Revelation 3
To the Church in Sardis
1"To the angel[a] of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits[b]of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God. 3Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. 4Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels. 6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the Church in Philadelphia
7"To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open. 8I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you. 10Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. 11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name. 13He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the Church in Laodicea
14"To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God's creation. 15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. 17You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. 18I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. 19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. 20Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. 21To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."
Footnotes:
a. Revelation 3:1 Or messenger; also in verses 7 and 14
b. Revelation 3:1 Or the sevenfold Spirit
3 comments:
19Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline.
i am not a parent, but i see great wisdom in this line for parents and their handling of their children.
I also see God's fairness and sternness in this verse.
Thank you Father for caring enough to discipline me and to rebuke me. Thank you for calling me out and for making me become more accountable. Father i pray that each of us will make time to dedicate to you each and every day. Let it not be a chore but rather let us crave you and reading and studying your word like it is dessert. Amen
Rev 3
Very interesting stuff here for me.
8I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.
I know that most of the time I feel as though I have little strength, but pray that i can keep His word and never deny His name.
Also found this interesting.
15I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! 16So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
The Lord knows that I can certainly be lukewarm sometimes. Thank goodness for grace, right??
Finally, how amazing does this sound.
21To him who overcomes, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne.
Sitting on the throne next to Christ himself.
Father, I look forward to sitting on the throne with you. I pray for these men. Keep them strong and faithful. Let them be transparent with each other so we can share the burdens they have. Keep us from being lukewarm.
In Christ,
cas
Rev 3
I certainly agree with you cas. I think that much of my time I am simply lukewarm with God.
11I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. 12Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it.
There have been days of late where it felt like making it to midnight was overcoming. Do we simply need to suffer and overcome the world? Or what do we need to overcome?
I've been struggling with consistency at work and with God. I get real close or work real hard, and then either fade or get exhausted. The scary thing is that I don't feel like I'm getting any more "in shape" in either case. I would hope to grow closer over the rest of my life, rather than up and down.
Father, You know my heart, it is with You, yet I struggle with those trials in this world and do not put You first. Help me to be more consistent with You and with my job. Keep pounding away at my heart and my will until I am how You want me. Do the same to these men, continue to help us grow closer to You.
In Jesus' Name,
Amen
crb
Post a Comment