“Keep On Keepin’ On!”
(Revelation 3:7-13)
Series: Understanding the Book of Revelation
Rev. Todd A. Linn, PhD
First Baptist Church, Henderson KY
7-16-06 (AM)
- Please open your Bibles to Revelation, chapter 3.
We are continuing our series of messages, verse-by-verse, through the book of Revelation. We have been focusing upon the seven churches of Asia Minor and this morning we are looking at the church in Philadelphia, what most scholars refer to as “The Faithful Church,” the church of “brotherly love.”
Remember that our Lord Jesus Christ is doing the talking here. He is instructing the angel of each church to write down some things He has to say to each church. We have been saying that we must learn from these churches as the Spirit of God speaks to us through these messages, too.
- Please stand in honor of the reading of the word of God.
7 ” 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”:
8 “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.
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.
11 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.
12 “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. 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 I will write on him My new name.
13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ‘
- Pray.
Introduction:
During one of our trips down to Atlanta we stayed for a few days in an area that was really growing and I got up in the mornings to take a morning jog around the busy commercial and industrial area. This run in Atlanta was especially memorable to me because of a sign I would see each morning as I ran up one particular road. There was a sign there meant to be read by car traffic in the far right lane as the traffic merged into intersecting traffic from the left. The instructions for these cars was very simple, just two words, words that you often see as you are traveling in the right lane and merging into incoming traffic from the left. The sign simply read: “Keep Moving.” While the sign was put there for automobile traffic, it had a very personal application to my morning jogs as I would read it for inspiration as I ran through that area.
When I started to feel a little weak, thinking more about the pain in my calves, or when I started to huff and puff and thought, “Maybe I’ll just take it easy now,” I would see the sign and read, “Keep Moving.” So much of running is about that, just “keep moving.”
Those two words sum up much of the Christian life as well: “Keep Moving.” When things get difficult and you think you’re ready to keel over, ready to throw up your arms and quit, ready to say, “Maybe I’ll just sit this thing out, maybe I’ll take it easy now,” the answer often comes from that helpful little sign, “Keep Moving.” Just keep moving. Keep going. Persevere. Stay faithful. Keep on keepin’ on.
The church at Philadelphia is a church that just kept moving. All indicators suggest that the church was small, yet strong. They could easily have thrown-in the towel. They could have given up. But they just kept moving.
As we’ve read about these seven churches we’ve noted that most of them have some things wrong with them that Jesus addresses. There are only two exceptions to this pattern: the church at Smyrna and the church at Philadelphia. There’s no rebuke from our Lord Jesus Christ, only words of encouragement.
As we study this church, we learn three actions to take concerning our response to the Lord Jesus Christ.
I. We Must Consider the Final Power of Christ (7)
In verse 7, we read of the absolute authority of Jesus Christ. He is the final power. There is none higher than He. That’s what we read in verse 7.
7 ” 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”:
Jesus is described as the one “who has the key of David,” a key with which “He opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens.” In the Bible, keys represent authority and power. This statement of our Lord’s is an allusion to Isaiah 22:22. In Isaiah 22:22, King Hezekiah appoints Eliakim as the chief steward of Hezekiah’s household. Eliakim had access to the king and his palace. If you wanted to get into the king’s household then you had to go through Eliakim. He held the keys. He opened and shut the door. He was the only way in. He was the final authority and power.
In the same sense, Jesus Christ is described as the one “who has the key” to the house and kingdom of David. Jesus Christ is the Davidic Messiah, the one who controls entrance into God’s kingdom. He alone “opens and shuts” the door. He is the only way in. No one else has this authority and power. This was probably very encouraging to the faithful Christians at the small church in Philadelphia. They were no doubt persecuted time and again and were very likely excommunicated from the local synagogue of Jews. They may have been shut-out of the synagogue, but Jesus Christ will never shut them out of the kingdom. He is the sole “key-carrier” to the kingdom.
There is no authority higher than the Lord Jesus Christ. He alone controls the keys to the kingdom. He alone opens and shuts the door. Mohammed does not open and shut the door. Buddha does not open and shut the door. No priest can open and shut the door. No New Age Guru can open and shut the door. Only the Lord Jesus Christ can open and shut the door to the kingdom.
Paul writes in 1 Timothy 2:5, “There is one God and one Mediator between God and men; the Man Christ Jesus.”
In John 10:9, Jesus says, “I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.”
And just in case you haven’t heard it in awhile, Jesus says in John 14:6, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life; no one comes unto the Father except by Me.”
I read recently about Charles Weigle, an itinerant evangelist and gospel songwriter. He returned home one day from an evangelistic crusade and found a note left by his wife of many years. The note said that she had had enough of being the wife of an evangelist. She was leaving him.
That event sent Weigle to the depths of despair and darkness. There were even times when he had contemplated suicide. But, over time, his faith grew and he once again became active in Christian ministry. It was the hard experiences such as his wife’s leaving him that shaped his thoughts to pen these words to a popular hymn:
I would love to tell you what I think of Jesus,
Since I found in Him a friend so strong and true;
I would tell you how He changed my life completely,
He did something that no other friend could do.
No one ever cared for me like Jesus,
There’s no other friend so kind as He;
No one else could take the sin and darkness from me,
O how much He cared for me.
There is no one like Jesus. He is holy. He is true. He alone holds the keys to the kingdom of God. He alone can take the sin and darkness from our lives. He alone is Master. We must yield to Him and bow before Him. We must consider the Final Power of Christ. Secondly:
II. We Must Commit to Faithful Perseverance for Christ (8-10)
The church at Philadelphia teaches us about faithful perseverance for Christ. Look again at verse 8:
8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it (again, a reference to Christ’s control of the kingdom of God); for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.
Jesus says to this church, “You have a little strength.” This should be translated as, “You have but just a little power, just a little strength.” It refers to a church that is a small church, a struggling church, a church that was not very impressive on the outside, just a little power, just a little influence, just a little strength, a church persecuted and yet, faithful. So this statement is not to be understood as a weakness. Jesus is commending the church for her faithfulness even in light of the fact that she is relatively small and has little power and influence. The church had committed to faithful perseverance despite her little strength.
Jesus says “you have kept My word, and not denied My name.” That is, “You are faithful.” Jesus never calls us to be successful. He calls us to be faithful. Just “keep moving.” Keep going. Keep on keepin’ on. Commit to faithful perseverance for Christ.
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.
Those “who say they are Jews and are not, but lie” refers to those who reject Jesus as the Divine Messiah. These are the Jews who live in Philadelphia who have excluded the Christians from worship at the synagogue. They have excommunicated the Jewish Christians. Jesus calls them “the synagogue of Satan.” That doesn’t sound very good, does it?
Jesus promises to bring vindication to the Christians. He promises to vindicate them. He promises to “prove them right.” He says, “I will make them come and worship (better, bow down) before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.” This is a picture of submission, not worship. The Jews who had excluded the Christians would one day come and bow down before the Christians in submission to the truth that Jesus Christ really is the Divine Messiah. The Christians will be vindicated. Jesus will “prove them right.”
The same is true for you. You keep being faithful to the Lord Jesus Christ. One day our Lord Jesus will “prove you right.” Allow God to take up your case. You will be proven right in the end. Philippians 2:10-11 reminds us that the day will come when, “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow . . . and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” In the meantime, we must commit to faithful perseverance for Christ.
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.
The “hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world” is a reference to the “Great Tribulation” of chapters 6-16. Those who commit to faithful perseverance for Christ will be “kept” from that “hour of trial,” a trial sent to “test those who dwell on the earth,” that is, a trial the unbelievers will face.
Now some popular preachers use this verse to teach the doctrine of the rapture. The rapture is taught most explicitly in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 where we read that when the Lord comes again, Christians will be “caught up” into the air to meet Him. Some say that this verse here teaches that the rapture will come and the church will be taken out of the world while the Great Tribulation ensues. My feeling is that, even if we were to believe that, we wouldn’t want to build our case on this verse here.
Jesus merely says that Christians will be “kept from the hour of trial.” It doesn’t say that Christians will be removed from the world. The sense is much like in the Gospel of John where Jesus prays for His disciples. In John 17:15, Jesus says, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.” God will always protect His people and “keep them from the evil one.” You remember reading how God did that during the 10 plagues of Israel. The Egyptians suffered the wrath of God, but God’s people were protected.
God doesn’t have to take His people out of the world in order to protect them. Again, Jesus prays in John 17:15, “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.” That’s the sense here in Revelation 3:10. Jesus says, “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.” We must commit to faithful perseverance for Christ.
Jesus has words of high praise for Christians who keep on keepin’ on in the midst of trials and difficulties. Remember, God has not called you to be successful. He has called you to be faithful. Commit to faithful perseverance for Christ. Someone said it was by faithful perseverance that the snail made it to Noah’s ark. He just kept on keepin’ on! If you are faithful then you will benefit from the third actions. Remember, we must consider the final power of Christ. We must commit to faithful perseverance for Christ. Number three:
III. We Must Claim the Future Promises in Christ (11-13)
11 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.
Keep on keepin’ on. May the Lord find us faithful when He returns. Hold fast what you have. Don’t slow down. Don’t give-in. Don’t give up. Don’t allow someone to “take your crown.” He’s not talking about the possibility of losing our salvation. The idea is, don’t get your eyes off the goal. Stay focused and you will receive the reward of a crown of blessing. God will reward your faithfulness. Don’t get tripped up by the attraction of the world around you. Keep moving.
The Christians at Philadelphia kept moving. Some lost their jobs. Some lost relationships, but they kept moving. They continued to persevere.
Following Jesus Christ is not always easy. Sometimes it can get pretty tough. Sometimes just living in this world can take its toll on us. We get in a bind financially, we face difficulties at the workplace, we get sick, someone hurts us, we face worries and temptations all the time. Jesus says, “Remember your future. I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.”
12 “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.
That promise was particularly meaningful for the Christians at Philadelphia. The city of Philadelphia frequently suffered earthquakes, a particularly bad one in AD 17 which totally devastated the city. Often the only things left standing in the city were the “huge stone temple columns,” the pillars of the temples. Because of the earthquakes, the citizens in Philadelphia were often forced to move outside the city limits and start over. So Jesus is speaking metaphorically here. He speaks of stability and permanence that is found only in Him. “He who overcomes,” that is, “the true believer, the one who perseveres to the end,” Jesus says, “I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more.” We are secure, we are stable, in Him.
Remember that when you are shaken. We will face difficulties in this world. We will be shaken around a lot. Some of you may have experienced some “shaking around” in your home life, or you have moved a lot, having to “start over” again and again. Just remember that the day will come when you will be shaken no more. And we will move into a permanent home, a place that remains secure forever. It will all be worth it then.
And then there are these names Jesus will write upon the Christian.
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 I will write on him My new name.
13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ‘
Unlike the majority of the membership at the church in Sardis who were ashamed of Christ, the Christians at Philadelphia were unashamed of Jesus. Because they were proud to be identified with Christ, Christ is proud to be identified with them. So He says, “I will write upon you three things: the name of My God, the name of the city of God, and My new name.”
We may speculate on exactly what all these names are in the literal sense, but doing so may cause us to miss the point: the point is that Christians belong to Jesus. The point is that He knows us and has a home for us. All we’re asked to do is to be faithful, to “keep moving,” to “keep on’ keepin’ on.” When the going gets tough, the true Christian keeps going. So:
“Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war; with the cross of Jesus going on before. Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe; forward into battle see his banners go.” And:
“Onward to the prize before us! Soon His beauty we’ll behold; soon the pearly gates will open; we shall walk the streets of gold. When we all get to heaven, what a day of rejoicing that will be! When we all see Jesus, we’ll sing and shout the victory.”
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