Dover Assembly of God
Revelation 3:7-13 NIV
Of all the churches, this one was the most nearly perfect. He has no condemnation or correction for them, only encouragement in difficult times.
Philadelphia was about 25 miles SE of Sardis. It was built on a high plateau and therefore was a strong fortress city. A main road that connected many of the various cities in that area ran straight thru this town.
It was surrounded by many industries, such as leather, vineyards and textiles. It was a very prosperous city.
As we know the name means “the city of brotherly love”. The name literally is Philadelphus, which means “brother lover”.
It was named after its founder, the Pergamenian King Attalus II around 150 BC, because of his love for his brother.
The city was destroyed by an earthquake around 17 AD. It was rebuilt, but many people had moved away and now lived in the suburbs due to the chance of another quake.
Kind of like most people now live in the suburbs of a city, rather than in the city itself.
This letter was written around 95 AD, so you had some city dwellers but a lot of suburban dwellers. However, people in the city now were very skiddish about any kind of tremor. They would leave at the slightest vibration.
We don’t know if this church was in the high plateau of the city or in the lower suburban planes. But it was associated with the inner city, so we assume it was there.
So let’s look at this verse by verse.
Revelation 3:7 NIV
Do you ever have to be reassured that God is there and maybe more than that, that God is able to intervene in your life?
Everything that God writes has meaning and a purpose.
Why would he write that He's holy and true? Isn’t this something we already know? We also would assume that this church would know it.
Jesus draws their attention to the fact that each of these phrases is identifying himself as the Messiah.
Remember, they didn’t really have the New Testament yet, so they relied on what was written in the Old Testament.
Hosea 11:9 NIV
Jeremiah 10:10 NIV
He wanted to remind them that he is the one true and holy God and that their faith is not in vain.
Do you remember when John the Baptist asked if Jesus was the one or if he should wait for another?
Luke 7:19 NIV
There will be times when we all begin to doubt. Jesus was encouraging this church even before they asked.
If you are having doubts about your faith, or are struggling in your belief, be encouraged that Jesus is still the one true God whom we can fully trust.
Jesus knows you have those doubts, so don’t sweat it.
Even though John had some doubts, what did Jesus say about him?
Luke 7:28 NIV
Having doubts is not a sin. Allowing those doubts to defeat you, is.
Revelation 3:7 NIV
This is almost a quote from Isaiah 22
The story in Isaiah is that God was taking away authority from Shebna because of his unfaithfulness and giving it to Eliakim who was found faithful.
Isaiah 22:15-18 NLT
Isaiah 22:20-22 NLT
The keys symbolize the authority that the King has. He gives the “keys” to those whom he trusts. He delegates his authority to those he trusts in.
John is telling the church, yet again, that he has the ultimate authority.
Here is the Bender paraphrase of that first verse:
I am the Holy one, the perfect God who does all things well.
I am the true God, the one who is faithful to do all he has said.
I have the authority over every situation. There is nothing that I cannot control.
I am the one who begins things that man cannot stop and stops things that man cannot revive.
Think about each of those statements in relation to our lives
1) When the perfect God says he “does all things well” it eliminates the thoughts that God has missed something or not done something right.
It’s like hiring a professional to do something in your home. You know he has the skill to finish the job even if it appears half way thru that it will never be done right.
When you hire a professional you have confidence that regardless of what it looks like during the process, you know the end result will be great.
Regardless of what we may be facing right now, we know the end product of our lives will be great.
2) I am the true God, the one who is faithful to do all he has said.
Do we have a promise book? Do we think that God hasn’t lived up to what he said? That those promises just aren’t working for me?
God said to this church who was facing trouble and didn’t see an end in sight, that he was STILL faithful. Trust Him till the end.
3) I have the authority over every situation. There is nothing that I cannot control.
Look at what is happening in the world around us and in our own country. It appears out of control, right?
Things often appear to be out of control. That no matter what we do, it doesn’t seem to help, in fact it gets worse at times.
But God says there is nothing that I do not have control over. That gives me comfort. It’s not always up to me!
The current situation may seem insurmountable, but God has control over all of it.
4) I am the one who begins things that man cannot stop and stops things that man cannot revive.
Can you name one thing that God started that nothing cannot stop?
The biggest thing that comes to mind is the church.
Matthew 16:18-19 NIV
Do you take comfort in the fact that if God wants to do something, there is nothing that you or I can do to stop it?
If God wants to work in your life, he will do it. But it requires us to believe what he’s called us to do, proceed with it, then God will finish it.
Philippians 1:6 NLT
And on the flip side, if there is something that God doesn’t want to happen, there is nothing we can do to make it happen.
Hebrews 13:5 NIV
If God said "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."
Then, nothing or no one is able to change that.
Let’s look at those verses, with all of that info in mind.
Here’s the Bender paraphrase:
Dear Church in Dover,
I want to let you know that even if your situation causes you not to feel like it, I still am the Holy God, the one who is forever. I am also the true God. Don’t let anyone convince you that what I promise isn’t true.
You see, I have the authority to do whatever I want. I am more than able to meet your needs, regardless of what maybe going on around you. There may be many struggles and opponents in your life, but they have no power over you. I control even the bad things. Nobody can change what I want to do for you.
Does that sound better?
Revelation 3:8 NIV
This is the one church that has only commendations. Jesus has no rebuke or correction for these folks.
Sometimes we forget that God knows and remembers everything. Sometimes we may feel, what’s the use? God doesn’t know or care what I do.
He is telling them, “I know the ministries that you carry out, I know how you struggle, I know the things that nobody else knows”.
Hebrews 6:10 NIV
He then tells them that he has opened a door for them.
There was still work to be done and He has prepared the way.
Revelation 3:8 NIV
“I know you think that you don’t have the strength or resources to continue, but since you have remained faithful, kept my word and not denied me, you are still vital in my kingdom.”
I have a plan for you. Don’t give up.
How about the Bender paraphrase again:
I see what you have been doing and I’m impressed. In fact, I am going to give you another assignment to complete. Now, I know you don’t think you can do it, but you have been able to keep my word and not deny me in the face of the sin in this city, so yes, with me, you are able to do it.
Let’s put those two together:
Dear Church in Philadelphia (or Dover Assembly)
I want to let you know that even if your situation causes you not to feel like it, I still am the Holy God, the one who is forever. I am also the true God. Don’t let anyone convince you that what I promise isn’t true.
You see, I have the authority to do whatever I want. I am more than able to meet your needs, regardless of what maybe going on around you. There may be many struggles and opponents in your life, but they have no power over you. I control even the bad things. Nobody can change what I want to do for you.
I see what you have been doing and I’m impressed. In fact, I am going to give you another assignment to complete. Now, I know you don’t think you can do it, but you have been able to keep my word and not deny me in the face of the sin in this city, so yes, with me, you are able to do it.
We will complete the rest next week. This part talked about what these people have done, the rest talks about what God will do.
I’ll tell you, this does nothing but excite me.
Have you ever read a passage and knew it was for you? As I was going over this, I’m convinced this is for us.
And I’m excited for what God has in store for us next!