I COME QUICKLY
Revelation 3: 11; 16: 15; 22: 7, 12, 20
Philadelphia represents what has particularly attraction to the heart of Christ, that is to say, real features of the assembly and real assembly affection; that is what He loves. He says, “I have set before thee an opened door, which no one can shut, for thou hast a little power and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name”, Rev 3: 8. There is a little power there, not weakness, but power, although “little”. It seems to me important to note that there is not weakness there. As with Sardis, “Thou hast a name that thou livest, but art dead … strengthen the things that remain, which are about to die”, Rev 3: 1, 2. That is weakness. Philadelphia is marked by power, although it was “little”. It is this that the Lord takes account of. For this power rests in the recognition of the Spirit of God, a distinct feature of the present history of the assembly, dating from the beginning of the last century but perhaps especially in evidence in the present time, to know that the Spirit of God is recovering more and more the place that belongs to Him. The secret of power is found in this; the Lord takes account of it as a feature very pleasing to Him.
He remarks on another feature, and He says: “Thou hast kept my word”. He speaks of this before saying that Philadelphia had not denied His Name. Not to deny His Name is negative, which being something essential; but what particularly pleases the Lord is that we keep His Name. That is what characterised Philadelphia, whatever the Lord has to say, Philadelphia takes account of it and keeps it, and acts. Nothing gives the Lord pleasure like keeping His word. We often speak of Mary the mother of Jesus, who kept these things in her heart; and also Mary of Bethany who sat at the feet of Jesus and listened to His word. Such conditions give pleasure to the Lord; they exist in Philadelphia in all their attractiveness. In chapter 14 of John, the Lord says that these are the conditions pleasing to God, to the Father, to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. In this chapter, the Lord speaks of the Spirit as coming to take up His abode in us, so that in keeping the word of Christ, we furnish dwelling conditions for the Deity, conditions for tabernacling to use Mr Taylor’s expression; and the Lord would desire that these conditions should always develop among us.
Then the Lord says “I come quickly”. The time for completion has arrived. The works of Sardis have not been found complete, but God works now so that we can arrive at what is completed. This is what the Lord is particularly concerned with, and He says, “I come quickly: hold fast what thou hast”. So that it is precious to have a little power, recognising the Spirit and the living word of Christ, that is to say, all that He may have to say to us at any time! Nothing can be more precious than these two things, and the Lord says, “hold fast what thou hast”. It seems to me that there is a state of reciprocity and understanding between Philadelphia and Christ. “Hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown”.
The promise made to Philadelphia is remarkable. There is a striking correspondence between the features of the truth that have been emphasised in recent years and the promise made to the overcomer in Philadelphia; this shows that what occupies the Spirit now is what belongs to the assembly, and what is represented in Philadelphia should be effectively produced in a substantial way. Therefore the promise given to the overcomer that he will be a pillar, what is substantial, which can be seen. Certain things will then be written upon him and it will be possible to see that it is so. The Lord expects that the present ministry should have substantial results. It is a question of the Name of His God, and of all that is related to it has, by grace, more and more interest to us. It is a matter of the name of Christ’s God and that Name must be seen in people.
Then there is the name of the city of Christ’s God, with the administration to which the Lord is calling our attention in these last days, so that it accords with the administration which will soon come out from God. Administration in the assembly should be worthy of God, and it should represent God. Then, the Lord says, “my new name”. We could well enquire about His new Name. The Lord would desire that we occupy ourselves substantially with the truth until He comes. It is in this light that He says, “I come quickly, hold fast what thou hast, that no one take thy crown”. I believe that the crown is that we should find ourselves marked by the features He expects to see in us when the Lord comes. All that he really cherishes in the assembly of this sort is what must be found; this must be Philadelphia’s crown.
In chapter 16, the case is wholly different. The Lord does not say, “I come quickly”, but “I come as a thief”. While Revelation presents things which will happen after the assembly has gone, the object of this book is that the assembly should be affected by the light given. It is important to keep that in mind. This book when we read it should produce an effect on us all, and in chapter 22, the Lord says, “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify these things to the assemblies”, v 16. It is a book given to the assemblies, not exactly in the assembly but “the assemblies”, considered with their responsibilities with what marks them, with what is developing there. And the whole book is given in view of present results in local assemblies. Thus verse 15 that we have read in this chapter is like a remarkable parenthesis. It shows us that He is coming in a day when under the influence of Satan all the kings of the whole habitable world assemble themselves. John saw “out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, as frogs”, and they come “to the kings of the whole habitable world to gather them together to the war of that great day of God the Almighty”, v 13, 14. It is the climax of combinations, of which are the order of the day in all spheres of life. In chapter 20, these kings and their armies are seen to assemble to wage war with Him that sits on the horse and His army. All the combinations of men are actually directed against God. This may not seem obvious. There are combinations of workers in trade unions, combinations of employers in federations. On the one hand, from a human point of view, they can seem necessary, but their aim is to exclude God from the life of men. Their purpose is the destruction of practical piety and trust in God, with men placing their trust in man. It is important to realise that all these combinations among the men will turn into open war against God. They may not yet be in this form, but the principle exists there in order to drive God from the place He occupies in the soul of His people. Having this highlighted, we have this remarkable intervention on the Lord's part. “I come as a thief”. He does not come as a thief for those who love and wait for him. For them, He is coming soon. But “I come as a thief” is a word to those who do not expect Him. The Lord addresses the assemblies and uses this as this figure, “as a thief”, unexpected, undesired. The Lord would desire that we have a judgment as to the true character of all these human combinations. So He says, “Blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments, so that he is not found naked and that he should not be put to shame”. It would be a disgrace to someone who loves Christ to be identified in some way with the combinations of men; because of Satan's goal of destroying practical piety and trust in God, and substituting what is man.
In the last chapter of Revelation, the Lord says three times: “I come quickly”. The first time, he adds to this: “Blessed he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book”. It must all help us to be practically consecrated to Him, waiting in the hope and desire for His return. Then a second time, he says, “I come quickly”, and adds “and my reward with me, to render to each as his works shall be”. This does not mean that the reward is the greatest and most precious objective for the saints, but it has its place: “my reward with me”, to keep in a practical way the words of the prophecy of this book takes a lot of exercise, it may even involve suffering; but what matters is to continue with perseverance, being regulated by the truth. It is said: “Let him that does unrighteously do unrighteously still; and let the filthy make himself filthy still; and let him that is righteous practise righteousness still; and he that is holy, let him be sanctified still”, v 11. It is as if the Lord would say to us: Do not give up the position, as the end is very close; if you have maintained separation so far, keep it until the end, No one will lose the reward to which he is entitled, as it is said elsewhere: “do not judge anything before time, until the Lord shall come, who shall also bring to light the hidden things of darkness, and shall make manifest the counsels of hearts; and then shall each have his praise from God."
Finally, the Lord said, "Yea, I come quickly". And there is no exhortation with these words. There is no longer a promise of reward. In verse 20, it is Himself who is expected, and it is He Himself who comes. We answer: “Amen. come, Lord Jesus."
The Lord would desire that we should be impressed by the imminence of His return and by all that His return signifies for us, so that we should be at any moment in the state that suits Him. It is in this sense that He says to Philadelphia, “that no one take thy crown”.
LONDON
4th October 1955
From Paroles d’Édification Mutuelle
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