Read Revelation 3:7–13
Once upon a time, it was easier to make references everyone would understand. When everyone had the same three TV channels, you could be pretty certain your neighbor had also seen the same program as you on Channel 2 last night. Nowadays, with 500 hours of content being uploaded to YouTube every minute, it is harder to assume your friend could pick up on a reference to a video you have seen, if they have even seen it at all. But back in John’s time, everyone was soaked in the language and stories of the Old Testament, and if you made a reference to it, everyone knew exactly what you were doing and immediately thought of the original story’s surrounding context.
That is what John is doing when he includes this description of Jesus: “the one who has the key of David, who opens and no one will close, and who closes and no one opens” (3:7). He brings to his audience’s mind Isaiah’s description of Eliakim: “I will place the key of the house of David on his shoulder; what he opens, no one can close; what he closes, no one can open” (Isaiah 22:22). John emphasizes how Jesus is the all-powerful Messiah—the fulfillment of the Jewish people’s expectations from King David’s line and the One who has authority over all things. So then, what is this talk about doors? It seems like the doors represent access to God. This fits with the reference to the new Jerusalem in verse 12 and the open gates of the new Jerusalem in 21:25. Jesus has the authority to give faithful people perfect and uninterrupted access to His Spirit, and He can also shut out those who reject Him.
So when you feel like God is far from you, remember the promise He made to those in Philadelphia: What He opens, no one can shut. The bad day you had at work, your spouse’s bad attitude, and the insanity of your fellow drivers cannot separate you from the love of God and your full access to His Spirit.
