The Church of the Open Door
(Revelation 3:7-13)
- a little trivia quiz this morning
- you may want to take out a piece of paper to write
the answer down
- how many doors are in this sanctuary?
- don’t turn around and count – just take a
guess, and write it down
- how many doors are in this sanctuary?
- second, how many doors are in this entire church?
- put a number down
-
- okay, now exchange your papers with a neighbor
- just kidding – you can mark your own
- how many doors in this sanctuary?
- thirteen
- that’s easy
- how do I know?
- well, people who are bored with my sermon tell me almost
every other week
- how many doors, how many chairs, how many lights, how
many squares – you name it!
-
- second, how many doors are in this entire church building?
- ninety-five – did anybody get that?
- that was worth coming for this morning, wasn’t
it?
-
- did you know that a lot of doors are mentioned in Scripture
as well?
- both in the Old and the New Testament, the Bible talks
about a number of doors, often with very different meanings
-
- for instance, in Revelation 3:20, Jesus says:
- (Revelation 3:20) Here I am! I stand at the door and
knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and
eat with him, and he with me.
- this is the door of intimacy with Christ
- we usually apply this passage in an evangelistic sense,
and yet it was written to a church of believers
- it illustrates for us the willingness of Jesus Christ
to pursue believers who have grown cold in their relationship with him
- the imagery is of Jesus knocking at the door of a church,
and waiting for the church to re-open that door so that a vital relationship
can be re-established
-
- another type of door mentioned in Scripture is the
door of salvation
- for instance, in John 10:29, Jesus said:
- (John 10:9) I am the gate; whoever enters through me
will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture.
- Jesus was teaching the remarkable truth that he is
the only way to salvation
- inside that door or gate, there is safety and everything
we need
-
- there’s a third type of door mentioned in Scripture
– the door of opportunity
- for instance, Paul says in Colossians 4:3:
- (Colossians 4:3) 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.
- it’s mentioned a number of times in Scripture,
and it refers to the way that God gives wonderful opportunities to preach
the Gospel, and also how he prepares willing ears to listen and eager
hearts to receive it
- throughout history, people have found that God has
a unique way of providing opportunities for fruitful service, and hearts
ready to accept the Gospel
-
- this morning we’re looking at the sixth of seven
churches in the book of Revelation
- this church is located in Philadelphia – obviously,
not the one in Pennsylvania
- this one was in Asia
- it was a city strategically located on the road from
Rome to the East, and was a strong fortress city
- it was sometimes called "little Athens,"
because it was full of gods and idols
- it was a city of major influence in the area
-
- Jesus Christ, the one giving this prophetic message,
introduces himself in verse 7 as the one "who holds the key of
David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open"
- he’s reminding them of his absolute sovereignty
- he has the authority to open and to close the doors
to the kingdom
- he alone has the power to admit whoever he chooses
- all power is his
- in those days, keys and locks were a symbol of power
- a key was sometimes worn around the shoulder as a symbol
of official authority
- in the Old Testament, the key to David’s kingdom
was taken away from an unfaithful official, and given to somebody else
- but here in Revelation 3, we read that Jesus has the
key to David’s kingdom
- he alone has the authority and the power over God’s
household
-
- NOW, IF YOU SCAN VERSE 8, YOU CAN SEE WHAT JESUS
COMMENDS IN THIS CHURCH
- two things
- first, their deeds were commendable
- (Revelation 3:8) I know your deeds.
- and you can imagine the people in Philadelphia were
getting nervous when they heard this!
- after all, Jesus had just finished telling the church
in Sardis, "I know your deeds…and you’re dead!"
- but here, Jesus has no words of warning
- their deeds are commendable
-
- second, they had kept his word and hadn’t denied
his name
- verse 10 says again, "you have obeyed my command
to persevere"
- the church here had recently passed through a time
of severe trail, and yet had remained true to the Lord
- they had been faithful to the Gospel and to the apostles’
teaching, even during a time of trial, probably at the hand of the Jews
in the city
-
- I doubt many of us have thought how pleased God is
when we stand firm in the trenches
- when we make daily choices of loyalty and commitment
to him, God takes notice and God is pleased
-
- [THE PROMISES]
- Scripture is replete with promises to people and churches
who remain faithful to him
- and this passage is no exception
- because Jesus promises them in verse 8:
- (Revelation 3:8) 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.
- in the middle of the two commendations, Jesus gives
a strategic promise: "I have placed before you an open door that
no one can shut"
- scholars are divided over what this open door means
- some argue that Christ is referring here to the door
of salvation – that Christ is opening the door to his kingdom for
those who love him
- but others argue that the open door refers to a door
of opportunity that Jesus will open for that church
-
- most historians believe that the church in Philadelphia
was small in number and in scope
- verse 8 says, "I know that you have little strength"
- in 17 AD, the region around Philadelphia was destroyed
by an earthquake
- as a result of the destruction around the city, many
people chose to live in the rural area rather than in the city itself
- as a result, the immediate population was probably
much smaller than it had been
- and the church in Philadelphia, although faithful,
was not a large one or a strong one
-
- on top of that, this little church had undergone a
time of severe testing
- verse 9 refers to the Jewish opposition to the church
- no doubt they were excluding the Jewish believers from
the synagogue, and falsely accusing the Christians
-
- despite the opposition, this church had remained faithful
- yet despite their faithfulness, the church had not
grown in size or in strength
- you can imagine how discouraging this would have been
for the core of believers who prayed, who fasted, who taught without
compromise, and who gave generously out of their resources to support
the work at the church in Philadelphia
- because they were still small, and they were still
weak
-
- but Jesus says, that’s about to change
- he says, "I have placed before you an open door
that no-one can shut"
- it’s likely that Jesus is promising to this small
and struggling church that he will give them wonderful evangelistic
opportunities, and willing ears that will listen and eager hearts ready
to receive the Gospel
- Jesus was giving to this church an open door –
an opportunity for ministry that would be great, despite their size
-
- in fact, he promises three things to them:
- FIRST, HE SAYS, I’LL TAKE CARE OF YOUR ENEMIES
- (Revelation 3:9) 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.
- one day, these people who were opposing the Christians
would acknowledge that they were right after all!
- Jesus promises that he will make those who are persecuting
his followers acknowledge that they are not heretics, but God’s
people indeed
-
- SECOND, HE SAYS, I’LL KEEP YOU FROM THE TIME OF
TESTING THAT IS COMING ON THE WORLD
- (Revelation 3:10) Since you have kept my command to
endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is
going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.
- Christ promises here protection for the church from
the time of trouble that will come to the entire world
- a worldwide time of testing would come, but the church
would be safe
- the time of testing that the Philadelphia church endured
was just a foretaste of the great, last tribulation before Christ’s
coming
-
- THIRD, JESUS SAYS, I’LL HONOR YOU
- (Revelation 3:11) I am coming soon. Hold on to what
you have, so that no one will take your crown.
- (Revelation 3:12) Him who overcomes I will make a pillar
in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write
on him 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 him my new name.
- Jesus will honor these people by giving them a crown
of reward, if they remain faithful
-
- verse 12 says that he will also make them a pillar
in God’s temple
- Philadelphia, you will remember, was a place that was
constantly threatened by earthquakes and aftershocks
- often, the only part of a city still left standing
after an earthquake were the huge stone temple columns
- Christ promises that he will set believers in his kingdom
so securely that no disturbance will ever force them out
-
- let’s talk about the church
- I think there are three principles that we can learn
from the church in Philadelphia
- first, let’s remember that Christ opens
the doors – we don’t
- Christ has the keys – we don’t
- Christ has the ability through the Holy Spirit to open
wide the doors of a church, that it will experience more blessing than
they could have imagined
- Christ is the Lord of the harvest, and the head of
the church
-
- have you ever been serving God, and the doors appear
to be closed?
- no matter how hard you try, and no matter what you
do, nothing happens
- the results are meager
- your efforts are unrewarded
- and then, all of a sudden, it’s as if the doors
swing wide open
- you’re not doing anything different, but God brings
different results
- we forget sometimes that we don’t have the keys
- we don’t open the doors
- God does
- that’s lesson number one for the church
-
- second, remember that it’s up to us to remain
faithful, but the results are up to God
- God’s purposes often ripen slowly
- but the law of sowing and reaping comes into effect:
we will reap what we sow
- (1 Corinthians 15:58) Therefore, my dear brothers,
stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the
work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not
in vain.
-
- the lesson is: if the door is shut, don’t put
your shoulder to it
- remain faithful, and wait until Christ takes out the
key and opens it
- one leader in our Fellowship has correctly observed
that most ministry takes place away from the spotlight, with little
fanfare, and sometimes few results
- many ministries are not easy or automatic
- and sometimes, years of hard labor are necessary before
things begin to take off
- when Paul went to Corinth in Acts 18, opposition was
stiff, and results were few
- God appeared in a dream to Paul and said, "Do
not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you,
and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people
in this city."
- and Paul stayed at it a year and a half
-
- I don’t know about you, but somehow I seem to
prefer the easy assignments
- I seem to like it when, with little effort, the doors
seem to fly open, and the results are immediate
- the only problem is then I stop depending on God
- our job is to remain faithful, and to pray that God
would open up the doors so that our labor isn’t in vain
-
- third, and I believe this is the most appropriate application
for us this morning:
- pray that God would open up the doors of ministry
- (Colossians 4:3) 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.
- (Colossians 4:4) Pray that I may proclaim it clearly,
as I should.
-
- do we believe that prayer is central to God’s
activity in our lives and in the church?
- do we really believe that God holds the keys and can
open the doors?
- do we really believe that in answer to our prayers,
God is able to open the doors wide and to do more here than we could
ever imagine or think?
-
- God monitors the faithfulness quotient of a church
- and when God feels that the time is ready, and the
church has reached a state of readiness, God says, "Hold on, I’m
going to do what I’ve wanted to do for a long time, I’m going
to open the door!"
- "I’m going to go before you and multiply
your effectiveness, so hold on!"
- how filled with worship we should be because of God’s
sovereignty
- how fervently we should pray that God will open the
doors at Richview!
- because it’s only as we pray that God will do
so
-
- so how many doors does Richview Baptist Church have?
- thirteen in the sanctuary
- ninety-five throughout the entire church
- and, I pray, a door that God will open up for ministry
– wonderful opportunities to preach the Gospel, and willing ears
to listen and eager hearts to receive it
