| The Christian Life | June 1944 |
To Him That Overcometh
“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the Churches.”—Revelation 2:7
THE words of our text are addressed by Jesus to the church at Ephesus. The second and third chapters of Revelation record special messages to seven churches of Asia Minor. It has long been believed by earnest students of the Bible that these messages are intended to have a much wider application than merely to the seven comparatively small groups of Christians to which they were originally addressed. In our text the word church is in the plural, which in itself indicates that what is said to each of the congregations named in these two chapters applies in a general way to all.
Prophetically, “these divine messages apply to seven stages in the development of the one church. The warnings and condemnations are usually to the nominal church, and the promises to the overcomers—the true church of Christ. It is not our purpose to discuss in this article these messages from the standpoint of their special application to the various stages of the church, but rather, to examine their general character and application to the church as a whole.
Truth in the abstract is difficult to understand, even when it pertains to matters in the natural realm, and it would have been quite impossible for us to comprehend the spiritual things of God except that He has aided us by making His Word replete with illustrations. It is in keeping with the Lord’s custom of illustrating truth that the messages to the seven churches are associated with experiences and viewpoints with which the ecclesias in the various cities named were acquainted. This does not change the prophetic significance of the messages, but does help to enhance our appreciation of the truths thus presented.
Asia Minor
It was in the portion of Asia Minor which formed the Roman Province of Asia that the seven cities were located in which were the churches to whom the messages were sent. The Province of Asia is referred to many times in the Book of Acts, as well as in the epistles written by Paul. In Acts 19:10 we read, “All they which dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus.” In I Corinthians 16:19, Paul tells the Corinthian brethren that the churches of Asia salute them. In Paul’s farewell epistle to Timothy, written from prison in Rome, he says, “All they which are in Asia be turned away from me.”—II Tim. 1:15
This cooling of interest on the part of the churches in Asia may partially explain why they were selected to he the recipients of the special messages contained in the Apocalypse. Their partial falling away from faith and zeal made them apt representatives of conditions that developed in the entire professing church of Christ as it became farther removed in time from the inspired and courageous leadership of the apostles.
The Spirit that Saith
To a considerable extent a letter is meaningful and valuable in proportion to our knowledge of the one who wrote it, and this is true of the messages sent to the seven churches of Asia. The author of these messages is said to be the “Spirit,” but in connection with nearly all the messages, the Spirit is identified as being none other than the resurrected Jesus, who in various symbolic ways introduces Himself to John in the first chapter of the book.
In the first sentence of the chapter we are made to understand that what follows is “the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Then follow various phrases descriptive of the resurrected Jesus, one or more of which is usually repeated at the beginning of the epistles ordered to be sent to the individual churches. Verse 4 says of Him that He is the One, “Which was, and is to come.” In 5th verse He is described as “the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.” In this same verse He is also said to be the one who “loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.”
Jesus also describes Himself to be the “Alpha and Omega, the first and the last.” (Verse 11) In verse 13 John speaks of the Master as being in the “midst of the seven candlesticks,” and “like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle.” Then, in verses 14 and 15, John continues his description, saying that “His head and His hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire; and His feet like unto fine brass, as if they burned in a furnace; and His voice as the sound of many waters.”
In verse 16 we read that Jesus “had in His right hand seven stars: and out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword: and His countenance was as the sun shineth in his strength.” In verse 18 Jesus; identifies Himself still further by saying, “I am He that liveth and was dead; and, behold, I am alive, for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” All these various symbolisms illustrate important truths pertaining to the Master’s association with the divine plan.
The resplendent One who was seen walking amidst the candlesticks was identified by John as He “which was, and which is to come.” John, the dearly beloved disciple of Jesus, saddened by the crucifixion, later outran Peter in his anxiety to reach the tomb, having heard that His Master had been raised from the dead. The few occasions thereafter when Jesus appeared to His disciples must have been all to brief to satisfy John’s longings to be with Him and to know Him better. Then Jesus went away, promising, nevertheless, to come again. All of the wondrous pictures shown John on the Isle of Patmos served to increase his longing for the Master’s return, and expressing his own reactions to the vision, he says, “Even so, come [quickly] Lord Jesus.”—Rev. 22:20
John further describes Jesus as “the faithful witness.” This takes our minds back to the time when the Master was before Pilate, and Caesar’s representative inquired, “Art Thou a king then?” Jesus’ reply, “To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto the truth,” was a fitting climax to a whole life of witnessing for the truth concerning the preparation and establishment of the Messianic Kingdom.—John 18:37
During the three and a half years of Jesus’ ministry, He taught the disciples to hope for a share in His Kingdom reign. They looked upon Him as being the great King of earth, and because of His teachings, they expected to share His glory, to shine forth with Him as the sun in the Kingdom of the Father. So it was with this hope in his heart that John identified Jesus as being “the prince of the kings of the earth.” John realized that the one talking to him was none other than He who had invited His disciples to suffer with Him in order that they might reign with Him as kings.
Judging from John’s epistles, he evidently was keenly appreciative of the cleansing effect of Jesus’ blood. “If any man sin,” he writes, “we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (I John 2:1) John looked upon this wonderful arrangement as a special evidence of God’s love, and so it was natural that he should emphasize this manifestation of divine grace in explaining the origin of the wonderful visions he was about to relate.
As the message unfolds, Jesus reveals Himself to John as “The First and the Last.” This truth is abundantly substantiated in the Scriptures. He was the only direct creation of His Father, and thereafter all things that were created were made by Him. From John’s own treatise on this point, recorded in the first chapter of his Gospel, we know that he would instantly recognize these words as applying to none other than his beloved Master.—John 1:1-3; Col. 1:16
As John “turned to see the voice that spake,” he saw One like unto the Son of man in the midst of the seven candlesticks. His apparel and the description of His appearance are intended to be symbolic of His characteristics, and of His part in the outworking of God’s great plan of the ages. His head and hair as white as wool tell us of His wisdom. They speak also of His splendor and purity. His eyes like a flame of fire suggest that our Master is all-seeing, omniscient, that He is not deceived by outward forms or ceremonies, but can and does read every thought and intent of the heart.
The Majestic One in the midst of the candlesticks is represented as being like the sun. When John saw this glorious One, the splendor was so great that he fell as dead before Him. So should it be with us, symbolically speaking, when we glimpse the glories of the divine character, through an understanding of the divine plan, our only proper reaction is that we, as it were, “fall as dead” before the Lord. This we do by making a full consecration of our all to follow faithfully in the footsteps of Jesus, even unto death.
Jesus touched John gently, raising him up. So with us, He has spoken wondrous words of comfort, peace and love, assuring us of the glorious hope of the heavenly calling, and that by His grace we receive an assurance of having a High Priest that has been touched with a feeling of our infirmities, One who is able to sympathize and mercifully to assist. We are called to be joint-heirs with Jesus and are assured of acceptance as members of His body so long as we abide in Him, seeking in our hearts to know and do His will.
The attitude of the glorious One toward John would inspire confidence and allay fear—although the expression, “Fear not,” does not appear in the older manuscripts. Isaiah 29:13 tells us that fear toward God “is taught by the precept of men.” When we come to know the attributes of God’s character and our blessed privileges in Christ, we realize that there is indeed nothing to fear. Love, not fear, is the motive which God desires shall inspire our hearts—love for Him, for His Son, for the brethren, and for all mankind. Jesus wanted John to know that even in the startling revelation of things to come which were about to be revealed to him, there was nothing for the Lord’s people to fear; that eventually, while the beast would make war with the Lamb, yet the Lamb would overcome the beast, and that out from the throne of God and the Lamb would finally flow the river of life for the everlasting blessing of all mankind.
“I am the First and the Last,” Jesus repeats, “He that, liveth and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.” How important it is to our understanding of God’s will and the faithful performance of our part in the divine plan, that we recognize Jesus as the One who was dead, the One who really died for our sins, and who was actually raised out of death by the power of the Father. It is fundamental to true Christian faith that we recognize Him as being alive for evermore, that death has no more dominion over Him, that the work of providing the ransom, a substitute for the sins of Adam and the world, is finished, that nothing more is needed or ever will be needed to release man from Adamic condemnation.
It is essential also to a proper appreciation of the divine plan in its fullness, to realize that Jesus has the “keys of hell and of death,” that He is, as the apostle tells us in Romans 14:9, the One who has power over the dead and the living. Yes, Ile is able not only to set the church free from the dominion of sin and death, but in due time He will deliver all mankind from death and into the blessed liberty of the sons of God.—Rom. 8:21
It is this glorious One, having all these wonderful characteristics, and equipped in the fullest sense to accomplish all the beneficent features of the divine plan, who spoke to John and instructed him to write down the vision for the benefit of the whole church. He is our Instructor, our Caretaker, the One who is in the midst of the candlesticks, symbolic of the entire church in its various stages of development.
We are to recognize also that He holds in His right hand—to protect and use in harmony with His own blessed will—the seven stars, that is, the angels, or messengers, to the seven churches. The special commission given to them indicates clearly that they are additional servants to those mentioned by Paul as pastors, teachers and evangelists. They are apparently special light-bearers intended to be used of the Lord in each of the church’s seven phases of development throughout the Gospel Age.
The Church at Ephesus
The first special message of the Apocalypse was to be given to the messenger of the “church of Ephesus.” In giving it, Jesus speaks of Himself as the One that “holdeth the seven stars in His right hand.” Thus He assures the church at Ephesus, and all the churches, that while He uses human agencies as the channel of His truth, He, nevertheless, is the inspiration of the messages, and that they should be received and acted upon as such. He reveals Himself in this message as the One whose eyes were as a flame of fire; that is, the all-seeing One. While He declares His knowledge of the works and labor and of patience in the church at Ephesus, He could also see other conditions existent in that ecclesia—that there were some who claimed to be apostles, who were actually false shepherds of the flock.
Some time previous to this, the Apostle Paul, in an impassioned plea to the elders at Ephesus, warned them that of their own selves men would arise to draw away disciples after them. Paul, speaking under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, foretold the development of this condition, and Jesus, from the other side of the veil, identifies the fulfillment of Paul’s prophecy.—Acts 20:28-31
There was much in the ecclesia at Ephesus which the Lord could commend, even as there has been much in the church throughout the entire age that has had His approval. There were some there who had patience, and for His name’s sake had enthusiastically and untiringly labored. They had “not fainted,” or, as the apostle mentions in his letter to the Galatians, become “weary in well doing.”—Gal. 6:9
“Nevertheless,” Jesus said “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” This agrees well with Paul’s statement in his letter to Timothy that “all they which are in Asia” had turned away from him: Their first-love enthusiasm in hearing the Gospel from Paul and others, had cooled. When persecution came, they were not prepared to bear up under the scorn and difficulties entailed in being true followers of the Master.
Jesus bids them to remember from whence they were fallen, and to repent and to do the first works. This admonition, appropriate enough for Ephesus, has been essential for the entire church. It is one to which the Lord’s true people today should give heed. There is no reason at all, from God’s standpoint, why any of the consecrated should not continue rejoicing in the Lord and in His truth, and be as zealous in its service throughout their entire Christian way as they were at the beginning. And yet, how often it is true that we find ourselves resting upon our laurels, feeling that we have done our bit, that it is no longer essential to lay down our lives in the service of the Master and build up the brethren in the most holy faith. There is only one cure for this unhealthy spiritual condition in the Christian life, and that is a returning to our first love, devotion and zeal.
Another commendable condition in the church at Ephesus was the brethren’s hatred for the deeds of the Nicolaitans. Just what Jesus refers to is somewhat obscure, due to lack of authentic historical records. Apparently, however, the sect of the Nicolaitans did not adhere to what had been decided by the apostles at Jerusalem as advisable in the early church, namely, abstaining from meat offered to idols, and from fornication.
Later in the Book of Revelation, spiritual fornication is brought to our attention, and in such a way that there is no question but that it refers to the union of the church with the state. The eating of meat offered to idols would perhaps be symbolic of the idolatrous practices of the apostate church in connection with her unholy union with the state. The falling away of the church from the purity of the Gospel was beginning in the apostle’s day, and perhaps at Ephesus some of the brethren with clearer vision than others saw the trend of events, and realized the error of the views that were finding expression among the people of God.
Then comes the special promise of the Master to the overcomers of the church at Ephesus—and to the overcomers, also, of the entire church. Jesus said that to such He would “give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” The Emphatic Diaglott translation of this promise gives the word “wood” instead of tree. Jesus is explaining that the overcomers together with Him, will participate in God’s program of blessing the world by becoming a part of the trees of life that will supply food and healing for the nations.
In the promises made to the overcomers in these messages to the seven churches, various phases of what is involved in joint-heirship with Christ are emphasized. In the promise to the church at Ephesus, it is the privilege of sharing with Him in dispensing life to a dying world that is presented as the incentive to faithfulness. In the last chapter of the Apocalypse, fruition of this hope is described. In connection with that beautiful symbolism of the river of water of life, with the trees of life bearing their fruit and their leaves, was shown the association of Jesus with His church inviting mankind to come and partake of the water of life freely. What a wonderful prospect!
The Church at Smyrna
To the angel of the church at Smyrna Jesus explains that He is the One who was dead and is alive. In His great wisdom He perceived that conditions in this church made it important that He should emphasize to them the great hope of life that had become a reality by virtue of His death and resurrection. To the overcoming ones in the church at Smyrna, this hope of life is twice emphasized. In verse 10 we have that most familiar, yet always thrilling promise, “Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life,” and in the 11th verse He says to the overcomers that they “shall not be hurt of the second death.”
Archaeology reveals that encircling the hill known as Pagos, in the city of Smyrna, was a ring of magnificent buildings. This was called the “Crown of Smyrna.” To the citizens of Smyrna this was indeed a crowning glory of their city, something in which they all took pride. But Jesus would have His faithful followers know that there is something more upon which to set their affections than merely a crown of beautiful buildings. If they were faithful to Him unto death, they would have a “crown of life.”
The Church at Pergamos
In the symbolic description of the One who dwelt amidst the candlesticks in the first chapter, we are told that from His mouth proceeded a two-edged sword. Jesus refers to this in His message to the angel of the church at Pergamos. Apparently, there was a good reason why this particular characteristic of the Lord should be emphasized here. After telling the church at Pergamos of sins that existed therein, Jesus bids them “Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and fight against them with the sword of my mouth.”
While undoubtedly the need of a strong use of the sword of the Spirit existed in the church at Pergamos, yet is not this also appropriate for the consideration of all the Lord’s people? A proper use of the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, is the divine method of eradicating from our lives, and from our ecclesias, those things which are contrary to the divine will.
Judging from information now available through archaeological discoveries, Jesus’ reference to Pergamos as the location of Satan’s seat can be understood quite literally. One of the reliefs discovered there shows the coils of a great serpent outlining the steps of a staircase leading up to the summit of an altar. It was on this altar that the serpent-god was worshiped. Besides, Pergamos was for a long time the official capital of the province and the chief seat of the Imperial pagan cult. It was in other words, the headquarters of paganism.
As ancient Pergamos was, in this very real way, Satan’s seat, so the Lord uses the situation to illustrate an evil condition that has existed in the entire nominal church. In the beginning, the Son of man sowed the good seed of the Kingdom, but Satan came and sowed the field with tares, so that what started out to be a wheat field has become a field of tares. Throughout a greater part of the age only occasionally have a few grains of wheat succeeded in growing. It is to these faithful few in the church at Pergamos, that the Master conveyed the complimentary remarks of verse 13. They were holding fast to His name. They had not denied His faith. Some had apparently already sacrificed their lives in their faithfulness to the Lord and to His truth.
But the remainder are represented in verse 14 as holding to the doctrine of Balaam, “who taught Balak to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel.” The unfaithful in the church also countenanced the eating of things sacrificed unto idols, and committing fornication. Thus the conditions in the church at Pergamos were symbolic of the idolatrous attitude of the entire nominal church.
To the overcomers, the promise is made by the Lord that He would give them “to eat of the hidden manna,” and also that they would receive a white stone in which would be written a “new name”—a name that would be known to none other except “he that receiveth it.” (Verse 17) The hidden manna is a symbol of immortality. Typically, the promise takes us back to the golden bowl of manna that was kept in the ark of the testimony under the mercy seat in the Most Holy of the tabernacle. The daily manna with which the Lord fed the Israelites during their wilderness journey needed to be gathered every day, because it would not keep over the second day, except what was gathered on the sixth day, which served over the Sabbath. But the manna that was placed in the golden bowl and hidden under the mercy seat remained uncorrupted, and hence is a very apt symbol of the immortality which will be for those who find the fruition of their hope beyond the veil.—Rom. 2:7; Heb. 6:18,17
The promise of a white stone with a new name inscribed upon it is also very significant. The ancient Greeks and Romans signified and perpetuated friendships by means of a white stone. The stone ordinarily was divided into halves, and each person inscribed his name on the flat surface and then these halves were exchanged. Thus the divided stone became a mark of identification. Kings too, often used this method of identification for their agents seeking aid.
While the promise of this symbolic stone is to the overcomers, there is a sense in which we may think of it as being received at the present time. The apostle says that we have been given an earnest, a down payment, as it were, of the future inheritance. There is an individual and personal relationship between the Lord and the prospective overcomers which exists now, even while this side of the veil. Those who are truly the Lord’s have been sealed by the Holy Spirit, and unless that seal be destroyed through unfaithfulness they will actually enter into the presence of our Lord in glory, having this symbolic white stone as an identification, or token, of their true relationship to Him.
The Church at Thyatira
In giving His message to the angel of the church at Thyatira, the “Son of God” identified Himself as the One “Who hath His eyes like unto a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass.” There seems to be a special fitness in associating these two qualities with the message to the overcomers in Thyatira. In verse 23, Jesus says: “I am He which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.” It is because, symbolically speaking, the Master has eyes as a flame of fire that He is able thus to search the hearts of His people. Not only is He able thus to search our hearts, but in His great all-seeing wisdom He is able to watch over our interests, and guide us safely to the end of the way, if we put our trust in Him.
The promise of ultimate reward to the overcomers reads, “He that overcometh, and keepeth My works unto the end, to Him will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of My Father.” It may be that this promise of power over the nations, and of breaking them to pieces as a potter’s vessel in co-operation with Jesus, to whom the commission was originally given, is in some way associated with His symbolic feet of brass.
The term “feet,” as used pictorially in the Scriptures, has a variety of meaning. We walk in the footsteps of Jesus—that’s one of the thoughts associated with it. The church at the end of the age constitutes the feet members of the body of Christ—that’s another thought. In connection with this is the prophecy of Isaiah 52:7, “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace,” etc. This, however, could hardly be the thought in the message to the church at Thyatira. Jesus, the One who gives the message, is the One who has the feet of brass, and the message is given to His body members.
Another symbolic thought attached to the feet of our Lord is that He treadeth the winepress of the wrath of God. This treading of the winepress is closely associated with the breaking to pieces of the nations as a potter’s vessel. As the mention of His eyes as flames of fire is associated with His ability to search the reins and hearts of His people, it seems reasonable that He emphasizes His possession of the feet of brass as symbolic of the fact that to Him has been given the privilege of treading down the nations. Having received this power for Himself, He is promising to share it with His faithful overcoming followers. See Micah 4:13 for comparison.
Jesus’ promise to the overcomers at Thyatira presents another viewpoint of the reward of joint-heirship to be received by all overcomers. To the church at Ephesus was emphasized the privilege of sharing with Christ in dispensing life-giving fruit to the world. To Smyrna was promised the crown of life. To Pergamos the promise has to do directly with the hope of immortality, the hidden manna. And now to Thyatira another aspect of the Christian’s reward is emphasized; namely, that of sharing with Christ in the Kingdom rule which will put all enemies under His feet.
But not all in Thyatira were overcomers. The faithful were commended for their works of charity and service and faith and patience. These commendable things did not lapse in the lives of the faithful at Thyatira, but as Jesus emphasized, were more in evidence at the last than at the first. Unlike the church at Ephesus, they had not lost their first love, but had maintained throughout all their experiences that important characteristic.
“Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee,” the Master declares, in speaking to the unfaithful in this church, “because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel … to teach and to seduce My servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.” Here is another reference to a corrupt condition that was developing in the church In the Old Testament type; we find Elijah, a faithful prophet of the Lord, being persecuted by Jezebel and her husband, Ahab, the king of Israel. It is one of God’s own illustrations of the illicit union between the church and the civil powers which throughout the Dark Ages was so instrumental in persecuting the true people of God, pictured by Elijah.
The Lord says that He gave Jezebel a chance to repent, but she repented not, and He declares that because of her failure to repent He would cast her into a bed together with those with whom she had committed adultery, and upon them all would come great tribulation. This is a prophecy of the great time of trouble already upon the world, which, before it is over, will have brought about the complete destruction of the antitypical Jezebel as well as the rulers of the earth with whom she has been unscripturally united.
As if by contrast to the short-lived satisfaction of the nominal church in her union with civil powers, the Lord gives an additional incentive for faithfulness to the overcomers by saying, “I will give him the Morning Star.” In Revelation 22:16, Jesus identifies Himself as the Morning Star, so in this promise He is reminding the overcomers that their hope is to be united with Him in the glory of the Kingdom. Their great joy will be in possessing Him as their heavenly Bridegroom, and being made with Him a part of that holy city that cometh down from God out of heaven.—Rev. 21:1-4
The Church at Sardis
The history of Sardis adds special significance to the message dispatched to the ecclesia located there. It was the scene of the defeat and final overthrow of Croesus, the. great Lydian king, by Cyrus, during the sixth century, B.C. Croesus thought himself safe in his citadel, even though Cyrus was marching toward it. So well fortified was it that. he and the people apparently became over-confident, and had neglected to set a proper watch. The upper city was located on a high hill, and could be approached, as was supposed, only by the way of a well fortified road. But there was a weak point on the north side. The rain had washed away a cleft in the soft rock. Discovering this, the Persians, under the leadership of Cyrus, were able, one at a time, to climb up the almost perpendicular cliff which had been left unguarded. When a sufficient number of them had thus secretly gained the summit, they captured the city.
Apparently Cyrus was a past master in the art of surprise warfare. He is the one, it will be remembered, who surprised the king of Babylon by turning aside the waters of the River Euphrates, and marching under the strong gates in the wall of the city through the riverbed, captured that ancient capital of the Babylonian Empire.
There is possibly an allusion to this historical background of Sardis in the voice of warning given to this particular church, the voice which bade them be watchful lest the Lord come upon them unaware. The brethren at Sardis, who doubtless would know of this historical capture of the city by Cyrus, could not fail to be impressed with the importance of the warning.
At the time this message to the church at Sardis was given, the glory of the city had passed away. It had once proudly borne the significant name, “The First Metropolis of Asia, of Lydia, and of the Greeks.” But now, as the Revelator suggests, it was practically dead. Its glory had departed.
It was because the whole nominal church failed to be on the watch that its glory of possessing God’s favor departed. While the conditions described in this message apply particularly to the Sardis stage of the nominal church’s development, it is a condition that has held true as well throughout nearly all of the Gospel age.
In the epistle to Sardis, even as with the preceding four, the manner in which Jesus identifies Himself seems well in keeping with the message itself. To Sardis He wrote, “These things saith He that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars.” The possession of the seven spirits of God would seem to indicate His all-sufficient and perfect wisdom, His wondrous spiritual vision and understanding of the plan of God.
When He bids the church at Sardis to be watchful, He doesn’t mean that they should use their own wisdom or their own natural insight or foresight, but that they should “see” through His eyes. They were to be watchful upon the basis of the study of His words of revelation. By this means they were to be on the alert to know of the conditions by which they could be assured of His presence with them; not to destroy, but to assist, to protect, to comfort, to give them strength in every time of need.
In this message, Jesus is also the One who holds the seven stars in His bands. These seven stars, He explains in chapter 1, represent the messengers to the seven churches. It is particularly appropriate that in the message to Sardis Jesus should emphasize His keeping power, that He is the One who holds the messengers to the churches in His own right hand. As illustrated by the historical background of the city, the spirituality of the church at Sardis was at a low ebb, but the Master assures us, nevertheless, that because He holds the angels of the churches in His hand, the faithful will be kept by His power. They will be sustained and nourished by the meat in due season appropriate to each period of the church, and therefore, as these faithful ones put their trust in Him they may be conquerors, even though the great nominal mass succumb to worldly influences and die.
The promise to the overcomers is appropriate to the conditions described as existing in this church. Many apparently had fallen away from the faith, and thus had lost their standing with the Lord. But this does not mean that all had done so. There were still, as Jesus says, “A few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments.” To these the promise is made, “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot his name out of the book of life, but will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels.” Here, in addition to the assurance of life for the overcomers, is the further glorious prospect of our being ushered into the presence of the Heavenly Father, to be everlastingly members of His immediate family, enjoying His favor, His blessing, His fellowship, because, through Jesus and the merit of His blood, they had been overcomers.
The Church at Philadelphia
The Master’s message to the church at Philadelphia seems to reflect the historical background of that ancient city, as is true with His epistles to the other churches. Philadelphia was situated on one of the greatest trade routes in the country. This may be alluded to in the message, “I have set before thee an open door”—not that the Lord was offering commercial advantages to the church at Philadelphia, but rather, using the thought to picture spiritual opportunities and advantages which were theirs because of their relationship to Him.
Strabo, the historian, tells us that in A.D. 17 the great earthquake which destroyed Sardis was equally disastrous to Philadelphia. He relates that the inhabitants for a long time were so terrified by the destructive earthquakes that they preferred to live outside the walls in the open country, in huts and booths. Those who remained in the city took all the precautions they could to protect themselves from the results of further earthquake shocks by doing their best to strengthen and support the tottering walls.
The promise to the overcomers in Philadelphia has a significant meaning when we associate it with the terrifying memory of those who lived in the city. “To him that overcometh,” Jesus said, “will I make a pillar in the temple of My God.” Here is a promise not only of safety for the overcomers, but also that they were to enjoy the privilege of being a part in the unshakeable temple of God which would give protection and blessing to all nations in God’s due time. The promise further states, “and he shall go no more out,” that is, he will never need to flee for safety because the true temple of God will be among the things that cannot be shaken. It will abide forever.
Prophetically, the Philadelphia stage of the church reaches down into the time of the end, when the great time of tribulation which the prophecies foretold would come upon the whole world, would be imminent. This trouble is symbolically described as an earthquake, hence the significance of the promise made that because the church at Philadelphia had kept the Word of His patience they were to be kept from this hour of temptation—the great tribulation which would mark the end of the age.
The Key of David
In giving His message to the angel of the church at Philadelphia, Jesus said that He was the One who had “the key of David, He that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth and no man openeth.” This is a quotation from Isaiah 22:22. The entire prophecy with which this statement is associated is very revealing. It is a promise that the Lord would clothe His servant—in the prophecy called Eliakim—with the royal robe, and strengthen him with a girdle, and commit to him the government of Israel. It is also said that he should be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah. To this same one the promise is made that the key of the house of David would be placed upon his shoulder, and that he would have the authority to open the house of David and that none would be permitted to shut, and none would be permitted to open. And then, in the 23rd verse, the Lord says, “I will fasten him as a nail in a sure place; and he shall be for a glorious throne to his father’s house.”
While all of this may have taken place on a small scale with Eliakim of old, yet the fact that Jesus quotes from the prophecy and applies it to Himself indicates that its prophetic fulfillment is to be looked for through Him, the real King over the house of David. It is significant, also, that in these opening chapters of Revelation Jesus is described as wearing a robe and a girdle. This apparel, together with the fact that He claims to have the key of David, all tends to identify Him as the Great King of Israel, and of the world.
His possession of the key of the house of David shows that He is the One who is authorized to admit into that house those who are to be joint-heirs with Him. This qualification on the part of the Master is appropriate in the message to the church at Philadelphia because He reveals that many who actually belonged in the synagogue of Satan claimed that they were Jews, that is, that they were members of the house of David. While, as Jesus indicates, these will worship at the feet of the Christ in God’s due time, yet they are not brought into the house as a part of the ruling family.
The prophecy of Isaiah 22 emphasizes divine keeping power over the one upon whose shoulders was placed the key of David. The illustration bringing this to our attention is that of driving a nail in a sure place; and so, appropriately, Jesus, in identifying Himself as the One who possesses the key of David, reminds us of His keeping power. To the church at Philadelphia He writes, “Because thou hast kept the Word of My patience, I also will keep thee.” Prophetically, the Philadelphia stage of the church immediately precedes the period when Christ was to be present at His second advent, hence the special promise to those in Philadelphia is, “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.”
After the great earthquake, Philadelphia was rebuilt, history indicates, by the bounty of the Emperor, and in commemoration of this the city was honored by being allowed to assume the name “Neokaisareia.” This “new name” of the city has been found on coins of the period. It signified that the city was consecrated to the service and worship of the Emperor. Gradually, however, the old name of the city came back into use, and by about A.D. 50 the new name had been entirely dropped. It would therefore be only a memory when the letters to the seven churches were written, and probably the Philadelphians were not especially proud of it.
What a contrast to this was afforded in the promise, “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.” Thus, the Lord promised to the overcomers the privilege of being associated with a city bearing a new name of which they would never he ashamed.
The Church at Laodicea
Laodicea was a wealthy and prosperous city. History reveals that about A.D. 60, when there was another great earthquake which devastated areas of Asia Minor, and many cities required assistance from the Imperial treasury, Laodicea did not need such assistance. From this standpoint the city could claim to be rich, and have need of nothing.
Laodicea was noted for its manufacture of a soft black wool, and also for the costly garments which were made from this fine material. The city was also famous, apparently throughout the whole Roman Empire, for its school of medicine, and its manufacture of a special powder from which eye-salve was made. This was known as “Phrygian Powder.” The historian Galen also mentions an ointment which was manufactured in Laodicea and considered especially good for strengthening the ears.
In all these ways, therefore, the characteristic features of ancient Laodicea seem to have a definite bearing upon the Lord’s message addressed to the church located there. In view of these characteristics, of which the brethren in Laodicea would certainly be well acquainted, how significant are the Master’s words encouraging them to seek the divine gold instead of the material wealth represented in the city.
Instead of the luxurious garments for which the city was noted, the Lord’s people were encouraged to seek after the white robes which the Lord provided. Instead of the much-hailed eye-salve of Laodicea, the saints were to seek the eye-salve of truth by which, when their eyes of understanding were anointed, true spiritual vision would be theirs. Furthermore, to have hearing ears that could appreciate the voice of the Lord, was much more to be desired than the well-known medicine for the ears for which the city was famous.
As with the other churches used to represent the development of the one true church, Laodicea had its unfaithful members as well as its overcomers. The great nominal mass of Laodiceans is described as being neither hot nor cold, and because of this were to be spued out of the Lord’s mouth, that is, rejected by Him. “I would,” the Master says, “thou wert cold or hot.” The illustration here is that of a delectable beverage, one which would be pleasing to the taste if hot, or one that would be pleasing to the taste if cold, but would be unpalatable in either case if lukewarm.
While in many instances fire and warmth are used to represent Christian zeal, yet here the symbolism is somewhat different, in that it is not the furious burning of a candle, but the drinking of a beverage which, if lukewarm, is rejected. The nominal Laodicean church has proved itself unfaithful to the Lord, and has been rejected by Him, and His true people are called to come out of it. Prophetically, the Laodicean period is the last in the church’s development. Chronologically, it embraces the harvest period at the end of the age, and the harvest message is, “Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins.”—Rev. 18:4
To the faithful overcomers of the Laodicean church the Master says, “Behold I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with Me.” Oh the blessedness of those who, in this time of the Master’s second presence, have heard the knock of His prophetic Word of truth, and the reassuring voice of His harvest message and have bidden Him to sup with them! Words are utterly futile to describe the deep joy that comes to those whose ears hear and eyes see the unmistakable evidence that now He has come.
To those who finally overcome, the blessed promise to the Laodicean church—and applicable to the entire church—is given that they shall sit with Christ upon His throne. To attain to such height of glory it is essential that we give daily and earnest heed to “what the Spirit saith unto the churches.”
The essence of “what the Spirit saith” is that the reward of victory belongs only to those “who through patient continuance in well doing, seek for glory, honor, and immortality, eternal life.”—Romans 2:7
In overcoming, and in the reward that follows, we are partners with the Master. He overcame and was “exalted to the right hand of the throne of God.” (Heb. 12:2) In Isaiah 53:12 Jehovah says of His Son, “I will divide Him a portion with the Great.” The Heavenly Father Himself is the Great One here mentioned, and in fulfillment of this promise Jesus was exalted to the divine nature and to a position at the right hand of God.
But the prophet further explains that Jesus would “divide the spoil with the strong.” This means that it was God’s will for Him to share His reward with the overcomers, the strong ones—those who are “strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.”
When Jesus spoke to John from the heavenly glory, God’s promise to Him had been fulfilled; and now, in His message to the church, He reveals His hearty co-operation in the Father’s will for His followers by the assurance that He WILL divide His reward with them. He says: “To him that overcometh 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.”—Revelation 3:21