SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/16/2015
9:06 AM
My Worship Time Focus:
Introduction to the church at Philadelphia
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Revelation
3:7-13
Message
of the verses: “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:
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.
9 ’Behold, I will cause those of the
synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie-I will make
them come and bow down at your feet, and make them know that I have loved you. 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 on the earth. 11 ’I am coming quickly; hold fast what you
have, so that no one will take your crown. 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 on 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.
13 ’He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
The first time that I read about
this church I had thoughts that because there is a city by the same name in our
country that this was about our country.
I read this somewhere around the 28th of January 1974 a few
days after I became a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Things have changed in my understanding of
this section of Scripture as I now look at this church I know that it is one of
the two churches that Christ has no rebuke for and I also know that this is not
referring to the city in the Untied States.
We can also see that when we look at the description of Christ that He
does not get if from the vision found in chapter one. Now as far as an introduction to this church
I want to quote from John MacArthur’s commentary as it is very short and will
help us better understand not only this church but others as well.
“Occasionally I am ask by young men
seeking a church to pastor if I know of a church without any problems. My response to them is ‘If I did, I wouldn’t
tell you; you’d go there and spoil it.’
The point is that there are no perfect churches. Churches struggle because all are made up of
imperfect, sinning people. The church is
not a place for people with no weaknesses; it is a fellowship of those who are
aware of their weakness and long for the strength and grace of God to fill
their lives. It is a kind of hospital
for those who know they are sick and needy.
“Like all churches, the one in
Philadelphia had its imperfections. Yet
the Lord commended its members for their faithfulness and loyalty. They and the congregation at Smyrna were the
only two of the seven that received no rebuke from the Lord of the church. In spite of their fleshly struggles, the
Christians at Philadelphia were faithful and obedient, serving and worshiping
the Lord. They provide a goo model of a
loyal church.
“To aid in understanding the letter
to the Philadelphia church, it may be divided into six headings: the correspondent, the church, the city, the
commendation, the command, and the counsel.”
Now as we look at this church over
the next week we need to understand why it was that Christ had no words of
rebuke for it. I believe that when
Christ tells them that they had little power is a key as to why this church was
not rebuked. People who are weak can be
strengthened by the Lord, but those who think they are strong, many times feel
they can do it all by themselves. Now so
with this church. Paul wrote to the
Corinthians “And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for
power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather
boast about my weaknesses, so
that the power of Christ may dwell in me (2 Cor. 12:9).”
Spiritual
meaning for my life today: Pride is
a very big problem as pride hinders our help from the Lord. I have often quoted a song written and sung
by the late Roger Miller and in that song he sings “I believe that pride is the
chief cause in the decline in the number of husbands and wives.” Lord help me not to be proud, but be weak so
You can work through me.
My Steps of Faith for Today: To better
learn to love the Lord my God with all of my heart, soul, mind, and strength,
and to better understand the love that He has for me.
Answer
to yesterday’s Bible question: “The
temple” (Acts 21:28).
Today’s
Bible question: “For whom did Jacob say
he would serve seven years?”
Answer
in our next SD.
2/16/2015
9:34 AM
No comments:
Post a Comment