Revelation is not a hard book to understand.  It’s the only book that comes with its own divine outline!  (Rev 1:19)

Revelation also is unique in that it is the only book that comes with a specific blessing!  (Rev 1:3)

And remember we talked about, as we got into the letters to the churches in Chapters 2 and 3, that they have a fourfold application.  First they have a local application as these churches actually existed there in Asia Minor, or modern day Turkey.  Second they have an ecclesiastical application or each letter is applicable to each church in that these commendations, exhortations and corrections are for each and every church (…”let the churches hear what the Spirit says”).  Third these letters should be applied prophetically in that the 7 churches represent the 7 ages of the church…so cool.  And finally, these letters have a personal application as Jesus says, “anyone who has an ear, hear.”

Now tonight we are back in the churches that are on the scene still today.  We looked last week as to how we know that.  And tonight we look at the faithful church.  The church in Philidelphia.

Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 7a (“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write…”)

• Philadelphia was an interesting city geographically and historically.  It was located 28 miles southeast of Sardis, situated on the border of three countries; Mysia, Lydia and Phrygia which made it quite convenient (even strategic in a way) because at each turn of the compass there was opportunity for influence, for trade, for outreach…kinda like an open door…a gateway of sorts.
• It’s said that the city was founded with a special mission in mind…to expand the Greek culture and language to Lydia and Phrygia.  And they were quite successful because in just 200 years after Phili’s founding, the Lydians had forgotten their own language and had fully adopted Greek culture!  Quite amazing. 
• The city was established in 189 BC by King Eumenes II of Pergamos at which time he named the city for the love of his brother who would be his successor, Attalus II…therefore the name Philadelphia which literally means “brotherly love.”
• It was situated in an extremely volcanic area which made the soil rich and fertile and so this city was world famous for its wines and also its hot springs.  People would come here to enjoy life, to get away maybe and rest a bit…a nice spot for sure.
• Quite interesting indeed as this church is known as the faithful church.  The church that receives encouragement and approval from its Leader.  A place where people can come to rest.  A place where people can come to be recharged, find hope and life enjoyable.
• Such wonderful things we’ll read tonight of this church.  This church that is still on the scene today.  It represents a period of about 1800 to the present and man this is the church that I believe represents those who simply desire to love God, worship God and know God personally…individually (and we’ll see this tonight) through the continuous study of the Word of God and the sustained application of the precepts contained therein.  (gotta have both to know Him)  The church that has nothing to prove and no one to impress…the only goal of this church is to grow in relationship and discipleship unto the Lord.  And what does that always produce?  Evangelism! 
• When you truly come alive, you can’t bear to see those that are still dead!  When you taste of water that actually quenches that deep thirst man you can’t help but carry some to the thirsty!  You become missional in your moments!  Your eyes see the matrix man and folks are just slaves in it…but you have the weapon that can free them…you’ve got the Truth and the more you simply step forward, the more you simply start the conversation…the more you want to be used….you will be!
• Two books sat in the London shop of a young cobbler:  a well-worn Bible and Captain Cook’s Journal.  Now Capt. Cook was a great traveler, a discoverer.  He was actually credited with discovering Hawaii.  And as the days went by, the cobbler found himself losing interest in working on the soles of shoes, and caring more about the souls of people.  So deep was the passion that stirred within him that on May 31, 1793, he walked into the little Protestant church he attended and said, “Could I please share?”
• Allowed to speak a word, he read Isaiah 54:2-3.  “Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwellings; Do not spare; Lengthen your cords, and strengthen your stakes.  For you shall expand to the right and to the left, and your descendants will inherit the nations, and make the desolate cities alive!”
• “We must lengthen the cords; we must strengthen the stakes,” he preached passionately.  “We must include others who have never heard.  (He had been reading Capt. Cook > AND > the Bible!)  I want to go!  Send me to India!”
• His request stunned his congregation.  After all it had been 1,000 years since anyone had launched a foreign missionary endeavor.  You see that church we looked at last week, the church in Sardis…they had become sardines…just well and content there in their tin can and remember what Jesus said to them…you’re dead man!  You’ve lost sight that I didn’t just save you, I enlisted you!  And look, let me tell you, you either evangelize or you fossilize!  You slowly petrify and become a stiff man and the same thing even for our church!  We must be missional!  Evangelical!  Not hoarding the good news and just getting fat off of the Word but man working it out!  Watching for opportunity, taking opportunity, making opportunity.  But notice, not in 1,000 years had the church been involved with biblical evangelism…
• Today we are in a unique time.  A time when you can reach someone across the city or the state or nation or world with nothing but a desire!  Just this week the text message turned 20 years old!  And what did the text message give rise to?  This sharing and sending of data packets through the air waves?  Smart phones!  These amazing gadgets we have today that in a moment, wherever we are we can ding England!  8.6 trillion text messages are sent each year according to Portio Research. 
• Doesn’t sound like too much…oh really?  That’s 272,704 text messages every second of every day…all year!!!  On average, every teenager in America sends 60 text messages a day!  You can text 9-1-1 nowadays even!  With that kind of capability however, understand the fossilization process accelerates!  We are in a unique time because I wonder how many of those 272k texts are evangelical/spiritual?  I wonder how many of yours are…and with such opportunities such as Facebook, Twitter, blogs, wikis, text messages and all the others…if used solely for materialistic, humanistic, worldly purposes…oh how soon you die as a discipler…
• But here, this church, Carey’s congregation arose there at the end of the 1700s and sent him to India…so on fire, so alive…that in his first ten years, he became fluent in 12 languages!
• William Cary goes down in history as the father of the modern missionary movement as suddenly the heart of the church began to beat again!  The body and bride of Christ woke up from lethargy and began to take responsibility for the Great Commission of Jesus!
• Carey set the example!  He showed them and us that you don’t have to be skilled, gifted or special to be used in the Kingdom!  God is simply looking for simple men and simple women to go!  The greatest ability is availability.  Though shalt tweet!  Have the faith to take a step…and He’ll do the rest! 
• The church in Philadelphia speaks of this age of church history that begun through powerful and selfless faithfulness!  It was through men and women like Carey in India and Hudson Taylor in China, D.L. Moody in America and C.H. Spurgeon in London that evangelism was taking place and missionaries were being sent out!  Sent out to reach the lost and lonely and hurting and failing family of God man…
• This church…a place where people sense family and love and strength because the Holy Spirit is the One in charge.  Where all things take a back seat to sound doctrine, fervent prayer, simple worship, simple love, simple truth and sacrificial service because that is to simply model Jesus.  A place that is hospitable…in other words, a hospital for the weak and the sick and the hurting…where if they want to be made well, they can be…
• The faithful church.  The church that is happily married to Jesus as His bride with unrelenting and unashamed commitment! 

Revelation Chapter 3 Verse 7b

• Understand that the structure of this identifying statement in the Greek, “He who is holy, He who is true” is simply “these things says Holy, True.”  Jesus begins this letter with great approval.  Why would I say that?  Because He identifies Himself here as God Almighty.  One with the Father because there is only One that is Holy, there is only One Truth…and Jesus knows, right from the get-go He had better be clear who He is or they’re not going to listen!
• What a wonderful compliment!  What an essential accolade!  That He would know that this church has no ear to hear from anything or anyone who is not the Holy One Himself, the True God! 
• Man I wonder if you got a letter and it was written, “this says he, or she or them that is not holy and is not true” if you would read any further….I certainly wouldn’t!  But sometimes we do, don’t we?  We allow filth into our minds and even our hearts through the media…we harbor bitterness in our hearts which manifests in the mistreatment of others…all because we have received that which is not holy and not true (Phil 4:8 >>> James 4:8 >>> Know what Matthew 4:8 is?  What about Mark 4:8?? whew)…but not this church.  They wouldn’t have it, no ear for it…and so Jesus opens the door and says, “honey, I’m home!”  And the kids just bolt to Him!  How wonderful!
• And it’s so cool here that Jesus tells us He has the keys.  Keyholders are family right?  Who has a key to your house?  Exactly!  He’s got the keys man and He says here something exciting and wonderful…because back in Chapter 1 verse 18 Jesus said, “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.”  Now He introduces an additional key:  The Key of David of which the Holder uses to open doors that no one can shut and shut doors that no one can open…
• This is a direct, almost word for word reference to Isaiah 22 verse 22 and its so cool because that chapter is speaking of an unwise and unrighteous man who was the treasurer of Judah by the name of Shebna.  Shebna was stealing the money and spending it on himself and so the Key to the Treasury of God was taken from him and given to one that was righteous, Eliakim.
• But here’s where it gets good.  Isaiah there in verse 21 of Chapter 22 begins to describe the responsibility, the position, the power of the key holder…he says, “he is clothed with a robe and He is a Father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to Judah…I will fasten him a peg (or a nail) and He will be a glorious throne to His Father’s house!”
• Now, who is a Father that has a Father?  Who was fastened with a nail?  Who is clothed in a robe?  This so clearly speaks of Jesus.  And so the Key of David…the key to the treasury of God, opened by Jesus and only by Jesus!
• Jesus is the One who opened the doors for William Carey in India, Hudson Taylor in China, for us here in Colorado…and He is also the One who shuts doors that cannot be kicked through with comparison, logic, reason…what do I mean by that?  All these excuses people give for not following Jesus…the one I’ve heard most this week…well why be Christian?  They’re just a bunch of hypocrites…that’s an excuse!!  We follow Jesus, we’re not Him!  “Well I just can’t accept this sentence, this verse in the Bible…”  Well, what about the other 31,101 verses!  They get tossed out with the bath water too!!!???  Excuses…
• And look if a man or a woman or a kid continually continually continually says “No” to the Lord…the treasury of God unlocked through Jesus…if anyone uses that treasury for selfish gain…saying “no” to Jesus, there will come a time when he or she of they will be unable to say, “Yes” at which point they’re locked in to his or her eternal decision.  Jesus is the door, Jesus has the key, He’s the way…He proved it when He rose from the dead…heart stopped…blood poured out…yet He stands…only One is able to do that!  One who is above this life!  He’s done all that He can do and the treasury of God is available to anyone who will simply come…

Chapter 3 Verse 8

• Notice three of the most wonderful commendations from the Lord.  You have a little strength!  That’s awesome!  I mean consider the source!  Infinite strength!  So Jesus isn’t saying here that Phili has little tiny triceps, no!  He’s saying YOU ARE MIGHTY man!  And I love to say, when people tell me how they’re just not gonna make it, the situation is too hard…I love to say, hey, you have a little strength!  How encouraging.  All is not lost…get up, you can make it…I see strength. 
• And then He says, “you have kept My word!”  Yes, I love this!  This church had turned not to the fashion fad of the day, not to political points, not to “best life now nonsense” but they had returned to the Word of God!  A desire for the Word, an emphasis of authority and centrality on the Word and even today when someone here or there or anywhere tells me they are looking for a church, I tell them, “find one that studies verse by verse together!”  So important.
• And finally Jesus says, “you have not denied My name!”  And what is His name?  Jesus!  Joshua in the Hebrew meaning Ja or God and Shua or salvation.  So literally “God IS salvation.”  You look to Me He says!  You’re in a bind, you turn to Me.  You need an answer, you turn to Me.  You have a decision to make, you turn to Me.  Folks come to you, you send them to Me!  Because you have not denied that I am.  You have not denied that salvation is by Me and none other!  Awesome. 
• Not practical counsel, no forbearance of sin, no opinion or human perspective…what does the Word say and send them to Jesus!  I love it!  That’s faithful!  Because people don’t always want that!  They want the 12 step plan, they want to be told its ok to live contrary to God’s word…why?  Because their conscience has already condemned them and they’re aching…make it better ya know.  Give me the Tylenol of tolerance.  Can’t do it…all out of drugs…let me tell you about Jesus, let me take you to Him, let me show you in the Word man…and Jesus says, “right on!”
• That’s disappearing today.  And the Bible said it would.  But this church, although only a little strength…its not gonna be the church in the paper, on the TV, featured on Larry King Live…but its gonna be the one turning people to eternal life and a real joyful freedom filled earthly life!  It will be turning people to worship God and not themselves…look at the next verse…

Chapter 3 Verse 9

• Check it, this church won’t be worshipped!  Jesus says they’ll worship before your feet, not that they themselves will be worshipped!  And man what a wonderful moment when someone takes worship off of self and off of sex and off of status and off of satan and just worships in spirit and in truth God on High!  That’s the promise given here by Jesus!  So awesome!
• This is the second time Jesus has mentioned the Synagogue of Satan and what’s meant by it is fakers.  Those that today worship in the temple of the adversary, the temple of sin…check it…with just a little strength, mixed with the Word, mixed with the name of Jesus…BOOM > fakers fixed!  I love it!  And now they worship God!