[ Continued with our study of the seven letters]
Revelation 3:1-3 [Only studying the first three [3] verses in this message]
Again we are reminded that it is not the name that others give but the name given by the evaluation of the LORD that counts for eternity. It is the LORD who knows the thoughts and the intent of the heart. Even though considered by others to be alive, the LORD looking into their hearts and minds were declared to be dead.
You must consider from the context that the word dead is referring to Believers who are dead in their daily living for Christ, V2,3 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
I think of another verse that fits here that should stir our minds to be awake, Eph 5:14ff
1 ] Christ is Revealed
A ] A searching condemnation is given by Jesus Christ. He has the authority to give such! His authority is given in many places in the Bible but for this study let us stick with this text. 3:1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou lives, and art dead. Taken from Isaiah 11:2 And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD The Holy Spirit of God shall rest upon Jesus Christ, The Son of Man to make a righteous judgment; Isa 11:3 And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:
Here is what Drue Freeman said, “ ….The works of this church were not spiritually driven and thus they were functionally dead meaning separated from good works.” That is what happens when your name is greater than the LORD’s name.
(1)Their works were not unto the LORD, Col_3:24 Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. Our Loyalty should be to Christ.
(2)Their works were not motivated by love, Gal_5:6 For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love. Sometimes your theology can be correct but your feeling is cold. “Warmth, love and care” gives a feeling that can never be lost or taken away: “warmth” is kindness with feeling, and “love” is followed by “care.”
Read 1Co 13:1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 1Co 13:2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 1Co 13:3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 1Co 13:4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 1Co 13:5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 1Co 13:6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 1Co 13:7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Charity is agape – the highest form of love – The Love of God that is shed abroad in our hearts is agape, His love. Rom 5:5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.
The Love of God is expressed out in our lives by chartable acts of kindness toward others. 1Co 13:13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity [the Love of God that is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit that is given unto us]. People need to feel the Love of God from us. People need to feel warmth = kindness with feeling.
(3) Their works were more about themselves. “They had a name.” Their name was known more than that of the Lord. It is a real problem when man is glorified above the LORD. “and art dead” He said, I know thy works – He did not say, I know thy faith. It is impossible for one who is dead [eternally lost] to be watchful and to strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die. Therefore the word ”dead” is referring to one who is dead in carnality. [Rom 8:6 For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.] It is not referring to a lack of being born of God. But the deadness of a no fruit-bearing life. [2 Peter 1:4-8] Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? He had judged and found their works not perfect before Him. He walks in the midst of the churches, giving conviction, correction for all who will hear and obey.
B] Rev 3:2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. “Watchful” 1127 grēgoreúō – literally, "stay awake"; (figuratively) be vigilant (responsible, watchful. “Awake thou that sleepth and Christ shall give the light
Some verses regarding the word sleep: Rom_13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 1Th_5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
(1)Strengthen the things that remain, that would be your faith in Christ. He said, Remember how thou hast received and heard: A good portion of scripture would be the prodigal son who came to himself and remembered and he went home. Luk 15:17 And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger! Luk 15:18 I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,
The Gift of eternal life remains. You are saved for time and eternity. Christ is the foundation that never changes, Hebrews 13:8. The finished work of Christ is finished forever. You need to strengthen that in your thinking. Saved by faith alone in Christ alone.
(2)“Hold fast” means you have something of great value. 2 Cor. 4:6-7 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. [Treasure in Jars of Clay]. 2Co 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us. We have Christ and with Him are His “unsearchable riches”
Eph. 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: V7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; V18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 2:7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 3:8. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
(3) “Repent” And in the prodigal coming home, you see repentance. He knew he had to change direction, he knew he needed to come home!
2] What is the greatness of this message that we are to preach? It is the Grace and Truth by which the Holy Spirit reveals Christ to the inner being [heart – mind of man] of all who will hear Him. Eph. 3: 16-20, i.e. V16 and V20, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,
3] The steps to their revival are the steps previously mentioned: Become awake – wake up. A Christian is hard to awake. Consider Jonah. Running from the LORD, and paid the fare to board the ship going to Tarshish [Jonah 1:2-5]. Six things to notice in this story of running from the LORD’s presence
A ] You cannot escape the LORD.
B ] In running from the LORD, you always go down.
C ] You can always find a vehicle to take you on the downward way: It may be a backslidden friend, a bitter spirit, one of the many lies of satan, or feeling sorry for yourself. But whatever, the ship will always be there for you.
D ] But when you take satan’s ship, you will always pay the fare.
E ] In running from the LORD you go to sleep, “…….But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.”
F] Somebody had to wake him up! Jon 1:6 So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him, What meanest thou, O sleeper? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.
4] Awake to righteousness, = Come to your right mind. What is this righteousness that He speaks of here? 1Co_15:34 Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame.
It means coming to the right-thinking of why you as a believer are here. [It is certainly not to think and live for the temporal but rather for the eternal]. 2 Cor. 4:16-18, For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.
“And sin not” – The “sin not” is not the normal sins we hear and are preached about so often.[ I use these, smoking, dipping, chewing as a characterization of the sins that are mostly preached about ]. That which makes the believer’s life, a life by the law, and leads to so-called salvation by works.
Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ and make the believer free. The “sin not” is not to forget the other and to lay down our self-righteousness and take the place of a sinner and rejoice in Christ, The Son of Man who, once for all, took all sin away forever. And to shine the Light of His finished work to those you love so much. I did not say to shine the light on all your convictions or religious servitude. You pay homage to the works of the flesh, where once Christ and His Love and Grace reigned in your mind and heart. Where the Faith of Christ that works by love was the reason for your life. You tell me how publishing all our do’s and do not can touch a life? If Jesus did not come to condemn, you tell me how condemnation can touch a soul? Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.
You tell me how the works of the flesh can heal the heart and mend the broken spirit? Psa 147:3 He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds. Psa 147:4 He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names. It is Jesus that all need!
Let me tell you a true story. This story is like this, even though the circumstances are different it fits the narrative of our life. Sin and failure have touched us all, from the story of Adam and Eve to you and me.
The story is: He was saved, announced his call to preach, married, pastored, and sometime in this process he became a homosexual.
In modern-day preaching that is explained in this way: “he was never really saved.” Or he needs to read the Bible, Go to Church, he was doing those things when he fell to the temptation.
To say, he was never saved is not an answer. Reading the Bible and going to church is something that all better be doing. The Bible testifies of Christ and going to church is to worship Him! But only Christ heal our broken heart and bind up our wounds, either self-inflicted or otherwise.
I want to close with three things:
First, a Poem that reminds us that we are not worth very much in the eyes of the world but we are to the LORD. [see back page]
Second, It is Faith Alone in Christ Alone that brings you Eternal Life. Do you believe that Jesus died and rose again? 1 Thess.4:13-18, i.e. V13,14 and 17.
Jesus said, “……I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: “ Without changing the truth let me put that in meaning to us: “He who lives and believes in ME, though he may die [physical death], he shall live [eternally].” That is Jesus explaining the Truth: “I am the Resurrection and the life”. Because He rose, He raises all who believe in Him. That is the same certainty that is given in John 6:47. If I am sure that I will be raised when Jesus comes with those who sleep in Him, then I am sure I am eternally secure 1 Thes. 4:17-18, Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. That is what the rapture means!
Third, God is working when no one knows He is working. His name is not mentioned in the Book of Esther but He is there. The devil is not mentioned but satan is there trying to kill the Jews, another attempt to prevent the coming Messiah. But The LORD is there through Mordecai’s Faith, He is there in the courage of an orphan girl that became the Queen, He is there in all of the happenstances which are not coincidences. What we call coincidences are the Providential acts of God working without being seen.
What does that say to us as we reflect on where life has brought? Will we through Faith in God shine the light of His saving power to those we love.
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