7th Church: Laodicea

To the Angel of the Church of Laodiceans

Revelation 3:14-22 

Historical Setting: Laodicea, the final church Jesus addresses, was a city rich monetarily as well as intellectually and culturally. It lay within eyesight of two other cities, Hierapolis and Colossae, whose church had received an epistle from Paul three decades earlier. Paul apparently had also written a letter to Laodicea (see Colossians 4:16), and the early Latin Vulgate contains a letter purporting to be the one referred to in Colossians, but no Greek version remains, and the Latin version contains nothing original. It had been hurt by an earthquake in 60 A.D., but in its pride and wealth, it rejected any help from Rome (this earthquake also disqualifies an early date for the book of Revelation to be written in the 60s, as some preterists would suggest). Laodicea had a medical school which treated people with eye problems and exported eye salve. The city also exported black material cloth wool, a contrast to the white garments Christ urges them to buy.

Name Defined:  Laodicea was named for Laodice, wife of Antiochus II, and mother of Seleucus II Callinicus, both rulers in the empire following Alexander the Great, slightly less than 300 years before Christ. The name literally means either “the people rule” or “the nations judged” and again the sovereign God applies this name for a church in which historically and prophetically, the people exalt themselves, rather than God, and await God’s judgment.

Church History Parallel: “The Prosperity Church” (20^th Century-Tribulation)-What era of all of church history has there been a stronger parallel to the Laodiceans than in the 20^th Century Western Society: rich with material good, but lukewarm, poor, and blind spiritually.

     I.      Christ’s Description- (Revelation 3:14)

1. The Amen

2. The Faithful, True Witness

3. The Beginning (Gr: arche arch, architect) of the Creation Of God

   II.      Commendation-Works known, but no commendation for the works (Revelation 3:15a)

 III.      Condemnation (Revelation 3:15b, 17b)

1. Neither cold nor hot.

2. Were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked

 IV.      Commands (Revelation 3:18-19)

1. Buy from Me gold refined in the fire to be rich

2. Buy white garments, that you may be clothed

3. Anoint eyes with salve so they may see.

4. Be zealous and repent

  V.      Consequences (Revelation 3:16-22)

1. Because lukewarm, Christ will vomit church out of His mouth

2. Christ will rebuke and chasten those he loves

3. He stands at the door and knocks.

4. If they hear His voice, open the door, He will come in, dine with

5. Overcomers to sit with Christ on throne

¹⁴ And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; ¹⁵ I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot: I would you were cold or hot. ¹⁶ So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ Because you say, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and do not know that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: ¹⁸ I counsel you to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich; and white clothes, that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness does not appear; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. ¹⁹ As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. ²⁰Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if anyone hears my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with me. ²¹ To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. ²² He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says unto the churches.

 

Church ruled by the people: It is interesting that the only church in which Christ mentions nothing good to say for a church, that he calls it the “church of the Laodiceans” and not the “church in Laodicea.” It is as though it is a church of people and not the church of Jesus Christ in Laodicea. The name itself Laodicea means “ruled by the people,” and the church was not ruled by Christ, but by the people.

HIS IDENTIFICATION: Jesus identifies Himself as “The Amen,” a transliterated word from the Greek (see Matthew 5:18) and Hebrew (see Deuteronomy 27:15 and following) words “AMEN,” which means “so be it!” and used by Christ when He says “Verily, verily.” To a church which is very self-deceived, self-ruled, and self-sufficient, Jesus reveals Himself as “the real thing—the faithful and true witness.”

Secondly, Jesus says He is the beginning of the creation of God. The word beginning makes it clear that He is the architect of the creation. He’s the one who made all things. It is the same word used in Revelation 1:8, 21:6, and 22:13, “The beginning and the end.” Colossians 1:16 says “all things were made by Him and for Him.” He is the beginning and head of the church (Colossians 1:18). A solid reminder to the final church to be on the earth and the church which will likely be there after the rapture, unless they repent.

INDIFFERENCE: The church was lukewarm, spiritually and works wise. The city was in a valley and had built aqueducts from the mountains to bring the cold water down to them. By the time the water reached them it was lukewarm. Nearby there were hot springs, but by the time the water was taken up to Laodicea, it was no longer hot; it too was lukewarm. The church was passive in the things of the Lord. Professing to be Christians, it had an outward appearance of being a good and financially blessed people. Yet self-reliance, rather than Christ-reliance, made Him sick, spewing them out of His mouth.

POVERTY: The Laodicean church was the opposite of the Smyrna church. They thought they were rich, yet were wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked. The gold that is tried by fire is what Peter referred to: “that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 1:7.

WHITE GARMENTS: Laodicea was known not only for its hot and cold waters, but also for its making of black glossy wool garments, made from black sheep, which sold for a rich price. But more valuable than earthly clothes of black would be heavenly clothes of white, purchased by the rewards of faithful service here on earth. A rich faith produces clean garments and covers their nakedness. (Photo shows black sheep photographed at Laodicea).

EYESALVE: Laodicea was also known for its university of medicine treating eye problems with salve. Merchants and perhaps even member of the church sold ointments and herbs with a reputation of having great healing power, yet they had no ointment to restore a long-range vision to heaven. The church was spiritually blind, Christ said.

CHRIST’S LOVE: During all this rebuke and chastening is an almost hidden statement of affirmation of Christ’s love, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.” Jesus had not given up on the Laodicean church. If the Laodiceans were not beyond hope, so neither is anyone who “hears what the Spirit of the Lord says to the churches.” Rebuke is sometimes translated as reprove and is often found in relation to the Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16, 4:2).  Chasten is used with instruction of children, often by the loving discipline of a parent (Hebrews 12:6-7) and often leads to our redemption (1 Corinthians 11:32). To be zealous means to boil with fervor of spirit and hot passion. The call to repentance is a further evidence that Christ wants to be welcomed into the church.

THE DOOR: Look, Christ is at the door, knocking. The door earlier was one that was opened and closed by Christ, yet here it is up to the church to open. Could He not force Himself in? It is obvious Christ is not speaking of a literal door to a church building, but to the hearts of those who profess to be Christians. Christ opens the door to heaven and salvation, but sinners must also open the door to Christ. To sup or dine was to enjoy the last and final meal of the day, a time in which the people relaxed and enjoyed the company of a day’s end (see Luke 17:8 for the same word usage).

What is the call to the church? To hear the voice of Christ, be zealous with fervency of faith and to repent from self-delusion. The result will be a communion meal with Christ in our hearts, in our churches, and ultimately, a meal in heaven at the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9).

 

6th Church: Philadelphia

To the Angel of the Church of Philadelphia

Revelation 3:7-13

Timothy C. McKeown

     I.      Christ’s Description- (Rev. 3:7)

1. He Is Holy and True (See Rev. 6:10)

2. Has The Key Of David (See Isa. 22:22)

3. Opens And No One Shuts, Shuts And No One Opens (See again Isa. 22:22)

   II.      Commendations (3:8, 10)

1. Power-they have a little strength (Gr: micron dunamin)

2. Perseverance - kept His word (See John 8:51-55; 14:15, 21, 23-24; 15:20; 17:6; 1 Jn 2:5)

3. Proclamation - have not denied My name

4. Patience - kept the word of My patience

                        i.    Christ will keep the church from the hour of temptation

                       ii.    Temptation will try those who remain on the earth

 III.      Condemnation – None for the church (3:9)

1. False Jews (synagogue of Satan)

                        i.    Will worship at the church’s feet (See Isa 60:14)

                       ii.    Will know that Christ loves the church (See Rev. 1:7)

 IV.      Commands (3:11)

1. Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown

  V.      Consequences (3:12)

1. Pillars - Overcomers will be pillars in the temple of God

2. Permanence - They shall go out no more

3. Protection - Written on them will be the names of

                        i.    God Himself (Exodus 23: 20-22, 1 Kings 11:36)

                       ii.    God’s City, the new Jerusalem (see Ps. 46, 2 Kings 21:4)

                     iii.    God’s Son’s new name

Historical Setting: It was a small, young but well-traveled city. Like Sardis, it was destroyed in 17 AD by an earthquake and continued to have tremors for years afterwards. The permanence of Christ (who firmly shuts and opens doors) and the promise of permanence in the heavenly city (“he shall go no more out”) would have been reassuring to this teetering town. After being rebuilt, it received a new name, “Neocaesarea” or “new Caesar” and during the reign of Vespasian, it went by the name of Flavia. By the time of John’s writing, it had returned to the name of Philadelphia.

Name Defined:  Philadelphia was named by King Eumenes II of Pergamum (197-160 BC) as a tribute to his brother and successor Attalus II (159-138 BC) whom he nicknamed "Philadelphos" (Greek=“love for brother”).

Church History Parallel: “The Preferred Church” (18^th Century-Tribulation)-The modern missionary movement is most often traced to William Carey who went to India in 1792. When he expressed his desire for reaching the world with the gospel, he was told, “Sit down, young man, if God wants to save the heathen in India he will do it without your help or mine.” There have always been missionaries throughout Christianity, most notably by the Roman Catholic Jesuits. However, extremists’ views of “predestination” and the infancy of Protestant churches led to a dead, “Sardis” church, often devoid of concern for evangelism. In the 1700s, churches as a whole began to initiate “missionary societies” and collective efforts to reach the lost strategically. The letter to the church of “brotherly love” explains that God alone opens and shuts doors to salvation, and He sets before the church “an open door” . This church does not deny Jesus’ name, sees the conversion of Jews, is loved by Christ, and is kept from the tribulation of the world. 

     

 ⁷ “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, ‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”

The fact that God is Holy and True is appealed to again when those who have been martyred call upon Him in Revelation 6:10 (“And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”). When we are going through hard and difficult times, it is wonderful to remember that God is Holy and True. The fact that Jesus holds the key of David recalls to their minds the prophecy of Isaiah 22:22[1] which stated that Eliakim, whose name means “One whom God raises or resurrects”, will carry the key to the House of David. The story in Isaiah shows that Shebna was like an old peg that held vessels on a sure wall, and Eliakim is a new peg on the same wall. Those who put their faith in the old peg will fall, but the new peg will stay strong. The reference to Isaiah shows that Christ and the New Covenant are superior to Judaism and the Old Covenant.

This passage also is reminiscent of Matthew 16:19, which talks about the keys of the kingdom of heaven. “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Things bound on earth are bound in heaven and things loosed on earth are loosed in heaven. The decision or key to heaven is made here on earth only. If we tell others about Christ here on earth, they are freed to go to heaven. God is the one who opens the door, but He commissions us to go and give the key to those here on earth.

⁸ I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.

The open door set before the church is the door for evangelism. God does the saving or the “opening” of the door, but He invites us to participate with Him in sharing with others. We will see later that only those who refuse to open the door are the ones who refuse to have Christ come and sup with them (Revelation 3:20[2]).

“A little strength” is mikron  dunamin  (Gr: micron dunamin) with strength being the same word from which we get the word “dynamite.” A little strength with God’s power can be like a little bit of dynamite. Paul uses the word in 2 Corinthians 12:9 “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.”(Both underlined word are “dunamin”.

Keeping the Words of Jesus is a recurring theme in the Gospel and epistle of John. It is the same as eternal life, knowing God (John 8:51-55[3]), loving God (14:15-24), being a servant of Christ and receiving the same type of persecution as Christ (15:20), belonging to God (17:6) and having God’s love perfected in us (1 John 2:5).

Titus 1:16 says that if a person claims to be a Christian, but in his works, he denies God, they are really not a Christian. Likewise, the Philadelphian church did not deny Christ’s name because their Christ-like works, known by Christ, acknowledged His name. To deny Christ means Christ will deny us before God (Matthew 10:33). Peter, who denied Christ three times, has the harshest of words in all of Scripture for those who deny the Lord (see 2 Peter 2), but it is not a verbal denial, but rather the denial of Christ in actions that is so reprehensible. Instead, we must deny ourselves and take up the cross daily and follow Christ (Luke 9:23).

⁹ Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie--indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you.

This is another strong indication that the church of Philadelphia is not only a church of John’s day, but also a church of prophecy. Jews who reject Christ will someday look upon the Christ whom they had pierced (Revelation 1:7). The evangelizing Philadelphian church era has seen great numbers of Jewish people coming to accept Jesus as their Messiah, beginning in the 1800s and even more in the late 20^th century, according to “Jews for Jesus.” It is ironic that the prophecy of Isaiah 60:14 (“Also the sons of those who afflicted you Shall come bowing to you, And all those who despised you shall fall prostrate at the soles of your feet; And they shall call you The City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”) is actually to be reversed with the Philadelphian church.

¹⁰ Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial (temptation, KJV) which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. ¹¹ Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown.

This is another prophecy that the church will be raptured before the Great Tribulation, if this is what Jesus is referring to in the “hour of temptation.” Temptation is the word used almost exclusively by evil and Satan, and sounds like the Great Tribulation which will come upon the “whole world.” The reference of “I am coming quickly” also seems to indicate Jesus’ imminent and sudden return for the church. While we cannot lose our salvation, we can lose some of our “crowns” or rewards.

¹² He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. 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 I will write on him My new name. ¹³ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” ’

The name of God and the new name of God’s Son are obvious, when we consider that the power of the name means identification. But the name of the city of God, the New Jerusalem, takes on a new significance when we read Psalm 46, which talks about God’s protection in a city. A city and citizenship within that city meant protection and strength and permanence. Jesus holds the key and will give us a permanent place of protection.

Practical Application: If we truly love our brothers, we should witness to them in word and deed.

---

[1] “The key of the house of David I will lay on his shoulder; So he shall open, and no one shall shut; And he shall shut, and no one shall open.”

[2] “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.”

[3]  ⁵¹ Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death.”

⁵² Then the Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.’ ⁵³ Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Who do You make Yourself out to be?”

⁵⁴ Jesus answered, “If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God. ⁵⁵ Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word. 

 

Your God Reigns

Today's devotional from Day 35 of the "40 Day Devotional for Who's Your One" cites Romans 10:15, which is a reference from Isaiah 52:7.

Why mountains?

The messengers traversed rugged and sometimes uncharted paths to bring news of the battles from distant lands. The application is that we must tread upon difficult and different territories when bringing the gospel of heaven to the people.

Why feet?

Nothing bore the brunt of the messengers as much as the feet. Dusty, dry, scraped and weathered feet which ached from the miles but ushered by the urgency of the message. What would otherwise seem repulsive and odorous by the world became beautiful because of the message which was carried.

Good news must not be limited in our knowing, but must be evidenced in our SHOWING and proclaimed in our GOING. Our feet become beautiful not in their appearance but in the message they are bringing.

Knees calloused by prayers, hearts burdened with love, minds saturated in Scriptures, and lives redeemed by Christ, must find feet to show and go before they are to become beautiful.

Why good news and glad tidings?

Some messengers brought sad, devastating news of lost battles, ravaged villages, and deaths of loved ones. But when messengers brought good news of victories, deliverances, and soon returns of warriors. The glad, good tidings had to be repeated twice (“good news” and “glad tidings” are the same word) in Isaiah 52:7. It is recited again in the text of one of the first sermons of Jesus, found in Isaiah 61:1, where good tidings are brought to the impoverished, where healing is brought to the hurting, liberty is proclaimed to the captives, and release is provided to the bound and imprisoned.

“Glad tidings” are found in the gentle message of Gabriel to a startled young virgin in Luke 1:19. They are loudly heralded by angels filled with great joy to frightened shepherds on the Bethlehem hillside. And they are joyously proclaimed by a once blasphemer and persecutor of the church, once he realized that the heresy he prosecuted was actually a promise made to his forefathers being fulfilled in his own lifetime.

What should be our response?

Our feet need to be battered before they become beautiful. Our paths should scale mountains of obstacles to proclaim the good news. Our message should be lived before spoken, walked before talked, but ultimately brought to all that …

• When disease seems to be rampant, “Our God reigns!”
• When politicians are liars, “Our God reigns!”
• When loneliness closes in all around us, “Our God reigns!”
• When our battles look like beatings, “Our God reigns!”
• When the masses in the dark valleys below us look above for something good and glad, we must loudly shout and proudly proclaim…

“Your God reigns!”

 

Timothy McKeown: Will you be the one found faithful?

Timothy McKeown: Will you be the one found faithful?: "And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will aveng...

Will you be the one found faithful?

"And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"

Luke 18:7-8.

 I ask the same question Jesus did in Luke 18:8, "is there really faith on the earth" even now. Does anyone really believe? Are we working and serving the Lord, praying as though He really hears our prayers?

People of God, you who have lost faith in your family, your health, in friends who cannot be found, in politics which have gone crazy, in honesty in the media, in our once proud and trusted America, in finding or keeping a life-long soul-mate, in ministers who disappoint, and even lost faith in the organized church, please do not lose faith in God and in Him hearing your prayers. He does hear, He does care, and He will avenge His own elect who cry out day and night.

Pray as though Jesus will come today and find you faithful. All else will fade, but your reward from your faith will abide forever in eternity.

Perhaps it is we who have failed to pray and not just recite words but to cry out; and not just hurriedly before meals but beseeching God in the morning and in the evening. The psalmist said in Psalm 55:17, "In the morning, in the evening, at the noontime, I will pray and cry aloud." Still nothing? Then go elsewhere, in Psalm 119:164, the writer proclaims he will praise God seven times a day. Are you doing that? Then accept Paul's challenge to the Thessalonians and "pray without ceasing."

Too hard you say? Think of all the other things we do, seven times seven a day. Those things do not seem too hard to do, so why not pray instead. Pray for one person who is lost, who is sick, who has lost faith, who has lost fellowship and friendship with you. Pray that this time of uncertainty that your faith will be certain. Pray as though Jesus will come today and find you faithful. All else will fade, but your reward from your faith will abide forever in eternity.

AND...

 Ah, ’tis the season of politics, fake news, fact checking, falsehoods, and fabrications. We, like Pontius Pilate, might ask rhetorically, “What is Truth?”

You probably know the saying which is shown in the photo above which is inscribed on the Liberal Arts building at the University of Texas in Austin.

“Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”

You may guess it is from the Bible. You may even presume that the truth is really The Truth, that is, Jesus, and not merely intellectual knowledge. Jesus had said to Pilate, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth.” Earlier that evening, He privately told His disciples that He was “The Truth”.

But do you see something missing in the picture above? Yes, the reference missing from where this phrase comes (John 8:32 by the way). But something else is missing from the verse.

It is a little three letter word at the beginning of the verse but not found in this inscription nor in the oft-used quote.

“AND”

Little words are important in the Bible, and this word in this verse that is omitted here is a very important word. It connects John 8:32 to what?

See, you are pretty quick, aren’t you? It connects verse 32 to verse 31.

So, let’s look at verse 31.

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 AND you shall know the truth...”

(Don’t let the word “Jews” distract you. Jesus was Jewish. I know, I know, He doesn’t look Jewish, at least not in our paintings and many of our movies on the life of Christ. But He was, and all who believed Him in John 8 were Jewish. According to John 8:2, He was teaching in the Jewish Temple.)

There is another important little word in verse 31, and that is the word “If”. It, too, is a small but equally paramount word.

If you abide in the word of Jesus, meaning:

• if you do what He says,
• if you live it out in your everyday life,
• if His word makes a home in your actions, your heart, your mindset,

As a result of making Jesus’s word real in your life, you will prove yourself to be His disciples, “in truth” or “indeed”. The Greek word for “indeed” is “alethos”, which is very similar to the word for truth: “aletheia”.

As I studied this, there is also a little letter that is not there in verse 31: Jesus does not say, as He does elsewhere, abide in “My words” (plural), but rather abide in “My word” (singular).

Jesus speaks about his “singular word” in John 5:24, speaking of saving faith, “he who hears my word and believes in Him who sent me, has everlasting life”. There is a singular word of salvation faith in John 8:51, “anyone who keeps my word shall not see death” (repeated again in verse 52). There is a singular word of sanctification in John 17:17, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”

There are many words (plural) Jesus spoke in which we should abide (loving God, loving others, forgiving others, etc.), but there is a singular word in which we must abide. It is a word full of truth, a word full of faith, a word full of liberation and sanctification.

What singular word saves? What singular word sanctifies? What solitary word cleanses, as Jesus said in John 15:3, “Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you.”

Martin Luther wrote of a singular word in the hymn A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, which he described as a “little word” which, by itself, could “fell” the Prince of Darkness. The final verse begins “That word above all earthly powers, No thanks to them, abideth”.

So what is that “little word”? What is the singular “word” of Jesus which we should abide in and in so doing we prove to be disciples in truth?

That singular “little word” is the Logos, that which was in the beginning (John 1:1) and from the beginning (1 John 1:1). “My Word” is The Word, Jesus Himself, in whom we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). Our Lord told us in John 15:4 to “Abide in Me”. John 14:23 says in King James English that the Father and Son will “make our abode” with us when we abide in Him.

If you need The Truth to set you free this political season, begin and end each day not only with Christ and not just reading His word, but be and abide in Christ.

The beloved apostle John wrote the following in 1 John 2:

26 These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you. 27 But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him.
28 And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming.

Can I get a "With-ness"?

Matt Chandler spoke about Augustine’s concept of “with-ness” yesterday. The Christian landscape it littered with Christians who have Christ in them, but they are not with Christ. I have been pondering GRACE and all that it means, and somehow I keep coming back to grace as being God’s unmerited favor, Christ paying for God’s richness to be lavished upon us. And while salvation means eternal life, the only definition Jesus ever gave for eternal life is John 17:3. “And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.”

Chandler preached from one of my favorite passages of 2 Corinthians 5:17-21, a foundational Scripture to memorize, meditate on, and incorporated into daily, even moment-by-moment practice. If we can realize the reality and actualize the actuality that Christ is Immanuel, God with Us, and if we can truly understand that reconciliation is that God went to GREAT LENGTHS just to get us to be WITH HIM, we would revolutionize our view of Christianity. God loves us and actually likes us. He wants to be with us. He promised us He would never leave us or forsake us, but sin separates us from His Holiness, so God even came up with a plan to bring us together. He created man to have fellowship with Himself. “We are reconciled,” Chandler said, “not just so we can go and reconcile others with God.” No, God wants us to walk with Him and talk with Him and if we truly listen, He will tell us we are His own. Someone said that the song “In the Garden” was fluffy song without theological soundness. It was a mile wide and an inch deep. They unfortunately or apparently did not understand how wonderful it is to be with God and talk with Him and more importantly for Him to talk with me. ME! A dirty rotten sinner who was declared right with God and bestowed undeservedly the righteousness of Christ. I am not there, but God says that I am because He is not limited to time or space. While Satan tries to tell me who I was, God is saying I am right now who I am going to be ... by His grace. That’s why my life is hidden with Christ in God and I am seated in the heavenly places (Colossians 3:1-3).

I am with God with absolutely no reference to my sin.

Sin = separation.
Withness = reconciliation!

“We are a new creation so that we can be with Christ. We are ambassadors to the world because we are with Christ. We are witnesses because we have a with-ness in Christ.”

God’s Grace is not for a score card so we can prove ourselves worthy. Eternal life is not to know about God or Christ but to know Him.

Can I get a with-ness?

When Fear Meets Grace and Truth Meets Delusion

     Last Sunday’s message at 9:45 a.m. (see this link) reflected not only the events of the past two weeks and two months, but also two books I am currently reading, The Fear of the Lord by John Bevere and The End of America? by Jeff Kinley.

     In 2 Thessalonians 2, Paul states that before the antichrist is revealed, there will be a rejection of the truth by unbelievers, followed by an “energy of delusion”, sent by none other than the Lord God Himself.

     Why would God “send” a strong delusion? That is a hard question to answer. When people reject truth after truth and continually reject it, the truth becomes an inoculation for the rejecters. They choose to believe a lie; therefore, when truth comes from God, it is like they have a vaccination against it and cannot receive it.

     When God’s truth becomes a lie to those who refuse, the more truth that is given, the stronger they are set firm in being deluded. “Don’t bother me with the facts, my mind is made up,” some seem to say.

     The truth is the death of George Floyd was WRONG, no matter who perpetrated it, but especially wrong when it came at the hands (and knee) of those sworn to “protect and serve”. The truth is we need to reform a flawed system of training that led to this and other deaths like it. Period.

     The truth is the death of millions of unborn babies is WRONG no matter who perpetrates it, but especially when perpetrated by mothers, fathers, doctors, lawmakers and judges. They all should protect and preserve lives, not destroy them. We don’t need to abolish all doctors and all parents because some kill the unborn.

     STOP. Ask yourself this: “Have I, even I, become inoculated to the TRUTH?” We, the church, can also be deceived. How do you feel when you hear a sermon on evangelism? On faithful tithing? On making disciples and being discipled? On loving others, especially those who are different than you, and those who even hate you? On being kind?

      Jesus told the parable about a Jewish man who was dying and found by the Good Samaritan, whom the dying man would have otherwise seen as his enemy. Meanwhile, the dying man’s own neighbors, the Levite and the priest, did not see that their own fellow Jewish man’s life mattered. But the Samaritan did.

     If I claim I am not a racist and I agree that I should love, pray for, bless and forgive “my enemies”, then certainly then I must practice the truth by loving, praying for, blessing and forgiving those whom I claim are NOT my enemies but indeed are of a different race, political party, or religious background.

     If we do not, you and I have been inoculated to the truth. If we believe or practice things that are not truth, we are deluded.

     Stop listening to lies, half-truths, false agendas and ungodly talk. “This is My beloved Son,” God says in Mark 9:7 and Luke 9:35, “Hear Him!” In John 10, Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” (verses 27 and 10).

     The best way to know the difference between the truth and everything else is to become so attuned with the real deal, that all else is instantly recognized as from “the devil … (who) was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it,” (John 8:44).

I Thirst

    She didn’t remember when she heard the news. But what she heard, she would never forget.

    “No! It can’t be true!” she cried, nearly dropping her empty water pot when her friend breathlessly told her about the death. His death.

   “My husband told me himself,” Photini’s friend told her through tear-filled moans. “He’s dead. Crucified at the hands of the Romans. What’s worse, the Pharisees and Sadducees both conspired to bring Him in. Arrested just after Pesach. Joseph went there for the week to do business in Jerusalem.”

   Photini dragged every last sordid detail out from her young friend. They became more than mere friends since those three marvelous days when the Master, the Messiah, had come to her village, to Jacob’s well on that blistering hot but blessedly holy day.

   Yeshua had told her everything she had ever done. Well, not really, not everything. He told her enough though to convince her that He, this prophet from Nazareth, was in fact the Promised Messiah. Greater than everything she had done, He told her of what He, the Messiah, the Christ, would do: to restore worship of the Father in spirit and truth.

   As the friends talked and wept, then wept and talked, Photini looked down at her empty jar. She was reminded how empty she had been before that blessed day that now seemed long ago. How lonely she had been ... despite her five husbands she had had ... despite the man she had who was not her husband. But since that day, her life was changed, her relationships changed, she had lost her man, but gained sisters and brothers, like Sarah and Joseph.

   “Joseph was there at the cross. He said he was certain that Yeshua had died. He said that even before He died, He looked like death warmed over, as He hung on the cross. Oh, Photini, He had been beaten so badly. Joseph said if He had not spoken, he would have thought He was already dead.”

   “He spoke? From the cross? What did He say?” Photini demanded. Before Sarah could answer, she shouted, “What could He have possibly said from the cross?”

   Sarah told of His first refusal of the sour wine, the only comfort from an otherwise merciless death. Photini had seen crucifixions too many times, ghastly and cruel punishments. They were to warn all the inhabitants of the land that they, the Samaritans and the Jews alike, were under the oppressive rule of the Romans.

   “And just before He died, Photini, He cried, ‘I thirst!’”

   “No!” Photini buried her head in Sarah’s arms. Sarah was young enough to have been her daughter, if she would have had a daughter. She was more of a sister than her own sisters had been. More of a friend than any of her husbands had been.

   This Messiah, this Man from God who had truly given her spiritual drink, died asking for something to quench His own parched mouth.

   Photini said it again, “No! He said, ‘I thirst?’” 

   “I know, I know, that’s why I had to hurry to tell you,” Sarah spoke tenderly but into the ears of her grieving friend, not sure if Photini could even hear through her guttural sobs. “He took the bitter vinegar the second time, but just enough so He could cry out in a loud voice one last time.”

   Photini could only imagine what Joseph had seen. Then a peaceful word came from Sarah.

   “But Joseph said He did not die as he had seen other men die. Yeshua died as though He was in calm control of all the cruelty around Him. He was caring for His mother at His feet. Speaking to the only disciple at the cross. Oh Photini, young John was there too. He even spoke kindly to the others who were being crucified with Him. He asked the Father to forgive those who drove the nails into His hands.”

   Photini was shocked that Yeshua had died, but she knew it had to be true when she heard how He died. He died as He had lived, with resolute purpose. In charge. In control. At peace.

   She remembered His first words to her at Jacob’s well. “Give Me a drink,” He had said, commandingly, but not harshly. Firmly, but as though with a voice of someone she had always known. A familiar tone that made her wonder not only why a Jew would speak to her as a woman, a Samaritan woman, a Samaritan woman with a horrible reputation.

   She never forgot her conversation with Him about her thirst and how He saw her own spiritual thirst. Her quenching would not be found in relationships with men, not in her people’s religion. She later travelled to Galilee Lake to hear Him say that He was the Bread of Life, and that those who came to Him would never hunger nor thirst again. From that day forward, His words had indeed quenched the thirsting of her soul. She heard about rivers of Living Water flowing out of the hearts of those who believed. Though her tears were flowing, she was afraid of the drought that might return to her soul. 

   Photini stood up. She dabbed her eyes. She strained in her mind, her memories, straining to hear all that He had told her and her village.

   “So He’s gone. It’s finished.” Bitterness almost filled her heart at the hated Romans. At the wicked Jews.

   But there was no bitterness. There was no hatred.

   Even death, at the hands of her enemies no less, could not stop the love He had placed in her heart. His words, His love, were still alive if only in her heart. Her fountain was not dry.

   She picked up her empty water pot and looked towards Jacob’s well. “Thank you, Sarah, for telling me. Go in peace.”

   She walked away, head spinning, heart aching, thoughts racing, but her eyes now strangely dry. Her back was not bent down. Her head was high.

   As her friend walked away, courage suddenly flooded Sarah’s heart. Before she knew it, she called out, “Photini, wait. There is something I haven’t told you,” Sarah’s voice was trembling more than ever. “Something I scarcely believe myself. I was afraid to tell you, because you may not believe it.”

   The older woman turned.

   She listened.

   She ... She ...    BELIEVED!

 

“Famous Last Words”

You know that Jesus had seven famous last words that He uttered from the cross.

As we are in Holy Week this week, it would be a good time to see what Jesus said in his own “darkest hour”: The hours on the cross.

The President and others are saying that this week could be our darkest hours of this coronavirus crisis. What did Jesus do when things quite literally got dark?

From the cross, Jesus’s final words are a quote from Psalm 31: 5, saying “Father into Your hands I commend my Spirit,” and with that, He gave up His Spirit to God.

From His final utterance, I want to ask First Baptist Church, Killeen this question: “Is there someone you really trust?”

Read Psalm 31 and as you meditate on it, ask yourself, “Why would Christ quote this verse, this chapter, as His final word?”

¹ In You, O LORD, I put my TRUST; ​​Let me never be ashamed; ​​Deliver me in Your righteousness. ^{2 ​​}Bow down Your ear to me, ​​Deliver me speedily; ​​Be my rock of refuge, ​​A fortress of defense to save me. ​

³ ​​For You are my rock and my fortress; ​​Therefore, for Your name’s sake, ​​Lead me and guide me. ⁴ ​​Pull me out of the net which they have secretly laid for me, ​​For You are my strength.”

And here Jesus quotes the Psalm as His final utterance of His final seven utterances.

“⁵ ​​Into Your hand I commit my spirit; ​​You have redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.”

If you haven’t seen why Christ would find refuge in this Psalm, then keep reading. See if this is also a psalm we can claim for our times of distress.

^{​ 6} ​​I have hated those who regard useless idols; ​​But I TRUST in the LORD. ⁷ ​​I will be glad and rejoice in Your mercy, ​​For You have considered my trouble; ​​You have known my soul in adversities, ⁸ ​​And have not shut me up into the hand of the enemy; ​​You have set my feet in a wide place.

 ^{​ 9} ​​Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am in trouble; ​​My eye wastes away with grief, ​​Yes, my soul and my body! ¹⁰ ​​For my life is spent with grief, ​​And my years with sighing; ​​My strength fails because of my iniquity, ​​And my bones waste away. ¹¹ ​​I am a reproach among all my enemies, ​​But especially among my neighbors, ​​And am repulsive to my acquaintances; ​​Those who see me outside flee from me.

 ¹² ​​I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind; ​​I am like a broken vessel. ¹³ ​​For I hear the slander of many; ​​Fear is on every side; ​​While they take counsel together against me, ​​They scheme to take away my life.

 ^{​ 14} ​​But as for me, I TRUST in You, O LORD; ​​I say, “You are my God.” ^{15 ​}​My times are in Your hand; ​​Deliver me from the hand of my enemies, ​​And from those who persecute me. ¹⁶ ​​Make Your face shine upon Your servant; ​​Save me for Your mercies’ sake.

 ¹⁷ ​​Do not let me be ashamed, O LORD, for I have called upon You; ​​Let the wicked be ashamed; ​​Let them be silent in the grave. ¹⁸ ​​Let the lying lips be put to silence, ​​Which speak insolent things proudly and contemptuously against the righteous.

 ​ ¹⁹ ​​Oh, how great is Your goodness, ​​Which You have laid up for those who fear You, ​​Which You have prepared for those who TRUST in You ​​In the presence of the sons of men! ²⁰ ​​You shall hide them in the secret place of Your presence ​​From the plots of man; ​​You shall keep them secretly in a pavilion ​​From the strife of tongues.

 ​ ²¹ ​​Blessed be the LORD, ​​For He has shown me His marvelous kindness in a strong city! ²² ​​For I said in my haste, ​​“I am cut off from before Your eyes”; ​​Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications ​​When I cried out to You.

 ​ ²³ ​​Oh, love the LORD, all you His saints! ​​For the LORD preserves the faithful, ​​And fully repays the proud person. ²⁴ ​​Be of good courage, ​​And He shall strengthen your heart, ​​All you who hope in the LORD.

Your “Trust” is a precious gift, to be given out with great discretion. “Trust,” “hope,” “faith”, and “belief” are beautiful gifts and themes presented throughout the Bible. It is God’s “gold standard,” His “benchmark” by which all other things should be measured against. Few psalms speak more about trust than Psalm 31 and several psalms following this one.

We should be cautious on giving our trust but the person we should be the most suspicious of is the person we see every day in the mirror, and by that of course I mean, we should not trust in ourselves! We don’t want to let down our guard around others but how often have we let our own selves down?

A better place to anchor our hope is not with others and not within but rather of course with God. Be sure, others will let you down and you will let your own self down. And in all honesty, there are times when we feel God has let us down.

So, what do we do? Go back to trusting ourselves or our health or our wealth? Should we anchor our faith in our loved ones or our philosophy or our government, or, God forbid, our political party?

How’s that working for you?

Even if that works for a while, eventually everything EXCEPT the Lord will fade away. David saw that self-reliance was futile, his body was weakening; his soul was tiring; those around him were falling. “But as for me I trust in You O Lord.”

This psalm begins with trusting God, using two different Hebrew words four different times to convey trust (verses 1 and 19 convey "protection"; verses 6 and 14 emphasize "confidence").

And the psalm ends with a close cousin to trust: hope. “​​Be of good courage, ​​And He shall strengthen your heart, ​​All you who hope in the LORD.”

A good way to remember in Whom we should trust is to spell out the word FAITH this way:

Forsaking All, I Trust Him.

Jesus did this. Should not we also?