Do-Over: Pergamum - From Partial to Complete Obedience

Partial Obedience = Complete Compromise

It began with partial obedience… but it led to complete compromise.

Sometimes all it takes is a little of a bad thing to ruin the whole thing.

- Movie night brownies -

Today we are brought to a church that Jesus recognized and appreciated for their faithfulness… but here was something missing.

You did know that it’s possible to be claim a connection to Jesus, to live according to the precepts of Jesus, yet not have a relationship with him. To seek his forgiveness, yet our hearts be far from him.

This happens a little at a time.

We don’t start out wanting to lose our faith, but little by little, day by day, choice by choice, we wind up moving away from God.

Today we find a church dealing with partial obedience and his invitation for them to answer the call to total conviction.

I want you to know that Jesus isn’t done with your life. That’s the message of Revelation. Things are going against you, but I’m not finished. You will know when I”m finished, and it hasn’t happened yet. So if you are still breathing and my church is still standing, then I’m not finished.

Let’s start looking at the Compromised Church

Revelation 2:12 NIV

12 “To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.

Pergamum isn’t a town you hear much about. In fact this is the only reference to it in Scripture. But Pergamum was another influential city in the ancient world.

It laid some 45 miles north of Smyrna. It wasn’t on the coast like Smyrna or Ephesus, instead it was about 15 miles or so inland… but it was possibly one of the most important cities to get the letter from Jesus.

Pergamum was important politically. it had been the capital city of the region and continued to its influence as the regional location for governmental offices. It was the place where trials were held as well as any necessary capital punishment as the cities magistrate held the right of the sword by Roman rule… only Jesus reminds the church that he is the one with the double sided sword.

The city was important academically and intellectually as it was home to one of the greatest libraries in the ancient world, 2nd only to that of Alexandria with some 200,000 volumes.

Pergamum was important spiritually as well. It was the regional center of spirituality. In the center of the city was an an acropolis that bustled with activity. On this hill were a series of temples. This city had temples for Dionysus, the son of Zeus and Greek god who held the keys to life after death, Athena, and Demeter, the goddess of grain who offered forgiveness through blood of bulls. There was also a huge beautiful altar to Zeus that was the size of 2.5 basketball courts.

In addition, the city was the center for emperor worship as Caesar Augustus had built a temple here in AD 29 later another would be built for Emperor Trajan… that’s right there were two emperor temples in Pergamum.

The city was important medically. It was the home of the snake god Asclepius and in addition to his temple was what amounted to an area for treatment through the use of snakes and narcotics.

Revelation 2:13 NIV

13 I know where you live—where Satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to my name. You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city—where Satan lives.

The Compromised Church

… rough place when it’s known as the home of Satan.

Everything about this city made it hard to be a Christian… to live the life of a disciple.

So, while we aren’t sure exactly why Jesus refers to it as the throne of Satan, there are plenty of connections we might make; or Jesus may be referring to something else. But regardless, of the exact thing, its clear that the culture of Pergamum was in conflict with the life of a follower of Jesus.

When you go to our house on Kent Island if you make a wrong turn, you will wind up in what’s been called for generations… Hell’s Dominion. It’s a fishing village on KI and it had a rough reputation back in the day.

But the people there that I knew were decent folks, but there was something in the air in the community.

There are spiritual forces at work in the world. It may not be the best of circumstances, but faithfulness to God is a choice as God’s grace frees our will.

Leaving us all with the question, no matter how tough our circumstances, will our lives resemble Jesus or the world?

Are our lives going to be marked by love or marked with Lust?

Greed or generosity?

Kindness or Hate

Contentment or gluttony?

Humility or pride?

Jesus says you guys are in hostile territory, yet your lives are marked by faith.

This is the dream of every church… that Jesus would see our faithfulness.

Am I a Christian in name only or am I true to the name of Jesus?

We are a “christian nation” but we have done some

We can be in name only.... But that isn’t what Jesus died for.

He died to save us from the forces of this world, that we might be transformed into his image.

That’s the way this church appears.

Revelation 2:14–15 NIV

14 Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality. 15 Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.

A few things against them… They didn’t reject Jesus, but still they were missing the relationship that his death and resurrection makes possible.

Compromise is causing some problems for them you see.

The Signs and Sources of Compromise

Balaam (prophet) invited by Balak the King Moabites.

Numbers 23-25.

1st - Can’t curse them; 2nd - ok but only what God allows.

3 attempts to curse that wind up to be blessings for Israel and curses for Moabites.

Can’t curse what God has blessed.

Must get them to turn their back on the blessing.

Women - Feasts - idol worship.

This would lead to many turning away from God who if you asked them in the beginning if they would worship their Baal (Chemosh), they would have said no way… are you crazy… yet there they were.

That’s the future of compromise.

The church in Pergamum has people who haven’t renounced Jesus, they believed he was savior, but they are being taught the way of the Nicolaitans.

Funny thing here is the the name Nicolaitan and the name of the Chemosh, the Baal of Balak, both refer to the destruction of people....strange name for a god huh?

So here in Pergamum we have Jesus followers who are being taught by these Nicolaitans, that it’s OK to participate in the worship of the local idols, to go to their festivals, to eat their offerings, to take part in their religious orgies.

What m akes this such a powerful message? Our flesh.

There has to be a way to have what our flesh wants and still be OK with God.

Even today, we tell ourselves that God doesn’t really care about what we do with our bodies as long as we have Jesus in our heart… we prayed a prayer… we ask for forgiveness.

This comes from an idea that has been around a long time - and we still accept it today - that our souls are distinct from our bodies, that we are spiritual and we are flesh… thinking of our world we say there is a secular and there is a spiritual.

So you can do what you want with your body, you can eat whatever you want, you can sleep with whoever you want, you can seek pleasure because your soul is above and separate.

Yet early on, the church discerned the minimum requirements for disciples of Jesus

Acts 15:29 NIV

29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.

Sounds pretty clear… stay away from their feasts and stay out of their bedrooms.

But the church then has people come along and say, well that’s not really what God meant when he talked about sexual immorality… They will use big words to explain that Paul you see wasn’t talking about this in particular… or Jesus never said you can’t do this or that.

Biggest threat is from inside.

The biggest threat for the church is from inside the church. The biggest threat to the individual believer is from inside.\

Because we long to be our own salvation… there has to be a way to fix this… if we can just figure it out… we’ve been doing this since Adam and Eve put on those fig leaves.

Searching for something in you that’s not there… only Jesus can provide you… truth, wholeness, contentment.

So in our searching… Little by little, our compromise leads us to separation.

So why do we compromise?

Cheap Grace

This happens when we experience what Dietrich Bonhoeffer calls “Cheap Grace”

Cheap grace refers to a misunderstanding or misuse of God's grace, where people perceive grace as a license to continue in sin or as an excuse to avoid the demands of genuine discipleship and transformation.

Bonhoeffer criticized the idea that grace could be separated from the call to follow Christ and live a life of obedience to God's teachings. He believed that this misunderstanding of grace led to complacency and a lack of accountability for one's actions. In the presence of cheap grace, people might say they believe in Christ's forgiveness without allowing that belief to lead to a transformed life.

Bonhoeffer emphasized that true grace, what he called "costly grace," involves a profound recognition of the price that was paid for salvation – the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Costly grace is not just a gift to be accepted passively, but a call to discipleship, repentance, and active engagement with one's faith. It demands a response from believers that goes beyond mere words, leading to a life marked by obedience, self-sacrifice, and a pursuit of holiness.

Revelation 2:16–17 NIV

16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. 17 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

God’s Call to Conviction

Did you notice who was going to suffer here? THOSE PEOPLE

If I don’t repent… the people I want to be saved will continue to suffer.

If I don’t repent of my part, others will suffer.

Church do you hear this?

In the story of Balaam, after the Israelites began to worship Balak’s Baal, God eventually brought judgement and men began to die, 24,000 in fact lost their life. But do you know what stopped it? Why did the curse end?

Phinehas.

One man stepped up and said enough is enough.

That’s what this letter is about. It’s a letter from Jesus calling the church to live with conviction. To repent of our tendency to being nice… our desire to be liked… our hope to be accepted by our community.

… We live for something greater!

Revelation 2:17 NIV

17 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give that person a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to the one who receives it.

The Promise of Obedience

Analyzing the promise to the overcomers.

Discussing the hidden manna, white stone, and new name symbolism.

Encouraging a deeper commitment to Christ through conviction.

V. Steps Toward Spiritual Renewal:

Identifying practical steps for the congregation to move from compromise to conviction.

Prayer and seeking God's guidance.

Discerning and rejecting false influences.

Strengthening biblical knowledge and understanding.

Fostering a culture of accountability and support.

Conclusion:

Reiterating the call to respond to God's call for spiritual renewal.

Encouraging the congregation to assess their own lives and faith.

Offering a prayer for God's grace and strength to move from compromised faith to convicted living.

Rename you… call out an identity for you that God hasn’t given you

But Daniel Resolved

When you stand firm expect to be tested - 10 days

When culture shifts… refuse to compromise

Is your faith a Thermometer or a Thermostat

A thermostat sets the temperature, a thermometer simply measures it

Will we change our community or will our community change us?