Revelation 3:2-3 - Sardis

2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of My God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.

“Be Alert”

The story of how Sardis was defeated with the high walls on top of cliffs is interesting. The Persian army lay at the foot of Sardis and realized they couldn’t get up and over the walls. A few days after sitting there and observing a Persian watched a soldier in the Sardis army drop his helmet over the wall accidentally. One story says he looked around, saw no one watching and walked an otherwise unknown trail out of the wall to get it. Another indicates he used a rope and came down this otherwise unattended portion of the wall. Either way, the Persians came to that spot and was able to get their army inside the fort and defeat the city.

The indication to “be alert” or “wake up” is one meaning to not let your guard down which is something these people of Sardis could relate to. “Be alert” Jesus says, don’t let the world penetrate into your faith. Don’t be ashamed of the gospel. Be defined by your faith, don’t define your faith.

“Wake up!” See the reality that the world is worming its way into your faith. It is seeking to conquer His understanding that He has given to you. The world is confusing you. “Wake up!”  If you do not wake up, Jesus will come in like a thief at a time when you are not expecting it.  Again, a very common reference that the people of Sardis would understand.

“Strengthen What Remains”

“I know your deeds” Jesus says and then doesn’t say a single good thing about them. Ouch. We would usually assume this means they weren’t doing much, but it might have been more accurate to say that the quality of their works that was the most lacking. Doing things in the church or with the church just because it’s a church activity without the leadership, guidance, and power of the Spirit is wasted effort. They had grown content with a mediocre, halfway, comfortable, and convenient Christianity. Their faith was not radical; it was almost invisible.

Whatever was remaining inside spiritually, that last remnant they were clinging to and holding onto, strengthen it. Whatever still exists that requires faith, exercise it. Stop bending on at least one thing and accept God’s position on it and stand on it. Strengthen what you still believe. The first step in turning around is to stop going in the direction you are going.

A most significant description here is that Jesus gives them a reason why.  He still has a purpose for their life.  They still have work to do as their "deeds are unfinished".  No matter how far they've gone in the wrong direction; no matter where they are; if they will wake up and strengthen what is left there is a purpose for them and a work to do.  Praise God that we are never thrown away and declared useless!

“Remember What You Have Received and Heard”

Go back and reread the gospel message, the one that produced brokenness and salvation in your soul. Reread the gospel message to understand what it is Jesus did for you and the salvation He brings. Go back and remember the day the Spirit filled you. Remember the times you cried out to God and He heard and answered. Go back to the beginning of your faith.

“Keep It”

“We never drift toward anything worthwhile. Never. We never slide into truth, but we can slide into error. You slide and slip into theological liberalism. You slide and slip into moral compromise. You do not want to drift and add to the gospel. You do not want to slip and subtract from the gospel. Keep it. Hold on to it. Guard it.” (Akins)

“Repent”

Stop what you are doing, thinking what you are thinking (lean not unto your own understanding), going where you are going, and turn around. Choose faith in God’s Words. Choose faith in Jesus’ works. Choose reliance on God’s wisdom. Let His Spirit lead and not the world’s influences. Repent and let reality take over. There is only the perfect and the imperfect; only God and the world. Choose the perfect since His work is completed and in Him is victory forever over the imperfect.

Revelation 3:1b - Sardis

Sardis was a city at the foot of the Tmolus Mountains. It was very easy to defend as the walls around the acropolis are at the top of very steep cliffs. It is a very difficult walk just to go up the road to the main gate. Therefore, it was a very difficult city to attack. The city also overlooks a very fertile plain. Because of this, in the BC times, it was a desirable place to run a kingdom. However, the ease of defending the city led to over-confidence. There are several historical writings that indicate that Sardis was able to be overcome simply because the guards at the gate were so confident that no one would attack they were inattentive to their posts.

Sardis also became the most trusted name in coin and currency production when under the rule of King Croesus as the metallurgists in the city discovered how to separate gold from silver and make pure coins. The name Croesus became synonymous with wealth as coins from their city could always be trusted to be pure and not an unknown combination of silver and gold.

Sardis was mostly destroyed by an earthquake in AD 17. It was rebuilt by emperor Tiberius. Today, the modern city of Sart is located nearby.

I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.

This city, which had just been rebuilt from a deadly earthquake, which had a history of being hard to conquer, which had a history of producing pure coins and wealth, could not possibly be dead. It was rebuilt, had a defendable position, and was wealthy. How could it be dead? All of these things are desired. Yet, Jesus says that it is dead – spiritually dead.

How about your church? Is it a nice building? Does it have a defendable position or history of work in the city? Is it wealthy? … Most importantly, is it spiritually dead? I pray that we take a careful and truthful analysis of our churches. We seek to see them the way Jesus does and gain a realistic view of their position.

Revelation 3:1 - Sardis

“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of Him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.

He “who holds the seven spirits” is the one who has the perfect Spirit of God. Hear His words. He “who holds the seven stars” is the one who walks along with the pastors or leaders of the church. Hear His words. He knows that you have a reputation, presumably in the community, for being alive, but you are dead. You are spiritually dead.

How can a church know when they are dead? Thom Rainer, president of LifeWay Christian Resources, wrote a book in 2014 titled Autopsy of a Deceased Church. In it he identified some fatal causes that put once-alive churches into the graveyard. These include:

• Treating the past as a hero
• Refusing to adapt to the needs of the present community
• Moving the focus of the budget inward
• Allowing the Great Commission to become the Great Omission
• Letting the church become preference-driven out of selfishness and personal agendas
• Seeing the tenure of the pastors decreasing
• Failing to have regular, corporate prayer
• Having no clear purpose or vision
• Obsessing over the facilities

A complement to Rainer’s analysis is an article by Stevan Manley titled, “When does My Church Need Revival?” He lists six signs that a church is standing at death’s door:

1. The church is plagued with disagreements.
2. The preaching is ineffective.
3. Few can remember when a person was last saved.
4. God’s supernatural power is never seen.
5. God is not praised regularly.
6. No one is being called into God’s work.

Personally, I think the members know it inside when their church is dying. The church is no longer a place of recharge, but a drain on your energy. You no longer feel like it’s a supporting family, but a disheveled group that gathers out of habit. You can tell, and you have for some time hoping something would change, that it just isn’t alive. There are glimpses here and there of the work of the Spirit but no momentum or continuous spark.

The biggest problem with a church on that is dying is its members, who leave every Sunday and go into the world that seeks to tear them down continually, do not get recharged and energized. They get torn down week after week and soon realize that they simply cannot sustain the Christian life in their present state of habit. They see church as a burden, not a blessing. And so, the already sinking church ship starts sinking a lot faster as these members stop doing their work in the church and stop attending to begin seeking church’s that are alive.

How healthy is your church?  How healthy are you?  I pray we focus on our own hearts so revival begins with each of us.

Revelation 2:24-29 - Thyatira

24 Now I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, to you who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets, ‘I will not impose any other burden on you, 25 except to hold on to what you have until I come.’

This suggest that there was a division in the church. That there were two factions. There were those who followed Jesus and there where those who partook in following this Jezebel. Can you imagine a person who has two heads with each head trying to control the body? How uncoordinated and what a spectacle such a person would be! Also, how insignificant such a person would be other than a sideshow attraction. Jesus tells us here that there are those in that church who do not follow her teaching and they are expected to hold onto what they are following.

At the middle of verse 24, is that sarcasm? Jesus has already made a reference to giving a false leader who leads Christians into sexual immorality a bed of suffering, now makes what I read as a completely sarcastic remark regarding the wisdom of this woman. “And have not learned Satan’s so-called deep secrets.” This hint of sarcasm only appears in the NIV Bible. Other versions simply plainly say deeper truths or depths of Satan. The idea is that these “enlightened” people believe that they have some kind of new wisdom and they want everyone to see their understanding, yet it is really a lack of understanding and they are simply spreading foolishness as it opposes the Words of the all-knowing God, the creator of all that is or ever will be.

26 To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— 27 that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’—just as I have received authority from my Father.

This is a quote from Psalms 2:8-9. However, I think it is relevant to read all of Psalms 2 to grasp what the intent of the quote represents.

Psalm 2
1 Why are the nations so angry? Why do they waste their time with futile plans?
2 The kings of the earth prepare for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his anointed one.
3 “Let us break their chains,” they cry, “and free ourselves from slavery to God.”
4 But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them.
5 Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury.
6 For the Lord declares, “I have placed my chosen king on the throne in Zion, on my holy mountain.”
7 The king proclaims the Lord’s decree: “The Lord said to me, ‘You are my son. Today I have become your Father.
8 Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the whole earth as your possession.
9 You will rule them with an iron rod and smash them like clay pots.’”
10 Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth!
11 Serve the Lord with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities— for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!

This follows our reference above regarding the so-called deeper truths of Satan. The evil see knowledge and reality of God as slavery, not salvation. They insist that slavery is bad, so all of you who believe and follow are simple-minded. True freedom is making your own rules and being who you want to be, not what you were created to be and do.

So, they are angry, they make plans and they prepare for battle to war against those who follow the One true living God and against God Himself. Yet, the Lord laughs because they believe they have power and wisdom when He alone has power and wisdom and has tried to share it and give it freely to anyone who would receive it. However, the Lord has an intense fury towards those who believe they are gods and His Son is set to rule them with all authority and power. … This is where the reference in Revelation quotes. This Psalm is like a road map of how we got to this confrontation between those who do not follow God and Jesus. The Psalm continues. … So be wise and be warned if you do not follow Jesus. Submit today lest when you are unaware you are destroyed. But knowing that Jesus sits in such authority and power is joy for His followers.

In verse 27, Jesus seems to say that those who hold onto His Words and follow Him, those will share in His rule just as the Father has given Him to rule. You are not a mindless servant, a slave as those who lack understanding have said, but a partaker with Him. Jesus said in John 15:

10 When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. 11 I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! 12 This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. 13 There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.

Jesus tells us that He doesn’t call us slaves, but friends. He does what the Father says and He is telling us to do that as well and that this will fill our joy!

28 I will also give that one the morning star. 29 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Revelation 22:16, Jesus reveals that He is the morning star. Jesus promises that those who hold on and follow Him in midst of false teaching, even in the church, that that one will be with Him.

Revelation 2:21-23 - Thyatira

21 I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. 22 So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. 23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am He who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

Jesus indicates that there was a time given for repentance. It was a limited time. Everyone who has ever lived has a limited time and that time is for repentance. Jesus with eyes as blazing fire peers into our hearts and He knows our true intentions, probably before we do. He knows when it is that our hearts are hardened like the Egyptian Pharaoh and are no longer able or willing to be turned. It is then that our time of repentance runs out. Of all the frightful places and horrible events that have been conjured by the minds of man since his creation, there is no worse person to be than the one who’s lost the time for repentance. Indeed, at that moment, for that person – all is lost, for all eternity.

I find it striking that Jesus says that He will “cast her on a bed of suffering”. She is immoral (v22) and leads others into sexual immorality (v20). I have no words to describe this. It’s almost like Jesus is saying, “You want to be on a bed, well let me make your bed. You’re not going to like it though.” I feel extremely disrespectful in paraphrasing that, but it’s so … human. I mean, wow. The term suffering is also an ongoing event. It does not say, suffering and then death. It says suffering as if for eternity. But it’s not only her, all those who lie with her will also “suffer intensely”. Be reminded to be careful who you follow and who your friends are. We tell our children that continuously, but we need to be reminded of that as well.

Those who have followed her still have a time to repent. The language here is specific to who sin. They must “repent of her ways.” They must repent for doing what she does naturally, out of her heart, that they partook in. I believe this indicates that this was not in their depth of heart as they still have time to repent. These actions were not natural for them, but they, as dumb sheep, had been misled. There is always hope for us who still have time to repent. It is the Blessed Hope and we can only be continually grateful and thankful for dwelling in that time.

Jesus continues, “I will strike her children dead.” So, she will suffer, her followers will suffer and her children will be struck dead. In other words, all who carry her sins will be removed. This seed will not continue any more. It will be ground into dust by the One with feet of burnished bronze.

“Then all the churches will know.” If they have doubt about Who it is that searches a man’s hearts and has the power over life and death, they will have that doubt removed. Everyone who does not believe in Him and trust Him for their salvation from their sin will be rewarded justly according to their deeds.

Revelation 2:20 - Thyatira

20 Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads My servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.

Some consideration should be taken with regard to the sins of sexual immorality and eating of food sacrificed to idols. Several topics should be discussed: 1) What does it mean to eat food sacrificed to idols? 2) How is eating food sacrificed to idols linked to sexual immorality?

Paul wrote extensively in Romans 14 and 15 about eating food sacrificed to idols. One could read through a portion of chapter 14 and make a solid case for why it is perfectly okay to eat the food. However, anyone who reads that in the Spirit would quickly realize that this is a heart matter, not a food matter. If eating the food was a means to disrespect the living God and His Son Jesus as anything other than the only God then it would be wrong to eat the food. I am convinced the Spirit would tell you that as it would happen. The same is true regarding any participation in any sin. Therefore, to eat this food at that time would have been to disregard the Spirit’s guidance within you as a Christian, and doing so is a sin (you are god). However, this is more likely tied to the sexual immorality sin.

Sexual immorality always leads to the reduction of God with the goal of the removal of God. In order to prosper in sexual immorality, you have to either remove some of God’s Word or you have to change some of God’s Word. Either way means that you believe your words are at minimum equally important to God’s Words. More realistically, you think your words are more important, that you have some kind of “enlightenment” or you have “evolved” to know better. Today, this is the single largest obstacle facing the church. The societal culture that exists believes the church is primitive when it refuses to change the Words of God and accept homosexuals as priests or bishops or any leadership position in the church. Unfortunately, today it seems most churches are more willing to compromise on this than stand. The acceptance of sexual immorality forces you to “eat” new words. These words are not God’s Words but are implied and understood to be more relevant. It is a false god. So, when someone is in sexual immorality they are also believing false doctrine and this is eating spiritual food sacrificed to a fake god.

Revelation 2:20-23 - Thyatira

20 Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads My servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. 21 I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. 22 So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways. 23 I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am He who searches hearts and minds, and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.

In the midst of all that is going well, the increasing good works and hearts born in love, there is a Jezebel. Is there a reason we don’t know anyone with the name Jezebel? Of course there is! The very name is a reference to a deceitfully wicked and evil person. It is said that “we name our sons David and Paul, and our daughters Mary and Rachel, but we name our dogs Goliath; and we name our cats Jezebel.”

Jezebel was the most wicked queen in Israel’s history. She was the daughter of the king of Sidon who had killed Pheles to seize the throne. She was married to King Ahab to seal a trade alliance between Israel and Phoenicia. Being from another land, she worshipped other gods. Unfortunately, King Ahab was weak and she led him to worship her pagan gods rather than he leading her to the One true God. She led the people to kill God’s prophets. Only Elijah couldn’t be conquered and his faith embarrassed her leading to the murder of most of her false prophets on Mt. Carmel. She arranged an “inquisition” of false witnesses, condemnation, and execution of a righteous man named Naboth for his land. She was treacherous and cunning. Her exploits are described beginning in 1 Kings 16 and 2 Kings 9.

In this land of guilds where people had to participate in the guild practices or lose their economic livelihood, there are parallels to the evil ruling of Jezebel. Should you not participate or pay your dues, you might lose not only your job, but your home as collateral.

Most commentaries I’ve read believe that this Jezebel was a real person there in the city of Thyatira. She was a self-proclaimed prophet leading people with a heretic interpretation of Christianity that included participating in the guild required worship traditions. The Words of Jesus describe anger towards someone who influences others away from Him. This is language mostly heard in the Old Testament. Death to her, her followers, and her children born into her theology. All who know of her and see her demise will know there is One God who sees into man’s heart and He repays each one according to the works that result from that heart.

William Hendriksen says in More than Conquerors, “Thyatira was indeed a lampstand, a light-bearer. But this does not constitute an excuse for failure to exercise discipline with respect to members who make a compromise with the world.”

“Now, we should be clear. God does not expect us to be perfect, though perfection is the mark we strive for. What He does expect is for us to be a community of repenting sinners. What He does expect is for us to call sin what He calls sin.” (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary, 71)

Daniel Akin describes four areas of danger and temptation for a church.

1. A Personality Cult. “You tolerate that woman Jezebel.” Any strong, powerful personality that influences a church that leads people away from God and His lordship shouldn’t be tolerated.
   
    
2. An Authority Problem. Anytime people are following someone, there is a problem. Any good leader in a church will always reflect Jesus. Every opportunity to honor someone will always be a time for testimony and witness to God’s work, not theirs. There is no self-proclamation of title and ability. Also, when such a person justifies actions that are not biblical as legitimate actions because they help others or show more love for others, they are saying that they know better than God about what is right. I had a person who was in adulterous relationships and actively pursuing more, try to tell me how he was doing the right thing by forcing his wife and family go through their divorce. He made every argument he could conjure up how he was serving his family in doing this. In essence, he was saying his words are more important than God’s Words.  
3. A Theology Problem. An authority problem leads to a theology problem. If the absolute authority is not God and His Word, then it is man’s theology. MAN’S THEOLOGY WILL ALWAYS DETHRONE JESUS. Doctrine matters. Theology matters. Truth matters and it is too easily compromised.  
4. A Morality Problem. As we have seen with the other churches, there is the sense here to compartmentalize your sacred and secular worlds. Do this as you live in the world and do this as you live in the church. Don’t mix these two worlds. God calls Christians to holiness and He wants His ways to be preeminent in our lives. He has no room for any other idols as the king of your life. God calls us to follow Him, not the world. 

Revelation 2:18-19 - Thyatira

18 “To the angel of the church in Thyatira write:

Thyatira was founded by one of Alexander the Great successors. It’s intent was to be a military outpost guarding the north-south road to Pergamum. Eventually, to came under the rule of the Pergamum. Unfortunately, the city had no natural defenses and the it was defeated and destroyed and rebuilt many times. In the references in ancient history, the city is usually only described as a conquest by an invading army. Around 190 BC, Thyatira was conquered and annexed by the Romans and that allowed them to enjoy Roman peace.

Thyatira was known for its numerous guilds. These are similar to today’s labor unions. The city had several industries, the main one being wool and dyed-good production. Producing purple garments was one of their specialties. This is referenced partly in Acts where Paul led Lydia to Christ in Philippi. Lydia is from Thyatira and a seller of purple. It could be that she was instrumental in evangelizing Thyatira, but we really don’t know how the church was started. There were leather-works, tanners, potters, and bronze smiths as well in the city. The pressure on Christians would come from the guilds who controlled who was able to work. To have a job one would have to be a member of the guild for that industry. Each guild seemed to have their own god and they would have a feast to honor it with sacrificed meat.  It is also relevant that these feasts led to debauchery and to some extent of sexual immorality.

These are the words of the Son of God, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze. 19 I know your deeds, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing more than you did at first.

The words of Jesus to this very insignificant congregation are the most to any of the seven churches. This isn’t Ephesus which the Apostles attended, Smyrna which was greatly persecuted or Pergamum where the city could command life and death, it is a small church in a small city with a history of being conquered. Yet, Jesus has the most to say to this church.

This should remind us that no matter how insignificant or irrelevant we think we are, we are not. The size of the church is no indication of its importance. God wants us to be a church following Him and Him alone wherever we are planted, whether there is 1,000 or 10 members. He wants a church to honor Him and His Word wherever their home is.

Jesus refers to Himself as the “Son of God”. That title is found only in Revelation. Jesus often referred to Himself as the “son of man” in the four Gospels. However, sitting at the right hand of God having died as a man and risen again, He now confers the title of the “Son of God”. This would be a contrast to the most commonly worshiped god in Thyatira, Apollo the sun-god, the son of Zeus.

His eyes of blazing fire is an image of His ability to know our innermost being. He sees all of who we are, our sinful thoughts, emotions, and actions. Nothing escapes His vision. No matter how we justify an action or even a single thought, He knows our true intent. He sees through our deceptive veils and He continually watches all that progresses.

His feet as bronze is an image of power. He is the master craftsman and He is prepared to tread under his feet the enemies of the Christian faith.

He knows this church’s deeds of love and faith. This is in contrast to Ephesus who had lost their first love. This church’s motivations were sincere. The works they did were based on their love. This might be why the works they did now are more than they did at first. There simply is no replacement for a worker with the right attitude and motivation. It is more important than their knowledge and skill. Those can be obtained, but attitude and motivation are most often a bigger obstacle. This church has the right motivation, their actions and service are outward signs of their hearts of love for God and for one another.  

He knows their service and perseverance and now their works now are more than at first. This is a sign of growth. They have grown as individuals and as a church in their study, prayer, and response to the leading of the Spirit. And so their works have grown and they do more. “Do good things and grow in good things” is a wonderful goal for any church.

Ephesus was instructed to return to the works they did at first because they had lost their first love, but here Thyatira is commended for the works they do which are more than they did at first because they have love.  There is an obvious foundation that must be present of love for Christ before any church can properly do works and grow in them.  The instructions to these two churches makes this something every church should consider.

Revelation 2:16-17 - Pergamum

16 Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.

What is the correction to compromise? REPENT. Stop the direction you’re going and turn away. Recognize the sin, confess the sin, and change your actions. This is an urgent command! Do not delay! Do it now! Do not debate or justify. Simply believe the Words of God over your or anyone else’s words and repent. He is God and we are not. His Word does not need your approval and is not up for discussion.

If they do not repent and refuse to tolerate those in the church who follow the Balaam or Nicolaitan ways then Jesus Himself will “fight against them”. This is a powerful consideration that we need to understand today. Where there is compromise in our life or in our church’s life and we do not seek to heed the calling of the Spirit to repent, Jesus Himself will fight against those parts with His Word. The same Word that created all that is, the same Word that gave life to the dead, the same Word that comforts us in our pain. Do we want Jesus fighting against any part of us? If not, we need to find our compromises and begin repenting.

John MacArthur says, “Sinning believers should be made to feel miserable in the fellowship and worship of the church by being confronted powerfully with the Word of God. Neither is the goal of the church to provide an environment where unbelievers feel comfortable; it is to be a place where they can hear the truth and be convicted of their sins so as to be saved. Gently, lovingly, graciously, yet firmly, unbelievers need to be confronted with the reality of their sin and God’s gracious provision through the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ. Error will never be suppressed by compromising with it.”

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.

There are three things here: hidden manna, white stone, and a new name.

Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” – John 6:32-33

Manna as given to the Israelites in the desert is paralleled with Jesus in many ways. 

1. It is the free unmerited gift of provision from God to His people. It is provided because of man’s helplessness and misery. The manna in the desert provided for the physical body but the gift of Jesus provides for the spirit. No human effort could provide the way God has and did. 
2. The gift was and is to preserve life. The Israelites told Moses, “You have brought us into the wilderness to kill everyone with hunger.” The desert couldn’t support the Hebrews and the world can’t support our spirits. We will die without the life provision of the Lord. 
3. The gift is given to everyone equally. There is no status of man that provides favor.

All the Israelites who ate manna in the desert died. The hidden manna is the One who provides life for evermore. He is the bread of life and He is promised to the church that doesn’t compromise.

The white stone has been interpreted to mean many things.

1. Like the names written on the white stones outside the medical temple to Asclepius there in Pergamum, it could be a reference that He would provide for them their own stone and name on it so all would know that they had been cured of their sin disease. 
2. It might be a reference to the stone of acquittal at a trial, since Pergamum could announce capital punishment it could see someone as innocent and give them a white stone, whereas a black stone meant guilt and condemnation. 
3. One of the better-accepted explanations of the white stone is in regard to the high priest’s breastplate, which contained twelve stones. Each of these stones had the name of one of the twelve tribes of Israel engraved on it (Ex 28:21). As he ministered in the temple, the high priest bore the names of God’s people into God’s presence. In the same way, the “white stone” with the believer’s name written on it could be a reference to our standing in God’s presence. Our high priest, Jesus, carries our name into God's presence.
4. There is also the ancient Roman custom of awarding white stones to the victors of athletic games. The winner of a contest was awarded a white stone with his name inscribed on it. This served as his “ticket” to a special awards banquet. According to this view, Jesus promises the overcomers entrance to the eternal victory celebration in heaven. 

Either way, it is a gift of Christ and it won’t be taken away.

On the stone is a new name. Greg Beale comments in Revelation on the significance of a new name in these times.  “In the ancient world and the Old Testament, to know someone’s name, especially that of God, often meant to enter into an intimate relationship with that person and to share in the person’s character or power. To be given a new name was an indication of a new status.”

More significant than a name given at birth occurs when God changes a name. Abraham, Sarah, (Jacob) Israel, and Peter are a few of the new names the Lord gave to people. When God changes a name, it indicates that something new has happened or will happen to that person—a new relationship, a new character quality, or a new phase of life. For example, Jesus changed Simon’s name, which means “God has heard”, to Cephas (Peter), which means “rock” (Jn 1:42) well before Peter’s declaration at Caesarea Philippi.

Jesus and only Jesus says that He will be our food now and in eternity; He will be our entrance into heaven as our home; He will give us a new name that will not be taken away; if only we become victors over compromise and follow Him and His Word alone.

Revelation 2:14-15 - Pergamum

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.

Although some at the church had been faithful, they are condemned for their compromise. Some have been enticed to be immoral or to accept the immorality around them.

Balaam was a gentile prophet from Mesopotamia. He was hired by Balak, king of Moab. Balaam tried unsuccessfully to prophecy against the people of Israel (Numbers 22). This didn’t work, so he advised the king how to defeat Israel by deviously seducing them. (Numbers 31). They used Moabite women to tempt the Israelites into sexual relationships and into pagan rituals. 2 Peter 2:15 refers that those who follow Balaam are willing to overlook wrongful or immoral acts for economic benefit. Therefore, Balaam’s “way” is a choice to allow or pursue immoral acts rather than to choose and pursue obedience to God’s Word. The doctrine of Balaam makes believers indistinguishable from the unbelieving world. In order for that to happen, the relevance of sin must be removed or what constitutes sin must be redefined.

If we profess to be Christians, but act, think, and speak in a worldly or profane manner, we take His name in vain. When we misrepresent Christ, either intentionally or through ignorance of the Christian faith as proclaimed in Scripture, we take the Lord’s name in vain. When we say we love Him, but do not do what He commands, we take His name in vain.

Compromise is “where Satan lives”. There are at least four reasons why it is effective:

1. It never occurs quickly, so you hardly notice the change.
2. It always lowers the original standards you once held important.
3. It is seldom offensive because it is perceived as loving (at least by the doer).
4. It eventually leads you to accept what you once rejected and even thought repulsive. It has been well said that what one generation tolerates, the next generation will accept; what that generation accepts, the next generation celebrates.

Jesus replied, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for service in the kingdom of God.” – Luke 9:62

We are not to decide that Jesus is real and that we are going to follow Him, then turn around and look back at Sodom. Know that Jesus is the Son of the one true Living God and don’t look back. Do not compromise your faith by trying to live in two worlds. Jesus said, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.” (Mt 6:24)

“A new Decalogue has been adopted by the neo-Christians of our day.  ‘Thou shalt not disagree,’ and a new set of Beatitudes too, ‘Blessed are they that tolerate everything for they shall not be made accountable.’” – A. W. Tozer

“Truth always carries confrontation.  Truth demands confrontation: loving confrontation nevertheless.  If our reflex action is always accommodation of the centrality of the truth involved, there is something wrong.” – Francis Schaeffer  (Christ-Centered Exposition, Exalting Jesus in Revelation, by Daniel L. Akin.)

In Daniel 7:1-7 there is the reference to four great beasts or creatures in his visions. These are most commonly referenced to great world kingdoms, or at least three of them are. The lion with eagles’ wings is Babylon. The bear is Persia. The leopard with four heads and wings is Greece. And the fourth is thought to be the Roman Empire and a global civilization yet to come. Daniel had a hard time describing what this fourth creature looked like. He says it is the most terrifying of the four and seems to only be able to describe its iron teeth and bronze claws. He says it is frightening, very powerful and that it crushes and devours it’s victims.

The Hebrew word used to describe this creature is shainah. “Shainah can be translated to mean different.” This fourth creature is different from the other three. “Thus, the civilization of the last days will be different from every civilization that preceded it. The word shainah also means changed or altered. Thus, the state of the last days will be a changed state … an altered civilization. The first three creatures were based on forms of nature. But the fourth creature has no clear grounding in nature. It’s different … altered … changed.”

An interpretation is that the fourth creature is a civilization that is not based on the natural, but the unnatural, and wars against the order of creation. It exists against nature and will be an altered or changed nature. Therefore, it will war against the order of God and the Words of God.

“Those who live in the end times must resist a civilization that wars against the order of creation and uphold the Word of the Eternal. They must stand firm against the power, the nature, and the terror of the altered creature.”  (The Book of Mysteries by Jonathan Cain)

Christians must not compromise their position on the Word of God and must resist being defiled by the culture that demands acceptance of any altered form of Creation.

In order to overcome the words of the world, one has to believe that the Words of God are what is best for their life.

Revelation 2:12-13 - Pergamum

Pergamum was located on a hill and was easy to defend. It had a huge library of around 200,000 volumes and was second only to that of Alexandria. Legend says that Pergamum tried to bring the librarian from the Alexandrian library to Pergamum and the Egyptian ruler did not allow it to happen and immediately refused the export of papyrus to Pergamum, so they developed parchment. Although parchment had been known for almost 1,000 years in Egypt, it was its use here that caused it’s use to be widespread.

If you can find a way, I recommend watching Lesson 3, Where Satan Lives, from Ray Vander Laan’s That The World May Know series, Volume 5, The Early Churches. This lesson done on site at the ruins of Pergamum provide a lot of background into the city and culture at that time. You can read a good summary at: https://www.thattheworldmayknow.com/where-satan-lives-article.

12 “To the angel of the church in Pergamum write: These are the words of Him who has the sharp, double-edged sword.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 sword is sharp and double-edged. It is not dull. Being double-edged, it hurts and heals. It cuts and cures.

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. – Hebrews 4:12-13

The sword of Christ has absolute authority, decisive discernment; His Word is a weapon of life and death. Pergamum had the rare authority of Rome to exercise capital punishment. The symbol of this authority was the sword (Johnson, Revelation, 1983, 47). This reference by Jesus is so the church at Pergamum would be reminded Who has the real power over life and death and it is Jesus that has that power.

This church is commended for its faithfulness. It exists where Satan has a throne and where he lives. Yet, it is faithful. “Christians could follow Him [Jesus] if they wanted, but society expected that they would not let their Christian convictions get in the way of their public duty to obey the government. Privatized faith is fine. Faith displayed in the public square is not welcomed.” (Christ-Centered Exposition, Exalting Jesus in Revelation, Daniel L. Akin.)   However, even in the dark days of the martyrdom of Antipas, they remained faithful. Tradition says that he was roasted inside a brass bull. Notice that he is described as “my faithful witness” which is the same description used for Jesus in chapter one. Jesus was a faithful witness for His Father in death and Antipas was a faithful witness for Jesus in his death.

In The Global War on Christians, John Allen notes that “80% of all acts of religious discrimination in the world today are directed against Christians” (Allen, Global War, 33) and that “90% of all people killed on the basis of religious beliefs in the world are Christians.” 

Are we willing to stand against the world?  In order to stand, we have to allow the sWord of God to reach into our innermost being and remove what is unnecessary and heal what is missing,  The hardest fight in the church today seems to be a willingness to believe the Bible.  Are we willing to be a church that believes the Word of God above every other influence?  Will we believe it so deeply that we will not be swayed even when subjected to societal pressure, rejection, or being outcast?