Church of Sardis
Sermon • Submitted
0 ratings
· 4 viewsNotes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Text: Revelation 3:1-6
Satan’s Favorite Church - A dead one…
As a matter of fact he was perfectly good with letting the people of Israel have their Temple worship just so long as the Pharisees ran it.
But remember what Jesus said to that group.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.
Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts, Ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
There is always the danger that any church can die. As Denis Lyle has so eloquently written,
Tragically, many churches are dead. Like the rotting carcass of Lazarus, these church bodies have the foul stench of death upon them. They have the appearance of life, but they are in actuality, dead. Their sanctuary is A Morgue with a Steeple. They are congregations of corpses. They have undertakers for ushers; embalmers for elders; and morticians for ministers. Their pastor graduated from the Cemetery. The choir master is the local coroner. They sing, "Embalmed in Gilead." At the Rapture, they will be the first churches taken for the Bible says, “the dead in Christ shall rise first. - Dennis Lyle http://www.denislyle.com/Sermons/bibleclass/revelation/rev7.htm
What a dead church is not
It is not an empty building - some among you.
It is not a broke church -
It is not a quite Church - This one had all the action.
A dying church rests on its past accomplishments and is satisfied with its presence state.
A dying church is more concerned about their rituals and their formalities than they are about spirituality.
A dying church is more concerned about social change than they are about seeing people changed by the power of God.
A dying church is more concerned with material growth than it is with spiritual growth.
A dying church is more concerned with pleasing men that it is with pleasing God.
A dying church clings more tightly to its creeds and confessions that it does to the Word of God.
A dying church is one that loses its conviction that the Bible is the Word of God.)
It could be said this way…
CIT: A dead church trades the Gospel for the pleasures of sin. It swaps holiness for short lived Happiness. And in the process dries its up the once lively spirit of the church.
Note: Those are some of the signs of a dying church, here are the signs of life in a church.
· Spirituality – All living things are characterized by growth. As long as you and I live in the bodies, we are maturing; we are changing; and we are growing. When the growth stops, it means we are dead. The church is no exception. When people think of growth in the church, they immediately think of numerical growth. I think that is part of it. But, the primary way a church demonstrates life is through spiritual growth. A church that is alive will continue to develop spiritually. When a church ceases to grow spiritually, it is degenerating and dying. A dead church has plenty of Christians… A living church has disciples.
· Unity – When a church is alive and well, there will be unity and harmony in the fellowship. When there isn’t, the body is diseased and is headed for trouble, unless the infected parts come back into harmony. When a church becomes fractured, it is headed for disaster and death.
· Empathy – A living church is an emotional church! There will be times when we will laugh together, weep together, shout together, sing together, hurt together, and pray together. In other words, when there is life, there is emotion.
· Ministry – Another sign of life is motion. Physical bodies are bodies in motion. One sure sign of death is the absence of motion. So it is within the church. When there is live in a church, there will be motion. The church will be active in the world doing the work of the Lord.)
AN AUTOPSY OF A DEAD CHURCH
Instead of living like a lighthouse on the dark sea. Or an oasis in the desert, The church in Sardis took on the character of the city in which she resided.
Resting in Modern day Turkey, The original city sat on the top of a 1,500 foot high plateau. There was one narrow road leading into the city. The other sides of the plateau were just steep cliffs. This made the city very safe and nearly impenetrable by invading armies.
Sardis was the home of Aesop, who’s fables we all heard as children.
Gold and silver coins were first minted here.
The city of Sardis was famous for the industries that operated there. Carpet, wool and dyed cloth were their primary products. It is said that the art of dyeing was invented at Sardis.
At one time, Sardis had been one of the greatest cities in the world. It reached its zenith under King Croesus. King Croesus and Sardis were famed around the world for their wealth. In that part of the world, it is still common to hear the phrase, “As wealthy as Croesus”.
While Sardis reached its zenith under Croesus, it also fell under his reign. He and the people of the city became complacent in their wealth, their power and their city’s apparent invincibility. When that region where Sardis was located came under attack by Cyrus the Persian, King Croesus and his people retreated to their city, believing they were safe. One night, one of the Persian soldiers saw a Sardinian soldier drop his helmet over the wall of the city. He watched as that soldier followed a hidden path down the side of the mountain to retrieve his helmet. When nightfall came, Cyrus and his troops followed the hidden path up the side of the mountain, entered the city while the guards slept and conquered Sardis.
Sardis regained some of its former wealth under the reign of Alexander the Great, but was invaded and defeated by Antiochus the Great, who also entered the city at night while the guards slept.
When the Romans came, Sardis was still a wealthy, powerful city, but it was just a shell of its former self. By John’s day, Sardis was just a shell of what it had been. The people had grown lazy, degenerate, immoral and complacent. Sardis was dying through apathy and indifference.
The city was proud of its past; it was proud of its reputation. But, its reputation was all it had left. For all intents and purposes, the city of Sardis was dead, even while it lived.
Apparently, the church in Sardis had adopted the atmosphere of the city. It is to this church that had become lazy, apathetic and complacent that the Lord Jesus comes. Just as surely as the city of Sardis was dying, so was the church of Christ in that city. Jesus has no words of commendation for them, but He does have some words of counsel. I would like for us to look at our Lord’s words to this dying church.
Christ’s Prognosis…
The Church needed its Spirit – Jesus comes to this church as One Who has the “seven Spirits of God” and as One Who is holding the “seven stars”.
The “seven Spirits of God” refer to the Holy Spirit in His complete ministry. The seven-fold ministry of the Spirit is defined in Isaiah 11:2
And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
The spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The spirit of counsel and might,
The spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord;
This is a reminder to the churches that we are to operate, not under the power of human skill, leadership and organization, but under the awesome power of the Holy Spirit. When the church walks in the power of the flesh, we will surely fail, but when we walk in the power of the Spirit, there will be success. There will be glory and there will be power and life instead of deadness and ineffectiveness!
And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
The same way that God created man and gave him the distinction of caring the breath of life so a church is nothing without the Holy Spirit in its work. It took the breath to make a man a living soul. This is distinguishes men from the animals that were formed. So the church needs a Pneuma. The very breath of God - the Holy Spirit.
The Church needs its messenger - The “seven stars” are the Pastors of the churches, Rev. 1:20. They are the messengers who bring the people the Word of God.
Jesus appears as One Who has everything the church needs to succeed. His Spirit has all the power the churches need. His Word has all the direction His churches need. Jesus seems to be saying, “If you will submit to me, you will find in me all you need to accomplish my mission in this world.”
The church had traded the life that could be found in Jesus for something far less important.
Apparently, their works gave them the appearance of life. Jesus tells them that they have that reputation. They were a busy, working church with a great reputation among men. From all outward appearances, this church was everything a church ought to be. They believed the right things and they were busy to good all over the community.
But, things were not as they seemed! The Great Physician placed His finger on the pulse of this church and pronounced them dead! No matter what others thought, Jesus knew the truth. Regardless of what others may have thought about this church, Jesus knew the truth.
He tells them that even though everyone thinks they are alive, they are, in fact, dead! This word means just what it says! Like a dead man, the church at Sardis was "destitute of force or power. They were ineffective and inoperative." They were dead! There was activity, but it was not spiritual in nature.
There was busyness, but they were bringing nothing eternal to pass.
They were preaching, but lives were not being changed and sinners were not being saved.
They were busy, but they were operating in the energy of the flesh and not the energy of the Spirit of God.
Many, many churches are in that same shape today. They have all the appearance of life, but the Great Physician, Who has His finger on their pulse, knows they are dead. Folk, His finger is on the pulse of South Knollwood Baptist Church today. Does He feel a pulse? Is it strong and steady? Or, is it weak and failing? What does He know about our church that we may not know?)
Christ’s Prescription…
Ready Yourself – They are told to “be watchful”. Literally, this means that they are to “chase sleep”. This church is a church with a glorious past. They have allowed their past success to lull them into a state of complacency and spiritual slumber. Jesus calls upon them to chase away sleep. His command is for them to wake up and realize that the victories of yesterday are not sufficient for this day!
The term vigilance is always connected to temptation in Scripture. Don’t give into sin it is looking to steal your holiness.
Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Ill. The people in Sardis would have understood exactly what Jesus was talking about. As I mentioned earlier, 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 soldiers of Cyrus scaled the parapet, and then again in 218 B.C. Antiochus the Great captured Sardis because a soldier slipped over the walls while the sentries were careless. When we allow ourselves to sleep because of what we have enjoyed in the past, we are going to find ourselves conquered by the enemy, 1 Pet. 5:8.
Ill. This happens far too often in churches. A church will struggle in its beginning and the core group who founded that church will have to work, pray, witness, give and yield to God to see the church stay alive. Over time, more people come in. More money comes in. Buildings are built and good services are enjoyed. Yet, in the midst of all these good things, something terrible happens. The church begins to lose the vision that made them so strong in their early years. They become content to sit back and enjoy the fruits of their labors. And, while we ought to be thankful for what the Lord has done for us, we will never reach a place where can let up! There is no time to look back to yesterday! Our vision ought to be for today and for tomorrow. Look around! We are aging! Who will take our place? Look around! We are full, but our vision is gone! Look around! We are satisfied with what we have and we have lost the fire that made us strong!
We must fight the tendency to become still, satisfied, complacent and apathetic.)
Hey you can do it with your children…
Hey you can do it in your spiritual life…
Hey you can do it with your convictions…
Revive – “strengthen the things which remain” - He tells them that not everything about them has died. There are still some things that have a spark of life in them. These things are to be revived before they die out. (Ill. The phrase, “that are ready to die”, literally means, “that are knocking on death's door.”) This is a call for them to get stirred up again for the things of God! It is a call to revival!
Ill. “For I have not found thy works perfect before God.” This means that their “works are incomplete and do not reach Heaven.” They have some things in their midst that are good, but they are works that need reviving before they will make an eternal difference. They were singing, praying, preaching and giving, but their works were not reaching Heaven. They were accomplishing nothing of eternal value. They were a dead people doing dead works. It is possible to be busy in the things of God and yet to be doing nothing for God. Unless our works are complete, they will never reach Heaven, and there will be no glory for God in the church. What churches like this need is to be stirred by the Spirit of God into new life and activity for the glory of God!)
Remember – “Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard” - These people are counseled to remember where the Lord brought them from and what He has done for them. They are to remember the days when they served the Lord out of a glad heart and wanted more than anything to do His will! They are to remember what it was like to walk in the power of God while the fire of His glory burned in and He used them for His glory!
Resolve – “Hold fast” - This church is told to hold on to the things that are still alive in their midst. They are to resolve before the Lord that they will not allow those things to die as well.
Repent – “Repent” - In this verse, they are confronted concerning their sin. When the things of God are allowed to die, the only recourse the church has is repentance!
Ill. The idea of repentance is a foreign one to many in our day and time. People seem to have the opinion that whatever they want to do is just fine and should be accepted by everyone. My friends, God is not obliged to accept the things you do!
When there is sin in the life of an individual, there must be repentance before there can be restoration and revival. The same is true for a church. When a church has allowed itself to be lulled into a state of slumber, their only hope is to repent!
What does it mean to repent? It means that we come to a place where we experience a change of mind about our sins that results in a change of direction. We turn from our sins and we turn toward God. Repentance is a change of mind that results in a change of action! How long has it been since we as individuals and we as a church have repented before the Lord for our laziness, our complacency, out apathy, our wickedness, our deadness, etc?
Failure will result in Devastation: “I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee” - This church is told that if they will not do the serious work of changing themselves, the Lord Himself will come into their midst and take away the things that remain alive and that church will be totally and fully dead! Like a thief, He will come in and take the best, and they will not even know when He comes and when He goes. They will be in a state of total death.
NOT All is LOST
To The Remnant v4 – As bad as things were in Sardis, there were some there who were saved and seeking to serve the Lord. They are given the Lord’s promise that they will walk with the Lord in white. They have lived out the truth in this world, and they can be confident that they will share His glory in that world.
White clothing was worn in Roman times during festivals and times of celebration. It was a symbol of purity, victory and festivity. What a promise to the faithful members of that church. Jesus says, “You folks are standing faithful. You have not defiled your garments with the deadness that exists all around you. You are saved and you are serving. One day, you will walk with Me in My Heaven. It will be a time of victory, festivity and purity.” That is His promise to all those who are saved by His grace.
His Promise To The Repentant v5 – Jesus tells the rest that is they will repent, and turn to Him, they will receive some precious promises.
· “the same shall be clothed in white raiment” - They will be made pure and victorious.
and others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.
· “I will not blot out his name out of the book of life” - They will be made secure in the relationship with Him. By the way, God is not saying that He blots out names. This verse is often used by people who try to say that Christians can “lose their salvation”. It is not a verse that serves as a threat of loss. It is a verse that offers a precious promise of absolute security to all those who believe in Jesus.
There is a lot that can be said about these books. It appears that there is a book of life that contains all the names of those living, Ex. 32:32. It also appears that there is a Lamb’s Book of Life that contains all the names of the redeemed, Rev. 21:27. When a person is saved, there names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. Jesus said that this was the real reason for rejoicing, Luke 10:20. It may be that when a person dies lost, their name is blotted out of the book of the living. So, when the end comes, the names written in both books will match.
· “I will confess his name before My Father, and before His angels” - Someday, Jesus will usher His redeemed ones into the presence of the hosts of Heaven and say, “This is one of Mine! He was not ashamed of me and I am not ashamed of him!” (Ill. Illustrate this truth visually.)
(Note: You see, the majority of the people in the church in Sardis were not just cold and out of God’s will. They were lost, dead sinners in need of salvation. Jesus comes to them to give them an opportunity to be saved.
It might sound prideful and arrogant, but I am convinced that many churches are filled with lost sinners. They go through the motions, but they are merely practicing dead works. Churches in that shape do not need revival, they need a resurrection!)
Conc: