Faithful to the Point of Death
Revelation • Sermon • Submitted
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· 4 viewsEndurance. Perseverance. Resilience. Hope. How do we have those in life, especially during adversity, persecution, and even when facing death? Is this even possible? The Apostle John writes to the Church in Smyrna who experienced extreme suffering for following Jesus, and he gives them perspective and hope on how to actually endure anything.
Notes
Transcript
Here are the questions I am asking right now:
--tell us a little bit more about what the class will cover or be like
--why are you personally passionate about this topic?
--who is this class for?
--anything else?
Michael and Kim Baer photo
Please turn to book of Revelation, the last book of the Bible—chapter 2, beginning at verse 8.
Revelation 2, beginning at verse 8.
One of the most famous Christian martyrs in history—took place in AD 154, and was a Christian leader named Polycarp (there is his name). His name means many fish. Just kidding. I have no idea what it means.
At his death, history recounts that the Roman official said something like: “I will set thee at liberty (set you free) if you reproach Christ.”
so if you speak against Christ, deny Him, you have the power to go free OR you will die.
and Polycarp famously said, “80 and 6 years, I have served Christ and he never did me injury; how then can I blaspheme my King and My Savior.”
and with that, the Roman officials had him executed by public burning.
I bring up this story for 2 reasons:
We believe that our passage today in the Church of Smyrna has connections to Polycarp. We believe Polycarp actually have been in the church, receiving the letter that Jesus gave through John. It’s even thought that Polycarp may have been installed as the church’s leader by the Apostle John himself (who wrote Revelation)
this death that Polycarp experienced—gets at the theme of this passage of suffering, persecution, and enemies for following Christ, and how to endure to the point of death
in just this last year --, Over 360 million Christians living in places where they experience high levels of persecution and discrimination
5,898 Christians killed for their faith
5,110 churches and other Christian buildings attacked
4,765 believers detained without trial, arrested, sentenced or imprisoned
Would you stand as I read:
8 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.
9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
11 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.
The Church of Smyrna is right here—(see map) of the 7 churches that John addressed in Revelation (modern day Turkey)
Smyrna was a city of over 200,000 residents.
very important and wealthy city—beautiful.
and in this city—this church in Smyrna had some enemies...
we see at least 3 kinds of enemies they were experiencing (btw—we and Christians around the world around this too)
--b/c we often think that coming Jesus is peaceful and rest and it is—that life will be better—BUT if we truly surrender to Jesus’ way, not the world’s or our own—it can sometimes bring enemies.
and the question is this—how do we endure against such opposition? how do you and I persevere in that?
and even if we don’t have enemies like I am going to describe—how do we just keep going? how are we faithful unto death?
b/c enduring is hard work...
Let me show you the kinds of enemies they hid
religious enemies (vs. 9)
9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
verse 9 describes certain Jews there slandering them, as the synagogue of Satan! that’s pretty blunt language. what’s going on here? well all throughout Acts, some of the people that persecuted Christians the most were Jews. Even the Apostle Paul had a Jewish background and persecuted Christians.
historians think that this was the case for a couple reasons:
#1 the Jews were allowed to practice their religion in the Roman Empire, and they were concerned that if Christianity grew, They might get in trouble from Roman authorities and get lumped in with Christians, so they might be trying to distance themselves so they keep practicing their religion under the Romans
#2 but another reason-is the Jews had a really hard time of understanding—why would we as Christians worship and serve a crucified Savior? a Savior who is Lord but who subjected himself to death, even death on a cross?
I was doing some research on persecution through an organization called Open Doors ministry. and some of the most intense opposition that Christians face around the world today are from other religious followers.
For instance, they now rank Afghanistan as the most dangerous place for Christians to be because of the rule and reign of the Taliban—Islam extremists. Their website says: “With the Taliban takeover in August, Afghanistan has become a hunting ground for Christians. Christians dare not go out in public to meet, shop or get medical treatment. They’ve been driven underground simply to survive. The Taliban has acquired lists of Christians in the nation and are going town to town, trying to flush them out.”
“Many Christians have fled the country to protect their children, but some have remained, trusting they’ll still see the goodness of the Lord. Those who remain are considered traitors; enemies of the state, their tribe and their community. Punishment for being found out is often death.”
women’s rights have severely decreased with the Taliban rule—women can only get an education now through 6th grade
places like Nigeria experience this with the radical group Boko Haram; Nigeria is known as the most violent place for Christians to exist,
and certain places in India have radical Hindu extremists. and Sri Lanka—radical Buddhists
this is a reality for many of our brothers and sisters—that some of the enemies for following Christ are other religions.
political enemies (vs. 10)
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
prison is mentioned. this would have been the local Roman authorities throwing these Christians into prison.
the Roman Empire was known for its worship of many gods and goddesses, and one of the things that was expected as being part of the Empire—was joining in some of these displays of worship. that if you were going to buy or sell or do business you had to be part of certain trade groups, and you were expected to join in.
In addition to worshipping the local gods, the Emperor more and more wanted people to worship himself as one of the gods.
so being a good “Roman citizen” meant joining in these displays of allegiance and worship. whether you believed in it or not—that’s what you did to survive. to be a good citizen, to do business.
but this church would not.
they were accused of being atheists—belief in no god—b/c the Romans had many gods—why worship only one?
they were accused of being cannibals—for eating and drinking the flesh and blood of Jesus
they were accused of incest—for having brothers and SISTERS in Christ (holy kiss)
they made some strong political enemies in the process.
it caused them in verse 9 to be poor—poverty.
these ideas of political enemies continues the day in many parts of the world.
I was reading about China, and here is what OPen Doors says again...website says: “For a long time, China’s surveillance system has encroached on the religious freedoms of Christians and other religious minorities. But it’s only gotten worse.
“There are reports from two provinces that cameras are present in all state-sanctioned religious venues. In 2021, some Bible apps were taken down from online stores, Christian content was taken off social media and the restrictions of online life have grown tighter. China has also implemented a program where average citizens can access security cameras and report anything “suspicious” to police”
North Korea according to open doors ministry — says that any North Korean caught following Jesus is at immediate risk for imprisonment, torture, or death. It’s estimated that between 50,000 -70,000 Christians are imprisoned there in their system of prisons and labor camps.
The government ruled by the Kim family views Christians as the most dangerous political class of people, and the persecution is violent and intense. North Korean parents often hide their faith from their children, churches of more than a few people are non-existent, and most worship is done as secretly as possible. Life for Christians in North Korea is a constant cauldron of pressure; capture or death is only a mistake away.”
h. if you look at America today—we are not like Afghanistan, or Nigeria or India or China. sometimes we cry “persecution” as Christians in America when something doesn’t go our way in politics, and I want to be careful here. b/c what we face is NOT the same as Afghanistan or North Korea. I think our brothers and sisters in our country would like at us when we cry “persecution” and say “really!?”
but we are facing more and more pressures—Christian views were one time considered outdated or old fashioned or weird—
but now they are considered dangerous. they are considered hateful, intolerant, unloving...
it may impact how you do business or who will do business with you. what grade you get at a college course. how your boss or the company you work for views you—how do you handle certain HR policies, may affect a promotion
maybe --your friends and family...
we don’t see this enemy listed in the text—but Jesus talked about how your own household can be an enemy:
34 “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35 For I have come to turn “ ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law—
36 a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
the most difficult type is your own family or friends who may not understand why you are following Jesus Christ!
and if you are facing that today—know that this normal all around the world—
the last enemy
3. spiritual enemy (vs. 9-10)
9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
Satan—the accuser. the devil—the slanderer
while we have religious enemies...
and political enemies...
and even personal
we are reminded the real enemy is not really people.
they are not the enemies
It’s Satan.
we see him mentioned twice in this passage.(vs. 9-10)
1 Peter 5:8 says
8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
and he uses means and people to accomplish his will.
--really people are never the enemy
b/c Jesus said in Matthew 5:44
44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,
The Christian life—when you surrender to Jesus---brings along with it opposition...
difficulties...
suffering...
Not just enemies—but this passage is very clear that if you follow Jesus not everything will always work out for you like you think it should.
and even if you aren’t facing any of these kinds of enemies…to this degree-
-
suffering and hard times feel like an enemy. Every time you get a medical diagnosis…every time a loved one dies, every time you face adversity or you have hard times—am I going to keep following Jesus…am I going to endure?
I recently had the privilege along with you of running the Swiss Days 5K race.
what a great race—b/c you support the cross country program
b/c the community is cheering you on as you are sweating and grimacing...
you are suffering with fellow residents...
there was even a young lady wearing a nun head covering...
beautiful—in the spirit of Swiss Days Sound of Music
and I had not run a 5k in a long time
and when the race started, I felt the extreme adrenaline in that moment, running the first mile considerably faster than I had trained, and I thought— “Oh, look at me! I am killing it—I am going to shatter my goal” but about halfway through the adrenaline started fading…reality started creeping in.
my body started saying, “What are you doing!” and the last half I had to endure…persevere…I got a side cramp. my hamstrings were hurting. i was breathing hard...
and Paul Yoder—God bless him—took this photo…as I was finishing...
(if you look in the background, the winner is there—9 minutes ahead of me.)
i posted it on social media.
and my wife, God bless her—posted this photo of my daughter who threw a fit that day alongside me… I am not sure what my wife is trying to tell me...
I actually think this face—is a pretty good expression of the Christian life...
you laugh—but what expressions did YOU make this week?
The Christian life feels like that...
How do we endure?
how do we keep going as as Christian? when life is filled with very tough things...
and the longer you live the tougher it goes?
do we have to just grin and bear it like this picture?
how do we have hope?
how do we finish well?
real quick…4 reminds from Jesus.
Reminder #1: Jesus sees and knows your suffering (vs. 9
9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
the God of the universe knows exactly what you are going through today.
so many times in suffering we want someone to identify with us, or empathize with us, or understand, or just listen to us…and if we don’t, suffering is very isolated. we might disconnect from God, and from others in the church---some of you feel that
but Jesus says, “even if no one else knows, I know. Come to me.” “I know every pressure, burden, regret, responsibility, challenge, persecution, pain, anguish, depression, anxiety that you have.”
Having someone who sees and knows helps us endure...
btw—if you need to connect more in our church, talk to us—let us help you find a group or start one. you are not the only one (anxiety and depression class)
Reminder #2: Jesus gives you a greater identity - (vs. 9)
9 I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
it says I know your affliction and poverty and yet you are rich!
rich!
the world may identify you as poor, persecuted, suffering people. not to be envied.
but Jesus look at you and says you are rich!
this reminds us first of all that the prosperity gospel is FALSE! DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL IS? It’s the idea that if you are really a Christian, and if you really have faith—real faith—then life will be prosperous—especially financially, and good health. and if you don’t have those things you are lacking in faith for God.
while it is true that those things if you have them, are ultimately gifts from God—this passage proves the reverse!
you can have all the faith and faithfulness to Jesus in the world and not be materially prosperous.
but Jesus says—remember your real identity.
it is not defined by economics. material possessions. a certain standard of living.
if you have me, you have real wealth, Jesus says.
Now, I am curious here—think about your finances...
how many of you would call yourself financially rich?
How many of you can think of at least one person who has more money than you?
the problem is most of us as Americans don’t consider it—but all of us really here, have more money than a lot of the world and our brothers and sisters in Christ who live on very little every day.
and it’s so easy to get caught up in that rat race. I saw a recent car commercial—and what I noticed is that the brand wasn’t just selling me a car—but this handsome looking dude—who clearly works out b/c he has a muscle shirt on is driving it; he gets out and his beautiful wife greets him, and then his house—is incredible—fountains and waterfalls, and beautiful landscaping, modern, techy. this commercial isn’t just selling me a car—it’s saying “This is the good life! This is what success is!” and you and I we buy in that so easy. that’s not a commercial—that’s an identity formation
but Jesus says here—you can still have the good life…and be poor.
you can still have the good life and suffer affliction
you can still have the good life and be in prison?
because you are so rich in Christ! and that can’t be taken away (an inheritance)
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,
right now, spiritually speaking we are seated with Christ, we have all the blessings that Christ has right now. Christ is at the position of power and honor at God’s right hand.
you feel dishonored—Christ says you are honored
you feel lacking—Christ says I have it—everything
you feel like no one notices—Christ says I got it
you are lacking an inheritance—Jesus says I have treasure for you in heaven...
you and i need constant reminders of our true identity—that true wealth is in Jesus, not our stuff. what God says about me…this is how we endure...
how do we endure
Reminder #3: Jesus allows, limits, and uses our suffering. (vs. 10)
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
we could expect Jesus to say “Don’t worry guys. I got you; I am coming to save the day so you wan’t have to suffer!”
while Jesus can and does do that at times…He doesn’t do it here.
he is real—you are going to be thrown into prison. you will suffer persecution.
I am going to allow that.
why does God allow that? why doesn’t God intervene right then and there?
I can give you a very confident “I don’t know!”
we don’t always know his purposes. we see that with the character Job in the OT—why would God allow Satan to hurt and inflict pain on Job? why?
but this passage gives us 2 strong encouragements:
one our suffering is limited—10 days. that may be literal or symbolic. 10 days was the same amount of time that Daniel and his friends S, M, A as they ate a specific diet of vegetables so they wouldn’t join with idolatry eating the king’s food. so it’s possible it may be symbolic.
but either way—it’s limited.
Jesus is saying “I know your suffering…and I limit it.”
vs. 8 — I am the First and the Last—I have got this…i am in control of everything including your time of difficulty and persecution and enemies
another encouragement - he also uses the word—the devil will put some of you in prison to “test” you
suffering does that to us—it tests us.
in fact the same word is used for testing as temptation.
Satan would love nothing more than during your testing—to be tempted—to fall away from God, to not love God and others, to throw in the towel. that’s what he was hoping for Job—for these Christians for us...
but what is a temptation for Satan—is actually an opportunity for testing for us. instead of falling away—that temptation can be the very thing that drives us deeper into the heart of God.
we don’t usually grow when times are good—but when times are bad, and we learn to cling to God—what is certainly horrible can be used by God to realize just how rich we are in Jesus Christ.
so Jesus allows, limits, and uses our suffering (vs. 10) for very mysterious purposes...
Reminder #4: Jesus gives us hope for the future... (vs. 8, 11)
8 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.
He is the the one who died and came to life again
Jesus knows what paying the ultimate price is like—if you are nearing or facing death for you or a loved one—Jesus has been there…and he has conquered it.
if you are in Jesus—the fear of death doesn’t have to rule you!
11 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.
what is the 2nd death?
14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death.
15 Anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.
Jesus says if you endure with me—I have a future with you beyond anything you can imagine. you won’t face the lake of fire—you will face joy unspeakable with Jesus.
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.
Smyrna was famous for its athletic games, and the victor wore a crown, a victor’s crown, showing honor, like a trophy—they have won!
Jesus says I have a crown for you—that’s greater than any athletic games—eternal life with me!
Close in prayer...
enemies..
suffering
what are you going through right now?
where do you need to be encouraged by what Jesus says to the Church of Smyrna
As we close today—what’s amazing is that Jesus Christ—knows all this.
He too suffered—knows what it’s like—and died. He is not distant.
even though we don’t know why God doesn’t always intervene like we would like—we do know that He loves us—because He entered and died for us!
and He knows what persecution is like—those brothers and sisters suffering—Jesus Himself faced it on a cross, and on a cross he prayed— “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
and he also defeated the devil and will finally defeat Him when He returns.
let’s pray
baptism — next Sunday August 28
class today — if you are interested in getting baptized let us know ASAP