With all the arguing we do around here at times, I thought maybe a reminder of something we have in common might be a relief. I’m not making any statements. I just like the song and thought you might be blessed. The pictures are kind of corny, but the song, by Kenny Chesney and Randy Travis, is wonderful. Be blessed!
Phil Johnson has long been critical of Mark Driscoll. As an admitted Driscoll fan-boy, this would bug me, particularly when he employed tactics similar to those who have a blind hatred for the man (and an utter distaste for actual, ya know, facts).
But on Friday, at the Shepherd’s Conference, Johnson tipped his hand and revealed to the world that he’s just been kidding the whole time.
Early in his message, Johnson quoted the opening sentence of the recent New York Times piece that was largely on Driscoll:
Mark Driscoll’s sermons are mostly too racy to post on [an] evangelical Christian ‘family friendly’ . . . Web site.
This is an easily demonstrable lie. Well, perhaps the NYT writer wasn’t lying, but was just phenomenally ignorant of her main topic. *
But Johnson is not ignorant. He knows that that statement is false. And yet, he did nothing to discredit it.
Now, I wouldn’t dream for a second that Johnson would knowingly deceive his listeners just to bolster his point. And the clue that he wasn’t doing this is in the title of his message: “Sound Doctrine, Sound Words” and the Scripture (Titus 2:7-8) he used as his main text.
Knowingly deceiving your Christian brothers isn’t in the same zip code with sound doctrine (or sound anything for that matter). So he clearly was being ironic.
Good one, Phil. Ya got me.
* Insert your favorite “research” joke here.
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. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
You 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. I 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.
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here 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. To 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. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” (Rev. 3:14-22, NIV)
This is seventh of seven articles on the seven cities mentioned in Revelation 2 and 3.*
Part I: Ephesus
Part II: Smyrna
Part III: Pergamum
Part IV: Thyatira
Part V: Sardis
Part VI: Sardis
Above are the powerful words of Jesus as recorded by John, the “disciple whom Jesus loved” to the church at Laodicea.
Laodicea is located in the Lycus River Valley in southwest Turkey, in an area that was once the Roman territory of Phrygia. It was on the Roman mail route with the other 6 cities addressed by Jesus through John in his Revelation; Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis and Philadelphia.
Water
One of the keys to understanding the letter to Laodicea may lie in understanding its water situation.
Approximately 12 miles east of Laodicea was the city of Colossae, whose church was addressed by Paul in the book of Colossians. The city of Colossae was well-known for its refreshing cold waters, which came down from melted ice and snow and rain from Mount Cadmus, which towered above it. These waters were valued for their purity and cooling abilities, and drew in many visitors and dignitaries for just this reason.
About 7 miles north of Laodicea was the city of Hierapolis, a large Roman city with centers dedicated to the worship of Apollo and, later, Caesar – Domitian, in particular. Probably its most famous feature was its hot baths, fed by hot springs (reminiscent of Yellowstone’s hot springs), which were used to cure ailments of its visitors, many who relocated there specifically for that purpose.
And there, between Colossae and Heirapolis sat Laodicea, where the streams of cold water from the west and hot water from the north met. The mixing of the mineral-rich hot water and the cold water created a lukewarm water which tasted awful and could make the people of the town sick. It was a constant source of irritation.
In addition to the taste and the health effects, the water, which was brought into the city via an aqueduct and distributed through clay pipes, had such high mineral content that it was frequently plugging the pipes it flowed through with deposits, resulting in frequent need of repair (see the picture to the right).
And so, it is interesting that John wrote:
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.
Without the context of Laodicea, the reader is left to supply their his or her own context, which (for me at least) went something like this: I wish that you were either totally good/correct/passionate (hot) or evil/sinful/apathetic (cold), but because you’re somewhere in between (lukewarm), I don’t want anything to do with you.
What if what Jesus is saying is actually contextual to the people He is saying it to?
In the context of Laodicea, the most valid interpretation of this scripture would be to say – I wish you were useful – either hot, like the water of Heirapolis that heals those who bathe in it, or cold, like the water of Colossae that refreshes those who taste of it. Instead, you are a lukewarm mess like your own water that makes those who drink it want to throw up!
But why are they lukewarm? There are clues further in the text and in the context of what we have learned about this city.
We need of nothing…
In 60 AD, Laodicea was destroyed by an earthquake. When Nero offered them assistance to rebuild their city, the Laodiceans wrote back to him, telling him that they were wealthy, they were in need of nothing and that they could rebuild it themselves. After all, they were a large banking center, proud that their bankers were known to exchange pure, unadulterated gold. They were also famous for clothing made from black wool produced by their sheep, and for their great medical school, which specialized in using mineral deposits from the area to make an expensive eye salve. They had no need for Caesar’s riches (and no desire to be in his debt).
And so we read from John:
You 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. I 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.
Once again, Jesus hits them in their own context, skewering their sin: pride in their own self-sufficiency. He tells them that despite their wealth, they are not rich. Desipte the purity of their gold, His was purer. Despite their clothing, they needed white clothes from Him to cover themselves. Despite their famous eye salve, they needed His to see.
And so it is that the sin of pride is revealed as the sin of Laodicea, with their own sense of self-sufficiency making them un-useful for service!
In this vein, as the ruins of Laodicea have been excavated for reconstruction the past 5 years, an interesting discovery came to light recently – the door to the synagogue (which was also the Christian church**) opened directly into the Agora – the marketplace of Laodicea (see the photo to the left).
And so the question may also be raised? With the agora being the key cultural center, was the Laodicean church impacting the culture or was the culture impacting the church? Were they so caught up in the wealth game that their church sat smack-dab in the middle of Wall Street?
From the text, it would seem so.
What is the Solution?
Jesus gives the Laodiceans the solution to their sin of pride – complete repentance, demonstrated by a humble heart:
Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here 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.
Repent! He tells them. And how do they demonstrate this repentance? Jesus stands at the door to his own church and knocks, requiring them to admit that He is needed there before He will come in – demonstrating their humility by admission of their spiritual poverty. The doorknob is on the inside of the door – he will not force his way in.
The lesson of Laodicea isn’t about churches ‘watering down the messages’ from the pulpits – it is about churches failing to act in the work of the kingdom. It is not about being “lukewarm” by accepting and integrating cultural styles and art forms into the church, but it is about being “lukewarm” by being irrelevant to the culture. It is not so much about having a Harley on the church stage, but rather what the rider of the Harley does to serve the kingdom when his bike isn’t on stage. It’s not so much about purity of doctrinal distinctives as it is all about effective, useful orthopraxy. It is not at all about the ‘circus church’, but all about the church which lives out its belief in the circus of the world.
The question you must ask yourself – and I must ask myself – Has God provided so well for me that I have come to believe that I need for nothing – that I am providing for myself out of my own doing? In doing so, have I ceased to be useful (hot or cold) for Him? Have I forgotten the admonition given by God at the end of the shema:
When the LORD your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
Please, Lord, if I have done this, let me acknowledge now that I need You – and that I always will.
Grace & peace,
Chris
___________________________
*Thank you again to Rev. Ray Vanderlaan, Dr. Tim Brown, and John (from Verum Serum), who all provided information used in this and the additional Revelation lessons.
**Something amazing we saw in April 2006 in Laodicea was a restored pillar with an inscription pictured below. Increasingly, evidence is showing that in Asia Minor, Christians and Jews worshiped together in the same house of worship until about the time of Constantine (early 4th century). My question for another day – what, if anything, should we take from this?
There is much lamenting these days, particularly on blogs, about the state of Christianity in America. It is not uncommon for contemporary (and I strategically avoid the term “modern” at this point) Christianity to be criticized for its lack of biblical fidelity and for churches to be criticized for their methodology and/or beliefs – though the two are often confused. Usually the remedy involves some form of return – return to the Bible, return to tradition, return to…
And today a study was released showing the decreasing value Americans place on religion in general and their decreasing belief in Christianity in particular.
Most often, those complaining the most vigorously display three flaws in their reasoning: 1) an overly simplistic reductionism that assumes there is, or every was, such a thing as monolithic “American Christianity” or “the church in America” in the first place; 2) a dismissive misunderstand of the current trends within younger emerging generations of Christians; and 3) as well as a completely lack of any grasp of history.
There is no doubt that there is a segment of today’s “American Christianity” that is barely biblical… that is, they are Christian in only the most tangential manner. Many voices are promoting an openness to ideas that are quite incompatible with historic biblical Christianity. That this exists there is no argument.
Of course, this is nothing new; a brief review of American Evangelicalism will show it has its very birth in the liberal swing cause by modernism in (predominately) New England over 150 years ago. And those who are so quick to blame and deride post-modernism for Christianity’s downfall in America should remember that it was an embrace of modernism that first gave momentum to the liberalization of the mainline denominations. Couple this fact with the popularity of Deism and Unitarianism in Colonial and antebellum America and any claim that “American Christianity” is, somehow, just now threatened shows an astonishing level of their naïveté.
And while the bloggers lament, and the pollsters poll, hundreds of little churches meet every Sunday as faithfully as their predecessors did in the last century and the one before that and the one before that and the one… And while the bloggers lament and the pollsters poll, hundreds of new churches are being started by a new generation of Christians. And although they may be significantly different in appearance and methodology and even world-view – they to are just as faithful to the Scriptures, to their heritage of the faith, to their Savior as faithfully as their predecessors did in the last century and the one before that and the one before that and the one…
Personally, I have grown tired of the “Chicken-Little-ness” of it all. The beauty of Christianity (its truth notwithstanding) is its translatability. Christianity is ultimately translatable because it is not bound by any one culture… and those who are screaming loudest about the state of “American Christianity” are often those who are the most willing to bind the faith in their own traditions – all the while complaining about the “Man-centeredness” of how others express the faith.
It’s a good things those of whom I speak were not present at the Council of Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 15 – for if they had been, they would have shouted down Peter and Barnabas and Paul as they told stories of Gentiles receiving the Spirit… and when they lost (which the purposes of God would guarantee) they would have been the first to blog their lament of the demise of Palestinian Christianity by those emergents in Antioch.
**UPDATE in response to this post being addressed at CRN:**
This post was not a swipe (not so veiled or otherwise) at “ministries” like CRN (and in this case I use quotations in the same spirit as they are often used at CRN). A “swipe” would be a critical or cutting remark with little or no further comment (e.g. my parenthetic comment above regarding ministries in quotations would be a swipe). What I offered was a reasoned post, an alternative interpretation of “Christianity in America” – which, in true ODM style, was glossed over… the heat ignored for the flash of rebuttal. Just repeating the same “The sky is falling” mantra, yet again, does not make it true.
In true ODM style, though, the editor’s response took a true swipe at my/our biblical literacy by suggesting we blow the dust off our Bibles and read Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians – at least we were given credit for having a Bible. And in true ODM style, it was implied that the editor’s brother in Christ is among those who are unsaved… those who do not have the light of Christ. It’s a shame that instead of addressing the issues raised, my/our status in Christ was questioned. Instead of addressing or rebutting the argument, it is assumed that disagreeing with the editor means I/we lack the light of Christ and are, instead, among those in darkness.
At this point I will not get into a debate on the possible applications of Paul’s warning in 1 Thessalonians 5 – for that is not the point. In this post I never advocated “peace and security.” I did not deny the existence of many unbiblical churches. I even went so far as to acknowledge the same. Further, assuming this passage is speaking of the ultimate end (as we know it) it seems arrogantly ethnocentric to assume this end is at hand based on an interpretation of what may be happening in our own particular culture… ignoring completely the massive work of the Spirit in emerging cultures. This too is typical ODM myopia. If God is supposedly losing his grip on America – the end must be near.
Therefore the editor’s employment of this passage is moot.
If, in the future, CRN wishes to debate a topic or question within the bounds of the brotherhood of Christ, and if CRN is willing to address a topic beyond the myopia of American ethnocentrism, I would be more than willing…
Since the very beginning of this blog, we’ve been pretty firm in our “no comments are deleted” policy, with only a couple minor exceptions (with neither an attempt to silence/whitewash voices). However, it’s becoming apparent that we need to add a little bit more to the way we’ve been managing this.
Some general observations/policies (for those unfamiliar) on this topic:
1) First-time commenters are automatically moderated until their first comment is approved. We often run down IP addresses and match against some other sources to verify who someone is (or is not), and whether they’ve commented on this blog (or other blogs) before under different names/aliases.
2) For some people, relative anonymity is important (i.e. preventing people from tracking down personal/ID information and misusing it) and understandable. As such, we do not demand full names.
3) “Moderation” (which puts comments into a queue for delayed approval) is used, rather sparingly for commenters who almost exclusively post items which:
* are consistently nasty
* are consistently derogatory w/ little/no OP relevance
* ignore warnings on personal attacks against other commenters
* consistently ignore requests from CRN.Info writers
Ch-ch-ch-changes
With these in mind, we’re currently examining some changes in commenting policy (while keeping the “no comments are deleted” policy, as-is). Here are the proposed changes:
1) Commenters who wish to retain relative anonymity may continue to do so. All that we ask is that you have a valid email address with your sign-in (which is only visible to CRN.Info writers) OR that you have the name of a CRN.Info writer who can verify your identity contained in the email field. [example: We at least one commenter who is a single female and is concerned with her safety, and only one of our writers knows here and vouches for her as a commenter)] If you have a regularly maintained blog that you’ve established, that’s good enough, as well.
2) We expect all regular commenters to maintain ONE name/alias by which they post (Example: We know who nc is, and he’s always nc). If, for some reason (for instance, the overabundance of Chris’s and Nathan’s) you need to change in the future, just clear it with us so that we can keep track of you.
3) We expect that the ONE name/alias by which a commenter posts is not, in itself, purposely offensive or derrogatory toward another commenter/group/pastor/etc.
Comments/Commenters outside of these guidelines will be put in a moderation queue if, after a grace period, things aren’t rectified.
Personally, I hate doing stuff like this – particularly when it’s just a couple of folks currently at issue. However, this seems to pop up every few months, so we might as well put it out for discussion and act upon it.
Thoughts? Additions? Subtractions? Division/Multiplication?
Shalom
Thoughts for Second Sunday in Lent, March 8, 2009
I’m preaching a series of sermons from 1 Corinthians to the church I serve during Lent. We are focusing on the essential and necessary oneness of the church that was forged in the crucifixion of Jesus. Part of the goal of these sermons is to introduce the congregation to some of the history of the so-called Restoration Movement while exploring the basis of our oneness in Christ. ‘We’ have a long history and I thought it would be appropriate to share some of that wonderful history that is so often overlooked when official church history is discussed.
Back in the day, there was a small publication that existed simply called The Plea. It was published in Tennessee by a Christian church and edited by Fred W Smith. I’d like to share a quote with you from the August 1951 editorial. He wrote:
“The Christian world is divided, not simply into congregations of believers for mutual benefit and service, but torn and rent by parties, factions, and schisms which claim exclusive rights to the promises of sacred Scripture. This is the ‘falling away’ which the Apostle Paul referred to in his epistles. (Fred W Smith, The Plea, August 1951, volume 7, #6. p 2)
The Restoration Movement was born out of a desire for Christians of all denominational stripes to recognize that unity has already been forged for us by Christ and that we need to but recognize and maintain it. The ‘founders’ of the movement came from Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist and other denominations. Some were Pentecostal, some were not. Some believed in instrumental music, some did not. Some practiced infant baptism, some did not. Some believe in mission societies, some did not. Some believed in conventions, some did not. Some believed in weekly communion, some did not. Sometimes they got along and worked hard at being one. Other times they failed and became two.
For the most part, I think the Restoration Movement has been a failure, at least in practice. Instead of bringing together the denominations it has, sadly, created yet two or three or four or five or more denominations (depending upon how you count the various churches who claim as their heritage the work of Thomas and Alexander Campbell and Barton W Stone among others). Nevertheless, the ideal still prevails and should be recognized for what it is: A call to recognize what Christ has already declared in Scripture to be true. If we failed in practice, perhaps we haven’t failed in theory. Perhaps the theory is still a good idea. We may not forge it, but we can at least recognize and honor it.
Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope when you were called— 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:3-6, NIV)
Or:
Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called 2with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, 3being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; 5one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all. (Ephesians 4:1-6, NASB)
So what is our goal? Are we as the people whom Christ has called walking in a manner consistent with our calling? Are we walking with humility, gentleness, patience? Are we showing tolerance in love for one another? Are we making it our ambition, as people of Christ, to preserve or maintain that unity that has been forged for us in Christ and worked out in the Spirit? Are we making it our goal to live in peace with one another? Seriously? We really need to ask ourselves these questions continually.
Are we wise enough to recognize that no matter how many different denominations we create, no matter how many theological systems we construct (all theology is a matter of opinion anyhow), no matter how many blogs we write (each one no doubt claiming exclusive rights (and rightness!) to the interpretation and proclamation of God’s truth!), no matter how much we fight and argue about who is right and who is wrong–at the end of the day: There is ONE body. We cannot change this. Christ has declared it to be so and nothing we can do will alter that declaration. There is ONE body. It is unfortunate that this Biblical fact causes so much upheaval among people. It is even more unfortunate that some have made it their life’s ambition to narrow this field as much as they can and cause as much division as they can in whatever way they can. Our goal, thus, should not be causing so much division that the expanse of the church is narrowed. Our goal should be recognizing and maintaining what Christ Jesus forged in his own blood.
That Body includes people that do not think like I do. That Body includes Democrats and Republicans and maybe even some Libertarians (I jest). That Body includes people who do not take communion every week like I do. That Body includes people who do not believe in a literal 6-Day creation like I do. That Body includes people who immerse as the first act of obedience instead of, as I do, the last act of conversion. That Body includes people who are monergistic and not synergistic like me. That Body includes Calvinists and Arminians and Calminians and Arminiasts. That Body includes pre-millenialists like John MacArthur and amillenialists like me and maybe even post-millenialists and pan-millenialists. That Body includes so-called Emergent types like Rob Bell and so-called hyper-Calvinsts like Mark Driscoll. Believe it or not, that Body even includes some Baptists, Lutherans. Methodists (like our good friend Chad on Sabbath), Catholics, Nazarenes, Church of Christ, Anglicans, and Eastern Orthodox (and others). And so on and so forth. My point is that who can number the Body but Christ? Whose job is it but Christ’s?
Then I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 from all the tribes of Israel. (Revelation 7:4)
After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. (Revelation 7:9)
What he heard and saw corresponded in some way. He heard a perfect number; he saw a massive heap. And yet:
And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.” (Revelation 7:10)
They sang together. They worshiped the Lamb as One! Do you see? Do you understand?
Practically speaking, the Restoration Movement was doomed before it started. Who, to be sure, could ever decide what is opinion enough for there to be liberty and what is essential enough for there to be unity? ‘We’ were stumped in those two places before we ever got to the ‘in all things love’ part. Still, I think there is hope and we are not outwitted just yet and I don’t think that our un-oneness has caused the Lord great consternation or upheaval. Could just be that our un-oneness exists also for his glory.
Maybe this is why he specifically told us to Love one another. Maybe this is why he said we are saved by grace. Alone.
“Christianity also is not intolerant because anyone can believe, regardless of race, gender, or social status. No one is excluded. Christianity is the most inclusive and exclusive of all religions. Anyone can believe, but it is only by faith in Jesus Christ that a person is saved. It is that glorious message of salvation through Christ alone that should be our banner and that which unites us. Jesus said, ‘If I be lifted up, I will draw all men to me.” Let our churches [and, I might add, our blogs] be known, then, for their strong and unwavering message about the crucified Christ, the very Son of God.” (Bob Russell & Rick Atchley, Together Again, 53)
According to a list posted at CR?N of the Ten Marks of a False Convert, one such mark is belief in macro-evolution or Darwinism.
We’ve read other times at this ADM and its sister sites about the abomination of disbelief in a literal, 7-day Creation. Alas for one of their “heroes of the faith” Charles Haddon Spurgeon -
“In the 2d verse of the first chapter of Genesis, we read, ‘And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.’ We know not how remote the period of the creation of this globe may be—certainly many millions of years before the time of Adam. Our planet has passed through various stages of existence, and different kinds of creatures have lived on its surface, all of which have been fashioned by God. But before that era came, wherein man should be its principal tenant and monarch, the Creator gave up the world to confusion.” [emphasis mine]
– Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Sermon delivered on Sunday, June 17, 1855 at New Park Street Chapel.
Granted, you can’t call him a Darwinist, since this was 4 years before Charles Darwin wrote Origin of Species, but what he’s describing is inclusive of macro-evolution. False Convert! Shame! The next thing you know, people will be saying that Chuck S was a smoker and drinker, too!
Poor Charlie…
This post amused me:
After hearing an interview with Bono recently in which 1/3rd of it was bleeped due to his fondness for the F-word, I’m sure that this album will make a deep and lasting Christ-honoring impression on the world.
As a U2 aficionado (ah, who am I kidding; I love U2!), I think I can confidently say that our dear friend at Slice is far too worried about U2. Actually, I’m rather surprised because recently, our dear sick friend (who needs our prayers for his back and money for his ‘ministry’ by the way), Pastor/Teacher/Prophet/Reformer Ken Silva posted this, which is a collection of music he himself has written.
I listened to the song ‘Eye of a Hurricane’ and I specifically heard Kenne drop the ‘d’ bomb several times in the song. Yet, no sarcastic calls from Slice about the ‘deep and lasting Christ-honoring impression’ that Kenne will leave on the world. Then Kenne defended his decidedly ’secular’ music this way in a terribly verbose and rambling missive of which I will quote but two sentences:
At the same time apparently there was also some confusion as to the recent posting of some of the many songs I’ve written. I was pretty clear that they were not worship songs, though I have written some of those as well, but were instead geared primarily to a secular audience.
Two thoughts.
1. To the author of Slice, can you please provide a link or some substantiation of your remark that a recent interview with Bono had to be 1/3 deleted because of the ‘f’ word? I’m interested in seeing if you counted correctly.
2. To the author of Slice, and in the interest of fairness, can you please rebuke Pastor/Teacher/Prophet/Songster/Poet/Reformer Kenne for his absolutely appalling use of the word ‘damn’ in the song ‘Eye of the Hurricane’? I am offended and I feel like Kenne might be leading some people down a path towards damnation with his ‘music geared towards a secular audience.’
One more thought.
1. I suspect that U2’s influence in and around the world and the church will, despite Bono’s ‘fondness for the ‘f’ word’, will be judged by the fruit it produces. At least Bono understands grace. And has a recording deal.
Do you people really have nothing better to do with your time? Why don’t you buy a U2 CD and listen to it? You will learn more about grace in one U2 song (say, Daddy’s Gonna Pay for Your Crashed Car or Grace) than you will in 10 pages of Slice or Apprising posts.
The utter hypocrisy of the Slice post (and a similar post at Apprising) sickens me.
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. I 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 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.
Since 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. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Him 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. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
This is sixth of seven articles on the seven cities mentioned in Revelation 2 and 3.
Part I: Ephesus
Part II: Smyrna
Part III: Pergamum
Part IV: Thyatira
Part V: Sardis
Philadelphia, the modern-day city of Ala?ehir, Turkey, sits midway on the route between Laodicea and Sardis on the Roman mail route which defined the Seven Cities of Revelation. Very little of the ancient city of Philadelphia remains, though, with only an unexcavated hill and the ruins of a 4th century church remaining. Because of this, we do not have much archaeological context for what was written in Revelation.
However, we do have a number of writings from this time, and records from nearby cities, including those of church fathers, like Polycarp (a talmid of John). From these, we see a picture of Jews (people of God) who were not acting in the manner of God’s people, as they were persecuting Christians [Current scholarship suggests this was out of a combination of doctrinal differences (leading to Judiazing) and jealousy of the success of Christianity in winning Jewish converts, while some speculate it was because of the Christian abandonment of Jerusalem in AD69]. Whatever the cause, this persecution was occurring in the church at Philadelphia against Messianic believers.
I 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.
During the reign of Domitian (81-96), the Christians in Philadelphia escaped much of the persecution suffered by those in the coastal cities of Ephesus and Smyrna, and this may be what is referenced in verses 10-11:
Since 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. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
The Earth Shakes
In 17 AD, the city of Philadelphia was devastated by an earthquake, which completely destroyed Sardis and other nearby cities. Because of it location near the fault line, it suffered aftershocks for an additional 20+ years. As a result, its people lived in fear, and would frequently flee the city into the hills, where they would live in tents and booths, before returning when the aftershocks subsided. This is the imagery Jesus uses when he says:
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it.
You see, pillars were usually the first architectural components to fail in an earthquake, which made standing, unbroken pillars a sign of permanence and strength.
What’s in a Name?
Philadelphia was founded by the kingdom of Pergamum during the second century BC, and underwent many name changes until it was given the name “Philadelphia” by Eumenes II in honor of the love he held for his brother, Attalus II (who kept the name out of love for Eumenes, upon his death in 160 BC). In 17AD, when Tiberius paid to rebuild the city, its name was changed to Neo-Ceasarca – a name the city’s residents came to despise. And so, it is interesting that this ‘naming’ imagery is also brought out by Jesus, through John:
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.
Once again, as we’ve seen with the other five cities, this letter in Revelation was sent to a church using phrases and symbols that would have had special meaning to them, words that would help them to feel the emotional punch that might be missed by others unfamiliar with them. The letters to the churches in Revelation aren’t impersonal platitudes or disconnected teachings or symbolic references to ages of the church – they are personal letters written to flesh-and-blood Christians known to their author. While its core teachings can be carried across cultures, to suggest that the content of Revelation is only (or even primarily) about futuristic events of no import or impact to its original recipients would require a great deal of hubris or ignorance on the part of the modern reader.
What can we learn from this?
In the day we live in, and in the American culture, there are opposing forces at work, both of which act toward the detriment of Christ’s bride, the Church. One of these forces, those that lead the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world (no, I’m not dispensationalist, but I still believe there may be unfulfilled prophetic passages pointing to such a time) are the forces actively seeking to dismantle the church, and those who wish to so completely water it down that it means nothing, killing it softly.
Against these forces of evil from without, Jesus will close the door, and what he shuts no one can open.
On the other side, we have the ’synagogue of Satan’, those Christians who would mock, slander and persecute brothers in the church by insisting on certain beliefs and actions above and beyond those given by Yeshua and his Apostles. Like the Judaizers of old, they insist on works for the purpose of salvation, or they insist on belief in specific man-made doctrines for inclusion in the kingdom. They try to close the door opened by Christ, the open door that no one can shut. Paul calls them out in 2 Corinthians 11:13-15 -
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.
To this end, those of us who are believers must persevere and test ourselves so that we do not join their ranks. If we do so and become spiritual citizens of Philadelphia, Jesus tells us:
I 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 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.
And so, I would hope that we, like the church in Philadelphia would endure persecution from without (the hour of trial) and from within (the synagogue of Satan) and that we would strive to ‘hold on’ to what we have been given by Yeshua, so that no one will take our crown.
Recent Comments