Rev No.6 The Church of Brotherly Love

Welcome to the TAB this morning, glad to have you with us, saying to come to you at again a very critical time. We pray for your blessing to be upon our service here and as later on we think of the gulf and the possible cessation of conflicts, again Lord we just ask for your wisdom and your power to be released amongst the children of men. Now father we pray for a special anointing upon each member of our congregation here, bless our boys and girls, our parents, our older friends, may this be a great family service for Jesus' sake, amen.

Let's stand and sing, not what's up on the board here, break thou the bread of life dear Lord to me as thou didst break the bread beside the sea. We'll have the first one now, needs your attention because it's a historical passage which ought to be read before we come to the passage from the New Testament in order to shed light on the latter reading. The first reading is from Isaiah chapter 22.

This is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty says, go say to this steward, to Shebna who is in charge of the palace, what are you doing here and who gave you permission to cut out a grave for yourself here, hewing your grave on the height and chiselling your resting place in the rock. Beware the Lord is about to take firm hold of you and hurl you away, oh you mighty man. He will roll you up tightly like a ball and throw you into a large country, there you will die and there your splendid chariots will remain, you disgrace to your master's house.

I will dispose you from your office and you will be ousted from your position. In that day I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him and hand your authority over to him.

He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David, what he opens no one can shut and what he shuts no one can open. I will drive him like a peg into a firm place, he will be a seat of honour for the house of his father.

All the glory of his family will hang on him, its offspring and offshoots, all its lesser vessels from the bowls to all the jars. In that day declares the Lord Almighty, the peg will be driven into the firm place will give way, it will be sheared off and will fall and the load hanging on it will be cut down, the Lord has spoken. Galatians chapter 3 starting at verse 7 reading through to 13.

Galatians 3 verse 7 to the church in Philadelphia. To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, these are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David, what he opens no one can shut and what he shuts no one can open. I know your deeds, see I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut, I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.

I will make those of you who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not but are liars, I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. I am coming soon, hold on to what you have so that no one will take your crown.

Him who overcomes, I will make a pillar in the temple of my God, never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which is coming down out of heaven from my God and I will also write on him my new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

I'd be glad if you'd open your Bibles to Revelation and chapter three. Again just a couple of verses from the seventh and eighth of this chapter. These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David.

What he opens no one can shut and what he shuts no one can open. One of the most nonsensical statements that sometimes I hear is that Worthing Tabernacle is Tony Sargent's church. It is not, never has been, never will be.

Worthing Tabernacle is a weak fragment of the body of Christ here in southeast England. The church belongs to the Lord Jesus. He is the one who is its head.

He is the one who through the Holy Spirit controls all of its affairs. The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord and it is absurd for us to think of anything but that. Our Lord Jesus has been given all authority within the church.

In Ephesians and chapter one you discover towards the end of that great epistle the apostle inferring, indeed declaring most definitely that our Savior is indeed the head of the church. God has appointed him, verse 22 of Ephesians 1, God has appointed him to be head over everything for the church which is his body. The fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

Someone has drawn up a poster that has been used outside several churches and the poster reads ch dot dot ch and underneath is the question what's missing and the pun is you are. Well let's do a revision of the poster ch dot dot ch what's wrong and the answer is you are. For within every expression of the local church from its pastors to its elders to its deacons to its youth leaders to important church members to ordinary people who come in from time to time on a more casual basis there is something wrong with all of us and therefore we look to the head of the church to write what is wrong.

The church is a community of people who have failed. I hope you realize that that's the one common denominator that binds us together at Worthing Tabernacle. We are a collection of failures.

We draw sustenance and succor and hope from our Lord Jesus the one who who never failed. Well here is the Apostle John he's an old man he's on the Isle of Patmos as has been so graphically described by Tim and Hugh in previous addresses from this from this book. The Apostle John as he comes towards the end of his life he has this great vision tremendous insight into the purposes of God and he sees in front of him those seven churches that he particularly has responsibility for and those seven churches as brought out by Tim and Hugh quite accurately in their exposition of scripture stand for the church of Jesus Christ throughout all ages.

These churches do not just refer to a specific period of history. There is that of the church of Laodicea reproduced in in every local fellowship and here the the Apostle John now catches a glimpse of the sixth church the church in Philadelphia and there are concerns expressed by the Lord Jesus for this church. In one sense it's a good church it's the only church that no criticisms are directed to as the message leaves the heavenly realm and is conveyed to the angel of the church.

I wonder what the Lord Jesus thinks about the church at Worthing Tabernacle. I sometimes suggested in a sort of semi humorous fashion that we ought to change the name of the tab. The option that I gave you some some while ago was not taken up with any degree of enthusiasm.

It really was triggered off by a little girl in Latin America referring to churches in that continent as being places where people came to praise the Lord. So she called the church God's singing house and there's a church in Los Angeles called Melody Land Center. Now if you don't want Melody Land Center here at the tab here's another suggestion.

What about the church of brotherly love? Because that's basically what this church means in terms of at least the title of the city in which it was placed to the church in Philadelphia. It's accidental I don't want to read too much into it. It comes about this name as a result of the founder King Atollus and he was very concerned about his brother.

In fact he was nicknamed brother lover. Isn't that rather nice? He loved his brother so much that the affection he had for his brother gave him his nickname. Now one occasion when he built what actually was the newest city amongst this bunch of seven he named it after his brother Philadelphia.

Philio to love, Adelphoi the plural for brothers. Brothers who love. What a wonderful way to describe any church.

The place where brothers, I use that in its generic sense involving the ladies as well. The place where people love one another. The Apostle John was an old man and whatever people may tell you to the contrary the Christian gospel does not stop unfortunately the effects of the aging process.

Sometimes or not always as age increases mental acumen and skill is not quite the same and it's reckoned of the Apostle John that towards the end of his life all he could say in terms of a sermon was little children love one another. Little children love one another. And maybe that's what the Apostle John through the spirit would say to us at Worthing Tab this morning.

Love one another. If you don't want the Melody Land Centre how about the community of the brothers who love. Well we're introduced to the Lord of the church once again in these opening verses and dissimilar from all the other introductory comments that you get in the Church of Ephesus and the Church of Pergamon, Church of Thyatira and the Church at Sardis.

There is no back reference to that remarkable vision in the first chapter when you get such a lovely description. The second of two descriptions of the physique of our Lord Jesus Christ in the word of God. There's no backtracking.

There are no symbolical words. Rather the introduction as we're told about the one who directs a message to the church where people ought to be loving one another is this. These are the words of him who is holy and true.

We're told who he is and what he has. Who is he? Well he is the Holy One. There is no one else who can have that description besides our Lord Jesus.

That holy thing within you. You remember the remarks made to Mary when recognition is given of her condition being with child. That holy thing, that holy child, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Not only is he holy in a world of unholiness but he's true truth to quote Francis Schaeffer in a world where there's a lot of lie and a lot of deception. These are the words of him who is holy and true. This is who the Lord of the church is.

But what does the Lord of the church have? Well he holds the key of David. He holds the key of David. I deliberately got Anne to read to us from Isaiah chapter 22 because that gives the Old Testament back cloth for this reference.

In those days there was a man who was going a little bit beyond his normal sphere of responsibility. He wanted a grander position in Jerusalem and as a result Shebna was tossed aside in the purposes of God. He was hurled and the Hebrew word is the same as you would use for sending a discus away from yourself.

He was hurled into Babylon and a more faithful steward by the name of Elkayim was brought to become the one who would take the key of David's palace. Now when you had the key in Old Testament times, the key of a palace, not only was the key a very big thing but the responsibility was enormous. It meant to say that with the exception of the king you were the most important man.

You had the greatest influence of anyone in the country and that was what happened in the experience of the man referred to in Isaiah 22. But here the message of the church or the message directed to the church at Philadelphia comes from one who holds the key of David. David was the greatest king of Israel not so? When our Lord Jesus was born we are told that invested in him was the authority of David.

There would never cease to be a descendant of David on the throne and our Lord Jesus comes into the world and he assumes because it is his by right the authority of David. Not just over one tract of land in Palestine but around the world. For the purposes of God in the Old Testament have now been internationalized and the children of God are not just believing ethnic Jews but all who have expressed like faith as father Abraham did in the Lord God.

And as far as these people are concerned, as far as the affairs of this world and its future destiny goes, the one who directs a message to the church at Philadelphia is the one from whom his girdles drops, hangs the key of David. What he opens no one can shut. What he shuts no one can open.

In other words the one who is in charge of the church has ultimate authority in this world. Our Lord God saw fit to ensure that Pharaoh promoted to the task of superintending his house and controlling the whole of the Egyptian empire Joseph. He was suitably qualified.

What we are told in these verses that our Lord Jesus Christ has been given all the authority over the household of God. You get references to that in Hebrews. You get further references in Ephesians.

One I've quoted, our Lord Jesus having all power, all authority, all responsibility, it belongs to him. Brothers and sisters sometimes I argue we have too small a conception of the power of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we're told here as a message is directed to the church at Philadelphia that the one who is in control is he who is holy and true and holds the key of David.

How does he hold that key? How does he use the key? Well we're given further information as we move into the eighth verse. I know your deeds. See I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut.

I know that you have little strength. There are three ways in which the Lord of the church at Philadelphia who holds the key, who has all authority, turns that key to the advantage of the members of that church. And he does so by creating unbelievable opportunities for ministry.

Did you hear that? By creating unbelievable opportunities for ministry. See I have placed before you an open door. Now that's a surprising assertion.

I think you could put an exclamation mark after the verb see. This is something that is quite astonishing. You see the church at Philadelphia did not seem to have the potential to be an evangelistic church, to be engaged in great missionary enterprise.

But when they're connected to the Lord who is the head of the church, he who is holy and true, he who has the keys, the keys of death and hell, the keys of every situation, he who is the Lord of all circumstances, when he turns the key on behalf of even a feeble group of Christian people he can cause them to do excellent service, tremendous exploits. We do not have a great enough conception of what our Lord Jesus can do for a local church as an entity, or for individuals within that church as ordinary Christians. I have set before you an open door.

The Apostle Paul knew something about open doors didn't he? After all when he's reporting back to the church at Antioch, which was very much a missionary church, he says towards the end of the 14th chapter as he rehearses all that he has experienced, on arriving there they gathered verse 27, Acts 14, Paul speaking or the description is of Paul and his colleagues, on arriving there they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. And again when you go to 1 Corinthians and chapter 16, the Apostle is rehearsing the sovereign grace of God upon his ministry and he tells us in the 8th and 9th verses, but I will stay on at Ephesus until Pentecost because a great door for effective work has opened to me and there are many who oppose me. And then when he's talking to the church in Colossae about his evangelistic exploits again in the 4th chapter and in the 8th verse or thereabouts he makes reference to, the third verse it is, he makes reference to God swinging open a door of opportunity and he prays for even greater entrances for the gospel.

Pray for us too that God may open a door for our message so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ for which I am in chains. I wonder if John was surprised as he found himself there on the isle of Patmos to hear that the church at Philadelphia was a church that was being used by the Lord in missionary and evangelistic enterprise and yet the Lord was aware of its condition at the natural level. I know your deeds he says in verse 8, he goes on in the latter part of that verse, I know that you have little strength yet you have kept my word and you have not denied my name.

Listen to me, weakness, spiritual weakness at one level is no disqualification for you in the service of God. Once again I take you to the Lord of the church, this is not my church, this is not the eldest church, this is the church of the Lord Jesus. We so to speak plug into him, here we are with little strength, here he is with absolute authority, to him has all power being given, he says this in Matthew 28 doesn't he, he says it in so many other places, all authority is his.

So if he is the Lord of the church and here is this small group of inadequate people in Philadelphia and they plug into his power, then when he swings open the door of opportunity they can go through and in their weakness they can become valiant in their service for the Lord Jesus. I tell you this, God has always used weak men and women in his service, their greatest problem is the problem of self-sufficiency. Here is the apostle Paul and he's writing to the Corinthians in the first epistle, the 27th verse, but God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong, he chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things and the things that are not to nullify the things that are.

Why? So that no one can boast. Here is the apostle Paul later on and he's writing again his second letter to the Corinthians, he's talking about his human frailty, he asks the Lord to deliver him of this of this thorn in his flesh and God stays his hand. The apostle wants to know why, why is it that you won't take away this thing which is such an obstacle to my ministry and the Lord says my grace is sufficient for you, your weakness will be perfected in my strength.

It's always the way in the church of those who love one another, that however weak they are, depending on the fact that they remain true to the word of God and verse eight, do not deny the name of the Lord, he can take their utter inadequacy and like the handful of loaves and fishes the young boy gave the disciples, it can be multiplied to the reaching of many many people with the gospel. Don't you think that's wonderful? Here's William Carey, the old cobbler from Leicester and he sets off with his demented wife who's so sick to the land of India and there he invests himself in the service of God, it's ridiculous, it's utterly absurd. Here's John Calvin with his emaciated body fleeing in Europe to France with everyone against him and yet God can take this man and use him to move a continent out of his strength, no it's never out of his strength, out of his weakness and it's out of your weakness, it's out of my total inadequacy that the Lord of the church can achieve his purposes.

He does so by creating unbelievable opportunities for ministry, I argue he does so also by influencing the nerve centres of problem, by influencing the nerve centres of problems. Well there are problems aren't there that confront the local church, that confront individuals. Here in the ninth and in the tenth verses reference are made to difficulties that this church in Philadelphia had.

There were those that the apostle describes as coming from the synagogue of Satan, these people who mounted a program of opposition and a little short of persecution towards the ordinary Christian and says the apostle don't feel that you're really at the whim of their malice, I will make those. Here is the Lord speaking not the apostle, I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan who claim to be Jews though they're not but are liars, I will make them come and fall down at your feet. Now that's not an anti-semitic comment, remember that the one who's involved mainly in the book of Revelation is a Jew, John.

The one who wrote the epistles, Paul is a Jew and again Peter they're Jews, this is no anti-Jewish comment but you see these Jewish theologians they're true to what the Lord Jesus taught when he turned around and poured out the invective that he sometimes could let loose on those who were becoming an obstacle for the gospel. He called the Pharisees in on one occasion you remember as though they were whited sepulchers full of dead men's bones. He said to some other Jewish antagonists you're not of your you're not of Abraham for if Abraham were your father you would believe what I am saying your father is the devil and on one very dramatic occasion he spins around and he addresses Peter.

Peter who loved Jesus and with lazy language with unthought suggestion not carefully thought out says to Jesus don't go to the cross so Jesus turns around and he says get thee behind me certain man. Now there were obstacles I say for the advance of the gospel in Philadelphia and yet the apostle says I will make those who are the synagogue of Satan who claim to be Jews though they are not but Eliza will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. Don't you realize that the end of the gospel the end of the gospel journey throughout this world will come when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.

There will be those of Jew and of Gentile descent who on the day of the return of the Lord Jesus will want to hide in the rocks who will want the waters of the sea to consume them because our Lord will come to execute judgment upon this world every knee shall bow the knee of Saddam Hussein the knee of George Bush the knee of all those who have been rebellious against the purposes of God in generations gone by. Jesus the Lord of the church at Philadelphia since you have kept my command verse 10 to endure patiently I will also keep you from the hour of trial. Here is another great difficulty that is going to come upon the whole church that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.

What is that hour of trial? Well I've heard some people try and describe this in terms of a great tribulation from which the church will be removed. I personally cannot see that. What is the greatest trial that men and women can ever have to undergo? Well it's the trial that will occur when men who have not responded to the saving grace of Jesus Christ are brought before the bar of his judgment.

That is the greatest trial. Men and women who have raised their fists against God. But that trial is one which will not have you summoned to the bar to answer.

Why is that? Well on a hill far away stood an old rugged cross and there on that cross died one who takes your sin. The trial of the Lord Jesus was vicarious for your trial. He stands in your place before the bar of God's judgment and the flesh of God's wrath is directed against him.

The scud missile against all human sin and our Lord catches it and suffers the consequences and as a result there is no trial for Christian people. You will not be brought to book on the day of judgment as far as your sins are concerned for they have been removed from the sight of God. He has hit the delete button on the computers of heaven and on that day the church that met at Philadelphia in the first century and members of the church at Worthing Tabernacle will not have to appear with the myriads of the sons and daughters of Adam they are kept from that judgment the nerve center of discomfort because of what the Saviour has achieved for us.

And so the word goes to the church in Philadelphia and the church in Worthing Tabernacle as a result of these things since you have kept my command to endure run with patience that the race that is set before you when you know that your sins are forgiven when you know that your destiny is with God in the heavenly realm it's going to affect the way that you live your ordinary day by day life. This is what the Christ of the church has done. This is why it is an utter nonsense to attribute authority in a local church to any ordinary man the authority vests the hands of him who has the seven spirits and the seven stars of the church as Jesus.

He is the Lord of the church. I argue the Lord of the church creates unbelievable opportunities for ministry. He influences the nerve centers of problems and finally the Lord of the church is seen to be such by consummating the saga of history.

We've touched on this already we've anticipated it come to verse 11 I am coming soon. It's not so much that the message is given in terms of the immediate time scale of the Lord Jesus's coming some 2,000 years has gone into history since this vision was given to John but here we are to think of the end time and and the the action of our Lord Jesus this this perusia this this manifestation of himself it will happen soon in an instant in a flash. Here are men and women and they're cavorting they are giving and receiving in marriage there is promiscuity there is profligacy there is living as though God is not in control and then dramatically one day he comes and the whole of the world is is brought to a state of paralysis the traffic stops human life as we now know it ceases it is the end time it is the omega point behold I am coming soon.

Now if you really believe that what will you do? You people who live in this happily entitled city where brethren love one another what will you do? You'll hold on to what you have not easy at Philadelphia to hold on Philadelphia is like Los Angeles it's built on an earthquake fault and in AD 17 there was a massive destruction the Christians and the rest of the community later on when there were further earthquakes were aware of the dangers of living in Philadelphia the time is coming when God is going to shake the earth the heavens and the earth the nations those who risk who lift their clenched fists against him he's going to shake it it's the biblical way of speaking of the end of all things now with that in mind you hold on to what you have why well because of three things the crown and the pillar and the name so that no one will take your crown what is that meant well obviously it's what does it mean it's symbolic language the crown is what the Lord gives those who live righteously in view of his coming the way that they expend themselves the time that they invest in the kingdom of God the money that they give the prayers that they offer the lifestyle that they assume hold on to your crown so that when when he comes not only will you enter into the fullness of salvation but you will receive from him the well done you good and faithful servant here's the apostle Paul a man who too perhaps is coping with senility I don't know but he dashes off a letter to to Timothy and he says I'm at the end of the course I finished it I've kept the faith henceforth there is laid up for me a what a crown you see a crown of righteousness that crown it's been before Paul throughout the whole of his life it's a thing that that has has has manipulated if you like that has conditioned the way that he has lived now says the Lord Jesus the one who is in charge of the church to the people at Philadelphia Philadelphia hold on to what you have don't let anyone take the crown you have known turmoil and strife but I'll make you a pillar in the temple of my God you never remove a pillar a pillar is that which remains even when earthquakes have been and gone thus witness the ruins in Asher minor you see the pillars the temple in Jerusalem it had its twin pillars it had that they gave the pillars their own name and the apostle Paul and Peter they referred to as the pillars of the church now this is it in its cosmic setting in its cosmic significance I will make you pillars in the temple of my God never again will you leave it what does the psalmist say he wants to be in the house of the Lord forever one thing have I desired of the Lord that will I seek after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord forever you people at Philadelphia with all the problems that beset you the opposition party all these myriads of trials sometimes the shaking of the earth hold on to your crown I'm making a pillar in the cosmic temple of my God what's more I'm giving you a name they knew about names Philadelphia was renamed twice Caesar helped it after the earthquake in AD 17 and it was called the new Caesarea and another Emperor helped it later on and it was known by the name of flavors and then it returned to its original name of Philadelphia Christian people do you know something God has given you a new name Jesus says I will write unto him the name of my God Christian glory in your name and the name of the city of my God we're all pilgrims and strangers going through this world if you think of yourself as anything but that then you think on biblically we're like Abraham Abraham never had any residual place to rest on this earth though God had promised him a great land the promises of God to Abraham as they're interpreted in the New Testament are a mind-blowing Abraham looks for the city whose maker and whose builder is God we are pilgrims going towards the city and the name of that city is to be upon your heart and my heart do you have that passport that indicates the city of your destination the city of your God and what's more I will write on him my new name the name that God has given our Lord Jesus Christ that is a name that embraces his children too he is Lord of Lords he is a King of Kings he is my Lord he is my King I am so connected to our Lord Jesus that there is no power in hell on earth or in heaven that can stop the relationship that I have with him hold on to your crown I'll make you a pillar in the church of my God I give to you a new name pay attention did you hear pay attention he who has an ear to hear not the whole church this is singular he you every person here in the tab the Lord Jesus speaking to you personally he who has an ear to hear incline it to me and listen to what I say I will create new opportunities in ministry for you I will open an open door that nobody can shut and even your spiritual poverty will be no disqualification because the littleness that you possess of my spirit can be made into such a power that you'll be used effectively and efficiently not necessarily in India not necessarily in Bangladesh but here in Worthing I will create unbelievable opportunities for ministry I will influence the nerve centers of problem so that you'll be able to endure and cope with all the pressures of life knowing that ultimately you'll stand safe before me on the day when I return and as I consummate you will have a place in the New Jerusalem the city of my God let's pray father you said to Jeremiah when he wanted to throw in the towel so to speak don't let go you said the same to Jonah don't let go and father we need to hold on some of us don't find it easy there were problems in our past life that we've not really reconciled and sometimes we let the failures of the past bedevil the opportunities of the present but Lord you tell us in your word that Jesus can control the nerve centers of difficulty so Lord we offer those situations to you right now twiddle the knobs and set us on the right course we pray