Revelation 3

Revelation 3:1-6

Background and setting of Sardis
Sardis was a has-been city. At one point in their history they had been a glorious city, a center of political life and society during the Persian dynasty. But now they had fallen into poverty and almost complete ruin. “No city in Asia presented a more deplorable contrast of past splendor and present unresting decline.” Like most folks who don’t have anything real to boast about or take pride in the Sardis folks claimed to have a great art, wool and dye industry, but their glory was clearly past.

Because of their glorious past, however, the people had become known for their laxity and promiscuous lifestyles. Looseness and luxury and apathy became what they were known for. They just didn’t care and they were free and easy about that.

Sardis was built on a mountain. On a spur of this mountain sat an impregnable acropolis, but twice in their recent history this hill had been taken by enemies because the soldiers had drifted off in their assumption that they were unbeatable.

Vs. 1—To whom is the next letter going to?
Who is speaking?
What do the stars and spirits represent?
What does the number 7 represent?

What does Jesus know?
What works is he talking about?
What is the church’s reputation like?
What are they really like?
Wo is responsible for the health of the church? Heb. 13:17
What does alive and dead symbolize?
What kinds of things show that a church is alive or dead? Flourishing youth groups? Great Sunday School programs? Witnessing groups that go out every week? None of these things? Happy singing? Service? Compromise with the world around us? How would we know if we are compromising with the world around us? What would it look like? Suffering? People being saved? How would we know if we have become secularized? I believe the problem in Sardis was that they had become completely like the world around them. They had some glory, which they tenaciously clung to, but they were really dead. Eph. 2:3

v. 2—What are they supposed to do?
How can someone who is dead wake up?
Besides “wake up” what are they supposed to do?.
What does it mean to strengthen what remains?
What is what remains about to do, if they don’t do something about it?
Why should they strengthen what remains?
What does it mean that their works are not complete, or mature?
Why is Jesus yelling at them? They haven’t done anything wrong. They are just doing what everyone is doing. Just getting along. They had neither theological controversy, nor persecution. They were content with mediocrity. They didn’t have the umph to worry about unbelief nor did they have the inclination to fight with false teaching, or to face the possible persecution that would come if they stood up and because the light of the world or salt of the earth.

Satan may have been leaving them alone because he didn’t need to go after them. They were content to stand on the side lines and watch, hoping that nothing would touch them

v. 3—How are they to go about strengthening what remains?
What does it mean to remember?
What are they to remember?
What have they received and what have they heard? The Gospel in all its glory and ramifications. Also the privileges and responsibilities that come with being a church leader.
Besides remembering what are they to do?
What does it mean to keep it?
What does it mean to repent? Repent of their lazy attitude and behavior. Stop being proud of what you no longer have. Turn to what you don’t have. Desire maturity and wisdom and work toward that. Christ likeness.

What will happen if they don’t wake up and pay attention to what is going on around them?
What is going to happen if he comes?
What does it mean that he will come? Will it be pretty? Will it be a good thing? Lev. 26, Deut. 28.
How does a thief come?

v. 4—What remains in Sardis?
What characterizes them?
What will happen to them?
Why will it happen to them?
How did they get worthy?

v. 5—What will happen with the ones who conquer?
What’s with the white garments? Dan. 7:9; 4:4; 6:11; 7:9, 13; 19:14; Gal 3:27; Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:4-17; Jude 24.
Why does he keep using words like conquer?
What will happen with regard to the book of life?
What is the book of life?
How might a person’s name be erased from the book of life? Mat. 7:15-23; 13:20-21; 24:10-12; Mark 4:5-17; Luke 8:13; John 15:1-10; 1 Cor. 9:27; 10:1-12; 2 Thes. 2:3, 11-12; 1 Tim. 4:1-3; 2 Tim. 3:1-9; 4:3-4; Heb. 2:1-3; 3:12-14; 6:4-6; 10:26-31, 35-39; 2 Pet 2:1-3, 2-22; 3:17—Warnings aginst falling away from the coventant.
What else will Jesus do for the person who conquers?
What does “confess” mean?
Where is Jesus going to confess their names? Matt. 10:32-33; Mark 8:38; Luke 12:8-9 Matt. 7:23.
Why will that be a good thing?
When will all of this happen?

v. 6—What if a person doesn’t have ears to hear, but he realizes that he is in trouble unless something changes?
How can someone without ears to hear get ears to hear?

Literary connection between Revelation and the Israel’s history: Pergamum
1. Ephesus appeared to fit with the pre fall section of church history.
2. Smyrna seemed to fit well with the period of the patriarchs
3. Pergamum seems to fit well with time period of “sojourn” of Israel.
4. Thyatira looks like it fits well into the period of the Israelite monarch and the Davidic covenant.
5. Sardis goes well with the later prophetic period which leads up to the end of the monarchy and the disobedient people are led away into captivity. The seven stars is the same kind of imagery that we see all through the book of Zechariah. The description of the church as appearing to be alive though dead fits exactly with the nation of Israel. They were both living in their glorious past without remembering how or why that past existed at the time. They both needed to be warned to wake up and repent. They were both in danger of becoming dead and indeed Israel did die. In both there remained a faithful remnant who stayed faithful to the Lord and were saved in the end (Is. 1:5-23; 6:9-13; 65:8-16; Jer. 7:1-7; 8:11-12; Ezek. 37:1-14). And they were both constantly warned of impending judgment (Isa. 1:24-31; 2:12-21; 26:20-21; Jer. 4:5-31; 7:12-15; 11:19-13; Mic. 1:2-7; Zeph. 1).

Revelation 3:7-13 The letter to the church at Philadelphia

Historical background:
Philadelphia was the youngest of the 7 churches. It was founded by a fellow named Attalus II, also called Philadelphos. The city had been destroyed by an earthquake in ad 17. The Romans had rebuilt it, but many people had lost confidence in the city and refused to move back. Even among those who stayed or came back there wasn’t a sense of permanence and thus v. 12 may be a response to this attitude and fear.

It had a very strong adherence to the god Dionysus, but that wasn’t their problem. Their problem was the Jews.

Context? Why is John writing to these churches?

v. 7—Which angel is John to write to next?
Who is dictating this part of the letter?
Why does he call himself the Holy One?
Where have we seen the appellation “Holy One” before? Isa 40:25
What besides the Holy One is he?
What does it mean that he is the “true one”? In contrast to the false Jews, who claim to know the truth.
How else does he describe himself?
What is the key of David?
Who is David?
What do keys do?
What does he do with the keys?
What affect does his opening have?
What effect does his closing have? Isa 22:15-25; Gen 3:22-24; 1 Sam. 13:13-14
Christ is casting out the false and apostate Israel and replacing them with holy Stewards 1 Pet. 2:25

v.8—What does Jesus know?
What works?
What are they to do?
What does behold mean?
What has he set before the angel?
Who can shut this door? Why not?
What else does Jesus know? Only Jesus can give comfort in these kinds of situations.
How much power does the church have?
What is power?
How much does on need? Jesus has all the power they need. Jesus gives them access to the holy of holies through is blood. He is the true lord of the covenant. He is the one who holds the keys which open doors and lock them.
Whey have they done despite the fact that they have very little power?
What does kept my word mean?
What does not deny my name mean? Luke 19:26

v. 9—There’s another ‘behold’? What did it mean?
Who is the synagogue of Satan? Where have we seen that title before? 2:9
How can someone think he is a Jew but not be? What kind of things characterized these false Jews? Lying. Jews who do not acknowledge Jesus as Christ are not true Jews. They are apostate and have created a religion of men and worship gods that God has not ordained should be worshiped. They worship their father the devil John 8:44
Did Jesus see this kind of person when he was living on earth?
What is Jesus going to do to this group of people? Isa. 60:14; Heb. 12:22;
What will they learn? How will they probably respond to this information? Romans 11:7-24; v. 12, 15, 23-32

v. 10—What have they been doing?
When a person need patient endurance?
What is the difference between patience and endurance?
What will the result of their faithfulness be?
What is the difference between being kept from the hour of trial and being removed from the hour of trial? What about the pre-tribulation rapture?
What is a trial? What trials are coming?
Where is the trial going to be coming? How great will be the trial?
Who will be affected by it?
Why will it be coming? To try those who dwell on the earth.
Does it make sense to comfort those in the first century about something that wouldn’t be coming for another 2,000 years?
Who dwell on the earth? 3:10; 6:10; 8:13; 11:10; 13:8, 12, 14, 14:6; 17:2, 8
Idolatrous Israel to be driven from the land Jer. 1:14; 10:18; Ezek. 7:7; 36:17; Hos. 4:1, 3; Joel 1:2, 14; 2:1; Zeph. 1:18
Idolatrous nations being driven out of the land Num. 32:17; 33:52, 55; Josh. 7:9; 9:24; Judg. 1:32; 2 Sam. 5:6; 1 Chron. 11:4; 22:18; Neh. 9:24
Israel has joined the nations of pagans and will be driven from the land in the same way those pagan nations were way back when. Remember that God told Abraham that the pagans’ sin hadn’t reached its point of no return (Gen. 15:16), but when it did they would be driven from the land. Israel went over the Jordan and began driving those nations out. Now od is chasing 1st century Israel out for the same reasons.
What will Jesus do for the folks even in the midst of the trial? Keep them.
What does “keep them” mean? Jude 24, 25

v. 11— Who is coming soon? What does coming soon mean? Is there some relationship between verse 9 and this verse?
When will this trial be coming? What does soon mean?
Do you think the original Philadelphians would have expected something explained in this letter to be coming to them soon, in their lifetimes?
What are they to do with what they already have?
What do they have?
What does “seize your crown” mean?
What is their crown? Gen. 35:11; 1 Cor. 4:8; 1 Pet. 2:9
How could someone seize it?

v. 12—Here comes conquer thing again.
What happens to the one who conquers?
What significance I being a pillar in the temple of God? 1 Kings. 7:21
What temple?
How long will the conqueror live in the temple of God? Jer. 1:18; 1 Tim. 3:15
What else will the overcomer receive? 22:4; Num. 6:25; Ex. 34:29-35; Num. 12:6-8; Ps. 80:3, 7, 19; 2 Cor. 3:7-18; 4:6; 1 John 3:2
Those living in the old Jerusalem have apostatized and thus the old Jerusalem is about to die Matt. 24:1-2. But there is a new Jerusalem being created Gal. 4:26; Rev. 21
v. 13—Who should listen?

Philadelphia in the scheme of OT history:
1. Ephesus appeared to fit with the pre fall section of church history.
2. Smyrna seemed to fit well with the period of the patriarchs
3. Pergamum seems to fit well with time period of “sojourn” of Israel.
4. Thyatira looks like it fits well into the period of the Israelite monarch and the Davidic covenant.
5. Sardis goes well with the later prophetic period which leads up to the end of the monarchy and the disobedient people are led away into captivity.
6. The church at Philadelphia reflects the period in Jewish history of the return from Exile during the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. “The Philadelphians, like the returning Jews, have “a little power.” The reference to “the synagogue of Satan, who say that they are Jews, are not “ recalls the conflicts with the “false Jews “ in Ezra 4 and Nehemiah 4, 6, and 13. The warning of a coming “hour of testing…which is about to come on the whole world, to test those who dwell upon the land” reminds us of the tribulation suffered under Antiochus Epiphanes (cf. Dan. 8 and 11). But Christ promises the overcomer that he will be made “a pillar in the temple” and share in the blessings of the “New Jerusalem.”

Revelation 3:14-20
Context?

Historical Context:
Letters were sent to Laodicea through Colossians by Paul and this one from John. Laodicea was a city located at the confluence of 3 major trade roads in Asia Minor and a center for emperor worship. The city was very wealthy and was financially independent from Rome (they had recovered from a devastating earthquake in a.d. 60-61 without any imperial funds). They were an important banking center as well. They had a very famous textile industry, which produced very fine “glossy” black wool. They were also famous for their scientific community (they had a medical school) and they produced an ear ointment and an eye salve called “Phrygian powder.” Chilton says the eye salve was famous as far back as Aristotle’s day.

There is no mention of any persecution or suffering that the church in Laodicea might be undergoing. And there is no commendation for anything they are doing, only condemnation for what they aren’t doing.

v. 14—Who is this letter written to?
Where is Laodicea?
Who is John supposed to say this letter is coming from?
What does “Amen” mean? Isaiah 65:16 the word for truth in Hebrew is “amen.” Deut. 27:15-26; Neh. 5:12-13; 2 Co. 1:20;
What is a faithful witness? Heb. 7:22-28; 10:10-14
What is a true witness? John 14:6; Heb. 8
Should faithful and true be separated?
What does the phrase “the beginning of God’s creation” mean?
What is meant by “beginning”? Beginning here means head or origin, or ruler, what is elementary, authority. See Col. 1:15-18. This letter was sent to Laodicea. So they knew what John was talking about 4:16.
To whom do these titles refer? How do you know?

v. 15—What does Jesus know?
What are the works not?
Why would he rather they be hot or cold?
Centered between Colossae (natural springs of cool clear water) and Hieropolis (sulpher springs used for medicinal reasons and just to hang out and be pampered)
What does he wish they were? The Laodician church brings neither healing to the bones nor refreshment to dry parched lives.

v. 16—What are the works instead?
Why the shift from your works are not hot or cold to you are lukewarm?
What does he mean by lukewarm works?
What will he do because the angel is lukewarm? Lev. 18:24-28

v. 17—What does he say about himself?
What does he not realize about himself?

v. 18—What three things does Jesus tell him he ought to do?
Why gold?
Is He saying that Christians shouldn’t have wealth? Deut. 8:18; 1 Pet 1:7; 1 Co. 3:12-15
Why white garments?
Should Christians run around neked? Gen 3:7; Matt. 22:11; Rev. 19:8
Why salve? Lev. 21:18; Deut. 29:4; Matt 13:13-15; Luke 4:18; Acts 26:18; 1 Co. 2:14-15

v. 19—What does Jesus do with those he loves? Heb. 12:5-11; Prov 13:24;
What does someone have to do to be loved by Jesus?
What does Jesus do with those he loves?
What does reprove mean?
What does discipline mean? Psa 42:5; 51; 139; 1 John 1:9
How does he reprove and discipline those he loves?
Were the Laodiceans lost forever?
Is a sinner lost forever?
How should the angel react to all of this?
What does it mean to be zealous?

v. 20—What does “behold” mean?
What door is Jesus standing at? Is this an unbelievers heart?
What is he doing there?
What should someone who hears his call, not knock?, do?
What will Jesus do with the one who opens the door?
What does it mean to come in to him?
What will he do while he is there with you? John 6:53-57; 1 Cor. 10:16-17, 11:17-34 Mat. 22:11
What will you do with him?

v. 21—Here’s that conquer thing again?
How important is all of this to Jesus?
What will Jesus give the one who conquers? Col. 1 13; 2:15; Rev. 1:6; Acts 2:29-36; Eph. 1:20-22; 1 Cor. 15:25; Dan. 2:35, 45.
Where will you be sitting if you conquer?
When will it take place? Eph. 4:24; Col. 3:10; Rom. 8:29-30, 32; 1 Cor. 3:21-22

v. 22—If it doesn’t make sense, ask God for help, for ears, hearing.

Literary connection between Revelation and the Israel’s history: Pergamum
7. Ephesus appeared to fit with the pre fall section of church history.
8. Smyrna seemed to fit well with the period of the patriarchs
9. Pergamum seems to fit well with time period of “sojourn” of Israel.
10. Thyatira looks like it fits well into the period of the Israelite monarch and the Davidic covenant.
11. Sardis goes well with the later prophetic period which leads up to the end of the monarchy and the disobedient people are led away into captivity.
12. The church at Philadelphia reflects the period in Jewish history of the return from Exile during the books of Ezra and Nehemiah.
13. Laodicea matches well with the OT period of the last days of the Israelite nation (AD 30-70). The lukewarm nation boasting of its wealth and ability to see, purchase, and understand great things, but really being impoverished, blind, and naked accurately reflects the situation of Israel during the period just before their destruction (cf. Luke 18:9-14. The same warning was given to Laodicea that had been given to Israel, but she ignored it and thus was destroyed (Lev. 18:24-28; Luke 21:24). The kingdom was taken from Israel and given to the Gentiles (Rom. 11).