REVELATION 3: PART 2 • AN OPEN DOOR: THE CHURCH IN PHILADELPHIA

Time: 1798–1844

Philadelphia—“Brotherly love”

Revelation 3:7

And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth.

The Philadelphia period of church history, with its increased attention to God’s Word, particularly the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation, and to personal godliness, represented a much more encouraging picture than the church at Sardis. During this period a revival movement swept through many denominations and around much of the world in hopeful anticipation of the soon coming of Christ.

“He that is holy”

For such an high priest [Jesus] became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. (Hebrews 7:26)

Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God. (Mark 1:24)

And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)

Christ is morally blameless, for He was tempted in all points as we are, yet without sin. Therefore His testimony is true, and His claims and promises are true, backed up by the moral integrity and purity of His own life as a man, and by the holiness of His divine nature.

“He that is true”

And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God. (Revelation 3:14. Christ is the faithful and true witness regarding our condition.)

And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. (Revelation 19:11. Christ is faithful and true to execute judgment upon the wicked.)

And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me. (John 8:16)

The only reliable counsel regarding eternity and spiritual matters is the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Therefore, we are making a wise decision when we believe and follow the words of Christ.

“He that hath the key of David”

And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. (Isaiah 22:22)

This key of authority or access was given to Eliakim, who was an official over the household of King Hezekiah. He was faithful in his duties and a spokesman for the king. Even so, let us “consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; who was faithful to Him that appointed Him. … But Christ as a son over His own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end” (Hebrews 3:1–2, 6).

Eliakim was appointed because of another’s unfaithfulness, even as Christ was appointed of God as a new order of High Priest to take the place of the Aaronic priesthood. Eliakim was faithful in his service to the king and the nation, and is represented as a “father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah” (Isaiah 22:21). The “government” was committed “into his hand.” So it is with Christ: “The government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6).

What is it that Christ, in His position of authority and judgment, has power to open or shut? As revealed in Revelation 1:18, Christ has authority over the grave, for He is able to grant eternal life and victory over death to all who believe in Him and who are found worthy. Chapter 5 states He is the only one in heaven or earth who can prevail to open the sealed book, which contains those things to be considered in the judgment.

Revelation 3:8

I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name.

I know your [record of] works and what you are doing. See! I have set before you a door wide open which no one is able to shut; I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept My Word and guarded My message and have not renounced or denied My name. (Revelation 3:8 AMP)

“I know thy works”

For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. (Ecclesiastes 12:14)

For I know their works and their thoughts: it shall come, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and see my glory. (Isaiah 66:18)

For I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict the just, they take a bribe, and they turn aside the poor in the gate from their right. (Amos 5:12)

But I know you, that ye have not the love of God in you. (John 5:42)

Jesus’ walking in the midst of the “seven candlesticks which … are the seven churches” (Revelation 1:20) represents the intimacy of Christ’s care for the churches. This relationship enables Him to be intimately knowledgeable of each church’s strengths and weaknesses. Christ has always known the condition of the world and of His professed people. And He still knows today. He knows our needs and our failures.

In light of the fact that Christ knows all about us, we can try to live as if it’s not true, or we can “walk [live], O Lord, in the light of Thy countenance” (Psalm 89:15). We can receive the rebuke and admonition and encouragement of the Lord, knowing in our hearts that “if God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:31–32). There is rest and hope for the church and for us individually in the fact that Christ knows all about us and desires to save us.

“I have set before thee an open door”

Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. (John 10:7, 9)

Christ has ever been the way to mankind’s salvation, and Christ is reminding His people of that fact. However, in the era of the Philadelphia church, it has an additional meaning.

And the charge of the sons of Gershon in the tabernacle of the congregation shall be the tabernacle, and the tent, the covering thereof, and the hanging for the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, And the hangings of the court, and the curtain for the door of the court, which is by the tabernacle, and by the altar round about, and the cords of it for all the service thereof. (Numbers 3:25–26)

And the hangings of the court, and the hanging for the door of the gate of the court, which is by the tabernacle and by the altar round about, and their cords, and all the instruments of their service, and all that is made for them: so shall they serve. (Numbers 4:26)

And on the eighth day he shall take to him two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, and come before the Lord unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and give them unto the priest. (Leviticus 15:14)

And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the Lord, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. (Leviticus 4:18)

And thou shalt bring in the table, and set in order the things that are to be set in order upon it; and thou shalt bring in the candlestick, and light the lamps thereof. And thou shalt set the altar of gold for the incense before the ark of the testimony, and put the hanging of the door to the tabernacle. And thou shalt set the altar of the burnt offering before the door of the tabernacle of the tent of the congregation. And thou shalt set the laver between the tent of the congregation and the altar, and shalt put water therein. And thou shalt set up the court round about, and hang up the hanging at the court gate. (Exodus 40:4–8)

In the above verses we see clearly two doors—one to the courtyard, which represented Christ as the only means or way to salvation, and one called the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. These two doors were ever open so far as the sinner being able to come and offer his sacrifice for sin and the priest to minister the blood. In the holy place was found the seven-branched candlestick, which represents Christ, the light of the world, also the altar of incense.

This altar was to be kept ever burning, which represented our prayers ascending to the Father, sweetened by the fragrance of the righteousness obtained through the sacrificial offering, which represented Christ. The shewbread was to teach God’s ever-present sustaining goodness. It typified Jesus, the bread of life.

“For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us” (Hebrews 9:24). “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle …” (Hebrews 9:11). Revelation makes use of sanctuary symbols and lessons. Thus we find depicted, in Revelation 3:7–8, Christ entering into the final work of His priestly ministry, just as the high priest did in the ancient Day of Atonement.

The door into the Most Holy Place was opened but once a year. This was a time of judgment, when the people, by faith and the shed blood of the sacrifice, hoped to have their record of sins cast away and they themselves found vindicated and clean before the Lord. So too Christ, as our true High Priest, has entered into a type of the work as depicted in the Old Testament sanctuary service. This tells us we have entered the last times, “the hour of judgment,” and that time will not continue on this planet indefinitely.

As with the statements regarding the other churches, those directed to the Philadelphia church apply not only to the ancient church in Asia Minor but to a specific age or period of the church. Thus when Jesus says, “I have set before thee an open door,” it applies to the time when the judgment work of Christ as depicted in Daniel 7 begins. And when His work as our High Priest ceases, He will declare, “He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still” (Revelation 22:11). At that time the door of mercy will have forever shut, “and no man openeth.”

“I have set before thee an open door”

After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald. (Revelation 4:1–3)

Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you [yourselves] may not be judged. Look! The Judge is [already] standing at the very door. (James 5:9 AMP)

This open door is a door into the sanctuary of heaven, a door into the judgment going on in heaven. It is a door of opportunity, for Christ is now at work to prepare His people for His soon coming. (See Acts 14:27; 1 Corinthians 16:9; 2 Corinthians 2:12, where door is a symbol of opportunity.) During the Philadelphia era different reformatory organizations started as well as many biblical-based schools of learning. During this time God was seeking to prepare a people to be His instruments to take the “everlasting gospel” to the world, that the end might come.

Sadly, this door of opportunity was largely ignored. As we will read in the message to the church at Laodicea, the greater proportion of God’s professed people fell into a spirit of indifference, yet filled with spiritual pride in their profession of faith, which continues to our own time.

As it was in the literal Day of Atonement, so it is now. The work of Christ is to prepare His people to be cleansed and sealed, and it is effectual only for those who seek for it. Only Christ can shut this door of opportunity, for He alone has been given the authority to sit as judge over His people. This judgment is not intended to bring condemnation, but the vindication of God’s saints. “But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, (the little horn or the beast of Revelation 13) to consume and to destroy it unto the end.” Then it is that “the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him” (Daniel 7:26–27).

“Thou hast a little strength”

I will go in the strength of the Lord God: I will make mention of thy righteousness, even of thine only. (Psalm 71:16)

Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them. (Psalm 84:5)

But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty. (1 Corinthians 1:27)

Ancient Philadelphia was not a large or influential city or church. But numbers and influence did not determine the character of the church; rather, it was their faith and love that influenced the conduct of their daily lives. This church was rich in the strength of the Lord.

Just as the strength and character of the literal Philadelphia church was not attributable to its size, so it was during the time of Philadelphia in church history. In the latter 1700s on into the 1800s, great missionary societies and Bible societies came into being. Many, of all denominations, studied the prophecies of Daniel and Revelation with new interest. The faithful of this time, tired of the great Protestant and state churches, studied Scripture with a renewed love for God and His truth. In the eyes of the world and the great denominations, the faithful people of God scattered among the various churches were of little strength. But God uses the foolish things, the things of no account, to confound the wise and accomplish His purposes.

“Hast kept my word”

Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed. (John 8:31. Continuing in the Word holding fast to Christ’s teachings and living in accordance with them makes us disciples.)

If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. (John 15:7)

Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. (John 14:23. Keeping Jesus’ Word and being obedient to His teaching shows we love Him.)

The strength of Philadelphia was that it was a church that loved God’s Word and studied it and sought to follow it. This must be the strength of the people of God today.

“Hast not denied my name”

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1–5)

For certain men … pervert the grace (the spiritual blessing and favor) of our God into lawlessness and wantonness and immorality, and disown and deny our sole Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (The Messiah, the Anointed One). (Jude 4 AMP)

For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world. (Titus 2:11–12)

This church did not turn from the truth to fables and false doctrines; neither did they compromise their faith or their commitment to the Lord. They were faithful and true. They did not deny Christ by evil speaking, by foolish talking, by untruthful or unkind words. They did not deny Christ by the pursuit of sinful pleasure or by conforming to the world, or by the love of their own opinions and doctrines. They did not deny Christ; consequently He kept them from falling, as they centered their lives in Him and lived by His Word.

Revelation 3:9

Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee.

“Them of the synagogue of Satan”

I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked. (Psalm 26:5)

“Which say they are Jews”

For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh: But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. (Romans 2:28–29)

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. (Galatians 3:28–29)

“Worship before thy feet”

The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee; The city of the Lord, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 60:14)

Those of the synagogue of Satan are those who are “denying the Lord that bought them” (2 Peter 2:1). John wrote of them as false professors, professed Christians or Jews who work to hinder the gospel and persecute God’s true people. Revelation 3:9 is not speaking of a time when sinners shall grovel at the feet of the saints, but of a time when those who were once despised shall be exalted and those who exalted themselves and despised the people of God shall be humbled.

Those who are described as worshipping at the feet of the saints could also be those who are seeking for the Word of the Lord, even with tears and humility, but too late. “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord God, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord” (Amos 8:11).

Sadly, when humility, represented by falling at the feet of the saints, takes place, it will be too late, for then “the harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved” (Jeremiah 8:20). In Revelation 2:9, and again here in 3:9, those who are represented as members of Satan’s congregation, are professed believers on Satan’s side of the issue between truth and error, while claiming to be servants of God.

Revelation 3:10

Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try [test] them that dwell upon the earth.

“Word of my patience”

To them who by patient continuance in well doing seek for glory, and honour and immortality, eternal life. (Romans 2:7)

Let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance. And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity.) And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. (Romans 5:3–4 AMP)

Strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness. (Colossians 1:11)

Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. (James 1:3–4)

Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. (Revelation 14:12)

Patience is a character trait developed amidst trial and opposition. It is developed by steadfastly waiting for someone or something. For the believer in Christ, it is the steadfast waiting and watching for His coming, with hope and endurance, awaiting the consummation of this world’s history and the vindication of God’s truth. Keeping the love of the Word in our hearts develops steadfast endurance and a consistency of faith. For this Christ commends the church of Philadelphia, and the commendation is for all who follow this example.

“I also will keep thee”

Keep—to guard from loss or injury, by keeping the eye upon¹

Who gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of God and our Father. (Galatians 1:4)

I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. (John 17:15)

He will keep the feet of his saints, and the wicked shall be silent in darkness; for by strength shall no man prevail. (1 Samuel 2:9)

Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. (1 Peter 1:5)

Christ’s promise to His early church was that they would be kept in the tests, trials, and difficulties of life as a Christian in the midst of the pagan Roman Empire. This was His promise to the Philadelphia era of the church as well, as they too would pass through disappointments and trials. This is also God’s promise to us now, who live “in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation,” and who, by Christ’s enabling grace, are to “shine as lights in the world” (Philippians 2:15). This promise is especially for those who shall pass through the great test and trial that is yet to come upon the world.

“From the hour of temptation”

Temptation—the trial of man’s fidelity, integrity, virtue, constancy. Adversity, affliction, trouble … serving to test or prove one’s character, faith, holiness²

Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness. (Psalm 95:8)

They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. (Luke 8:13)

“All the world”

And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come. (Mathew 24:14)

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast. (Revelation 13:3)

The hour of temptation that comes upon the entire world is mentioned in Revelation 13 and 14. At this time the mark of the beast will clearly show who is on God’s side and who is on the side of Satan and apostasy. This worldwide testing of the people of this planet did not happen in John’s day, nor did it happen in the period of Philadelphia.

This church period began about the time of the termination of the 1,260-year prophecy, which marked the beginning of the time of the end. Thus this warning of a worldwide test, and the promise of being kept, is for a generation during the time of the end, and those who will be found faithful are those who have a Philadelphia-like experience.

Revelation 3:10 is speaking of that time when the hour of judgment will have fully come and all the world will be tested—tried as to whom they will serve, Christ or Satan. At that time people will be sealed with the seal of God or the mark of the beast. God has promised His people that He will keep them faithful. And when the plagues fall on the world in judgment, His people will be sustained, to soon see Christ come in the clouds of heaven.

At that time, “He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; and the rebuke of His people shall He take away from off all the earth: for the Lord hath spoken it. And it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is the Lord; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation” (Isaiah 25:8–9).

Revelation 3:11

Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.

“Hold that fast which thou hast”

Hold fast—to use strength, i.e. seize or retain³

Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

Hold fast the form of sound words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 1:13)

Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised). (Hebrews 10:23)

This message takes us down to the time when the coming of Christ is near, and the admonition is to hold fast and allow no man to take away our inheritance. In the midst of trial and spiritual danger in John’s day, in the Philadelphia era, and even our own time, we are encouraged to use human and divine strength combined, and to hold on with earnestness and diligence to the truth and the great salvation secured for us by Christ, and that we “should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 3). For “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of” (2 Timothy 3:13–14).

“That no man take thy crown”

Crown—the wreath or garland which was given as a prize to victors in public games. Metaphorically, the eternal blessedness which will be given as a prize to the genuine servants of God and Christ: the crown (wreath) which is the reward of the righteous.”⁴

Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. (2 Timothy 4:8)

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. (James 1:12)

And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. (1 Peter 5:4)

The crown is a symbol of the victory gained, and of the glory and honor of eternal life to be experienced in the kingdom of righteousness. We are admonished to hold fast to the truth and experience of faith, for to grow weary or careless is to endanger our hope of reward. Since the crown is a symbol of the reward of heaven, which is not yet in our physical possession, how can any man take this hope of reward from us? “And Jesus answering them began to say, Take heed lest any man deceive you” (Mark 13:5). Deception, allowing ourselves to become hardened by the deceitfulness of sin, can cause us to fall away from the path of righteousness.

That is why Jesus told us, “take heed to yourselves and be on your guard, lest your hearts be overburdened and depressed (weighed down) with the giddiness and headache and nausea of self-indulgence, drunkenness, and worldly worries and cares pertaining to [the business of] this life, and [lest] that day come upon you suddenly like a trap or a noose;” (Luke 21:34 AMP). We are further admonished to “take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God” (Hebrews 3:12).

Someone might say, “Well, I am in Christ; my salvation is assured.” It is true that our surety is in Christ. Nevertheless, we are told to learn from the fall and apostasy of the Jews: “Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (1 Corinthians 10:11–12). Christ has said our only true safety is to hold fast. If we do this, Christ’s promise of enabling grace assures us of our crown.

Revelation 3:12

Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

“Him that overcometh”

The promises of Jesus are for all past or present who overcome the following:

• Denying the name of the Lord

• False believers, the synagogue of Satan, and the errors they bring

• The hour of temptation

“Pillar in the temple of my God”

These things write I unto thee, … that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. (1 Timothy 3:14–15)

And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. (Galatians 2:9)

Being a pillar is not a literal expression. It sets forth the idea of permanence and stability in the temple or in the presence of God, having made the Word of God and Christ the foundation and pillar of support in this life. As proof of ownership, God’s name or character is written upon the faithful overcomer who has learned in this life to “follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth” (Revelation 14:4). Because of this, “they shall see His face; and His name shall be in their foreheads” (Revelation 22:4).

The New Jerusalem is represented as the bride of Christ, but an empty city is of no value to God or Christ, no matter how beautiful it is. The New Jerusalem is the home prepared for the overcomer who by the grace of Christ, merits residence there, clothed in fine linen, “for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints” (Revelation 19:8). Not only will each pillar—the believer who has been made steadfast, unmovable and fit by the grace of Christ—bear the “name of My God” and “the name of the city of My God,” but each will also have Christ’s new name. For each one will have overcome in an experience uniquely their own and shall be marked or named for all eternity as Christ’s own.

Revelation 3:13

He that that an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.


Endnotes

1.  James Strong, Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1987).

2.  Greek Lexicon, in The Online Bible CD-Rom, Macintosh Version 2.5.3 (Niagara Falls, NY: Cross Country Software, www.online-bible.com, 1996).

3.  James Strong, op. cit.

4.  Greek Lexicon, op. cit.