February 26, 2012
Revelation 2:8-11
Smyrna
Have you ever felt that life just isn’t fair? Now, I’m not talking about what we deem unjust or unfair and undeserved illnesses and sudden deaths; or children who don’t do what is right.
I’m talking about a time when you stood up for what was right; and you became the victim. Maybe you proclaimed the message of Christ, and you lost your family and friends. What if after becoming a Christ follower, your employer said, renounce Jesus and you can keep your job, otherwise you’re fired. What if the government sent people to see who came to church on Sunday mornings, and your taxes went up because you attend church.
What if the government gave you a token, which meant you were in good standing with them, and you keep your store open, you can buy, sell and trade with others. Without the token, your store would close and you couldn’t shop in the market. What if others were telling malicious lies about you?
What if you were considering becoming a Christian and you saw this happening to friends? As a Christian, if you saw this happening in the church, what would you think about God? Would you keep the faith? Would you run from God? Would you compromise your faith to survive?
If you travel about 40 miles north of Ephesus, you will come to the city of Smyrna. Today Smyrna is called Izmir, a leading city in Turkey. Because of its beauty, Smyrna was known as the “Ornament of Asia.” In 26 AD, a competition was held to determine which city would win the right to build a temple for Caesar-worship. Smyrna won that contest and took great pride in its loyalty to Rome. There were also many temples to various pagan gods. And over time a number of Jews migrated to Smyrna and became an important part of the business scene.
Because of the prevailing paganism and the worship of the emperor, Christians in Smyrna found themselves under unrelenting pressure. The people of Smyrna were extremely loyal, and would publicly declare, “Caesar is Lord.” Christians wouldn’t do this, so the early believers found themselves in a difficult situation.
My friends, welcome to the church in Smyrna. This church was experiencing a great deal of suffering. Are you ready to join?
One last note before we jump in, Smyrna was one of only two churches in Revelation 2-3 in which Jesus didn’t have a criticism. Their suffering made them strong. It had stripped them of everything - - - except Jesus.
As we will do throughout this series, I’ll move through the scripture verse by verse. In Revelation 2:8, Jesus said, 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 back to life.
Firstly, the Jewish Christians would’ve clearly understood this because of what Isaiah wrote about God. Listen to these words ~ This is what the LORD says — Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.
That’s pretty clear, God is the beginning and He is the end. He bookends all of life. Jesus was also telling His followers He’s been there, He’s gone through the fires of life. He’s suffered and He knows what it’s like to suffer and to die. But the good news is the fact that death couldn’t contain Him. He defeated death. He’s also the author of life, He was there at the beginning of time, and He will be there at the end of time. There is no defeating Jesus. That’s great news to start with.
Let me add this, when someone is giving you comfort and encouragement, it helps to know they’ve experienced some of what you’re going through. When someone beats cancer, when they’ve endured the punch cancer throws, their encouragement takes on life, because they’ve been through the storm. Jesus is reminding us, I’ve overcome, I’ve been through it, and so can you. Just stick with me!
Now in verse 9 - Jesus describes their problems, saying, I know your afflictions and your poverty – yet you are rich.
The word “afflictions” doesn’t describe the ordinary troubles of life. It means catastrophic pressure. It’s used to describe what happened when people were making wine and they crushed the grapes. These early believers were feeling crushed, helpless and trampled on. Jesus is reminding them, ‘I see what’s happening, I’m not oblivious to it all. I’m with you.’
Now, Jesus acknowledges their poverty. The Greek word used here literally means totally destitute or a beggar. They didn’t have enough money to buy the basics of life. Jesus knows this.
In order to do business in Smyrna, you needed to have a little token which you would receive from the government each year for proclaiming that Caesar is lord. Since the Christians didn’t proclaim Caesar as lord, they didn’t receive this token, which meant they couldn’t shop at most stores, or own their own store.
Yet, Jesus tells them even though they’re dirt poor, in His eyes they are rich. The word Jesus used for “rich” has the idea of being in a position of power and authority because of wealth. That may sound strange, but to Jesus, His followers were in a position of authority because of the treasures they were storing up in heaven. They were rich in the sight of God.
For many people this is the breaking point. We value our prosperity. We value the fact we can afford many of the luxuries, on top of the necessities of life.
As I was writing this, I’m in the Student Center of Ball State, and I’m literally surrounded by 4 Mac laptops and a girl talking on her iphone. It’s remarkable to think of the impact a man like Steve Jobs had. He helped change the world. We have our iPhone’s; iPad’s; MacBook Pro’s; we download music from iTunes; store our data in iCloud’s.
While confessing our indebtedness to Jobs, let me point out that he had to leave it all behind. He’s not using a Mac, iPhones do him no good, that money is nothing to God. He’s passed from this life where he was revered into another realm where he must answer to the God who created him.
Whatever happened to him and wherever he is, it has nothing to do with his great wealth while he was on the earth. His earthly wealth can protect him no more.
How foolish we are to think that the little bit accumulate in this life matters in eternity. Will the God who made the universe be impressed by a 75-foot yacht? Will he be blown away by a mansion or two, or three? Will he be impressed by a fleet of cars? He laughs at the puny pretensions of the high and mighty.
Jesus knows your poverty - and He knows your riches too. He sees your faith lived out. He notes the prayers you pray through your tears. He hears your desperate cries for help.
Oddly enough, those hated Christians in Smyrna were the richest people in town. I read this ~
You’ll never know if Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.
When Jesus is all you have, then you discover Jesus is all you need.
Most of us have a hard time figuring this out. Because the Christians at Smyrna were so poor, they learned early on that Jesus really is all you need. That’s why Jesus says, “you’re rich!” No person is poor when they’ve learned to depend and trust in Christ alone.
Jesus also knows our enemies. At the end of verse 9, Jesus said, I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of satan.
Terrible malicious lies were being told about the people in the church. It was an all-out offensive to destroy the people. Ever have anyone tell lies about you? Ever wonder if it hurts? If it can even kill your reputation? Maybe it gets you fired, or at the minimum, you didn’t the job or promotion because of lies. This was the daily situation in Smyrna. Emails, text messages, facebook comments and tweets.
And who were the culprits? They were called a “synagogue of satan?” It was their own people. It’s an in your face description of the Jewish people who banded together with the pagans in order to accuse the Christians of treason against Rome. This was like taking sides against Jesus Himself. God does not take lightly those who attack his children.
Because Christians were despised and marginalized, they seemed like a virus, a disease that needed to be removed. These so-called Jews who attacked them were not really Jews at all. They were Jews in name only.
Too many times, religion itself, gets in the way. It can blind a person of their need of God because they think they can contribute something to their own salvation. Millions of people have a religion based on superstition. They put their trust in some outward factor as their hope for heaven. And one day they’ll be disappointed. Others trust in inherited religion: “Daddy was a deacon. Momma was a Sunday School teacher.” They act as if salvation is inherited like you inherit the color of your eyes. It doesn’t work that way. No one else can believe for you. You have to believe for yourself.
Don’t be surprised when religious people hate you. They hated Jesus, and they crucified Him.
So, Jesus tries to calm their fears and expectations. He tells them in verse 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.
Remember in our own lives, Jesus has perfect knowledge about what is going on. He knows what has, what is, and what will happen to us. What surprises us - - - does not surprise Him.
The Lord will sometimes allow the devil to attack us. How did the devil put some of the believers in jail? He stirred up the Jews to work with the pagans to stir up animosity so that the Christians ended up in jail, having no way to refute the false accusations.
Jesus also said some will be in prison to test them, and they will suffer for 10 days. Some say the 10 days is a metaphor for a short period of time, others say it’s a real 10 days. I take Jesus at His word, the persecution, would last 10 days. We may think that’s not so bad. I can endure 10 bad days. Let’s see how you feel after you’ve been fired from your job, beaten senseless, your house plundered, your spouse and kids abused, your money gone. Will it seem so small to you then?
Some of you have been in the furnace of affliction far longer than ten days. For some it’s more like ten years. For others it seems like a lifetime.
I can’t explain why some people seem to suffer more than others. While it’s true that “into each life some rain must fall,” some folks seem to have a perpetual monsoon pouring down.
But let us rest our soul in this ~ if Jesus said you will suffer for ten days, no force on earth can make it last 11 days! It won’t end early, but it won’t go longer. The time limit on our trials has been determined by the Lord.
That is why he says, “Fear not.” The Lord knows what He is doing. He will accomplish His purpose concerning us.
Now, Jesus says, Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
There is one important fact we must not miss. Jesus never promises to remove the trials of life. He never said, “Just believe in me and everything will get better.”
“Believe in me and I’ll give you an easy life.”
He said, “Be faithful, and I will give you the crown of life.”
No doubt many of the believers in Smyrna paid the ultimate price for their faith. Having followed Jesus in life, they now follow Him in death.
To the victor would go the crown of life, it’s the crown which goes to the victor in a race. Paul mentioned it when he was facing his death. All who call on Jesus will receive the crown of righteousness, the crown of victory!
He concludes, He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.
He reminded the faithful, that while the first death is a physical death. The second death is what those who do not belong to Jesus will be subject to. It’s the hell. It’s what will happen to the devil, his angels and followers. It’s eternal damnation.
Jesus promises that those who are faithful to Him will not experience this death, but will have eternal life with Him!
Jesus wants to encourage the church in what they are doing. Jesus wants them to know that He is with them and He is faithful. He will do what He promises. It may look like He’s not there, but He is.
When you’re facing difficulties in life, rest assured, Jesus is there with you. He knows what you’re going through. Jesus also offers an eternal reward when you hold to Him!
Many contemporary Christians have never heard of a man named Polycarp. The early believers knew all about him because he was one of the first well-known martyrs of the Christian faith. He was a disciple of the Apostle John. For many years he was the Bishop of the church in Smyrna. During a wave of persecution in 155 AD, when a mob demanded his death, Roman officials tried to save his life by offering him repeated chances to deny his faith in Christ. He refused. When given one final chance to save his life, he replied ---
“For 86 years I have served Him, and He has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King who has saved me?”
He was then sentenced to death. As the soldiers prepared to nail him to the stake, he refused, saying, “Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me to also remain on the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from nails.” The fire was lit and Polycarp burned to death. As the flames consumed him, he was heard to pray, “I thank you, O Lord, that you have deemed me worthy this day and this hour to take up the cross of Christ with many witnesses.”
“Where do you get men like this?”
I know that God has His Polycarps all over the world today. They are the brave men and women who will not bow down to other gods, they won’t swear allegiance to Caesar, they won’t give up their Christian faith, no matter the pressure.
They would rather die than surrender what Jesus has given them. You can’t stop people like that. Death has no power over the believer who remains faithful. One day, we too will die, that’s not the question. Will we be faithful, no matter what?
The world gives fame and the world takes it away. We are rich today and poor tomorrow. We have a job and then we don’t. We are healthy and then sickness strikes. We have a happy family and then it seems to fall apart. Our friends say they love us and then they disappear.
To those who stand strong in the midst of trials, the best is yet to come. We will receive the “crown of life” and reign with Jesus forever. The “second death” cannot touch us.
Friends, be encouraged, don’t run from the troubles of life, embrace Jesus all the more . . . He’s here with us, with you, you are richer than you think.
