REMAIN FAITHFUL & REFUSE TO COMPROMISE
Revelation 1:9-11
Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna, was apprehended and persecuted because of his faith in Christ. Once captured, he asked for an hour in prayer, and his request was granted. Polycarp prayed so intently that his guards repented that they had been instrumental in taking him. He was carried before the proconsul & condemned to be burnt at the stake. The proconsul then urged him, saying, “Swear, and I will release thee; reproach Christ.” Polycarp answered, “86 years have I served him, and he never once wronged me; how then shall I blaspheme my King, Who hath saved me?” He was tied to the stake and the fire was kindled, the flames encircled his body, like an arch, without touching him. As a result, the executioner was ordered to pierce him with a sword. When he did a great quantity of blood flowed out and extinguished the fire. Polycarp eventually died for his faith, but he left a lasting impression on those who were present at his execution. Polycarp had a choice, compromise or take a stand for what he knew was right. He was courageous in the face of death, rather than take the easy way out, he took a stand for his Lord.
We are blessed to live in a country where we have the freedom to worship without fear of physical persecution. But there will be times when you will have to decide whether you will stand for what is right, or whether you will compromise. I pray that no matter how intense the opposition may be, that you will plant your feet, stand firm and refuse to compromise. The Bible gives us an example of a man who did just that; a man who when faced with the opportunity to compromise, chose to remain faithful to his Savior. That man's name is John. I would like to survey his story today and preach on the thought "Remain Faithful & Refuse To Compromise".
In a town called Bethsaida a man named Zebedee and his wife Salome had a son named John. This young man grew up and became a fisherman on the Sea of Galilee. One day he met Jesus and soon thereafter Jesus invited him to become one of His Disciples. John willingly left everything behind and began to follow Jesus. He became part of Jesus' inner circle alone with his brother James and Simon Peter. These three men were present when Jesus raised Jairus' daughter from the dead, they witnessed Jesus as He was transfigured on the Mountain and they were present when Jesus prayed in great agony in the Garden of Gethsemane.
When Christ was crucified, John was the only Disciple to be found, and he was there at the foot of the Cross. Not only was he at the Cross, John was one of the first to witness the empty tomb. Shortly thereafter, John came face to face with the Resurrected Christ. He and the other Disciples were able to spend some time with Jesus until He returned to Heaven. John was also privileged to witness the Ascension of Christ. (Acts 1:9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.)
John was faithful to the work of Christ, and because of his service to the Lord, many lives were changed. There came a time when John suffered great persecution, and was exiled to the Isle of Patmos. This is where John received the Revelation of Jesus Christ. John is a man who had been a part of some of the greatest works of God in the history of the world. He was a faithful servant of Jesus but he found himself persecuted and exiled to a prison camp. John did not get bitter or angry about his situation. He did not blame God for putting him on Patmos. Instead, John continued to serve God, he continued to worship God, and he continued to commune with God. He says in Revelation 1:10-11, "I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, saying, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last," and, "What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia"
On the surface, John's situation may seem to be a wasted opportunity. John was a man who had reached numerous souls with the Gospel and now he was banished to a rocky island in the midst of the Aegean Sea. But God had not forgotten about John, and God was not punishing John. In fact, God was setting things in order so that He could use John in a mighty way. Jesus was going to use him to bless Christians for generations to come. There on Patmos, Jesus would appear to John and give him the Revelation.
At times we may find ourselves in devastating situations. In this life we may face opposition and great difficulty. There will be times when we suffer for doing what is right. When we take a stand for Christ, we stand in opposition to the things and the people of this world. This may bring some unpleasant consequences into our lives. In these times we must remember that God has not forgotten us. God loves and has a great plan for each of His children.
God may currently have you in a difficult situation in order to accomplish what is needful in your life. Your current trials may be used to bring the Father honor and glory. We must remember that no matter how intense the persecution may be, we must always refuse to compromise. We must always take a stand for the cause of Christ. As we examine John's story we are reminded of:
THE PRIVILEGE THAT WE POSSESS
v9 I, John, both your brother and companion in the tribulation and kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.
In his greeting to the 7 Churches, John speaks his position in Christ. He refers to himself as a "brother and companion in the tribulation and the Kingdom." He and the members of these churches were privileged to belong to Christ. We possess the same privileges that John possessed. We are servants and friends of Jesus.
- Let's consider the fact that:
WE ARE SERVANTS OF JESUS
At this point in his life, John has served Jesus faithfully for 70 years. He has served as a Disciple and an Apostle. He has served as a Pastor and Teacher. He has been used to pen a Gospel account and 3 wonderful Epistles. He has been a faithful witness of Jesus Christ for many decades. Now John was an old man, but he did not let his age stop him from working for Jesus.
Likewise, we are privileged to be servants of Christ. Young and old alike, there is a job for us to do. When God is finished with us He will take us home. Until then, it is imperative for us to serve the Lord. John's situation on Patmos proves that God can use is in what we may consider to be less than ideal situations. Regardless, it is an honor to serve the Lord wherever He chooses.
- We have the privilege of being servants of Jesus, and it is also true that:
WE ARE FRIENDS OF JESUS
John was a close friend of Jesus. So close in fact that He laid his head on Jesus' breast at the Last Supper; he knew that Jesus loved him. In his Gospel account John never used his name, he referred to himself as "the Disciple whom Jesus loved". I believe that John was Jesus’ best friend during His time on earth. One of the primary reasons for this belief is the fact that Jesus entrusted the care of His mother to John the Apostle. There at Calvary, “When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, "Woman, behold your son!" Then He said to the disciple, "Behold your mother!" And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home” (John 19:26-27).
You and I possess the same privilege as John and the other Apostles, we are friends of Jesus. Our Savior said in John 15:13-15, “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.” If you have been born again, you can say with full assurance that you are a friend of the Savior.
- Not only does this passage remind us of THE PRIVILEGE THAT WE POSSESS, it also recounts:
THE INSTRUCTIONS THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED
Jesus called John to be one of His Disciples. Mark 1:19-20 records the account of when Jesus “saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. 20 And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him.”
Jesus personally taught and equipped John to be a Disciple. Luke 9:1-5 says, “Then He called His twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and to cure diseases... And He said to them, "Take nothing for the journey, neither staffs nor bag nor bread nor money; and do not have two tunics apiece. Whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And whoever will not receive you, when you go out of that city, shake off the very dust from your feet as a testimony against them."
Furthermore, Jesus sent John out to do Kingdom work. Luke 1:2 says, “He sent them to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.” John obeyed the instructions of His Master. (Luke 1:6 So they departed and went through the towns, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere.) Before Jesus ascended He instructed John what to do for the remainder of his life. He said ..."you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." (Acts 1:8) John listened and obeyed Jesus' instructions. He performed miracles and preached the Gospel throughout the land. As a result, he was seized, imprisoned and threatened for the cause of Christ.
People who saw John knew that he had been with Jesus. (Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.) For the rest of his life John was obedient to the call that God had placed on his life.
Our situation is very similar to John's; we have been chosen, called and commissioned to be witnesses of Jesus Christ. He has instructed all who follow Him to: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen (Matthew 28:19-20).
Jesus equipped John He will equip us for service as well. Moreover, we must obey Christ's instructions the same way that John did. However, I must warn you, when you are obedient to Christ, you will face opposition. Never forget that we have an enemy that seeks to stop the spread of the Gospel at any cost.
- This leads us to:
THE OPPOSITION THAT WE WILL ENCOUNTER
John was very successful in his service to the Lord, but there came a time when he faced intense persecution because of his faithfulness. Most believe that it was the Emperor Domitian who banished John to the Isle of Patmos. In John’s day this island was used by the Romans as a prison. The people who inhabited this island were forced to mine copper. they did not have adequate clothing, food or shelter, they were forced to sleep out in the open on the bare rocks; and they suffered greatly at the hands of the Roman guards. Keep in mind, the reason that John found himself exiled in this horrible place was because he was faithful to God's call on his life. He refused to compromise; he would not cease sharing God's Word with a lost and dying world.
If you are faithful to the Lord, if you obey His instructions, if you refuse to compromise, you will likely face some sort of opposition. When this happens you will be required to make a choice; will you compromise, or will you remain steadfast?
A story is told about a man who could not decide what side he wanted to fight for during the Civil War. So he put on the coat of the North and the trousers of the South, and as a result He got shot at from both sides. To many professing Christians are trying to be on both sides; this will never work. You can't please the world and serve God faithfully! Remember what James said in James 4:4, “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”
- You cannot have it both ways, you must make a choice. Will you remain faithful to the Lord or will you compromise? That leads us to the final truth I would like to consider, notice:
THE CHOICE THAT WE MUST MAKE
John faced persecution because he preached Christ crucified and risen from the dead. He preached that Jesus was the only way to salvation. The message that he shared was offensive to the Romans. He condemned their false gods, their sinful way of life, their rulers, and their society. John pointed men to Jesus, stood firm in his faith, and refused to compromise the Word of God; as a result he was hated and punished for it.
Compromise is defined as "making concessions or accommodations for someone who does not agree with a prevalent set of standards or rules." In this world we will be faced with situations where we will be tempted to compromise our faith in order to gain or retain favor with man. God expects us to be completely devoted to Him. He expects us to be obedient and uncompromising. The ways of the world are in opposition to the ways of God. There is a battle between the "ruler of this world" and God Almighty. (Ephesians 6:12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.) As Christians, we are to plant our feet and remain on God's side of this battle.
The easiest thing that John could have done would have been to compromise. He could have watered down his message and appeased the people of this world. He could have told his oppressors what they wanted to hear. But John refused to compromise, he remained faithful to his Savior.
I am under no illusion that taking a stand for what is right will be easy. It often appears that we stand to lose more by being obedient than we will gain by compromising. But obeying God is necessary if we seek to please Him. Don't forget that God's promises of blessing for obedience far outweigh any possible consequences from men.
In 1660, England returned to a monarchist rule under Charles II. With this change, religious freedom also ended and Anglicanism was once again designated as the official state religion. It became illegal to conduct church services outside of the Church of England and unlicensed individuals were forbidden from addressing a religious gathering. John Bunyan was arrested for preaching the Gospel without a license. His growing popularity, though, prompted the judge to seek some sort of a compromise. Promising Bunyan immediate release if he only promised not to preach again, the judge’s leniency was met with the reply, “If you release me today, I shall preach tomorrow! “Three times in his life Bunyan was arrested, convicted and jailed for preaching without a license. In the end, he spent over 12 years in prison. At any time during those years he could have secured his freedom by simply promising not to preach. But Bunyan knew God’s calling on his life and so he adamantly refused to compromise his convictions.(Source: Paul Estabrooks Devotional https://www.crosswalk.com/devotionals/standing-strong-through-the-storm/standing-strong-through-the-storm-january-8.html)
I pray that each of will be willing to stand firm for the things of God when faced with the opportunity to compromise. Standing firm in your faith may not always be easy. People may criticize you; you may miss out on certain opportunities; you may anger some friends or even lose some along the way. Certain prospects may pass you by; and some enticing doors may close. But refusing to compromise biblical truth will always please the Lord. In the end, He will bless you for your faithfulness. So when you are tempted to compromise, plant your feet and obey the Lord. Put the results in His hands, “Remain Faithful & Refuse To Compromise!”
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