(26)
By Abraham Eli
This study was first taught on November 24, 2019
Topic: The Assessment of the Churches (24): The Church in Philadelphia (See I Have Set Before You an Open Door)
(use the audio to study)
Background
We concluded our discussion on "To Whom Shall the Lord Open a Door?" last week, and noted that in addition to the traits of humility and purity, loyalty and intimacy with the Lord are crucial. Also, we saw that God's integrity comes into play when He has made a promise to open a door to someone or to a person's ancestors. All these traits are essential for the Lord to open a door unto us.
We noted that loyalty is our unimpeachable commitment to the Lord which manifests in our not having any confidence in ourselves or the flesh, but in the Lord alone; being watchful and prayerful; not being ashamed nor afraid to be associated with the Lord, denying oneself of comfort and convenience so that we can stand with and for the Lord, and being ready and willing to suffer for the Lord (<strong>1 Peter 2:20-21</strong>).
We noted that our intimacy with the Lord is expressed as we grow from basics to maturity; from having to be told about the Lord to experiencing Him firsthand for ourselves; hearing about the Lord to being intimate with Him; from investigation/discovery to a fuller or full knowledge of the Lord. Indeed, we must progressively grow from a desire to know Christ, to a desire to know more of Christ, to a desire to know all of Christ!
As for integrity, that is God's faithfulness in fulfilling His promises to man, and we know that He always keeps His word, even when we are faithless. Be that as it may, if we are to be blessed by open doors, we must exhibit all the first four traits, otherwise, even if the Lord opened a door unto us because of His promise, we will soon lose that blessing and will be unprofited by it.
Hence, we cannot just rest on the fact that the Lord has promised to open a door unto us, and since He keeps His promises we just wait for Him to open the door unto us according to His promise. If we are not humble, obedient, loyal to, and intimate with, Him we shall not last long in the blessing of the open door. A classical example is Israel in the Promised Land, and how they went into exile because of their iniquity before the Lord!
Scripture Text(s)
Revelation 3:8
The Lord announced to the church in Philadelphia that He had set before them, an open door. This shall form our discussion in this study.
As we look at the Lord's statement to the church in Philadelphia, we shall see why the Lord had to announce it to them!
Deuteronomy 1:7-8; Joshua 6:1-2; 8:1; Genesis 13:10-13, 14-18; Psalm 23:5; 1 Corinthians 16:9; Proverbs 21:31; Joshua 1:1-5, 6-7, 8-9; Proverbs 3:5-6; Jeremiah 17:5-6; Hebrews 11:1; Romans 4:17; Psalm 33:9; Deuteronomy 1:20-36; Jeremiah 6:16.
Conclusion
The Lord had to announce to the church in Philadelphia that He had set before them an open door because:
1. Without the announcement, we wouldn't know that a door had been opened, since open doors don't usually appear open, and they are usually not marked 'OPEN'! The announcement is about us seeing things through God's lenses.
2. There are usually visible elements that will discourage the believer from proceeding any further. For instance, the Psalmist noted "<em>Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies</em>" and Paul spoke of a great and effectual door being opened unto him in Ephesus, but that there were many adversaries. What the Lord is saying to us is concentrate on entering through the door I have set before you and leave the enemy/adversary to Him.
3. It will require faith or spiritual courage to access the open door, particularly with the conditions of (1) and (2) above. We would need to trust God and listen for His instructions.
It is one thing to make the announcement; it is another thing to respond positively to the announcement. And although we are not told what the response of the church in Philadelphia was, we can learn from the refusal of Israel to enter the Promised Land when God first asked them to. Instead of simply going in as the Lord told them to, they were trying to make their own plans and they ended up rebelling when they saw the giants and people in the land upon investigation. It is, therefore, wise for us to just go in as the Lord has set an open door, and not try to work out our own approach, which will end up in a disaster as Israel's was in the wilderness—they ended up spending 40 years for an expected stay of only 2 years!
We should, therefore, pray for seeing eyes, hearing ears, and understanding hearts. We should also pray for spiritual courage, as well as ask the Lord in His mercy to end our wilderness wanderings today!
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