The Spiritually Dead Christian
If you have your Bible, please open it to Revelation 3. We are going to look at a lot of scripture today, but that is where we will start. A kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they drew. She would occasionally walk around to see each child’s artwork. As she goes to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what her drawing was. The girl replied, “I’m drawing God.” The teacher paused and said, “But no one know what God looks like. "Without missing a beat or looking up from her drawing, the little girl replied, “Well, they will in a minute!”
As I mentioned last week, we are in this 3-part series on the state of many Christians today. Last week was The Unsaved Christian and this week is The Spiritually Dead Christian. Many Christians today have let their fire go out and are no longer on fire for the Lord. Let us look at Revelation Chapter 3 starting in verse 1.
READ REVELATION 3:1-6
A few weeks ago, we looked at the letter written to the Church of Ephesus. Sardis was a town that was not too far away from Ephesus and was the second closest city to Ephesus of the churches mentioned in Revelation by John. Sardis was also the capital of the Lydian Empire at the time. So, at the time that this letter is written, Sardi is this big and booming city and like Ephesus, it also had this big church full of Christians. Notice how the Church of Sardis is recognized for their works and for their reputation. They were a church that had action and was in the community and they were active, but just like Ephesus they were doing it for the wrong reasons. They were more focused on their reputation than people`s eternal destination.
“I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but...”
We just talked about how drastically the word “but” can change things. Everything leading up to that the three-lettered word had been fine. They were acknowledged for their works. They were commended for their reputation. Everything seems to be going good here. I can imagine being the leader of the Church of Sardis and opening this letter and up until this point, I have been smiling and in a good mood and I probably feel like I am about to get a huge pat on the back from John. Look at the rest of that verse.
“I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.”
Complete change of energy here. Like the letter to Ephesus, this one quickly goes down here. See, Sardis had the reputation for being alive, but Jesus knew the reality that they were dead. Many Christians today have the reputation for being Spiritually alive, but Jesus knows the reality that they are as dead as a doornail. Like Sardis, they too are more focused on their reputation than their eternal destination. They have a heart problem. Look at verse 2.
“Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.”
The first two words of that verse show the reality of the Church of Sardis. A church in a deep spiritual coma. A church that is in a deep coma and headed straight for death.
“Wake up, and strengthen what remains”
This shows that there is indeed hope for Sardis. Jesus does not say wake up and build something up. Jesus does not say wake up and tear something down and start over. Instead, Jesus says to wake up and strengthen what is already there. This next part is for the Dead Christians in here... Wake up and strengthen what remains in you. In the early years during World War 2 before the United States was attacked and joined the war, we were often referred to as the sleeping giant. As a matter of fact, a Japanese Admiral is quoted for saying this after the attack on Pearl Harbor:
“I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him will terrible resolve.”
America was this big and mighty nation. The strongest nation in the world but it did not matter because we were in a coma. We were in a coma, and we slept while the evil rose around us in Europe and Asia and it took a devasting attack on our homeland before we awoke from our deep sleep and got to work. What is it going to take for the Christians in that same coma to awaken and get to work? The devil has attacked this nation. He has attacked the American Church. He has attacked Central Baptist Church. He has attacked your family and he has attacked you. I mean what else must happen before you wake up?
“Wake up, and strengthen what remains”
Strengthen your relationship with God. Strengthen your desire to see others be redeemed by the love of Jesus Christ. Look at the second half of verse 3.
“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.”
For most of you, that probably does not seem significant if you do not know much about the history of the City of Sardis. Sardis sat at the top of this mountain and there was only one way in the city and one way out of the city. On the other three sides of the city, was a huge and steep drop-off which made it impossible to climb or enter the city from. So even though it was hard to enter this city, which made it hard to conquer, Sardis had been taken over twice in its history and both times were done the exact same way. They had built this huge tower and walls that overlooked the valley below the city so that they might know anytime the city was being attacked. In 549 BC, it was captured and again it was captured in 214 BC. Here is how it happened. There was a soldier down in the valley one day from the army of King Cyrus. He was watching the City of Sardis and trying to figure out how they were going to breach and conquer the city. He then noticed the guard on that tower at the top of the city lean over the wall which caused his helmet to fall down the cliffs around the city. The guard knew he would be in trouble for this so, the guard climbed down and went through a series of secret passageways down the mountain, and he got his helmet. While the guard was doing this, that soldier from the army of Cyrus was watching him. As normal, that night the whole city went to bed because they believed they were in this city that could not be conquered and all that had to be watched was the front gate. King Cyrus came that night and his entire army went up those secret passageways as the guard did to retrieve his helmet and they conquered the city before they even had a chance to wake up. Look at what Jesus says again.
“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.”
It seemed insignificant to us, but it was major to them. Wake up or I will come in the middle of the night and wipe out your city like it has been done before. He is pleading with the church to wake up. Let us look at verses 4 and 5.
“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. 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.”
Here, Jesus gives the Christians of Sardis more hope. A hope for revival. A hope for things in the church and things in the city to turn around. Jesus says that there are still a few in the church who are alert and awake. There are still people there in the city who are walking with Christ and doing the right things for the right reasons. Jesus promises those are Spiritually awake to walk with Him in Heaven. Jesus made them promise with them then, and that promise still goes for us today. Those who are spiritually awake will walk the streets of gold with Him in Heaven.
This letter is specifically to the Church at Sardis. The Dead Church. I want y`all to understand something. In order for a church to be dead, its congregation must also be dead. A church that is spiritually awake will not be full of spiritually dead Christians and likewise, a dead church will not be full of awake Christians. The Church of Sardis was classified as the dead church because it was full of dead Christians. Christians in a spiritual coma. Today, can the Church of America be classified as dead or awake? Better yet, what is Central Baptist Church classified as today? Is this church spiritually awake or are we spiritually dead? Personally, I do not believe everyone in here is spiritually dead, but I also do not believe everyone in here is spiritually awake either. I believe the spiritually awake are outnumbered by those who are spiritually dead, and it is evident when it comes time to try to get people to serve. It is evident when we stand to praise and worship the King through songs and people stand there with a big frown on their face. So, would we receive the same letter that Sardis did? I believe it is very possible. They did works. They did the things that a church is supposed to do, but they did it for the wrong reasons. They did it to look good. Here are 3 signs that you are spiritually dead:
1. If someone is dead, they make no noise.
Psalm 34:1-3 says this:
“I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt Him together!”
Are you making any noise today? Are you lifting up prayers and worship and thanksgiving to God or are you silent? Folks there is a reason that I keep preaching on prayer and worship. Both are important and essential to the Christian lifestyle. We cannot make it through this life alone. We cannot. Prayer directly connects us to God. I have seen lives changed through prayer.
Most of you know by now, but I work at Beulah High School. One of my coworkers, who is also a coach, had one of his kids rushed to the UAB Children`s Hospital one night. They did a lot of tests, and the results came back that he had stage 4 cancer. His kid is in the 7th grade I believe, and he was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. His parents put it on Facebook to ask for prayers and for donations to help with the upcoming costs. All of Beulah and Beauregard rallied together and prayed and prayed and prayed over the kid and his family. They went back to the UAB hospital to see exactly what kind of cancer it was before they started any treatment. The doctors said it was guaranteed stage 4 cancer, but they needed to see what kind it was. They did their tests, and the results came back. The results showed that all the stage 4 cancer was no longer there. God preformed a miracle in a situation that seemed desperate and impossible. I do not know about y`all, but the God that I serve, and love still preforms miracles. It started with everyone praying and lifting up their prayers to God and making noise. So, when I say that there is power in prayer, believe me there is. God hears our prayers. We should be making noise today. We should be praying and worshipping the King.
2. If someone is dead, they are no longer hungry.
Matthew 5:6 says:
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.”
Are you hungry for God today? Are you longing for that relationship with Him? David was known as a man after God`s own heart. David was hungry for God. A Christian who is alive and well wants to grow closer to God. They have this hunger for God. You are as close to God as you want to be. If you are truly hungry for God and if you truly want Him, you will get Him. Psalm 34:4-5 says this:
“I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to Him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.”
David sought out after God, and David found Him. Listen folks, God is not hiding from you. If you seek God, you will find Him. If you hunger and thirst for God, He will fulfill you. You are as close to God as you want to be.
Someone who is dead does not have that hunger for God. After all, if you are in a coma, you are not hungry anyway. Today, if you are not hungry for God, you need to ask God to examine your life. See, Earthly food and water will temporarily fulfill that hunger and thirst you have, but it will not last long. God can fulfill it and you will never be hungry or thirsty again. For example, look at the women at the well with Jesus. He told her that water from the well would make her thirst again, but that living water would never make her thirst again. See, only Jesus can fulfill that thirst and hunger we have in our souls. Nothing in this world can fulfill you. Not money. Not jobs. Not expensive vehicles. Not big houses. Not fun vacations. Only Jesus Christ can fulfill that need in your life. Psalm 34:8 says this:
“Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!”
If you could ever get a real taste of what Jesus is like, it would change your life forever. Purposely seek out God. Go all in. Go all in. Wake up and strengthen what remains. Strengthen that hunger you have for God.
3. If someone is dead, they are no longer growing.
1 Corinthians 3:1-2 says:
“But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready.”
There must be continual growth in your life. Are you growing in your faith? I mentioned it earlier, but you are as close to God as you want to be. In the good times and the bad times, how close you are to God is up to you. He is always there. We see it all the time when things or people die, they stop growing. After a tree dies, it does not grow in size or produce leaves anymore. A dead flower will not blossom. Likewise, a dead Christian will not grow either. They will not grow in their faith. In 1 Corinthians, Paul tells them that he cannot give them the full message of Christ because they were still young and immature in their faith. How deep and mature is your relationship with God? Are you close with God or are you still in that infant stage? Listen folks, you could be 100 years old and still be an infant in your walk with God. That is one of the main reasons why I hate the statements “you are not old enough to do this” or “you are too old to do this” because both of those statements are a lie. I firmly believe that you are never to young and never too old to serve God and serve in the church. God never laid out age requirements or age restrictions in the Bible for serving Him. Instead, He called everyone to serve Him. The young and the old. The men and the women. All ages. All races. All to serve Him. Age is nothing more than a lousy excuse. If you are a true, born-again believer, you should strive to deepen your relationship with God and your faith. Go all in. Do not hold back.
As we begin to come to a close today, I want you to reflect over your life. Are you Spiritually Dead? Are you making any noise? Are you hungry for God? Are you growing? Folks, if your answer to those is not yes, you need to get right with God before it is too late. We are never promised tomorrow. I am sure we all know someone who died without warning. I said it earlier, but Sardis had become a dead church. In order to become a dead church, its people must also be dead. Central Baptist Church is on the road to becoming just like Sardis. We are on the road to becoming dead, but also like Sardis, we have hope. We can still change, but it is going to require some people to awaken from their spiritual coma and strengthen what remains. Strengthen their faith. So, are you alive today? If not, this altar is open. Come down and pray and get right with God.
Let us pray.
