(2) "Philadelphia" Sermon: Revelation 3:7-13 (video) - YouTube
This is the blog of Rev. Dr. Peter A. Butler, Jr. It contains his sermons and other musings.
Tuesday, November 28, 2023
"Philadelphia" Sermon: Revelation 3:7-13 (manuscript)
“Philadelphia”
Revelation
3:7-13
November
26, 2023 YouTube
The church in Philadelphia – named so by Attalus II, King
of Pergamum due to his love for his brother, Eumenes – thus, the nickname
between the brothers, and the name of this city. Philadelphia was thirty miles southeast of
Sardis and was known for its frequent earthquakes. Otherwise, the only really significant thing
about the church in Philadelphia is that Jesus did not condemn any sin in the church.
Our look at the church begins with a look at Who Jesus is:
“And
to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: ‘The words of the holy one,
the true one,
Jesus says these are the words of the Holy One. There is only One Who is Holy – He Who is Holy,
Holy, Holy – so Jesus is proclaiming that He is God. He also says these are the words of the True
One. The word that is used here does not
simply mean true as opposed to false.
The word means corresponding to reality.
Jesus’ words are the very reality of existence.
“’who
has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one
opens.
What
is the key of David?
After
Peter confess Jesus as Messiah, the Son of God, Jessus says, “I will give you
the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be
bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”
(Mathhew 16:19, ESV).
The
Roman Catholic Church mistakenly says that Jesus gave Peter a specific power
and authority and that power and authority continues through all of the popes
of history.
In
Isaiah, we read that God overthrows Shebna and puts Eliakim in his place, and
God says, “and I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your sash on
him, and will commit your authority to his hand. And he shall be a father to
the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his
shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and
he shall shut, and none shall open” (Isaiah 22:22-21, ESV).
The keys of the kingdom of heaven and the key of David are
the same thing – they represent the authority of Jesus and Jesus’ investment of
that authority in His people that they would be able to carry out His plans. Jesus delegates His Power to His people – He
gives them authority over entrance into the Kingdom – that is not to say that Jesus’
people choose who will be received into the Kingdom – but through acting in the
name of Daivd and in the Name of the greater David – Jesus – others will see
the power and authority of Jesus and come to know that it is only through Him
that we may be saved.
Jesus says that – by His Authority – the Keys – He opens
doors that cannot be shut – He calls people into the Kingdom who will come in
answer to His call – and He shuts doors that cannot be opened – Jesus has been
given a people to be His – and all those the Father has chosen have been Jesus’
from before the foundation of the world, but those who have not been chosen to
be part of the Kingdom – to them the door is shut and it cannot be opened. Jesus opens the door to the Kingdom, and it
stays open so all those who will ever believe will enter, and He locks the door
shut to those who will never believe and will never be welcomed into the
Kingdom.
The church in Philadelphia – and all who truly believe in
Jesus for salvation throughout time and space – is given the authority to call
people to faith and belief in Jesus Alone for salvation – welcoming them into
the door that Jesus has permanently opened – and warning those who do not
believe and even practice blatant works of the devil – that there is another
door that will never be opened to those who never believe.
Second, they performed the ministry of the Gospel.
“‘I
know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is
able to shut. I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my
word and have not denied my name.
Jesus
knows the work of the church in Philadelphia.
Jesus knows that they are true believers, and He tells them that since
they are, the door to the Kingdom is forever open to them, and it will not be
shut. The believers of the church in
Philadelphia keep God’s Word – they do everything God calls all people to do,
and they do not deny the Name of Jesus – they hold fast to their belief that
Jesus Alone is the Savior of all those who will ever believe throughout time
and space.
Jesus
opens the door so the church in Philadelphia would use the ability to serve
their Savior, for the preaching of the Gospel, for their usefulness and
faithful service, and the successful witness to Him. This work does not overwhelm them or
discourage them, and they remember Jesus’ words, “Come to me, all who labor and
are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn
from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your
souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30, ESV).
Although
the door to the Kingdom is eternally open to believers and eternally closed to
non-believers, God opens and closes the doors of the people and places we go to
from time to time and in accordance with His plans.
Paul
writes about how God opened and closed doors for ministry according to His Will,
“for a wide door for effective work has opened to me, and there are many
adversaries” (I Corinthians 16:9, ESV).
Again,
Paul writes, “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with
thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a
door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am
in prison—that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak” (Colossians
4:2-4, ESV).
God
used the church in Philadelphia and will use us to spread His Goepel when and
where He knows it is right. We are to be
ready in faithful service and the Holy Spirit will make our witness to Jesus
successful.
The
church in Philadelphia is great in belief and in the power of God and obedience
and love of the Law of God, but, in the eyes of the world, they are a small
church with few people – hardly a church that would turn the world upside down
for Jesus. Especially since they had enemies around them.
“Behold,
I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are
not, but lie—behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and
they will learn that I have loved you.
We
will remember as Paul is mourning the rejection of Jesus by the Jews – after
Israel had received all the knowledge and benefits that one would think would
make them all believe when they heard the Word of God – Paul says, “But it is
not as though the word of God has failed. For not all who are descended from
Israel belong to Israel, and not all are children of Abraham because they are
his offspring, but ‘Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.’ This means
that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the
children of the promise are counted as offspring” (Romans 9:6-8, ESV).
In
other words, just because you call yourself a Jew doesn’t make you a Jew, and
just because you call yourself a Christian doesn’t make you a Christian. In
fact, Jesus says that the Jews who are attacking the Christians in Philadelphia
are not Jews, but they make up a synagogue of Satan. And there is the
implication that they wanted the Christians to bow before them as being less
than they. But Jesus says those of the synagogue
of Satan will bow before the true Christians, In the prophecy of Isaiah, we read
that all unbelievers will bow before the believers, not to mention the Messiah,
Jesus:
“The
sons of those who afflicted you shall come bending low to you, and all who
despised you shall bow down at your feet; they shall call you the City of the
LORD, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 60:14, ESV).
And
Jesus says, “Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep
you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who
dwell on the earth.”
The
Philadelphian church kept the Word of God and patiently endured the persecution
by those of the synagogue of Satan. The Philadelphian
church was marked by an active, strong faith, and because of that, Jesus will
keep them from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole earth – those who
dwell on the earth.
Some
will want to quickly jump to saying this refers to the tribulation before
Jesus’ return, but there are questions that we will not answer here: what does Jesus mean by the “hour” of
trial? What does He mean that it will
come on “the whole earth”? Some will say it is obvious. I am going to leave the issue here.
The
one thing I will note for us is that Jesus says He will “keep them” from the
“trial.” The church in Philadelphia lasted longer than the other six churches –
remaining until 1390 A.D. when the Ottoman Empire took the city.
Third,
they were rewarded for their steadfast belief in the Word of God.
“I am coming soon. Hold fast what you have, so that no one
may seize your crown.”
We have seen before that the crown that Jesus gives for faithfulness
to the Word of God is not a gold crown with precious stones. We will remember that the crown is the
vine-woven crown given to the winner of a race or other sporting event. The value is not in the crown, but in the
holding fast to the Word of God in faithfulness no matter what happens.
“The
one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall
he go out of it, and 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 from my God out of
heaven, and my own new name.
The
church in Philadelphia remained faithful and were conquerors among the pagans,
as the preached and proclaimed the whole Word of God faithfully and obeyed it.
The church in Philadelphia and all believers throughout time and space who are conquerors
by the work of Jesus and the empowering of God the Holy Spirit, Jesus says He
will make him a pillar in the Temple of God.
Is
Jesus saying that the Temple will be rebuilt?
Is He saying that He will turn every Christian into a marble pillar?
Hiram
from Tyre, under the instruction of King Solomon, crafted the pillars of the
Temple, and we read about the vestibule:
“He
cast two pillars of bronze. Eighteen cubits was the height of one pillar, and a
line of twelve cubits measured its circumference. It was hollow, and its
thickness was four fingers. The second pillar was the same” (I Kings 7:15, ESV).
And
then we are given an important comment:
“He
set up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple. He set up the pillar on the
south and called its name Jachin, and he set up the pillar on the north and
called its name Boaz” (I Kings 7:21, ESV).
Jachin
means “he establishes.” And Boaz means “strength.”
What
Jesus is saying is the ones who conquer, Jesus will establish in strength. Those in the church in Philadelphia and all
believers throughout time and space will be established in strength by
Jesus. We will stand firm in Christ’s
Power. We will be immovable, sturdy, and
of Jesus’ very being. Thise who truly
believe will be forever Jesus’ and preserved in His Strength and Power.
And
Jesus will write three things on His people:
the Name of God, the name of the New Jerusalem, and the new name of
Jesus. He writes these things on His
people – symbolically – to make us as His forever – eternally saved by Him.
What
is the Name of God?
When
Moses heard from God out of the burning bush, and God told him to free God’s
people from Egypt, we read:
“Then
Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, “The God
of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” what
shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’ And he said, ‘Say
this to the people of Israel: “’I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:13-14, ESV).
The
name of the New Jerusalem is the New Jerusalem, which means, “The new city of
peace.”
And
the new name of Jesus, John records later in the book of Revelation:
“On
his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of
lords” (Revelation 19:16, ESV).
Jesus
is telling the believers in the church in Philadelphia – and all true believers
there will ever be – that we will be marked and known to be the people of the
Sovereign God, in the restored Creation, we will eternally live in the new city
of peace, and we will be with our Savior, the King of kings and Lord of lords.
What
a glorious message that was given to the church in Philadelphia:
A
church that was given the authority to proclaim the Word of God – just like we
are.
A
church that performed the ministry of the Gospel – just as we are called to do.
A
church that was rewarded for their steadfast belief in the Word of God – just
like we have been promised by our one and only Savior, Jesus.
And,
again, this letter ends for this church and the seven churches and all
churches:
“He
who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
Let us pray:
Almighty God, You have shown us a church that was faithful
under persecution – a church that stood strong for Jesus and was made conquers
by the Holy Spirit. Help us not be
afraid of the synagogue of Satan or the trial about to come, but to hold fast
and be immoveable in Jesus, looking to win the crown and be brought into the
restored Creation with our God and Savior.
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Monday, November 20, 2023
"Sardis" Sermon: Revelation 3:1-6 (manuscript)
“Sardis”
Revelation
3:1–6
November
19, 2023 YouTube
The church in Sardis was thirty-five miles east of Thyatira
– at the base of Mount Tmolus and extending through the valley of Hermus – the
point being, it was a perfect location for the trade routes that ran through
it. Sardis was the capital of Lydia
(which has nothing to do with the Lydia we mentioned last week). Sardis was
exceedingly wealthy – not just from the trade routes, but because the rivers
were filled with gold.
“And
to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven
spirits of God and the seven stars.
As
we have seen, each letter begins with a greeting and an additional revelation
about Who Jesus is. As with the other churches, Jesus addresses the minister
and the church – here, in Sardis.
Jesus
says He has the seven spirits of God.
Remember, seven stands for completeness, wholeness, perfection, and we
saw that the seven spirits of God is God the Holy Spirit. How do we understand that Jesus has the Holy
Spirit? Jesus is revealing – at the time
that He is speaking these words – He is at the Right Hand of the Father,
reigning in glory – as the God-man.
Right now, Jesus is 100% God and 100% human with God in Heaven. His human body ascended with Him. And we will remember that Jesus was baptized
in the river Jordan, and when He was, the Holy Spirit descended on Him and
indwelled His humanity.
And
Jesus has the seven stars – the seven minsters – the ministers of the seven
churches of Revelation and the ministers of all the churches throughout time
and space. Jesus is Sovereign over every
Christian minister, and they are His for His pleasure and Glory.
Jesus speaks a strong denunciation of the church in Sardis:
“‘I
know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
Jesus knows the works of the church in Sardis. And because
of the works they have done, they are known to be a living church.
No false doctrine or false teachers were to be found in the
church. They had a great reputation in
the city. They had been there for
decades, and they relied on and leaned on that reputation – their name, their
heritage. They were overconfident and
boastful about their church. “Afterall,
we have been here for generations. All
the right people go to our church. It’s
hard to find a seat for worship. We have
the most eloquent preacher, choirs and musicians, full offering plates every
time they are passed. We are involved
and finance all the events and programs in the church and in the community. Everyone
wants to be like us.”
The church in Sardis had a reputation of being alive. To look at their works, you would certainly
think that they were blessed and a blessing to Jesus, but Jesus says that this
church is dead. (That’s not to say that every big, wealthy, involved church is
dead, but, in this case, they were.)
What was the problem?
The church in Sardis was a church of nominal Christianity –
of nominal Christians. They were
Christian in name only. They had a name
and a reputation, and they professed faith, but their hearts were far from God. They were busy with all the externals, but
they had no spiritual life or power.
They followed after everything except spiritual growth and true riches. And, over time, they fell into
disbelief. They did all their good works
and were known for their good works, but they didn’t believe the Gospel.
In the days of Isaiah, God says, “And the Lord said: ‘Because
this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while
their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by
men,” (Isaiah 29:13, ESV).
Jesus says to the Pharisees, “Woe to you, scribes and
Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly
appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all
uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you
are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness” (Matthew 23:27-28, ESV).
Again, Jesus says to the Pharisees, “And he said to them,
‘You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts.
For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God’” (Luke
16:15, ESV).
These texts are not about the church in Sardis, but they describe
what Jesus condemns the church for.
Do you know a church like this? Are you in a church like this? What ought a
church like this to do?
Jesus
tells the church in Sardis to do four things:
First,
“Wake up,”
The
first thing they were instructed to do is to wake up – to stop being asleep and
letting the world go by without knowing what has happened – what is true and
what is good. If you are asleep, it is
impossible to know what is happening.
You may dream that everything is well.
You may dream about your church’s name and recognition in the community,
but you cannot know what is real and true.
Paul
writes, “But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for
anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you’” (Ephesians 5:13-14,
ESV).
Second,
“and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your
works complete in the sight of my God.
There
is hope. Amidst the dead church, there is
still someone who is weak in the faith but has not fully turned away from the
faith. There are still some who can
strengthen their belief in Who Jesus is and what He has done. They can repent and pray that God the Holy
Spirit would teach them and grow them in faith and obedience so they will not
die. The works that they had given a tip of the hat to would be taken up again
and lived out in full. They would live
out their belief, come back to life in full, and survive the church in Sardis.
James
writes, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does
not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly
clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace,
be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what
good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead”
(James 2:14-17, ESV).
Strengthen
all that you believe through reading the Scripture and praying for
understanding – and for the ability to carry it out. Knowing all the right things and not acting
on them is dead. Doing all the right
things, but not believing all that God has said is dead. We are saved by faith, but the works God has
destined for us to do must follow out of all the things we have believed by
faith.
Third,
“Remember, then, what you received and heard.
At
some point, all of the people of the church in Sardis heard the Word of God
read and preached. They had come to the
church because they heard it and believed it – they received it as true by the
work of God the Holy Spirit in them. So,
Jesus tells them that they will be restored in the faith and forgiven if they
go back to what they heard and taught and received – dig deep in your memory
and think back to when you first believed and see why you responded to the Word
of God the way you did then. If you
truly remember and truly believe, you will be restored to the faith and
obedience you were called to.
Paul
writes to the young minister, Timothy, and tells him to remember all of the
Word of God he heard read and preached and that he believed in, and he will be
firm in the salvation he received and the good works that come from it.
“But
as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing
from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with
the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through
faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that
the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (II Timothy
3:14-17, ESV)
Fourth,
“Keep it, and repent.
Keep
the Word of God as you heard it read and preached. Repent of the sins that are brought to light
through it. Repent of being more
concerned with looking good than being holy.
Believe
every word that God has given us and do all those things that we are called to
do. As Paul writes, “I therefore, a
prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to
which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience,
bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in
the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to
the one hope that belongs to your call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one
God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians
4:1-6, ESV).
There
was a remnant in the church in Sardis that has not been lost, and if they woke
up, strengthened the things that remain, remembered Who Jesus is and what He
did, and repented and do the things that God commands in His Word, these will
be raised from their sleep and their sickness and brought to being a light to
the church and the world.
But.
“If
you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what
hour I will come against you.
Any
who refuse to waken and be saved will find Jesus coming against them.
“Yet
you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their
garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.
Again,
Jesus says there is a remnant in the church in Sardis who have not completely
fallen away in sin. This remnant who
truly believe in Jesus for salvation and live the life He has called all
believers to live, Jesus will give them white garments – He will make them pure
– He will make them worthy by giving them His Worthiness.
“The
one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot
his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and
before his angels.
The
one who conquers the nominal Christianity that we see in the church in Sardis –
in our churches? – the one who says it is not enough to have a great heritage
and to know all the right things and to look like everything is well, rather
humbled, repentant believing in Jesus, the Word of God read and preached, and
the living out of all God calls us to do – that one will have his name in the
book of life. He will have the security
of being a member of the Kingdom of God.
All
those who belong to Jesus through His salvation of them, Jesus will confess their
name – He will witness to their righteousness before His Father as an act of
His completed work.
Likewise,
Jesus says, “So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will
acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before
men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32-33,
ESV).
Jesus
again calls on all those who can and will hear what He says to this church, and
the seven churches, and to all the churches throughout time and space, to hear
this message.
“He
who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”
If
all we have in our church is a great reputation and a long history, and great
speakers and music, and the appreciation and involvement of our neighbors, we
may be dead – or on the way to death.
Let
us pray:
Almighty
God, we thank you for Jesus’ message to the church in Sardis. Thank You for showing us that even though
everything might look fine, our church may be dead. Help us to grow in faith and obedience by the
reading and preaching of Your Word.
Cause us to believe and then do all You have called us to do – as You
enable us through the Work of the Holy Spirit.
May You be glorified as Jesus gives His worthiness to all those He came
to save. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Sunday, November 12, 2023
"Thyatira" Sermon: Revelation2:18-29 (manuscript)
“Thyatira”
Revelation
2:18-29
November
12, 2023 YouTube
Next in our loop of churches in Asia Minor is the church in
Thyatira. Thyatira was about forty miles
east of Pergamum. It was not a very
important city, but it did host many trade guilds: there were clothiers, bakers, metal workers,
tanners, potters, and so forth. Guilds
are very similar to unions. As far as worship, Apollo and Artemus were the main
gods worshipped. We will remember Lydia
was from Thyatira.
We read, “One who heard us was a woman named Lydia, from
the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods, who was a worshiper of God. The
Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. And after she
was baptized, and her household as well, she urged us, saying, ‘If you have
judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay.’ And she
prevailed upon us” (Acts 16:14-15, ESV).
Our text begins with the appearance of the Son of God:
“And
to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: ‘The words of the Son of God, who
has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze.
Let
us remember, again, that this letter within the book of Revelation is written
to the real, historic minister and church in Thyatira, but it is also to all
ministers and churches throughout time and space.
With
each introduction of each letter, we are given an additional picture of Who Jesus
is. Here we are told that He is the Son
of God. He is divine. His words are the words of God. There is no other authority higher than Him.
And
we are told He has eyes like flames of fire and feet like burnished bronze. The eyes of Christ burn through a
person. Nothing can be hidden from
Him. He sees through every wall that we
set up to keep things from Him. There is
no secret that is not plain to Him. Do
not think that He does not know everything about you – the good and the sinful.
His burnished bronze feet – like the feet of the Creature in Daniel and Ezkiel
– indicate that He is without blemish, that He has the authority to exact
punishment – this is in line with His being all-knowing – Omniscient.
Then
Jesus praises the church in Thyatira:
“‘I know your works, your love and faith and service and
patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first.
Jesus tells them that He knows their works – He knows the
love of the church. He knows the faith
of the church. He knows the service of
the church. He knows the patient
endurance of the church during persecution. And, they are growing in love, they
are growing in faith, they are growing in service, and they are growing in
patient endurance.
The author of Hebrews is disappointed with his audience
because they have not been like the church in Thyatira:
“About
this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull
of hearing. For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone
to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk,
not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of
righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those
who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to
distinguish good from evil” (Hebrews 5:11-14, ESV).
What a joy it must have been to the church in Thyatira to
hear these words – that Jesus knows they are growing as Christians in love,
faith, service, and patience endurance. If Jesus sent our church a letter, would
He praise our growing in love, faith, service, and patient endurance?
But.
“‘But
I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls
herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice
sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to
repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will
throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw
into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her
children dead. And all the churches will know that I am he who searches mind
and heart, and I will give to each of you according to your works.
Jesus
says He is angry that they have tolerated Jezebel – who she claims to be, and
what she does.
We
will remember that Jezebel was the wicked wife of the wicked King Ahab. Samuel writes, “And as if it had been a light
thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for his
wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served
Baal and worshiped him. He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal,
which he built in Samaria. And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke
the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before
him” (I Kings 16:31-33, ESV).
Jezebel
claimed to be a prophetess and seduced some of the people of God to worship
false gods and to take part in the eating of food offered to the false gods and
to engage in sexual immorality. So, it
was then, so it was in the days of the church in Thyatira.
The
church in Thyatira did not teach the teaching of Jezebel, but they tolerated
her teaching and misleading people in the church.
But
who is this Jezebel? Most commentators
say that she was not a person at Thyatira, but -- as Jesus will say – “the deep
things of Satan.” Some argue that this
was a philosophy or theology that taught there was a mystical knowledge to be
had deeper than what is merely taught in the Bible – and there were people
teaching that in addition to the Bible, one must engage in idol worship and temple
prostitution and eating food offered to idols.
Yet, there are some who say this is one single person. However, it doesn’t really matter all that much
because the result was the promise of a “deeper knowledge” – than God gives in
the Bible – it is a trick of the devil.
There
is another reason this teaching would have been tolerated in the church in
Thyatira: to buy and sell, you had to be
a member of a trade guild, and the trade guilds required you to take part in
the worship of the false gods and eat the food offered to them and have sexual
relations with the temple prostitutes. If
you were not part of a guild and did not abide by their rules, you would be
inviting commercial suicide. You would
not be able to run your business, buy the things you need, or survive in any
way. The church may have tolerated this thinking that those who participated
knew the gods weren’t real, so it didn’t matter.
There
are teachings that matter – things that we must believe, and then there are not
matters of salvation. It is possible for
someone to be a weak, confused, ignorant Christian and still be saved. The idea that the Bible is not enough to know
everything God would have us know about faith and life – for example, that
Jesus is the Savior, but it the end, God saves everyone, so it doesn’t matter if
you believe in Jesus or not – that’s heresy.
You can’t say you’re a Christian and it doesn’t matter if you believe in
Jesus for your salvation. And we have
churches that tolerate that teaching – and, perhaps, even teach it.
We
don’t like to be intolerant. We want to
“love” everybody – though that love is not the love of the Bible. The fact of the matter is that there are
things we can be tolerant of – whether you prefer the RSV or ESV translation of
the Bible, for example. And then there
are things we must be intolerant of.
Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to
the Father except through me (John 14:6b, ESV).
No one! Jesus is intolerant about
the truth of salvation. There are times when the church must be intolerant.
“But
these people wouldn’t be able to buy or sell. Wouldn’t it be ok to go along
with if they didn’t believe in what they were doing? Sometimes, isn’t it ok to go
against what God commands for the greater good?”
“The
story goes that one day a Christian complained to Tertullian, the early
apologist, of the need to make a living. ‘After all, I must live,’ he pleaded.
“Tertullian
replied, ‘Must you?’” (Boice, Seven Churches, Four Horsemen, One Lord,
111).
Jesus
says He gave Jezebel time to repent, but she refused. So, Jesus tells her that
He is going to throw her into a bed of tribulation and all those who commit
adultery with her – if they do not repent – He will put them to death.
Sometimes Jesus will put Christians to death for not repenting of their sin –
He shows His Justice and His Wrath and delivers them from the sin they would
not repent of.
“And
when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah put out his hand to the
ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the
LORD was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his
error, and he died there beside the ark of God” (II Samuel 6:6-7, ESV).
In
Acts 5, we read that Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, sell a piece of land, and
when they went to the Temple to donate the money, Peter asks if they are
bringing the whole total of the money they received, and they lie and say they
have, and God strikes them dead.
Jesus
says that when He kills the followers of Jezebel, the other churches – the
people who see them – will know that God sees the hearts and minds of all
people and gives according to their works.
There
are times when being tolerant is sinful.
There are times when we must be intolerant for the sake of a person’s
soul.
But.
“’But
to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not
learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I do not lay on
you any other burden.
Those
who have refused to tolerate the teaching of Jezebel – to those who did not
seek a deeper, Satanic, “understanding” of the Bible – to the true Christians
who taught only the Word of God Alone – the peace of God is with them. No other burden is laid upon them.
John
writes in his first letter, “For this is the love of God, that we keep his
commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome” (I John 5:3, ESV).
And
Jesus says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you
rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in
heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my
burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30, ESV).
“Only
hold fast what you have until I come. The one who conquers and who keeps my
works until the end, to him I will give authority over the nations, and he will
rule them with a rod of iron, as when earthen pots are broken in pieces, even
as I myself have received authority from my Father.
The
light burden they were already growing in was love and faith and service and
patient endurance. Keep up that – with
the belief of Jesus as God the Savior – conquering through Jesus and the work
of God the Holy Spirit in us, and believers will be given authority and will
rule.
Jesus
is saying what is said in Psalm 2, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your
heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with
a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel” (Psalm 2:8-9, ESV).
Do
you see what Jesus changed? Rather than
saying they will break them with a rod of iron, He says they will rule them
with a rod of iron.
Later
in the book of Revelation we read, “Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were
those to whom the authority to judge was committed. Also I saw the souls of
those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God,
and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its
mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with
Christ for a thousand years” (Revelation 20:4, ESV).
Carrying
out the work of Jesus is a light burden – one that we do out of joy for the
salvation He has given us. And we are
promised in the Kingdom – in the new heavens and the new earth – we – all those
who believe in Jesus alone for salvation – will rule over the restored Creation
– that is, the Kingdom.
“And
I will give him the morning star.”
Who
or what is the morning star? Jesus. Jesus gives Himself to all we who
believe. He has lived and died and rose
and ascended that He could substitute Himself for us that we would have His
righteousness and be forgiven of all our sins.
“He
who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’”
We
ought to be growing in faith and obedience, and God the Holy Spirit empowers us
to grow, and He gives us joy as we do grow, becoming the people God has called
to be.
There
are times when Christians and the Church must be intolerant. There are times must insist that teachings go
against the Word of God and will not be allowed in the church or in the lives
of believers. Leaving people in sin is
not love, and the church must be disciplined and discipline its people.
Jesus
has given us Himself that we would be His and He would be glorified.
God
the Holy Spirit speaks to the churches and convicts believers of what is true
and biblical and when there is a need to discipline and to be intolerant for
the sake of our brothers and sisters.
Let
us pray:
Almighty
God, we thank You for the example of the church in Thyatira. We are encouraged by their growth in matters
of faith and obedience and pray that You would grow the current churches and
the Christians who call Jesus Savior. Let
us know that this burden is light. Help us not to be lax in our teaching or in
our discipline of those who would distort You Word, even if they believe it is
a good or negligible teaching. Thank You for the promise that we will reign and
have dominion over the Creation with You in the Kingdom. And thank You that
Jesus has given Himself to us and for us that we would eternally be His. For it is in Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.
Sunday, November 05, 2023
"Pergamum" Sermon: Revelation 2:12-17 (manuscript)
“Pergamum”
Revelation
2:12-17
November
5, 2023 YouTube
Pergamum.
Pergamum is the third church to receive a letter from Jesus in the book of
Revelation.
Pergamum
was about fifty-five miles north of Smyrna and at the time of John, there were
120,000 people. All the pagan gods were
accepted and worshipped in Pergamum (the seat of Satan). They had temples to Zeus, Athena, Dionysus,
Ceasar Augustus, but the main god of Pergamum was Asclepius – the god of medicine
and healing – whose symbol was a snake wrapped around a staff – which continues
to be the symbol for medicine and doctors to this day. Most famously, known for his advances in
medicine, Galen was born there.
Pergamum
was also a great city of art and literature and had a library of 200,000 books
– the library at Alexandria was the only larger one at the time.
“And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The
words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword.
As we continue to see, Jesus addresses the real, historic
minister and church in Pergamum, and what is written applies to all ministers
and all churches. Jesus is the One Who
has the two-edged sword. And we will
remember that the two-edged sword is the Word of God. So, Jesus is He who has and speaks and wields
the Word of God to bless and to punish.
“‘I
know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and
you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who
was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
Jesus
knows where the Christians of Pergamum dwell.
Jesus knows His people and watches over them as the Good Shepherd. Not one escapes His notice. He calls them to Himself and makes them His
own.
Jesus
knows that they live where Satan’s throne is.
Pergamum is a place where Satan is on his throne, being worshipped in
all the temples of the false gods. God
has given him this city to twist and pervert.
However,
the Christians of Pergamum held fast to the Name and the salvation of
Jesus. They did not give in to the ridicule
and persecution – even if they were persecuted to death for their faith in
Jesus for salvation. They didn’t even waver in their faith when Antipas was
killed in Pergamum – where Satan dwells. (Unfortunately, we don’t know anything
about Antipas, but we can surmise that he was a bold apologist for the Gospel
of Jesus Christ. He spoke boldly against
the worship of idols and told them that only Jesus is God the Savior.)
Can
we say that the United States is similarly the throne of Satan – where Satan
dwells? Don’t we see the idolatry of our
country all around us? The worship of
false gods – even the worship of gods not existing. The worship of money, sex, and power for
their own sakes.
Do
we stand for the Name of Jesus? For His
Power and salvation. Do we tell others
that we believe in the Only True God, Jesus Christ? Of course, we are not to “bash people over
their heads with the Bible,” but do people identify us as believers? Would they say we don’t do this or that or we
do other things, because we are believers in Who Jesus is and what He has
done? And do they know that when we sin
against what we know and have been commanded, we repent of our sin?
Are
we willing to be hated and mocked and thrown in prison and even put to death in
the most horrific way for confessing Jesus as Lord? That’s not an easy question to give an answer
to, is it? In our minds we may say, “Of
course I will stand for Jesus no matter what happens,” but are we prepared for
when it does? Have we prayed for
strength and courage and boldness to stand for Jesus amidst where Satan dwells?
Prepare. It is happening in some places now. After the author of Hebrews writes about
specific men and women of the faith, he writes, “Women received back their dead
by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they
might rise again to a better life. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and
even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they
were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats,
destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering
about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth” (Hebrews
11:35-38, ESV). Will we accept this when
it happens to us?
The
Christians in Pergamum held fast to the Name of Jesus and did not deny the
faith.
“But
I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of
Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so
that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So
also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
The
church in Pergamum was not perfect. The
minister and all the Christians in the church were not perfect – and neither
are we. Jesus says He has a few things
against the minister and the Christians in the church in Pergamum: they embraced the teaching of Balaam and the
teaching of the Nicolaitans.
That
is not to say that the Christians in the church in Pergamum believed these
false teachings, but they allowed them to be taught and flourish in the
church. They did not discipline or expel
those who were teaching these evil doctrines, they embraced them, they allowed
them to become members of the church, thought they didn’t believe – or, at
least, embraced sinful teaching as acceptable.
They allowed them to hold offices in the church, though the offices are
to be held by strong believers. They did
not denounce sin in the teaching and preaching from the pulpit. They had come to a point where they believed
that love – as they thought this was – was more important that what the Bible
said. “All you need is love.” “God is love, so I’m not going to tell you
you’re wrong – that what you are doing is sin.”
So,
what was the problem?
They
had embraced the teaching of Balaam.
Balaam
was a false prophet that God used to tell the truth and bless Israel. Balak the King of Moab sent for Balaam and
said he would pay him if he would use witchcraft and divination to curse Israel
before Balak attacked them. Balaam
agreed, and as he opened his mouth to curse Israel, the words came out blessing
Israel, and this happened repeatedly, so Balaam told Balak it wasn’t going to
work. But Balaam had an idea that Balak
could carry out:
“While
Israel lived in Shittim, the people began to whore with the daughters of Moab.
These invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate
and bowed down to their gods. So Israel yoked himself to Baal of Peor. And the
anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel” (Numbers 25:1-3, ESV).
Balaam
told Balak to prostitute the women of Moab before the Israelite men – get the
men of Israel to engage in sexual immorality with Moabite women, and the men
will follow the women and worship their god, the Baal of Peor. And they did, and the Lord punished Israel.
The
wording of our text indicates that this may be what the Nicolaitans taught – or
that they taught similar things – that everything that the Bible taught about
sexual morality was to be put aside in the name of love. “How can it be wrong when it feels so right?”
as the song goes. “The important thing
is love. It doesn’t matter who or when
you have sexual relations with someone – or multiple someone. What matters is love.”
Paul
writes, “Flee from sexual immorality. Every other sin a person commits is
outside the body, but the sexually immoral person sins against his own body” (I
Corinthians 6:18, ESV).
One
of the duties of the church is to discipline members of the church – believers
who have taken the step to commit themselves to a local church – not just visitors
or attendees. A major issue in I and II
Corinthians is about a man who commits a sexual sin and does not repent of it
initially, and Paul’s instruction was that he must be put out of the church
until he repents and then be welcomed back into the church when he does.
The
church in Pergamum didn’t want to say the sexual immorality being accepted in
the name of love was wrong. They didn’t
want to put those people out who taught it, and those who unrepentantly
embraced it.
“Therefore
repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of
my mouth.
Therefore,
repent. If you have compromised in the
way of living that God has set before us – whatever sin that might be –
personal, communal, for the “sake” of others – repent – confess your sin, turn
around and pledge not to sin like that again.
That is good news for us -- because of Who Jesus is and what He has
done, when we sin, we can go to Him and repent and turn around and stop doing
what we have been doing, and we can be forgiven.
Jesus
says to the church in Pergamum, “You have been allowing people to come into the
church – to teach in the church – to influence people in the church – telling
them it’s ok to engage in sexual immorality – what God calls sexual immorality
– and you have done nothing to protect the Christians in the church or to
rebuke and/or expel those false teachers – in the name of love. But, if you repent and teach the church what
God says is sexual immorality – those things God says not to do – that they are
sin, and you put out those people who refusing to stop teaching their sinful
ways in the church, you will be forgiven.”
What
sin does our church not want to have taught and preached? What sin are we willing to excuse in the name
of love? What sin would we rather spread
through the church than keep people out of the pews and the offering plate? What do we know is forbidden by the Word of
God that we turn a blind eye to in our church?
Jesus
says He will come with the Sword of the Word of God against those who do not
repent for following after these sinful teachings – those who teach the people
of God to go astray and embrace sin.
Doctrine
– teaching – is important. It is what
God wants us to know and do to be the people He calls us to be.
God
tells the church in Pergamum that if they don’t, He will war against them soon
with the Sword which is the Word of God.
In
the days of Balaam, when the men of Israel whored after the women of Moab, God
said, “And the LORD said to Moses, ‘Take all the chiefs of the people and hang
them in the sun before the LORD, that the fierce anger of the LORD may turn
away from Israel.’ And Moses said to the judges of Israel, ‘Each of you kill
those of his men who have yoked themselves to Baal of Peor’” (Numbers 25:4-5,
ESV).
Jesus
was threatening the church in Pergamum in the same way. If they didn’t repent and do what was right
about these evil people, Jesus would bring judgement against them and church in
Pergamum – He would remove their lampstand.
How
long will Jesus give our church – our denomination – to repent?
“’He
who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one
who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white
stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one
who receives it.’”
As
before, Jesus says that anyone who can hear and will hear what the Holy Spirit
says to the churches – Pergamum and the others – let him hear the praise that
Jesus gives and the warnings and condemnations He gives.
“The
one who conquers” – that is, to the one who is born again – to the true
believer – to the true Christian – to the one who believes in Jesus savingly,
the Holy Spirit will give him some of the hidden manna. What is He talking about?
We
remember that God fed the people of Israel in the wilderness with manna. So, the Holy Spirit is saying He will feed
true believers in some way.
When
Jesus argued with the Pharisees and explained to them that He is the manna –
the bread – from Heaven, He said:
“So
the Jews grumbled about him, because he said, ‘I am the bread that came down
from heaven’” (John 6:41, ESV).
“’I
am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread,
he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world
is my flesh’” (John 6:51, ESV).
“’This
is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate,
and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever’” (John 6:58, ESV).
In
the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, we “eat” the flesh of Jesus in the bread –
we commune with Him spiritually and are united with Him by His salvation of us,
and He provides for us in all that He would have us do and be.
And
the Holy Spirit will give the true believer a white stone with a new name on it
that only he will know.
Is
this a real white stone or is something spiritual being said here?
There
were occasions that white and black stones were used in the customs of the day,
but here, commentators say that the white stone symbolizes justification,
grace, victory, and communion – all of which we have by the merit of Christ and
the work of the Holy Spirit (Joel Beeke, Revelation, 108-109).
The
white stone that is given to the true believer in Jesus, then, is our salvation
and all that we become through our salvation by the work of the Holy Spirit.
As
Isaiah prophesies, “The nations shall see your righteousness, and all the kings
your glory, and you shall be called by a new name that the mouth of the LORD
will give” (Isaiah 62:2, ESV).
The
new name of the Christians in Pergamum – our new name as believers – is given
to us by the work of Jesus. So, if it is
a new name, will I no longer be called Peter?
The changing of the name we live with in this life is probably not what
is being changed. It is more likely along
the lines of our now being called sons and daughters of God and brothers and
sisters of Jesus.
The
church in Pergamum was a church that was faithful to the Name of Jesus and His
salvation in the midst of persecution and the city being a bastion of the
worship of the false gods of Satan.
Yet,
they had allowed false teachers into the church who were getting believers to
engage in sin – specifically sexual sin – because they thought that was showing
love. It was not – it was a sin in
allowing these people to turn the people to sin. So, they were told to repent,
or Jesus would come with the two-edged sword in vengeance.
Finally,
Jesus tells them that those who truly believe savingly in Jesus will be made
like Him and saved to the uttermost as the Holy Spirit transforms the believer. Jesus will commune with all true believers
through the Lord’s Supper, especially, just as the Israelites in the wilderness
ate the manna. And they will be given a
white stone – all the facets of salvation – that lead them to be called the
children of God.
Let
us be faithful to the Name of Jesus no matter what evil is done against
us. Let us turn out those who would
mislead the church and those who are unrepentant – until they repent. And let us be filled with joy that we have
been saved and commune with Jesus and are being changed into who we will
forever be in the Kingdom of Jesus Christ.
Let
us pray:
Almighty
God, we thank You that You and Your Son, Jesus, have sent God the Holy Spirit
to indwell us. Cause Him to strengthen
us as we face the wicked and their torment of us. Give us strength to always stand for Your
Word and put out those who would deceive the flock. Grow us by the Holy Spirit into the men and
women You have called us to be and let us look forward in faith as we communion
with Jesus in the Lord’s Supper. In
Jesus’ Name, Amen.