Deeper Commentary
CHAPTER 3
3:1 And to the angel of the church in
Sardis write: These things says he that has the seven Spirits of God and
the seven stars. I know your works- Seven is the number of totality.
The seven stars refer to the angels of the churches. The total power of
the Spirit is in the Lord's hand to be used for the care and development
of His churches, His people. There is infinite potential power available;
and His Spirit is essentially His mind, and not just His power. He wishes
our spirituality, as we surely do. And yet God's knowledge is attained
through His omnipresent Spirit; He thereby has totality of knowledge and
thereby of judgment. God makes His Angels Spirits; perhaps mechanically,
if you wish, His presence and power is articulated through the ministry of
the Angels. This would be why :5 follows on in the context of the Angels
and Jesus uniting to declare our verdict at the judgment: "I will confess
his name before my Father, and before His Angels".
You have the reputation of being alive,
but you are dead- The name or
reputation of being alive when they were spiritually dead is the very
inversion of what is true of the Lord. His Name amongst men is achieved
because He was dead but is now alive, alive in His people through the gift
of His Spirit which many of them were now in denial of.
3:2 – see on Rev. 1:20.
Be watchful and establish the things that
remain, which are ready to die- The
'things that remained' uses the same word used for 'the remnant'; He has
just used it of the faithful remnant in Thyatira (2:24). The 'angel', the
eldership on earth who were represented by Divine Angels in the Heavenly
throne room, were bidden strengthen that remnant, for even that was about
to spiritually die. The 'you' referenced in "your works" therefore refers
to the angel / eldership. They had not watched, i.e. watched out for, the
spiritual wellbeing of their flock.
I have explained earlier that the seven
churches here provide a picture of how the churches will be in the last
days before the Lord's return. The Olivet prophecy, like the Lord's
letters, gives a huge emphasis on the need to watch in the last days (e.g.
Mk. 13:5,9,23,33,35,37). The watching is for the safety of the house
against the 'thieves' of false teachers; we are each the porter, with the
responsibility for the rest of the household on our shoulders (Mk.
13:34,35). Throughout the Lord's letters there is this same pointed
emphasis upon the need to watch. The idea of the remnant being "ready to
die" immediately suggests the parable of the virgins, whom we have
portrayed as struggling to keep the flame of real faith from dying
away. Seeing that the majority of Sardis are pronounced as "dead" (3:1),
this encouragement to keep alive what was about to die can be read as a
call to each of the faithful in the last days to not only keep their own
faith alive, but to make every effort to keep alive those who appear
fatally ill. This command presumes that it will be evident to the faithful
what constitutes spiritual life and death. As our experience of the last
days goes on, the difference between wheat and tares becomes increasingly
marked - without having to anticipate the separation that will come at
harvest. "Be watchful" is in the context of strengthening what
remains, providing further proof that the command to watch in the last
days fundamentally concerns watching over the state of the ecclesia and
one's own faith, rather than 'watching' the political state of the world.
It seems that for generations, we have thought that 'watching' meant
reading 'Signs of the times' articles which were actually no more than a
running commentary on the state of the world. The Hebrew word translated
"watch" is also rendered "to take heed to oneself". The Hebrew word has
the same idea. Thus David spoke of his soul watching (Ps.
130:5,6). Habakkuk 'watched' for what God's word really said (Hab. 2:1);
God watches over things in the sense of being sensitive to them (Jer.
31:28 Heb.). This Old Testament background to the idea of watching carries
through to the NT. It's because we don't know the time that we
are commanded to watch- not 'signs of the times', because we don't know
the time; but rather, to watch ourselves. Thus Acts 20:31 speaks of
watching in the sense of being aware of the possibility of personal and
collective apostasy. In 1 Cor. 16:31, watching means to stand fast in the
One Faith; in Eph. 6:18 and 1 Thess. 5:6,11 it refers to praying for each
other spiritually. In the last days, many brethren will turn away, Paul
warned Timothy, but by contrast "you - watch" (2 Tim. 4:5). If we
watch, both ourselves and others, the Lord's return will not be like a
thief for us (Rev. 3:3). Thus watching is a sign of our acceptance by the
Lord (Lk. 12:37). Yet watching our doctrine and way of life,
realizing the real danger of mass latter day apostasy, is increasingly
unpopular.
For I have not found your works complete
in the sight of my God- The Lord is
right now in the presence or "sight" of God, representing us before Him.
And He found Himself having to represent the works of these believers to
the Father, and He did not 'find' them complete; they were an appearance
of religious activity rather than being the works done in faith and
motivated by grace which the Father seeks.
3:3- see on Jud. 16:20.
Therefore remember how you have received-
They are bidden recall their first
conversion; at that time, believers 'receive' the Spirit (s.w. Jn. 14:17;
20:22; Gal. 3:2,14; 1 Jn. 2:27). To receive Jesus as Christ is to receive
His Spirit (Jn. 1:12,16). The Corinthians received the Spirit, but were
"not spiritual" at the time Paul wrote 1 Cor. 3:1. These believers were
likewise being asked to remember the Spirit gift received, and to allow it
to function within them.
And did once hear and keep it, and
repent- They needed to "keep" the
Spirit they had been given. The idea of 'keeping' does not solely refer to
obedience to commandments, but to allow the Lord's word, His gifted
Spirit, to abide / remain within them.
Therefore if you shall not watch, I will
come as a thief, and you shall not know what time I will come upon you-
The watching in view is not simply of themselves but of others; see on :2.
“I will come as a thief" is an evident allusion to 1 Thess. 5:2 concerning
the thief-like coming of Christ to the unworthy in the latter-day church.
"You shall not know what time I will come upon you" implies that they
should have 'known the hour'. This probably continues the allusions
to 1 Thess. 5 - this time to :1: "Of the times and the seasons, brethren,
ye have no need that I write unto you (faithful ones). For yourselves know
perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night"
(AV). 1 Thess. 5:1,2 in turn alludes to Mt. 24:43 (R.V.): "But this ye
know" that "the goodman of the house" would have watched if he knew when
the thief would come. The wise at Thessalonica 'knowing' the times and
seasons of the thief's coming therefore implies that their 'knowledge' was
in terms of appreciating what the spiritual trials of the last days would
be like. Rev. 3:3 brings all these strands together in warning the
apostate members of the latter-day ecclesias. Not watching is equated by
the Lord with not knowing the time. The evident allusion to the disciples
not watching (Mk. 14:37) suggests that if we don't know the time, we will
be like them- unprepared when we ought to be on the tiptoe of expectancy.
The connection with the disciples also hints that when the Lord told them
that they didn't know the time, he was in some sense rebuking them rather
than making a general statement about the impossibility of ever
knowing the time of his return.
3:4- see on Rev. 2:17.
But you have a few names in Sardis that
did not defile their clothes, and they shall walk with me in white; for
they are worthy- The Lord refers to
His people not simply as 'people' but as "names". The Hebrew idea of a
name is that it expresses personality and character. We are not numbers on
a screen, but unique persons, known intimately to the Lord. These faithful
ones were undefiled by the fact the others in their church were apostate-
yet another disproof of any theory of 'guilt by association'. The clothes
undefiled refer to the gift of righteousness imputed at baptism abiding;
just as the gift of the Spirit received abode with them (:3). "Walk with
me" is yet another reminder that the destiny of the believer is to share
the Lord's destiny; all that is true of Him is to become true of us. And
this includes the idea of being "worthy", which we are not in our own
strength, but only on account of being in Him, the worthy one.
Again we must give full weight to the fact that the "few" in Sardis who
had not defiled their clothes attended an apostate ecclesia; and yet they
are not seen as "defiled" by the Lord Jesus. This is proof
positive that there is no such thing as guilt by association with erring
members of an ecclesia. Those faithful members were not rebuked for not
disfellowshipping the others. The Lord’s criticism of the ecclesias seems
to be that they had allowed false teaching to develop, rather than the
fact they hadn’t separated from it. Smyrna was an ecclesia which received
no criticism at all from the Lord; they weren't rebuked for not
disfellowshipping the other local ecclesias who were apostate (Rev.
2:8-11). The elders at Sardis, an ecclesia holding many false teachers,
were told to strengthen what remained (the Greek is usually used regarding
people)- they were to strengthen the faithful minority, but nothing was
said about withdrawing from them because they fellowshipped weak brethren.
3:5- see on 1 Cor. 4:9; Rev. 2:17.
He that overcomes shall thus be dressed
in white garments, and I will in no way blot his name out of the book of
life- "Thus be dressed" refers to
the way that the Lord who spoke these words was at that very time dressed
in white garments; they were to share His status, all that is true of Him
is to become true of all in Him.
Blotting out of the book of life suggests
that individuals were originally included in the plan for eternity, but
are removed. Moses asking to be removed from that book is therefore a mark
of his extreme love for Israel; willing to sacrifice his place in eternity
for them. God did not accept this kind of substitutionary atonement,
however. I have suggested that John wrote and spoke his gospel to appeal
to his fellow Jews; and his letters were written to his converts.
Revelation was perhaps also primarily intended for Jewish converts, and
the initial references to the 'satan' refer to the Judaist conspiracy to
wean his converts back to the synagogue. The idea of our names remaining
in the book of life would have suggested to a Jewish audience that we'll
all be like Moses was at the end, in essence; we'll share his finest
hours. Our names will not be blotted out of the book of life, as Moses'
wasn't (Ex. 32:32). For Jews, Moses was the acme of spirituality, a
spiritual pinnacle they could never realistically attain to. But here they
are promised that they are not mere Levites but in Christ, can share the
peaks of Moses.
But there is the real possibility of names
being removed from the book. This is the greatest tragedy; that a person
at one point was on track for eternity, but lost that status. We must do
all we can to 'watch out' for others, therefore (see on :2); and never,
ever, to make anyone stumble from the way which leads to eternal life.
And I will confess his name before my
Father and before His angels- As
noted on :4, we are 'names' and not numbers; in the Hebraic sense of a
name reflecting the sum total of a person's character and being. Who we
are as unique persons is confessed before the father; and our names, that
code, if you will, which summarizes 'us', is recorded eternally in the
book of life. This points up the eternal importance of personality and
spiritual character; for to some degree, who we are today is who we shall
eternally be. Salvation is personal. We as persons shall be saved, meaning
'we' shall be immortalized.
3:6 He that has an ear, let him hear what
the Spirit says to the churches- See on 2:7.
3:7 And to the angel of the church in
Philadelphia write: These things says he that is holy, he that is true-
The Lord's essential character is important to establish, because it
is He who has the power to eternally open and close the way to eternity in
His Kingdom. 'Holy and true' was one of the many titles heaped upon the
Caesars, and again the radical, subversive nature of the book of
Revelation appears. For the ultimate holy and true one is not Caesar, but
the Lord.
He that has the key of David, he that
opens and none shall shut, and that shuts and none opens-
The quotation is from Is. 22:22, where Eliakim is given delegated
rulership in David's Kingdom. Perhaps the idea of David having the key to
his kingdom alludes to the way that he consciously chose his successor and
did not let it pass automatically to his firstborn. But the power to
eternally shut and open the Kingdom has been delegated to us, in the sense
that if we do not preach to others, or make them stumble from the path, we
have closed up the Kingdom to them. The keys of knowledge are in our hands
as preachers, and we can thereby open or shut up the Kingdom to men (Mt.
16:19; Lk. 11:52; see on Jn. 20:23). We have just been reminded that a
man's name can at one stage be in the book of life, and then be removed;
eternity can be closed to a person, as well as opened. The foolish virgins
find the door to the Kingdom eternally locked against them. We get a
strong sense from this imagery of the future we may miss, and how
commitment to the things of the Kingdom logically demands 100% commitment
from us.
3:8 I know your works (behold, I have set
before you an open door, which none can shut), you have a little power-
Although no man can shut the door, the Lord can (see on :7).
An open door speaks of an opportunity (1 Cor. 16:9; 2 Cor. 2:12; Col.
4:3). It is the Lord who takes the initiative, opening the door to the
Kingdom, by grace. It is for us to respond to His initiatives. Their
"little power / strength" could imply that it could have been far
stronger; but all the same, the Lord commends and accepts them. There are
ranges of response to the Lord, and He is willing to accept that some
ground will yield more harvest to His glory than others. Some work harder
and longer in the vineyard than others; but all receive the penny of
salvation.
And did keep my word and did not deny my
name- The aorist suggests this
keeping of the Lord's logos was at a particular time in the past.
They had presumably been called upon to deny His Name and stop abiding in
His "word". And they had refused. This could have referred to the local
Jewish synagogue expelling them (Jn. 9:22), with the associated economic
and social isolation which ensued for a diaspora Jew. Or in the Gentile
context, it could have referred to exclusion from pagan trade guilds, with
the same effect; or perhaps a call to show loyalty to the Caesar cult. But
:9 suggests that the persecution had originated with the 'satan' of
organized Jewish opposition.
3:9 Behold, I will make those of the
synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and they are not, but do lie-
behold, I will make these come to you and bow down at your feet, and to
know that I have loved you- The persecution of :8 had been brought
about by an organized group of people called here a false synagogue,
implying they were Jews, but in name only. Perhaps one of their arguments
was that God did really love the Christian Jews; because Judaism had a lot
to say about themselves as the unique lovers of God, who enjoyed His
special love. John in his letters has argued that if a Jew does not accept
Jesus as Lord and Son of God, then such a Jew is outside "the love of
God". For he who denies the Son denies the Father also. These Judaist
troublemakers will be resurrected and at the last day, see those they
persecuted enter God's Kingdom. They will bow before the feet of those
they persecuted, just as they will say "Blessed is He who comes in the
name of the Lord!", but all too late for their personal salvation.
Some now in the ecclesia will be dashed to
pieces by the Lord at the last day (2:27). Mal. 4:3 speaks of them being
ashes under the souls of our feet, as if the faithful will play a
part in the destruction of their faithless brethren. After our judgment,
we "will return and discern between the righteous and the wicked,
between him that serves God and him that serves him not" (Mal. 3:18). Then
in our own understanding the Kingdom of God will be likened to wise and
foolish virgins; then we will see the tares clearly. Then the apostate
false brethren in Philadelphia will worship before the feet of their
faithful brethren. It may be in this sense that we will judge Angels /
ecclesial elders (1 Cor. 6:3 cp. Rev. 2:1 etc.). Or it could be that the
rejected will destroy each other. The surrounding world with whom they
will then be associated will destroy themselves, brother against brother
(Zech. 14:13); and they will have a part in this destruction. If we bite
and devour each other, we may be consumed by each other (Gal. 5:15)- this
is the same idea of brethren killing brethren.
3:10 Because you did keep the word of my
patience, I also will keep you from the time of trial which is to come
upon the whole world, to test them that dwell upon the earth- The
Lord told the Philadelphians that He had set before them an open door,
which elsewhere is a figure for an opportunity to preach (Acts 14:27; 1
Cor. 16:9; 2 Cor. 2:12; Col. 4:3). He parallels such preaching with
keeping His word and not denying His Name. For those who do these two
things, i.e. respond to the open door preaching opportunities of the
pre-tribulation period, “I also will keep you from the hour of temptation
[tribulation] which is to come”. If we preach now, and the door is open as
never before, then perhaps we will be saved from the tribulation. For one
of its aims, as in the first century, will be to inspire us to witness as
we ought to have been doing. See on Rev. 2:10, where we noted again this
idea of various possible outcomes and chronologies stored up in God's
purpose, in response to human freewill decision making. An the same is
true especially of latter day chronologies of events leading up to the
Lord's return. If the latter day faithful [perhaps especially referring to
Jewish Christians within the land promised to Abraham] keep the Lord's
word, He will keep them from the "tribulation" designed "to try them that
dwell upon the earth" / land - of Israel. So whether or not some shall
experience the latter day tribulation depends on factors such as their
repentance and witness of the Gospel to all nations.
3:11 I come suddenly. Hold fast to what
you have, that no one takes your crown- As noted on :3, they were to
hold fast to the gift of the Spirit they had been given at conversion, and
allow this to continue to guide their path towards salvation. For it is
the Spirit which they had already been given. They had been given "eternal
life" in the sense of the spirit of that life which they would eternally
live. In this sense they already had their crown; but as names in the book
of eternal life could be blotted out, so the crown now potentially given
can be taken away. The stephanos may refer not only to the
victor's crown at the games, but to the wreath worn by those invited to a
wedding or feast- an image elsewhere used in Revelation, rather than that
of the games. Our part in the wedding can be taken away and given to
another if we do not want it. Another will take our crown or wreath. This
suggests the allusion is to floral wreath given to wedding guests; for a
victor's crown in the games could hardly be given to another. But in the
Lord's parable, the invitations to the Jews to come to the feast were
taken from them and given to others.
3:12 He that overcomes, I will make him a
pillar in the temple of my God; and he shall leave there no more, and I
will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my
God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God; and my
own new name- There was apparently a large pillar in Philadelphia
which may have been the reason for this idea. The name of Yahweh being
written on a person suggests they are a priest, even the high priest.
Instead of the names of the twelve tribes of Israel written on his chest,
we here have the name of the new Jerusalem written- which city speaks of
all the believers. This is a major theme of the letters; that the role and
exaltation of the Lord becomes true for all who are in Him. As the Lord
was the central pillar of the new temple, so shall we be.
It is not surprising that the Lord, as the Son of God and His supreme
manifestation to men, should also carry God’s name. He could say “I am
come in my Father’s name” (Jn. 5:43). Because of his obedience, Jesus
ascended to heaven and God “gave him a name which is above every name” -
the name of Yahweh, of God Himself (Phil. 2:9). So this is why we read
Jesus saying in Rev. 3:12: “I will write upon him (the believer) the name
of my God... and I will write upon him my new name”. That the name was
still new suggests these letters were given not so long after His
ascension. At the judgment, we will share the Lord's exaltation; He will
give us God’s name; we then will fully carry the name of God. He calls
this name, “My new name”. We can now properly understand Is. 9:6, where
concerning the Lord Jesus we are told, “His name (note that) shall be
called, Wonderful, Counsellor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father...”.
This is a prophecy that the Lord would carry all the titles and Name of
God - that He would be the total manifestation or revelation of God to us.
It was in this sense that he was called ‘Emmanuel’, meaning ‘God is with
us’, although He personally was not God. The way He speaks here of "my
God" even in His resurrected glory is proof enough of that. Thus the
prophecy of Joel 2 that men would call on the name of Yahweh was fulfilled
by people being baptised into the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:21 cp. 38).
This also explains why the command to baptize into the name of the Father
was fulfilled, as detailed in the Acts record, by baptism into the name of
Jesus.
And yet the idea of bearing God's Name refers
to what already in essence is happening to all who are in the Lord Jesus,
by baptism into His Name.
3:13 He that has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches- see on 2:7.
3:14 And to the angel of the church in
Laodicea write: These things says the Amen, the faithful and true witness,
the beginning of the creation of God- The subsequent judgments are
prefaced by this reminder that the Lord Jesus is the final truth, the
"Amen", and had Himself suffered unto death as the ultimately faithful
martyr / witness. Laodicea was a hopeless case, it seemed; but the Lord
reminds them that He is the beginning of a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), and
the power of the Spirit which had created the natural creation was
available to them too. He had begun the work of new creation in them, and
it could still be brought to completion if they repented.
3:15 I know your works, how you are
neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either cold or hot- The
reference may be to the hot and cold springs near Laodicea. It is easy to
assume that 'hot' refers to hot zeal for Him, and 'cold' to total
indifference to Him. But why then would He wish them to be totally "cold",
and not rather praise them for having at least some heat? For in earlier
letters, the Lord takes full cognisance of the fact there is some 'heat',
some good points, even in those He chooses to condemn. So I suggest we
must read in an ellipsis here. He may mean 'I wish [that you realize that
you can only be] either cold or hot'. They themselves considered
themselves lukewarm, but thought this was acceptable to Him. And here we
have a penetrating attack upon our own spiritual psychology; for we too
would likely consider ourselves lukewarm, not coldly indifferent but not
red hot in response to Him.
3:16 As you are lukewarm, and neither hot
nor cold, I will spew you out of my mouth-
There is no third way. We may as well realize
this. The Lord Jesus hates the fact that some think there is a
third road; He would that we recognized, as He does, that there is really
no 'lukewarm' position- only hot or cold. He seems to ask us to realize
this: "Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the
tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt" (Mt. 12:33).
We know that from God's perspective, we are either cold or hot.
We either serve Him or mammon. We are either on the road to the Kingdom or
to death. So surely the Lord is speaking from our viewpoint; He
wished that those believers would have the attitude that they were either
cold or hot, rather than thinking there was a middle course. In essence,
their weakness is ours; for time and again, we hide behind the philosophy
of 'balance' in order to justify a "neither cold nor hot" attitude. Our
lack of serious devotion, both individually and as a community, rests in
this sophistry of 'balance'; lukewarmness has become respectable, both in
the brotherhood and in the world; total commitment is branded as
fanaticism and simplistic dogmatism.
As tourists came to taste the waters of the
Laodicean springs, so the Lord tasted the believers there. The spewing of
them from His mouth connects with how the sharp sword of judgment proceeds
out of His mouth (1:16; 2:16; 19:21).
3:17 For you say, I am rich, I have
prospered, and I need nothing- The implication was that they believed
some kind of false prosperity Gospel, reasoning that their wealth was a
result of their spirituality and God blessing them for it. Hence the next
half of the verse insists that contrary to what they are think, they are
in fact deeply unspiritual. This verse is a powerful argument against the
prosperity Gospel, for apparent material blessing is portrayed here as
not the reward for spirituality but the fruit of unspirituality. The
language of saying to themselves that they were rich and "have prospered"
is exactly that of the rich fool (Lk. 12:21). So we can safely assume that
"you say..." refers to what they, like him, said to themselves within
their hearts. And these words of the heart are what we are judged by. But
the same Greek word used here is used of how those who accepted 'Babylon'
were made rich and prospered because of her (18:3,15,19). And Babylon is
presented in Jeremiah as considering she needed nothing Whatever 'Babylon'
referred to in the Laodicean context, these apparent Christians had
materially benefitted from connection with her- be it the synagogue
system, the pagan trade guilds or the Roman Caesar cult. And there may
well come a latter day wave of prosperity- for those who associate with
latter day Babylon. But for Christians, it will cost them their eternity.
Not realizing that you are wretched,
pitiable, poor, blind, and naked-
They perhaps considered that their material wealth must reflect their
spiritual wealth. They were unaware that spiritually they were
poverty-stricken and naked, needing to develop the riches of faith and
clothing of righteousness. It seems to follow that their feeling of being
spiritually rich and needing nothing was fuelled by being "increased with
goods" - as if the material prosperity of the very last days will lead
some to interpret this as God's blessing upon them, and a sure sign of
their acceptability. “I am rich..." is alluding to Hos. 12:8, where
Israel's wealth was associated with a feeling that they were therefore
without sin: "Ephraim said, I am rich... in all my labours they shall find
no iniquity in me that is sin". This encourages us again to think that the
first recipients of these letters were Jewish converts. Likewise, the
description of them as wealthy but naked is taken straight out of Ez. 16:7
about natural Israel; suggesting that it is Jewish converts who are being
written to here.
They were unlike Paul, who lamented "O
wretched man that I am" (Rom. 7:24 s.w.), throwing himself upon the Lord
Jesus in total faith in His grace. The Greek for "miserable" is found only
in 1 Cor. 15:9, where apostate Christians considered that they had "hope
in Christ" only in this life, and were therefore considered by the Spirit
to be "miserable". For them, their level of association with Christianity
gave them some psychological benefits in this life, but the wonder of sin
forgiven and certain eternity ahead had not dawned upon them. They refused
to accept that they were "poor in spirit" and could, upon that
recognition, have sure hope for the future Kingdom (Mt. 5:3 s.w.). They
refused to see themselves in the man born blind from birth of John 9, who
is set up as representative of us all; they would not recognize that they
were totally naked before the eyes of the Lord Jesus (Heb. 4:13). From
these references we see that wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked
all refer to what we all naturally are; by refusing to see themselves as
such, the Lord's work and provision for them was not seen as necessary.
The unfaithful now walk naked, in the Lord's
eyes; but they will do so in the final condemnation of Rev. 16:15. They
can walk naked now and repent, clothe themselves so as to cover
the nakedness of condemnation which they now have; but not then.
3:18 I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you
may become rich- John's writings continually allude to the power of
the gift of the Spirit. It is the Spirit which is the true way to becoming
enriched (1 Cor. 1:5; Eph. 3:16; the same word for "prospered" in :17).
"Buy from me" obviously recalls the parable of the virgins, where the
rejected go to buy oil [cp. the Spirit] all too late. The idea is that we
can now do, spiritually, what the rejected will so desperately
wish to do in the time of their condemnation, but will be unable to. Gold
refined by fire is the figure Peter uses for Jewish converts who were
being refined by the tribulations of the first century, both at the hands
of the synagogue system and the Romans (see on 1 Pet. 1:7). The Jewish
converts at Laodicea had flunked out of these testings by fire through
their association with 'Babylon'; see on :17. The counsel to buy this
refinement by fire would be another way of saying that they ought to have
submitted to the tribulations, so that their faith would have been
developed.
And to clothe yourselves with white
garments, that the shame of your nakedness be not revealed-
In the latter day church scene, it seems some
because of their refusal to repent, will then have a final tribulation at
the end of the holocaust period. Their salvation is what the Lord searches
for. There is the suggestion that this group may choose not to suffer the
initial stages of the holocaust, in that Rev. 3:18 implies that they are
only counselled to buy the golden faith that is produced by the
fiery trial of the latter day tribulation. Thus as with offering the pinch
of incense to Caesar, there will be opportunity to avoid the tribulation
by some apparently tokenistic obedience to the beast. By doing this they
will waste "the space" given "to repent of her fornication", and will
experience a final tribulation.
We are clothed with white garments at
baptism. The appeal to clothe themselves with them is an appeal for
re-conversion. They could cover their shame now- but they choose not to.
And yet, unknown to them, in God's eyes these people foam out their own
shame (Jude 13).
And anoint your eyes with eyesalve so you
may see- "Eyesalve" didn't really
improve vision, but just as the Lord used the wrong idea of demons without
correcting the science, so here. The idea is that they needed to apply
something to help them 'see' differently, not least to 'see' themselves as
they truly were before God (:17). That 'eyesalve' is surely the Spirit,
which the Lord will give, but which we must be willing to apply. Anointing
of itself implies pouring out the oil of the Spirit. For it is the Spirit
which opens the eyes of our understanding (see on Eph. 1:18).
3:19 As many as I love, I reprove and
chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent- The Lord must have acted in
the lives of those wealthy but lost believers in order to bring them to
repentance. And He did so out of love. And the arrogant, self-assured
wealthy are hard to spiritually love. But the Lord did, and for all time
sets us an example of loving sorrow for the wealthy in their spiritual
lostness. The Lord's reproof, according to Jn. 3:18, is in who He is as a
person; within the light of Him as a person and character. He was
therefore seeking to bring Himself to their attention; chastening is
intended to direct our focus onto the Lord Jesus. It is the gift of the
Comforter which reproves (Jn. 16:8); as baptized believers, they had once
received this, and the Lord wishes for that potential Spirit gift within
them to be allowed full reign. The Hebrew and Greek words for 'chastening'
also mean 'teaching'. None of the Lord's chastening is solely punitive; He
seeks to teach, and we need to perceive that in whatever chastening we
receive. And the end product of that teaching is repentance.
3:20- see on Mt. 24:15.
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If
anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will
eat with him and he with me- The
Lord stands at the door and knocks at His return, and the faithful will
open immediately to Him (Lk. 12:36). And yet the essence of His coming is
now. He wishes to enter hearts; those who accept His Spirit have Him
'coming' to them (Jn. 14:18 s.w.). His presence through the Comforter is
just as real as was His presence amongst men in Palestine during His
mortal ministry. The Lord is here writing to those who have turned away
from Him in Laodicea. He is urging them to let Him come to them, to allow
the Spirit to enter and fill them.
The Lord stresses, with apparently needless repetition, that to the man
who responds to His word, "I will eat with him and he with me". There is
something very touching in the picture of a man living alone (unusual in
the first century), presumably due to old age or persecution, with no wife
(either dead or left him); and the Lord of all knocks at his door. He lets
him in (i.e. responds to the word of Christ), and they eat together. Two
men, eating a man's meal, earnestly bent together over the table. It's a
fine picture of the mutuality between the Lord and the believer. Even in
failure and weak moments, that mutuality is still there. The same word is
used of the Lord having "supper" and 'eating' with us in the communion
meal (Lk. 22:20; 1 Cor. 11:25), and so the fellowship of the breaking of
bread is also specifically in view.
In the latter day application, the Lord
knocking on the door and 'coming' when the believer opens, hints at His
second coming once the ecclesia shows a suitable level of spiritual
response. In the same letter to Laodicea, the ecclesia being "rich and
increased with goods" (:17) recalls the days of Lot and Noah, both typical
of the second coming, and the unworthy walking naked is a figure picked up
in 16:15 concerning judgment day. Our attitude and response in the split
second when we know 'He's back' will effectively be our judgment. When the
Lord speaks about knocking on the door of our hearts and our response
(Rev. 3:20), He is picking up the language of the Song of Solomon 5:2-8,
where the bridegroom (cp. Jesus) knocks at the door of the bride. But
notice the sequence there:
While she sleeps at night, the bridegroom comes and knocks [unworthy
virgins sleeping instead of being awake; the Lord Jesus comes]
She replies that she's not dressed properly, makes excuses about her feet,
she can't come and open [the unworthy don't respond immediately]
He tries to open the door from the outside, putting his hand through the
latch-hole [by grace, after the pattern of Lot being encouraged to leave
Sodom when he hesitated, the Lord will be patient even with sleepy virgins
in His desire for their salvation]
Her heart is moved with desire for him [the rejected still call Jesus
'Lord, Lord'; they love Him emotionally]
She starts dressing herself up, and then is overtaken by desire and rushes
to the door, her hands dripping all kinds of perfume and make up over the
lock as she opens it [cp. the virgins going to buy oil, the unworthy
trying to prepare themselves all too late, not trusting that their Lord
loves them as they are at the moment of His coming]
But he's gone , he withdraws himself [all too late, the door is
shut, He never knew them]
Her soul fails [the shock of rejection]
She seeks him but doesn't find him, calls but he doesn't answer [Prov.
1:28; the rejected call, but aren't answered; they seek the Lord early,
but don't find Him. Hos. 5:6 is likewise relevant: "They shall go
with their flocks and with their herds to seek the LORD; but they
shall not find him; he hath withdrawn himself from them".]
She feels tired of her relationship with him ("sick of love").
She is persecuted by the world around her ["condemned with the world"]
The basic point is that if we don't
immediately respond to the Lord's knock, we show ourselves to not love Him
enough. If we don't open immediately, it's as if we didn't open at all.
The Lord wants us as we are, bleary eyed and without our make up, but with
a basic overriding love of Him, and faith in the depth of His love, which
will lead us to immediately go out to meet Him. And as noted above, His
coming to us is effectively now. We shall open to Him in that day if we
have opened our hearts to Him today.
3:21- see on Mk. 10:37.
He that overcomes, I will allow him to
sit down with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my
Father on His throne- Here we see
the very intense extent of our possibilities in Christ; all that is true
for Him really can be true for those "in Christ", even those as apparently
far gone as Laodicea. These descriptions of the faithful in the Kingdom
show how they are counted as righteous by grace; they overcame even as
the Lord overcame. They are described as clothed in white linen, just
as was the Victorious Saviour straight after His death (Mt. 27:59). A
comparison of our struggles with the Lord in Gethsemane, let alone the
cross, reveal that we do not overcome as He did. We have not resisted unto
blood in striving against our own sin. We will have the right to
the tree of life (Rev. 22:14); yet our salvation is by pure grace alone.
'Israel' means 'he who will rule as / with God'. This would therefore be
the basis of Rev. 3:21, which promises that he who overcomes (also
translated "prevail") will be a ruler with God, on His throne. It seems
that the Lord has his mind back in Gen. 32, and he saw all who would
attain His Kingdom as going through that same process of prevailing with
God, overcoming, and being made rulers with Him.
3:22 He that has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches- see on 2:7.
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