Hope in Times of Trouble

For the last couple weeks I have touched on the transformation done in me over the last fifteen years. Today I’m going to hold true to my promise. I brought with me the picture of me at 19 years old. What a stark difference between the face you see on that screen and the face you see before you today. Every time I see that face, I’m reminded of who I was. It is a strong deterrent for slipping back into a pattern of sin but it is also a reminder that the man you see on screen is dead. I have not been him for fifteen years. I wanted to keep my promise to you, so there it is.

Well, we started last week with a study on the letters to the seven churches in Revelation, and we are continuing that series today. Remember, I said that as a church walks through these seven letters, no one church has all of these issues, but the church can learn a thing or two from all of these letters because all of scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, reproof, correction, and training in righteousness. So if you have your Bibles, turn with me to Revelation 2:8-11.

Last week I introduced you to the complement sandwich. Do you remember? It is a way that bad news is delivered while attempting to soften the blow of the bad news. It starts with a compliment, followed by the bad news, which is then followed by another compliment. We see in these letters that the format generally follows that sort of pattern, but today we are looking at the church in Smyrna. Let’s read what the Lord had to say to Smyrna.

Revelation 2:8–11 NASB95

“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this: ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich), and the blasphemy by 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 cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until 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. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.’

Smyrna was closer to the coast of Asia Minor than Ephesus. It wasn’t as large, somewhere around 100,000 people. The city of Izmir in Turkey is the modern location of this ancient city. The city was very wealthy. It was also a hotbed of Roman emperor worship.

If you paid careful attention as we read these verses, you might have noticed something missing. There is no condemnation or reprimand given by Jesus to the church. However, they are not free from receiving bad news. This letter sounds so familiar, yet it has such a different tone than the one to Ephesus.

The letter starts with an address to the congregation followed by Jesus establishing his own authority. He addresses himself as the first and the last. He is the alpha and the omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. He is the beginning and the end. He is from everlasting to everlasting. This Jesus was dead and has come to life. He is the defeater of the last enemy: death. The conqueror of sin and death has a message for the church in Smyrna and it centers around two phrases: Do not fear and be faithful.

Let’s talk about the situation the church in Smyrna was facing for a moment. Jesus says in verse 9, I know your tribulation and your poverty. Though the church in Smyrna existed in an affluent city, it did not mean that the church was such. It would seem that financially, they didn’t have a whole lot. In addition to a lack of monetary wealth, they were facing hard times. But even though they were facing hard times, Jesus says they are rich. Our richness as believers is not tied to monetary wealth, but the value of who we are in Christ as a result of salvation. We are rich because of our great salvation, a treasure that no one can take away.

One of the challenges they faced was dealing with this group of people who called themselves Jews who were not. Similar to the Ephesian church having to deal with false apostles, the church in Smyrna had to deal with people calling themselves Jews who were not. If you recall the missionary journeys of Paul, He would travel from place to place and seek out the Jews of that area first. There was likely a Jewish presence in Smyrna before the gospel came to them, and that is likely where the gospel message gained a foothold. The Jewish people had the best background for understanding the gospel because so much of what Jesus said and did related to the Jewish scriptures we call the Old Testament. It could be that the church in Smyrna was primarily Jewish, and the false claim of being a Jew related to a false claim of faith.

Instead, Jesus calls them a synagogue of Satan. They are so because they are working against the advancement of the gospel by denying its truth. Those who deny Jesus and the truth of the gospel do not worship the same God as the Christian church. So the church in Smyrna is combating these claims with seemingly very little resources.

This was likely a very tough church to be in. They were not liked, they were not the pillars of the community that Christian churches might have been through American history. They appear small and maybe had feelings of insignificance as they endured suffering from the world around them. But Jesus said to them, “I know.” Isn’t it comforting to know that the hard times you are going through have not been overlooked by the Lord? He knows. He who was dead and has come to life knows your affliction.

You can be fearless and faithful because Jesus has defeated death and promised life.

When facing unprecedented challenges, do not fear.

The first thing Jesus tells the church in Smyrna to do is fear not. The bad news in this passage is that the church, in spite of the challenges they are already facing, are about to face another one. He says some of them are going to be jailed. The purpose, however, is for their testing. It seems like they will endure this period of testing for ten days.

One of the greatest fears we could have is a loss of our freedoms. The church is no stranger to persecutions. The apostles faced persecution, their followers faced persecution. Many were imprisoned more than once. The church faced persecution for the first few centuries of its existence until Constantine. But persecution of the church globally hasn’t really stopped. We have been fortunate in America to enjoy the freedom we have as Christians, but there are many parts of the world today where people are jailed or killed because of their faith in Jesus. We should consider ourselves fortunate that at the present time, we do not face that sort of persecution. However, every church must be prepared to do so because it could come at any moment.

Persecution comes because we face an enemy who is opposed to everything God favors. If the church is doing its work in evangelizing and ministering to the people around it, you better believe that the devil does not want that mission to succeed. He will use any tool or any resource to shut down any advancement of the gospel that he can. BUT! Those who will stand against him will overcome. We have on our side the power and might of the Holy Spirit working through us to accomplish God’s purposes and grow His kingdom.

We have set out to see God renew our church and reach the community for Jesus. We want to be a people who will actually live our mission to share Jesus to the world. Do you think it’s going to be easy? Do you think the devil is just going to let it happen? We are going to face discouragement. We are going to face disappointment. Things will happen in our lives that will make us want to say, “That’s not worth the effort.” But we cannot give up and we cannot give in. If we will persevere, God will see us through it.

If we don’t have to worry about facing imprisonment or death for going out and sharing the gospel with a world that desperately needs it, then what are we afraid of? And if our situation is not as dire as the church in Smyrna in the 1st century, then shouldn’t we use that as a source of encouragement? If the church in Smyra was encouraged not to fear, then shouldn’t it be easier for us to do the same?

No matter the hardship, Jesus has overcome sin and death, and while you may be tested, do not fear because Jesus wins in the end.

Remain faithful, even until death.

The second command in verse ten is to be faithful. Do not fear. Instead, be faithful. The church in Smyrna was facing tough persecution. Some of them were about to be imprisoned, but the charge from Christ was be faithful. Notice that Jesus did not rescue them from this trouble they were about to face. That distinction is important. Nowhere in the Bible does it promise us that those who place their faith in Jesus will be delivered from all hardships. Everyone in here knows that isn’t true. But if that is our gospel message, we have made ourselves out to be liars. We preach a false gospel when we preach easy believism.

The church in Smyrna, with the context they were in, could have faced martyrdom for their beliefs. When the Lord says to be faithful until death, this could very easily be what was in view. But it may not be the case universally. Today, your faithfulness until death is far more likely that you maintain your faithfulness to the Lord until your natural death. In either case, Faithfulness does not have an expiration date. When we responded to offer of forgiveness of our sins through faith in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, we enlisted ourselves into his service for life. Christians do not get the luxury of retirement. Roles may change, but nobody is allowed to quit working.

The reward for such service is the crown of life, which likely is not a literal crown for you to wear and walk around the streets of heaven with. It is probably more like praise and honor bestowed upon those who persevered through trials. The point of this is to know that you do not persevere for nothing. Faithfulness is rewarded.

Freedom from fear provides us with the freedom to be faithful. Will you be faithful in times of trouble? What I have learned in 15 years is that God will give you the grace you need in the moment you need it, but not a moment before. Will I be able to persevere when when society hates me and the message I carry? If we live to see the day where Christians are jailed because we choose to live according to our convictions and not according to the direction the culture drifts, will we have the strength to keep standing? God will give you the grace you need in the hour in which it is needed.

I want to give you three very simple truths this morning.

God knows. God sees. God cares.

God knows the trials you are facing and he knows about the ones you are about to face. Nothing that has transpired has taken him by surprise. He sees you. He sees this church. He knew what you needed and he sent me to you. He knew what I needed so he brought me to you. Together, with our mutual faith in the Lord, we can do anything he calls us to. We can persevere.

Remember the great hope at the end of this letter. First, like last week, he says, “Listen up! Pay attention!. Don’t miss what the Spirit is saying to you.” This next and last thing is important. He who overcomes will not be hurt by the second death.

The second death is explained further in Revelation 20 and 21. I want ot read to you from three verses.

Revelation 20:6 NASB95

Blessed and holy is the one who has a part in the first resurrection; over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.

Revelation 20:14 NASB95

Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire.

Revelation 21:8 NASB95

“But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Those who are born once, die twice, but those who are born again die only once. If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, there is no second death for you.

INVITATION

Are you born again? If you have not placed your faith in the Lord Jesus for salvation, you can be hurt by the second death.