Revelation 3:7-13
[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.’
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
Some Christians seem to live a proper religious life, but are found suffering from various trials from the inside.
Some others gossip, measure, judge and condemn them, thinking, “Those suffering Christians may have committed sins before God,” or “They have tried to be commended by the people around them.”
Of course, when the children of God keep His word and live in the truth, God protects them and trials and afflictions will leave them.
Just as said in 1 Corinthians 10:13, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it,” when they face trials, God causes everything to work for the good for them.
So, if you fail to be protected by God and suffer trials and afflictions, you have to look back and examine if you have walked the right ways.
But sometimes you may face trials even if you have lived a proper religious life.
This is allowed because God wishes to give you blessing.
This is conformed through the results. The results reveal that the trials are not due to the disciple of God or the failure in His protection.
That’s why when you see a person suffering trials you should not judge him from his outside and say you are measuring with the truth.
For example, when Daniel was cast into the lion’s den he seemed to suffer from afflictions, but as that result he was greatly promoted to higher position than before and glorified God.
When Joseph was sold into slavery to a strange land and later was wrongfully sent to prison, he seemed to suffer from trials from the fleshly viewpoint, this was allowed to him under the providence of God who planned to let Joseph become the ruler after the king of Egypt and to set up the foundations of Israel.
So, these trials did not result in only personal blessing to Joseph but great glorification to God.
It is the same when faithful Christians are persecuted and even martyred.
It is not because they fail to be protected by God. The fact is that they have overcome the trials.
When they are martyred in the name of Our Lord, they are proven to lay down their lives to keep their faith. So they can enter at least the 3rd kingdom of heaven.
As written in Romans 8:18, “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us,” they can receive the glory that cannot be compared with passing sufferings on earth.
On the contrary, those who fail to overcome the temptations will deny the Lord and leave the church because of the fear of death when they meet the hour of testing.
When will the hour of testing come upon them?
“The hour of testing” refers to “the time when the enemy devil and Satan bring all kinds of afflictions and trials on those who go astray from the truth and betray the Lord.
This time of testing indicates in more detail the time during the 7 years of Great Tribulation as said in the following Verse 10, “that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
Thus, if you live in this end time of the world, you have to stay awake and lead a sober life of faith so that you may not fall into the time of testing.
In the end time of the world, if you only attend the church but stay away from the word of God and befriend the world, you will fail to be lifted up into the air and instead fall into the 7 years of Great Tribulation when our Lord comes.
But if you keep the word of perseverance, you will not only escape form the time of testing but also enter the 7 years of Wedding Banquet held into the air along with the Lord.
This evident difference between both of them depends on your choice and you have to take the responsibility in the result for ever more.
The following Verse 11 says, “‘I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
The promise of our Lord saying “I am coming quickly!” not only applied 2,000 years ago but also is the same today.
Some people ask why Jesus’ coming is slower than He promised even though He said he is coming quickly. But in reality this word has not failed to be fulfilled. It has been fulfilled to so many people for about 2000 years.
Most of people live a short life of 70 or 80 years on earth if they are healthy and then must meet the Lord who said “I am coming quickly.”
Of course, the saved people alone could meet the Lord, but the last moment when all men draw their last indicates the time when He promised to come quickly.
2 Peter 3:9-10 gives us the account of those who think the coming of the Lord is slow.
The Verses say, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”
So, you must not think the coming of the Lord is slow but prepare yourself enough to receive the Lord at any time.
In fact, the symptoms of the last days of the world recorded in the Bible are taking place at many places of the globe. You have to remember that the promise of the quick coming of our Lord will be fulfilled very soon.
Our Lord said, “I am coming quickly!” and added, “Hold fast what you have, so that no one will take your crown.”
Our Lord once told the church in Thyatira, “Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I come.” Here He meant that they should keep their faiths that they had so that they might not lose the chance of salvation.
When our Lord told the church in Philadelphia, “Hold fast what you have,” He did not mean that they should be careful about their salvation.
The members of the church in Philadelphia kept the word of God since the faith of new believers. So, when our Lord told them to hold fast what they had, He meant that they should fulfill their God-given duties properly so that they would be able to receive the crowns and rewards that God promised to give them in heaven.
If they steadfastly ran the race of faith as they had done until then, they would be awarded amazing crowns in heaven. So our Lord warned them that they would lose the crowns if they changed in the middle.
Was it possible for the crowns to be taken away?
Yes they are.
Of course, once you go into heaven, the crowns you have already received will never be taken away.
But this is a totally different story on earth. When you fail to fulfill your God-given duties or when you abandon the duties or change in the middle, the duties may be handed over to another person. Then the crowns that you will receive for the duties in heaven will be taken away from you.
If you really believe, hope for heaven, and even long to enter New Jerusalem, you must neither neglect your God-given duties nor give them up in the middle so that you will not lose the crowns promised for the duties.
If you have performed your God-given duties with insincere heart thinking, “No one but me can do this!” you must remember that the lampstand can be removed out of its place and stay awake lest you should lose the first fervor and deeds for the duties.
God never ceases fulfilling His works. When the first man fails to fulfill the duties, our God who knows everything has already prepared for another person and accomplishes His works in any circumstances.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
But God does not take over your God-given duties to another person unconditionally because you have been poor at the duties.
He surely and repeatedly gives you more chances for you to recover.
But if you have stayed the same despite these many more chances, God will replace you by another person for the kingdom of God.
Through this message, if you find that you have failed to fulfill your God-given duties properly, please determine to do them with a new mind.
What is more important is that even if you have abandoned the world and run the race of faith with the hope for heaven, you should always stay awake so that you may not look at the world again and destroy all the rewards you have built up to this day.
Suppose you can enter at least the 3rd kingdom of heaven if you are as faithful as ever before. But when you commit the sins that lead to death, even if you repent and turn from the sins, you have to start with the faith by which you can enter Paradise.
You are forced to destroy everything that you have stored, and make the Father God so sorrowful. You came near falling into hell. So, if you have true faith, how foolish and stubborn you were when you did it!
If you have just repented and turned from it, it’s good and you need to look to the kingdom of heaven alone with a more burning heart than ever before and run this race of faith with a new and fresh heart.
You feel sorry and regrettable for your past life, but you must not only deplore it with a sigh.
You can restore everything if you succeed in receiving the grace of God, and moreover you can look up to and hope for New Jerusalem again and run this face of faith according to your attitude.
That’s why I have always prayed and petitioned to our Father God.
Our Father God has commissioned me the task to lead as many souls into New Jerusalem, and I want to guide a more single soul there at any rate.
When I find a person who has a possibility of going into New Jerusalem, I harbor that person in my heart and pray for him to take him into New Jerusalem.
But if the person falls out of the path to New Jerusalem in the middle, could you imagine how pitiable and tearful my heart is?
I offer God tearful prayers for him and petition for one more chance.
Thus, I have harbored as many souls in my heart and pressed on toward New Jerusalem.
In fact, whenever I meet new souls who are worthy to enter New Jerusalem, I gain great joy and contentment and run this race with happiness.
Therefore, I pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that all of you listening to this message will never lose the crowns that will be given you but more powerfully press on toward New Jerusalem with the hope for the beautiful crowns you will receive!
The first half of the following Verse 12 says, “‘He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore.”
The temple of My God here indicates the place housing the throne of God – New Jerusalem. So, this verse means that he who overcomes will become a pillar in New Jerusalem.
Without a pillar no house can stand but surely falls down. If you become a pillar in New Jerusalem, it is a great blessing to you as a grave foundation.
You know how blessed it is to enter New Jerusalem. How far greater and more amazing blessing it is to become a pillar therein!
But this blessing is not given anyone but only him who overcomes.
The members of the church in Philadelphia had a little faith, but kept the word of God and never denied the name of the Lord.
Accordingly, as their faiths grew, they could practice the truths unchangingly and reach complete sanctification.
And they could faithfully fulfill their God-given duties.
This is the life of him who overcomes, and furthermore he whose faith is recognized as perfect by the Lord will become a pillar of New Jerusalem.
This is the same to all of you.
You members of Manmin Joong-ang Church have tried your best to live by the word of God and struggled against sins that God detests and cast away them to the point of shedding the blood, and clung to fasting and prayers to get rid of every form of evil whenever it is found.
You have loved God more than anything else, so you have loved the church and the shepherd as thus and dedicated everything you possessed to His kingdom by sparing something to eat and wear.
You have gathered at the temple of God and concentrated on prayers. You have been assigned a few tasks, but you have been thankful and faithfully fulfilled the tasks and felt sorry for not being more faithful.
When the church was faced with trials and persecutions, you overcame them by looking to the heavenly rewards, and moreover sacrificed everything to keep the church, the shepherd and your brothers and sisters in faith.
Each of you can bear the witness to each other about how much you have loved God and how faithful toy have been to His kingdom.
Our God knew the future of Manmin Joong-ang Church when the church was founded, and gave us the same promise that God had given to the church in Philadelphia.
God is not a man, that He should lie, Nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? To accomplish His promise God has refined you and made you proper vessels for New Jerusalem.
God has given us special graces as much as He has given us special tasks, so you could hold fast the word of God and strengthened you to walk this way.
It was not easy for you to walk this way to this day, but God has manifested countless wonders and signs and tangible evidences for your faith in Him so that you could run with an unchanging faith.
No matter how much grace God has given you, however, if you fail to hold fast His promise and keep your hearts, the promises of blessing will be taken away.
But in our church God shows the love transcending justice and takes care of this church with that love until the last moment. In such a love He does not want a single soul to go astray from the boundary of this blessing.
Therefore, when you believe and rely on the word of God and faithfully and unchangingly fulfill your God-given duties until the last moment when the given word is made real, you can receive the crowns promised and never fail to take them.
May all of you overcome to the last moment and sit on the blessed positions, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ I pray!
The second half of Verse 12 says, “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.”
This verse says that God guarantees and conforms His promise in the names of God, New Jerusalem and our Lord.
For you to become a pillar is not accomplished by your desire but only when God the LORD of hosts recognizes you in His name.
And also it will be possible when you are sealed by the name of New Jerusalem and then new name of our Lord is written on you.
The new name of our Lord is “The King of kings and the Lord of lords.”
Philippians 2:9-11 proclaim to us, “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” When Jesus completed the providence of human salvation by redeeming us from our sins, resurrected and ascended into heaven, He was awarded the new of glory “King of kings and Lord of lords.”
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
How many efforts and endurances do people have to enjoy passing and temporal comforts and honors on earth?
How much more patiently can you endure and overcome just passing trials if you become a pillar in the eternal New Jerusalem?
Jerusalem was the capital city of Israel and the king dwelled in it.
In the city of Jerusalem was the Holy Temple of God and all sacrifices were offered to Him there. I a word, God was enthroned in it.
New Jerusalem is for ever unlike Jerusalem on earth will disappear in the end.
Just as recorded in Revelation 21:1-2, “Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth passed away, and there is no longer any sea. And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready as a bride adorned for her husband,” Our God Himself resides in the Holy City of New Jerusalem that is everlasting Jerusalem.
New Jerusalem is allowed to enter only those who are qualified – those who holy and perfect like our God.
The name of New Jerusalem will not be used in heaven anymore.
The word “New” is added before “Jerusalem” because you can understand that it does not refer to the city of Jerusalem but the heavenly residence God dwells in.
The official name of New Jerusalem is the “City of Glory.”
It is named “the “City of Glory” because only those who have thrown away all their sins, become wholly sanctified and only glorified God enter there and they enjoy the glory our God gives them for ever more.
In order for you to enter the City of Glory you have to accomplish whole sanctification and be faithful in all the houses of God.
The aroma of your faithfulness is totally different between when you have not become sanctified but struggled against sins and when you have accomplished complete sanctification and become holy in the truth.
Our Father God will bring men of whole spirit into New Jerusalem, and share eternal lover with them and enjoy their beautiful incenses.
The promise of this hope does not apply only to the church in Philadelphia but to all the churches and children who do like the church in Philadelphia and its members.
In the last verse 13 our Lord concluded His message on the church in Philadelphia, saying, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
With this same word that He has given the seven churches, the meaning is different to each of them.
Regarding the messages, our Lord warns some churches not to miss what He reproached and advised them but to necessarily reach salvation by keeping them in their mind, and urges other churches THAT are awake to hold fast the words they have listened to and accomplish the words of promise.
When our Lord gave this word of blessing to the church in Philadelphia, it was not only for the church but for many other more churches that look at and resemble the church in Philadelphia.
He really meant that Our God recognizes and works for the churches which take after the church of Philadelphia as recorded in the Bible and they have to remember something.
If ant church is awake by the work of the Holy Spirit, they must say any word that is against the church that does its ministries like the church in Philadelphia.
Because such a church as has spiritual ears and hears the words of the Holy Spirit, it never speaks against, opposes and disgraces the Holy Spirit toward the churches that God is with and is accompanied with works of the Holy Spirit.
It is because the Holy Spirit does not allow them do the sins.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ
What is your biggest desire?
I’m sure that you will give me the answer “new Jerusalem.”
But not everyone can enter there.
You cannot enter there if you do not have enough faith and are not faithful to the utmost degree.
You have to accomplish complete sanctification without any form evil and be faithful in everything you do to the point of death. You can enter there only with the highest level of faith.
But you cannot raise your faith up to that level in a day and it cannot be done only with your strength either.
In the Bible those fathers of faith who were considered to be worthy of entering New Jerusalem came forth as pure gold through severe trials in the providence of God, and fulfilled their God-given duties that could not be done by common people to the point of death.
Only then could they become qualified to enter New Jerusalem.
Today our God has given you members of Manmin Joong-ang Church the hope for New Jerusalem.
He has not given you only the promise of New Jerusalem but led you in detail so that you can enter there.
He has helped you discover sinful natures hidden deep within you that you cannot find for yourselves and throw them away through the messages of sanctification, and them He opened the way to sanctification for you.
And He has guided you to be faithful in all the houses of God including the construction of the Grand Sanctuary and accomplishment of world mission.
These two missions can be done only through unshaken and perfect faith and life-giving and spiritual faithfulness. So, the very reason that God has given you these two tasks is because of His providence by which He leads you into New Jerusalem.
To the extent to which you become sanctified and love and trust God, the more prefect faith is given you for the construction of the Grand Sanctuary and world mission.
Only with this perfect faith can you fully fulfill the missions to the point of death.
In the end, the two missions – the construction of the Grand Sanctuary and world mission cam be accomplished through those who possess perfect faith and are faithful to the point of death.
And those of you who will participate in those ministries will be qualified to enter New Jerusalem.
As I have sometimes told you “All brothers and sisters, let’s cheer up!”
I eagerly wish for all of you to fight the good fight and finish the course, and then dwell in the glory of Nee Jerusalem.
I pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that the promise of God saying “I will make you a pillar in New Jerusalem” may be fully fulfilled on you in the names of God and New Jerusalem and in the new name of our Lord.
Amen