Let us turn once again to God's
Word. I want us to turn now to the
third chapter in the book of Revelation, chapter 3, and I'll
read from verse 7. I'm reading the whole of this
letter that's sent to the church in Philadelphia, Revelation chapter
3, reading from verse 7 to verse 13. And to the angel of the church,
in Philadelphia writes, These things saith he that is holy,
he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth
and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth. I know thy
works, behold. I have set before thee an open
door, and no man can shut it, For thou hast a little strength,
and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. Behold, I
will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are
Jews and are not, but do lie. Behold, I will make them to come
and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved
thee. Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also
will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which hath come
upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. Behold,
I come quickly. Of that fast which thou hast,
that no man take thy crown, him that overcometh will I make a
pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out.
And I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name
of the city of my God, which is New Jerusalem, which cometh
down out of heaven from my God. And I will write upon him my
new name, he that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit
saith unto the churches. Oh God, be pleasing to grant
that we might have an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying
to the churches and to this church in particular. I want really
to concentrate on the first two verses of that passage I've just
read, verses 7 and 8. Revelation 3, verses 7 and 8,
and in particular, as a theme, to take up that of the key of
David. That key, surely, that is associated
with the door that is either opened or shut. To the angel
of the church in Philadelphia, write these things, saith he
that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David.
He that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth,
I know thy works. Behold, I have set before thee
an open door, and no man can shut it. For thou hast a little
strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name."
It is, of course, the Lord Jesus himself who is addressing this
church, as is the case with all those churches. Remember We read
in the opening chapter of that vision that was granted to John
exiled on the isle of Patmos and in his description of what
he sees, the glorified Christ, he mentions how that he is that
one who has the keys of hell and of death. There in verse
18 he says to John who has fallen at his feet as one dead, I am
he that liveth and was dead. And behold, I am alive forevermore,
amen, and have the keys of hell and of death. We're thinking
then about the keys or the key of David in particular that he's
spoken of in these verses. in the third chapter. Now I want
to divide the subject matter into some three sections. First
of all to say something with regards to the church, the size
of the church at Philadelphia, and then secondly to think of
the significance of the figures that are being used, this figure
of the door and its key, and then lastly as we come to a conclusion
to say something about the sovereignty of the Lord Jesus Christ. First
of all, the size of the church. It evidently was not large in
size. It seems to have been quite a
small church. It says in verse 8, Thou hast
a little strength. Thou hast a little strength. And one of the commentators here
observes that this is a reference to the external condition of
this church as it is viewed by the world. It's a small church. It's a small church. But it's
a faithful church. It's a true church. And isn't
that really often true with all those churches that would seek
to adhere faithfully to the word of God. We think of the ministry
of the Lord Jesus Christ himself. and how he addresses his true
followers as a little flock. There in Luke 12, 32, he says,
fear not, little flock. It is your father's good pleasure
to give you the kingdom. Though at times there were many
who would follow the Lord Jesus Christ, they were so impressed
by his miracles, but then by his ministry, as he preached,
he would be weaning those multitudes. Many a time I've referred to
that sixth chapter in John's Gospel. The late Sidney Norton
used to call it the chapter of the blessed diminishings, God's
little flock. And we referred this morning
to the fact that in Isaiah we have a good number of fear nots
because that That little flock is often made up of fearful people. Christ says, fear not little
flock. It is your father's good pleasure. That's where they find
their comfort in the good pleasure, the sovereignty of their God. But there, back in Isaiah 41,
14, we have that lovely fear not.
Fear not thou worm, Jacob, and ye men of Israel. I will help
thee, saith the Lord, and thy Redeemer, the Holy One, Israel. And I mentioned this morning
how the margin indicates that it actually literally speaks
to the few men, Worm Jacob and ye few men, ye few men of Israel. Doesn't Isaiah say except the
Lord of Hosts had left unto us a very small remnant. We should
have been like Sodom and like unto Gomorrah. We see time and
again then this doctrine of the of the remnants in Holy Scripture,
except the Lord of Hosts had left unto us a very small remnant,
not just a remnant, not just a small remnant, but a very small
remnant, it says there in Isaiah 1.9. And then the promise, that
great promise that we have in Zephaniah 3.12, I will also leave
in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people. and they shall
trust in the name of the Lord." All that afflicted and that poor
people, they have to place all their trust only in the Lord
God Himself. And so here we see that this
is a church that has a little strength. Now previously we read
of Sardis and the Lord certainly finds some more fault in that
church. But what does he say to Sardis
there at verse 4? Thou hast a few names, even in
Sardis, which have not defiled their garments, and they shall
walk with me in white, for they are worthy. Or there might only
be a few, oftentimes. God will preserve his faithful
remnant. Here then is a Church of Philadelphia
that's not large, it's small, it has little strength, but it
is a church that is faithful to God. It is a church that is
faithful to the Word of God. And doesn't the Lord say as much
as he addresses the church here at the end of verse 8? has a
little strength, and has kept my word, he says, and has not
denied my name. And then again in verse 10, he
says, because thou hast kept the word of my patience, or kept
the word of my endurance, neither shall endure unto the end, says
the Lord Jesus. He that shall endure unto the
end, the same shall be saved. And is it not one of the marks
of that faith that is saving faith and justifying faith? Is
it not one of the marks that it is an enduring faith? The
end of Hebrews chapter 10 We have those words of the apostle,
Now the judge shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my
soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them that
draw back to perdition, but of them that believe to the saving
of the soul. The word of my patience, the
word of my endurance. Oh, this is another mark of this
church then. It endures. He continues. He perseveres. It's the people
who are waiting upon the Lord to bless his words. Or they look
to the Lord that he would bless his own truth amongst them. They
abide in the old paths, we might say. They don't take up with
novelties. They don't follow the fads of
the day and the fashions of the world. or remember the words
that we have back in Jeremiah 6, don't ye in the ways and seek
and ask for the old paths wherein is the good way and walk therein
and they said we will not or they would not do the thing that
God was calling them to to seek those old paths wherein is the
good way or God grant that we might be preserve them desiring
only those old paths and seeking to be faithful to the truth of
God, as we have it set before us on the page of Holy Scripture,
looking to the Lord to bless His Word. We're told, are we
not, how faith cometh. Faith cometh by hearing, and
hearing by the Word of God. And remember when the Apostle
Paul is writing to the Corinthian church, there in the opening
chapter of 1 Corinthians, it reminds them of those old paths,
the ways wherein God is pleased to save sinners. It's the preaching. It's the plain preaching of the
Word of God. There in 1 Corinthians 1 verse
21, After that, in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew
not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching, to
save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign,
And the Greeks seek after wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified,
unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness,
but unto them which are called both Jews and Greeks Christ,
the power of God and the wisdom of God. Ought to be those then
who would abide true and keep the word of God's patience. and
look to the Lord to bless those old paths wherein we desire still
to be found, although they might dismiss us as being utterly out
of touch with modern man. Or we can thank God that it is
still the day of Christ. I did think we might sing that
lovely hymn of John Stocker's, number 11, where we have those
lines, the door of thy mercy stands open, or die. to the poor
and the needy who knock by the word, who want to hold forth
in the word of life, who want to direct men and women to him
who is the way, the truth and the life. He who declares himself
to be the door by which a man can enter in and be saved. The size and something of the
character then of this particular church, it might be small we
might say, so insignificant and yet a church that desires only
to be found faithful and true to the Lord Jesus Christ and
his word. But then turning secondly to
the significance of the figures that are being used, the key
and the door is spoken of. Now, as I've said many a time,
Revelation is not an easy book for us to understand or to interpret. We did look at a verse in this
book on Thursday evening, of course. And I remarked then on
the significance of the opening words, the revelation of Jesus
Christ which God gave unto him. This book is a revealing of Jesus
Christ. And as in any other part of scripture,
when we come to read through this book, some might have some
sort of aptitude to consider prophecy and unfulfilled prophecy,
but when we come to this book, our principal concern should
always be to see where the Lord Jesus Christ is. It's a revealing
of Jesus Christ. He is the person being revealed
to us. Now, what does it say in that
opening verse? It's the revelation of Jesus
Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things
which must shortly come to pass. And he sent and signified it
by his angel unto his servant John." It's a revelation, but
it's a revelation that's signified. In other words, this is something
of the character of the book. Signs are being used here. It's
an unusual book in that sense. It's full of sign, it's full
of symbol. And we see it in the various
titles that the Lord Jesus Christ takes to himself as he addresses
the churches. What does he say here with regards
to his address to Philadelphia? These things saith he that is
holy, and he that is true. And he is, of course, the Holy
One of Israel. And he is the truth, he is the
way, the truth. and the life. Those are very
basic statements. Then he goes on to say that he
is the one that has the key of David. That openeth and no man
shutteth and shutteth and no man openeth. And so we have these
figures of a key and its association with a door that might be opened
or shut. It might be locked or unlocked
we might say. And he is the only one who can open the door How
does the Lord open the door? Well, I want to mention three
ways in which the Lord opens the door. There must be a door
of opportunity to minister the Word of God. The Lord has to
open doors in order for the ministry, the preaching of the Gospel.
Now, we know that Paul himself was very conscious of that fact. You're familiar, I'm sure, with
what we call the Macedonian Call. in Acts 16, where we see the
Gospel coming over, as it were, from Asia Minor, and coming over
onto the continent of Europe. And it's evidence that these
men are acting under the direction of the Spirit of God, and they're
very conscious of that. Luke, of course, is the writer,
the human writer of the Acts, and what do we read in In that
16th chapter, Acts 16.7, after they were come to Mysere, it
says, they are say to go into Bithynia, but the spirit suffered
them not. And they passing by Mysere came
down to Troas, and the vision appeared to Paul in the night.
There stood a man of Macedonia, northern Greece, and prayed unto
him, saying, Come over into Macedonia and help us. And after he had
seen the vision, immediately we endeavored to go into Macedonia,
assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us forward to
preach the gospel unto them. Under the ministry of the Word,
these men are subject then to the leadings and the directings
of the Spirit of God, and I'm sure that those who minister,
they might not be in pastoral situations, and they might itinerate
and go to different chapels, but when it comes to the matter
of where they should go, where they shouldn't go, they only
desire to make that a matter of much prayer, to know that
they're going where the Lord is clearly opening doors for
them. And we see it, I say, in the
example of Paul. Again, Paul writing there in
1 Corinthians 16, the end of that first epistle, tells them
that he will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost and he says the
reason is for a great and effectual door is opened unto me and there
are many adversaries. He is going to continue then
at Ephesus. Why? Although there's opposition,
yet at the same time he feels that an effectual door has been
opened. He's having many opportunities to preach the Word of God. And
so God himself must open that door, that door of opportunity,
that a man might go to a particular place and minister the Word of
God. It's God's providence really.
We ought to be those, not just ministers, all of us should be
those who are seeking to watch the hand of God and to interpret
the hand of God in our lives. Doors opening, doors closing,
to wait upon Him. We've said many times the 107th
Psalm is a great psalm of course with regards to the sovereignty
of God in the realm of providence. It speaks of the various situations
of life and it finishes on that tremendous note, who so is wise.
Whoso is wise and will observe these things, even they shall
understand the loving kindness of the Lord. We should be observant.
Is it not a mark of heavenly wisdom to observe God and the
hand of God, and the openings that God provides, and when God
shuts the door? All we need to be those who are
conscious in the Lord's hand, the Lord's leadings, in providence,
I think, some of the best direction I've ever found in the way of
of providential leadings and it's no easy subject it's not
easy matter for us to understand sometimes what the will of the
Lord is for us but I do find so much common sense in those
letters of John Newton and I would commend those letters to you
I think that the little paperback version of a selection of his
letters published by the Banner of Truth many years ago, I think
it's still available, but they are such good, practical letters
with regards to this matter. But with regards to the ministry
then, the Lord opens doors. But then also, besides opening
the door, the Lord has to open a door of utterance to that minister,
if he's going to faithfully speak the Word of God. He'll want the
Lord, as it were, to open his mouth. He doesn't want to go
in his own strength. He doesn't want to be speaking simply his
own words. He wants to feel that he is faithfully
declaring that message that God has laid upon his spirit. Now,
of course, this letter is addressed to the church, but in particular,
it's to the angel. To the angel of the church in
Philadelphia. What is an angel? We're not to think here in terms
of heavenly beings. There are angels and archangels
and principalities and powers in heavenly places. But the word
angel is simply a transliteration of the Greek word. If it was
actually translated... You see, the Greek word really
is angel or angelos. If it was translated, we would
normally translate it with the English word messenger. So it's
being addressed to the messenger. The messenger of the church in
Philadelphia. Who would be the messenger? Well,
I would say it would be that one who was the minister there
in that church. And remember what we are told
concerning the Lord Jesus in his glorified state in that opening
chapter. What does the Lord say there
in verse 16? Or what does John say concerning
the Lord? He had in his right hand seven
stars. And then we're told at the end
of the chapter the seven stars are the angels or the messengers
of the seven churches and the seven candlesticks which they
sought us are the seven churches. So these messengers are in the
hands of the glorified Lord Jesus Christ. And look at verse 16
again there and the juxtaposition of the words. It says he had
in his right hand seven stars and out of his mouth went a sharp
two-edged sword, as thou in his hand so proceeding from his mouth
is his sword." And the sword there, of course, reminds us
of the words that proceed from the mouth of Christ. And what
are these angels? Are they not the Lord's ministers?
Are they not to be those who are speaking the words of the
Lord Jesus? The Apostle Paul was so conscious
of this when he When he refers to that spiritual armor that
the Lord has provided for his people, we're familiar with those
verses in Ephesians 6, and after making mention of the various
parts of the armor, he goes on to speak of the importance of
prayer. Verse 18, he says, "...praying
always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto
with all perseverance and supplication for all saints and for Mary."
He wants them to pray for one another, he wants them to pray
for all the saints of God, not just those in the church at Ephesus,
but God's people wherever they might be. But then he wants prayer
for himself also and for Mary. that utterance may be given unto
me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery
of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in bonds, that
therein I may speak boldly as I ought to speak." He needs the
Spirit to give him that utterance. He needs that anointing of the
Spirit upon his lips if he is going to faithfully speak the
words of the Lord Jesus Christ. And it's not just to the Ephesians,
but the Apostle says something similar to the Church of Colossae
in chapter 4 and verse 3. He says, With all praying also
for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance to speak
the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bondage. that I
may make it manifest as I ought to speak." He speaks here in
Colossians of the mystery of Christ, in Ephesians it's the
mystery of the Gospel. How can a man speak of these
mysteries, these profound truths, these great doctrines of the
Gospel, all that centers in the person and work of the Lord Jesus
Christ? It is the Lord that must give
him utterance. As he comes to the Word of God,
how is he to understand the Word of God? Well here in verse 7
Christ says he has the key of David. The key of David. Now David was a king but David
was a prophet wasn't he? Because David wrote so many of
the Psalms and is there not prophecy in the Psalms? And what is the
key to unlocking what is being said in the book of Psalms? Ultimately
we're to understand the Psalms principally in terms of the Lord
Jesus Christ. As I said, even revelation is
a revelation of Jesus Christ. We need to come to God's Word
and in all our reading and searching of it, surely it must all center
in Him of whom all the Scriptures speak. Search the Scriptures,
he says to the Jews, they testify of me. Christ is the key. The key to all the Word of God. The key of David. Unlocking the
great mysteries that are there in the book of Psalms. I've been interested over recent
months reading somewhat of Luther and this is so something that
that Luther is so emphatic about so emphatic it's an area where
in many ways he is a differences with with Calvin because Calvin
would take some note of the Jewish rabbis and their understandings,
their interpretations, that might be good and useful. I suppose
John Gill does the same. If you ever looked into Gill's
commentary, you'll often refer to rabbinic writings. He was
a great Hebrew scholar, John Gill. But Luther also was familiar
with the Hebrew, but he is so emphatic about the need for us
to always come to them thinking in terms of the person and the
work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And though David does speak of
his greater son time and again, and though David in the Psalms
himself needed to know that ministry of God to grant him utterance,
even in that 51st psalm, his penitential psalm. Having made
his confessions, having sought the forgiveness of sins, what
does he say? Restore unto me the joy of thy
salvation, and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I
teach transgressors thy ways, and sinners shall be converted
unto thee. Once He wants God to enable him
to minister and to minister out of all the fullness of his own
experience of the grace of God. He wants to teach other transgressors
the ways of God. Oh Lord, he says, open my lips
and my mouth shall show forth thy praise. Oh, there must be
that door of utterance. To do is the Spirit who grants
the door of utterance. who is the Spirit who comes to
grant that blessed unction upon the Word, he is the Spirit of
the Lord Jesus Christ. And so it is Christ that is to
be preached. Even here we have the key of
David, and David himself a wonderful type of Christ. But then there's
another aspect, it's not just God opening doors in his providence
as it were, and God opening the mouth of the man who's ministering
the truth and showing him the great mysteries of the faith
that he is to make the subject matter of his preaching the glories
of Christ, there must also be a door of entrance into the hearts
of sinners. It's only the Lord Jesus who
can unlock the sinner's heart. Remember what we've told concerning
Lydia, whose heart the Lord opened. that's how it was that she came
to listen so intently to the ministry of the Apostle whose
heart the Lord opened that she attended unto the things which
were spoken of Paul and Paul of course was that one who was
called to be the Apostle to the Gentiles and it was the Lord
who opened that ministry for him What does he say there in
Acts 14, 27? God opened the door of faith
unto the Gentiles. Or as he preached, the Lord God
opened the door of their hearts. There was that miniature of the
Spirit of God, that faith that comes of the operation of God.
Now we have to plead with the Lord God that there might be
that effect from the preaching, that it might come into the hearts
of men and women, and that it might take possession of their
souls. We're to pray for others, we're
to pray for ourselves when we come under the Word of God. We're
not just coming together to engage in Bible study. Oh, don't decry
the careful study of the Word of God, that's good. But surely
preaching is more than a mental exercise. We want to understand
God's Word, we want to see it in its context. It's good to
be familiar with much of the history behind the Word of God.
Certainly when we're reading in the Old Testament, it's useful
if we know something of the circumstances in which God first gave that
Word. But we want God's Word to come where we are. We want
to know that gracious application and that entrance into the sinner's
hearts. Or does it not come simply by
that blessed ministry of the Spirit? Here is the Lord Jesus,
you see. He has the key. He has the key to open doors.
He has the key to close doors. And so finally tonight, to say
something with regards to Christ's sovereignty. Christ's sovereignty. These things, we're told, these
things say, Thee that is holy, Thee that is true, He that hath
the key of David, he that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth
and no man openeth, I know thy works. Behold, I have set before
thee an open door, and no man can shut it. The Lord is sovereign. And that is surely so much emphasized
in those words that I've just read. Of course, we remember
again the the signs, the symbols that are being used, the Lord
Jesus Christ himself is the door. Back in John chapter 10 you're
familiar with John's gospel and those wonderful I am statements
scattered throughout John's gospel. And in chapter 10 of course he
declares himself to be the good shepherd. I am the good shepherd
that giveth his life for the sheep. but he's not only the
good shepherd he's the door I am the door he's the door to the
sheepfold I am the door by me if any man enter in he shall
be saved and shall go in and out and find pasture and as the
Lord is the door so he also is the one who has that key he that
has the key of guiding now I read that portion previously in Isaiah
22, a strange portion in many ways, the end of that chapter,
but it reminds us again, does it not, of how so much of the
symbols that are taken up in Revelation are found back in
the Old Testament. Because what do we read here?
We read of this man Shebna who was the treasurer, who seems
to have some authority in the royal court, but he is going
to be removed from his office and another is going to take
his place, a man called Eliakim. We read there at the end of that
chapter, particularly verse 20 following it shall come to pass
in that day. Now mark the reference to that
day It reminds us that it's not just referring to the historic
situation that this man who once lived many, many centuries ago,
Eliakim, and how he came into his office. It's speaking of
that day, and that is a key, really, that directs us to the
great day, the last days, the day of grace, the acceptable
time, which shall come to pass in that day, that I will call
my servant Eliakim, the son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe him
with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will
commit thy government into his hand, and he shall be a father
to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of David. And
the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder.
So he shall open, and none shall shut, and he shall shut, and
none shall open. and I will fasten him as a nail
in a sure place, and he shall be for a glorious throne to his
father's house, and they shall hang upon him all the glory of
his father's house, and so forth. Now, Eliakim, the name Eliakim,
of course, like names in scripture, has a very definite meaning. It literally means, my God will
raise up. He is a man raised up. But who
is this one that God is really raising up? It's a reference
to the Lord Jesus Christ. Eliakim is another type of the
Lord Jesus Christ, and he has absolute authority. Look at what it says in verse
22, "...the key of the house of David will I lay upon his
shoulder." Think of what we had previously back in chapter 9
of this book, and verse 6, Unto us a child is born, unto
us a son is given. The government shall be upon
his shoulder. The government shall be upon
his shoulder. It reminds us of the absolute
authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. But then also, he is a nail in
a sure place. A nail in a sure place and that
Image reminds us of the strength of the Lord Jesus. We sang...
I don't know if I've ever chosen that hymn 550 ever before. I don't recall singing it. Maybe
we have, or maybe others have chosen it, but it speaks, doesn't it? Gadsby
takes that particular figure of the nail, and I like the way
in which Gadsby brings a significance out. He says in verse 2, to save
my soul from hell was his eternal will. And bless his precious
name, his purpose to fulfill. He took the Lord, the great I
Am, and fastened as a nail. And as a nail he fastened him.
He took the Lord, the great I Am, and as a nail he fastened him. when deep calls unto deep, and
sins like mountains rise, and the old prince of hell says,
All the Bible's lies, this nail is fastened in my heart, nor
will it hear from me depart. O to have the Lord in our hearts,
in that sense, a nail in a sure place, the one who has the key
of David. And when we think of that key
of David, When Peter made his confession at Caesarea Philippi
in Matthew 16, remember what the Lord goes on to say to him,
I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven, whatsoever
thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, whatsoever
thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. And that
doesn't just apply to to Peter. The papists might say, oh well
that refers to Peter's authority, he was the first Pope. It's all
make-up of course. Nothing historic in what they
say, they make claims that they have no proof for those claims.
In chapter 18 of Matthew, and verse 18 of that chapter, the
same truth is said to all the apostles. But then also, we have
that in In John's Gospel, in John chapter 20, John chapter 20 and verse 22,
the Lord Jesus, after his resurrection, speaking to his apostles when
he had said this, Well, He says to them, Peace be unto you, as
my Father hath sent me, even so I send you. When He had said
this, He breathed on them, and said unto them, Receive ye the
Holy Ghost, whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto
them, whosoever sins ye retain, they are retained. How is the
retaining, the remitting done? It's through the ministry of
the Word. It's the ministry of the Word, it's the preaching
of the Gospel. That Word of God comes to some the saver of life,
it comes to others the saver of death. The door is opened
into one sinner's heart, it's not opened into another sinner's
heart. It's discrimination, it's discrimination that we have. As solemn it is, but it's the
sovereignty of the Lord Jesus Christ. All His Word will come
effectively into the hearts of those that were given to him
in the eternal covenant. They will be made willing people
in the day of his power. But see how it continues here
in verse 9, Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan,
which say they are Jews and are not, but do lie. Behold, I will
make them to come and worship before thy feet and to know that
I have loved them. He speaks then of the synagogue
of Satan. Now what is the synagogue of
Satan here? Difficult to know in some respects. We know that there was much persecution
from the Jews. Time and again throughout the
Acts we See those Jews, unbelieving Jews, stirring up the multitudes
in Acts 14. Came to pass in Iconium that
they went both together into the synagogue of the Jews and
so spake that the great multitude both of Jews and also of the
Greeks believed. But the unbelieving Jews stirred
up the Gentiles. and made their minds ill-affected
against the brethren. Or they go into the synagogue,
because they were Jews, weren't they, these men, Paul and Barnabas,
and they preach the truth, they tell the people that Jesus of
Nazareth is the promised Messiah, and there are those who believe
the Lord opens their hearts, Jews and Greeks, Jews and Gentiles
believe, but unbelieve in Jews. Well, this is a synagogue of
Satan, surely it is. And then later, at Thessalonica,
in chapter 17, verse 5, the Jews which believed
not moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of
the basest sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city
on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, sought to bring
them out to the people. What persecution, these unbelievers,
the persecution that was endured by those early believers initially
from the Jews. And then of course later in the
early church there was a great deal of persecution from imperial
Rome. And then later, at the time of
the Reformation, there was cruel persecution by papal Rome. God's
people, you see, are persecuted people. But then, when we read
here of the synagogue of Satan, it's interesting, if I remember
right, in James it talks about a rich man coming into your assembly.
The word is actually synagogue. Much of New Testament worship
seemed to have been based upon what was the practice in the
Jewish synagogues. When you read through the Acts,
of course, initially, when the apostles go out, they go to the
synagogues. It's to the Jew first, then to the Gentile. And so, synagogue of Satan, maybe
it refers to a false church, or to false brethren. Crowds. Hypocrites, really. We know that there were Some
like that at Laodicea said they were rich, increased with goods,
having need of nothing, knew not that they were wretched and
miserable, poor, blind, naked. All proud hypocrites. We know
he is not a Jew which is one outwardly, neither is circumcision
that which is outward in the flesh. Paul says he is a Jew
which is one inwardly and circumcision is that of the heart in the spirit
and not in the letter, whose praise is not of men but of God. There are false churches, there
are false brethren. But what does the Lord say? What
does the Lord say as He addresses these churches? And there's instruction
of course in all these letters. Going back to what He says there
in chapter 2. He's addressing the church of
Thyatira, verse 23. He says, All the churches shall
know that I am He which searches the reins and the hearts. All
this Lord who is sovereign, the Lord Jesus Christ, He is constantly
searching the reins and the hearts. His eyes were as a flame of fire,
we're told in that vision in chapter 1. Those eyes, those
burning eyes, they are all seeing, they're all searching. He looks
into the souls of men. Men look on the outward appearance,
the Lord looketh upon the heart. Oh, the state of our hearts and
before this one who has the key of David. Can we sincerely pray
with David, search me, oh God, and know my heart. Try me and
know my thoughts and see if there'll be any wicked way in me and lead
me. Lead me in the way everlasting.
He is the One, He is the One who has that courage as we read
there in that opening chapter He is the Amen and He has the
keys of hell and of death and He opens and no man can shut
and He shuts and no man can open or that the Lord would come and
open all of our hearts and establish in us that blessed rain of grace
and subdue every sin and every iniquity and deliver us from
all our unbelief and all our doubts and all our fears. Or
that we might know then this one who speaks in the text tonight. These things saith he that is
holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that
openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth.
I know thy works, Behold, I have set before thee an open door,
and no man can shut it. For thou hast a little strength,
and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name." Or that
that might be the mark of the little church here at Heggen,
the little church there at Salem in Portsmouth. And so many of
these little gatherings that we're so familiar with in these
days are no small thing. The gods keep us that we do not
despise it. And the Lord bless his word to
us. Amen. Well let us sing our concluding
praise which is the hymn 1013 and the tune is Jackson's 163. There is a family on earth whose
father fills the throne but though a seed of heavenly birth to men
their little known, whene'er they meet the public eye, they
feel the public scorn, for men their fairies' claims deny, and
count them basely born. 10.13.2.163