(24)
By Abraham Eli
This study was first taught on November 3, 2019
Topic: The Assessment of the Churches (22): The Church in Philadelphia (An Open Door)
(use the audio to study)
Background
As we concluded the assessment of the church in Sardis last week, let us do a quick review of what we looked at. First we noted that this was a church with a reputation of being a living church, but in reality, it was a dead church—impervious to the Lord and His life. We, however, saw that in spite of the dead and the dying in the church, there were a few who were actually alive, thus giving us hope that in spite of how dead and decaying some churches are on the earth, there still a few that are living.
We looked at the need to not just be born again, but also to grow in faith and grace by doing good works. Thus, we noted that even though we did not deserve the salvation we got initially, it is our good works by faith that will eventually bring us to eternal salvation. For the few 'lively' brethren in Sardis, it was their undefiled garments that did it. The Lord thus challenged us all to ensure the same of our robes of righteousness given to all Christians at salvation, so that we can be deserving to walk with Him in white on the Last Day.
We saw how the Lord challenged the dying in the church in Sardis to repent or be doomed to eternal damnation. Noting that unless they repented, He would come to them as a thief in the night—that is, with stealth and suddenly when they least expect. But if they heed His call to repent, by overcoming the world and sin, through faith in the Lord, they also walk with Him in white and their names will not be blotted out from the Book of Life.
Therefore, we noted that having our names not just in the Book of Life, but also remain written in the Book is a pursuit that should matter to all and sundry, as those whose names are not found written therein or whose names have been blotted out shall end up in the Lake of Fire, which is the second death!
May the Lord help us—those of us in the church today—to heed the Lord's warning to the church in Sardis.
Scripture Text(s)
Revelation 3:7-13
We come to the assessment of the church in Philadelphia and note that overall, the assessment was a good report from the Lord—nothing lacking. These were a people with little strength (<strong>Proverbs 30:24-28; 6:6-11; Zechariah 4:10</strong>), they kept the word of God, and did not deny His name, therefore, the Lord told them that He had "<em>set before</em>" them, "<em>an open door</em>". It is matter of an open door that will form the basis of our discussions today. May the Holy Spirit teach us and enable us to appreciate open doors in our lives and ministry!
In our discussion today, we shall be looking at "An Open Door" from a general perspective, and in our next discussion, we shall look at the subject as in regards to the church in Philadelphia. We shall thus be looking at: who's opening the door?, what an open door denotes, why the Lord opens a door, and what this means for the church today.
John 10:1-5; Matthew 28:18; Revelation 3:7; John 8:31-36; Psalm 24:7-10; Isaiah 45:1-7; Matthew 16:19; Acts 2; 10; 12:6-11; 13:6-12; 14:27; 16:24-29; John 9:1-7ff; Colossians 4:3; 1 Timothy 6:17-19; Luke 12:15-21; Matthew 23:13; Ephesians 1:15-19; Proverbs 29:18; Colossians 4:3-4.
Conclusion
Indeed, the One opening the door is the Lord Jesus Himself; for He alone can open a door and it stays open. Any other person who opens a door will not be able to keep it open!
The Lord opens doors to give access to resources, access into the kingdom of God, for deliverance so as to give access to salvation, faith, and freedom, to give access to revelation, and enable people to see the Lord. Also, the Lord opens doors to give force to the word of God so that men and women can be brought into the kingdom.
But why does the Lord give access to men? It is, so that people can be released from captivity (as in Moses and Cyrus), as well as to provide a means of escape to one group while setting a trap for the destruction of the other (as in the Red Sea crossing). The Lord opens doors to create fear in the heart of the enemy (as in the crossing of the Jordan in the full view of the people of Jericho, and the destruction of Jericho in relation to the other nation states in the land). Also, the Lord opens doors in response to prayer (as in Peter's deliverance), as well as for the preaching of the gospel (Paul and Barnabas), to mention a few.
Thus, an open door is not an invitation to act irresponsibly or become covetous or forget the door Opener. Rather, doors are open by the Lord Jesus Christ, so that we, the church today, can engage and work with Him to accomplish His purpose of bringing men and women to the saving grace of eternal salvation; be it an open door for enlargement, escape, enlightenment, engagement in the word, etc.
Therefore, our prayers for open doors must not be for selfish purposes, or as a slogan or church program, but it must be for effectively reaching people with the gospel Christ. (<strong>James 4:1-4</strong>)
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