Mike Bickle emphasizes the significance of faithfulness to Jesus as illustrated in the letter to the Church of Philadelphia in Revelation 3:7-13. He highlights five key attributes of Jesus that are essential for believers to understand: His holiness, truthfulness, authority, and the promise of open doors for ministry and opportunity. Bickle encourages the congregation to hold fast to their faith and obedience, assuring them that their perseverance will lead to eternal rewards and a position of honor in the age to come. He warns against complacency and the danger of losing one's crown through neglect or compromise. Ultimately, the message is a call to remain steadfast in faithfulness to Jesus amidst trials and temptations.

Seven churches of the book of Revelation, from Revelation chapter 2 and 3. It's a 12-part series. We're looking at each of the churches for one week and then the following five weeks we're going to compare them and study all the promises, all the warnings. Now these are the words that Jesus gave the church in anticipation of the events of the book of Revelation unfolding. Now these words were meant for the churches in the first century, those seven churches. However, Jesus knew that the church around the earth and the generation of which the good as well as the difficult events of the book of Revelation would unfold, the greatest revival in history, but the greatest time of trouble in history, He knew that these were the promises, the exhortations, and the aspects of the revelation of His heart that we would need in a specific way to be prepared for the great revival as well as being prepared for the great trouble. My point is we need to master, we need to be so familiar, I don't know if the word master is the right word, but we need to be really familiar with these seven words of the Lord to these seven different churches. Revelation chapter 3 verse 7, to the angel of the church in Philadelphia, these things says the Lord, now the Lord Jesus is speaking. Now He's going to give five descriptions of Himself and these five descriptions are pertinent to the promises and the challenges that He's giving this church specifically. He says Jesus declares Himself as the one who is holy, number two the one who is true, number three the one that has the key of David, number four the one who opens doors that no one shuts, and number five very different He shuts doors that no one opens. Now those are not the same thing. So He gives five descriptions of Himself that if we believe on them and have confidence in them and call on Jesus to impact our life and our ministry according to these five dimensions of His heart, it will equip us and it will form us in a very dynamic and specific way. Now He goes on in verse 8, He says I know your works. Now here's an important word, He goes see, now you say now really listen to this. This is the, it's not a an incidental word when He says see. He says I've set an open door before you. He says I'm giving you an invitation that is new that you don't really grasp. It's a new dimension of opportunity and we're gonna find out it's an opportunity in this age but it's also an invitation for a new opportunity for their lives in the age to come. He says see I'm gonna open a door for you. He goes have no fear. Nobody can stop this door, this door of opportunity in this age or the door of opportunity that's coming in the age to come. The only person that can stop this is the believer not responding to the Lord. He says for you do have a little strength. You have kept my word. Now that's the ultimate statement Jesus could give a church, a ministry or an individual. You kept my word. Another way of saying that is well done good and faithful servant. You've kept my word. You've not denied my name. Verse 9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say they are Jews and they are not. They lie. Now physically they were Jews but it's not enough to be a Jew physical. They have to be spiritually obeying the covenant of Abraham to be Jews from Jesus's point of view. He goes they're liars. Yeah they might have a birth record of having Jewish blood but they're not Jews from my point of view. He says I will make them who say they are Jews and are not but lie. I will make them come and worship before your feet. Number one. Second thing I'm gonna make them know that I the God of Israel I love you. Because see they were persecuting these believers. He says I'm gonna make these unbelievers know with certainty I've crowned you with my love. The God of Israel's loved you. What an interesting promise. Because you've kept my commandment to persevere I will keep you from the hour of trial that should come upon the whole world. It's gonna test those who dwell on the earth. Verse 11. Behold I'm coming quickly. Hold fast what you have. Now what did they have? They had the testimony that they had been keeping the Word of God. What a testimony. Hold to it. He goes don't be in a fervent season in God and then let go of your fervency and your obedience. I mean a lot of folks they can remember a couple years ago when they were in a fervent hot season or a few months ago or even a few weeks ago. Now these this church here they're in a hot season in God right now. He says it's not enough for this to become a memory. Hold on to it. Stay in the connection with me that you have right now. He says and see to it that nobody takes your crown. He that overcomes. Now the overcoming is in relationship to holding fast to full obedience. That's what overcoming means in this context that they would overcome according to verse 11 they would hold fast to this testimony of keeping the Word of God in a radical and an abandoned way. That's what overcoming means in this context. He goes if you will hold fast to the end. He says I'm gonna do some things that are gonna be hard for you to even believe. He's gonna lay them out to them. I'm gonna make you a pillar in the temple of my God which is in the New Jerusalem and not only will I make you a pillar you shall never go out of the temple. In other words you will never lose that position that I give you as a pillar in my temple. When it says never go out it's not talking about they will never leave the premises that for billions of years they're confined to one area. That's not what it's talking about. You'll never ever lose this position of honor and authority in my eternal kingdom. Next I'm gonna write on you the Lord says I myself Jesus I will write on you the name of my God the Father. I will write on you the name of the city of my God the New Jerusalem which comes down out of heaven from God. And I will write on him my new name verse 13. Now he says this to all seven churches. He that has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says. Now what that means when Jesus says he that has an ear let him hear it's drawing our attention to several things here. Number one that what Jesus has said is bigger than we think. There's more than meets the eye. When he says he that has an ear let him hear what he's saying is what I just told you is deeper and it's bigger than you think it is. So it's it's a call to be attentive to don't read this at the surface and walk away convinced and confident that you have what he said. That's number one when he says he that has a spirit it's bigger than you think there's more than meets the eye to what I just told you. And the second thing he's saying in this exhortation it will take the aid of the Holy Spirit to grasp it because the unaided mind even the mind of devotion the mind that's saying Lord I love you that doesn't have the aid of the Holy Spirit they'll never grasp these bigger truths that lie in this passage. That's what he's telling them. And then another thing he's saying is that you won't automatically respond to these it's going to take an intentional an intentionality and a focus determination to get a hold of these truths. That's what he's saying on all seven of these letters. So we want these we read these seven letters and we say Lord we want to go deep we need supernatural help we know that we don't automatically take hold of these things and stay and keep a hold of them we have a propensity to lose our touch with these truths. That's what he's saying in this passage when he says he that has an ear let him hear. He says it seven times and the in the book of Revelation interesting Jesus said this same phrase seven times in the Gospels and he's the only one in the by in the Word of God who made this statement. He made it seven times in Revelation seven times in the Gospel. In other words this is the exhortation Jesus gave most in the whole Bible this one sentence right here verse 13. There's no there's no statement that he made more often in Scripture than that one right there. So how important is this? There's it's bigger than you think number one it takes the aid of the Holy Spirit to get it number two and it takes a tenacious intentional determination to keep hold of it once you get it because you can lose it. You look in the Old Testament well the New Testament as well the word remember what Jesus uses it several times in these letters here to the seven churches remember the power of remembering what God said and what God did what was one of the secrets of Israel's obedience but it becomes one of the insights of their disobedience in the Old Testament and the church as well because people failed to hang on to that which was fresh and alive in them at one time. I mean the glorious things that God said over us. He says it over and over remember remember remember and in this exhortation he that has an ear let him hear he's saying you better be intentional about being refreshed in these truths because your propensity as humans all of us are the same is to let go of it and for it to be a fond memory that was a couple years ago when it was fresh in your heart. Okay the primary message the primary message paragraph B the Lord is is esteeming their faithfulness their faithful obedience I mean he gives this is the strongest word he could give anyone you've kept my word of the seven churches this this is it and simple as the preacher said it's profoundly simple but it's simply profound you kept my word and the other thing I'll add to this one of the primary messages is that Jesus is going to point to eternal reward now he does this to all seven letters but he really anchors it in in this letter the letter to the Church of Philadelphia anchors in this truth in their heart he is linking their present tense obedience to their future reward in the age to come now the age to come is on the earth and he makes the point there verse 12 the New Jerusalem comes down and the idea comes down from heaven to where well it comes down to where to the to the point of reference to the earth beloved we don't go away to heaven for eternity heaven is coming down to the earth and we will have the full properties of the resurrected body in our experience but we will be in an environment of the earthly natural realm we will have physical material bodies on a physical material earth with the properties of the resurrection and this is the first time he says it three times in the book of Revelation but this is the first one he says the age to come is coming down to the earth beloved did you know that you will have a body as physical and material as the one that you have right now you will eat material physical food we will talk to each other we won't hug each other and kind of pass through you like whoa come back and give me another whoa it won't be like that we will actually be able to like Jesus in his resurrection when they grabbed him they grabbed a person a man with a physical material body yes resurrected properties but that doesn't mean ghost like you know like just pure spirit he had a physical resurrected body and that's one of the main truths now John must have been really touched by this letter because though Jesus refers to the age to come and the rewards in all the seven letters he really emphasizes it here to the church that's most obedient now in Matthew chapter 19 verse 28 I don't have that on the notes Matthew 19 verse 28 he told the Apostles and John surely remembered this he told the Apostles he said because you've giving everything to me you will have government with me in the age to come that's what he's telling the church at Philadelphia and I just believe John in his 90s is remembering when he was in his 20s when the Lord first told him that about his own life now the Lord is giving the message to John to give to the church of Philadelphia tell them they will have government with me in the age to come this is what he told the church of Thyatira in chapter 2 verse 27 or 28 but he's really he's really emphasizing it and building it out here particularly in Revelation 3 verse 12 okay paragraph C now the primary message that Jesus is going to develop is a message that John remembered that was very dear to his heart in John chapter 14 John's the only one that recorded this message the other Apostles did not put it in their gospel account I'm going to read it briefly and try not to spend too much time on it because this message to the church of Philadelphia actually develops the themes that are right here Jesus said in John chapter 14 verse 21 he that has my commandment and keeps them it's the very word he uses to the Philadelphia church he says you've kept my word here John must have smiled I know Jesus I remember this terminology it is he who loves me and the one who loves me will be loved by my father that's an interesting idea because God loves us before we love him it's a different dimension of the love of God here it's Jesus is saying God will love you because you love God which is very different than all of us have learned in our theology now he's I mean God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son God loved the world when the world hated God so God's fundamental love for the human race is without any response from the human race back then he loves them and therefore awakens them he's talking about something a different here when he says that the one who loves God will be loved by God the idea is the father will openly display his pleasure over their life for all to see that's what that means he doesn't say he that loves me shall be loved by my father that the father will have the first impulse of kindness towards him no the father had kindness towards unbelievers now he's saying Jesus said you love me as evidence by obeying me my father will openly display the pleasure he feels in your life openly with kindness I mean I tell you we take one step to God he takes ten steps to us he pays us so well for our obedience I mean we just agree with him and repentance we humble ourself even in secret and the Lord writes it in his book and crowns us forever for it beloved that's the love of God you'll be now he's gonna go on and develop because and I will love him meaning I will display my heart for you as well but here's the key phrase and I will manifest myself to you now we think of this verse mostly in this age which I think it's important to think of this age that he will manifest himself to us now by the power of his spirit and the word touching our heart but did you know that this verse is it mostly about this age you know you're gonna be alive billions and billions of years not just 70 years on the earth billions and not only that you're gonna be reading John 14 a billion years from now and being blessed by it you're gonna read the same Bible there's not a new Bible in heaven it's the same Bible when Jesus says I will manifest myself to you this will be exciting us a billion years from now this promise will because he means a whole lot more than meets the eye when he said it I could imagine him saying it the twelve apostles thinking wow and then you know when the Lord talks to the father they didn't get it at all and the father yeah I know they don't get it at all what we mean when we say we will manifest our glory to them now that Revelation 3 in this letter to the Church of Philadelphia he's going to unpack this reality of manifesting himself to them verse 22 Judas not as scary as scary it said Lord how is it you will manifest yourself to us great question and not to the world how is it that we're gonna see a manifestation of your glory that unbelievers won't see a great question that's why it got it was recorded in the Holy Scriptures and the Holy Record because that's a question we want to ask how is it that you will manifest give us details that go far beyond our life that you will manifest yourself to us in a way that's different than you will manifest yourself to the unbelieving world of course that's the book of Revelation gives us a lot more information that's a question you want to ask Lord I want to know you're really praying for understanding of eternity and not just how long eternity is that's not the point that's a good thing Moses prayed that in Psalm 90 he said Lord teach me the number of my days let me know how many days there really are in eternity let me really see what the score is what I'm trading in for a few years on the earth for the age to come so when we pray to understand eternity there is a dimension in Psalm 90 verse 12 we're asking how long is it in other words the revelation it's long makes it seem worth making right choices now but what what Judas is saying here manifest yourself to us show us what you mean by this it's not just how long eternity is how glorious will it be in our exchange with you beloved that's a question that has the wisdom of God and the fear of God in it do you actually pray verse 22 in your private life Lord how is it that you will manifest your glory of course in John 17 verse 21 to 26 he unpacks this he answers this question a little bit more than in the book of Revelation he takes it to a whole nother level I want to know not just how long eternity is of course we'll never grasp that with a natural mind but I want to get the revelation of the weightiness of how long it is the weight the the importance of it but I want to feel some of the exhilaration of what me and the Lord will be doing in terms of our relationship with each other called him manifesting himself to me the glory of God resurrected glory in in the rewards that he gives us for our faithfulness verse 23 Jesus answers this question he goes I'm gonna answer you and it seems like Jesus repeats the thing he just said this is I'm gonna answer you he says you become obedient you become obedient this is how I'm gonna manifest myself to you that's the basis of it he goes if anyone loves me and keeps my word my father will again display his feelings for you openly and we will come to you now that's not just the anointing in our prayer time certainly it is and I love that part of it because you know we may all have a few more years to go so we want the anointing of God in our prayer time but beloved we want more than this we want him to come to us because in Revelation 3 12 we just found out the New Jerusalem with Jesus and the Father they are coming down to the earth they're coming to us we think of going to them but the Spirit of the Bride are saying come to us Lord Jesus and heaven with the throne of God is coming to the earth he says we'll come to you and we'll live with you forever and there's all kinds of implications to this it will affect your garments it will affect the degree of glory in your resurrected body it will affect your position it will affect your capacities to understand and experience the glory of God when he dwells with us because he will dwell with us and we will all have different experiences while we're dwelling with the Lord even in the age to come just like we do now well Jesus is gonna take this passage in Revelation 3 and he's going to develop some of the ideas and as always we'll never get through all the notes that's why I give notes I like to just like kind of talk from my heart and just occasionally look at the notes and so I'll leave them with you to study so we won't go through all of them but this passage let's let's go on to the next paragraph here this whole passage of Revelation chapter 3 I'm talking about verse 7 to 13 is based very important now put a star by deed like say okay I got to get this because this might be new to some of you this passage and of course Jesus knew it he was intentionally quoting this passage it's based on a description that the Prophet Isaiah gave of Hezekiah's one of his main leaders in the Kings court his name was Shabna now Shabna was one of the chief officers in the Kings court but the problem was that Shabna was not faithful so there was a man named Eliakim and the word of the Lord came and said take the responsibility off of Shabna and give it to the faithful one to Eliakim now what is the responsibility it was the ability the authority the authority to open and shut doors related to the Kings Treasury and the kingdom and the kingdom of Israel that's what it was about in its context it's Isaiah 22 you want to read this passage and understand that whatever happened Isaiah 22 was only a hint of what's going to happen with the faithful those that are faithful to the Lord he is going to give us the ability to open and shut doors in his kingdom that we would have a determinative quality about our relationship with the Lord meaning we will make decisions in relationship with him in the age to come that will actually release the resource of God into the earth this is the partnership with us now Jesus is going to claim this for himself as the one that opens and shut doors but then he's going to invite us into this dynamic where we open and shut doors with him in this age yes but beloved don't be so captured on this age and we want to be focused on this age this is the age we have responsibility in but our our life our assignment and even the quality of what we experience in the age to come as born-again believers in the grace of God is impacted by what we do in this age and that's part that's one of the significant messages of this passage Revelation 3 verse 7 to 13 so here's what the Lord tells Eliakim in essence verse 22 of Isaiah 22 verse 22 the key of the house of David I'm gonna put it on Eliakim shoulders the key to the house of David the ability to spend the money the ability to set governmental people in place the ability to dispatch the army the ability to make alliances with other governments beloved the key of David it's a governmental position like the in our nation the president would have that key the key to commit the resources of the nation the natural resources but the key of David's more than that because it's not just the natural resources I mean even in the age to come I'm talking about the resources it's also the spiritual promises that go on for age for the ages the key of David encompasses all the divine promises forever so what Jesus has is access to all the promises God gave David and all the resources of the Millennial Kingdom are at his disposal when he's king on the earth now he's king now but he's gonna manifest it openly for all to see when he returns at the time of the second coming so the key of the house of David I'll lay it on Eliakim's shoulders and that man will open and I don't care what army resists him doesn't matter what coalition rises up nobody can stop him if Eliakim says it's open I want this policy this money this guy in this position I want this alliance I want this strategy the word of the Lord to Eliakim is it's done the whole king's resources is open to you and if you shut a door if you stop a plan if you hinder some some activity it will be hindered it will be stopped and it will be final now that's authority but interesting this is gonna be important in a few moments verse 25 interesting this almost seems kind of anti-climatic that Eliakim's position though it's promised to him he's allowed to know because the Lord wants his offspring to know that this position would not be passed down to all of his offspring meaning it was a temporary place of honor his offspring did not guarantee the inheritance of this role like like some of the others like in Phineas we've been studying that a little bit here at our missions base Phineas was given in numbers 25 a covenant because of his faithfulness that would affect his offspring through all of the generations the same with the priest of Zadok we have that sign right there on the wall there which he's a great great great great grandson of Phineas there in Ezekiel 44 his offspring for generations would be affected by the obedience well Eliakim he would only have a temporary place of honor that's important in a minute we'll see we'll look at it and you'll see why top of page two now Jesus is going to give five revelations of himself now these revelations they are not arbitrary they are specific to the promises as well as the challenges that the church that he's talking to has meaning if we want to enter into the Philadelphia type relationship with the Lord we want to we want to lay hold of these five realities in our relationship to Jesus these five realities described paragraph a aspects of Jesus' personality but not only that aspect of his ministry and his care towards us these are like five truths that we use in spiritual warfare because the devil will tell us opposite of all five of these things to derail us because we want to be on the path to verse 12 which is to be a temple and I mean to be a pillar in the temple of God that never leaves which means I'll just say it now we don't have Eliakim's fate of it's a temporary position of honor like Eliakim because when we become pillars of the temple what I mean we the faithful through history because by faith we all want to go there Jesus is saying it's not like Isaiah 22 entirely it's mostly like Isaiah 22 except the part of Eliakim only having a temporary exaltation that is a true view you'll have an eternal exaltation he says other than that the rest of the promise is true but not that one point it's interesting that Jesus would have pinpointed that one point so that these saints would have understood the magnitude of what Jesus was saying well I want to feed on these five truths if I want to pursue the promises that he gave the Church of Philadelphia particularly in verse 12 what's verse you know 10 11 and 12 actually number of paragraph B first Jesus is holy now there's two aspects to Jesus being holy number one he was holy as a human I mean I mean in this is the of a different thing that he's holy as God because that's the second one although I should reverse the order of that but as a man he was fully set apart to God he's looking at them saying listen guys I was on the earth with a physical body with limitations I was on the earth when all of my family and my friends mocked me and rolled their eyes when I obeyed God and they didn't even though they claimed to obey God I know what you're going through I know what it means to be resisted by my own country in my own family my own friends I know what it means to be betrayed but I was fully set apart even as a man in a fallen world I know the price you're paying I know the struggle you're going through I am holy I want you holy but I'm speaking it as a sympathetic man that experienced the difficulties of being holy in a dark world just the resistance of the people and the devil coming across he says I understand the challenges of temptation I was tempted in all things then when he says I am holy he now we go to the other end of the spectrum he is transcendent it's not just that he's pure being holy means he's holy other than he's infinitely superior to anything that exists in created order he's of a whole different level a different category of reality he's uncreated in other words he's not only holy dedicated as a man he knows our struggle he's the uncreated God he's worth the struggle that we're going through so there's two dimensions of this truth I am holy he says now come follow me with all of your heart I get what you're doing and I'm gonna make it worth it to you to obey me like yes yeah he's holy I like this he is holy we declare this to the Lord even in our warfare against the enemy to derail us from the pursuit of our eternal destiny because that's what's really this churches is being spoken to more specific than any of the other seven churches to have a revelation of their eternal destiny related to their obedience on the earth that's something that most believers think very little about but this is really important to Jesus in his teaching ministry paragraph C he goes to the second one he goes I'm not only holy I'm not only sympathetic and worth it he goes I'm reliable I'm genuine he says I might give you some promises in verse 12 that are so outrageous in their kindness and generosity you won't even believe them but I want to tell you before I even give you the promise they're true I don't exaggerate anything they'll be hard for you to grasp but it's bigger than you think there's more than meets the eye I'm true it seems too good to be true that someone could pay you so much for doing so little but I will you give me your heart all I want you to do is obey me simple things and the inner place of your heart and I will crown you forever in honor in a resurrected body with an intimate interaction with me even above the majority even in the house of God because don't believe this and people preach it all the time but just plain oh not biblical we will not all be the same in the age to come as redeemed people every one of us the several billion of history we will all have vastly different experiences different assignments different capacities our garments will be different our resurrected body capacities will be different our nearness to God will be different who we interact with will be different and it's all related or dynamically related it's probably a more accurate way to say there's probably several other components to it but it's dynamically related to our heart responses and the rewards are so outlandish in kindness that Jesus had to say I'm true there is no exaggeration before I even tell you I'm telling you now they are true then he goes on to say I have the key of David paragraph D I'm the one that has the authority to choose who is in what position in my earthly kingdom now he operates in that right now in this age but beloved he's he's only manifesting in a very small percent when he returns physically as a king to the earth that we have we live on the earth first for a thousand years and then things get even brought up to another level of glory then the Father comes down to the earth after the thousand years we'll use the same Bible we'll be operating on the same promises we're operating on right now and it will he will Jesus will determine of the you know two three four billion Saints from all of history well how whatever the number is he will determine who has what roles in his empire he says I have the key of David that's what it means I'm in the place like Elijah camp where I determine who gets what where and to what degree and how they relate even to each other okay paragraph F when Jesus says he opens the doors he opens the doors well the automatic thing we understand and almost every commentator a commentary will talk about the doors of opportunity now and that's important but beloved that doesn't even begin to satisfy the promise Jesus made to in this verse in verse 8 when he says I'll open doors it means so much more than doors of opportunity for ministry right now certainly it means that but this promise will be real and important for billions of years not just for a few years on the earth but he does open doors of opportunity we want to take them doors of opportunity doors of influence number two he opens doors in the spirit now and in the age to come Jesus is the one that says nor does anyone know the father nobody knows the father except me the son and the one to whom I desire to reveal the father to beloved my relationship to the father is in the balance of Jesus's hands now they're in good hands but Jesus is really loyal to the father he has a jealousy for the father he says Mike I will forgive you but I am NOT going to give you the dearest things on my father's heart if it's not dear to you if my father is this casual to you that you will live negligent of your relationship with him and live perpetually in compromise don't think that I'm going to give you the highest things on his heart because I know how precious they are and I know they're worth everything and I'm the one that will give them to you he says I will nobody will know the father more than I determine that's part of having the key of David paragraph 3 the lion of the tribe of Judah has prevailed to open the scroll the scroll is the end time purpose of God he doesn't only just have access to the father's heart and determine where we're at in that in our relationship with the father he's the one who opens the father's plans and releases them on the earth I mean the authority this man has he told the Apostles number four John 1 he says you'll see the heavens open he can open the heavens and loose the angels to ascend and descend upon him and his purposes well Peter James and John Paul they found out that Jesus could open prison doors from heaven I mean several times acts 5 again in Acts 12 Peter's in prison the door opens an angel comes and acts 16 the door opens the prison Jesus says I couldn't there's no door out of my reach I can open any door I could hope but anyway the point I'm getting is what he says I could open I could open doors don't limit it to a speaking engagement at the conference that you just been dying to speak at or something don't don't don't go there this thing is far bigger or or maybe your ministry growing with by a hundred more people join you it's so much bigger than this but we do want to believe God for doors of opportunity to open in this age because it's his will that we understand and believe that top of page 3 interesting that the only door that Jesus won't open is what he says later on in chapter of Revelation 3 is the door of your heart he goes I can open all the doors but I will not open that door I mean I'll help you with grace to open the doors of your heart I'll help you I'm now cooperate if you cooperate with me I'll help you but the Lord says I will wait on that door because I my kingdom is built on voluntary love I want you to love me you open that door and I will open the other doors we can't do God's part he won't do our part he really won't paragraph H he shuts doors there will be men and devils and others besides that will seek to open doors of hostility and resistance against you they will seek to cut off God's will in your life beloved they can try that door they can plan their attack against you they can't get the door open no matter how much they want if the Lord doesn't want that door open because I shut doors nobody could open up but I know they're planning they're scheming they've already put a lot of time and energy the Lord says yeah but they can't open it if I don't have my hands on that door they can't open it because I also shut doors of schemes of the enemy against us but not just schemes of the enemy it's even more than that do you know that the the Lord loves us so much there's doors we want to open real bad he says no no no oh Lord I'll do anything he says no I don't want to open that door because I love you I won't open that door you can't manipulate me because my love is bigger for you than your love is for yourself I actually love you more than you love you so the answer is no it's no you know you could even kick into the in the name of Jesus I bind you you can't bind Jesus in the name of Jesus it doesn't work that way seeing guys try that and the on the end of the door devil I bind you name of Jesus on the other the door Jesus is leaning against it smiling I love you I'm not moving but I want to say in paragraph H that Saul came with 3,000 soldiers against David did you know there is no Saul with his army that can stop David the only man that could stop David is David nobody can stop you but you nobody can stop David but David there's no demon and there's no a coalition of evil men that can stop David or you except for you let's go to Roman number four okay we're gonna go to Roman numeral six top of page four he says I'm coming quickly hold fast what you have see to it that no one takes your crown paragraph B hold fast to what you have that means when when you're in a a fervent season with God maybe you're not in one right now maybe it was a year ago maybe it was 10 years ago whenever we were fresh in God the Lord says you need to hold on to that to the end to get the reward of it it needs to go to the end some people say I don't care about the reward I think you do I really do I don't think Jesus was off course by teaching on eternal rewards I've had people I've taught on eternal rewards for many years and people say well I'm only in it for the Lord I says it's kind of like the Lord was like falsely motivated by offering it to you I don't think so I think he knows something you don't know I think you better take hold of his ideas and say you know what if you think I want him though I don't get him I want him sounds like wisdom doesn't it paragraph C see to that no one takes your crown now that's a very powerful thing did you know did you know just like the garments by the way in the church before Sardis chapter 3 verse 5 same deal because we're the Sardis is the fifth church Philadelphia the sixth church so it's the one before he's still in the same vein of thought he told of the church of Sardis you can lose the garments that you've gained in the age to come the splendor and the glory all the garments will be different don't imagine the two or three billion people for billions of years are all going to have one white t-shirt that's it till the end like a billion years later Lord you thought of everything everything but the wardrobe we all wear white t-shirts tell the end no no no no no no that's the there because the white in the book of Revelation is glory and brightness and radiance many colors of radiance and many layers of garments you'll have garments for every different setting for billions of years you won't have one white t-shirt and that's it we'll all be the same ah nothing close and Jesus warned them that they could lose their garments and they still be born again but they could lose the glory and the luster of what God had for them in their position and the attire they would wear to communicate their position and that would communicate the glory of God in their personhood it's like people wear garments all different kinds of garments now depending on the situation the same with a crown every believer does not have a crown my guess is though it will be millions I mean of course I don't know the numbers of course though it will be millions the number will be large but the percentage will be small I've given quite a bit of energetic study to the subject of crowns and that doesn't mean I have the final word on it or no but it's more than a casual subject and I want to I feel with certainty that the vast majority of believers will not have a crown don't take your theology from the funeral parlor you know the guy gets up he's getting his crown today don't don't believe it because the preacher said it about the carnal guy at the funeral he doesn't have a crown he may be born again he may be saved as though by fire and he has nothing to show definitely no crown I don't mind the guy says it but don't you believe it because crowns are only given to those that are mature in their obedience tell the end tell the end he tells this church somebody can take your crown that doesn't mean that somebody can take it and then that's their crown that's not what it means it means a believer and believers still crowns as much as unbelievers do and how a believer steals your crown as they come to you with their version of the grace of God that takes the zeal out of your heart to press into God because they don't want to press into God so they're putting on you a version of grace that has no pressing into God so you buy into it because you got five or six of them you're all in the home group and they're all telling the same thing lighten up chill out relax just enjoy coast I mean the Lord understands you buy into that they have stolen your crown by you buying in to their sentiments that are not rooted in the Word of God though they're born-again believers and they use Bible verses don't let anybody take your crown I've said this for four years this thing and you can use it in your own heart or whatever I've told guys this same sentence I go listen because I've been told for however many years lots of years Mike you're gonna burn out slow down well it's 20 30 years later I've been hearing this I haven't burned out at all I'm not slowing down by the grace of God and I'm not trying to make a big hot-shot statement that's not my point the point is when I was 20 years old I'm 52 they were telling me slow down you can't do this you got to take some time for yourself and I wanted to be hours in the Word of God and in prayer and days in fasting to my 20s and 30s and 40s I cared about those things and most many of the folks around me just said go slower go slower I go no not going to you're gonna burn out you know what about this what about this they had a hundred whatabouts I can tell you that I could tell you the book on the whatabouts but I know where a lot of them are 20 and 30 years later I'm not at all interested in being where they are spiritually and so I've never burned out you're not gonna burn out you're not gonna burn out because you're pressing in hard you're gonna burn out because you're serving the Lord with the wrong spirit that's how you burn out you don't serve the Lord by pressing in by putting long hours in you serve it by doing with the wrong spirit you really do there's four or five ways to do that that's not our point tonight but I tell I've told the guys over the years I said you guarantee me you guarantee me that where I'm going the judgment seat of Christ your vote counts I'll listen to you but if you can't prove to me you get to vote on my destiny when I get there I have nothing to say to you about slow down I'm not interested in it because I don't know what your vision is but I know what my vision is and I'm not going to let a well-meaning brother who wants to feel better about his spiritual life by taming me spiritually so he feels less irritated I'm not gonna do it and I'm not judging them that's not the point but I'm not going to let another believer steal my crown by buying into their sentiment of what grace is about grace empowers us to be red-hot for God grace doesn't cover us while we're passive now we can repent of it and be covered in that sense but it's not meant to make us feel comfortable in our passivity John said it he said John chapter 2 I mean 2nd John 8 he said watch out that you don't lose what you have worked for but you have your full reward did you know you could lose your crown you can lose your garments you can be red-hot for God for ten years and have a crown and garments waiting for you it's called treasure in heaven and the next ten years you actually lose them both still be saved you many people do not enter into their full reward in the age to come they love God God loves them they're in the city they're happy about it about being in the city but they're nowhere close to walking in all that God the reason you don't hear this much because this kind of ideas it's so biblical I mean it's Genesis to Revelation it's everywhere in the Bible you have to determine not to want this to miss it but it really disturbs people because as I've taught this over the years people go I just feel really uncomfortable I go that's the gift of God it's called blessed are they that mourn that's a gift that you feel miserable take it drink it hear the tape again being miserable if it may means you're leaning into God searching for reality beloved that's the gift of God so they complimented me and they were trying to like a feminine my point is it about me I'm just telling my story my point is so what if you're miserable I mean you didn't really buy into the American dream did you we bought into the kingdom of God I'm not into the American dream I love America but I'm not an American dream I'm into the kingdom of God the meek will inherit the earth Paul said in 1st Corinthians 3 if anyone's work is burned up he will suffer loss but he'll be saved he will be saved the next passage paragraph D the one who endures temptation he will receive the crown of life many people born-again believers they do not endure temptation you know I have to endure temptation because when you say no to it the next day it knocks on the door and says can I come in no no day after day it takes endurance to overcome temptation well I just got this thing it's on me well the whole human race has it on them oh I thought I was the one warfare it is warfare all eight six point five billion people have something coming against them everybody for all of history Jesus had things coming against him we have to endure temptation it knocks on her door day after day and there's a hundred types of temptations and we endure it he says if you do it you will receive a crown you receive a crown this is not talking about being born-again right here this was talking if everybody had to endure temptation to the end in this way I mean how much of the kingdom of God would be in the kingdom of God now we're in the kingdom of God as a free gift of God but I tell you our rewards though God pays us tenfold what we ever would deserve for obedience so it's still filled with grace even the reward system but there is a response dimension to our rewards though the kindness and tenderness of how he edits our life is just amazing I call it the editing of God it's amazing you know it says in in Romans 4 that Abraham it says his faith did not waver it did not waver okay he was told he would you would Sarah got Hagar had a kid got the Arabs against the Jew-Palestinian conflict four thousand years later that's a wavering in my house didn't waver Paul did you read Genesis yes but I know the editing process of God says in Acts 13 David did all the will of God I remember I gave a sermon once ten sins of David right in first say I laid them all out three minutes a piece ten I'm in a row David you know I meet him and he'll say hey man what was all that about no no I was trying to give us confidence David laid about one two three and then acts 13 it says that David did all the will of God I thought Paul there you go you messed up on Abraham and now you messed up on David and the answer is no Mike you messed up on God because he has an editing process he is so tender in the way he evaluates if you will go he will cover you and he will count obedience I mean he pays so well my point is no matter what you're thinking about we're saved by grace our reward system is even on grace though there is a core reality of responsiveness in it that's very important in our rewards Roman numeral seven five promises we're not going to go through them but I wanted to point them out there they are we're out of time I just want you to know there's five of them they're good they're good let's end with that okay those are five good promises let's go