Introduction
The sixth message of Christ was addressed to the church in Philadelphia,
Philadelphia, known today as the modern city of Alasahir, lies in a valley at the foot of a mountainous plateau in west central Turkey. It’s 28 miles southeast of Sardis.
It was named after a king of Pergamum, Attalus Philadelphus, who built the city. In New Testament times, Philadelphia was part of the Roman province of Asia.
In A.D. 17, the town was devastated by an earthquake, and for a time people lived in fear of aftershocks. Philadelphia was rebuilt with help from the emperor Tiberius.
The land area around Philadelphia was rich in agricultural value. Grapes were one of the principal crops and, in keeping with this, Dionysus, who, in Greek mythology, was the god of wine, was one of the false gods that the pagans worshipped.
Through the centuries, a small Christian testimony continued in the city of Philadelphia and it prospered even under Turkish rule. But all the Christians left the city for Greece after World War 1.
The message to the church at Philadelphia has the unusual characteristic of being almost entirely a word of praise, similar to that received by the church at Smyrna.
So, with that brief introduction lets take a look at Revelation 3:7-13.
v.7, “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this”:
- Once again we see the Lord Jesus describing Himself as a reflection of His character.
- "He who is holy,” refers to God, who alone possesses absolute holiness:
o To say that God is holy is to say that He is completely separate from sin.
o Therefore, His character is absolutely unblemished and flawless.
o Jesus’ identification of Himself as “He who is holy” is a direct claim to Deity.
o The Lord Jesus possesses all of the holy and sinless attributes of God. He is the God-man! There is no one else, past, present or future, like Him!
- Not only is Jesus, the holy One, He also describes Himself as "He who is true”:
o He is absolute truth. There is no shadowy outline of truth and no blurred definitions.
o He is real, as opposed to unreal. He is genuine, as opposed to false. He is the real thing.
o He is trustworthy and reliable.
- Thirdly, Christ describes Himself as the one "who has the key of David":
o The word "key" in Scripture represents authority; whoever holds a key has control. The term "the key of David" also appears in Isaiah 22:22, where it refers to Eliakim, the steward or prime minister to Israel's king. Because of his office, Eliakim controlled access to the king.
o As the holder of "the key of David," Jesus alone has the sovereign authority to determine who enters David’s house, which ultimately refers to the Messianic Kingdom.
o Revelation 1:18 showed us that Jesus has the keys to death and hell. Here, He is described as having the keys to salvation and blessing.
o Jesus’ opponents, the Jews, could not accept that He had complete authority, nor His right to sit on David’s throne.
o They denied Jesus was the Messiah and claimed that they, the children of Abraham, had access to the kingdom of David.
o However, these words of description tell us that the opposite is true. Jesus is the one and only Messiah, and in the coming reign of glory, He has the power to open the door to His kingdom, and to close it.
- Finally, Jesus identifies Himself as “He who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens."
o That description stresses Christ’s omnipotence, what He does cannot be overturned by someone more powerful.
o The Lord declares in Isaiah 43:13, "I act, and who can reverse it?" No one can shut the doors to the kingdom, or to blessings, if Christ holds them open. And no one can force them open if He holds them shut. Jesus, alone, has the power to allow into, or exclude from, His kingdom.
- Jesus, the holy, true, sovereign, omnipotent Lord of His Church, found nothing to condemn in the Philadelphia church. What a great encouragement to them!
v.8, “I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door which no one can shut, because you have a little power, and have kept My word, and have not denied My name”:
- Christ’s intimate knowledge of the situation in Philadelphia adds omniscience to His holiness and truthfulness.
- The word translated as “deeds” in the Greek text means, works:
o Christ knew their works, yet He had no words of rebuke for these believers.
- The Lord then state's, "Behold, I have put before you an open door, which no one can shut":
o This open door is a sure entrance into the Messianic Kingdom promised to this church as a reward for their faithfulness.
o No one, not even those of the "synagogue of Satan," can shut them out.
o The Jewish opponents would seek to deny Gentiles entrance into the synagogue and Messianic Kingdom. But Jesus tells them that no one can shut the door He opens. This is a promise of deliverance from their Jewish adversaries that will come at Christ's second coming.
- And the reason that no one can shut the door is because they that “have a little power, have kept His word and not deny His name”:
o The words “little power” refers to the church’s limited influence because of its numerical smallness.
o It really couldn't mean limited spiritual life because of the commendation that Jesus gives them.
- Although they were small in number, its the obedience of this church that Christ commends them for:
o It's probable that the Jews had attempted to force them to disregard Christ's teachings and deny Him.
o But the people had survived the crisis without faltering, even though they were few in number.
v.9, “Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews, and are not, but lie—behold, I will make them to come and bow down at your feet, and to know that I have loved you”:
- Literally, the idea would be, "I am making (or I will make), some of the synagogue of Satan.”
- Who is “the synagogue of Satan?”
o It was composed of professing Jews, worshiping in the synagogue and claiming to be the true Israel, but they had rejected Christ their Messiah.
o Satan is named as the leader of this synagogue because they persecuted the believers.
o According to John, a true Jew is one who has been forgiven through recognizing Jesus as his/her Messiah.
o A false Jew is one who rejects not only Jesus, but also those who believe in Jesus.
o Jesus clearly points out that they are liars, just as Satan is “the father of lies.”
- Notice what Jesus will force these liars to do, "Behold, I will make them to come and bow down at your feet and to know that I have loved you":
o One day, the false Jews will be made to pay homage before the feet of those in the Philadelphian church.
o Christ will cause the false Jews to bow before the Gentile Christians, which is the exact opposite of what the Jews believed should happen.
o The Jews had rejected their Messiah and had forfeited their right to be called “Jews” in the truest sense of the word.
- The last part of the promise to these believers is that these false Jews will be brought to know of Christ’s love for this faithful group of Christians:
o Jesus, the true Messiah of Israel, has loved the ones persecuted by the false Jews.
o The false Jews scoffed at the claim of the Philadelphian Christians that they were objects of the true love of God. But that will change when Israel, as a nation, finally repents and believes in Christ as their Messiah.
v.10, “Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the earth”:
- Jesus continues with His commendation of, and promises to, the people of this church.
- Next, He speaks of their perseverance as grounds for a further promise of deliverance:
o And notice it's from the predicted future suffering on the earth.
- He says, “I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the earth”:
o In response to the church’s keeping of His standards, Christ promises to keep them from the hour of trial.
o "I will keep" in the Greek text can mean: I will preserve; I will carefully watch; I will protect.
o The promise to the church is some form of complete preservation and protection before and during the trial to come.
o After examining the Greek text and reading the various interpretations and commentators, the conclusion is that the saints at Philadelphia were encouraged to bear their present suffering, and continue their faithfulness and endurance, because of the promise of deliverance from the time of trouble that would overtake the entire world, and not overtake them.
o The words show it to be a promise of complete exemption from “the hour of trial.”
o In essence, the promise is, “I will protect you at a place away from the period of misery on earth.”
o The most natural understanding of the expression “kept from the hour” is not to be preserved through it, but to be kept safe in a place completely away from it.
o The Greek language shows that it is the “hour,” not the trial that is prominent in the statement.
o It’s complete exemption from the period of time that is promised in the future.
o Believers on earth will meet the Lord in the air and escape the “hour of trial” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18).
o This statement guarantees a protection away from the scene of the “hour of trial” while it’s in progress.
o This effect of placing the faithful in Philadelphia (and the faithful in all the churches), in a position of safety requires that they will have been removed to another location (heaven) just prior to the beginning of the trial.
- The “hour of trial” is not difficult to figure out:
o It is directed against “the whole inhabited world.” And it is designed to “test those who dwell upon the earth.”
o There’s no point in testing the Church because its been tested and passed, through their faith in Jesus as their Savior and Lord.
o This will be a time of distress in the world before the second coming of Christ. It’s described elsewhere in Scripture as the “Day of the Lord,” “the tribulation,” or “the Great Tribulation.”
o The trials of this period are designed to test the wicked, either to lead them to repentance and faith in Jesus, or to punish them for failing to repent.
o Because this period of tribulation will immediately precede the second coming of the Lord to the earth, and because the generation to whom John wrote these words has long since passed away, Philadelphia represents not just one of the other six churches in Asia, but also the Church throughout the present age.
o Remember, that the hour of trial was thought to be nearby in the early church. It was a period of time conceived of as about to happen at any moment. In their minds, it could happen at any moment, and it still can!!
v.11, “I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, in order that no one take your crown”:
- Christ promises to return to the earth soon.
- His near return leaves only one course of action open to the faithful, “hold fast to what you have”:
o This is sort of a motto for each of the churches.
o They were to hang on and resist those who are trying to take their reward away from them.
o The promise of being kept from “the hour of trial” in verse 10, carries with it the responsibility of continuing to “hold fast” and, in their minds, the motive for doing so comes from the short time remaining until Christ returns.
v.12, “He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore; and I will write upon 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 My new name.”
- Here’s the promise from the Lord: “I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God.”
- This is a figure of speech symbolizing that the Philadelphian Christians’ reward will be permanent, like a pillar in the temple, and they will stand when all the others have fallen:
o They are assured of continuance in God’s presence throughout all eternity.
- It’s interesting that we see Christ referring to the Father as “My God”:
o He uses this phrase four times in this verse in order to emphasize His relationship with the Father.
- The security of the “overcomer” is explained by the phrase “and he will not go out from it anymore”:
o The promise, here, indicates that the believer will have achieved oneness with God, making separation from Him impossible.
- Jesus then says, “I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of My God, the New Jerusalem, which descends from heaven from My God, and My new name”:
o The “name of My God” indicates a belonging to God. To have “the name of the city of My God” meant the right of citizenship in the New Jerusalem.
o This is “the New Jerusalem” that descends from God after the Great White Throne judgment and the creation of the new heavens and the new earth.
o This city is described as descending out of heaven “from My God.”
o This Jerusalem is the successor to the old Jerusalem with which John was familiar.
o Citizenship in this city is yet another mark of assurance for the overcomer.
- “. . . and My new name.” Because believers have been identified with Christ by faith, He will identify Himself with them:
o Currently, we are incapable of grasping the full significance of the Incarnation, but that will change.
o When He comes, the believers will not only appreciate fully who Christ is, but they will bear His new name with Him.
v.13, ‘He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
- What the Spirit, through Christ, has said to the church at Philadelphia is an invitation to anyone, in any of the churches to hear and heed.
- That goes for every church since the Book of Acts!
May the Lord bless you as you continue to grow in His grace and the knowledge of His Word.
By His Grace,
Gary T. Dromi, Ph.D., D.Min.
