The Seven Churches-Sardis Series

The Seven Churches-Sardis

Introduction: The year 1747, a park bench in Warsaw, Poland in the mid-1950’s, and a church in what’s now western Turkey. On the surface, there doesn’t seem to be a common thread, but the truth is that all of these refer to the church in Sardis. This church is the fifth in the Seven Churches and, like all the rest, has some things common with and some things unique in what the Lord Jesus Christ had to say.

(Full disclosure: This message is based on a sermon I preached at New Hope Baptist Church near Fulton, MO, on November 16, 2025 but is not an exact transcription.)

1 The Picture of Jesus

Text: Revelation 3:1a, KJV: 1 And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars;

May I first say that there is only one “Spirit of God”, and He is the Holy Spirit. I know some have tried to argue something, like, “Oh, look, there isn’t a Trinity, there’s a multitude”, but that doesn’t hold water when thoughts like those stand next to Scripture. When the Lord talks about “THE (emphasis added) Holy Spirit”, He meant and still means there’s only One.

But what did the Lord mean when He said He had the “seven Spirits of God”? Dr. John Gill, who lived in the 18th century, wrote in 1747, “these things saith he that hath the seven spirits of God; the fulness and perfection of the gifts and graces of the Spirit of God, as in Revelation 1:4 , which Christ, as Mediator, has without measure, and are at his dispose, and which he, having received for men, gives unto them; and at the time of the Reformation bestowed them on many eminent servants of his in a very plenteous manner; for which reason he assumes this character in writing to this church: (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/gill/revelation/3.htm)”.

There is a small but noticeable difference, though, between what was in Revelation 1:4 and the message to the angel (senior pastor?) at Sardis. Dr, Ellicott makes an observation about this in his commentary (https://biblehub.com/commentaries/ellicott/revelation/3.htm). It’s important to remember that the Holy Spirit, even though He is God, a member of the Trinity, does nothing without the approval of the Father and Son (see John 14-16 for examples). The same could be said for the seven stars: the Lord said He held them in Rev. 1:4; sadly, in the case of Sardis, the Lord still has them—Sardis didn’t.

I have to confess, this picture of the Lord is one of the briefest of all He gave to His churches. Now He moves on to the words of praise—but there really aren’t any to speak of!

2 The Warnings about the Problems

Text, Revelation 3:1b-3, KJV: 1b I know thy works, 2 that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. 2 Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. 3 Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

To me, it’s a bit of a shock or a “hey, what happened here?” because even though the Lord mentions, “I know thy works”, He doesn’t list any of them. This is worse than Ephesus, where the saints were still going, but they had lost their first love. It’s worse than in Smyrna, where the saints were warned that persecution (tribulation) was coming, 10 days worth, however the phrase “10 days” is defined. At least in Pergamum and Thyatira there was something the Lord noticed, but here, it’s simply “I know thy works.” That was all.

The problem, too, was worse than at any of the other churches. At Sardis, it seemed the saints, such as they were, seemed to be just going through the motions. The Lord said even more clearly than that, saying, “You have a name (recognition) that you’re living, but you’re dead!” Certainly that didn’t mean literally “dead”, as in the soul and spirit leaving the body; the Lord only spoke to a dead body a few times and that was to raise them back to life! The son of the widow of Nain, Jairus’ daughter, and Lazarus of Bethany could all testify to that!

And that declaration, “Thou art dead,” might have scared a lot of the people—not only the saints! Sardis was once one of the wealthiest cities in history. Dr. Barnes, plus others, related that Croesus, one of the richest men in history, was from Sardis (see notes for this verse on line at https://biblehub.com/commentaries/barnes/revelation/3.htm). This may also be an allusion to what Paul said to Timothy: “But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth (1 Tim. 1:6)”.