Remain Faithful
.
.
Last Sunday we talked about the church in Ephesus
– the church that needed to return to its first love. Before we look at
the church in Smyrna I need to make two comments about Revelation
2: 6, 7:
| But you have this in your favor: you
hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. He who
has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To
him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life,
which is in the paradise of God. |
1. "The
practices of the Nicolaitans." This sect taught that we have so much
freedom in Christ that it is OK to commit fornication and adultery.
God stated that He hated the practice of the Nicolaitans, not them as individuals.1
Corinthians 6:9 – 11:
| Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit
the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually
immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual
offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers
will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were.
But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. |
Note that Jesus states, "That is what some
of you were." Past tense… they had been delivered by the power of
God. Jesus makes an interesting statement in Mark 9:23.
He
asks, "What do you mean, 'If I can'?"
"Anything is possible if a person believes."
Why would Jesus make a statement like that?
Because the father of a boy who was possessed by an evil spirit that caused
the boy to suffer terribly had said to Jesus, "…But if you can do anything,
take pity on us and help us."
It helps to understand that the father had
brought the little boy to the disciples for prayer and nothing had happened.
When Jesus came down from the Mount of Transfiguration, there was a lot
of turmoil because the disciples couldn’t help.
After Jesus made His statement,"Anything
is possible if a person believes,"the father
exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" Jesus then
commanded the evil spirit to come out… and it did, but the boy looked like
a corpse and many said, "He’s dead." Then Jesus took him by the hand and
lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.
No matter what is going on in your life, Jesus
can set you free! Let Him!
2. Revelation
2:7, "To him
who overcomes I will give the right to eat from the tree of life…"
What is an Overcomer?
-
A person saved through faith, not through
works.
The scriptures teach that works follow salvation, not precede them.
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A person who consistently wins in the battle over
sin. He or she may lose an occasional skirmish, but he or she wins
the war!
-
A person who seeks to follow Biblical standards.
Now to today’s lesson
Revelation 2:8-11
| To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
These are the words of Him who is the First and the Last, who died and
came to life again.
I know your afflictions and your poverty--yet
you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and
are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid of what you
are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in
prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days.
Be faithful, even to the point of 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 at
all by the second death. |
Smyrna was a poor, persecuted church.
The church was actually located in a beautiful city of wealth and commercial
greatness. Apparently the townsfolk did not accept them. As
we know, there have been times throughout history when making a stand for
Christ was to be persecuted… to lose your job… to lose your government
benefits. We need to cherish the freedoms we have in this country!
Just guessing I would say that one of their
favorite scriptures was Psalm 37:1-22:
| Don't worry about the wicked. Don't
envy those who do wrong. For like grass, they soon fade away. Like
springtime flowers, they soon wither. Trust in the LORD and do good.
Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in
the LORD, and He will give you your heart's desires.
Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust
Him, and He will help you. He will make your innocence as clear as
the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun.
Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for Him to act.
Don't worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.
Stop your anger! Turn from your rage!
Do not envy others-- it only leads to harm. For the wicked will be
destroyed, but those who trust in the LORD will possess the land.
In a little while, the wicked will disappear. Though you look for
them, they will be gone. Those who are gentle and lowly will possess
the land; they will live in prosperous security. The wicked plot
against the godly; they snarl at them in defiance. But the Lord just
laughs, for He sees their Day of Judgment coming.
The wicked draw their swords and string their
bows to kill the poor and the oppressed, to slaughter those who do right.
But they will be stabbed through the heart with their own swords, and their
bows will be broken. It is better to be godly and have
little than to be evil and possess much. For the strength
of the wicked will be shattered, but the LORD takes care of the godly.
Day
by day the LORD takes care of the innocent, and they will receive a reward
that lasts forever. They will survive through hard times;
even in famine they will have more than enough. But the wicked will
perish. The Lord's enemies are like flowers in a field-- they will
disappear like smoke. The wicked borrow and never repay, but the
godly are generous givers. Those blessed by the LORD will inherit
the land, but those cursed by Him will die. |
Sometimes we forget that God understands how
we feel. "I know your afflictions."
Sometimes we aren’t so sure that God really
knows what we are going through. But He does! He understands! 1
Corinthians 10:13:
| No temptation has seized you except what is
common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be
tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will
also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. |
Jesus also says, "I
know your poverty, but you are rich." I
have known people who stayed away from church because they could not dress
right or did not have money to put in the offering. Don’t do that!
God
wants you, not your stuff! He really has all He needs!
He asks for our tithes and offerings to support the church, but actually
there is a more powerful reason He asks for your money. He
wants to be sure that you have the money and the money does not have you!
Come to Jesus just as you are! If the
risk seems too great because you know how Christians are supposed to act
-- and you fear you will never get ahead if you don’t take care of yourself
-- well, I have a scripture for you!
And my God will meet all
your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19
|
He will! Most of us have learned this…
God meets our needs!
Back to Smyrna.
-
He knows their afflictions
-
He knows their poverty
-
He knows that they are being slandered
-
He knows that the Synagogue of God has
turned into the Synagogue of Satan.
He instructs them (verse
10a):
Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer.
Oops! We didn’t want to hear THAT did we?
Suffer? Yep. God said we will have to do that, but He promises
us blessings if we endure.
~
| Joy… |
until
we face sorrow. |
| Faith… |
until
it is tested. |
| Peace… |
until
faced with conflict. |
| Trust… |
until
we are betrayed. |
| Love… |
until
it is lost. |
| Hope… |
until
confronted with doubts. |
Author Unknown.
Cited in Lists to Live By.
Multnomah Publishers, Inc.
|
~
~
A little girl who loved the Lord longed to
share the message of salvation with those who had never heard it.
So she contributed a penny to a missionary to help with the work of evangelizing
the people of Burma. That small coin was all she had, but it was
given from her heart. The worker on the foreign field was deeply
touched by the child's earnestness and decided he would do the most he
could with the money. After careful thought he purchased a Gospel
tract and personally gave it to a young chieftain. Apparently the
Christian did not know that the tribal leader was not educated well enough
to read it. God instilled within the ruler a burning desire to know
the meaning of the leaflet, however, and he traveled 250 miles to find
someone who could translate it for him. After he heard the Gospel
message, it wasn't long until the young chief was gloriously converted.
Returning to his people, he told them what the Lord had done for his soul.
Later he invited missionaries to come and preach to his entire village,
and many tribesmen who heard the good news accepted the Savior.
All this and probably much more resulted from
one dedicated penny given in Christ's name by a little girl who wanted
the lost to hear about Jesus! Don't wait until you can do "great
things" to start working for the Master. God can do wonders with
dedicated little things. |
|
Joseph M. Stowell writes that several years
ago, he was chatting with a man who consults with some of the largest U.S.
companies about their quality control. Since ministry is a form of
human quality control, Mr. Stowell decided to ask him for some insights.
The consultant said, "In quality control, we
are not concerned about the product." But then he went on to say,
"We are concerned about the process. If the process is right, the
product is guaranteed."
This same principle applies to Christianity.
If we work on pleasing God in everything we do, we will "turn out all right!"
American Christians, we tend to desire and
demand products of righteousness, but give little attention to the process.
God, please help us understand!
Have you received Jesus as your personal Savior?
Have you repented of your sins and rebellion against God? If not,
let’s do that in our closing prayer.
Heavenly Father, I come to you in the Name
of Jesus. Your Word says, "Whosoever shall call on the name of the
Lord shall be saved" and "If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,'
and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be
saved. You said my salvation would be the result of Your Holy Spirit
giving me new birth by coming to live in me.
This morning I take you at your word.
I repent of my sin. I confess that Jesus is Lord. I believe
in my heart that you raised Him from the dead. Thank you for coming
into my heart, for giving me Your Holy Spirit as You promised, and for
being Lord over my life!
In Jesus' name, AMEN. |
