Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20021006.htm

CHRIST'S SCRIPTURE PROPHECY ON CONTEMPORARY EVANGELICALISM
Part IV: Christ's All-Sufficiency Applied For Victory
C. Christ's All-Sufficiency Offered For Great Blessing To Those Free Of Errant Evangelicalism
1. Christ's All-Sufficiency Offered To Give Great Blessing In Victory Over Rule By The Sin Nature
(Revelation 3:20)
  1. Introduction
    1. If Christ predicted our current Evangelical era of Church History and critiqued our errant actions and beliefs thereby, we should expect Him to offer His specific solutions to these needs.
    2. Rev. 3:20 continues Christ's words offering solutions for those who are free of errant Evangelicalism:
  2. Christ's All-Sufficiency Offered To Give Great Blessing In Victory Over Rule By The Sin Nature.
    1. Where Christ's offer to allow persecution from errant Evangelicals supply faith in Himself (gold in v. 17), separation from errant fellowships (white garments in v. 17) and insight (eyesalve in v. 17) relative to Evangelicalism in Rev. 3:18, three of the five needs listed in Rev. 3:17 regarding Evangelicals are solved.
    2. Verse 20 then addresses the need for victory over the "wretched" state (KJV at verse 17): as we found in Part III, B, 2 of this series, "wretched" (KJV) critiques Calvinism and Arminianism on their errant view of depravity, and error uniting the will and sin nature that has led to many believers living by the sin nature.
    3. We exegete Rev. 3:20a to gather insight on understanding the victory over the sin nature in this context:
      1. Christ's word, "Behold! I stand at the door and knock" in Rev. 3:20a appears elsewhere only in James 5:9, cf. Moulton & Geden, A Conc. to the Grk. Test., p. 469-471. There the laborer has his wages withheld and is tempted to grumble rather than wait on God, the Judge to settle the issue! In the same context (James 4:13-17), James critiques those who relocate apart from God's leading to make money!
      2. The phrase, "at the door" uses the preposition, epi that modifies "door" in the N. T. elsewhere only to depict one's seeing prophecy fulfilled before his very eyes, Mtt. 24:33; Mk. 13:29, Ibid., p. 464.
      3. The "and I knock" words recall the only other Scripture where a master knocks for entry in Lk. 12:36, Ibid., p. 563. There the Lord is seeking to teach the need for His disciples to sense their accountability to Him for livelihood needs versus going to court for their share of an inheritance, 12:13-34; 13:35-40.
      4. When Jesus says, "if any man hear My voice," He refers to Heb. 3:7; 4:7 with Rev. 3:19, 22 to counter the Charismatic belief one must hear an audible voice versus the Spirit's "voice" in this very passage!
    4. We now collate this exegetical information in view of the context to understand the message as follows:
      1. When a pastor obeys Rev. 3:18 only to see verse 20a be fulfilled in the giving drop as some leave the church to the threat of his salary loss, Christ calls him to lean on the Spirit to trust God to meet his living needs versus using his sin nature to press laymen who stay to give or to leave to get another job!
      2. The obedient pastor will see his life, ministry and hearers enriched and his living needs met, 3:20b:
        1. Re: "dining" (deipneo), elsewhere in the Revelation, only in Rev. 19:9, 17-18 is even its derivative in deipnon used of Christ's dining. There, Christ speaks a word, and His (bird) guests "dine" for their livelihood needs at the expense of Christ's opponents in the "supper of the Lamb," Ibid., Arndt & Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the N.T., p. 172.
        2. To apply 3:20b, (a) Christ pledges to "sup with him," to show His delight in the pastor's words that critique errant Evangelicalism, cf. John 14:21, 23 (I hold this describes Christ's signals to affirm the election manuscript content)! Then, (b) Christ will grant him to "sup with Me," or give this pastor insight into His Rev. 3:14-22 words so he can tell hearers of Christ's path of blessing in the current era. Christ leads the hearers who follow Him (Jn. 10:27) to be motivated and enabled to meet the pastor's livelihood needs! (1 Cor. 9:9-14) [We are witnessing this prophecy fulfillment right now!]
Lesson: In standing against Evangelical error only to suffer a loss of livelihood support as some reject his words and leave that local church, the pastor must NOTE he is LIVING the Rev. 3:18-20 prophecy and NOT pressure others to meet his salary needs or change jobs for income via his SIN NATURE; rather, he must rely on the Holy Spirit to trust Christ's PROMISES in this prophecy! CHRIST then gives this pastor (a) encouraging, tangible approval of his OWN words that correct Evangelicalism and (b) insight into CHRIST'S Rev. 3:14-22 words that correct Evangelicals. (c) As the pastor teaches all this to hearers who follow CHRIST, CHRIST equips and spurs them to meet the pastor's living needs!