Rev 3:1-6
Notes
Transcript
The Letter to the Church at Sardis
The Letter to the Church at Sardis
Good morning my friends, to good to see you this morning.
Here we are, almost at the end of the month of June, it certainly doesn’t seem possible, but here we are....
Vacation Bible School will be here in a couple of weeks (July 8 to 12), and we need your help to make it all work well, so step up.
As we come back to the book of Revelation today, these past letters to the churches there in Asia minor remind us that we must choose, make the effort to live carefully in this world.
Sin and these other issues that plagued the churches came in little by little, slowly stealing peoples hearts and lives away. And it lead people into sin, hurting their walk and fellowship with the Lord.
And we have seen the Lord speak to them. He has tried to encourage them for right behavior, but make no mistake about it Jesus condemned their sin.
Jesus will never approve of sin, no matter how small or innocent it might seem. Yet while condemning sin, our Lord calls for us his people to repent and return to him. Return before it is to late....
Today we come to chapter 3, and with it we will look at the message Jesus sends to the church at Sardis.
Sardis lay directly south of Thyatira, it was once a great proud city, the former capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia, and later the western capital of the Persian empire (days of Daniel wit Cyrus and Darius of the Medo-Persian Kingdom).
Now a lot happened here, it was an important city for the Woolen industry. It housed the temple to Artemis and the largest Jewish synagogue in the ancient world.
One of its saddest moments in history, is twice we know, the city was captured due to negligent defenders and watchmen.
This morning we are doing to look at the first 6 verses of Chapter 3. And as you read those verses, let me share three thoughts with you...
1. Death is Near....
Death happens when life ceases, I think we would all agree on this.. This happens to people every day, in fact i think the average is that someone leaves this life every 11 seconds.
And just as people die, death can come to other things as well. Businesses can die, schools can die and sadly the church can experience death.
Lets begin and look at verse 1 Rev 3:1
1 “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
“ ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
So here, we see those opening words that sound familiar to those previous letters to the churches.
Jesus opens these words to the angel of the church at Sardis, to the messenger or Pastor there.
The words of Him....indicating these words are His and are authoritative, and thus needs to be heard and paid attention too.
And the Lord addresses himself as the one who “…holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.”
The word “holds” here is really thought of the idea that Jesus is the one who is in relationship with the Holy Spirit, the 3rd person of the Holy Trinity. And He is also the one who has the seven angels...
So please understand, Jesus, the one who is the Word, He knows the deeds of the church at Sardis, He is THE One who has both the Spirit and the seven stars.
And Jesus identifies the problem for them.. Rev 3:1b… “...“ ‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead.”
Wow, again the one who is omniscient, all knowing is completely aware of this churches works… He knows if they have fruit or not.
And look at this , Jesus says you have the reputation for being alive, but you are dead.
Do you see that, there is a lack of life there in Sardis, they are complacent , the are lifeless and in reality they are just dead.
A church at is complacent is a church that doesn't care about anything beyond its walls. There is no need to reach out, there is no need to evangelize, they is no need for missions, they just want to sit in their seat and not be interrupted by anything around them.
I’ve seen churches whose members just want to sing a few hymns, they wanted their pastor to only preach 20 min and that was the extent of their service and worship to God. Those churches are dead and some do not even exist any more.
Jesus says your dead when you are the focus and the world can simply die and go to hell.
How sad and it happens my friends, complacency will always lead to death…
So we have to ask ourselves, what is our spiritual health… are you alive or in the throes of death?
Now lets move forward, the next thing that Jesus says to them is to be revived.
2. Be Revived....
Consider this my friends..... In the hospitals around us, those checking patients in to the facility, they always ask if the person has a living will. They are seeking to establish if the patient wants efforts to be in place or not in case something catastrophic happens and their heart stops.
In case death becomes a possibility, the patient care team wants to know.....do you want to be revived?
Jesus here is telling the church at Sardis here, look friends, you are close to death, be revived. Look at the text with me..verses 2-3.
2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.
The message is clear, “wake up”!!!!!
Look at this, Jesus says You at Sardis, you are close to death, wake up.
Man, if the doctor slips into my room and says, you are going to die if we don't act quickly… And you know what… He has my attention.. Yes Sir what do we need to do...
Jesus is telling them, Hey, you are in a terrible place. Death here is a picture of a people or a church being spiritually asleep… They are complacent, not paying attention and death has slipped near… Wake up...
Wake up, remember your past efforts, your past decisions, how your faith used to impact the way you lived.
Listen friends...Ask yourself, are you the same?, same love, same passion, same enthusiasm, still on fire for the Lord as you were when you were first saved… If not, what will you do?
Jesus is telling them… Return, obey and repent… And look at again at verse 2, Jesus says I have not found your works to be complete....
Now this is important my friends, Jesus has pointed out their works are not complete, they are unsatisfactory and the imagery here is that have been weighed in the scales and are found wanting...
We see a similar passage of being found in the scales of God in the OT with Daniel.. Daniel 5:27, where by God tells those against him, You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting...
You at Sardis, you don’t balance out, you are lacking in justice or mercy or love… somethings isn’t right
You know what a lot of people hate doing when they go to the doctor, they hate getting on the scales. They hate seeing how much they weigh.. that number speaks the truth as to what you have done or not done...
For Sardis … the scales were not in their favor...
Look again at verse 3 Rev 3:3
3 Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.
Look, Jesus says there is still time to change. The call is to remember what they saw and heard…two things.
The message they saw and heard was the gospel of grace. They had received the Lord Jesus as a Savior based on His work, his mercy and grace, it was all Jesus… they were to remember their salvation
But the call is to repent, they have abandoned their purpose.. wake up and return to being the church.
The city and its inhabitants were dying in their sin, they needed Jesus. The church at Sardis were to take the gospel to them.
The gospel is the one thing that could permeate the people and change them, moving them from darkness to light..
They needed to return to their task...
But if you do not wake up, I will come to you like a thief in the night, when you least expect it.
What Jesus is alluding to is removing the church. Listen it is His church not man’s and if the church, any church is dead and allowed sin to overcome it, Jesus has the right to remove it.
This is the promise that awaits them… if you remain in your sin, I will remove you.
All of this reminds us that we must be careful in the manner we live my friends. We are called, told, commanded to be salt and light.
Our purpose isn't just to live in this world, it is to have a positive effect of change on this world.
If you here today feel like you are not as close to our father has you were, be revived today, repent and draw close to Him.
Now my friends, just one last thought today.
3. Hope Still Exists....
My friends, as long as the Lord gives us life and breath, there is hope.
Hope is an important part of our lives… Hope means there is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen.
As a born again believer we have HOPE… the expectation of heaven, when my life ends here, just as quickly as my eyes close here for the last time, I know that in a instant, I will hope my eyes there, in His presence.
For those at Sardis, Jesus tells the church that in spite of their problems, there are still faithful ones there...
Look with me at verses 4-6 Rev 3:4-6
4 Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
So there are some, who have walked faithfully with the Lord there. Jesus says these faithful ones have not soiled their garments..
Unsoiled garments mean they have remained obedient and faithful. These walking in a way that was pleasing unto the Lord.
Listen - could you imagine anyone standing in front of Jesus in Heaven wearing dirty clothes? Of course not… dirty clothes symbolize sin..
Sin cannot exist in the presence of a Holy God.
Because of this, Jesus says very plainly they will walk with Him in white..
You see his followers were faithful, obedient, even unto death. They were courageous in the presence of persecution. Yet even the threat of death persuaded them to act differently, they were found faithful and thus they will walk in white in that city.
There is a reward to living faithful in front of Jesus… it is our existence in heaven, wearing a white robe that was purchased and made clean by the blood of the lamb.
And look at the continuation of that promise.. Verse 5 Rev 3:5
5 The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.
The conqueror, is the one who overcame. Those people have avoided sin, they lived faithfully for Jesus...
So in faithfulness, they are clothed in white garments. but the promise continues… Jesus says....I will never blot his name out of the the book of life...
Wow, being victorious, conquering sin we see those who are in Jesus, their name is secure.
There is no hope so salvation, there is no maybe so salvation… it is a know so. They knew they would see Jesus and all their suffering would be worth it.
The book of life, is the record off all those whose sin have been forgiven, they have received Jesus.. it is their deed to all that awaits them..
Listen to what Jesus tells John later in Revealtion
15 And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
27 But nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
So their name is recorded, and Jesus makes one last promise..
I will confess their before the Father and his angels....
Since we have confessed Jesus, He in turn will confess us… Matt 10:32
32 So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven,
When they enter into that Kingdom, I can see the scene, oh Father, look, They confessed your name a long time ago, I tell you they are mine.
Could you imagine, there would be nothing better.. I think of some of those who have gone before us..
I think of Jimmy, He served the Lord in many places but as He entered heaven many years ago could you just imagine the scene, Father, there is Jimmy, He confessed your name a long time ago and He confessed it to many over his days I tell you Father Jimmy is ours...
Jesus confessed his name… and He will confess all those who have confessed his name..
That is the reward of the Christian, to stand faithful and clean in front of the Father. At that moment, the only thing we bare is the blood of Jesus over our lives so that all that God sees is not us, but the Son who sacrificed and gave His life as a ransom for sin.
Our garments that once were dirty, they were just filthy rags… but they have been washed by the lamb and now.. Now our garments are no longer filthy but white as snow…clean.
What does this tell us?
Hope still exists my friends, as long as there is breath there is time to follow Jesus.
There is time to put our ways away, to put away complacency and finish strong for Jesus.
Jesus says in verse 6 “...He has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches...”
Friends, We have heard the word of God… We have seen all that Jesus has said to the churches.
So the challenge always is..what will we do?
What will we do?
We cannot wait for someone else to do the work before us..
We have to be ready to serve the Lord were the opportunity exists today.
Lets pray ....
Father, we want to be found faithful as we walk with you.
We want to be of service to your kingdom while we have breath and time.
We ask Father, show us, convict us of sin, of complacency, and allow us to walk us in a way that pleases you.
Father in this moment, help us to be transparent in front of you, acknowledging and confessing what you have told us to do and how to live.
Amen..
