The Crushed Fragrance of Christ Followers

So the writer of Hebrews said, You joyfully accepted the plundering of your property. How do you joyfully accept the plundering of your property?

Because you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an everlasting one. Hebrews chapter 10 verse 34. It isn't going to be long before we all arrive at the bank. And on the way there, if somebody asks you, Are you rich? In Christ, you can say with great confidence, present tense, I'm rich. You may not be rich financially.

Maybe you're struggling. Maybe your life involves some persecution. But in Christ, you can say with certainty that you are rich.

That's because you're the recipient of God's grace. In the book of Revelation, there was a church that was undergoing persecution. Today, you'll be encouraged as we examine what the Lord said to that church and about that church. This is Wisdom for the Heart with Stephen Davey. Today's lesson is called The Crushed Fragrance of Christ Followers. Let's get started.

Listen to this. According to the International Bulletin of Missionary Research that just came, I read this just this week published in World Magazine dated February 9th, 2008. They are estimating that 480 Christians are being martyred somewhere in the world for Christ every single day. That means before I end this sermon, 20 more will be ushered into the presence of their Lord.

They refused to recant on faith in following him. But this was the promise of Christ, was it not? In Matthew 10, verse 22 where he said, Just as the world hates me, so the world will hate you.

Behind the scenes, of course, it is Satan, the ultimate anti-Christian who hates the bride that we just sang about, who hates the church and the propagation of the gospel. He knows, and this is just a little side note, but it struck me as I studied this week, he knows that we will one day occupy the throne that he lost in his covetous, arrogant attempt to win. We will co-reign with Christ over the universe and Satan longs for that glory. And when we rise, literally enthroned in heavenly places with Christ, Satan will merely experience one more downward plunge. He was first hurled from heaven to earth, Isaiah 14. He will, in the future, be cast from earth into the abyss for a thousand years, according to Revelation chapter 20, verse 3.

And after a brief release, he will be hurled into the lake of fire, Revelation chapter 20, verse 10. He knows of this. He knows of his never-ending downward plunge, and he knows of the believer's rise to never-ending glory.

And he, for that and a million reasons more, hates you. And he hates the church, and he hates our Christ. So for 21 centuries now, the church has been attacked and he has schemed and plotted, murdered, belittled, slandered, attacked, frustrated, and even tortured the church. If the Christian will enter his glory and rest as far as Satan is concerned, the Christian will enter it having suffered as greatly as he can possibly suffer.

But Satan only ends up hurting himself, doesn't he? For persecution does not stamp out the church, it spreads it. Suffering does not paralyze the church, it purifies it. It promotes the church. It propagates the gospel of the church to a world that wonders how believers can stand true and firm even in the face of suffering. Tertullian, a church father living during the days of Roman's persecution, said this, the blood of the martyrs is the what? The seed of the church. The great quote of his that has lasted to this day, in other words, you spill the blood of a Christian and from the spot where it hits the ground, it seems it only seeds more believers. They just sprout up. The churches just spring up. It's true.

It is true today in places like Algeria and Orissa, India and Russia and Africa, it was certainly true in the first century. For if you crush the life of a believer, from that crushing emanates this fragrance that simply draws more people to Christ. 2 Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14. Out of the seven churches mentioned in Revelation 2 and 3 received a special letter from Christ, only two of them heard not one word of criticism.

The next church we're about to study was one of those two and not surprisingly it was a church that was suffering. Let's open the letter together at Revelation chapter 2. It begins in verse 8. And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write the words of the first and the last who died and came to life.

I know your tribulation and your poverty but you are rich and the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold the devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be tested and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. He who has an ear let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death. In this letter our Lord commends this church in four areas.

He says first of all I know all about you. I know that you bear up under great pressure. Verse 9 your text might read I know your tribulation. The word is thlypsis which means pressure or trouble.

Certainly you could render it tribulation. Now what would it have been in Smyrna that would have produced such great pressure? Without a doubt there are at least a couple of reasons. One you have read it the hatred they endured by the Jews who weren't true followers of faithful Abraham.

We will look at that later on. Secondly let me mention the predominance of Caesar worship because this would be outside the text. We take you back to the days of the Roman Empire which had brought by the way great peace to its citizens. The Pax Romana had allowed them to live secure lives.

No other person could conduct his business. He could provide for his family. He could travel and thanks to the strong hand of Rome he could send his letters out and expect them to be delivered.

He could take his journeys in security. The seas had been cleared of pirates. The paved roads of Rome had been cleared of thieves and brigands.

People no longer needed to live in fear of barbarism. So it was not a stretch that the patriotism and loyalty to Rome would sort of become in this pagan idolatrous world sort of a form of worship. And out of that was born the worship of Dea Roma, the goddess of Rome. Now at first worship of her was voluntary.

It wasn't mandatory. It was rather spontaneous. But over time there rose the belief that there was indeed a person who embodied the spirit of Dea Roma. And it was the emperor himself. First worship to him was simply accepted as the incarnation of the spirit of Rome. But later it would become official. And he would later be viewed as the incarnation of deity.

Isn't that amazing? How like the gospel does the enemy of the church move mankind to create their false religions? Now to make matters worse, toward the end of the first century Domitian made Caesar worship mandatory. And this was the ruler that exiled John to the island of Patmos. Once a year the Romans were expected to burn a pinch of incense to Caesar. If there was a temple of Dea Roma nearby they would go there.

But just about any temple would suffice. To burn that pinch and offer not so much an act of religion but an act of loyalty. An act of good citizenship.

You were just a good citizen if you offered this pinch. You didn't have to worship this particular god. You could go back and worship whomever you wish. But just be a good citizen and offer this pinch of incense to Caesar and then get on with your life.

You can see the problem can't you? Any idolater had no problem offering a pinch of incense to Caesar and calling him a lord. He's just one more god, big deal. But a Christian couldn't do this. They couldn't compromise for 30 seconds.

They could give no man the name of a lord. So without this certificate, persecution, imprisonment, suffering was liable to break out at any moment. Now that was sort of the general scene in the empire. But it only got worse for the believers living in Smyrna. Because Smyrna happened to be totally dedicated to Caesar worship. Yes they had other gods, they had their temple to Zeus. But they were the first city in the world to build a temple to Dea Roma and have priests to take their incense. In fact in AD 26, about 70 years, 65 years or so before this letter would be written, Smyrna competed with six other prominent cities in Asia Minor to get the right, to win the bid, to build the temple honoring the godhead of Tiberius, the reigning emperor.

Kind of like all of the countries of our world compete to have the Olympics take place on their soil. So Smyrna was involved in this massive competition to beat out these other cities and Smyrna won. For a person to enter the faith, to enter the church of Smyrna was to lay your life down. They never knew when the boulder would drop and crush them.

So they lived and they worked with the prospect of this crushing torturous death at any moment. I found it fascinating and not coincidental to discover that the Greek word Smyrna means myrrh. Myrrh, that fragrant spice that is formed by the crushing of the flowering myrrh tree or thorn bush. It produced a sticky resin that they could use to collect and then make into perfume. It was also used significantly in the days of Christ to prepare the dead for burial. You remember when Jesus Christ was visited by the Magi, he was given those three symbolic gifts.

Gold representing his royalty, frankincense which was used by the priests in the Old Testament and their intercessory work, and myrrh, an odd gift but prophetic. It would be this sweet perfume that they would use to embalm him, literally wrap into the folds of the linen that they wrapped around his body as he died for the sin of the world. And so Jesus Christ says to the saints living in the city of myrrh, that which produces perfume by the crushing.

He says, I know that you are being crushed and from that crushing will come sweet fragrance that will draw others to me. I think it's wonderful that he begins his letter, his comments to them in verse 9 with the words again, I know, he ought to circle those words in your text, how encouraging. Jesus says first and foremost to them, listen, I know, I know what it's like to have tribulation, I know what it's like to have a death sentence over your head, I know the pressure, I know despair, I sweat great drops of blood over mine, I know. Jesus Christ says to these suffering saints, I happen to know you are experiencing great pressure. Secondly, he assures them that he knows they are enduring deep poverty.

He says in verse 9, I know your tribulation and your poverty. This is a word that refers to someone who has absolutely nothing, nothing. Not that they don't have bread to stick in the oven, they don't have an oven, they don't have a home to have an oven. More than likely, this was owing to the fact that their jobs and homes and livelihood would be taken away, many of them probably experiencing what the Jews experienced in Nazi Europe.

Their homes could be vandalized in broad daylight and nobody would do anything about it, their shops were broken into and all their goods would be stolen and no one would care and they were left destitute and poverty stricken. He says here, I know your poverty, that's the word. It's okay, I know you have nothing, but you are rich.

What is he, an optimist? Did he just drop that in there because he's turning a blind eye to their poverty? The writer of Hebrews says this of believers who got it. He said, you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property. How do you joyfully accept the plundering of your property? You joyfully accepted the plundering of your property because you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an everlasting one, Hebrews chapter 10 verse 34. It isn't going to be long before we all arrive, so to speak, at the bank and on the way there, if somebody asks you, are you rich or poor?

In Christ you can say, with great confidence, present tense, I'm rich. Jesus Christ says, I know what you're suffering though as you make your way home. I know you are also suffering unfair provocation. He says further, I know about your tribulation and your poverty that you're rich and I also know this, I know the slander you're facing. I know those things they're saying about you, those who say they're Jews, they really don't follow after Abraham as the man of faith in the coming one. They're just a synagogue of Satan, they represent the will and the work and the plans and the schemes of the enemy of the church. They're not the synagogue of God.

I know about their unfair provocations. You see the Christians here were enduring a smear campaign, it would last for centuries. Historical records tell us that these slanderous accusations were, first of all, that Christians refused to worship the gods and visit the temple so they were therefore atheists. So they were criticized or slandered as atheists. Another more severe provocation was that since Christians celebrated communion and talked about this partaking of flesh and blood that they were cannibals. That they were eating one another, they were killing young sort of ritualistic slaying and they were eating flesh and drinking their blood. So you can imagine the horror that would come to the mind of the one who heard this slander.

Those people are cannibals. Christians were also slandered because they spoke of loving one another. They spoke about being members of one another and so thus the accusation was developed that Christians actually engaged in sexual orgies within their communities of faith.

That's what they're doing when they're together. They're perverted atheistic cannibals. All of this slander enabled much of the persecution faced by these early Christians to take root. I know what they're saying about you. And today in the 21st century in Western freedom there are a lot of things being said about you too. And Jesus Christ says, I know all about that too.

Here's the fourth area. He says, I know some of you will face a future in prison. Look at verse 10.

Do not fear what you're about to suffer. Behold the devil is about to throw some of you into prison. Notice how he tracks it all the way back to the enemy, the church, the devil.

Primary cause, the effect would be those that would work for him. But even behind that of course as we know would be our Lord's own will. So to make matters worse you're going to have these 10 days of tribulation. Some of you are going to be separated from your families. Can you imagine getting a letter and the Lord saying that to us?

Maybe he is. But for those believers around the world suffering this letter is written to them. And they're reading this promise which is to this day coming true. Some would face the crushing blow of separation because they refused to stop believing and propagating the gospel. Like some of the pastors in Uzbekistan that I have read about even this week who are suffering. Waiting jail sentences to be delivered. Now what does John mean when he writes, you will have tribulation for 10 days. Short answer, I don't know. Some say that it's a reference to a short period of time.

Could be. I think it's a reference to the 10 edicts of Roman emperors against the church. The first was Nero's in AD 54. The 10th was Diocletian in AD 284. And then of course the Roman Empire begins to crumble. But these 10 crushing edicts that brought untold suffering and hardship to the believers. He tells them in Smyrna they will come.

In fact they've already started. This one who will assault the church with Christ promised the gates of hell will not what? Prevail against her. Matthew 16, 18. Now I want you to notice three things. First of all I want you to notice their challenge from the Lord that comes on the heels of these words. Their challenge, verse 10. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold the devil is about to throw some of you into prison that you may be tested.

For ten days you'll have tribulation. Be faithful, here's the challenge, unto death. Be faithful unto death. This is what Jesus told his disciples in John 14. You believe in me, keep believing in me. Now he's not saying that you can lose your salvation.

He's saying even when facing great pressure and trouble and persecution. At those times you are most likely to believe that maybe I don't care. Maybe I know and I don't care.

Or maybe I don't know. Or maybe I'm not worthy of being followed. Remain convinced even then that I know and I care. The Lord here provides not only a challenge.

He reminds them of their compensation. Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life. Now this isn't saying now look only for those that are martyrs or those who are faithful get the crown.

This is all synonymous with the blessing and the compensation for those who follow Christ and believe in him. In fact this word crown is not diadema. That is the royal crown. This is a wreath.

You could translate it literally to understand it a little better. This particular wreath was given on three occasions. It was given to an athlete who was victorious who ran and won. It was also presented to a citizen of the city who faithfully served the city. And third it was worn by participants in a wedding festival.

So here you can obviously see the analogy. Jesus Christ is saying look I'm gonna give you because you've run the race well this wreath. I'm gonna give you for having served the city of God as a loyal citizen this wreath. I'm going to give to you as we celebrate that wedding feast.

You are my bride this festive wreath for you to wear. When you think of that compensation our affliction is indeed light. Second Corinthians 4 17 says when compared to the eternal weight of glory which is beyond comparison. This is their challenge from the Lord. This is their compensation from the Lord. Notice their confidence in the Lord.

He who has an ear verse 11 let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. And the one who conquers that is to the believer he will not be hurt by the second death. It's interesting to me that the letter begins with a reference to death. And now it ends with a reference to death.

Appropriate don't you think? Written to a body of believers who will suffer many of them a martyr's death. He says you will not be hurt by the second death. This is a reference to eternal separation in the lake of fire.

Well how do you escape the second death? Well obviously the Bible is filled the New Testament with instruction relative to the gospel. That those who place their faith in Christ alone are born again. They are born again not of the flesh. That's the first birth but of the Spirit.

That is the second birth John chapter 3 verse 6. If you are born physically and you are born spiritually you will only die once. If you have never been born again by placing your trust in Christ you will experience death eternally. So in other words if you have been born twice you die once. If you have only been born once you die twice. And the second death is everlasting. So now how do we have the confidence that we will be saved forever?

Go back to the beginning of the letter. This is how he introduces himself. This is the words. These are the words of the first and the last who died and came to life. Yes you may be crushed but the crushing of your lives like the crushing of my own life brought life again.

And the sweet fragrance and aroma to our living Lord. So this one who says I have already followed you to death and I have been brought back to life. And so you who die in me have confidence I will bring you back to life in me.

That's our confidence in him. This gave these believers in Smyrna the courage and the steel in their souls to face the persecution that would begin with great earnest in their own generation. In fact Polycarp was the leader in the church at Smyrna. He was a disciple of the Apostle John.

He was tutored by John. And eventually Polycarp would lead the believers in Smyrna and the words of Christ to this church would come true in his own very life. History records it was a festival in the city.

An annual festival and the fever pitched loyalty for the empire of Rome was at its height. And they decided it was time to get old Polycarp who was 86 years old. And let's go ahead now and make him offer incense to Caesar. We've put it off long enough.

We've had patience long enough. It's time to take their leader and make an example of him. Of course they expected him to recant. History records that he was brought into the arena. And he was told to either confess Caesar as Lord or die. Leaders were slandering him.

They cried out and I quote. This by the way comes from a document dated in the second century. This is the teacher of Asia, the father of the Christians, the destroyer of the gods who teaches many neither to offer sacrifice nor to worship. And so Polycarp was given a decision, a choice to sacrifice to Caesar and call him Lord or be burned to death. We have his answer recorded and protected over the centuries.

Translated for us, Polycarp said to the mob that hushed in the arena. And he said these words translated for us. Eighty and six years have I served Christ and he has never done me wrong. How can I now blaspheme my king and my savior? I fear not the fire which burns for an hour and after a little while is extinguished.

So why do you delay? Come and do your will. In a matter of moments Polycarp was burned to death and the words of Christ came true. For from the crushing of his life now centuries later it offers a sweet fragrance unto Christ and we can all partake. And this one enter the rest of Christ and they are given the wreath as the bride, as the loyal citizen of heaven, as the one who faithfully served the city of God.

Let's try to live with the mindset of Polycarp who was faithful even unto death. You've tuned into Wisdom for the Heart. Your Bible teacher, Stephen Davey, is working his way through a section of the book of Revelation. If you joined us late and want to hear this entire lesson, we've posted it to our website wisdomonline.org. You'll also find it on our smartphone app for your iPhone or Android device. We'd enjoy hearing from you and learning how God uses these lessons to encourage you. Write to us at Wisdom International, P.O. Box 37297, Raleigh, North Carolina, 27627. Thanks for listening to Wisdom for the Heart. We'll be right back.