The Book of the Revelation gives prophetically the unveiling of the happenings of the last days. Beginning at chapter 2 and up to the end of chapter 20, the happenings are all earthly and governmental, ending with the judgment of the great white throne, the earth and the heaven fleeing away, the second resurrection, that of the wicked dead, taking place—the final settlement of evil (Rev. 20:11-12). Then we read of the new heaven and the new earth. Time will be no longer. Eternity will have begun. The fixed eternal state will have arrived, when He who sits upon the throne will say, “Behold I make all things new” (Rev. 1:5), a blissful scene marked by the absence of sorrow, pain, tears, and death itself. “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death” (1 Cor. 15:26).
But in chapters 2 and 3 we have to do with the history of the Church of God on this earth, using the actual state of seven assemblies then existent, as illustrating differing phases the Church will pass through during its earthly pilgrimage, to end at the second coming of our Lord Jesus when His saints are raptured to glory (1 Thess. 4:13-18). The Apostle John, the inspired writer of the book, is himself an illustration of the Church’s rapture to glory, when he heard the words, “Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter” (Rev. 4:1).
Seeing the addresses to the assemblies at Philadelphia and Laodicea is our theme, it will suffice to introduce the subject by pointing out, that all the failure of the Church of God, fully to maintain the testimony confided to it, can be traced in the address to the assembly first mentioned, Ephesus, a highly gifted assembly in the Apostle John’s day, where we read, “I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love” (Rev. 2:4). The Lord’s love is ever set upon His people, but how touching it is that He counts on the answering response of our love. The language used to describe this is pathetic indeed. We read the exhortation, “Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come to thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent” (Rev. 2:5). It was as if the Church had fallen from a lofty eminence, and lay bruised and bleeding at its foot. Evidently first love is something very precious to our Lord. This indeed ever has its appeal, even to the writer and the reader at this present time.
It may be happily illustrated by the intense love that marks the newly married couple. How sad it is when that love wanes, and weakens and even disappears, giving way to the setting up of one will against another. We see the “first love” at work in the early days of the Church’s history as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles on the day of Pentecost and after. Alas! the candlestick of testimony at Ephesus was removed, and that phase of the Church’s history closed to be succeeded by other phases.
In the testimonies rendered to the sixth and seventh assemblies, Philadelphia and Laodicea, we find in the case of the former the greatest revival of first love; in the case of the latter the greatest departure from it. These two greatly contrasted testimonies are found in the last days, remaining up to the time of the second coming of our Lord, and existing even now.
Philadelphia is credited with having little strength, keeping the Lord’s word, and not denying His name (Rev. 3:8). And this was no mean praise. There were to be withstood the blasphemous doctrines of “the synagogue of Satan,” a system professing to be of God and the truth, and yet an emanation of the bottomless pit. The day would come when such faithfulness would be rewarded, when those, who claimed to be Jews and were not, would be made to worship at the feet of those who had withstood their wiles and persecutions. The Lord assured the church, that He set before them an open door, and that no man was able to shut it. What a comfort in their weakness would this assurance be! How often have we wondered at the tenacity of some weak assembly, continuing year after year in their testimony, and seen in them a fulfilment of this promise.
Meanwhile in these last days professing Christendom is moving on rapidly to the time when the judgments of the Lord will fall upon it, as set forth in the book of Revelation, chapters 5 to 20. Will the church be called upon to share in these awful times? No, we plainly read, “Because thou hast kept the word of My patience, I also will keep thee from the HOUR of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth” (Rev. 3:9). Nay further, they were told, “Behold I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (Rev. 3:11). What a cheer! What a blessed prospect! Perhaps today this happy moment may arrive. It is nearer now than it has ever been. One moment we may be tried pilgrims in a scene where everything is against God, the next moment we may be with glorified bodies in the Father’s house. Happy prospect!
We are told that the coming tribulations, the chastening hand of God upon the nations, are to come upon all the earth, that no part of it, however remote, is to be exempt. This means that to be kept from the HOUR of temptation, the church of God must be far removed from time, and find their comfort and joy and rejoicing in eternity with their Lord in the Father’s house. Such is the ending of this phase of the church’s history upon earth. See 2 Thessalonians 1:7.
What then can be said about the address to the church at Laodicea? Here we find the greatest departure from first love. Their spiritual condition was marked by lukewarmness, the only time this word occurs in the Scriptures. Does it not remind us of the awful state of the professing church of God today? Multitudes, profess to be Christian, but their testimony lacks the ring of reality. In the words of Scripture, they are characterised by “having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof” (2 Tim. 3:5). The influence of such is soul-withering, and at the bottom most antagonistic to the real article. How soon we can tell a speaker that is giving forth truth, that has entered his own soul, and gripped his own life, before seeking to pass on to others the truths, that command his whole being.
The most absolute conceit marked the sad and closing testimony of this church. Here is their estimate of themselves! Hear their braggart assertions! “I am rich and increased with goods and have need of nothing.” Here is the Divine estimate of them, “Knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked” (Rev. 3:17). What a stripping! How utterly devastating!
And what will happen at the second coming of the Lord? Then ALL true Christians will be caught up, not one will be left behind. In Laodicea ALL false professors will be left behind, save the few, who may have responded to the Lord, knocking at the door of their hearts, whilst He is outside of the professing church, and have let Him in.
Our Lord’s language in addressing them is very definite and very sorrowful, “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of My mouth” (Rev. 3:16). The spueing will be accomplished when all empty profession is left behind for judgment at the second coming of our Lord. We are hastening on to the time when this will happen to an apostate Christendom.
Meanwhile the contemplation of these things is a clarion call to us all. “Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light” (Eph. 5:14). Let us be uncompromising in our Christian testimony. Let us eschew world-bordering with all its subtle snares, and be “like to men that wait for their Lord” (Luke 12:36). God grant it for His Name’s sake.