by Beth Moore
Using the elements common to each letter to the churches, let's see what Christ had to say to the church at Ephesus.
Identification. Note what Christ pinpoints about Himself to the church in Ephesus: "These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands" (Rev. 2:1). The description corresponds with verse 12 of chapter 1.
Commendation. Based on His intimate knowledge of the church of Ephesus, Christ strongly commended them in verses 2 and 3: "I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary."
Rebuke. "Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love" (2:4). Remember the apostle John was most involved in the church at Ephesus. Knowing what we've learned about him, how do you think he responded internally when he heard this particular rebuke concerning his dear ones in Ephesus? He was the pastor who had sought to teach them to love the Lord Christ. Did he feel a sense of failure or reproof?
Exhortation. In verse 5, Christ said, "Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place." Note a detail about the warning. Christ told the church in Ephesus that if they did not repent and do the things they "did at first," He would come to them and remove their lampstand from its place. The terminology doesn't mean they would lose their place in heaven. We lose our lampstand when we lose a vibrant position of godly influence on earth. In other words, we lose our light in the world.
Keep in mind that a church is no stronger than its people. A church isn't bricks and mortar. It's the people of God. I've been in a church God confronted with the sins of division and cynicism. Though individuals repented and did not lose the light of godly influence, the church as a whole refused to "go face to the ground," as I call it, in corporate repentance. For an excruciating season, she completely lost her place of viable influence in the community. Her sins were serious, but they were not hopeless! Read on....
Encouragement. "To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God" (2:7). The sins of the church at Ephesus weren't hopeless either. Nor are ours! Let's repent, though, so we can overcome!
I can't help but camp out a while on the rebuke to the church at Ephesus. I don't want us to miss its great relevance to the modern church. You noticed that the church in Ephesus received tremendously noble commendations from Christ and yet she had somehow let go of the most important thing of all: her sacred romance with Jesus Christ. We've seen in John's ministry the unparalleled priority of love. You and I can work hard, persevere through extreme difficulty, not tolerate wicked men, and accurately discern false teachers but yet forsake our first love.
Ironically, many believers don't view an absence of love for Jesus Christ as sin. They view it simply as something they lack. This misunderstanding may be part of the holdup. If God's absolute priority for all followers of Christ is love-for Him first and others second-then the absence of such love is sin. I pound this point but not to condemn. Remember, it's not an irreversible condition! I pound the point so that we can do what we must to get on with the business of loving! God says, "Repent!" I'm not sure we'll be able to welcome the resource of love and His means of shedding it abroad in our hearts until we do.
Repent means turn. I believe God told them and is telling us to turn from whatever has taken the place of our sacred romance with Christ and pour our lives back into the first things. Keep in mind that with the "first things" rightly established, all other things of value come to us as well. The church in Ephesus very likely allowed their spiritual busyness and all their stalwart religiosity to displace the law of love. Since everything else hinges on the laws of love (Matt. 22:40), over time all things of eternal value would have crumbled in Ephesus. Surely this exhortation speaks to each of us in one way or another.
Somehow in my previous studies of this letter, I have overlooked the original meaning of a critical word in the phrase "forsaken your first love." I am astonished to find that the original word for "forsaken" is the same word often translated "forgive" in the New Testament. The word aphiemi means "to send forth, send away, let go from oneself"' The word is used in the phrase describing Christ's physical death when He "gave up the spirit" in Matthew 27:50. The New Testament uses aphiemi in many contexts and simply means giving up or letting go of something. The word is translated "forgive" both times in the familiar words of Matthew 6:12 (KJV): "Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."
I could easily sit right here and sob. The thought occurs to me how often we forsake our first love-our indescribably glorious sacred romance-because we refuse to forsake our grudges and grievances. How many times has Christ watched those He loves give up intimacy with Him in order to hang on to unforgiveness? Please allow me to say this with much compassion as one who has been there: We cannot hang on to our sacred romance with Jesus Christ and also our bitterness. We will release one to hang on to the other.
Today, precious one, release the one that is nothing but bondage. Life is too short. The room unforgiveness is taking up in your life is cheating you of the very thing you were born (again) to experience. Send it forth! Not into oblivion, but into the hands of the faithful and sovereign judge of the earth. Grab the neck of Jesus Christ and hang on to Him instead with every breath and every ounce of strength you have. Pray to love Him more than you pray for blessing, health, or ministry. Unless our lampstands are lit with the torch of sacred love, they are nothing but artificial lights. Fluorescent, maybe. But sooner or later, the bulb burns out.
Chapter 38
TO THE CHURCH
IN SMYRNA
Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life. (Revelation 2:106)
Next we focus on the second of seven messages to churches in Asia Minor. Smyrna (modern Izmar) was an exceptionally beautiful city about forty miles due north of Ephesus. The people of Smyrna placed a high premium on learning. Science and medicine flourished, contributing to great wealth in the metropolis during the early New Testament era in which John received the revelation. With this landscape picture of Smyrna in mind, let's look at the specifics of the message to Smyrna. You'll note the same common elements we saw in the message to Ephesus, with a couple of different twists.
Identification. "These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again" (2:8).
Commendation. "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" (2:9).
Rebuke. Unlike Ephesus, Christ offered no rebuke to this church.
Exhortation. "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" (2:10).
Encouragement. "He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death" (v. 11).
Now let's consider some thoughts about these elements of the message. We won't always be able to link Christ's specific self-identification to something noteworthy about the recipient, but we are probably wise to assume a link existed. In the letter to the believers in Smyrna, Christ identified Himself as the "First and the Last." Almost every book and commentary I studied mentioned the ancient inscription on the coins in first-century Smyrna: "First in Asia in Beauty and Size."
As Christ addressed His letter to humble believers surrounded by arrogant pagans, He essentially declared, "I am the First in Asia, Africa, and everywhere else. In fact, I spoke them into existence. What's more, I am also Last. I am the inescapable One, the Judge of the Living and the Dead, and I have come to commend you."
Smyrna stands out among the churches as one of two that received no rebuke. As Christ walked beside this lampstand, He found no fault in her. Impressively, she didn't pass her tests because her exams were easy. To the contrary, no other church is characterized by greater depths of suffering. Christ didn't mince words when He described her afflictions and poverty. Christians were despised and terribly mistreated in Smyrna primarily because no other city in Asia Minor held more allegiance to Rome.
"As early as 195 B.C., Smyrna foresaw the rising power of Rome and built a temple for pagan Roman worship. In 23 B.C., Smyrna was given the honor of building a temple to the Emperor Tiberius because of its faithfulness to Rome. Thus, the city became a center for the cult of emperor worship-a fanatical 'religion” The obsessive allegiance of the people of Smyrna became deadly for Christians under the rule of emperors like Nero (A.D. 54 68) and Domitian (A.D. 81-96). Anything the emperor reviled, the people of Smyrna reviled. For these two emperors and others that followed, Christians were on the top of the hate list.
"I know ... your poverty." Surrounded by wealth, those known to be Christians were persecuted in many ways, not the least of which was economically. Decent jobs were often refused to them, and many merchants withheld goods from them. Against the sparkling backdrop of opulence and affluence, the Christians in Smyrna were invited to take their poverty personally. In Voice of the Martyrs, you can read current bone-chilling accounts of Christians forced to live in horrendous poverty in parts of the world because of their faith. A single mouth never goes unfed without God's notice. No government or people group gets away with a lack of compassion or outright oppression. God feels so strongly about the poor that I believe He is fully capable of withholding blessing from cities and nations that neglect or oppress them.
Christ commented about the slander of those who falsely claimed to be Jews but instead were a synagogue of Satan. This fact may imply that the Jews in Smyrna identified the Christians to the government and greatly heightened the persecution against them.
Imagine God's derision for a people who not only look the other way but actively enforce poverty and affliction. They had no idea the King of the earth walked through the perfectly paved streets of their fair city checking on those who called themselves by His name. The people of Smyrna took great pride in the beauty of their city. I found the following quote out of Bible Illustrator quite ironic: "The hills and the sea added to the picturesque quality of the city. The city itself nestled under the hill Pagos, which made an ideal acropolis. This beauty was marred, however, by a drainage problem in the lower city which resulted in the silting up of the harbor and an accumulation of unpleasant odors."
Try as they might to build the most impressive city in Asia, they just couldn't do anything about that putrid smell. Don't think for a moment that their unrelenting persecution of innocent people didn't rise up to the nostrils of God. Interestingly, the name Smyrna means "myrrh."5 The ancient extract by the same name was used in Scripture for anointing oil, perfume, purification, and embalming. Myrrh was among the gifts offered by the Magi to Jesus. Nothing but stench ascended to the heavens from the arrogantly pristine, highly educated, and wealthy of Smyrna. From the hidden slums, however, rose a fragrant incense of great expense. No perfume is more costly and more aromatic to God than the faithfulness of believers who are suffering.
A few nights ago I served on a team with a pastor whose son will soon die of a malignant brain tumor unless God intervenes miraculously. I stood not far from him during praise and worship. This precious father did not deny his immense pain. His tears fell unashamedly, but all the while his worship rose just as unashamedly. I can hardly hold back my own tears as I picture his face. Many of us felt the favor of God over our interdenominational prayer gathering that night. Somehow, I believe in the midst of much praise, a fragrance of greater price and exceeding sweetness ascended to the throne from one grieving servant of God.
How are people like my pastor/friend and the believers in Smyrna able to be faithful through such terrible suffering? As resistant as we are to absorb it, 1 Peter 1:7 indicates one primary reason: "These have come so that your faith-of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire-may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."
Those who are faithful in the midst of immense suffering somehow allowed their fiery trials to purify them rather than destroy them. If we've never suffered like some of the saints we know or have read about, we tend to indict ourselves with failure before our trials ever come. We must remember that God grants us grace and mercy according to our need. No, I do not have the strength or character to be faithful under such heart-shattering conditions, but when my time comes the Holy Spirit will impart a power and grace I've never experienced. The challenge is whether or not to accept it.
The tragedy is that in our pride and anger we sometimes refuse the grace of God during our times of suffering. The believers in Smyrna did not refuse the grace. They inhaled it like air because they were desperate. As much as the church in Smyrna had suffered, Christ warned them of more to come. He wanted them to be aware, but He did not want them to be afraid. I believe much of the Book of Revelation was written to believers for the same purpose.
Mind you, imprisonment and death awaited some of those among the fragrant church of Smyrna. We don't know what Christ meant by the time segment of "ten days." Some scholars believe it was literal. Others think it represented ten years. Still others assume it is a figure of speech for a segment of time known only to God. Whatever the length of trial, Christ called the church of Smyrna to be faithful unto death. His self-identification as the one who died and came to life again reminded them of the absolute assurance of resurrection life. He also promised to reward them with a stephanos or victor's crown. They would not be touched by "the second death," a term for the final judgment for all unbelievers.
Father, how desperately we, Your children, need the renewing of our minds! In our human ways of thinking, overcoming a life-threatening situation always means staying alive!
We inhale the sweet fragrance of the church of Smyrna to learn another option under the heading of overcoming. Sometimes Jesus defines overcoming not as living well but dying well. In other words, dying with faith and spiritual dignity. Beloved, dying is the one thing each of us is going to do unless we're the chosen generation to "meet Him in the air" without tasting death (1 Thess. 4:17).
At least one of the saints in Smyrna to which Christ addressed His letter left us a profound and wonderful example of an overcoming death. His name was Polycarp. He studied directly under the apostle John's tutelage and was alive at the time the Revelation was penned. He became the bishop of the church in Smyrna and served the generation that followed John's heavenly departure. Foxe's Book of Martyrs shares the following account of Polycarp's trial and martyrdom.
He was, however, carried before the proconsul, condemned, ... The proconsul then urged him, saying, "Swear, and I will release thee;-reproach Christ." Polycarp answered, "Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He has done me no wrong. How then can I blaspheme my King who has saved me?" At the stake to which he was only tied, not nailed as usual, as he assured them he should stand immovable.
Polycarp's persecutors tried to fight fire with fire, but they failed. His faithfulness to the death only heightened the flames of godly passion, carrying the costly fragrance of myrrh past the jeers of the crowd to the throne room of God. He had overcome. Perhaps crucifixion is the only slow death with pain exceeding the fires of a stake. As long as those moments must have been, nothing could have prepared Polycarp for the sight he beheld when death gave way to life and faith gave way to sight. The only Jesus he had ever seen was in the face and heart of John the Beloved. That day the old bishop of Smyrna saw the One he loved and had served for eighty and six years. Face-to-face. With a victor's crown in His hand.
When I get to heaven and meet him, I'm goi
ng to try to remember to ask Polycarp if he thought his suffering was worth it. Oh, I already know the answer, ... but I want to see his expression.
Chapter 39
TO THE CHURCH
IN PERGAMUM
To him who overcomes, I will give some of the hidden manna. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it, known only to him who receives it. (Revelation 2:17)
Next we travel farthest north in the cluster of the seven churches to the city of Pergamum. About sixty-five miles above Smyrna, Pergamum was the administrative capital city of Asia until the close of the first century and the legal center for the district. You may still have Smyrna pictured in your mind. Imagine a city with exceeding grandeur as we make our way through the city gate of Pergamum. I was stunned by the pictures of the ornate ruins. Not only did the city boast imposing gymnasiums, theaters, and government facilities; its 200,000-volume library was second only to the library in Alexandria.
When word of the plans for such a library circulated, an Egyptian importer of papyrus was so offended by the thought of a rival that he stopped Pergamum's shipments. The deficit forced the development of parchment, which is the Greek word pergemene, from Pergamum.1 We have more to learn about the architecture and personality of Pergamum, but let's go straight to Scripture to pour the concrete.
Identification. "These are the words of him who has the sharp, double-edged sword" (2:12).
Commendation. "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, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city-where Satan lives" (2:13).
Rebuke. "Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: You have people there who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin by eating food sacrificed to idols and by committing sexual immorality. Likewise you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans" (2:14-15).