Scripture: “And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: ‘The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
“‘I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you. Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
Revelation 3:1-6 ESV [Click here to read the entire chapter.]
Observation: Recapping Yesterday’s Daily Focus, acknowledging the Thyatira church’s maturing works based on faith, love, and perseverance, Jesus then confronts the church for tolerating a Jezebel-like prophetess who seduces members to idolatry. Noting he gave this unrepentant prophetess time to repent, Jesus declares he will throw her onto a sickbed along with those who refuse to repent of her works (i.e., all will suffer great tribulation and death). Hence, churches will realize that their Lord discerns and judges one’s heart and will mete consequences according to one’s works. For those who stay clear of Jezebel and her evil works (the deep things of Satan), Jesus will no further burden them. But they must hold fast to Christ and his good works until his return. When they do, they will conquer the power of sin and receive authority over the nations like a rod of iron that shatters earthen pots. And Jesus will give these godly souls the morning star.
Today’s reading covers the fifth of Christ’s exhortations to the seven churches: Sardis. Using his formulaic salutation, Jesus addresses the “angel of the church” with his unique title, “him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.” Unlike the first four churches, Jesus begins with a negative tone. Immediately rebuking the church for being dead, Jesus challenges its congregants to wake up, for he has found their works incomplete before God. Then, commanding them to remember and keep his words and repent, Jesus threatens to come like an unexpected thief at night. Still, he offers a conciliatory word regarding the remnant who have “not soiled their garments” (v.4) and who have “conquered” (i.e., overcome adversity; v.5). They will walk with Jesus in “white garments” (v.5), for he will confess their names before his Father and the angels. So, for the rest who slumber, wake up, listen with understanding, and make a course correction.
Historical Note: Sardis (located about 30 miles southeast of Thyatira in this circuitous path of the seven churches) is modern-day Sart. Well fortified by its acropolis, Sardis thrived in commerce throughout its history. Sardis boasted of its impressive necropolis of “a thousand hills” (modern Bin Tepe), so named because of the hundreds of burial mounds visible on the skyline some seven miles from Sardis. Hence, Jesus likens its church to its renowned cemetery, both filled with corpses.
Takeaway: Given the period between John’s revelatory letter (mid 90’s AD) and when the Gospel reached this region (mid 50’s AD), about forty years had passed since the first generation of Christians embraced the good news. Their luxurious lifestyle had since led to moral decay. And yet, as theologian William Ramsey remarks, “No city of Asia at that time showed such a melancholy contrast between past splendor and present decay as Sardis” (The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia, p.375). And theologian William Barkley adds, “Sardis was a city of peace, not the peace won through battle, but the peace of the man whose dreams are dead and whose mind is asleep, the peace of lethargy and evasion” (Letters to the Seven Churches, p.71). Sadly, this second generation of churchgoers rested on the laurels of their forefathers’ active faith, anesthetized by their false sense of peace. Thus, Christ warns the church to wake up from its spiritual slumber, repent from its indulgent lifestyle, live out its faith in Christ, or incur a second death of the soul.
In contrast, those clothed in white garments represent the faithful who have not comingled pagan cultural values with the righteousness of Christ and his commands. To be clothed in Christ’s righteousness harkens to Isaiah’s prophecy regarding the Suffering Servant who clothes himself in the garments of righteousness and salvation (Isaiah 61:10).
Our takeaway? Paul challenges the Corinthian church to become ambassadors of Christ, living out and proclaiming Christ’s ministry of reconciliation grounded in his great exchange of our sin-soiled lives for his unsullied, righteous life (2 Corinthians 5:21). But what does it mean to live out our righteousness in Christ? How do we avoid the perilous spiritual slumber of the Sardinians? In his letter to the Galatian church, Paul presents godly elements of how the righteous live by faith. We:
- Set our minds on things above, not earthly matters (3:2).
- Put to death sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desires, and covetousness (3:5).
- Put away anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk, and lies (3:8-9).
- Put on the new self, being renewed in the image of our Creator (3:10).
- Put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience (3:12).
- Bear with one another, forgiving each other as the Lord has forgiven us (3:13).
- Lastly, put on love, which, in the words of Paul, “binds everything together in perfect harmony” (3: 14b ESV).
Perhaps Paul’s “do’s and don’t’s” list seems overwhelming. It is, but with God, all things are possible (Luke 18:27). So if we set our minds on our Triune God, the Holy Spirit will enlarge our hearts with gratitude and love for our glorious Lord and Savior and inspire us to cooperate with his cleansing (sanctification) of our filthy garments. If we preserve, we will genuinely feel awake, refreshed, and at rest in Christ’s peace.
Prayer: Father God, we thank you for your Son, who mercifully exchanged his righteousness for our sins to awaken our souls and bring us new life in him. We confess, though, that we are prone to narcolepsy of our souls, resting our security and peace on earthbound prosperity and pleasures. So please help cooperate with your Holy Spirit by putting our self-centered, worldly vices to death and putting on our authentic selves that sacrificially love you and one another so that we might walk with your Son in “white garments.” Amen.
Rev. Gordon Green, M.Div., M.A. Counseling
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