The Faithful Church
7“And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write, 'These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”:[c] 8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it;[d] for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name. 9 Indeed I will make those of the synagogue of Satan, who say they are Jews and are not, but lie-indeed I will make them come and worship before your feet, and to know that I have loved you. 10 Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. 11 Behold,[e] I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. 12 He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. I will write on 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 I will write on him My new name. 13 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”'
As I studied this letter more in depth, I've come to believe it not only refers to the Church of the Reformation, but also to America. After all, it America declared its independence in Philadelphia, and began the revolution that put an end to the reign of monarchs, something which God never intended in the first place. It doing so, America 'opened the door that no one could shut', (verse 7 and
![Cool 8)](./images/smilies/icon_cool.gif)
much as Martin Luther and King Henry by authorized translations of the Bible in the language of the 'common folk'. Verse 9 can also be interpreted in this dual manner. Much as the Catholic Church had become corrupt, so too had the English crown, and as God allowed Protestant Churchs to spread, so to did America grow and prosper. And now, as the hour of the Great Tribulation draws near, America is the world's last superpower, blessed with the wealth of nations (verse 10 and 11). Verse 12 also suggests America, whose motto is "In God We Trust", and being founded on the principle of religious freedom, was much like a New Jerusalem to those wishing to escape religious persecution in Europe.
Of course, the next letter explains how all that has changed....