To the Angel of the Church
of Sardis
Revelation 3:1-6
Historical Setting: Sardis, population 120,000 at
John’s writing, was once the capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia, and located
at the foot of Mt. Tmolus, about 50 miles east of Smyrna and 35 miles south of
Thyatira. In AD 17, “the greatest earthquake in human memory” destroyed Sardis and 11 other
cities in a single night. Thus, the warning of Christ, “Be watchful, and
strengthen the things which remain…Therefore if you will not watch, I will come
upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you,” was
especially ominous. The city, like the church, was filled with former glory,
but was now dead. “The captives of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
shall possess the cities of the South” (Obadiah 1:20 ). Sepharad (“separated”) is believed to be
the Semitic name for Sardis ,
which housed one of the largest known ancient synagogues.
Name Defined: Sardis
is associated with the city “Sepharad ” which means separated. Others have seen Sardis (which literally
means “red” like the sardius stone) with Edom (which also means “red”), who
are descendants of Esau. Sardis/Edom/Esau/Dead Church is in contrast with Philadelphia / Israel / Jacob / Living
Church. Sardis
is dead, slumbering, and hated like Esau. Philadelphia
is vibrant, “loving of brothers” and loved by Christ (Rev. 3:9).
Church History
Parallel: “The Protestant Church” (1520-Tribulation)-Like the church at Sardis which
had a name of being alive but in fact was dead, the churches from the
Reformation “separated” from the Thyatira “Jezebel” church, but did not have
its works “fulfilled” or completed before God (Rev. 3:2). Luther’s
church in Germany
soon became a state church and retained much of the problems of the Roman
Catholic Church. The same can be said of the churches in Zwingli’s Switzerland ,
Calvin’s France ,
and Henry VIII’s Church of England.
I.
Christ’s Description-Has The Seven Spirits
Of God, The Seven Stars-see 1:4, 16 (Rev. 3:1)
II.
Commendations (3:1,4)
1.
Reputation-A name that it was alive
2.
Remnant-A few had not defiled their garments, worthy to
walk with Christ in white
III. Condemnations (3:1-2)
1.
Dead-The church was dead
2.
Deeds Incomplete-Its works were not fulfilled before God
IV.
Commands (3:2-3)
1.
Watch-Be watchful
2.
Work-Strengthen the things which remain but are about to
die
3.
Remember-it had once received and heard
4.
Retain-Hold fast to the early teachings
5.
Repent-Turn around in your thinking so that your actions
change.
V.
Consequences (3:4-5)
1.
The Overtaken
i. Unwatching-Christ to come
upon them as a thief (See also Rev. 16:15)
ii. Unaware-The time will
be sudden
iii. Unprepared-for Christ’s
return
2.
The Overcomers
i. Clothed-in white
garments
ii. Continued-Name not
blotted out from the Book of Life
iii. Confessed-Christ will
confess his name before Father and angels
1 “And to the angel of the church
in Sardis
write,'These things says He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven
stars: “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are
dead.”
BE ALIVE: Christ has the
seven-fold complete and fullness of the Holy Spirit. Yet the dead church was
lacking the vitality of the Holy Spirit. As you study the book of Revelation,
are you asking God to reveal truths to you today, for you to apply to your
lives today? Is our church, the local church, is it in the hand of Christ? Is
our church alive or dead? What are we doing and what are our works? Do we have
a good reputation and a good name? Do we live up to our name?
The correlation of the Spirit
of God, the Church of Christ’s hand and death are made clear in Romans 8:2 “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ
Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death” and again in 8:5-6, “For those who live according to the flesh
set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the
Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace,” in
8:13 “For if you live according to
the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the
body, you will live” and again in 1 Peter 3:18 –“For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that
He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the
Spirit.”
2Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to
die, for I have not found your works perfect (fulfilled-as in Rev. 6:11; complete-NASB,NIV) before God. 3Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent.
Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will
not know what hour I will come upon you.
WATCH: Can you imagine finding
out about some land for sale that had a huge supply of oil hidden beneath it?
What would it be worth to you to purchase that land, knowing that once it was
in your possession, all of your investment would be returned hundreds if not
thousands of times over? The Sardis
Church , and the dead Reformation/Protestant
church is like the treasure hidden in the field. It had a name, but was dead.
It had good buried within it, but on the outside it was languishing, weakening,
ready to die. It had potential, but not brought to completion before God. It
had received and heard, but it was forgetting and letting go of the truth. The
church was more like the world, not even ready for Christ’s return.
What if you bought the land and
spent all of your possessions for it, and then never used the treasure hidden
within? What a waste! The joy of the purchase would turn to mourning. What if
we as a church let the star’s flame flicker out? We know the answers. Paul told
the Philippians that they had to do the things that they had “learned and
received and heard and saw” in him in order to have the “God of peace” with
them (Phil. 4:9). Paul rejoiced over the Thessalonians because the truth, the
word of God, was effectively at work in them. “For this reason we also thank
God without ceasing, because when you received the word of God which you
heard from us, you welcomed it not as the word of men, but as it is in
truth, the word of God, which also effectively works in you who believe”
(1 Thes. 2:13). The word “perfect” is nowhere else translated as perfect.
Instead, it is translated as to “fulfill” or “complete.” Did you know that God
has a work for you to do that no one else can do as well as you? Only you can
fulfill the works that God has designed you to do. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,
which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Eph. 2:10). We
are “thoroughly equipped” by the Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16 -17), and empowered by the Spirit of God
(Acts 1:8)
A Sardis Church is a dead
church and may have the name of church but does not have the spirit within it.
It is a cold church, with the fire hidden, almost ready to forever be
extinguished. Like the Corinthians to whom Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 15, they
believed in vain, because while they received the word in part, they did not
“hold fast” to all of the truth. Paul concludes with a charge that the
Corinthians should “be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of
the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” What happens
to those who “hold fast”? Jesus commands John to write:
4You have a few names
even in Sardis
who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for
they are worthy. 5He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot
out his name from the Book of Life; but 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.”
Notice the journey of the names in Sardis whose garments had not been defiled.
Those names will not be blotted out of the Book of Life. Those names will be
confessed by Jesus Himself. Greater than any graduation day, we will hear our
own names being read off by Jesus Christ Himself. God the Father, on that great
and glorious throne will listen as your name is read off by His own Son. In His
nail-scarred hands, Christ will hold the Lamb’s Book of Life, and in permanent,
indelible ink, your name will be forever listed as an overcomer.
Your garments
may have looked undefiled on earth, but look at the clothes you’ll receive in
heaven! Never again will we endure shame as our white garments will cover all
of our nakedness and sin (Rev. 3:18, 16:15 ).
But look! Christ doesn’t stop with a new white wardrobe and a new name written
on a white stone and a declaration of our name before His Father and His angels.
Christ, with His hair all white, is clothed in garments of white, described in
Matthew 17:2 as white as light. Christ rises from His seat at the right hand of
the Father, as He did with Stephen (Acts 7:55), He stands and he walks with
us in white, in purity and before all in heaven, Jesus Christ, the holy
Lamb of God, declares us WORTHY. What does the Spirit say to the churches?
Stay undefiled. Hold fast. Be separate. Be
watchful. Work. Remember. Hold Fast. Repent. Be ready. Overcome.