The Church Of Philadelphia - He Who Overcomes

[0:00] Thank you for choosing to listen to today's message by Reverend Dr. David Etrie. We know you will be blessed as you seek and serve God. We believe that this message will stir up a desire for more of God even as you listen.

[0:13] Be blessed. Alright, so far we have treated the seven, six of the seven churches. So let's look back at the church of Philadelphia.

[0:27] Revelation chapter 3 from verse 10. Because you have kept my command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial. We shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth.

[0:42] Verse 11. Behold, I am coming quickly. Let's say, I am coming quickly. I am coming quickly. Or better still, he is coming quickly. He is coming quickly. Say it again, please. He is coming quickly. Any church that has gone silent on the second coming of Christ will definitely enter into compromise.

[0:58] Every church that has only focused on, as I taught you, the existential gospel and has abandoned the eschatological gospel is likely to become impatient.

[1:15] Anybody who lives life in the light of what is happening now, in the light of the instant, will definitely be impatient in life.

[1:28] So the church of Philadelphia, he says that I will keep you from the trial and tribulation that is about to come if you keep my word. Alright, as you keep my word, I will keep you from the trial.

[1:39] Verse 11. Let's look at verse 11. Behold, that's what I got. I come quickly. I was talking about a church that is muted or goes quiet and silent about the second coming of Christ will be a church of compromise.

[1:56] Because the Bible says that he who has this hope in himself purifies himself and the wicked one touches him not. First John chapter 3 verse 2 and 3.

[2:11] I think particularly verse 3. He said Jesus is going to come back. But verse 3 says that and everyone who has this hope in himself purifies himself just as Christ is pure.

[2:24] So when you have the hope of the blessed appearing. According to Titus chapter 3 verse 14. Chapter 2 verse 13, sorry. The blessed appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

[2:38] When you have that hope. When you have the blessed hope. It helps you to purify yourself. A church that has lost an eschatological approach to life will become impatient and compromised.

[2:55] The future is good. But if you are so in a hurry to get it now, you will compromise the beautiful future for instant gratification today.

[3:07] So he said, I come quickly. Church, don't let us live as though life is all about today.

[3:21] You have to live subspecies itenotatus. You have to live in the light of eternity. Live your life with eternity perspective.

[3:37] Because all that we see are not all that there is. There is more to life than meets the eye.

[3:54] That's why I stand here with divine covenant, divine audacity. And I speak to you that it will be well with you. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. It shall be well with you.

[4:08] Amen. Well, so he said, I come quickly. Watch this. Watch this. Let's not read it from the screen. Let's go. Behold, I come quickly. Hold fast, so you have that no money take your time.

[4:22] Okay, so that means that it's not go and get you. There's something you already have. Church of Philadelphia, you love God. There's something you already have.

[4:33] He said, hold it fast. That no man may take away what? Your crown. You can lose your crown. Christianity is a relationship with God which always comes with crowns.

[4:57] He was always definitely going to reward us in what you do. Some of you, when you die, you realize you haven't done anything for the church. You have bought houses.

[5:10] You have built cities. You have done this. You've bought cars. You've done that. You've done that. But there's no equity against your name for the church. No equity.

[5:22] Don't just build for today. Build for posterity. Serve God for posterity. He said, I come. My reward is with me. Paul says that anyone who competes, competes for a crown.

[5:37] 1 Corinthians 9, verse 25. Paul said, I have fought your good wives. 2 Timothy chapter 4. I have fought your good wives. I have kept the faith. I have finished my course. And it says, verse 8 says that.

[5:48] 2 Timothy chapter 4, verse 8. Now, there's laid up for me. What? The crown. What? The crown. I can hear you. What? The crown. The crown.

[5:59] Crown. 1 Peter chapter 5, verse 4. Peter admonished the church elders that as you do your pastoral work and church leadership work, remember that there's a crown.

[6:09] A crown coming. A crown coming. So, Christianity is coming with rewards. Crown. In Revelation chapter 2, verse 10. Look at Revelation chapter 2, verse 10. He says that.

[6:20] Do not fear the things which you are about to suffer. Indeed. The devil will throw some of you into prison that you may be tested and you will have tribulation 10 days.

[6:30] Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. So, when he came to the church of Philadelphia, he said, hold fast what you have so that no man takes your crown.

[6:44] Don't let anybody talk you out of your walk with God. They are going to take away your crown. They are taking away your crown. Look at the way you have been faithful.

[6:54] There is a way somebody can talk you out of your crown. That's why Jesus said, hold fast that which you have that no man may take away your crown.

[7:06] That means a human being, man, no one, somebody can end up making you lose your crown. Wow. It's not perpetual. It's not permanent.

[7:16] You can lose it. So, he warned the church of Philadelphia. You have got good news. You have got commendation. But be careful. It's someone, one wise man said some time ago, he said, good, a good character is not a permanent possession.

[7:38] Or a good name. It's not a permanent possession. You can lose your good name. Yeah. Your reputation. Good reputation is not a permanent possession. So, you have to be careful what you're hanging around.

[7:53] Yeah. Your victimization is at the point of your exposure. Wow. What you are exposed to will determine how vulnerable you are.

[8:07] Does that make sense? Yes, sir. Yes. What you are exposed to. Hold fast that which you have that no man takes away your crown. Wow. Verse 12.

[8:24] Verse 12. He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go out no more. Pillar. In those days, you know, when you go to the site where the church of Philadelphia was, or actually the city of Philadelphia.

[8:40] Philadelphia is in some way Turkey, modern-day Turkey. When you go there, the city of Philadelphia is no more. But you see ancient ruins. And most of the ancient ruins, only pillars you see.

[8:52] And the pillars are still standing. And in those days, they had this custom where people's names were engraved on pillars, depending on what they have done. So, most of the churches had people's names engraved on pillars.

[9:04] You have done this for the church. And so, those pillars are still standing with their names on it. And Jesus brought that ideology, and he says that if you, he says that if you overcome, we who overcomes, I'll make a pillar in the temple of my God, and it shall go out no more.

[9:21] And I'll write upon him the name of my three names. The name of my God. See, when your name is on something, that means that you have ownership of that thing. Yeah. Yeah. Hmm. That's why your children bear your name.

[9:34] Hmm. I'll write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God. That's the new Jerusalem. So, God's name will be on you.

[9:45] And he said, the name of the new Jerusalem, the city is good. That means you've been, that's where your identity stems from. Amen. The holy city is your city. Amen.

[9:56] God is your God. You belong to God. You belong to the city. Amen. And then the last thing there, he said, you know, I told you earlier on the church, sorry, the city of Philadelphia had had a few name changes.

[10:08] Yeah. So, it used to be called Philadelphia after the king of Pergamos, Philadelphos. And then it was then changed to Flavia, and it was changed to Cesar, New Caesarea after Cesar.

[10:26] The Cesar who helped them during the crisis of the earthquake. So, they named it, and then they changed it back to Philadelphia. So, they've undergone a few name changes. And so, people of Philadelphia, and how do you call Philadelphias?

[10:40] People call me Philadelphish. Phyllis. The Phyllis. Yeah, sure. In those days. The Phyllis were familiar with name change.

[10:54] And so, Jesus said, I will also give you a name. I will give you a name. I will give you that. I will write the name of my God on you. I will write the name of my city. Now, let's look at this.

[11:05] I saw this in the Bible that there are people, when Jesus is coming, they will have his name printed on their forehead. Because the beast, the Antichrist, he also prints his 666 on your forehead.

[11:19] Jesus said, me, not his name. Revelation chapter 14, verse 1. Look at that. Wow. Then I looked, and behold, a lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000, having their father's name, sorry, his father's name, is there written on their forehead.

[11:42] Forehead. So, you will see me, you will see me in it. You see the name of the father written on my forehead. Amen. And I know I will see you too. Amen. I said I will see you too.

[11:52] Amen. Revelation 17, 5. What does it say? Revelation 17, 6. And on her forehead, a name was written, the mystery.

[12:05] So, name, mystery. Babylon the Great, the mother of harlot and of abominations of the earth. That's the name of the beast. Sorry, the name of Babylon the Great.

[12:15] The name written on her forehead. So, it tells who you are. And it says that he who overcomes, I will write God's name on him. And in Revelation chapter 20, verse 4, it says that, I saw, I like this.

[12:34] And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, and had not worshipped the beast and his image, and had not received the mark on their foreheads and on their hands, and they lived and reigned with Christ.

[12:58] So, the mark of the beast was going to be put on people's foreheads and their hands. But Jesus said to me, if you are faithful to me, I will put my name on you. It's like a tag.

[13:10] And that is not just a tag, but it printed your identity. Because Babylon the Great, his name was on the front. The mother of all haloths. And it will surprise you.

[13:22] I actually made a mistake. It was a slip of tongue and said the Antichrist. Not the Antichrist. It's the church. Babylon the Great is the church. I will teach you later. Not our church.

[13:34] Okay. It's a certain church. The church that has become so apostate. To the standard, like Laodicea. Jesus Christ has been kicked out of church. And we have churches in our time.

[13:47] This is, this is. All what Jesus, all these churches, these seven types of churches, they are types in our days. They are types in our days. It's very interesting.

[14:00] Can you imagine that Jesus himself has been kicked out of church? Yes. The owner of the church has been kicked out.

[14:11] And he says, I stand at the door and I knock. That's what, that's what we are actually going to see in a minute. And then I'll, I think I will just end there. We'll continue. Well, so he said that.

[14:24] And then the last thing he said, I'll write my name. Watch that. Verse. My new name. Verse 12 again. And I will write on him my new name.

[14:35] Now, theologians have been battling with, battling with this. To find out what is that new name. Nobody knows. Only him knows. But I believe, some scholars believe, and I also take that persuasion, that it's a name.

[14:52] You see, when the Bible said, therefore, when he was written, God gave a name that is above all names. That is the name of Jesus. Yes. But he's, we are going to know him and his second coming. And when everything has ended, in a way that no man has ever known him.

[15:06] And that is going to be his identity. So, 1 John chapter 3 says that, behold, what manner of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called the sons of God. And he says that, yet the world does not know us, because it did not know him.

[15:19] But when he appears, this we know, that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him. He says, behold, now we are the children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be.

[15:32] But we know that when he is revealed, we shall be like him, for we shall see him. So we know, when he is revealed, the way he is coming, how he is going, that is how we are going to be. So his new name, people don't know him yet in that capacity.

[15:45] We have known him as the savior who came and died to save us. But when he is coming back, he is not coming as the savior. To die. No, no, he is not coming.

[15:56] He is coming as the conquering king. He is coming as the ruler. And he said, when he comes, I will put my new name on you. Somebody shout hallelujah.

[16:06] Hallelujah. Three names that the faithful ones, the overcoming ones are going to receive. Number one is what name? Some of you are not listening.

[16:17] You want me to say receive, receive, amen, amen. Listen. What are the three names? Number one. The name of Marcos. Number two. The city of Marcos. The city of his God, that's the New Jerusalem.

[16:29] And then number three. His new name. These names are going to be on us. Then he says, the verse 13, he who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to the churches.

[16:40] The spirit is saying, but not everyone will hear. Do you know, I've said a lot of things today. I've said a lot of, not only Philadelphia.

[16:51] I've said a lot of things. I've said so much, but it's not everyone who will hear. Yes. That's true. Because the word comes to all, but not all ears.

[17:04] Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. You are harming your future. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

[17:15] Yes. No, Jesus. Yes. Yes. Yes. Brother, be a strong godly man.

[17:34] Very important. I pray for you. That you will not swallow your garments. I pray for you. What does it profit a man?

[17:48] If he gains the whole world. Then God sees his soul. You are blessed. Amen. For regular updates on what God is doing here at Karis Ministries.

[18:29] Stay blessed.