Smyrna

"Smyrna" – Revelation 2:8-11 Smyrna was a wealthy city loyal to the Roman empire, where saying “Jesus is Lord” instead of “Caesar is Lord” cost a person's life. To that church Jesus presents Himself as the first and the last, who was dead and is alive; He knows its tribulation and poverty, yet tells it: “thou art rich.” He foretells prison and trial, asks for faithfulness unto death and promises the crown of life. Polycarp, its leader discipled by John, embodied it when he refused to deny his King. Of the seven churches, only Smyrna and Philadelphia received no rebuke: the most faithful are often the ones that suffer most.

I. “He that overcometh”: we have many battles ahead.

A. Our fight is not with the brother or the neighbor: it is with the misery of the flesh, with ourselves.

1. Each one decides how to live what comes; evaluate yourself, not the one beside you.

2. We must grow in wisdom and be teachers of the Scriptures, not of ignorance.

3. Life is one and must be taken responsibly; it is not as long as it seems.

B. God, in His mercy, raises up churches where He manifests Himself.

II. Where the Gospel reached us from, and why we must know the Scriptures.

A. The sacred book reached us through the movement of churches that came out of England.

1. If we know the Scriptures, no one will ever deceive us: they are the truth that sets us free.

2. The more one reads, from Genesis to Revelation, the more faith grows; no theme is taught without biblical backing.

3. The churches of Revelation were raised up by men and women who were servants of God.

B. Children must be formed according to the Scriptures, not the genes of father and mother.

III. Smyrna: a wealthy city loyal to the emperor.

A. Today it is Izmir, in Turkey; it was a center of emperor worship.

1. Everyone had to say “Caesar is Lord”; the Christians said “Jesus is Lord,” and that meant

2. We gather because we have repented and been baptized; let us humble ourselves and drop the pride.

IV. The first and the last, which was dead, and is alive.

A. That is the Jesus we serve, the One John wrote of from the revelation he received.

1. The Holy Spirit preserves the Scriptures; not even Hitler burning them could prevail.

2. That wonder produces faith, and faith is put into action; without faith we receive no miracles.

B. The name recalls that He overcame death and can give eternal life.

1. On the tree He paid for the eternal life neither you nor I had; there are mansions in heaven.

2. It was the perfect name for a church that faced death.

3. In hell no one can pray; whoever falls there never rises again.

V. I know thy tribulation and poverty, but thou art rich.

A. Rich spiritually: every spiritual person is rich in peace, joy, well-being and eternal life.

1. There is reward in heaven, and so we must strive; without faith no one will see the Lord.

2. Facing persecution, life cannot be lived softly: we must be fighters, seeking service and not stardom.

B. They lost jobs, goods and honor, yet before God they were rich.

1. We have far more benefits than Smyrna; what if we lost it all?

2. Live with commitment, not adrift; the one enlisted to know takes no risks.

VI. The synagogue of Satan and the ten days of trial.

A. Not all the Jews were enemies, but some accused the Christians before the authorities.

1. Their own people handed over those converted by John's preaching; that led to prison or

2. Mortals are capable of selling anyone; the question is how we decide to live.

B. “Tribulation ten days”: a limited period; God controls the suffering.

1. There is a time to suffer; seek comfort in no one: go to God.

VII. Fear none of those things: be thou faithful unto death.

A. The call is to faithfulness, the hardest thing for mortals.

1. Faithful though you be left alone, though no one loves you, though everything be taken away.

2. A pinch of trial and man renounces God; in bitterness it shows even more.

3. God greatly values faithfulness in suffering; you are no victim: be comforted in the Holy Spirit.

B. The Son intercedes with the Father, and the Father commands; we pray in the name of Jesus, which is absolute.

1. The Spirit's work is to do in us what we need to learn, until God says “thus far.”

C. The promise: the crown of life, “stephanos,” the victor's crown.

1. One can be earning it and lose it the day before death by rebelling; remain lovers of God.

VIII. Polycarp of Smyrna.

A. Leader of the church, discipled by the apostle John; arrested at 86.

1. Asked to deny Christ, he answered: eighty-six years I have served Him and He never did me wrong; how can I deny my King?

2. He was executed for his faith; today Christ is denied not with the mouth but with deeds.

B. Only Smyrna and Philadelphia received no rebuke.

1. The most faithful churches are often the ones that suffer most.

2. Smyrna stands for faithfulness in suffering: faith when all is lost, spiritual wealth without material wealth.

3. Summary: persecution; poor yet rich; prison and trial; the call to be faithful; the promise of the crown.

C. One day God will say: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many.

1. “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD”; the righteous has never been seen forsaken.

2. The fight is against powers and principalities, not against mortals; be strong and of good courage.