Pat Daily Devotionals” and Westbow Press a division of Thomas Nelson So He promises the faithful church, first of all, the door is open to salvation and the Kingdom, the door is open to blessing, and the door is open to opportunity for service and evangelism write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
Revelation 3:7-13
Philadelphia is written to a church that needs no warning, that needs no chastening, that needs no threatening because here you have a true church. Two of the seven churches have nothing condemning them in the letter because they are the regenerate church. The church at Smyrna, the church at Philadelphia were faithful, godly, loyal, effective. And we see these two churches as the models throughout all of church history of good, solid, regenerate, faithful churches.
I don’t want to make a point that really isn’t here, but it does strike me that the blood-bought, redeemed, saved church is in a chaotic mixture. Did you notice that? Only two out of seven – only two out of seven were completely faithful. Now, if that’s some kind of a typical percentage, then the weak, sinful church is the more common church. But this church is a blessing. Let’s read the letter.
Here He encourages the Philadelphia folks by saying, “I am absolutely holy, and I put a premium on truth, and my holiness and my truth have scrutinized you, and there is nothing to condemn.” And that poses the reality for me and for all of us that it is possible for a church, a human church, a church with people like us, to be looked at by the holy One and the true One and to be commended. And while we want to admit that we are human and that we fail and we struggle and we sin, we must see in this the graciousness of our God and of our Lord to see in us something to be commended.
I think again sometimes we assume that the Lord is never happy with any of His churches. Not so. There’s no such thing as a perfect church because there’s no such thing as a perfect person, and if there’s not even one perfect person, then every church is an assembly of a whole lot of imperfect people. So the problem is significantly compounded.
But it is possible, it is within the realm of reason and biblical revelation to assume that the Lord can look at a church and feel like it is worth celebrating. How encouraging. He introduces Himself as the One who can unlock the treasure house, and by His sovereign authority and His sovereign power, open up its riches to those He chooses. He has the key to all the riches, and He will dispense them at His own discretion. There’s a note of sovereignty in this, by the way. There goes along with that authority a certain amount of sovereignty. He can determine who gets into the treasure house to experience the blessings.
This little group had some power. They may have been few in number, most likely were; probably poor; probably low class; probably general, run-of-the-mill, undistinguished citizenry.
This was a saved church. These people obeyed the Lord.
So He promises the faithful church, first of all, the door is open to salvation and the Kingdom, the door is open to blessing, and the door is open to opportunity for service and evangelism.
Tonight let each of us be the kind of saints as the church in Philadelphia.
Devotion Written By: Pastor Pat Aman Book © 1996/2020, “Coffee With Pat Daily Devotionals” and Westbow Press a division of Thomas Nelson
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