Traverse 13.
And to the angel of the assembly in Philadelphia write: These things saith He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that openeth and no man shall shut, and that shutteth and no man openeth:
I know thy works. Behold, I have set before thee an open door, which no man can shut, because thou hast a little power, and hast kept My word, and hast not denied My name.
Behold, I give of the synagogue of Satan, of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but lie; behold, I will cause that they shall come and worship before thy feet, and shall know that I have loved thee.
Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee out of the hour of trial, which is about to come upon the whole habitable world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
I come quickly. Hold fast that which thou hast, that no one take thy crown.
He that overcometh, him will I make a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out thence no more at all; and I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from My God, and Mine own new name.
He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the assemblies.
Dear Lord, as we gather here this morning, our hearts bow in worship. How we praise and thank Thee for what Thou hast done for us. Thou dost love us, and lovest us to the uttermost. We thank Thee for saving us. We thank Thee for continuing to work in our lives, to conform us to Thine own image.
Oh, dear Lord, how we praise and thank Thee for Thy purpose concerning Thine own. Thou wantest us to be like Thee. Thou wantest to fill us with Thine own self, that it may be all of Christ and none of ourselves.
Lord, as we fellowship together this morning, may Thy Holy Spirit illumine Thy Word, quicken our spirit, and bring us into the reality of Thy Word, that Thou mayest be glorified. We ask in Thy precious name. Amen.
Brothers and sisters, I think probably we are all familiar with this word. We know that towards the end of the first century, the apostle John was exiled to the island of Patmos. There, on the Lord’s Day, he saw a vision.
It was a vision of the seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands was One like the Son of Man. That Son of Man commanded John to write to the seven churches in Asia.
Now, of course, we know that at that time there were more than seven churches in Asia Minor, such as Hierapolis and Colossae. But the Spirit of God purposely chose these seven churches for a special reason.
I wonder whether any of you have ever read that book by Brother Watchman Nee called The Orthodox Church. He gave these messages way back in 1943, I think, during the winter, when he was in the wartime capital of China, Chungking. I was there when he gave these messages.
I think there were altogether eight evenings, eight nights. We gathered in a brother’s home. It was very small; it could only contain about forty people. We put forty backless stools in that room, and it was filled, because about a hundred were there.
So you can imagine: some were sitting on the stairways, and we put benches in the lane. People sat there. You know, at that time God’s people were scattered.
Some sisters lived on the other side of the river, on a hill. They had to start walking in the afternoon. They would walk down the hill, cross the river, and climb up to Chungking. If you have ever been in Chungking, you know it is almost all plateau.
After climbing up to Chungking, they had to walk across that city to the highest point. That was where we met. But people came night after night. There was such a hunger and thirst for the Lord.
Our dear brother gave a series of messages on the seven churches in Asia. They were called The Orthodox Church.
When you read of the seven churches in Asia in Revelation 2 and 3, you can look at them from different viewpoints.
First, you can look at them as the actual seven churches in Asia Minor at the end of the first century. That is to say, during the end of the first century, you can find the conditions of the churches represented by the seven churches in Asia.
Or you can look at the seven churches prophetically, because Revelation is a book of prophecy. When you look at it prophetically, you can see an outline of the church of God from the first century up to our time.
Third, you can even look at the seven churches spiritually. That is, you emphasize the spiritual condition of each church.
Now this morning, we would like to take one of these seven churches: the church in Philadelphia.
We know that, prophetically speaking, the seven churches of Asia represent the church of God from the first century up to the second coming of Christ.
If you read the last four, you will find something different. Why? Because when you read the first three, you can see one succeeding the other. But after you come to the fourth one, you find the words, “till I come.”
In Thyatira, you have the words, “till I come.” In Sardis, you have the coming of the Lord. In Philadelphia, “I come quickly.” So you can see that the last four churches in Asia represent the condition of the churches in general till the coming of the Lord.
Usually, when you interpret the seven churches prophetically, you say the church in Thyatira represents the Roman Church. Then the church in Sardis represents the Protestant Church. Then you find the church in Philadelphia, the church of brotherly love, and also Laodicea.
So, brothers and sisters, aside from the regular Roman Church and the regular Protestant Church, you will find there are two conditions among God’s people: either they are like Philadelphia, or they are like Laodicea. That is the reason why we like to emphasize the church in Philadelphia.
I believe, brothers and sisters, we all know the meaning of Philadelphia. It means brotherly love. This is a church that is known for its brotherly love.
So, brothers and sisters, I would like to ask a question. When we are meeting together, do we have brotherly love? Do we really love one another?
You remember, during our Lord’s Last Supper, in John 13, the Lord Jesus gave His disciples a new commandment. He said:
A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
So, brothers and sisters, the question is: are we really loving one another? Do we really have brotherly love as we gather together?
Some people say, “Yes, we do, because we try to love one another.” But, brothers and sisters, if we really know what brotherly love is, probably we will see differently.
Let us take the twelve disciples of our Lord Jesus as an example. Here you find twelve people. They left everything and followed the Lord. Was there brotherly love among these twelve people?
You know that they were always arguing among themselves. It seems as if, from the beginning to the very end, they were contending among themselves. Even at the Lord’s table, they were still quarrelling among themselves as to who was the greatest.
That seems to show they did not have much love for one another, because they all loved themselves too much.
Now look at Peter. He seems to represent the twelve because he was outspoken. How he professed his love towards the Lord, and even towards his brother.
You know, his brother was Andrew. Andrew was a very quiet person, but Peter was an outspoken person. Yet he came to the Lord and said, “My brother sins against me. How often shall I forgive him? Seven times?” He was very proud of what he did.
But, brothers and sisters, just think awhile. For an impulsive person and a very quiet person, whom do you think would be the one to offend the other? Most likely it was Peter who offended Andrew. But oftentimes he thought he was the one wronged by his brother, and he was great enough to forgive him seven times.
Now, for Peter, that was quite an accomplishment. So he came to the Lord, trying to get some praise, not knowing that the Lord said, “I do not tell you seven times; I tell you seventy times seven.” Now, if it is seventy times seven, you forget.
Brothers and sisters, oftentimes we feel that we love the Lord. We feel that we love our brothers and sisters. But the question is: is it real?
You know, Peter really loved the Lord. He said, “If the other disciples leave You, I will stick with You. I am willing to die with You.” But you remember how he denied the Lord three times.
One day, after the Lord was resurrected, in John 21, the Lord appeared to some of the disciples, and Peter was there. Our Lord Jesus asked him, “Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?”
You know, the word for love that the Lord used is agape, which is divine love, unconditional love. The Lord asked Peter, “Do you love Me? Do you really love Me unconditionally? Love Me as I love you?”
Peter, having learned a lesson, said, “Lord, You know I have phileo toward You.” That is to say, “I am friendly towards You. I do have a friendly tendency towards You.” He did not say that he loved the Lord as the Lord loved him.
Peter had learned this lesson. Then Peter became the one who really knew what brotherly love is. Why? Because in the Bible, he was the one who explained to us what brotherly love is.
Do you remember where it is? It is in 2 Peter. Will you please turn to 2 Peter 1?
Read from verse 5, 2 Peter 1:5:
Yea, and for this very cause adding on your part all diligence, in your faith supply virtue; and in your virtue knowledge;
And in your knowledge self-control; and in your self-control patience; and in your patience godliness;
And in your godliness brotherly kindness; and in your brotherly kindness love.
Here Peter is exhorting the believers to be diligent in seeking after the Lord. Not just because one is saved, as if that is the end, because being saved is only the beginning. He encourages the brothers and sisters to use all diligence.
In your faith, have also virtue. Brothers and sisters, here you find that we have faith. We have believed in the Lord Jesus. We have accepted Him as our Lord and Savior. But that is not enough; it is just the beginning.
He said, “In your faith have also virtue.” In other words, there must be conduct. There must be a corresponding lifestyle. You have faith; now you have to live out this faith in a practical, daily way, to show that you have virtue—that you really have His life in you.
Then, in virtue, knowledge. In other words, your knowledge does not come from your mind, from reading books, or from hearing messages. Your knowledge comes from your own life. It is in your life that you begin to know God. You begin to know what it is that God wants and what it is that God does not like.
And in knowledge, self-control; and in self-control, endurance. Because you have the knowledge from above, that gives you the power to endure. You can endure. And in endurance, godliness. In other words, now you begin to be like God. His life begins to be really lived out in you.
After this godliness comes brotherly love. So, dear brothers and sisters, brotherly love is not something that just happens. It is not because we are saved that, therefore, automatically there is brotherly love.
You can find that brotherly love is something that is gradually developed in our life. Christ begins to characterize our lives, and because of that, the Christ-life begins to express itself to the brothers and sisters. That is Philadelphia. That is brotherly love.
When I realized that, I felt it gave me a kind of impulse. This is something I want to seek. This is something that I would like to have.
You know, David wrote Psalm 133. He said:
Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brethren to dwell together in unity!
Because there you find the life. There you find the Holy Spirit. So, dear brothers and sisters, I believe when we are fellowshipping on the church in Philadelphia, even this word, Philadelphia, should give us an impulse to press on.
How we need to be diligent. How we need to allow the life of Christ to live and really be lived out in us. Out of it comes brotherly love, and of course, after brotherly love, His love.
This is what you find in the church in Philadelphia. Now, in every letter that our Lord Jesus wrote to the seven churches, He always revealed Himself to that church first.
Why is this? You know, in Revelation 1 there is a full description of our Lord Jesus as the great High Priest in heaven, ministering to the churches.
Our thinking is that our Lord Jesus today is the great High Priest in heaven. He is praying for us, interceding for us without ceasing. He is able to save us to the uttermost, and this is very true of every one of us.
But more than that, you find our Lord Jesus, as the great High Priest, is taking care of His own church on earth. His ministry is to His own church.
To every church, before He writes to the church, He first gives a revelation of Himself. Why is this so? Because our Lord Jesus is the fullness of God.
No one person can have Him all in all. Not only that, no local church can have Him all in all, because He is immense. He is the fullness of God. Who can contain His fullness?
It takes the whole church, His body, to be the fullness of Him who filleth all in all. Therefore, in every local assembly, you find there is something special of Him—not all of Him, but something special of Him.
There is a special revelation to that church. Whenever God gives a revelation, it becomes the testimony of that church. So the church in Philadelphia testifies of what Christ has revealed to them.
Here you find the Lord Jesus saying to them, “These things saith the Holy.” In other words, the first revelation given to the church in Philadelphia is that He is holy.
God is holy. I believe if you have read the Bible, you find it all through the Bible: God reveals Himself as the Holy One.
I think we all remember when Isaiah, after the death of King Uzziah, went to the temple. He had a vision of God upon the throne, and he heard the seraphim crying:
Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts:
The whole earth is full of His glory.
Hebrews 12 tells us that without holiness no one can see God, because God is holy. You find throughout the Bible, “I am holy; therefore ye shall be holy,” because without holiness you cannot see God.
Now, what does it mean to be holy? Holy simply means different, unique, altogether different. That is our God. He stands by Himself, separated from everything, and that is holiness.
He reveals Himself to us as the Holy One. He wants us to be separated—separated from sin, separated from the world, separated from the flesh, from ourselves—that we may be holy unto Him. That is who He is.
Then He said, “The True.” You remember in 2 Corinthians 1, whatever is the promise of God, it is yea and amen in Christ Jesus. In other words, He will perform everything He has promised.
Then He said that He has the key of David: “He who opens and no one shall shut, and shuts and no one shall open.”
What does He mean? We know David is king, so the key of David is none other than the key to the kingdom of the heavens. Our Lord has the key to the kingdom of heaven. When He opens it, no one can close it. If He closes, no one can open it.
Brothers and sisters, you find that these three things are special to the church in Philadelphia. These things constitute the testimony of Jesus in that church. The church is to testify that God is holy, God is true, and God has the kingdom open for us.
Now look at what our Lord Jesus has seen in that church. He said, “I know thy works.”
Brothers and sisters, we know that our Lord Jesus loves us so much. He knows us so well. There is nothing in your life, and nothing in the life of the church, that can be hidden from Him. He knows it all, and He said, “I know thy works.”
“Behold, I have set before thee an open door, which no one can shut.” Now, what is that open door? If you are thinking that He has the key of David, most likely this open door is the open door to the kingdom of the heavens. He has opened the door of the kingdom of heaven to that church, that they may enter into it.
No one can shut it. Why? “Because thou hast a little power.”
Brothers and sisters, today people are seeking power. Probably everywhere you go, you will find people talking about power. “We need power.” But what is power? Who has the power? Who is the real power?
People may consider themselves to have great power, but God said, “You have a little power.” Why is it so? Because the power we are seeking is not God’s power. It is our own power. It is the power of the world.
If you really come to know the power of God, so far as you are concerned, you feel that it is only a little power. But that power is pure.
You remember Zechariah 4:6:
Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of hosts.
In other words, it is not by your own might. It is not by your own power or your influence. It is by the Spirit of God. That power is real.
This church in Philadelphia did not have what the world would consider as power. But thank God, they had the power of the Holy Spirit. Little power, but that little power is real power.
Number two: “Thou hast kept My word.” What is our attitude towards the Word of God?
We are living in a time when people question the Word of God. But thank God, we believe that the Word of God is God-breathed. Every word of Scripture is breathed by God. It comes out of God.
We keep the Word of God whether that Word agrees with us or not, whether we can make use of that Word or not. Even if the Word should condemn us, should judge us, we bow to it.
This church in Philadelphia did not choose the Word of God. They bowed to all the Word of God. They did not try to interpret away the Word of God to suit themselves, but they were willing to bow before God’s Word.
Interpreting the Word of God, as 2 Timothy says, is rightly dividing it according to what it is. If it condemns us, bow before it and repent. If it justifies us, thank God for His mercy and grace.
Number three: “Thou hast not denied My name.” You remember our Lord Jesus in Matthew 18:20. He said:
For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them.
We often say this is the simplest definition of a church. Number one, “where”—that is locality. Number two, “two or three”—that is plurality. One person cannot become a church, because the church does not have just one member. The church is a body; it has many members. But the tiniest number is two or three.
Here you find the place, the two or three, and they meet together. The two or three are not scattered; the two or three are gathered together. When they gather together, for what purpose? Under what name? The Lord said, “Unto My name.”
They are not named after a famous preacher. They are not named after a certain system or a certain way. They are named after the name of Christ. In other words, they have not denied His name.
You know, among Christians today, when you meet another Christian, of course the first thing is to discover that he is a fellow Christian. Because of this, you find there is a bond between you and that fellow Christian.
But unfortunately, we find people are not satisfied with that. The second question is, “Which denomination do you belong to?” If, unfortunately, you belong to a different denomination, immediately a wall is erected—no fellowship.
But, brothers and sisters, if we meet together under the name of Christ, that is not a formality; that is a reality. Under His name simply means you put yourself under His authority.
You give up, as it were, your headship and allow Christ to be the Head of all. That is unto His name.
If you meet together without a special name and claim that you meet together under the name of Christ, is there a reality there? Are you trying to be the head of that gathering, or do you just give up yourself and put yourself under the headship of Christ?
Just as Colossians says, holding fast the Head, then all the body is united together, ministering one to another for the increase of Christ in love. So, brothers and sisters, there must be such a reality there.
It is not just going to a meeting. It requires us to really surrender our life to the Lord. If each one of us will surrender ourselves to the Lord and allow Him to be the Head of the church, then what do you find? He said, “I am in their midst.” You find the presence of the Lord.
Brothers and sisters, there is nothing more precious than the presence of the Lord. I often say, you can have everything. If you want the building, go ahead and get it. But if you have the presence of the Lord, that is something most precious.
Whenever God’s people gather together, dear brothers and sisters, we should sense the presence of the Lord. He is here. He is with us. Therefore, how we need to humble ourselves before Him and before one another.
There is something very special with the church in Philadelphia. Why? Because, as you read on, you find in Revelation 3:10: “Because thou hast kept the word of My patience.”
They not only kept the Word of God, but they kept the word of His patience.
You know, I often thank the Lord for His longsuffering. How He suffers long for us. I often feel that if I did not have His longsuffering, where would I be? How He is patient with me. How He continues to work in me and will not let me go. That is the patience of our Lord Jesus.
Our Lord was patient when people denied Him, when people crucified Him. How He patiently suffered all these things. Why? Because of His tremendous love for us.
These people had the word of His patience. Look at John. For the Word of God and for the testimony of Jesus, he was exiled in his old age to the island of Patmos. That is the word of His patience.
Are we patient with one another? Are we willing to suffer?
You know, I have friends who, because they suffered in the church, finally decided that they would not gather with anybody. They would just gather by themselves: “The Lord and I.” It sounds very spiritual, but it does not last long.
I have seen how, if people separate themselves from other believers and just say, “The Lord and I,” gradually the enemy begins to work in such a life. What a tragedy.
So the gathering of the saints is very important. Just as Hebrews says, “Do not forsake the gathering of the saints.”
Now, I do confess that if you gather with other people, with the saints, you will have lots of trouble. If you stay alone, you are the only one who troubles you. But if you are with brothers and sisters, even with the saintliest of brothers and sisters, you will have problems.
When you have these problems, what is your reaction? Withdraw, or continue? We need the patience of Christ. These people had the patience of Christ. So thank God for that. That is Philadelphia.
Now we know that to every church, the Lord is calling for overcomers. But to this church there is something special, because the caution our Lord gives is, “Hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown.”
In other words, even while they were on earth, they had already won the crown. But that does not mean that because they had won the crown, they might not lose it. There is still the possibility of losing that crown if you do not press on.
So the caution the Lord gives to the church in Philadelphia is not to lose the crown. Persevere to the very end.
If you notice in Revelation 3:10:
Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee out of the hour of trial, which is about to come upon the whole habitable world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.
Now, what is that? One day, that hour of trial will come upon this earth, upon the whole habitable world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. What does it refer to? I believe it refers to the great tribulation.
One day the great tribulation will come. Even the world is talking about it—the doomsday. They know that this world cannot go on forever. There will be a doomsday coming.
But, brothers and sisters, we know better. We know that it is true: one day there will be an hour of trial for the whole habitable world. No country is exempted. There is nowhere you can escape.
But the Lord promised the church in Philadelphia that when that hour should come, He said, “I will keep you out of the hour of trial”—not going through the hour of trial.
Some may go through the hour of trial, but here the Lord gives us a special promise. He said, “When that hour of trial should come, I have already taken you out.”
That is why we believe that even before the great tribulation, there will be some who will be raptured to heaven, to the throne.
Because if you read Revelation 12, you see that man-child. If the woman represents the church during the last stage, then the man-child represents the overcomers of the church. They are still living at the coming of the Lord.
During the first century, even those who loved the Lord were waiting for the coming of the Lord. Why? Because the Lord said, “I come quickly.”
That is the heart desire of our Lord. He said, “I come quickly. I want to return as soon as possible.” But why is it that we are now in the twenty-first century and He is not here yet? It is not because He does not want to come. It is because His wife is not ready.
We are not mature yet. He is waiting for us to mature, that He may come back and claim us as His bride.
But, brothers and sisters, how we fail. So the Lord, in His mercy, will raise up the overcomers to do the work of the whole church. He wants these overcomers who will respond to Him and follow Him.
The Lord said, “I will take you out of the hour of trial.” You know, the man-child in Revelation 12 was taken out of the hour of trial because, after he was raptured into the throne, then you find there was war in the air.
Because the headquarters of Satan is in the air around the earth. That is where he rules. Satan will be thrown upon this earth. The air will be clear for the Lord to come back from the throne to the air.
If Satan is thrown literally upon this earth, what will happen? The great tribulation.
But thank God, there will be people who are still living at the coming of the Lord and will be raptured alive. Brothers and sisters, this is how we are here—not waiting for death; we are here waiting to be raptured alive.
Only the grace of God can do that, and He has enough grace to do that for each and every one of us if we will obey.
That is the first reward to the overcomers. The second reward, of course, is the promise of the millennial kingdom.
It is surprising, as you read the promise that the Lord will give to him who overcomes in the church in Philadelphia, that He goes even beyond the millennium into eternity. Why? He mentions the New Jerusalem.
The New Jerusalem will descend after the millennium. So here is a promise not only for the thousand years of reigning with Christ, but in eternity with Christ.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is the reward you find given to the church in Philadelphia. It is our sincere prayer that, by the grace of God, we may be that church.
But remember, if we think we are there, probably we are the church in Laodicea. So may the Lord have mercy upon us. How we need to humble ourselves always before the Lord. Thank God, His grace is sufficient for us.
Dear Lord, how we praise and thank Thee that, through Thy Word, Thou hast given us blessed hope. How we look forward to Thy return.
But, Lord, we pray that by Thy grace, we may follow Thee in such a way that Thou wilt take us to Thyself. As Thy Word says, one is taken.
Oh, Lord, we give ourselves again to Thee. Lord, take us, if it please Thee. We ask in Thy precious name.