# Introduction
As we continue through the letters to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation, we remember that these words were not written simply for seven ancient churches.
They were written for the church in every generation.
And the question we return to each week is the same:
“The question is not, ‘What kind of church are we?’
The question is, ‘Are we listening to what Jesus is saying to His church?’”
We began in Revelation chapter 1, where Jesus revealed Himself to His church.
We saw Him walking among the lampstands and holding the stars in His hand. We were reminded that the church is not the light — the church is the lampstand. Jesus is the light.
And in Revelation 1:3 we were given the pattern for these letters:
Read. Hear. Heed.
These messages were not written only for seven ancient churches, they are written for the church today.
Then we listened to what Jesus said to the church in Ephesus.
Ephesus was hardworking, discerning, and faithful to the truth — but somewhere along the way they had lost their first love. Jesus called them to renewal: remember, repent, and return to the love they once had for Him.
Next we heard Jesus speak to the church in Smyrna.
Smyrna was suffering, yet Jesus encouraged them to remain faithful. Their message was simple: stand firm in suffering — the Victor has already won.
Then we came to Pergamum, a church living where evil surrounded them. They had not denied Christ, but they had begun to tolerate compromise. Pergamum reminds us that faithfulness can slowly erode when the church allows the world to shape its values.
Last week we heard Jesus speak to Thyatira. Thyatira was a loving and growing church, but they were tolerating corruption within their fellowship. Jesus called them back, saying that they needed to refuse compromise, realign their allegiance fully to Him, and remain faithful until He comes.
This morning, we come to the church in Sardis.
Sardis presents us with a different danger. Not persecution. Not compromise. But something that can be even more subtle.
A church that appears alive, but is spiritually dead.
Before we dive into the letter from Jesus to the church, let’s take a look at the historical information and where the prophecy of Sardis fits in the global history of the church.
Video Ill.: Sardis — The Dead Church by Lineage Journey
You have already heard in the video how the city of Sardis had a long history of overconfidence. The city believed it was secure and stopped watching for danger.
That background makes the words of Jesus especially powerful. Let’s read what Jesus said to the church in Sardis:
1 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
These are the words of Him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished || in the sight of My God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who || have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with Me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before My Father and His angels. || 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 3, NIV)
Let me call out verse 1 again:
1 …I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. (Revelation 3, NIV)
This church looked alive.
It had a name. It had a reputation. It had activity.
But Jesus says something shocking:
“You have the reputation of being alive, … but you are dead.”
A church can appear alive without actually being spiritually alive.
So let’s dive into this letter, it’s call to renewal, and see what Jesus is saying to us today.
# 1. A Church with a Strong Reputation
As we begin this morning, we see a church that had a strong reputation.
Reputation is everything in the world!
Baseball Card Nets $7.2m Due to Name (Condensed)
Jason Gay, “This Baseball Card Could Be Worth $10 Million. Or Much More.” The Wall Street Journal (11-16-23)
https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/preaching/sermon-illustrations/baseball-card-nets-72m-due-to-name/
Copied from Preaching Today
A couple of years ago, Sportswriter Jason Gay wrote about a rare baseball card of Babe Ruth that went up for auction.
At first glance, the card looked ordinary — just an old piece of cardboard with a baseball player on it. But collectors immediately recognized what it was. This was one of the earliest cards ever made of Babe Ruth.
Only about ten of these cards are known to still exist.
Within hours of the auction opening, the bidding had climbed into the millions. When the auction ended, that small piece of cardboard had sold for $7.2 million.
Why?
Not because of the cardboard. Not because of the ink. Because of the reputation of the man on the card.
Reputation influences how we are perceived.
Your Reputation
Source: David Brown, Hollywood producer (Jaws, Angela's Ashes), quoted at the Stanford Professional Publishing Course, 1999
https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/preaching/sermon-illustrations/your-reputation/
Copied from Preaching Today
Hollywood producer David Brown once said: “The word on the street can make or break you. There is no insurance against word of mouth.”
Sardis had a reputation.
Jesus said in verse 1:?
1 … [Y]ou have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. (Revelation 3, NIV)
People in the community likely looked at this church and thought:
“That is a strong church.”
“That is a faithful church.”
“That church has it all together!”
But reputation and reality are not always the same.
Character over Reputation
Source: John Wooden former UCLA basketball coach, Marriage Partnership, Vol. 13, no. 3.
https://www.christianitytoday.com/pastors/preaching/sermon-illustrations/character-over-reputation/
Copied from Preaching Today
Former UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden, once said, “Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are.”
Sardis should have been concerned about its character.
Why? Because Jesus sees beyond reputation. Jesus sees the real, our character, who we truly are.
Jesus does not judge a church by its reputation.
He judges it by its spiritual life.
When Jesus looked at Sardis, He said: “You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.”
This is the danger of reputational Christianity.
A church can continue its traditions. A church can continue its programs. A church can continue its services.
Yet the spiritual heart of the church can slowly stop beating.
As Paul the Apostle writes in 2 Timothy 3:5, people can have:
5 …a form of godliness but [deny] its power. (2 Timothy 3, NIV)
That describes Sardis.
They had the form.
But they had lost the life.
# 2. A Church That Fell Asleep
Second, this morning, we see a church that had fallen asleep. They were spiritually dead, fallen asleep at the wheel.
Jesus gives a simple but urgent command in verse 2: “Wake up.”
Sardis had not been destroyed by persecution. It had not been destroyed by false teaching. It had simply fallen asleep spiritually.
Overconfidence had led to carelessness. They trusted their reputation instead of guarding their hearts.
Something similar happens in the book of Acts, chapter 20.
There was a young man named Eutychus who was listening to Paul preach. As the night went on, Eutychus grew sleepy. Eventually he fell asleep, fell out of the window from the third story, and died.
The lesson is sobering.
He did not fall because someone pushed him.
He fell because he fell asleep.
The same thing can happen spiritually. Churches rarely die suddenly. More often they fall because they slowly fall asleep.
Prayer becomes routine. Worship becomes mechanical. Passion for Jesus begins to fade.
And before long a church that once had life begins to lose it.
Sometimes spiritual sleep does not look dangerous at all. In fact, it can look very religious. These are the people who come to church every Sunday.
They sing every song. They stand when they are told to stand. They sit when they are told to sit. They bow their heads for the prayers. They take the communion emblems. They listen to the sermon. Some may even take notes.
They follow along through the entire service.
But when the service ends, they walk out the door and nothing changes.
Faith becomes routine. They do not take the message home with them.
There is no prayer life. There is no time in Scripture. There is no meditation on the Word of God. There is no sharing of the gospel.
Their faith exists for one hour on Sunday morning and nowhere else.
And eventually that kind of faith begins to put us to sleep spiritually.
Faith that exists only for Sunday morning eventually becomes faith that has no life at all.
What makes this even more tragic is that many of these people probably were not always this way.
At one time their faith was alive.
When they were first baptized into a life for Jesus, they were excited.
They wanted to learn. They wanted to pray. They wanted to tell others about Jesus.
But somewhere along the way that fire faded.
Maybe temptation slowly pulled them away. Maybe persecution discouraged them. Maybe the distractions and difficulties of life crowded out their devotion. The fire that once burned in their hearts slowly went out.
And now there is little fruit in their lives to even suggest they are still connected to the vine.
You can still attend church. You can still know the songs. You can still understand the language of faith. But the relationship itself begins to fade.
And that is why Jesus speaks these words to Sardis and maybe us today:
“Wake up.”
# 3. A Church Jesus Calls to Renewal
Third, this morning, as with all of the churches, we see a church that Jesus calls to renewal.
Jesus does not just point out what has gone wrong. Jesus does not expose their condition and then walk away. No. Jesus does not want to leave His church where it is. He calls His church to become what it is meant to be.
So, to Sardis, Jesus says:?
2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. (Revelation 3, NIV)
Jesus does not diagnose Sardis as weak, wounded, or barely hanging on. He says they are dead.
And yet even here, He still calls them to renewal.
That is grace. That is mercy. That is hope.
The message to Sardis is not simply a warning. It is a call to renewal.
Jesus gives three clear commands.
Wake up. That is a striking command to give to a dead church. But that is exactly what Jesus does. He speaks life where there is death. He calls them to awaken from spiritual sleep and respond before what remains is gone. Much like Eutychus was brought back to life, so the church in Sardis could be restored.
Remember. Remember what you have received and heard, and hold it fast. Remember the gospel. Remember the truth that first changed your life. Remember the message that once stirred your heart and gave you hope. Return to that truth and cling to it again.
Repent. Repentance means turning. Turning away from spiritual complacency. Turning away from empty routine. Turning back to the relationship we had with Jesus.
This is the path to renewal.
Renewal begins when a church wakes up spiritually.
It begins when believers remember the truth of the gospel.
It begins when hearts return to Jesus.
Jesus did not send these letters merely to expose His church. He sent them to renew His church.
# 4. A Faithful Remnant
This renewal is possible, because fourth this morning, amidst the spiritual death, there is still a faithful remnant. There were still believers in Sardis who had not died spiritually, who kept faith alive in the church, who kept themselves unsoiled by the dirt of sinfulness, corruption, and compromise.
Even in Sardis, where the church was dead, Jesus saw something hopeful. He said in verse 4:
4 [Y]ou have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. (Revelation 3, NIV)
Even in struggling churches, there are faithful believers.
People who still love Jesus. People who still walk with Him. People who have not allowed their faith to grow cold.
Throughout Scripture, renewal often begins with a faithful remnant. God does not need a crowd to begin revival. Sometimes He begins with just a few faithful hearts.
Think about the days of Noah. At that time, the entire world had turned away from God. Well, all except one man and his family. Noah and his family remained faithful. And through that small remnant, God preserved life and began again.
In the days of Elijah, Israel had largely turned away from God and followed Baal. Elijah became discouraged and thought he was the only faithful believer left. He cried out to God that he alone remained.
But God corrected him. God said that He had preserved seven thousand in Israel who had not bowed the knee to Baal.
Even when the nation appeared spiritually lost, God had a faithful remnant. There were still a few who had not compromised. That sounds very much like Sardis.
Or consider that after the death and resurrection of Jesus, the followers of Jesus gathered in an upper room waiting for the promise of the Holy Spirit. There were not thousands. There were only about 120 believers.
But through those few faithful disciples, God launched the mission of the church into the world.
From that small remnant in the upper room, the gospel spread across nations.
God has often changed the course of history through a faithful few.
That is an encouraging word for the church. Jesus does not only see what is dead. He also sees who is still faithful.
He sees the ones who still pray. He sees the ones who still believe. He sees the ones who still obey. He sees the ones who still walk with Him when others have grown cold.
Often, those few faithful believers become the very beginning of renewal and revival.
A church may look dead on the outside, and yet Jesus may still be at work through a faithful few on the inside.
Never underestimate what God can do through a remnant that remains true to Him.
# 5. The Promise to the Overcomer
Finally, this morning, there is a promise to the overcomer. Jesus promises:
5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before My Father and His angels. (Revelation 3, NIV)
Those who remain faithful will be dressed in white. They will wear garments of righteousness, cleansed by the blood of Jesus.
White signifies victory. White symbolizes purity. White reflects redemption. These will not be our old sin-stained robes. Our garments of sin will be cast aside. We will be clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ.
But that is not all.
The victorious — the faithful — the ones who overcome — will have their names written in the Lamb’s book of life.
The very book that reflects whether Jesus claims us as His own. It is not our works that get us there. It is not our goodness that gets us there. It is not our reputation that gets us there. It is all Jesus.
And then Jesus says something even more wonderful.
He says, “I will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels.” This is a call back to Jesus’ words in Matthew 10, where Jesus tells His disciples:
32 “Whoever acknowledges Me before others, I will also acknowledge before My Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns Me before others, I will disown before My Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10, NIV)
Think about that.
Jesus has promised not once, but twice, to confess our name before the Father if we are found faithful to Him.
Jesus will say, “This one belongs to Me.”
Jesus will not be ashamed to claim His people.
He will acknowledge before heaven itself that we are His.
There is an old story about a man who arrived at the gates of heaven, and he was asked, “How did you get here?”
The man thought for a moment.
It could not be because he was perfect, because he was not. He had sinned. He had failed.
It could not be because he had done enough good, because even in his best moments he still had pride, anger, and sin in his heart.
And at last he gave the only right answer.
He said, “I am here because Jesus invited me.”
That is the only hope any of us have.
Not our goodness. Not our record. Not our reputation.
Only Jesus. Only His grace. Only His blood. Only His righteousness. Only His invitation.
And that is the promise to the overcomer.
Those who belong to Jesus will be clothed in white.
Their names will never be blotted out.
And Jesus Himself will confess them before the Father and before His angels.
That is not just a promise for Sardis.
That is a promise for all who remain faithful to Christ.
# Conclusion
A DYING CHURCH
By Garris Hudson
Copied from Sermon Central
This morning, as we draw to a close, I am reminded of a story that John MacArthur tells. He writes:
There once was an old church in England. A sign on the front of the building read, ''We preach Christ crucified.'' After a time, ivy grew up and obscured the last word and it read, 'We preach Christ.''
The ivy grew some more, and the sign read, "We preach.'' Finally, ivy covered the entire sign, and the church died.
Such is the fate of any church that slowly allows the center of its message to disappear.
First Christ crucified is forgotten.
Then Christ Himself is forgotten.
And eventually the church forgets why it exists at all.
That is what had happened in Sardis.
Sardis teaches us a sobering truth.
A church can have activity without life. It can have reputation without reality. It can have religion without renewal.
But Jesus did not abandon Sardis. He called them to wake up.
And that same call still comes to the church today.
The question is not whether a church once had life. The question is whether it is listening to Jesus today.
And the message of Jesus to Sardis is simple:
Wake up. Wake up from routine faith. Wake up from spiritual sleep. Wake up from reputation without reality.
Because the good news is this: Jesus does not only warn sleeping churches. He calls them to wake up and live again.
And any church that listens to His voice can still experience renewal.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches!
