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Rev 3,1-22

(50e) Judgment >> Sequence of Revelations >> Great endtime revival >> Church gets right with God

Rev 3,1-5

(193j) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Turn from sin to God >> Repent >> Consequences of not repenting

Rev 3,1-4

(203h) Denying Christ >> Man chooses his own destiny apart from God >> Back-slider >> Withdraw from obeying God >> Withdrawing from God

Rev 3,1-3

(38c) Judgment >> Jesus defeated death (Satan) >> Resurrection overcomes death

(56a) Paradox >> Lose by gaining >> Gain your idea of wealth to lose God’s wealth -- These verses go with verse 11

(167f) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind is set on the flesh >> Carnal mind is fueled by our emotions – The Church in Sardis has a name in the world, and by that name they consider themselves alive, but God says they are dead, in that they are merely exhibiting their spirituality in the emotional realm. God does not see Himself in them; all He sees is emotional hype. Those who stick to the doctrine of grace through faith don’t need to look for Bible verses to explain their behavior, whereas rowdy Pentecostal denominations are more likely to take a chance and believe something new, making themselves appear all the more alive in their beliefs, but they don't fool God. He does not see their deeds complete; love is lacking. These rowdy believers claim that the more conservative denominations have excluded whole belief systems that are necessary to living the abundant life (Jn 10-10), yet God is telling them to remember the roots of the cross, and unload some of their extraneous doctrines until they get better grounded in the rudiments of the faith, based on the blood of Jesus shed for the forgiveness of sin. If they don’t repent, God will come like a thief, and they do not know at what hour He will come. See also: Pentecostals and Charismatics; Rev 3,7-10; 113b

(178g) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Hypocrisy >> Hypocrisy of the Church is rebuked >> The Church is rebuked for disobedience

(184j) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Abusing the grace of God >> Dragging God’s grace through the mud >> Unwilling to honor God’s grace – This group has gotten their emotions ahead of their faith, which doesn’t sound too serious, except that the subject has turned to sin. Now we are getting a fuller picture of their motives behind the hype. There is more to Christianity than pretending to be spiritual through loud noises and bodily gyrations. They have a spiritual veneer, but underneath they are practicing sin. Those who get their feet dirty wash their feet and are clean, but those who get their clothes dirty have fallen in the mud puddle and wallow in the mire. Their façade is devoid of faith, and their emotionalism doesn't glorify God. Rather, they are in danger of losing their souls. They should replace their religious pretense with love.

(196j) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Spiritual laziness >> Replacing God’s standard of excellence with yours >> Sleeping in the spirit

(202e) Denying Christ >> Man chooses his own destiny apart from God >> Running from God >> Running to your sinful nature >> Laziness has plenty of ambition to run from God -- These verses go with verses 15-17

(241a) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Taking away the key of knowledge >> Hindering unity in the Church -- These verses go with verses 15-20

Rev 3-1,2

(26e) Sin >> Consequences of sin >> Death is separation from Christ – Jesus is speaking to the church in Sardis that they have a name for themselves. They have become an entity of the world apart from Christ, and they are dead.

(174i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Form of a servant but denying God your loyalty – When Jesus said, “Wake up and strengthen the things that remain,” it means that He has no intensions of replacing what they have allowed to die. We must remain faithful with the things God has given us or we will lose them. There are warnings in the first three chapters of Revelation that are aimed specifically at the Church of the last days that point directly at us, the generation more likely to see the return of Christ than any generation before us, yet the Church today seems unaffected by this. They cry, ‘Grace, grace, grace,’ their favorite word, but there are other words in the Bible that speak of judgment, judgment, judgment, meaning that God is unwilling to resolve every problem of man’s disobedience.

(191j) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Result of putting off the old man >> Set apart >> Set apart from the world – God doesn't want His Church to be an entity of the world but to be a separate kingdom apart from the nations. Sardis got the wrong idea of God’s will for the Church. They integrated into the world, thinking they would win souls and fulfill the great commission, but doing the will of God involves keeping ourselves separate from the world. Our evangelism becomes ineffectual when we try to lessen the offense of the cross, thinking that people can better relate to the gospel if we become like them. The Church must be sanctified if we want to effectively reach those who are seeking God. The Bible speaks of God's kingdom as unique to all other kingdoms, so we cannot integrate into the world without losing our identity. "We are in the world but not of the world" is a popular statement in Christendom, but most don’t live this way. God has His own principles, His own fruit and His own kingdom, and we should integrate into Him and not into the world. James said that a faucet cannot produce both fresh and bitter water (Jm 2-11), so if we are members of God’s kingdom, we cannot be of the world at the same time. We may have citizenship in a nation; that is part of being in the world, but our allegiance does not reside in that nation but in the kingdom of God, and for this reason the world hates us.

(226a) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables about lamps – In the first three chapters of Revelation, each of the seven churches was assigned a lamp. Remember the parable of the Ten Virgins and their lamps (Mat 25,1-13)? The foolish said to the wise, "Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out," but they refused, telling them to go to the dealers and buy some for themselves, but they had run out of time. God gives us a lamp, lights it and puts some fuel in the tank, but He doesn’t give us matches. He gives us a good start and He expects us to maintain the flame for the rest of our lives. He requires us to occasionally purchase more oil at the store, located in the Most Holy Place through the word of God and prayer, to replenish the oil we have burned, for if the flame dies in our lamp, there is no way to relight it. Heb 6,4-6 says, “For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.” What was the cause of their lamps dying? It was from a lack of zeal for God in not gathering more oil for the long, dark night that they knew was coming. See also: Ten virgins; Rev 3-2,3; 4j

Rev 3-1

(26a) Sin >> Consequences of sin >> Death >> Dead to God through sin

(53c) Paradox >> Opposites >> Of life and death >> Die trying to live

(166l) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind cannot discern between good and evil >> The old mind

(169i) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Seeking the glory of man >> Loving the approval of men rather than the approval of God >> Coveting the favor of men

(178c) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Presumption (Hinduism) >> Presuming the facts about the circumstances >> Presumption interprets our observations

(198f) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Ordained by man >> Men place themselves in positions of authority >> Men who are ill-equipped to fulfill the ministry – There are lots of dead pastors in the pulpits these days who have been ordained by men, who have placed themselves in positions of authority, who are ill-equipped to fulfill the ministry, who preach dead sermons every week. The religious establishment today has the primary goal of self-sustainment, instead of furthering the Kingdom of God in the world, hence their token outreach programs. Top priority of every church is its own existence and of course the pastor’s salary paid. Christianity has become just another business in the world, after it merged with the state, starting in the third century. In the days of the early church a pastor's salary was scarcely enough to meet his needs, and they were often persecuted and even martyred. They served without hope of earthly benefit, and they did exploits for God, but in today’s church pastors receive a salary, and if persecuted they run. That is the very definition of a hireling, and the Church is full of men like this in the pulpit. Inside they are dead. It is really hard to find a good church these days. We’ve all heard it said, ‘If you find a perfect church, don’t join it, because then it won't be perfect anymore.’ We are not talking about perfection here; we are talking about having a sincere faith. If we are looking for a certain religious denomination, then we will certainly find one, but we are looking for genuine faith that loves and practices the truth, we can search the world-over and may never find one. When the Lord said that they are dead, He was saying that the Holy Spirit does not dwell in them. They are not born-again; many churches these days don’t even preach being born-again; they don't believe in such things. What! Being born-again is the foremost doctrine of the faith; we must be saved before we can go to heaven.

(212j) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> God is all knowing >> God knows everything about you -- This verse goes with verse 8

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Rev 3,2-5

(105f) Thy kingdom come >> Pure in heart >> Lacking a pure heart

(227e) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Rewards of heaven >> God rewards endurance >> Keeping our rewards through endurance -- These verses go with verse 11

Rev 3-2,3

(4j) Responsibility >> The choices you make >> Accountable for your deeds -- These verses go with verse 8. In the parable of the Ten Virgins, all were asleep, both the wise and the foolish, and they all awoke at the same time at a shout from their Master. The five who were wise had enough oil in their lamps to prepare for His coming, but the five who were foolish Jesus said He would come to them like a thief. What does He intend to steal from them but the things that are about to die, and what was about to die but the flame in their lamps (Rev 2-5)? God is our greatest advocate, but He is the unbeliever’s greatest adversary. These things were about to die because we have failed to remember what we have heard, and have not kept it or repented. Jesus said He will take what is left of our faith, according to the parable of the Ten Virgins, by delaying His return. Jesus told the story about the sower of seeds, that some fell beside the road and the birds came and ate it up; the birds referred to Satan and his demons that came and snatched the word from their hearts. What Jesus is saying here is different; He is talking about seed that may have well fallen in good soil and grew to be a healthy plant, but never bore any fruit (Lk 13,6-10). If we do not bear any fruit, God takes offense at that (Jn 15-5,6), as though He were unworthy of our service. We need to serve Him in fear and trust and walk in joy and safety of faith and love. See also: Last days (Ten Virgins); Rev 3-2; 83i / Rev 8-5; 104d

(45g) Judgment >> Believer’s sin >> God will judge us with the world if we live like them -- These verses go with verses 15-19

Rev 3-2

(9i) Responsibility >> Strengthen one another >> Be strong

(44c) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Complete >> Fulfill the requirements – Paul talked about being complete; James too said to be “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” This is in combination of our faith and works, allowing no contradiction between them. If we claim to be Christian yet live like the world, we are incomplete.

(48j) Judgment >> Levels of judgment >> Judged by withdrawing rewards

(83i) Thy kingdom come >> Jesus intercedes for us >> He prepares us to meet the Father – Jesus had a complaint about the Church in Sardis that their works were incomplete, that they were about to die. They were far too involved in the world and were walking by sight, and it obstructed their faith in Jesus. It says they were asleep and He woke them, as in the parable of the Ten Virgins. The flame in their lamp was their responsibility to keep burning and not let it expire, for if the flame dies, there is nothing in Scripture that says God will relight our lamps; i.e., He rejected those whose flame died of the five foolish virgins. The same way in this verse, there was a shout, “Wake up” and strengthen the things that remain, suggests that if we let the things of God die in us, we cannot revive them. Therefore, we must be careful that our flame keeps burning, like the perpetual incense representing prayer that God commanded Moses for the old covenant temple of worship (Exodus 30,1-10). See also: Ten Virgins; Rev 3-3; 215g

(223g) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Miss God >> Missing the point >> Miss the meaning of being with Jesus

Rev 3-3

(7e) Responsibility >> Protecting the gospel >> God defends His own word – God defends His word by purging the Church in two ways: He will either purge sin from us, or if we refuse to work in Him, He will purge us from the Church.

(36e) Gift of God >> Gifts from the Holy Spirit >> The gift of authority -- This verse goes with verse 11

(45d) Judgment >> God judges our walk in the Spirit >> For not bearing fruit

(49i) Judgment >> Judgment day >> He will come like a thief in the night – Coming like a thief and catching people off-guard the Church has attributed to the world and not to themselves, but these words were written about the Church. It says that Jesus is coming like a thief at a time when the Church does not expect and will catch many unprepared. So long as life is easy, we say Jesus could come any day; but when ominous clouds form on the horizon and threatening days come upon us, we say Jesus should have come before this, and so hard times define the the days when the foolish virgins don't expect Him to return (1The 5,1-7). The church of Sardis is one that won’t repent; they are the Pre-Tribulation Rapture crowd. They got saved at some point, and they were no doubt happy in their salvation for a while, but their happiness wore-off and they became discontent in their faith. Jesus on a number of occasions said He would come like a thief, which is not at all like His first coming in the flesh, and what is He coming to steal but their lampstand (Rev 2-5)? He will take home those who are prepared, and the rest will be left behind. Those left behind who have not taken the mark of the beast will have to make their way to Jerusalem, which will be the only safe haven on earth, though it also happens to be hometown of the antichrist, which is a paradox to say the least. The mark of the beast will be enforced during those days, and those in rebellion against God will most likely receive it, except for a very small sliver of people who will neither believe in God nor take the mark, and if they see the second coming of Christ, they will be called to repopulate the earth. See also: Those left behind who have not taken the mark will migrate to Jerusalem between the trumpets and the bowls; Rev 11,1-6; 28c

(113m) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Guard the anointing -- This verse goes with verse 11

(114e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Obeying the Holy Spirit >> Obeying the revelation from heaven >> Obeying the revelation by putting away the flesh

(176c) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Ignorance >> Ignorance lurks in darkness

(180h) Works of the devil >> Practicing witchcraft >> Rebellion >> Rebelling against God’s narrow way >> Rebelling against the word of God

(201i) Denying Christ >> Man chooses his own destiny apart from God >> Running from God >> Man’s will over God >> Man is unwilling to repent – Revelation is a book of prophecy, and chapters two and three represent the Church in the last days. Jesus said that many people fitting the description of Sardis will not repent. They do not know at what hour He will come, though in Mat 25-6 He plainly stated that He would come at midnight. For the last 2000 years the Church has prepared herself for the second coming of Christ, yet just before he returns the Church will be least prepared. Jesus didn’t lie to those in the past who prepared and never saw His return; He will eventually come, and it didn’t hurt them to prepare. It helped them to stay spiritually alert.

(215g) Sovereignty >> God controls time >> Suddenly >> The judgments of God come suddenly >> Without warning – Jesus reminded the people of Sardis what they have received during the early days of salvation when their hearts were tender and the seed planted in good soil saved their souls. Since then they have become spiritually slothful and disobedient. In the parable of the Ten Virgins, it teaches that both the wise and the foolish fell asleep, but the foolish didn't bring oil with them, and they awoke just as their lamps were fading. When their lamps flickered for the last time and went dark, their faith died, just as Jesus was making His return. Why is it that people’s faith died just as Jesus was returning? He waited for their faith to die before He came as a way of eliminating the disingenuous from His heavenly kingdom. See also: Ten Virgins; Rev 3,7-10; 140a

(218b) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> You cannot control the judgment of God >> You cannot control how God responds to rebellion -- This verse goes with verses 15-17

(238h) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Pursuing the knowledge of the kingdom >> Teachers >> Teachers "remind" their students >> Strong reminders

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Rev 3-4,5

(32g) Gift of God >> Father will honor you if you die to self >> Your faithfulness

(98ka) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Endurance invites the Holy Spirit into your life >> The salvation of God >> Enduring the wicked is to overcome them -- These verses go with verse 21

(113c) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Heaven’s clothes >> Clothe yourself with good works -- These verses go with verses 17&18. Garments refer to our works, and the fact that we have not soiled them means we do not practice sin. The clothes we wear are what people see; they represent us in the world, just like our works, and underneath our clothes we are naked. God doesn’t fault us for being naked; we were born that way; He faults us for wearing dirty clothes. The Lord gave us some linens to cover our nakedness (Rev 19-8), and Paul said that we should take off our old clothes (bondage to sin) and put on the new self (Eph 4,22-24), the good works that He prepared for us that we should walk in them (Eph 2-10). This new person whom we have become in Christ, after we believed and received the indwelling Holy Spirit, has mixed with our spirit to make a new creation in His grace, and this new person is our spiritual identity.

Rev 3-4

(71d) Authority >> Ordained by God >> Worthiness of man >> God makes us worthy of heaven

(92d) Thy kingdom come >> The narrow way >> Trail of good works >> Putting on His good works – God has certain expectations of those who seek Him. Those with dirty clothes He resists, but those in white garments walk with Him for they are worthy. We are called to overcome our fleshly sins and avoid soiling our clothes so we can have a closer walk with Him. How close of a walk do we want with God? However we answer that question is the level of commitment to righteousness we need in order to approach His throne.

(93a) Thy kingdom come >> The narrow way >> Keep yourself on the narrow way

(145h) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Demon possession >> Human state >> Filthiness >> Deeds of the flesh – Jesus said that a person who has bathed needs only to wash his feet (Jn 13-10). Even while doing the will of God we get our feet dirty, walking down a dusty road in sandals spreading the gospel. John in this verse is talking about doing more than collecting dirt on our feet. We have fallen in the mud and are unwilling to be cleansed.

(164g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world system >> Satan’s system of authority >> His elementary principles of the world

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Rev 3-5

(15g) Servant >> Angels >> The presence of angels denotes authority

(30k) Gift of God >> God’s favor qualifies you for heaven

(83h) Thy kingdom come >> Jesus intercedes for us >> He represents us before the Father

(150cb) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Confessing Jesus to be saved >> Confessing Jesus for the sake of heaven -- This verse goes with verse 8

(207c) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Eternal security? >> God will accept you into His heaven if you overcome >> Overcome temptation to give up the faith – We must be born-again in order to have our names written in the Book of Life. How does a person who believes in eternal security get over a statement like this, "I will not erase his name from the book of life"? This means the book of life is not made of stone. Jesus will smudge names from the book of life if certain Christians will not repent of their hollow faith. Those who need their feelings of security supported by invented doctrines are secretly planning to fall away from the faith, and those who want to believe in eternal security will continue believing no matter how many verses like these we present to them. They will always find a way to make the Scriptures say what they want, but in the end we are better-off forming our doctrines around the Scriptures rather than forming the Scriptures around our doctrines. See also: Eternal Security?; 217f

(217f) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> God gives up on you >> After you refuse to comply -- This verse goes with verses 16&17. What is the opposite of this verse? ‘He who does not overcome will not be clothed in white garments, and I will erase his name from the book of life. This verse depicts a person losing his salvation. Some say that this is impossible, but we need to remember that the doctrine of Eternal Security is man-made and is not biblically supported. The Bible teaches that by the account of two or three witnesses all will be verified, so all we need is two or three Bible passages to debunk the doctrine of Eternal Security, but there are dozens of them sprinkled throughout the New Testament all teaching that it is in fact possible to lose our salvation, and the way that looks in heaven is that the person's name is erased from the Lamb's Book of Life, which no one wants to happen, or would even wish upon his worst enemy. Their names can be written there, but they cannot be rewritten if erased (Heb 6,4-6). Salvation reduces to whether a person is willing to publicly confess Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. This is what the Bible teaches as the bottom line of a person’s salvation, it is determined by a confession of faith (Mk 8-38); but a person can have a change of heart; it happens all the time. Lots of people get married and then divorced; they once loved each other and now they don’t. The same is true with God, whose relation to man is in fact a marriage. A divorced couple can remarry, but if anyone divorces God, that is the end of the relationship. These transactions occur in the spiritual realm, and God takes them very seriously (Heb 12-16), for the spiritual realm is just as literal to God as the physical realm is to us. If we say in our heart that we don’t want God anymore, and we live that way proving we mean it, God will honor our choice and erase our name from the book of life. He doesn’t want anyone in His heaven who doesn’t want to be there or doesn’t love Him. He was willing to be tortured and nailed to a cross once, but He is not willing to bring anyone into His house who would think about killing Him again. See also: Eternal Security?; 219hh

(219hh) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> The elect >> God chooses us as we choose ourselves >> The Lamb's book of life – Those who believe in eternal security use this verse to confirm we cannot lose our salvation, since it says He will not erase our names from the Lamb's Book of Life, but if we had the hearing ear and the courage to acknowledge the intent of the Scriptures as they were written, we would see that names can be erased from the Lamb's Book of Life, but He won’t erase anyone's name who loves Him with the whole heart. It takes courage to value the Scriptures over our preconceived notions; conversely, it takes a lot of nerve to value our preconceived notions of the Scriptures. it is all too common for Christians to prefer their own ideas over sound doctrine, and if they are teachers of God’s word, they promote doctrines that have led the Church into heresy. If we are unwilling to acknowledge the potential erasing of our names from the book of life, then what else are we unwilling to acknowledge about God’s word? For every highly massaged passage we use to justify our heretical beliefs, there are three passages that speak very plainly to the contrary without interpreting them. See also: Eternal Security?; 207c

(224b) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Description of heaven >> Describing the kingdom after he makes all things new >> Description of the ascension

(253j) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is under the authority of the Father -- This verse goes with verse 12

(254d) Trinity >> Holy Spirit’s relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is the life of the Spirit >> We live because He is life >> God gives life to our faith in Jesus

Rev 3-6

(79k) Thy kingdom come >> Know the word >> Listen to the word >> He who has ears to hear, let him hear -- This verse goes with verse 13. If we don’t develop a hearing ear, we could lose everything. We must develop an ear for what the Spirit is saying and not for what others think. We must often swallow our pride to maintain our relationship with God, because we are sinners and have a proclivity for evil; our flesh more readily wanders from Him than walks with Him, and we have a greater tendency to believe a lie than the truth. For this reason we need to cultivate a hearing ear, so we can properly understand the Scriptures. When God speaks to us, we need to recognize His voice, even when He says things that don't fit our rendition of truth.

(106e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Attaining the hearing ear >> Having the ability to hear -- This verse goes with verse 13

(110h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Born of the Spirit by the truth >> Hearing the Spirit -- This verse goes with verse 13

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Rev 3,7-13

(194c) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Turn from sin to God >> Run to God >> Running to meet Jesus prior to His visitation

(113b) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Heaven’s clothes >> Protection >> Shelter – The name “Christ” is literally translated the anointed One. Consequently, “Christians” are anointed ones, meaning all Christians possess an anointing from God, or they are not Christians. The anointing is not something we keep under a basket. This simple concept of a flame burning in a lamp is the illustration of the anointing. We teach it to preschool children in Sunday school every week, but we don’t believe it ourselves, truncating it from our doctrines. “Hide it under a bushel, no! I’m gonna let it shine….” We talk about the anointing as the light of our salvation, and it is, but it is more than that. God not only wants to save us for eternity, He wants to save us from the world in this life, but if we reject the salvation of His anointing, we could potentially allow our eternal salvation to slip. We need the anointing to protect our faith, yet most Christians don't believe in the anointing, and as a result people are falling away from the faith by the droves. We know that Pentecostals and Charismatics believe a semblance of the anointing, yet many of their ideas are twisted beyond remedy, making those who discount the anointing almost further ahead. See also: Pentecostals and Charismatics; Rev 3,1-3; 167f

(139j) Hiding Place (Key verse) – There are two ways to build God's temple: with hands and without hands. Both are required if His temple is to be built at all. Building the temple with hands lays the foundation for the spiritual temple to be built without hands. Building the temple with hands is a matter of laying the foundation of knowledge and obedience, whereas its counterpart involves building the structure from faith. Knowledge and obedience are building materials that we use every day in the world, whereas faith is spiritual, which yields a spiritual product, capable of producing a spiritual structure made of a substance that is not of this world.

(140a) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Hiding place >> The doorway – The implication of God setting an open door in front of the Philadelphian church was that they should pass through it, which is picturesque of the parable of the ten virgins who also had an open door set before them, and only the wise passed through it. The people in the Church of Philadelphia were wise in their relationship with God; they had a true substance to their faith. Therefore, God put before them an open door that leads into the Holy of Holies, where they discover a profound anointing. The Holy of Holies is where the Philadelphian church will find safety while all the evils of the last days befall so many of their fellow church members who had not trimmed their lamps or gathered enough oil to enter such a holy place with God. We who have prepared our hearts to enter this heavenly realm will wait for Jesus in the Most Holy Place where our enemies cannot come, a place where revelation knowledge and understanding of God’s wisdom comes easily, a place where the truth comes alive. It is the place that our flesh recognizes as the wilderness, and anybody who practices a hollow version of Christianity is barred from this place. Not only are they unwelcome, they wouldn’t go there even if they could. See also: Door of Christ; Rev 3-7,8; 55g / Ten Virgins; Rev 3-7,8; 55g

Rev 3,7-9

(217a) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> God Is Independent Of His Creation >> No one can make God do anything

Rev 3-7,8

(55g) Paradox >> Opposites >> As Jesus opens His door the Church close theirs -- These verses go with verse 20. God has set before us an open door, because we have a little power, have kept His word and have not denied His name. This means that if we don’t have a little power, if we have not kept His word and have denied His name, this door will be closed. This verse is talking about possessing an anointing from God. He is not asking the moon from us, if we have some level of anointing, even a little, and if we have protected it by walking in it, that is enough to keep this door open so we can pass through it. On the other side of this door is something the Church has overlooked, a Great Endtime Revival! If we have a remnant of the Spirit, we have access to this door, but those who have allowed their fire to smother; the door will be shut to them, corresponding with the parable of the Ten Virgins. This little flame in our lamp means something to God. He has given us a piece of Himself and commanded us to keep it until He returns; those who can produce what belongs to Him, which has accumulated with interest will be rewarded with eternal life, but those who can’t will be shut-out. God has called us all to embrace our possession from God with everything inside us to prevent letting go of it, because the forces that want to pull us from our faith in Jesus are great. This powerful little flame represents our faith. We don’t just believe a battery of doctrines; we possess something from God, the anointing, the manifestation of the Spirit who dwells in us. God requires that we manifest His kingdom on the earth; it is not an option, otherwise there is nothing real in us. The only way our faith can be proven is that we manifest it in the natural realm, and that manifestation of faith is the anointing, which is demonstrated through the righteous acts of the saints (Rev 19-8). All these concepts converge at the threshold of this open door that we enter and where God protects us from the evil one who befalls the world. See also: Great Endtime Revival; Rev 3-10; 49m / Door of Christ; Rev 3,8-10; 50h / Ten Virgins; Rev 3-1,2; 226a

Rev 3-7

(15d) Servant >> Ministering spirits >> Angels Perform certain duties -- This verse goes with verse 14

(107e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Truth of the trinity >> Jesus is truth

(133b) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holiness >> God is holy >> Jesus is holy

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Rev 3,8-12

(99a) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Enduring the will of God >> Enduring the word of God >> Endure obeying the word of God

Rev 3,8-10

(28k) Gift of God >> God is our advocate >> God protects us through prayer – Often when the Church struggles in its circumstances, it causes a rejuvenation of faith, a time of reflection and going back to their roots, after their life of materialism is no longer feasible. A passage like this falls right into the hands of pre-tribulation Rapture advocates, and we can’t blame them for seeing their doctrine in this passage, but there are too many verses that speak against a pre-tribulation Rapture, suggesting that Jesus is talking about something else. He is talking about keeping the Church from the hour of testing in some other way, but he also said that they have kept the word of His perseverance. They have persevered under trial, meaning that they have already persevered and have passed certain tests. They were tested and found faithful against Satan's wrath, and are now eligible to enter God's protection to keep them from another hour of testing that is coming upon the whole world. This is referring to a time between the Seals of Satan’s wrath and the Trumpets of God’s judgment. There had been trials and difficulties before this. Jesus spoke of the synagogue of Satan; they have persevered against religious liars, in the face of a majority of people who taught an opposing gospel, and those who were faithful contradicted their lies with God’s truth, so others could follow them instead of the religious establishment. What is the synagogue of Satan? We know in the First Century that it consisted of unbelieving Jews, those who had Jesus crucified in Jerusalem. However, 2000 years later, we are talking about a completely different group of people. The First Century Church who read John’s revelation figured it was those who adhered to old covenant temple worship and all its services and teachings that Jesus debunked, but today the Jews are a non-entity in the religious arena of Christianity, so in today’s world, we are not talking about Jews at all. Therefore, the synagogue of Satan refers to the Church today that has survived for 2000 years, though in the process has adopted many false doctrines and teachings, with every generation contributing to the pile, until the things people believe today are no more accurate to the Scriptures than the teachings of the Pharisees in Jesus’ day. They didn’t understand the Old Testament any better than the contemporary false church understands the New Testament. Therefore, the synagogue of Satan refers to the religious establishment of Christianity in the 21st century, who will for the most part reject God’s plan and purpose for His people during His return. God intends to call the Jew to faith in Jesus Christ in order to lead a Great Endtime Revival. There will be two revivals happening at the same time, a true one and a false one. Many churches in the developed countries of the world will reject this Jewish ministry to their own demise and will instead follow the revival of the Roman Catholic Church, led by the antichrist, designed to give people an alternative in effort to dissuade the participants of God’s revival.

(32i) Gift of God >> Father will honor you if you die to self >> Father honors His word in you

(50h) Judgment >> Sequence of Revelations >> Second half of the tribulation >> The saints flee into the wilderness - spiritual warfare  (Pre-rapture ascension) – Those who enter through this door into the Most Holy Place will be participants of the Rapture, but before that, entering through this door into the Most Holy Place and into a deep and profound anointing will cause them to become immune to the trials and horrors of the great tribulation. They will still be in the world (still in the body), but God’s relationship with them, His ministry and presence, will be so strong that all the problems and troubles of the world will hardly register with them, like God who dwells in the midst of fire and smoke. They will be dead to the adversity of their flesh and to the difficulties that everyone is facing. Those who feel the sting of the endtime tribulation will be those who look back and remember the “good times” when the stock market made them wealthy, when they could get in their car and go to the store and buy what they needed, when they could pretend they believed in God and were honored members of their church. God wants a real relationship with His people, but He has been mostly denied this throughout the age of grace; however, in the last days He will accept nothing less than faithful obedience. He will make His church live the way He intended them from the beginning, persecuted on the outside and flourishing on the inside, sanctified instead of honored in the world. God will expect more from His last days generation of Christians than He did from anyone throughout Church history, even more than the early Church. He will demand that we know Him and worship Him in all holiness, righteousness and truth. See also: Door of Christ; Rev 3-9,10; 172a / Rev 8-5; 104d

(86k) Thy kingdom come >> Obedience >> Be doers of the word >> Clothe yourself with the word of God >> Do the words of Jesus

(206a) Salvation >> God makes promises on His terms >> Conditions to promises >> Conditions to living in the spirit >> Conditions to partaking in the spirit

Rev 3-8,9

(68c) Authority >> Jesus Delegates Authority To Execute Judgment >> Against Satan

Rev 3-8

(4j) Responsibility >> The choices you make >> Accountable for your deeds -- This verse goes with verse 11

(67h) Authority >> Jesus delegates authority >> Sacrificing your life for the name of Jesus

(111f) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Word and the power (meaning) of God >> Word in obedience cannot evade the power of God

(150cb) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness to Jesus >> Confessing Jesus to be saved >> Confessing Jesus for the sake of heaven -- This verse goes with verse 5

(212j) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> God is all knowing >> God knows everything about you -- This verse goes with verse 15

(236h) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Invest in the kingdom >> Invest your treasures into the kingdom >> Invest everything you value

Rev 3-9,10

(172a) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Tares among the wheat >> Devils among the saints >> False brethren among the people of God >> Antichrists among Christians – The word “Jew” in verse 9 refers to so-called “Christians”. We are talking about the false brethren, who make grandiose claims about their faith in God, but have no love to show for it, and they persecute those who do, as it is written, “He who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also” (Gal 4,28-31). The false brethren are a thorn in the side of all who believe in Jesus. The false brethren will be mostly responsible for turning in Christians to the New World Order to be rounded up and martyred for their faith. The false brethren have gone to church all their lives and hold to a certain denomination and believe in certain doctrines, yet have never asked Jesus in their hearts. All they have is a religion, and they insist on being Christians; they are totally convinced of it; they were raised in the Church by parents who also went to church, third and forth generation parishioners, possibly none who ever made a bona fide commitment to Christ or even believed that being born-again meant anything. It is this kind of "Christian" who will be most offended by those who enter through this door into the Most Holy Place. See also: False brethren; Rev 3-9; 208fa / Door of Christ; Rev 3,20-22; 106g

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Rev 3-9

(31a) Gift of God >> God is our Father >> He favors the Church to spite the world

(46k) Judgment >> Spiritual warfare >> Demons are subject to the Church through Christ

(49b) Judgment >> Nations are destroyed >> God judges the nations through the Church

(159c) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Counterfeit >> Counterfeit godliness >> Counterfeit Christian

(174k) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Lip service

(183b) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Spirit of Error (Anti-Christ / Anti-Semitism) >> Witchcraft >> Sin is the incubator of witchcraft >> Through satanic influence

(208fa) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Personal relationship >> Being the friend of God >> Relationship with God through obedience >> We resemble Him through faith – In the last days during the apostasy that has fallen upon the Church prior to His second coming, Christ will differentiate between the righteous and the wicked within His Church. Imposters who have essentially taken over the Church, Christ will make them bow at our feet and know that He has loved us. There are many imposters in the pulpit, and there are many in the assembly, and together they have hijacked the Church, but in the last days God will make everything right. Before His second coming those who are faithful in Christ will serve Him, and those who are merely playing a religious game will be exposed as frauds. There will be a cleansing of the Church in the last days and a cleansing of doctrine, so people will believe the truth as it is written in Scripture instead of believing a lot of doctrines that have infiltrated the Church throughout the centuries. False brethren have taken over the Church and naturalized it, making it worldly. Secularism rejects everything that is spiritual and accepts only that which pertains to this natural realm, being why the Holy Spirit is rarely mentioned and and why being born-again is seldom taught. This kind of “Christian” will bow at the feet of those who know and love the truth, and they will come to realize that we are the true saints of the Most High, chosen and faithful, for whom Jesus is coming to receive to Himself. The disingenuous will realize that we never believed any of their phony doctrines. See also: False brethren; Rev 3-9,10; 172a

Rev 3,10-20

(117j) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Eyes of your spirit >> Seeing through the eyes of your spirit >> Acknowledging the presence of God

Rev 3-10

(49m) Judgment >> God judges the world >> Condition of the Church in the last days – There is a Great Endtime Revival coming that will come through the 144,000 Jews, and Two Witnesses from their numbers will lead them, holding ministries similar to Moses and Elijah. The Bible says, “the woman fled into the wilderness,” along with her gentile believing children (Rev 12-5,6). God will set up various camps throughout the world, and He will command us to leave our home and family members and venture to a land that our fathers did not know, even as Abraham did, and join one of these camps for the duration of our natural lives, which will not exceed 3 1/2 years. These are the days of the trumpets. There will be seven trumpets, and the first will signal the woman and her children to flee into the wilderness, and each trumpet will ratchet a more severe judgment on mankind than the last. God will literally bring hell on earth during the Trumpet judgments, but then the Book of Revelation is silent about the seventh trumpet regarding its severity. The judgment of the Seventh Trumpet is the Rapture (Rev 11,15-19). See also: Great Endtime Revival; Rev 3-7,8; 55g / Rapture (Last trumpet); Rev 7,13-15; 4f

(91m) Thy kingdom come >> The narrow way >> Trail of good works >> The trail that Jesus walked – Pre-tribulation Rapture advocates scoop up this verse and use it to justify their beliefs, and if the rest of Scripture pointed in this direction, it would be fine, but it doesn't. This verse is saying that God intends to keep us from the hour of testing by protecting us just like God protected Israel during the plagues of Moses by remaining in the land of Goshen. They were instructed to stay in their homes and celebrate the first Passover feast and paint their doorposts with the blood of the lamb that they butchered for the feast, giving them strength for the exodus from Egypt. Something very similar to this will transpire in the last days, becoming especially clear when we notice the correlation between the plagues of Moses and endtime prophecy. When God says He will keep us from the hour of testing, it means He will prepare a place for us like the land of Goshen. If we do what the Spirit says, we will walk on a similar trail that Israel walked, and we will hold a feast in the presence of our enemies (Psalm 23-5), trusting in the blood of Jesus to save us from the hour of testing. God will judge those who are seeking our death and pass over those who obey His voice (Rev 7,1-3).

(100a) Thy kingdom come >> Perseverance (Working to keep in motion) >> Persevere in tribulation – Those who have an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying will hear the voice of God speaking to them about His plan of protection. Therefore, the prerequisite for Christ’s deliverance is to acquire the hearing ear and keep the word of His perseverance. There is a difference between endurance and perseverance: the oak tree endures the many storms that assail it, and the beaver tirelessly perseveres, building the damn and hut where it will live with its family during the long winter. 1Cor 10-13 says, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." We are called to both endure our circumstances and persevere in the will of God, meaning He has given us something to do. What assignment has God given us in the last days? We are to train our ear to hear what the Spirit is saying to the Churches. To perfect the hearing ear is what Jesus reiterated in chapters two and three of Revelation, “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches” (Rev 2-7,11,17,29; 3-6,13,22). Therefore, obeying the Holy Spirit is the word of His perseverance, as Mary said to the waiters at the wedding in Cana, “Whatever He says to you, do it” (Jn 2-5). Obeying the Holy Spirit in the last days will enable us to endure our circumstances, and by that He will keep us from the hour of testing. See also: Hearing ear (Do what you know is the will of God); Jn 15-7; 150i

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Rev 3-11

(4j) Responsibility >> The choices you make >> Accountable for your deeds – This verse goes with verse 20

(25i) Sin >> Poverty (Forms of fear) >> Thief >> Someone stealing from you

(36e) Gift of God >> Gifts from the Holy Spirit >> The gift of authority -- This verse goes with verse 21

(56a) Paradox >> Lose by gaining >> Gain your idea of wealth to lose God’s wealth -- This verse goes with verses 15-18

(113m) Thy kingdom come >> The anointing >> Guard the anointing -- This verse goes with verse 3

(215i) Sovereignty >> God controls time >> Suddenly >> The Kingdom of Heaven appears suddenly >> Without warning >> God brings His kingdom to pass in its time

(227e) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Rewards of heaven >> God rewards endurance >> Keeping our rewards through endurance -- This verse goes with verses 2-5. Just as we can lose our salvation, so we can lose our reward of a crown. James spoke of a crown of righteousness. Everything God gives we can lose through disobedience and unbelief; this is why He warned us to remain faithful to the end. When we meet God, we will not be able to tell Him that we were saved at one time but then fell away, hoping He will reward us for faith and ignore our unbelief. God takes a dim view of us trading our heavenly possessions for earthly, temporal junk that we treasure more than His gifts. Faith is like the children’s game Living Statues, where the players independently dance in the backyard until the whistle blows, and then everyone must freeze, and if someone finds himself in a position that he cannot hold and moves after the whistle, he is "it". The spiritual realm works the same way; whatever condition we find ourselves when the whistle blows is how we will meet God at the judgment, and if we try to repent afterward, we will find it impossible.

(232g) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the kingdom >> Embrace (Jesus during the storm) >> Hold on to your faith

Rev 3-12

(67m) Authority >> Jesus delegates authority >> There is authority in Jesus’ name – When we get to heaven, Jesus will have a different name, just as He will have different names for us. There are different names for Jesus here on earth depending on which language we use. For example, the Irish translate Jesus as Íosa, and in Italian it is Gesù. Therefore, the name of Jesus does not have power in itself; His name only points to the person who has all power in heaven and on earth. 

(136j) Temple >> Your spirit is the temple of God >> The body of Christ >> Body of Christ is the temple of God – Understanding this verse is a matter of properly defining the Temple. Paul taught in Eph 2,19-22 that we are God’s household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus being the cornerstone. The whole building is fitted together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord, indicating that the saints are the temple. Rev 21-22 says about the heavenly city, New Jerusalem, “I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.” Jesus is its cornerstone, and we are His body, the materials used in the temple, such as bricks or in this case a pillar. It says, “[we] will not go out from it anymore.” The temple is understood as the unity of the saints, where unity itself is the temple. When it says, we will not go out from it anymore, it means that we will not fall out of unity with Christ or with each other. The temple represents unity between God and His people; we could be anywhere and still be part of the temple. The Father will write His name on us, the new name of His Son and the name of His city, the New Jerusalem, so wherever we go, we will represent the Father, Son and Holy City. That doesn’t mean we are its prisoners; rather, the New Jerusalem will be our permanent address and we will become one with it. See also: New Jerusalem; 140g

(140e) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Hiding place >> The entrance exam

(140g) Temple >> Temple made without hands >> Christ builds the temple from the bricks of the Church – It says, “I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore.” Will we be prisoners in the heavenly city? The New Jerusalem is like the Garden of Eden in that God will create another Adam and Eve in the city and command them to be fruitful and multiply. The garden had dimensions that was too small to accommodate a growing family had Adam and Eve been obedient. Had they not fallen into sin, over time they would have produced children, and their children would have had families, until the garden would have been filled to capacity and needed to expand. That was God's plan; He wanted Adam and Eve to expand the garden to cover the whole earth and overtake the curse. In the same way, when the Holy City is filled with people, they will spill onto the earth, and when the earth is filled, man will go to the next planet and in this way fill the entire universe with people though the course of eternity. The holy city is a seed that God will plant on the earth and it will grow forever. There will never be a need to leave the city because it will eventually spread across the universe (Rev 7-15). See also: New Jerusalem; 224f / New heavens and a new earth (New Jerusalem); New Garden of Eden; Rev 21,22-27; 231i

(216e) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> Compelled by the Spirit >> God takes advantage of your love for Him >> God’s spirit is irresistible

(224f) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Description of heaven >> The joyful kingdom >> We shall always be with the Lord – God will create a new people after us, and command them to be fruitful and multiply as He commanded Adam and Eve, and there will be no death, so their numbers will exponentially increase very quickly. This new race of man will inhabit the earth, and their numbers will spread throughout the infinite universe. God will call us to rule over them as mediators between God and this new creation of man. We will come and go to and from the holy city, traversing planets and galaxies, spending time there, appointing people as rulers, and then returning to the New Jerusalem, our home, where we live with God. When problems arise and questions need answers, we will go to their galactic home and help them manage their problems. Much fun as we will have traveling the universe, stopping at resorts, vacationing, exploring God’s creation, our heart will always be with the heavenly city; it will always draw us back to the Lord and to our fellow saints. Although we may be a quadrillion miles from home, we will be spiritually connected to the temple. Rev 7-15 says, "For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them" We will come back with many stories to share and be able to communicate with the Lord and with each other from the furthest inhabited galaxy. See also: New Jerusalem; 136j

(245a) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm imposed on the natural realm >> Literal manifestations >> Literal manifestation of Jesus Christ >> Manifesting the body of Christ

(253j) Trinity >> Relationship between Father and Son >> Jesus is subject to the Father >> Jesus is under the authority of the Father -- This verse goes with verse 5

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Rev 3-13

(79k) Thy kingdom come >> Know the word >> Listen to the word >> He who has ears to hear, let him hear -- This verse goes with verse 22 

(106e) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Attaining the hearing ear >> Having the ability to hear -- This verse goes with verse 6 

(110h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Born of the Spirit by the truth >> Hearing the Spirit -- This verse goes with verse 22. If we don’t develop a hearing ear, our faith will not survive the last days. Without the hearing ear we will abandon God and do the very thing He said we should not do, take the Mark of the Beast. Many who believe in the pre-tribulation Rapture also believe in eternal security, but if they take the Mark, they will go to hell regardless of their beliefs. We cannot overstress the importance of developing an ear to hear what the Spirit is saying as we see the day approaching. Lk 21-34 says these things will happen suddenly and without warning, and the events of the last days will occur in rapid succession; and if we are not prepared, we will not have time to catch-up. It will be a whirlwind of events, and every day we squander is a day closer to the end. If we have not set it in our mind to die for our faith like a good soldier of Christ Jesus, we run the risk of siding with the devil, knowing it would mean forfeiting our hope of eternal life. In contrast, the person with a hearing ear will be able to hear the Holy Spirit speaking to him about these things, filling him with the importance of knowing God and leading him into a relationship with Jesus and guiding him through the tribulation to be raptured at the end of it (Mat 24,29-31).

Rev 3-14

(15d) Servant >> Ministering spirits >> Angels Perform certain duties -- This verse goes with verse 7

(30b) Gift of God >> God is our source >> His creative ability supplies our needs

(102h) Thy kingdom come >> Faithfulness (Loyalty) >> Trustworthy >> Loyalty

(107h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Church is of the truth >> God’s people are the true witnesses of God

(153b) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> Witnesses of the father >> Jesus bears witness of the Father

(238d) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Transferring the kingdom >> The kingdom is transferred to the Church >> Born again >> Jesus is born again from the dead – Jesus is the beginning of the creation of God, and what is God’s creation but the Church? The false religions of the world misinterpret this verse to mean that God created Jesus, then created all things through Him, but that is not at all what this is saying. The Church is the context; it is not talking about creating the heavens and the earth. Jesus is the beginning of the creation of the Church, being first born from the dead. Just as the Father raised Him from the dead, so He will raise in like manner. The resurrection of the righteous will occur, marking the end of this age and the beginning of eternity for the saints, starting with the thousand-year reign of Christ. The phrase “beginning of the creation of God” suggests that the Church is not yet fully formed, for its members have not yet receive indestructible bodies, in that God cannot relate to anything that is temporal. We currently have a body that is destined for the grave, and death is not part of the kingdom God is building, so when the Church comes into its fullness at the First Resurrection, then He will acknowledge it as complete, and Jesus is the beginning of that creation process, having been raised from the dead, never to die again. See also: False religions; 248g / First fruits of the resurrection; Rev 14,1-5; 210h

(238f) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Transferring the kingdom >> The kingdom is transferred to the Church >> New creation >> The new creation is our spiritual composition

(248g) Priorities >> God’ s preeminence >> Jesus is first >> Jesus is the beginning of the creation of God – The Jehovah Witnesses and other false religions misconstrue this statement to say that Jesus was the first of God’s creation, that God created Jesus and then used Him to create everything else, but when we compare that to other passages in the Bible, it clearly teaches that Jesus is God; therefore, we must understand this verse differently. The fact that there are so many passages in the Bible that speak otherwise makes their false interpretation inexcusable. The beginning of the creation doesn’t mean He was created; on the contrary it means the creation of the Church began with Him. Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am” (Jn 8-58). Had the Pharisees not picked up stones to throw at Him, maybe the false religions would have a point, but the Pharisees were ready to kill Him for making this statement, meaning they properly understood Him to mean that He existed from eternity past, that the person whom Moses met in the burning bush was the person standing in front them. “I Am” means: as God is now, so He was in the past and in the future. If He had a beginning, then to use the expression “I Am” wouldn't make sense. Jesus therefore is the origin of the creation, and now He is about to speak to the Laodiceans, who did not revere Him anymore than the Pharisees, or the false religions of the world. See also: False religions; Rev 3,15-18; 56a / Mormons; Rom 1-2; 151e

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Rev 3,15-20

(70h) Authority >> Sin of familiarity >> Familiar with the truth (enemy of discernment) >> Familiar with Jesus in the Spirit – There is a vast disparity between what God thinks of us and what we think of ourselves. We say, “I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,” and God says, “You are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.” What we need is “the mind of Christ” (1Cor 2-16). If we had His mind, we would know we were missing the mark. The mentality of the Church today says, “I am disobedient, but I still believe.” This is actually a half-truth; we’re all sinners saved by the grace of God, but to admit our sin without any mention of repentance is where God finds fault with us. If we confess to being sinners as the first step to our repentance, that is one thing, but to just shrug our shoulders at sin is quite another.

(193a) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Turn from sin to God >> Repent >> Stop practicing sin >> Be zealous and repent – Everything we do for God is based on repentance. Perhaps we want to do something grandiose for God; maybe we want to be a pastor and stand behind a pulpit and preach the oracle of God, but without repentance we will never know if this is His will. Some say that repentance is a small aspect of our calling, but in some respects it is the entirety of it. When we are in bondage to sin, God doesn’t get flustered; he just tells us to repent. Sin places us in its bondage and it is usually very difficult to become free, and we need to fight to remain free. The devil returned to Jesus at opportune times, attempting to trip Him in His weakest moments. The Christian life is about developing a heart that hates sin and is perfected in love. Our flesh wants the opposite of God and is tempted to fall into the same old rut that the world has always known. The devil will return to us during some of our weakest moments, and God will expect us to overcome. Jesus did and so can we, and if we fall, we return to our feet and continue. The mistakes we make are irrelevant to God. Falling into sin is an issue, but it is not the end. Faith is a matter of the heart; how committed are we against sin, and how zealous are we to repent?

(241a) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Taking away the key of knowledge >> Hindering unity in the Church -- These verses go with verses 1-3

Rev 3,15-19

(45g) Judgment >> Believer’s sin >> God will judge us with the world if we live like them -- These verses go with verses 2&3

(103k) Thy kingdom come >> Purifying process >> God purifies His church >> Jesus purifies His people

(178i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Hypocrisy >> Hypocrisy of the Church is rebuked >> The Church is rebuked for making false judgments

(196i) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Spiritual laziness >> Replacing God’s standard of excellence with yours >> Lukewarm Christianity – The Laodicean Church represents Christians today who live half committed to their faith under the guise that God will forgive them, which frees them to choose any lifestyle they wish, allowing their favorite pet sins to dominate their lives without trying to become free. They are happy to serve sin under its bondage; this is the mindset of lukewarm Christianity, and it is pervasive throughout the Church today. It is a type of Christianity that is not interested in serving God. Those who call themselves by the name of God because they recited the sinner’s prayer umpteen years ago, like getting an inoculation from a disease, treating Christianity like a formula instead of a relationship, makes God sick. They are not so much interested in going to heaven as avoiding hell. This displeases God. The whole purpose of Christianity, the reason Jesus died for our sins, was an effort on God's part to befriend us, but if we don't want anything to do with Him, it seems at least with us His efforts were in vain.

(203e) Denying Christ >> Dishonor God >> Stepping out of position

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Rev 3,15-18

(56a) Paradox >> Lose by gaining >> Gain your idea of wealth to lose God’s wealth -- These verses go with verses 1-3. A more accurate description of the contemporary Church in America could not have been better written than the description of the Laodicean Church, perfectly framing the last day’s apostasy. It is the result of overemphasizing the grace of God, which seems impossible, but man has found a way. The Church is currently fixated on the grace of God at the cost of faithfulness and holiness. Without being diligent in their quest for truth, they have allowed their minds to interpret, reinterpret and misinterpret almost every aspect of the Bible, including the grace of God. The Bible teaches instead to sacrifice our temporal concerns to better focus on the hope of eternal life, and the more we give ourselves to the gospel, the greater reward we will receive in the life to come. In contrast, prosperity teachers say that this is fallacious doctrine; they claim that Jesus died for us so we don’t need to make sacrifices, but when we look at the apostles, they all gave their lives to the gospel for our sake that the truth might remain with us (Gal 2-5). See also: False religions; Rev 3-14; 238d

(94n) Thy kingdom come >> Perspective is your personal reality >> How you interpret your point of view – Constructing a sense of reality is like erecting a building. There is a history behind the construction process; experience from other generations is supplemented by our own research, and by this, knowledge increases. In the same way our sense of reality is constructed piece by piece. Each person constructs his own worldview as does each society, defining truth as their goal, but to the contrary it is constructed mostly from lies and corruption. Just as one floor is built on top of another, so lies are built on top of other lies, a seemingly sensible and stable design with a high level of believability, yet it is false, and so it will crumble with time. Meanwhile, the truth is nowhere to be found in any of their architecture. There is one building that represents all other buildings, acting as a pattern of social paradigms, the Tower of Babble. It was a unique tower that was never finished; and society ever since has been reconstructing a version of it, a replica as it were with mere cosmetic changes to its design. It represents man’s attempt to reach God on his own terms without the need to humble his pride. He denies his hostility against God, that if somehow he succeeded to reach God, the first thing he would do is attempt to conquer Him, as Lucifer did. That is what the Church at Laodicea represents. See also: Distorted perception of self; Rev 3,15-17; 86f / Building the temple; 1Cor 3,9-11; 225l

(145i) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Demon possession >> Human state >> Filthiness >> Rejecting the opportunity to be holy

(175c) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Wealth gives a false sense of godliness

Rev 3,15-17

(19h) Sin >> Having the mental disease of the world >> Worldly influence on the mind

(86f) Thy kingdom come >> Belief >> Mental ascent (believing a set of facts) – The Bible teaches that believing is tantamount to obedience, leaving mental ascent in the dark. Rebellious Christians (an oxymoron) don’t believe in God; they believe in doctrines about God. If we tailored our lives after the doctrines we believe, God says we would truly believe in Him, but the more we display a discrepancy between the way we live and the doctrines we affirm, the less we actually believe in God. The Bible also teaches that there is a difference between belief and faith. Our beliefs are rooted in the Bible, the written word of God that we can hold in our hand, but faith comes from heaven. That is, faith is something God gives us when we demonstrate our belief in Him. The Laodicean Church was completely devoid of faith; they merely approved certain doctrines they considered essential to salvation, but didn’t actually believe them, evidenced by their lack of obedience. In the same way the Church today is steeped in easy-believism. See also: Distorted perception of self; 202e / God replaces our belief with His faith; Mat 24-12,13; 98k

(165e) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Do not partake of the world >> Do not desire the treasures of the world

(166g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom contradicts itself

(170d) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Seeking the glory of man >> Greed and lust are the glory of man >> Earthly riches are the glory of man

(171g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Outward appearance >> Decorating the outside to simulate the inside >> Playing the part to be accepted by God

(202e) Denying Christ >> Man chooses his own destiny apart from God >> Running from God >> Running to your sinful nature >> Laziness has plenty of ambition to run from God -- These verses go with verses 1-3. The Church in the last days' apostasy is like the Laodiceans; it is lukewarm. We might think God would prefer us lukewarm over cold, but this passage says that lukewarm is nauseating to Him. Lukewarm Christians try to use their complacency as proof of their faith, yet what little commitment they have acts more to deny God than to believe in Him. In their minds they don’t think God has an issue with them, because they believe Eph 2-8,9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.” They say that works are not involved in our faith, and so obedience is not necessary, using this as an excuse to lead a carnal life in the flesh and afterward go to heaven because of a set of doctrines they believed about God. See also: Distorted perception of self; Rev 3-17,18; 41h

(218b) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> You cannot control the judgment of God >> You cannot control how God responds to rebellion -- These verses go with verse 3

(222b) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Do not give what is holy to dogs >> God does not entrust his treasures to dogs >> God retrieves his treasures when sheep revert to dogs

Rev 3-15

(212j) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> God is all knowing >> God knows everything about you -- This verse goes with verse 1

(248d) Priorities >> God’s priorities >> The will of God >> The will of God is acceptable to Him

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Rev 3-16,17

(217f) Sovereignty >> God overrides the will of man >> God’s will over man >> God gives up on you >> After you refuse to comply -- These verses go with verse 5

Rev 3-17,18

(37h) Judgment >> Redemption of man >> His blood delivered us from destruction

(41h) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Be like Jesus >> Seek His righteousness – The Laodicean Church was convinced that works were unnecessary, which sounds like the Church today. They must have thought that since their works didn’t save them, anyone who sought righteousness through works did not believe in the righteousness of faith and were by that heretics, essentially considering good works to be heretical, but what did Jesus say about this? "Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven" (Mat 5-20). Without furnishing any proof of their faith in Jesus the Laodiceans considered themselves righteous before God because of a set of doctrines they believed. Peter talked about fiery trials testing and refining our faith like gold passes through a kiln. We are to joyfully follow Christ through the fiery trials of this life and to stop seeking happiness that usually leads to unhappiness and spiritual disaster. The Laodiceans were blind, naked, poor and miserable and didn't know it. Essentially, they worked just as hard as Smyrna, only in fooling themselves about their true lack of genuine faith. See also: Distorted perception of self; 113c

(113c) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Heaven’s clothes >> Clothe yourself with good works -- These verses go with verses 4&5. The Bible uses clothing to denote the righteous acts of the saints in Rev 19-8, but the Laodicean Church was naked in the eyes of Christ.  Clothes cover our extremities. If we are embarrassed to show our naked bodies in public, how much more should we be ashamed of our nakedness before God? Our nakedness remains underneath our clothes, but if we cover ourselves, our nakedness is no longer shameful. Nobody faults us for being naked under our clothes, because we can’t help it. The righteous acts of the saints don’t resolve our nakedness; it only hides the fact, denoting that works are not the active ingredient of our salvation; it is our faith in Jesus that actually removes our shame, but without clothing ourselves with good works we would still be naked. The Bible teaches that we will wear clothes in heaven, yet not even Adam and Eve wore clothes in the beginning. This suggests that in heaven we will wear clothes as a symbol of our knowledge of evil, as Adam and Eve felt ashamed of their nakedness after they sinned. If God creates a new species of man in heaven and commands them to be fruitful and multiply and never places the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil in front of them, they will have no knowledge of evil and may not wear clothes, since they won’t know they are naked. See also: Distorted perception of self; 169c

(153d) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> Shame >> Hiding under a cloud of guilt >> Your sin will find you out

(159g) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Counterfeit >> Counterfeit godliness >> Wealth is a form of counterfeit godliness

(169c) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world is blind to God >> Blinded by Satan’s thoughts >> Blinded by a false sense of sight – The Laodiceans thought they could see. Wasn't that Jesus' complaint of the Pharisees? “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, 'We see,' your sin remains” (Jn 9-41). These Pharisees were by no means seeking the righteousness of God, and it is questionable if the Laodiceans were saved, both groups being steeped in apostasy. Seven churches were mentioned in chapters two and three of Revelation, and each of them represented a mindset that exists in the Church in the last days. What exists in the Church in our day is a Laodicean belief system that claims a person can live any way he wants and still be a Christian. All we need to do is believe in a set of doctrines to be guaranteed a place in heaven. This is a very popular teaching that is virtually never preached in any pulpit, since it is so obviously heretical, yet it is surreptitiously believed by most Christians today, and it doesn't exist anywhere in the Bible. See also: Distorted perception of self; Rev 3,15-18; 94n

(227h) Kingdom of God >> God’s kingdom is a living organism >> God working in you >> Dependence on Jesus >> Depending on Jesus to impart His gifts into us >> He gives us what we give to each other

Rev 3-17

(176b) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Ignorance >> Lacking experience with God

(180i) Works of the devil >> Practicing witchcraft >> Rebellion >> Rebelling against God’s narrow way >> Rebelling against the will of God

(181h) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Deception >> Self deception >> Imaginary perception of self >> Distorted perception of self – The Laodicean Church had a distorted perception of self. They should be more careful when they say, “I am rich and have become wealthy and have need of nothing,” because it sounds frightfully similar to the antichrist’s perception of self. “In her heart she boasts, `I sit as queen; I am not a widow, and I will never mourn'” (Rev 18-7). If the Laodicean church uses a language similar to the great whore of Babylon, how will they avoid siding with her during the atrocities of the last days, unless they repent?

(198h) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Ordained by man >> Having evil motives for seeking leadership positions >> Seeking to gratify their flesh through the ministry

(223h) Kingdom of God >> The elusive Kingdom of Heaven >> Miss God >> Missing the mark >> Miss the will of God for your life – Apparently some people can be wretched and miserable and not know it. Maybe they were happy in some ways; maybe they had a good job and had a lot of money and drove a fast car, lived in a big house and called themselves Christians. All these churches outlined in Revelation chapter two and three were real churches in their time, and most of them had major problems, and they represented aspects of the Church in the last days. Many of them did not serve the Lord, and for that they were miserable. In the flesh and in the world they were happy, but in the Spirit and in the faith they were wretched and miserable. They made a great showing in the flesh, but they were poor just the same; they might have had 20-20 vision, but they were blind just the same; and maybe they wore fine clothes, but they were naked in the eyes of God.

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Rev 3-18

(63f) Paradox >> Anomalies >> Sarcasm >> Minimize the truth to make a point

(99b) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Enduring the will of God >> Enduring the death of your flesh

(113i) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> The anointing >> Anoint with oil

(118g) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Seeing through the eyes of your spirit >> Blind receive their sight

(190c) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Masochism (Self-made martyr) >> Passing through the fire

(232b) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the kingdom >> Count the cost >> The cost is more than you can imagine so don’t count

(249g) Priorities >> God’ s preeminence >> Wealth >> True perception of wealth >> The infinite and eternal wealth of God >> God’s perception of wealth >> Our hope in this life

(4m) Responsibility >> Advocate God’s cause >> Disciples are chastened by the Lord

(33j) Gift of God >> God is our Father >> God serves His people who serve Him >> He treats His people with special care

(101f) Thy kingdom come >> Zeal >> Fulfill your calling with zeal – What did Jesus say in this verse to the Church of Laodicea? “Be zealous and repent.” It is with zeal that we fulfill our calling, and repentance is part of that calling. Every aspect of our calling is to be fulfilled with zeal, for if we grudgingly work out our salvation, it would not be with fear and trembling. Most people who have a remnant of zeal automatically assume that being a pastor is God’s will, simply because there is no other ministry in the Church. Now that Church attendance is failing and congregations are dwindling, people are not seeking the pastoral ministry, because there is no money in it, which proves the motives of many who sought the pastoral ministry in the first place. What matters is that we repent and become established on the path that God has prescribed for us and stay on it to the end.

(124g) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Love >> Acts of love >> Love cherishes discipline – The word “Zeal” is no longer in the vocabulary of Christendom, neither is “repentance”, yet these two words are used in this short verse, suggesting that the Church is no way ready for the second coming of Christ. This chapter references the condition of the Church in the last days, and it no-how renders a glamorous depiction of it. According to the Lord’s opinion of us, we are to instill these two aspects: zeal and repentance, but is the Church trying to do this? When Jesus addressed the church of Laodicea, which was the most carnal of all the churches, He could have just as easily been speaking about the Church in the United States.

(138a) Reproof (Key verse)

(138b) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Reproof >> Jesus reproves His disciples for their unbelief

Rev 3,20-22 

(106g) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Attaining the hearing ear >> Hearing His voice – We understand God’s grace and mercy, but we don't understand his gracious choice of us. We are born-again among a multitude who are lost. We talk to them about Jesus, and they don’t listen, so we go back to God and say, ‘These people are hard to reach; how did you reach me?’ His answer is incomprehensible, because salvation is a miracle. We don’t know how God reached us; we only know He did. God came knocking on our door and we responded, and when we look back, it all seemed so natural. The part that is incomprehensible is the multitudes who have rejected the love of God, but God has chosen us, and we don’t know why or even how He did it. The Bible teaches that God chooses those who are His by giving them the ability to hear His voice. See also: Door of Christ; Rev 3,7-10; 140a / Predestination (Prophecy must be fulfilled); Mat 26-24; 141f

Rev 3-20

(4j) Responsibility >> The choices you make >> Accountable for your deeds -- This verse goes with verses 2&3

(55g) Paradox >> Opposites >> As Jesus opens His door the Church close theirs -- This verse goes with verses 7&8

(130a) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Unity >> Being in one accord >> Communion

(132b) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Holy Spirit is in God’s people >> Spirit of God in the spirit of man >> Spirit of Jesus

(172d) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Tares among the wheat >> Communion between the world and the Church >> Worldliness in the Church

(196a) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Idolatry >> Lord, Lord >> Pretending to be a disciple

(202k) Denying Christ >> Running from God >> Wicked men cannot approach the throne of God >> Goats are unsaved church attendants

(209b) Salvation >> The salvation of God >> Personal relationship >> Counterfeit relationship through religion >> Knowing about God, but not knowing God – Lukewarm Christianity does not refer to saved people who are disobedient but to religious unbelievers who claim to be Christians. They have never asked Jesus in their hearts. They may have said the sinner’s prayer, but they are not born-again. It sadly represents a large percentage of people in America who fill our churches. The majority of people in a lukewarm church are not saved.

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Rev 3-21

(34g) Gift of God >> God is willing to Give >> He is generous with His spiritual blessings – Jesus is inviting us to sit on His throne as He sits on His Father’s throne. This is the level of spiritual authority that Christians have in the Spirit. Take away all the promises of God except this one and we would still have them all contained in this promise.

(36e) Gift of God >> Gifts from the Holy Spirit >> The gift of authority -- This verse goes with verse 3

(43b) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Conform to the character of Christ >> Conform to His nature

(66f) Authority >> Jesus’ authority >> His position with the Father >> Jesus has authority over all things from the Father

(67e) Authority >> Jesus at the right hand of the father >> We are with Him – Is there anyone else seated on God’s throne? Are the angels seated there? The short answer is no! We could go back to Lucifer and determine that he was given the entire creation as his inheritance by evidence that it is now cursed. These are the things that Jesus possesses, and He has given them to us, including God’s very throne, something He never offered Lucifer, and it made him jealous, so he made plans to supplant the throne of God. Before he came close to accomplishing this, he was thrown from heaven and confined to the earth until the day of judgment. God never created Jesus; He always existed. All authority and power did not belong to angels, but the Father trusted His Son with it. This is the lesson he wanted to teach the angels before He created man, who would inherit His throne, that power is wielded through humility. See also: God's throne; 70ja / God made man in His image to make Satan jealous; Heb 2,9-18; 208g

(70ja) Authority >> Believer’s authority >> We have been given authority over all creation >> We are the children of God >> We have a place on His throne – Although God tested the angels, he did not offer them His throne as He offered man, why? They were not made in the image of God. Moreover, the angels dwelled in the presence of God; they were never required to believe in Him, whereas man is required to believe in Him. This difference is huge in that God exists by faith; His very composition is faith, though we cannot possibly understand what this means and probably never will. When He created man, he commanded the angels to serve him, and in that way the angels are inferior to us; they are our servants, but in the Kingdom of God the least are greatest and the greatest are least; therefore, the angels are greater than man in service. Nevertheless, God has not offered them His throne, as he has offered man. After God creates a new heavens and a new earth, He will create a new Adam and a new Eve and place them in the midst of creation (no Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil this time), and He will command them to be fruitful and multiply. Their numbers will grow into infinity, and we will be in charge of them and serve them as the angels serve us, and as Christ serves all of creation. This new breed of man that God creates will not be tested. Rather, we will teach them about right and wrong; they will not know sin on an experiential level, and for this reason they cannot sin, just like babies cannot sin, though they can make mistakes. See also: God's throne; 67e / God's substance is faith; Rev 4,8-11; 109a

(98ka) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Endurance invites the Holy Spirit into your life >> The salvation of God >> Enduring the wicked is to overcome them -- This verse goes with verses 4&5

(224d) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Description of heaven >> Describing the kingdom after he makes all things new >> Children of God resemble their Father

(224l) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Description of heaven >> The holy of holies >> The throne room of heaven

Rev 3-22

(79k) Thy kingdom come >> Know the word >> Listen to the word >> He who has ears to hear, let him hear -- This verse goes with verse 6

(110h) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Spirit and the word >> Born of the Spirit by the truth >> Hearing the Spirit -- This verse goes with verse 6

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