Sermon Tone Analysis

Textual Idea – Jesus has a message for the 7 local churches which typify churches today.

Transition w/ key word – Our text presents several common themes of Jesus message to the churches.

(Format modified from Lehman Strauss)

We note the:

The Assembly - The Author - The Approval - The Admonition - The Appeal - The Application -

Get your house in order - Part 3

Revelation 3:7-13

Introduction - Today is time change - the nasty spring forward one where we lost an hour of sleep last night.

I’m always paranoid on time change nights b/c of Sunday morning responsibilities.

Tell about waking up at 0158 and looking at my watch change at 0200 to 0300.

I literally watched an hour of my life disappear b/f my very eyes!

(Show picture w/ Indian commenting on time change).

Now I have to figure out how to change all the clocks that didn’t change automatically.

The problem is the instructions are not easily accessible if they are able to be located at all.

The ones that are the most annoying are on our vehicles.

No offense to the engineers in the house but why do they make it so complicated?

If you’re going to give instructions, don’t assume we know what step is there you didn’t spell out.

Can I get a witness?

Thankfully, our Lord has given us His divine instruction manual for living our personal lives and our corporate life as a church.

But did you know God’s Word provides instructions for your work life and business life also?

Peter tells us God has given us “all things that pertain to life and Godliness…which have been given to us exceedingly great & precious promises…” (2 Peter 1:3-4).

The principles found in this book guide us through the dangers, toils and snares of life.

Transition – In our study through Revelation, the Apostle John was commanded by the Lord Jesus Himself to write some letters of instruction to the 7 churches of Asia that included common themes for the church as He warns them to get their house in order.

(See study guide).

Read 3:7-13

The last 2 weeks, we’ve looked at 5 churches, Ephesus, Smyrna & Pergamos, then Thyatira & Sardis.

We’ve said based on 1:19 to “Write the things which you have seen, the things that are, and the things which will take place after this.”

These two chapters where the things “which are” or were during John’s life.

It was the risen Lord’s assessment of the 7 churches of Asia.

Each letter to each church has 1) A primary association - 2) A personal application - 3) A prophetic anticipation - We note the:

1.

The Assembly - Philadelphia - 3:7-13

As we’ve done last week it’s helpful for us to see the churches laid out on a map as the Lord deals with them in order of geographical location.

(Show map & review where John is, & Ephesus up to Philadelphia) From the Hermus River valley, where Sardis and Smyrna were located, a smaller valley (that of the Cogamis River) branches off to the southeast.

A road through this valley provided the best means of ascending the 2,500 feet from the Hermus Valley to the vast central plateau.

In this valley, about thirty miles from Sardis, was the city of Philadelphia.

Philadelphia was the youngest of the seven cities, founded sometime after 189 b.c.

either by King Eumenes of Pergamum or his brother, Attalus II, who succeeded him as king.

In either case, the city derived its name from Attalus II’s nickname Philadelphus (“brother lover”), for his loyalty & love for his brother Eumenes.

Though situated on an easily defensible site on an 800-foot-high hill overlooking an important road, Philadelphia was not founded primarily as a military outpost as Thyatira had been.

Its founders intended it to be a center of Greek culture and language, a missionary outpost for spreading Hellenism (Greek Culture) to the regions of Lydia and Phrygia.

Philadelphia succeeded in its mission so well that by a.d.

19 the Lydian language had been completely replaced by Greek.

Philadelphia was strategically located on a major trade route and was the gateway to the east.

Travelers from Jerusalem would come through here on this Roman Road.

Unfortunately, because of the volcanic activity in the area, it was prone to being rocked by earthquakes & in AD 17 a powerful earthquake rocked Philadelphia along with Sardis and 10 other cities with aftershocks for years to come.

Many of the residents lived outside the city and farmed the rich land fertilized by volcanic ash that was very conducive to growing grapes.

Under Caesar Tiberius, Rome helped rebuild the city.

Today it is buried under the modern city Alasehir, in modern day Turkey.

2. The Author - 3:7

As we’ve said, Jesus described Himself differently to each church.

To the church at Philadelphia, He affirms 3 things about Himself & His character.

To the previous 5 churches, the Jesus used part of the description of the Lord John saw in 1:12-17.

But here, this description of Himself is unique and not drawn from that earlier vision, it is drawn distinctly from OT features.

• “Says He who is Holy” -

Holiness is an essential attribute of God & by using this designation Jesus is declaring Himself to be God of the church!

In the OT, God repeatedly refers to Himself as Holy.

When He appeared to Moses out in the desert in a burning bush that was not being consumed in the fire; in Ex. 3:5, God called to Moses from the bush and when Moses answered and drew close, God commanded Moses to take his sandals off his feet b/c he was standing on Holy ground!

• Lev.

11:44 - God told the COI He was holy & therefore they were also to be holy!

• Is. 40:25 - “‘To whom then will you liken Me, or to whom shall I be equal?’ says the Holy One?”

It is what makes God unique to every other part of Creation - He is Holy other - not created.

• Heb.

7:26 describes Jesus “For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens.”

• 1 Peter 2:22 - “Who committed no sin, for was deceit found in His mouth.”

Jesus as the Holy God is sinless & pure.

If you were to ask what is the primary, most important attribute of God, most people would probably say love, but the Bible reveals it is God’s holiness!

• “He that is true” -

This again distinguishes Jesus from humanity.

We humans are liars because we’re born into sin and Satan is the father of all lies.

Dr. G. Campbell Morgan is helpful in understanding the significance b/w being Holy & true.

He says, “As the “Holy One”, Jesus Christ is right in character; as the “True One” He is right in conduct.

Jesus could not be different in His actions from what He is in His attributes.

When character is right, conduct will be right.

Because holiness inherently resides in Him, truth does likewise.

Since He is perfect in what He is, He is also perfect in what He does.”

(Strauss p. 80)

This very Apostle John would right in his Gospel letter, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, in John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

He would continue in vs. 16-17 “And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.

For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

Our Lord Jesus is not only holy, but He is the definition of what is true!

This is especially encouraging when we have so many talking heads & opinions we don’t know who or what to believe - What Jesus says is true!

• “He who has the keys of David, He who opens & no one shuts, & shuts and no one opens.”

This description the Lord uses for Himself, points to a prophecy from Isaiah 22 during the reign of King Hezekiah.

The Assyrian army of Sennacherib was already marching against Israel.

The people should have been in a state of mourning and repentance, but instead they were partying saying “Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die.”

(Is.

22:13)

The King had a wicked officer named Shebna.

The Lord prophesied in punishment for his actions, God would toss him like a ball into a large country in captivity & remove him from office.

(22:18-19) Then God promised to give Shebna’s office to Eliakim and commit his responsibility to Eliakim.

In 22:22 God says “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 will open.”

Eliakim would have access and control to the monarch & to the treasury.

Like many OT prophecies, there is dual fulfillment.

Eliakim had this authority & responsibility to control who got to see the king as he deemed appropriate - he would open and no one could shut or if he closed no one could open.

As holder of the key of David, Jesus Christ alone controls access to the Kingdom of God.

Jesus said in John 14:6 “I am the way the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father except through Me.”

In Acts 4:12 “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven, given among men, by which we must be saved.”

Clearly Jesus holds the keys to salvation & entrance/access to the Kingdom of God.

He also holds the key to an open door of service opportunity in vs. 8.

We’ll get to that in moment.

This is the Author.