The Persecuted Church - 8

They were gathered in a secret place.

Thirty or so of them, they'd come together to worship corporately. And just a short time after they gathered, the doors of the room bursted open and in walked men with masks and guns. They instructed everybody there to put their hands up and said, Anybody who wants to live, denounce your faith in Jesus and leave. And of that group, two or three, with their heads bowed, left the room. Those who remain fully anticipated losing their life and being ushered into eternity. Those masked men with the guns then said to that remaining group, Put your hands down. We're going to worship our God.

You say, Well, why would someone do that? Well, if you lived in a place in this world where it was against the law to gather for worship, you would want to be sure that those you're gathered with are true believers in Jesus Christ. Now we ask the question, hypothetically, does everyone in a situation like that, that leaves for fear of their life to save their life, does that mean every one of those is an unbeliever?

I would have to say not necessarily. There are some who are fearful and timid and weak and young in the faith, but a good many who are mere professors aren't going to stand with that group and give their life for their testimony in Christ. Folks, we're living in a day where persecution is not that far from our doorstep.

I think we would all be conscious of that as we see what's going on in the world. But as we grow more and more concerned about persecution coming to us, let's not be ignorant of the church of Jesus Christ, the persecuted church, that's been facing persecution for years and decades and centuries. There are brothers, there are sisters in Christ. Jesus has words for the persecuted church and we have it here in Revelation chapter 2. The church of Smyrna was a persecuted church. The church of Smyrna is the only one of the seven churches that is mentioned here in Revelation chapter 2 that remains today. It's a city in Turkey.

The church of Smyrna existed about and was located about 40 miles north of Ephesus along the Aegean Sea. It was a city with a strong harbor, so it was a safe place. But it was also a place of pagan worship. It was a place controlled by the Romans. It was a place where emperor worship was predominant. And it was because faithful Christians refused to bow and worship Caesar that they were being persecuted. The church of Smyrna is not the only, but is one of two churches that Jesus had no words of correction, no word of rebuke, no criticism of them whatsoever.

It is the shortest letter of the seven. What else would I say about this church? It was a church that was in rivalry with Ephesus for the strongest, most predominant church in Asia Minor. Some called it the crown jewel of Asia Minor, such as the church of Smyrna. Scripture does not tell us anything about the founding of the church of Smyrna. It's not mentioned in the book of Acts. And if we didn't have these four or five verses in Revelation, we would know nothing of this church.

It's presumed that either Paul or some of his converts planted the church of Smyrna. But again, that's all presumption. We do not know that for fact.

Now think about this. The Lord Jesus, writing to this church, has no words of rebuke, no words of criticism, no words of correction. How do we explain that? Was this a perfect church?

I doubt it. How do we understand that in the context of the persecution the church was enduring? Listen to these words from Dr. John MacArthur. Throughout its history, the seemingly paradoxical truth has been that the more the church has been persecuted, the greater has been its purity and strength. This paradoxical reality. The more the church has been persecuted, the greater has been its purity and strength. It has a way of testing, it has a way of purging, it has a way of purifying the church.

Pretenders don't hang around when the heat gets turned up. Just like I illustrated at the very beginning about that hypothetical situation. This morning I'd like to look at these verses with you under these four headings. We want to think about the introduction. We want to consider the word of commendation that is given here concerning the church. There is words of commandment, there is commands for this church. And then lastly, there are some words of consolation to the church. So, introduction, commendation, command, and consolation. That's how we'll approach this portion.

Introduction. And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, These things, says the first and the last, who was dead and came to life. For reasons that I don't have time to connect all these dots for you, there are commentators who speculate if you take the interpretation that the angels of the church or the elders or the pastor of the church, which I've taken in previous messages, that this is not an angelic being, this angel is a messenger, and messenger as to the head of that church. And if you take that, there are those who speculate that the angel or the elder or the pastor or the bishop over the church of Smyrna as John was writing, guess who he was? Polycarp, the man famous for giving his life as a martyr for Christ. Again, I don't have the time to connect those dots.

I've read through that and I thought, you know what, that is plausible, that is merit, the timing, the age of the writing of the letter and so on and so forth, but explore that for your own benefit. But notice what Jesus says. These things, verse 8, says the first and the last. So at the very beginning, here are words to the persecuted church who is speaking to the church is the one who stands at the beginning of history and he stands at the end of history. He orders all things that transpire in history, he stands at the end of history, and as I prayed earlier, he's working all things after the counsel of his own will. He's the last. He's the one toward whom all things are moving, the goal for which they exist and the final explanation for everything that is.

He's the one who stands as much at the back of history as the one who was at the front of history. And we need that encouragement. This church needed that encouragement because they needed to know that what they were enduring was decreed by a God who controls all of history, that there was purpose, that there was fruit to be born because of what they were enduring. It's good to be reminded of that when calamity comes and sickness comes and hospitalization comes and medical procedures come and financial hardship comes and relational stress and pressures come, that God, if we're a believer in Jesus Christ, God has a good purpose in those things for us. And I don't know about you, but that's not the first thought that comes to my mind when things start going off the rails in my world.

I don't say, you know, Pastor Carnes, God has a wise and gracious purpose. Now it's your job to be tuned into that, to be submitted to that, and to be wondering what that might be and to help people. I need myself to be reoriented around this reality often, and I'm thinking if that's true of me, it's probably true of you as well. Too often when the pressure's on and the wheels come off the wagon, we're only interested in getting the wheel back on the wagon and getting on with life. So we're praying, Lord, help me get over this, get beyond this, resolve this. What if God says, you know what, I've ordained that storm for your life, and it's not my purpose right now to end the storm but to preserve you in the storm, to teach you something in the storm, to remind you of things in the storm that you wouldn't learn any other way.

That's what God is about. The persecuted church. They were facing the real possibility of death, and they needed to be reassured that there was something beyond the grave, and that's why we have these words at the very beginning before he says any words of commendation to them. These things says the first and the last who was dead and came to life. He was dead, but he came to life. And each one of these letters borrow words from what John was shown in this vision, this glorious vision of Christ in chapter 1. And if you take the time to go back and look at verses 17 and 18, you can pick out the words that are recorded that John experienced as he was granted this vision of the glorious Christ, and those words are found here almost verbatim.

The first and the last who was dead and came to life. I used to think that those words really only had meaning when your life was ebbing away and you're coming to the end of your life, and it meant an awful lot that there's life beyond the grave. There's something worth living for. There's something worth looking forward to. But my question now is, is that just for people north of 50?

Is that just for people north of 80? Is that true for people in their teens and in their 20s and in their 30s? It ought to be true for all of us, because our confidence that there's life beyond the grave means that life is worth living here and now, that it has value here and now. I think at times we have misunderstood what eternal life is. Eternal life isn't life that begins when earthly life ends. Eternal life is granted to us at the place of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We become possessors of eternal life. You say, well, if we have eternal life, then when we physically die, life really hasn't ended, has it? No, it hasn't.

We've just changed addresses. Life is just a long continuum for the Christian. So rather than thinking that life is really the best part of our life is after we die, no, Jesus said, I've come that you might have life and have it, what, more abundantly. We ought to be experiencing this eternal life now that God has given.

And what is that? Jesus said, this is eternal life, that they might know thee, the only true God in Jesus Christ whom thou has sent. What is eternal life? It is a relationship with God the Father through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. And if somehow you are believing that you are in possession of eternal life and it is detached from that, a relationship with God through His Son, then you don't have the eternal life that's promised. You have something else. That life continues now, grows, deepens, becomes more rich, and then it ushers into a realm beyond our wildest imagination.

So it's a continuous thing. That's the introduction. Let's think now first or secondly about words of commendation, words of commendation. Jesus says to this church three things He knows about them. I know your works, your tribulation, and your poverty.

I know your works. And that word know is not the Greek word epigonosko, that's knowledge that's gained through experience, but it is a knowledge that God alone has that's comprehensive. God knows everything. They were to be strengthened and encouraged by their knowledge of God's knowledge of them. Why do we talk to folks about our struggles and the things that are going on in our life? Well, because we find help and strength and encouragement by sharing it with one another, because we bear one another's burdens, we pray for one another.

Well, if that's true on a horizontal plane, how much more true is it of a relationship with God the Father? He knows everything that's going on. Hasn't caught Him by surprise. He's ordering those things.

He's using those things for our good and His own glory. So that's the first thing that they're told. I know. I know what? I know your works. And in the context of a persecuted church, what works could be being referred to here? I know your works. I think your works of faithfully enduring persecution for my name's sake.

I think that's the work that they're being commended for. Secondly, He says, I know your tribulation. I know your tribulation.

That word literally means pressure. It's the common New Testament word for persecution or tribulation. The church. And when I say the church, I mean those who make up the church. We can't talk of church, the church of Smyrna, and not think of individual people that make up that church any more than we talk about Beacon Baptist Church and divorce that from the people who make up Beacon Baptist Church. So I don't want to depersonalize this by talking about the church of Smyrna. We need to be thinking about the people who make up the church of Smyrna.

And what were they doing? They were enduring pressure, persecution, tribulation for their faithfulness to Jesus Christ. And I think a good many of us know that to some measure, some degree in our particular context, whether it's at work or our family or our neighborhood.

There is pressure. There is tribulation. There is a price to pay to be identified as a follower of Jesus Christ. And if you struggle identifying yourself, if you're a silent Christian, if you are hesitant to identify yourself, I would just challenge you to think about, well, if I'm having that kind of difficulty now, what will it say about me when the heat really gets turned up, when the persecution really comes upon us in this country? I thought of a lot of things that I was thinking of including in the sermon today. Typically, as most preachers are, they've got two hours' worth of words and thoughts in their head for a 45-minute message. So you just kind of put those things out in the peripheral and you trust God. If you want any of that brought into the sermon, remind me while I'm preaching.

I mean, seriously, I'm helping you understand at least the way I preach, and this came to my mind. I read an article by an educator in one of the colleges in the state of North Carolina, and he was speaking about people like you and I, speaking of those who use the curriculum of a Becca that is used at Bob Jones University in Pensacola and other places. He's speaking about people who homeschool their children, and he was writing to warn his constituents, and whoever would listen to him, of how dangerous we were.

And, you ready for this? This is the title he attached to people like us. He referred to us as the Tar Heel Taliban. The Tar Heel Taliban.

This is a professor at one of the major universities in the state of North Carolina. Persecution is on us, folks. Persecution is on us. This tribulation, this pressure that was on them, was because they faced the wrath of the Roman government. Why? Because they refused to give allegiance and worship the emperor. Was there a cost to that? Oh yeah, capital offense for such refusal.

You can lose your life. What else did this persecution look like? Well, notice what it says here. He says, I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are synagogue of Satan. Well, that word synagogue and attached to Jews remind us that there was a significant Jewish population in the city of Smyrna.

There was the synagogue of Smyrna. There were people who identified themselves as belonging to God because of their ethnicity. They were Jews. And Jesus is saying, nobody is in a right relationship with God nor with me, who is a Jew outwardly. It's those who have been made a Jew inwardly by the circumcision of the heart. That's why he says, I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not. They're merely outward Jews, physical descendants of Abraham, but they're not.

What are they instead? They are a synagogue of Satan. Well, that's not politically correct, is it? Those are harsh words, but that's what Jesus called them, a synagogue of Satan. And why would he say such a thing? Because it was Jews in those synagogues who were exposing the Christians and turning them over to the Roman government, just like it was Jews who turned Jesus over to the Roman government to be abused and ultimately killed.

That's what's going on. And then it says they were, I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews. That word blasphemy, you may have a translation that makes that word slander. They were slandered, they were blasphemed. And what was the accusations? What were they accused of? What were they slandered concerning?

Well, there were a number of things. They were accused of cannibalism. You say cannibalism? Yes, because they ate of the body and the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. That's a reference to the Lord's table. It was totally misunderstood, but the outside world says those people are cannibals.

They talk about eating blood and eating the body. They were called promiscuous. They were called immoral.

Why? Because they had love feasts. They greeted each other with a holy kiss, completely again misunderstood. They were accused of being against the family. You say, well, what's behind that? Well, when people came to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, they divided families.

Husbands from wives and children from their parents. That's what happened. They were accused of atheism.

What is that? Atheism because they had no visible idols or images that they worshipped. Well, they're atheists. They were considered politically disloyal and called revolutionaries because they did not give the allegiance to the emperor that the law commanded of them.

And you ready for the last one? They were slandered and accused of being arsonists. Arsonists? Yeah, arsonists because they had a view that the world would end in flames and destruction. And all those things were true, but they were totally misconstrued and misunderstood.

And they were slandered concerning those things. Tribulation, pressure. And then it says this in verse 10, do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. So persecution had come.

It was a present reality, but there was more persecution coming that was in the future. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed the devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be tested and you will have tribulation ten days.

Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. There was imprisonment coming. Perhaps imprisonment already had taken place for some. And when you see the word imprisonment in this context, there is no such thing as long-term incarceration. It's not like you were sentenced for 30 years in jail and it's like a, you know. Now incarceration in that context was a place where you were held in jail until you were executed. So those things need to be understood in context. Incarceration meant martyrdom for them. That's what they were facing.

Imprisonment and martyrdom. And then, again this is commendation, Jesus is saying I know your works, tribulation and poverty. I know your poverty. Well the city of Smyrna was rich. It was an economic network.

There was so much going on. So how is it possible that these believers were poor in a city that was prosperous? Well because they were paying a price for their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. They were ostracized. They weren't given jobs.

They weren't a part of the guilds and so on and so forth. And they were impoverished. That word impoverished speaks of lacking the necessities of life. But notice what Jesus says in parentheses. I know your works, tribulation and poverty, but you are rich.

Now what's going on there? How can you be both poor and rich at the same time? Well you can be poor in terms of this world's goods and wealth, the way the world esteems wealth.

But you can be what? Rich toward God. We have these words in James chapter 2 and verse 5. God has chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom. Which would you rather be this morning? Rich as the world deems rich and wealthy as the world calculates wealth or rich toward God? Spiritually wealthy. Spiritually full. And I know what you're thinking.

You know what I think I think you're thinking? I want both. Well in God's distribution of blessings and benefits that is the reality for some. But if you had to choose, if you had to choose poverty of soul over the wealth of this world, what would you choose? Well I don't know until that opportunity comes. Oh you've already chosen.

You've already chosen. It's evident in the way you live your life. Are you storing up riches on earth where moth and rust and thieves break in and steal? Or are you laying up treasures in heaven? As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.

Wherever your treasure is, there will your heart be also. They were rich. Jesus had to remind them of that.

And I think the reason Jesus had to remind them of that is because when we are under persecution, and part of that persecution is lacking of just the temporal necessities of life, we're focused on that. And he needed to remind them, oh don't forget the fact that you're rich. You are rich. You have riches nobody can take from you.

Eternal riches. Words of commendation. Words of commendation. Now let's think of the commandment that's here. There are two in verse 10.

They are number one, do not fear. Do not fear, and at the end of verse 10, be faithful unto death. Do not fear and be faithful unto death. So after commending them for their enduring of persecution, Jesus warned the believers more was coming.

And then he gives these commands in the light of that reality. Yes, persecution is here and more persecution is coming and you will be imprisoned and you will be put to death. Do not fear.

Do not fear. How's that possible? How is that possible? You say the only way that's possible is God gives enabling grace.

I wrote to Paul Karp earlier in my message. He was 100 years old and he was pressured to recant his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And this is what they said to him. What harm is there in saying Lord Caesar and in sacrificing with the other ceremonies observed on such occasions and so make sure of your safety?

What's the harm? He was asked. This is what Paul Karp responded.

Eighty and six years have I served him and he never did me any wrong. How then can I blaspheme my king and my savior? And when they determined that they were going to burn him alive, this is what Paul Karp said. And it's in Old English, quote, thou threatenest me with fire which burneth for an hour and after a little is extinguished, but art ignorant of the fire of the coming judgment and of eternal punishment reserved for the ungodly. End of quote, he said.

Whoa. If they were infuriated before, they were sure infuriated after that. But we read the testimonies of the martyrs and of their fearless courage standing in the face of death for the sake of Christ. I don't know about you, but have you ever thought, you know, if persecution got to the place where it was my allegiance to Jesus Christ or my physical life, what would I do?

Have you thought that through? Would I stand for Christ? Would I be willing to give my life?

Would I be unwilling to recant and deny my faith in Jesus? That's a sobering question if you want to be honest with yourself, right? Because by natural inclination, we are people who are given to the preservation of our lives.

People will do anything to preserve their life, which seems most anything. And the answer I have for that question, at least in my own mind, is this. That if God ordained and in His providence determined that for my life, that there would be grace given to stand. I'm not sure how confident we can be in the hypothetical.

You hear what I'm saying? I think that if that time came and that's what God was requiring of us, that He would supply what we needed at that moment. It's similar to, God doesn't bring a dump truck and dump a dump truck load of grace in your backyard for you to draw upon whenever you think you might need it. There is grace to help in what?

Time of need. When the need arises, grace is supplied. Because if there was a dump truck load of grace in the backyard, if we could envision what that might look like, we would be inclined to live by sight and not by faith. We've been commanded to live by faith and not by sight. So, we've looked at some introductory matters, words of commendation, commandments. Do not fear and be faithful unto death. And what's the consolation, promise to those who do that very thing? Two things that are promised.

What are they? Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. That's the first. And the second, you shall not be hurt by the second death. The second death will have no effect on you. Well, what's the second death? The second death is a metaphor for hell. You will never ever, and it's communicated in the Greek in the strongest possible negative terms, you will never ever, ever be hurt by the second death. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death. What comes after death? What comes after death is what really matters. There's a crown of life, a crown of life for those who remain faithful, a crown of immortality. And those who are faithful will not be hurt by the second death. Now, Jesus encourages the Smurnons to remain faithful unto physical death and he will give them the crown of life. That is the power to persevere comes from a faith in the certainty of God's promised reward.

It's not being so earthbound, so focused on the here and now, it's realizing that there is a promise beyond the grave that is more sure than anything. A crown of life. And if I, if you, receive the crown of life, which I don't and you don't deserve, in place of what we do deserve, the lake of fire, it can only be for one reason.

And what is that one reason? Jesus Christ, by a marvelous exchange, has died that I might live, has suffered that I might be set free, and has for me faced the wrath of God that I deserve to face. But because he faced it and exhausted the wrath of God in my place, I will never see it.

I will never face it and neither will you. And if we're going to escape the second death, the explanation is the same. Jesus, in unfathomable mercy and grace, has suffered in our place. So what is the exhortation? The exhortation is to be faithful, Christian. Faithful men and women, and rejoice, child of God, and give thanks that you never, by any means, will ever suffer the second death. That's what's been secured for us in our Savior. Folks, there's nothing that we are more deserving than the second death. There's nothing more fitting, more just, more righteous than that I in you should suffer forever in the lake of fire. And the only reason why I won't and you won't is that Jesus endured that in himself, the judgment that was deserved for us.

And that's cause for rejoicing, folks. That's what sustains us in the face of persecution. That's what will sustain us when life begins to ebb away and our life on earth is done and we're coming to the end of this earthly sojourn. What awaits us? A crown of life!

A crown of life! And the confidence that we will not ever in any way face the second death. And if that's true of you, and it is true of you if you are trusting in Jesus Christ this morning, don't ever envy a lost person. Why would you envy a lost person? Because they got a bigger house, a bigger boat, a nicer car?

It's all going to burn up someday? And they're going to die and go to hell? Why would you ever envy that? If they understood what we understood, they ought to envy us. And that envy ought to motivate them, and it would apart from their depravity, to trust the Lord Jesus Christ. I'm amazed at how practical and how relevant the word of God is. There's so much in the news constantly that is reminding us that the heat is being turned up and persecution is coming and it's coming in waves.

And the church better be ready for it, because the church is, I fear, weak and unprepared for it. There's something that strengthens and fortifies and galvanizes a person, and it is the fires of adversity. Isn't it true? When you think back over your Christian life and you think, you know what? I grew the most. I was the most assured when I was in the middle of that mess.

Why? Because God was with me. God sustained me. God gave grace. God grew me through that.

I learned things I couldn't have learned any other way. And if that's our experience, and if we've lived our Christian lives very long, God will take us through those things because that's what He does with all of His children, because He's in the business of purifying us and sanctifying us and testing us. And persecution is just that intensified.

It looks a little different, but God has the same end in mind. That's why it says there, I know your works, tribulation and poverty, but you are rich, and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be what? Tested. That you may be tested. He's writing to the church that you may be tested, that you may be tried, that you may be proven.

Tests are a good thing. And I'm convinced faith that hasn't been tested can't be trusted. But God wants to test our faith so that when the heat does get turned on, we have confidence in Him. Our confidence isn't in us. Our confidence isn't in our faith, because our faith, quite frankly, is frail and fragile and weak and lacking. But our confidence is in the God who gives faith, and He will strengthen our faith. He will enable us to stand in that day for our eternal good and for His ultimate glory. Let's pray. Father, thank You for Your Word.

Thank You for its instruction. Oh God, we pray that You would galvanize and strengthen Your church. Prepare us for the difficulties that are ahead.

Things are going to most likely get very challenging in America for the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. For us, Lord, help us not to be fearful. Help us to look beyond this life to the eternity that awaits us.

The crown of life that You have promised. And, oh God, may we never diminish the reality that because we are in Jesus Christ, we will never, ever face the second death. Thank You, our Father. Thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, for making that possible for us. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.