"God's in Charge; I'm Not." Proverbs, Practical Kingdom Living #2 Sunday, September, 21, 2014

- One of my all time favorite stories is The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe from the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis.

- At one point in the story the girls, Susan and Lucy, are getting ready to meet the lion, Aslan, who is the Christ figure of the story.

- The girls are talking with Mr. and Mrs. Beaver who have been helping them and getting them ready for this meeting.

- Let's hear at a soundbite from the story when the children learn that Aslan is a lion.

- "Ooh," said Susan, "I thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion."

- "That you will, dearie," said Mrs. Beaver. "And make no mistake, it isn't anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they're either braver than most or else just silly."

- "Then isn't he safe?" said Lucy.

- "Safe?" said Mr. Beaver. "Don't you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? Of course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."

- Lewis had amazing insight into the character of God. Is God safe? No, but God is good, which is why he has given the book of Proverbs to us.

- God wants his children to know the right way to live, the safe way to live, and it is not safe for us to ignore God's instructions about wisdom.

- The fear of the Lord, Proverbs tells us plainly, is the beginning of wisdom.

- Proverbs 1: 7 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction."

- Proverbs 9: 10 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight."

- Understanding that God is not safe, having a healthy respect for him, is the basis for getting wisdom because it moves us to listen to him and do what he says.

- Since God's in charge and I'm not, I'll live by his wisdom rather than mine.

- The Scriptures that we're about to look at show us that Proverbs are not just smart directions for worldly success, but are based on a commitment to trust and obey God, which is a large part of what following Jesus is about, trusting and obeying God.

- We are going to look at a number of Proverbs that will show us three main ideas that point to our take-home truth for today.

- First, God is God and I'm not, so I'll fear him.

- Second, God is God and I'm not, so I'll trust him.

- Third, God is God and I'm not, so I'll follow his purposes.

- As we begin, let's refresh in our memory the four interpretive keys we need for unlocking our understanding of Proverbs.

- 1) Proverbs are basic guidelines rather than guarantees;

- 2) Proverbs aren't designed to be exactly literal;

- 3) Proverbs need to be interpreted again for today's society;

- 4) Proverbs depend on imagery to be memorable.

- Let's get started.                             

- First, God is God and I'm not, so I'll fear him.

- Let's examine some Proverbs which support the idea that since God is God and I'm not I need to fear him.

- Proverbs 10:27, "The fear of the Lord prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be short."

- This proverb gives us a basic guideline that when we fear the Lord we will live longer than if we are wicked.

- We may not be guaranteed a long life if we fear God, however, often because of God's judgment or the consequences of sin wicked or foolish people are more likely to have short-lived lives.

- Proverbs 14:2, "Whoever walks in uprightness fears the Lord, but he who is devious in his ways despises him."

- This proverb reminds me of the old adage: if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it's a duck.

- What's on the inside will show through on the outside.

- When a person acts honestly, decently, and respectably, then it shows a heart which fears God.

- However, a person who acts deviously, deceitfully and dishonestly, shows a heart which thinks so little of God that he or she is free to rebel against him.

- Proverbs 28:14, "Blessed is the one who fears the Lord always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity."

- The path to true success is through a life lived continually in the fear of the Lord, always fearing the Lord.

- This proverb also reveals that the opposite of a healthy fear of God is a hardened heart.

- Everywhere throughout the Bible when we read about the hardened heart it means a lack of faith and a disobedient, rebellious spirit and also refers to the stubborn, shameless, blocked state of the human heart.

- It is clear that it's better to fear God than to have a hardened heart.

- God is God and I'm not, so I'll fear him

- Since God's in charge and I'm not, I'll live by his wisdom rather than mine.

- That brings us to our second point...

- Second, God is God and I'm not, so I'll trust him.

- We begin our second point with Proverbs 3:5-8, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones."

- Those who trust God, the proverb tells us, are to trust God with all your heart, all our feelings, all our thoughts, all our wants and desires need to be aimed at trusting God.

- Proverbs is talking about a trust that is total and complete, perfect.

- When we rely on God completely, we will not rely on our personal sense of what's right and wrong, but on how God defines right and wrong, learning to know him in every part of our lives.

- When we are able to turn over every nook and cranny of our lives to God in full trust following his wisdom, he will clear the problems from our paths or those obstacles will not trip us up because our focus is on God, the One bigger than life's problems.

- These verses also tell us, be not wise in your own eyes, which reveals that we can't be both humble and arrogant at the same time.

- Someone who fears God won't have a swelled head and will also steer clear of evil.

- Because their lives are centered on obeying God, the wise are more likely to enjoy good health than are the foolish or wicked who often behave recklessly and show their lack of self-control through self-indulgence.

- Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25 are exactly the same likely because Solomon is stressing their importance, "There is a way that seems right to a man, but it's end is the way to death."

- This proverb pictures a person standing on a path that seems to be safe to travel along, a path that from our limited human vision appears to be morally acceptable, but without wisdom we cannot see from the very beginning that it's a path that ends in death.

- If we want to follow the way that is right and not the way that seems right, then we need to follow God's way rather than whatever way seems right to us because God's way leads to eternal life, while our way leads to death.

- Proverbs 16:20, "Whoever gives thought to the word will discover good, and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord."

- When we really trust God, then we will pay attention to what he says and be blessed as a result.

- A person who truly trusts God thinks about the instructions that God gives.

- God is God and I'm not, so I'll trust him.

- Since God's in charge and I'm not, I'll live by his wisdom rather than mine.

- Now we come to our final point.

- Third, God is God and I'm not, so I'll follow his purposes.

- Proverbs 15:3 says, "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good."

- God sees and knows all things, which is what theologians call omniscience.

- The fact that God knows all things should be a comfort to us because he knows our needs, but it should also strike fear into our hearts because he also knows our every sin, even our secret sins.

- Proverbs19:21, "Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."

- We are always constantly making our own plans, but God's purposes decide the outcome of our plans. His plans come out on top because he is God and he knows what's best no matter what our plans are.

- Proverbs 27:1, "Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring."

- It is foolish and arrogant to boast about the future because only God knows the future.

- The wise look forward to whatever God's will may be.

- God is God and I'm not, so I'll follow his purposes.

- Since God's in charge and I'm not, I'll live by his wisdom rather than mine.

- God isn't a dictator. He only asks us to do what's best for us and others, and not do what's bad for us and others.

- The Lord is not a 'my way or the highway' kind of God.

- His commands always come from his great love for us.

- We must learn to do things God's way because he knows what's best.

- Several years ago the story was published about a woman, called Garbage Mary, who was picked up by patrol officers in a shopping mall in Delray Beach, Florida.

- "She appeared to be just another [abandoned] woman whose mind had faded. Neighbors told of her scrounging around through garbage cans for food, which she hoarded in her car and her two room apartment. There were mounds of stinking stuff packed in the refrigerator, the stove, the sink, the cabinets, the bathtub. Other than the kitchen, there were no chairs to sit on because stuff was piled up on everything else.

- "Police finally identified her as the daughter of a well-to-do lawyer and bank director from Illinois who had died several years earlier. In addition to the garbage, police found Mobil Oil stock worth more than $400,000; documents indicating ownership of oil fields in Kansas; stock from such firms as US Steel, Uniroyal, and Squibb; as well as passbooks for eight large bank accounts."

- Garbage Mary was a millionaire who lived like a penniless pauper.

- Often, we are just like Garbage Mary. But it is so much easier and better to go to God's word for counsel and wisdom and to feed our souls, than to scrounge in the trash for stinking stuff to feed our souls.

- It is better to fear him, trust him, and follow his purposes.

- We live in a media driven culture. It's also an information rich culture.

- Until about 1900 knowledge doubled every century.

- After World War II knowledge doubled every 25 years.

- With the advent of the Internet, the pace began to accelerate and knowledge for the last decade has been doubling every 13 months, and it's only getting faster.

- With so much knowledge out there available to us at our fingertips you would think that we would be wiser, but we aren't.

- The main reason why we aren't is because we aren't spending time in God's Word.

- We are more likely to read books, watch TV, or read articles on the Internet than we are to read the Bible.

- Even much of the so-called Christian media that's available to us is not really all that Christian, but we can only know that if we are investing time studying God's Word.

- In order to become wise, we have to stop living like Garbage Mary, scrounging in the trash for stinking stuff to feed our souls, and instead turn to the wealth of wisdom available in God's Word and feast on it.

- Since God's in charge and I'm not, I'll live by his wisdom rather than mine.

Proverbs, Practical Kingdom Living #1: "Wisdom's Call" Proverbs 8:1-36 Sunday, September 14, 2014.

- Since we are going to be spending Autumn in Proverbs exploring practical kingdom living, It's helpful for us to know that much of Solomon's wisdom he recorded is addressed to his son, & this son was a young man of marriageable age.

- This thought is especially helpful for us as we come to chapter 8 and similar passages.

- Also, Solomon makes wisdom a wonderful woman who was more desirable than anyone or anything his youthful son might pursue.

- Before we dive into today's message, I want to share with us four important interpretive keys that will help us to unlock how to understand Proverbs .

- #1. Proverbs are general truth statements rather than promises.

- They are not promises from God, but basic guidelines on living successfully and uprightly before God.

- E.g. Proverbs 22:6, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."

- This Proverbs should not be understood as a promise from God, but as a general truth that affirms that parents who live out an authentic faith before Almighty God are more likely to have children who grow up to have an authentic faith. So it's not a guarantee.

- Many parents have mistakenly taken this proverb as a promise of God and have been broken-hearted when their child/children grew up to abandon Christianity.

- Proverbs 22:6 is not a blanket promise but a general truth.

- Proverbs are generally true, they're not promises.

- #2. Proverbs are not designed to be literally accurate.

- Why shouldn't we take Proverbs literally? Because they tend to use figurative language, such as metaphor, simile, analogy, and imagery.

- E.g. Proverbs 6: 27-29, "Can a man carry fire next to his chest and his clothes not be burned? Or can one walk on hot coals and his feet not be scorched? So is he who goes in to his neighbor's wife; none who touches her will go unpunished."

- It is clear from this proverb that sexual contact is meant not a simple touch.

- Proverbs are not designed to be taken literally.

- #3. Proverbs need to be culturally reinterpreted for today.

- What do we mean by that? It simply means that some proverbs cannot be understood unless we understand the culturally outdated thing they're talking about.

- E.g. Proverbs 22:11, "He who loves purity of heart and whose speech is gracious will have the king as his friend."

- The overwhelming majority of us will never have the opportunity to be friends with an earthly king.

- However, all of us can gain the friendship of leaders around us when our hearts are pure and when we speak graciously.

- Proverbs need to be culturally reinterpreted for today.

- #4. Proverbs depend on imagery to be memorable.

- Often, Proverbs are designed to create a mental picture that helps the memory hang on to their truth.

- E.g. Proverbs 20:26 emphasizes that a wise leader won't look the other way after seeing evil, but deal with it.

- "A wise king winnows the wicked and drives the wheel over them."

- This proverb creates a memorable mental image which reminds leaders to get rid of evil.

- We need to hang on to these four keys for understanding Proverbs in order to unlock their message.

1. Proverbs are general truth statements rather than promises.

2. Proverbs are not designed to be literally accurate.

3. Proverbs need to be culturally reinterpreted for today.

4. Proverbs depend on imagery to be memorable.

- I'd like to share a story with you:

- "On August 11, 1978, the Double Eagle 2, a large helium balloon, set out to cross the Atlantic Ocean from Maine to France.

- "As the crew approached the European continent six days later, they were losing altitude, [either] they had to lose weight or crash into the ocean.

- One of them wrote, 'We have been expending ballast (weight) wisely, but as we neared land, not cheaply…over went such gear as tape recorders, radios, film magazines, sleeping beds, lawn chairs, most of our water, food, and the cooler it was in.'

- "They made their destination and enjoyed the feeling of satisfaction, plus the recognition of the world, and the financial rewards that went with it" (Anders, Proverbs, 71).

- Like the Double Eagle 2, if there are things in our lives keeping us from being fully committed to following Christ we need to throw them overboard and it might not be cheap.

- However, it's better for us to lose the things that weigh us down than it is to crash into a sea of disappointment.

- When I commit to getting wisdom, I commit to getting life.

- As we look at Proverbs 8, in verses 1 to 3, wisdom sets herself at the busiest part of the city, the gate, where all roads meet and where all traders and travelers enter, loudly she invites the crowds to learn from her.

- What is her message? Anyone who desires wisdom should come to her. (vv. 4-5)

- She calls upon two special groups for their attention: i) to the simple, who, because of their inexperience, are naïve and gullible, she instructs prudence; & ii) to the foolish, who choose their own way rather than God's, she offers to teach sense or understanding.

- Through Solomon, God is instructing his children that wisdom is available to those who need it most.

- How can one gain the benefit of wisdom? By listening; according to verse six she commands her hearers to listen (v. 6).

- Why should we listen to her? She has a noble message. She only instructs what is right.

- According to verse 7, she is only interested in teaching or speaking truth.

- Verse eight tells the reader that what she says is consistently righteous because she never speaks a twisted or crooked word. (v.8) How can we know?

- According to verse nine, anyone with a bit of knowledge and understanding knows what she says is true and right, straight as an arrow.

- Not only does wisdom command her hearers to listen, verse 10 reveals that she commands her listeners to choose; choose wisdom over wealth (v. 11).

- Solomon pointed out to his son that wisdom is better than wealth, "all that you may desire cannot compare with her."

- When I commit to getting wisdom, I commit to getting life.

- We should also listen to her because she is intimately connected to high standards of moral ethics as verse 12 reveals: prudence, knowledge, and discretion.

- Prudence in Proverbs always means good sense.

- Knowledge refers to the knowledge of the truth.

- Discretion means careful conduct that comes from a clear cranium, the opposite of recklessness.

- But wisdom is also more; the fear of God is at her core.

- While knowledge can give one a swelled head, wisdom hates pride and arrogance according to verse 13.

- Wisdom continues to present her case in verses 14 to 16 (read).

- Need direction? She has counsel and insight.

- Facing challenges? She has strength.

- Want to be a good leader? She is indispensable.

- But, listen to verse 17 (read). While she's available to all only those who love her and seek her find her.

- What are wisdom's benefits? Let's listen to verses 18 to 21.

- It is interesting that wisdom says, "choose me over wealth," yet wealth appears to be a bi-product of wisdom.

- It is generally true that wisdom generates wealth, but also far more than money, wisdom produces righteousness and justice, spiritual prosperity.

- A word to the wise, Proverbs does not guarantee financial wealth to the wise.

- Why is it crucial to seek wisdom? Let's hear from verses 22 to 31.

- God is the source of wisdom, she belongs to him.

- God gave her a prominent position.

- God gave birth to her before creating anything else.

- God used her when he created the world.

- She is the personification of God's own craftsmanship, joy, and delight in his creation.

- It is crucial to seek wisdom because wisdom belongs to God and the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

- What is the way to a blessed life? Let's read verses 32 to 36.

- The way to a blessed life is to listen to wisdom.

- There are only two pathways, the way to life and the way to death.

- When I commit to getting wisdom, I commit to getting life.

- "John Audubon, well-known naturalist and artist, considered no personal sacrifice too great to learn about birds and to record that information for [future generations].

- "He would go into the swamps night after night to record observations about nighthawks.

- "One summer Audubon repeatedly visited the bayous near New Orleans to observe a shy water bird.

- "He would stand neck deep in the stagnant waters, scarcely breathing, while poisonous water moccasins swam past his face.

- "It was a great hardship, but he reported with enthusiasm that the pictures of the birds that he was able to paint as a result made it all worthwhile" (Anders, Proverbs, 75).

- If John Audubon could be so disciplined for an earthly goal, how much more should the Christian be willing to sacrifice to follow Christ?

- Wisdom calls the Christian to a life that may not be easy.

- The committed Christian may have to give up many things we desire or that make life easier.

- Many of the things we have to do will be hard, physically, spiritually, emotionally, but…

- When I commit to getting wisdom, I commit to getting life.

"Laodicea: The Indifferent Church" Revelation 3:14-22 Sunday, September 7, 2014

- It is good to be content, isn't it. It's good to be satisfied with life, to have everything you need & want & be pleased with all of it without wanting more, without needing more.

- It is good to work hard & kick back at the end of the day, the weekend, on vacation, or when you retire & say, "There! Look at that work. Now I can relax for a while."

- It feels good to be pleased, satisfied, & content with life.

- But did you know you can be too content?

- To be contented means to not desire anything more.

- In his letter to the church of Philippi, the apostle Paul wrote about the kind of contentment that the Christian ought to have, which doesn't come from how little or how much food or material wealth we have, rather it comes by doing everything through the strength of Christ. (Philippians 4:12-13)

- You see, being content & pleased with life can lead into a place of self-satisfied indifference, rather than serving in Christ's strength.

- If being content means not desiring anything more, then self-satisfied contentment doesn't consider the state of anyone else's life nor has the desire to do anything about it.

- The overly content person doesn't act to meet the needs of others.

- That was the trouble with the church of Laodicea; they were so content with their wealth & accomplishments as a church that they became indifferent to the needs around them.

- Laodicea was content with the status quo in their congregation.

- They were half-hearted Christians; their contented outlook made them complacent.

- Their self-satisfied complacency led them to be unconcerned & disinterested in God's mission to share the good news about Jesus Christ.

- Emil Brunner wrote that, "The church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning."

- Laodicea was a church which stopped being the church.

- They stopped being on mission with God to reach the lost, lonely, hurting, & broken people of their world with the love & message of Jesus Christ.

- But… When we let Jesus in, really let him in, it's impossible to be indifferent!

- 64 km southeast of Philadelphia, we find a cluster of three cities: Hierapolis, Colossae, & Laodicea, which was the southernmost city of the seven churches Christ addressed.

- Also the wealthiest of the seven cities, Laodicea had enough money to rebuild without Rome's help following the quake of 17^(AD).

- The city built up its wealth from its profitable trade in coveted black wool & healing eye salve.

- Unfortunately, Laodicea had a poor water supply. Hot spring mineral water traveled into the city from Hierapolis via a 10 km aqueduct, however, when the water reached the city it was lukewarm & tasted terrible.

- Little is known of the Laodicean church, yet we know Paul the apostle wrote them a letter at the same time he wrote to Colossae & from our passage today we see that Laodicea received no words of praise from Christ, only the second city to do so alongside Sardis.

- John Stott wrote that, "None of the seven letters is more appropriate to the church…of the 21st century than this," citing the lukewarm, surface level, flabby religion that is so common today.

- What was Christ's main concern for the church of Laodicea?

- Christ was concerned about the church of Laodicea's self-sufficiency which made their faith lukewarm, indifferent toward the souls and needs of others and complacent in their service for Christ.

- In verse 14 we see in Christ's description of himself that he immediately begins to address their problem.

- "And to the angel of the church of Laodicea write: the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation."

- In this verse, Christ contrasted himself with the state of the church of Laodicea. He was faithful & true, the Amen, a binding word in the world, while they tried to substitute earthly wealth & power in place of being faithful & true.

- However, wealth & power cannot replace Christ's authority; he is the beginning, the ruler of God's creation.

- What is the problem with the church of Laodicea as Christ sees it?

- First, versus 15-16: "I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth."

- Here Christ compared the Laodicean church to their water supply which was lukewarm.

- As mentioned earlier, Hierapolis was famous for its hot mineral water springs, & the aqueduct brought this water & by the time it got to Laodicea not only was the water lukewarm it tasted horrible because of the minerals.

- Christ wished the church to be either icy cold or boiling hot; by Christ's thinking we should either boil or freeze than leave a bad taste in his mouth.

- It is better to be refreshingly cold or therapeutically hot than to have a lukewarm, stagnant faith.

- Such religion gives the Lord Jesus the urge to vomit.

- Second, verse 17: "For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked."

- The congregation at Laodicea sat in their padded pews, content with their numbers, their building, their salvation, their worship, etc., while the city around them was going to hell.

- Because of their complacent indifference, they felt they didn't need anything.

- They were spiritually safe; they didn't need to grow.

- But what they didn't understand was that with their attitude the way it was, they already had 1 foot in the grave as a church.

- Christ wanted them to wake up to their true spiritual condition.

- They were wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, & naked.

- The city surrounding the church was proud of their wealth & pride is contagious. It leads to complacency & indifference.

- If the city could rebuild without the help of Imperial Rome, then the church could be successful without commitment to Jesus Christ & dependence on his grace & power.

- Their pride caused them to shut out the Lord Jesus.

- A. W. Tozer wrote that, "Contentment with earthly goods is the mark of a saint; contentment with our spiritual state is a mark of inward blindness" (Tozer in Swindoll, Tardy Oxcart, 114).

- Complacency & indifference have consequences, but… When we let Jesus in, really let him in, it's impossible to be indifferent!

- What was Christ's prescription for the church of Laodicea?

- Verse 18: "I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself and the shame of your nakedness may not be seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, so that you may see."

- Christ counseled the church of Laodicea to buy three things from him: gold refined by fire, white garments to cover the shame of their nakedness, & salve to restore their sight.

- The Laodicean church had fool's gold in their eternal account; they needed to replace it by investing in the kingdom of heaven.

- The city was famous for its textile industry in exporting coveted black wool, but Christ told the church to buy white garments from him.

- Only the goodness & purity which comes from a relationship with Jesus Christ can cover over our sin & our shame.

- Also the city was famous for its healing eye salve, but the Lord Jesus told the church to buy the salve for their eyes from him, so their spiritual eyesight would be restored.

- To have the kind of spiritual vision the church needs to depend on the vision of Christ.

- These three things cost but the only cost is our self-satisfaction & pride.

- True wealth is found in right relationship with God in Jesus Christ, nowhere else.

- True satisfaction is found in serving him, nowhere else.

- The Lord Jesus gave the church of Laodicea a second chance.

- Verse 19: "Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent."

- That second chance could be found in taking the opportunity to repent. The Lord only rebukes & disciplines those he loves.

- Such knowledge should lead every church & every believer to repent of our disobedient attitudes & habits, especially those which cause us to be complacent & indifferent.

- Laodicea was poor, blind & naked, but Christ has pure gold, healing eye salve, & white garments which would only cost their selfish pride.

- They only had to put an end to their complacent indifference by becoming sincere, zealous & repenting of their former ways.

- Just like them, we must abandon our own complacency & indifference & commit to following & obeying Christ & his ways.

- As we realize our need for Christ in every part of our lives, we become effective servants of God.

- "If you love me, you will keep my commandments," the Lord Jesus said (John 14:15).

- When we let Jesus in, really let him in, it's impossible to be indifferent!

- The Lord Jesus gave John's readers a picture of what that restored relationship with him looks like.

- Verse 20: "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me."

- This verse is often used for evangelistic purposes, but we need to remember that this verse is an invitation from Christ to his church & each individual believer.

- The picture can be taken either negatively or positively.

- Christ visualizes himself standing outside the door of our lives rather than as inside with us.

- We can become so busy enjoying our labors & our satisfaction with the fruit of our labors that we leave him outside in the cold.

- We can be so busy with our own contentment, self-satisfaction & pride that we exclude Christ from our table.

- But Christ is knocking, gently knocking on the door.

- He knocks because he knows we need him.

- He knocks because he loves us.

- He knocks because he wants us to have another chance.

- He knocks because he knows the best thing we can do is open up the door & let him in.

- & here's what opening the door to the knocking of the Lord Jesus will do…

- Verse 21: "The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne."

- The Lord Jesus will share his throne with those who conquer their pride, self-satisfied complacency & indifference.

- He promises to share his kingly authority with every believer.

- What that will look like or how it will take shape, we cannot know.

- But when we open the door to Christ, he will open the door to his Father's kingdom to us.

- When we let Jesus in, really let him in, it's impossible to be indifferent!

- Every believer is left with the choice: either to be halfhearted & complacent with their faith; or to be wholeheartedly committed to faith in Jesus Christ.

- Wholehearted commitment gains the privilege of fellowship with him on earth & ruling with him in heaven.

- When we let Jesus in, really let him in, it's impossible to be indifferent!

"Philadelphia: Strength for the Weak, an Open-Door." Sunday, August 31, 2014. Revelation 3:7-13

- Our natural human tendency is to look at the church through the lenses of this world.

- We assume too often that only a church which is clearly in possession of power & strength will be useful for Christ's kingdom, but that is neither what we read here nor what the rest of Scripture testifies.

- Man looks on outward appearances, but the Lord looks on the heart.

- God promised to make Abraham a great nation yet only one son was born to Sarah by him, Isaac, & Abraham did not live to see the next generation.

- Before he became king, as a youth, David had slain lions & bears knowing that his power came from God & with that knowledge & trust, David faced & slew Goliath of Gath.

- In his second letter to the church of Corinth, the apostle Paul wrote how God gave him a thorn in his flesh to keep him from getting a swelled head.

- Three times he asked the Lord to remove it, but God said, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9).

- What the Lord Jesus said to Paul seems to be what he was saying to Philadelphia, the church of little power or strength.

- What was Philadelphia like?

- Philadelphia was located on the fertile plain of Lydia about 40km south of Sardis.

- Historically, it was known as "the city of earthquakes."

- Many left there for safer places to live & the earthquake of A.D. 17 which "devastated Sardis almost completely demolished Philadelphia."

- About the time of John's Revelation visions of Christ, the city was rebuilt through subsidies ordered by Domitian Caesar.

- Agriculture was very important, being on a fertile plain.

- Because grapes were grown, the winemaking industry was especially important & Dionysus, god of wine, was favored in the city.

- Unlike the church of Sardis to whom Christ had nothing good to say, the Lord Jesus had only words of encouragement for the seemingly small & insignificant church of Philadelphia.

- What was Christ's main concern for the church of Philadelphia, the church of little strength or power?

- Christ wanted them to know and depend on him as their strength: to open the door no one can shut; to cause their opposition to bow down and acknowledge Christ's love of the church; to protect them from the coming time of great trial; to hold fast to their faith; and to bring those who conquer to their eternal home.

- Let's break down this answer one phrase at a time.

- 1) Christ wanted them to know and depend on him as their strength:

-Verse 7, "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'the words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.'"

- The Lord Jesus used the title the holy one of himself, a title God used of himself in the Old Testament.

- He also addressed himself to them as the true one, meaning one in whom there is no evil or falsehood, perfect in every way.

- The key of David represents Christ's authority & power.

- No one may enter unless he opens & no one can enter when he has closed.

- He is the key to entrance into the eternal kingdom of God.

- Those that depend on Christ as their strength depend on him because he is holy & true & because he has all power & authority.

- Christ is dependable because of his character & because of his authority; we would have no reason to trust him otherwise.

- 2) To open a door no one can close;

- Verse 8, "I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name."

- The Philadelphian church may have been small & had a small impact, but they were faithful.

- Christ opened a door for them which represented at least three things:

- One, the door of salvation which was the door of opportunity for everyone in Philadelphia through the witness of the church;

- Two, the door of service, upon entering the door of salvation faithful Christians seek out others & meet them where they are, loving them into the kingdom;

- Three, the door for effective work, many hungry souls filled the world of the first century because the old superstitions were being abandoned the gospel needed to be shared clearly.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.

- 3) To make their opposition bow down and acknowledge Christ's love of the church;

- Verse 9, "Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie – behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet and they will learn that I have loved you."

- Philadelphia faced fanatical Jewish opposition.

- The source of any opposition to the spread of the gospel is Satan, no matter who it is.

- In the face of violent or aggressive opposition, we often think it best to not stir the pot but be silent.

- Christ, however, was & is of another mind when it comes to opposition to the gospel.

- Christ has opened the door no one can shut.

- Christ himself will take opposers captive & make them recognize that the church is the new, true Israel of God whom he loves.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.

- 4) To protect them from the coming time of great trial;

- Verse 10, "Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth."

- This was a promise to Philadelphia that the Lord Jesus would protect them in the midst of trial, not that he would remove them from what was to come.

- Persecution was coming; a great storm was gathering & preparing to rain down on them.

- Should the church be like a turtle, hiding in its shell?

- No, if they kept his word, he would keep them, carrying them through any suffering.

- The open door is for those who keep Christ's word & stand for his name, obeying Christ & sharing Christ with others.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.

- 5) To hold fast to their faith;

- Verse 11, "I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown."

- For Philadelphia, Christ's return was no threat of judgment, but an encouraging promise of his return to receive them into glory which he would not delay indefinitely.

- It is a promise that he will return without advance notice, so he calls the church to persevere in using their God-given resources for him & for the spread of his kingdom.

- The crown, frequently worn at festivals, reminded the church of the eternal crown they would receive from Christ if they held fast to their faith.

- Holding fast does not mean taking what we have & burying it, for that is what the foolish, wicked servant did in the parable of the talents which Jesus told.

- Rather holding fast means investing all that we are & all that we have into the kingdom of God in hopes of gaining a return on that investment & God's investment in us.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.

- 6) To bring those who conquer to their eternal home.

- verse 12, "The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name."

- Pillars represent permanence. In a city familiar with earthquakes, the pillars were often the only parts of a building found standing when the dust settled & the people returned.

- The Lord stressed to them that their place in his kingdom was permanent, "Never shall he go out of it."

- Additionally, Christ gave the Philadelphian Christians three promises: one, I will write on him the name of my God; two, the name of the city of my God; three, & my own new name.

- The conquering Christian belongs to God, is a citizen of heaven, & will continue to have a special relationship with Christ for all eternity.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.

- How does this passage apply to us?

- We tend to look at ourselves in the church through human eyes, it's only natural.

- As a small rural church, we often struggle & become discouraged.

- We may see ourselves as weak & insignificant in a world where value is attached to effectiveness & achieving results & large size, after all, more is better; bigger is better.

- Where would that kind of thinking gotten Abraham as he looked upon Isaac, the one son of the promise; young David as he faced Goliath, or the apostle Paul as he struggled with his thorn in the flesh?

- Much like them, Christ wants us to know & depend on him as our strength.

- His grace is sufficient & his power is made perfect in our weakness.

- Our strength is not in ourselves, but in the power & authority of Christ.

- Our small size & apparent weakness are instead an opportunity for the power of Christ to be displayed.

- He calls us simply to be faithful, keeping his Word & standing for his name by obeying him & sharing his love & message.

- He places before the faithful an open door of opportunity for salvation, service, & effective work & it is up to us to walk through that door.

- If we face any opposition to the gospel, then we need to let that be Christ's concern rather than our concern. He will cause them to bow down – "every knee will bow, in heaven & on earth & under the earth, & every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father." (Phil. 2:10-11)

- Christ will keep us & protect us in the hour of trial so we will have nothing to fear when we are faithful.

- Christ will strengthen us to hold fast the faith, investing ourselves for his kingdom.

- Christ will bring us to our eternal home as conquerors.

- Christ's person, Christ's presence, & Christ's power are the answer for our personal frailty, flaws, & weakness as well as those of the church.

- When Christ is my strength, I will serve faithfully, entering his door of opportunity.