[Special - Seven Churches] The Church of Sardis - A Letter of the Lord to the Church in Sardis (1)
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August 14, 2011 |
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 * The Church of Ephesus
* The Church of Smyrna
* The Church of Pergamum
* The Church of Thyatira
* The Church of Sardis
* The Church of Philadelphia
* The Church of Laodicea
A Letter of the Lord to the Church in Sardis (1)
"To the angel of the church in Sardis write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God. So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you." (Revelation 3:1-3)
Seven churches described in Revelation refer to not just the seven churches located in Asia Minor. They include all churches that God has established in the era of the Holy Spirit. The Lord divided all churches into seven categories, and He delivered the message that was necessary for each church so that other churches that fall under the same category can understand.
The city, Sardis, is a wealthy city that benefited from the development of the fabric dyeing industry. But extravagance and immorality were rampant there, and it was a center of idol-worshipping. So the Church in Sardis did not have perfect faith.
Then, what advice does the Lord give to the church in Sardis that had a name that it was alive, but it was dead?
1. He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this
Why is the Lord described as 'He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars' here?
First, the 'seven Spirits' of God is the heart of God who is spirit itself. In the 66 books of the Bible is the heart of God. Detailed information is recorded in the Bible such as how to please God and how to receive answers. It is the seven Spirits who show the heart of God and the conditions of His answers.
The number 'seven' means 'complete and perfect.' In the spiritual sense, the seven Spirits does not mean that the Spirits of God are seven in number, but that the Spirit of God is perfect. God always searches and supervises every human life throughout the earth. It is for these lives that God sends the seven Spirits as the heart of God as written in Revelation 5:6.
God gives answers and blessings that are proper to each man according to the justice of God by watching his heart and deeds through the seven Spirits. Figuratively speaking, the seven Spirits are like a scale that 'measures' our heart and deeds as a measure for God to answer us. It is just like when we buy meat or vegetables. We have to weigh them on a scale and pay the price according to the weight. Likewise, we should satisfy the conditions to receive answers in accordance with the measure of the seven Spirits.
The seven Spirits of God measure all hearts, thoughts, and deeds of men without the slightest error. The measures are categorized into seven fields.
First, the seven Spirits measure faith. They do not measure the fleshly faith which is just knowledge, but spiritual faith accompanied by deeds. The spiritual faith is the faith to actually believe that something is created out of nothing without doubt even though it does not agree with our own thought and knowledge. To the extent that we live by the word of God, cast away evil from the heart, and become sanctified, we can receive such spiritual faith from above.
Second, the seven Spirits measure prayer. They measure how much we pray in the ways that are proper in the heart and will of God. To be proper in God's will, we should pray regularly on bended knees and cry out with all our heart, mind, and strength. God searches our inner heart, not our outer appearance, so we have to pray with all our heart. And we must not ask for something with our own desires, but we have to pray with faith and love, following the will of God.
Third, the seven Spirits measure joy. To have joy in us proves that we have faith. If we have firm faith in God and believe we will receive answers, we can rejoice in any circumstances. Spiritual joy comes from the peace of the heart. When we do not build a wall of sins against God but keep peace with Him, the joy never goes away.
Fourth, the seven Spirits measure thanks. Those who have faith can give thanks under any kind of situations and under all conditions. If we give thanks only when things are going well, but we become resentful and complain when we have difficulties and things don't go so well, this is not spiritual faith. Then, our answer will be delayed.
Fifth, the seven Spirits measure whether or not we keep the commandments. The Bible has commands telling us to do this, not to do that, to keep this, and to throw away that. The Ten Commandments are the summary of all the commandments. The seven Spirits measure whether we keep the Ten Commandments. Since the evidence of loving God is keeping His commandments as recorded in 1 John 5:3, when we keep the commandments we can receive answers quickly.
Sixth, the seven Spirits measure faithfulness. It is not only faithfulness for God's kingdom but also faithfulness in every aspect for one's family and workplace. Of course if we have faith, we put top priority on the works that belong to the Lord. But we must not neglect the works in the family or workplace, but we must be faithful in all God's house.
Seventh, the seven Spirits measure love. Love is like a string that completely ties together the previous six aspects above. Even if we say we spend much time on praying and working for God's kingdom, it carries true meaning only when we work with true love for God and for the brothers and sisters in faith.
The seven Spirits measure the faith, prayer, joy, thanks, keeping commandments, faithfulness, and love to decide whether an answer can be given. But the measurement needed is not the same for everybody. They will be measured according to justice considering the measure of each one's faith. Namely, for those who have a small measure of faith, the standard of the measurements will also be less. But for those who have been a Christian for a considerable period of time and have greater measure of faith, the standard will also be higher.
The Lord has the seven stars. Here, 'star' refers to man. In Genesis 15:5, God said to Abraham, "And He took him outside and said 'Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.' And He said to him, 'So shall your descendants be.'" God compared Abraham's descendants with stars. Therefore, the seven stars refer to all God's servants who are chosen by God. They are the servants that God holds in His almighty hands and uses for His kingdom. The Lord delivers the heart and will of Father God through their lips, and manifests the works of the living God so that God's children can walk in the way of the truth.
So, the Lord 'having the seven Spirits and seven stars' means that He is searching and measuring everything through the seven Spirits and is guiding God's children to the way of truth through the seven stars.
2. I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead
The Church of Sardis could not hide anything from God who measures through the seven Spirits and searches with His blazing eyes. As the Lord said, "I know your deeds," God searches everything in us.
The faith of the members of the Church in Sardis may appear alive, but by the precise standard of the Lord, they were the same as dead. So, "you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead" means that the faith of the Church in Sardis is "dead faith without deeds."
Since Adam committed sin, the spirits of all his descendants as well as his spirit became as dead. But those who accepted the Lord as their Savior and received the Holy Spirit came to have their spirit revived. Once one's spirit is revived, when this person faces a physical death, the Bible does not say he is 'dead' but 'asleep' as written in Matthew 9:24. When the Lord comes back in the air, he will resurrect and enjoy eternal life.
But the Church in Sardis was told that they were 'dead'; it means that they would not be saved. Even though they said they had faith, their faith was dead, and with dead faith salvation could not be given to them as recorded in James 2:14. Since those who believe in God and the Lord also believe that there will be judgment of good and evil, they live by the word of God. But those who don't believe, they don't live by it. We should know there is a clear distinction between knowing God and believing Him.
Today, there are many who know the word of God, but do not put it into practice. They may appear to manage their believing lives outwardly, but their lives are no different from that of worldly people. For example, they go to church and worship God on Sunday. They give tithe, praise, and pray, but in their real life, they become angry with others and call them bad names. They just do as they want, just like the worldly people.
Such faith is useless just as James 2:20 says, "But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless?" Here, 'deeds' means the deed from the depth of heart. If someone has true faith, he will surely cultivate his heart with the word of God. The deed should come out of such a truth-cultivated heart.
It is not the deed itself that is important. What is important is the heart that is contained in the deed. Once the heart is cultivated into spirit, the deed naturally follows. Those who have dead faith without deeds wouldn't even try to cultivate their hearts into spirit.
Therefore, we, who know that God searches our hearts along with our deeds, must show our love and faith from the bottom of our hearts.
3. Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die
After the Lord gave His rebuke, He said, "Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die" in the first half of Revelation 3:2. It means that they have to realize that their dead faith cannot save them, and they have to live in the truth from now on. Then, He continued in the latter part, "For I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God."
It means that they fell into the world and lived a life that was the same as worldly people's lives. In other words, they had to recover perfect and complete deeds. The way to recover complete deeds is also given. He says in Revelation 3:3, "So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent." As said, if we put into practice what we learn, hear, and see, the God of peace will always be with us. But if we haven't done so, just as the Lord says, "Keep it and repent," we must repent, turn back, and live by the word from now on.
'Repenting' doesn't mean just saying, "I'm sorry. I won't do it again." We must completely turn away from our wrongdoing and walk the right way. If we have truly repented, then we will keep the word steadfastly without changing. When we repent, we must think about how we first met God. We should think about how we came to believe in Jesus Christ, and how fervent we were when we received the Holy Spirit.
Many people don't keep their first heart and deeds, but go back to the world. Even though they say they believe, they live lives that cannot be differentiated from that of the rest of the world. We have to repent of all those things, recover the first fullness and fervor, and live by the word of God.
4. Therefore if you do not wake up … you will not know at what hour I will come to you
The Lord said to the Church in Sardis, "Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you." He is talking about the consequences that those who do not repent will face.
If we face the Second Coming of the Lord when we haven't yet turned back from sins, it will be too late. A thief enters into the places where there is no anti-theft measure. Likewise, to those who are not prepared to receive the Lord, His Second Coming will come like a thief. But, to those who live in the light and who are not in the darkness, the Lord will not appear like a thief.
It is just as said in 1 Thessalonians 5:4-5, "But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness"
Of course, just as the Lord says in Matthew 24:36, only Father God knows of the day and hour when the Lord will be coming back. But the Bible tells us roughly when the Lord will come again. It's similar to nobody knowing the exact day and hour when a pregnant woman will give birth to a baby, but we can roughly guess it will be within a month or so. The Lord already told us the signs of the end of time in Matthew Chapter 24. We have to be awake and be on alert to prepare for the Lord's Second Coming with prayers. (1 Peter 4:7)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
Just listening to the word of God, and organizing it as mere knowledge cannot be called true faith. When we hang onto the word we heard, pray for it, and put it into practice, the word will sprout, and greatly yield as much fruit a hundred, sixty, or thirty times. Even if someone is given a position in a church, and even if he appears to have faith, he may have dead faith. Therefore, the standard of faith is not the outward appearance or a position held. The only standard is the faith that put the word of God into practice.
If someone teaches or is doing something that violates the word of God, even if he is a leader in the church or even a pastor, we must not listen to him. The important thing is not whether he is in the position to teach, but whether he is practicing the word. (Matthew 5:19 and 23:3) Whoever keeps one of the least of the commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. And he will also have authority over words to change many people on this earth.
To be continued in the next edition
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