The Message to the church at Sardis. Rev 3:1-6 WBC 20/7/3am
INTRODUCTION:
This is where we are this Sunday morning- the modern day city of Sart
- situated at the foot of Mt Tmolus
- Excavations of the city have unearthed a Roman theatre, stadium, and a large but unfinished temple to Cybele, a fertility goddess and the patron deity of the city. The most prominent section of the city was the necropolis, or cemetery "of a thousand hills", just outside the city and so-named because of the large number of burial mounds visible from the city walls. The citizens of Sardis were preoccupied with death.
- Sardis was the ancient capital of Lydia (13th Century BC); in 546 BC it fell captive to Cyrus and became the seat of the Persian governor. In 133 BC the city fell to Rome. Sardis was a prosperous centre of trade and industry. The art of dyeing wool was invented and perfected by Sardis merchants ("Wake Up and Live” Pastor Bob Leroe)
So- what does Jesus have to say to them?
- Read Rev 3:1-6
What a shock! What does He commend- nothing!
- the only thing that is good about them is their reputation!
o Shows us that the Lord often feels differently to us!
- They may have been pleasing LOADS… but not the LORD, and here’s the thing:
o He’s who it’s all about!
o He sees everything! (sees what they don’t see)
That’s part of the sevenfold Spirit (v1).
REV 5:6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
He sees that they are as good as dead… and those who aren’t are asleep (hence: “Wake up! You’re about to die!”)
So- what happened? How did they get in this state? How can WE avoid doing likewise? What killed them?
Here’s what killed them:
COMFORT
She was comfortable in a number of ways.
- good reputation. Good number of people. Good income
o Illustr: Beechen Grove Bappo, Watford
- Comfortable city
o Wealthy & secure (or FELT secure)
o Apparently old city sat atop huge rock walls, overlooking the Hermuz valley
Considered itself impregnable! But fell 3 times because of its complacency. By stealth not attack
- The most notable defeat came by the Persian conqueror Cyrus. He offered a reward to the first one who was able to climb the seemingly impregnable city wall. A watchful soldier observed a city guard accidentally drop his helmet over the battlements. Thinking that no one was watching, the guard climbed down the precipice to retrieve his helmet and carried it back. Natural decay of the cliff enabled the guard to climb down the cracks in the rock and return. The watchful Persian soldier that night scaled the rocky cliff unhindered, followed by a large number of his fellow troops. When they reached the top they discovered the battlements were completely unguarded. They moved with the element of surprise and quickly penetrated the city’s defence. The erosion of the wall and the un-watchfulness of the city’s guards undermined the defence of Sardis and it swiftly fell to the Persian invaders. (("Wake Up and Live” Pastor Bob Leroe)
o A bloke called Kiddle writes in his commentary (p45):
“secure, complacent, like the city she lived in, untroubled by persecution or heresy, she ‘set herself the task of avoiding hardship by pursuing a policy based on convenience and circumspection, rather than whole-hearted zeal’
The church had (already!) got into maintenance mode: setting out to be respectable… and ‘not strain herself!’
- and it was killing her!
You see- we are not, as churches or as Christians, designed for an easy life! If we seek it (not even FIND it!) we shall die
- it’s a bad translation but it’s true: without a vision people perish (Pr29:18)
So- two application points
1) when discomfort comes your way- it might be GOD, keeping you ALIVE (spiritually). (He comes to challenge and console)
2) don’t slip into the ‘anything for an easy life… energy wise, time-wise, holiday wise, lifestyle-wise… SPIRITUALLY’
- it might kill your soul. Many of us are surprised when we find our souls dying- but we started sowing ‘death’ some time previously when we chose ‘ease’ over ‘obedience’
Note: I’m NOT saying get into frenetic activity. That may be just the kind of mistake they made here. Looked good but was actually unproductive and useless
- I’m saying: just don’t focus on ‘ease and comfort’
• Tell God you’re available for the radical
Illustr: I have to be honest with you: I constantly feel the ‘comfort’ and culture of our churches & Christianity draining my soul. Killing it
- it allows you to be busy… but just tells you ‘your faith should be COMFORTABLE, as well… ‘
LK 12:18 "Then he said, `This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I’ll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." ’
LK 12:20 "But God said to him, `You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
Beware of things that wage war on your soul! And beware of things that have you externally busy but not BUILDING the kingdom
- building the KOG starts in HERE (heart). It’s attitude. THEN the DEEDS follow
• and that’s why our deeds can be so few or so dead- the heart isn’t right.
COMPLACENCY
It seems they were complacent as well… and certainly our experience would confirm that complacency can kill your soul our the church
What makes me think they were complacent:?
- V2 “I have not found your deeds COMPLETE in the sight of my God’
- You have only a few people who have not soiled their CLOTHES
There was this sense in them that ‘oh, you don’t really have to take your faith seriously. You’re 70% there. That’s enough’
- but Jesus says ‘you haven’t completed’
- if it’s ME you’re serving… pleasing… then:
• finish the job.. what you’ve started
o (they weren’t completers- even the pagan temple wasn’t completed)
• be faithful
• you can’t be 70% a Christian!
(there is NO place for nominal Christianity. Either Jesus was right – in which case he must be 100% Lord… or don’t follow it at all.
can’t be a complacent compromiser. Must be a completer for Christ
Complacency is being satisfied with where you’re at… less than 100%
- “well, Lord, I’m doing pretty good because I haven’t slept with my girlfriend outside marriage… but as for my work life- well, that’s my own- hands off and be grateful for what you’ve got as 2 out of 3 aint bad”
- I go to church on Sunday. God and I are happy with that.
Well- to them, to show up their complacency, the Lord says ‘there’s this little thing of soiled garments. Now- a few of you don’t have soiled garments, but it is only a few’
- they would have understood this. Not least being in the clothes dying trade. A bit of soiling mattered!
- And in that culture- appropriate dress mattered. Nobody would have entered a temple or synagogue inappropriately dressed
• Dishonoured the temple
• Disqualified the visitor. Could have your name removed from civic registrar and lose citizenship
It seems they complacently thought ‘being right with God really doesn’t matter. He is love so He’ll overlook a bit of sin… lackadaisical attitude. I don’t need to repent’
- you do. You need to be dressed in white. Fine deeds. Clear devotion. Forgiveness of Christ
Or your soul can die
NO CHILDREN
But I want to cover, now, the thing that will REALLY cause one’s soul or church to die. It’s not clearly in the text- but it comes as a logical outworking of points 1 & 2
- seeing no spiritual children
Our culture is a funny old thing. So many of us (me included) want ‘high’s’ all the time.
- our Christian culture is little different
- folks can run from one church or conference to another, seeking the ‘latest thing’. Something to keep them ‘up’
• NOT saying it’s ALL wrong. We need a bless-up, sometimes! It’s right! (Have one and bring it back!)
But- I’ll tell you the only thing that will keep you ‘up’ as a Christian, church… long-term
- it’s seeing people come through for Jesus!
• seeing new birth. New faith. New children
Because it’s what we are designed…destined for
- Christianity isn’t really designed for the sedentary, settled context
• It’s a MISSIONARY thing
And maybe one reason we don’t see all we’d like to… the Bible shows us (prophetic ministry, healings etc etc)
- is because we’re all practicing one EACH OTHERS
- it’s kind of incestuous and introspective
Let me tell you- seeing people come trough for Jesus will lift your faith! Make you believe God can do anything! Stir up your small group! Shake up your church. Bring LIFE!
Now- this kind of sermon makes us all want to help on Alpha (I hope!) but:
- can’t all help on Alpha! (yet!)
- that doesn’t solve the problem- as the root of the problem still remains if you don’t really have any CONTACT with pre-Christians! You’re just trying to harvest someone else’s sowing
Our theology can indirectly bring this spiritual death about, too
- Illustr: previous church. Someone who genuinely loved the Lord… but didn’t believe others needed to hear about Him, too. Spiritual ‘death’ pervaded their service of the Lord, and their own life. ‘Having crossed over the bridge yourself- you’ve burned it so others can’t cross…and it’s killing YOU and denying THEM life’
Maybe that was what was happening, here
So- unlike Sardis: let’s not get COMFORATBLE in our faith. Let’s not get COMPLACENT (and settle for less than the best)- and let’s set out to produce CHILDREN for the Lord
- it’s never to late! Sardis was dire- but not irredeemable:
• remember, obey, repent
“He who has an ear let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches!
