Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Sardis
Posted By Joe on November 23, 2009
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Introduction
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Ephesus
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Smyrna
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Pergamum
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Thyatira
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Sardis
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Philadelphia
- Seven Letters to Seven Churches: Laodicea
Last time, we closed out chapter 2 of Revelation looking at the Roman Church of Thyatira.
As we move into the third chapter of Revelation, we will look at the Protestant Church in Jesus' letter to the church of Sardis. This is the fifth of the seven letters.
Sardis: The Protestant Church
Sardis was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia, located approximately 30 miles south of Thyatira. The imperial cult of ancient Rome was strong in this city.
In the Greek, Sardis is "Σάρδεις," or transliterated to "Sardeis." The word is plural and means "red ones." Sardis was one of the oldest and most important cities of Asia Minor. Built on a small, elevated plateau, the city rises above the Hermus Valley.
It became the center of the carpet industry and was noted for its wealth. Coins were first minted there. Its last prince was the wealthy Croesus who was captured by Cyrus. He was considered the wealthiest man in the world, and everything he touched seemed to turn to gold. Sardis was ruled by the Persians, by Alexander, by Antiochus the Great, and finally by the Romans. It was destroyed by an earthquake during the reign of Tiberius. --J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee.
Sardis represents the Protestant Church in history between A.D. 1517 and about A.D. 1800. The beginning of this period is marked by Martin Luther nailing his Ninety-Five Theses on the door of the church at Wittenburg, Germany.
Jesus' Letter to the Church at Sardis
"To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this." --Revelation 3:1.
Here is the fifth description Jesus gives of Himself. Here Jesus asserts His complete control over the Spirits of God and the seven stars. Whenever you see the number seven in the Bible, it signifies completeness. So here Jesus is saying that the fullness of the Holy Spirit dwells within Him. This also means that He has the ability and the authority to give the Holy Spirit to the churches.
"But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you. And He, when He comes, will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe in Me; and concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father and you no longer see Me; and concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. I have many more things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you." --John 16:7-15.
This is such a important passage in John. Jesus validates the rest of the New Testament with these words, especially in John 16:15. But here Jesus gives the Disciples a view to the Holy Spirit that gives them the foreknowledge of what is to come.
Going back to Revelation 3:1, Jesus again refers to the "seven stars." We saw previously that these seven stars are the pastors of each of the seven churches. Jesus repeats that He has the pastors of the churches in His hand.
What follows next differs from the previous letters that followed commendation and condemnation. Where Smyrna only received commendation, Sardis is going to weigh heavily on the condemnation side.
The Bad News
"'I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.'" --Revelation 3:1.
Jesus acknowledges the churches' deeds, but almost dismisses them by a shocking condemnation: "you are dead."
If we look at the trends today in the modern, American, Christian churches, we can see evidences of "seeker-sensitive" churches. These churches would appear be to be alive, especially considering their attendance records, but what are these churches teaching?
The largest church in America since 2006 is Lakewood Church in Houston, TX. Who is the pastor? Joel Osteen, a pastor with a well-known reputation for "feel-good theology." And I'm not necessarily just picking on Joel Osteen. This type of approach is being embraced by many churches across the United States and it's troubling. You cannot "tone down the message." The Bible is clear: unless you have Christ, you are going to perish; you will die in your sins!
"'Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God'" --Revelation 3:2.
Here is the second word of condemnation. J. Vernon McGee has a great visual description of the city of Sardis that will help explain Jesus' words.
Sardis was located on the top of a mountain. It had one entrance on the southern side which was the only way you could get into the city in the old days. Therefore, all that Sardis had to do was to put a detail at that one place to watch the city. But on two occasions in their history they had been invaded by their enemies because they had felt secure, believing that the hill was impregnable, and the guard went to sleep on the job. In 549 B.C. the Median soldiers of Cyrus scaled the parapet, and then against in 218 B.C. Antiochus the Great captured Sardis because a Cretan slipped over the walls while the sentries were careless. What the Lord says to this church at Sardis is this: "You wake up and watch out!" This was embarrassing because of the two occasions in their history when they had been caught napping. He says to the church, "Don't you go to sleep!" --J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible with J. Vernon McGee.
Have we, as the Christian church, failed to realize that Jesus can come back at any moment? How can the pastor of America's largest church say things like:
KING: Is it hard to lead a Christian life?
OSTEEN: I don't think it's that hard. To me it's fun. We have joy and happiness. Our family -- I don't feel like that at all. I'm not trying to follow a set of rules and stuff. I'm just living my life.
KING: But you have rules, don't you?
OSTEEN: We do have rules. But the main rule to me is to honor God with your life. To life a life of integrity. Not be selfish. You know, help others. But that's really the essence of the Christian faith.
KING: That we live in deeds?
OSTEEN: I don't know. What do you mean by that?
KING: Because we've had ministers on who said, your record don't count. You either believe in Christ or you don't. If you believe in Christ, you are, you are going to heaven. And if you don't no matter what you've done in your life, you ain't.
OSTEEN: Yeah, I don't know. There's probably a balance between. I believe you have to know Christ. But I think that if you know Christ, if you're a believer in God, you're going to have some good works. I think it's a cop-out to say I'm a Christian but I don't ever do anything ...
KING: What if you're Jewish or Muslim, you don't accept Christ at all?
OSTEEN: You know, I'm very careful about saying who would and wouldn't go to heaven. I don't know ...
KING: If you believe you have to believe in Christ? They're wrong, aren't they?
OSTEEN: Well, I don't know if I believe they're wrong. I believe here's what the Bible teaches and from the Christian faith this is what I believe. But I just think that only God with judge a person's heart. I spent a lot of time in India with my father. I don't know all about their religion. But I know they love God. And I don't know. I've seen their sincerity. So I don't know. I know for me, and what the Bible teaches, I want to have a relationship with Jesus.
* * *
"'So remember what what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.'" --Revelation 3:3.
Jesus is telling this church, that is about to die, to wake up and repent! The great truths of the Protestant Reformation are slowly being lost again:
- The authority of the Word of God
- Doctrine of the total depravity of man
- Doctrine of justification by faith alone
In their place, we have self-help, bestselling books. We have messages that you can become a better you. We have teachings like the one above: "We do have rules. But the main rule to me is to honor God with your life. To life a life of integrity. Not be selfish. You know, help others. But that's really the essence of the Christian faith," which ends up being works-based and something you do to earn your way into heaven.
A Little Light in the Darkness
"'But you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garment; and they will walk with Me in white, for they are worthy.'" --Revelation 3:4.
The Bible has many occasions where there was always a remnant that stayed faithful to God. Jesus acknowledge this "little flock" in Luke.
"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the kingdom." --Luke 12:32.
There are lights that shine out of the darkness. Jesus used this imagery in Matthew, when He spoke of salt and light. When Jesus speaks of the lamp in Matthew, this is the type of lamp He is referring to.
The light would have been feeble, at best. So Jesus knows that His "little flock" has a little light. The key is to let that little light shine!
The Promise to the Overcomer
"'He who overcomes will thus be clothed in white garments; and I will not erase his name from the book of life, and I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'" --Revelation 3:5-6.
J. Vernon McGee quotes an explanation of this verse from Dr. John Walvoord:
Some have indicated that there is no explicit statement here that anybody will have his named blotted out, but rather the promise that his name will not be blotted out because of his faith in Christ. The implication, however, is that such is a possibility. On the basis of this some have considered the book of life not as the roll of those who are saved but rather a list of those for whom Christ died, that is, all humanity who have possessed physical life. As they come to maturity and are faced with the responsibility of accepting or rejecting Christ, their names are blotted our if they fail to receive Jesus Christ as Saviour; whereas those who do accept Christ as Saviour are confirmed in their position in the book of life, and their names are confessed before the Father and the heavenly angels. --Dr. John Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ.
The Bible is clear on this point: you cannot lose your salvation. Jesus reassures the overcomer/the believer that their name is written in the book of life.
If your name is not written in the book of life, it can be.
This is the Protestant Church: the church at Sardis.
The next church we will study is the church at Philadelphia: the revived church.
May He Increase!
About the author
J. Vernon and Joel O. in the same post. Is that like matter anti matter? I love this post, i hope there is no explosion.
Explosion, no. Being struck by lightening . . . maybe?
LOL.
Thanks Will!
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