To the angel of the church of Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars--I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. The one who is victorious I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will they leave it. I will write on them the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on them my new name. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.I feel like I really don't have a whole lot to say about the letter to Philadelphia. Not because it's not a wonderful and beautiful letter. But it's actually pretty similar to the letter to Smyrna, which I wrote about just a few weeks ago. The letters to Smyrna and Philadelphia stand out among these seven letters to the Asian churches because they are the only ones that are completely positive. In the other five, Jesus reprimands the churches for some area of failing, but all he does is commend Smyrna and Philadelphia.
And why is Philadelphia commended? Because they've been holding on in the midst of adverse circumstances. They've been feeling the pressure of persecution. Those who belong to the "synagogue of Satan"--possibly Jews who have been stirring up trouble for the church among the Roman leaders--are trying to snuff the church out. But in spite of this, the believers have held on. They're resilient. They don't cave in to the threats and abuse that are poured out on them.
Why was the church at Philadelphia able to endure in this kind of situation? Why did the not crack in the shadow of persecution, while we might remain quiet about Christ for fear of what our co-workers might think of us? I think that the Philadelphians had laid hold of the hope that exists in the Christian life. In times of tribulation, that's often the only thing that can get us through--a knowledge and trust that things will change. When I'm in the trenches of the day as a cashier at Wal-mart, I can get through it because I know that at the end of the day, I'll be able to go home and eat a frozen pizza. And in a much more real way, the church won't be trampled on forever, because Jesus will come back, and his church will be vindicated.
That's the promise that Jesus makes to the church at Philadelphia. In verse 11: "I am coming soon." Those had to be such comforting words to the Philadelphians. They are reassured that they haven't been forgotten or abandoned by Christ. He's on his way. And he promises us too that he will come. So what does the church do in the meantime? "Hold on to what you have." We grip to the hope we have in Christ. We don't let it go for anything. That hope is like a rock-climber's rope.
A hope rope.
Hey, that rhymes!
Sorry about that. Anyways, that hope is like a rock-climber's rope. So we hold on to it for dear life. Because without the hope of Christ's return and the consummation of his kingdom, there isn't really anything to keep the church from falling off the cliff into despair.
Thankfully, our hope isn't one of those wishy-washy hopes that we usually have, sort of how I hope Katie the bank teller is sitting in the Cincinnati Chick-fil-A the next time I go there. No, our hope in Christ is sure, because he's the one with the "key of David" (v. 7) This is reference back to the description of Jesus in Revelation 1, where it is said that he holds the keys to death because he was dead but now is alive (1:18).
And it don't get more real than that.
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