Jesus' Letter to People who aren't Real

From: Jesus

The One Who holds both the seven spirits and the seven stars comes to a people who have no spiritual vitality so they ignore the truth spoken through the messenger God had sent to instruct them. The number seven here is not a reference to a specific quantity, but rather is an indicator of completeness and perfection. The seven spirits of God represents the Holy Spirit in His infinite perfection. The seven stars, we are told in the first chapter Revelation, are the messenger to the Churches.

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To: Sardis

[SARR dis]-the capital city of Lydia in the province of Asia, in western Asia Minor (modern Turkey). The church at Sardis was one of the seven churches mentioned by John in the Book of Revelation (Rev 3:1-6).

Sardis was situated on the east bank of the Pactolus River about 80 kilometers (50 miles) east of Smyrna; it occupied a rocky spur of Mount Tmolus and a valley at the foot of this mountain. In ancient times Sardis was well fortified and easily defended. It became the capital of the ancient Lydian empire, then passed successively to the Persians, the Greeks, and the Romans during their respective dominance of the ancient world.

During its days as a Roman city, Sardis became an important Christian center. However, the church at Sardis was evidently affected by the complacency of the city and its reliance on past glory: "You have a name that you are alive, but you are dead" (Rev 3:1). Sardis, the dead church, was like "whitewashed tombs which...appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men's bones" (Matt 23:27). Its thriving, healthy appearance masked an inner decay.

The most impressive building of ancient Sardis must have been its magnificent Temple of Artemis, built in the fourth century B.C. The temple was 100 meters (327 feet) long and 50 meters (163 feet) wide and had 78 Ionic columns, each 17.7 meters (58 feet) high. Some of these columns remain standing until this day.
(from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)

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Commendation:

Jesus offers no commendation to the people in the church of Sardis. He said in John 15:5, "...apart from me you can do nothing." These people were operating apart from Christ. They must have been something like a mirage in a desert. They looked good, but they had no living water within.

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Problem:

I know your deeds; you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead.

What's the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a dead church?

Perhaps you're thinking of a place that has no excitement, no enthusiasm. A church that continues to operate, but it's most meaningful contribution to those who attend is the hour or so of sleep they get shortly after sitting in the auditorium.

This, to be sure, describes a dead church, but there are some dead churches who are not so easily identified. These have a reputation for being very alive. These churches are active, involved in the community, provide lively worship, attract large crowds, and deliver positive messages, but everything is accomplished by human effort alone. This problem is described in three metaphors:

Death

Sleepy Inattentiveness

Soiled or Defiled Clothing

These metaphors all point to a person and a people who are aliens to the covenant of God, separated from Him by their sin, unredeemed by the Blood of Jesus Christ:

Ephesians 2:1-3, 12-13
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.

remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. (NIV)

Undoubtedly, the recipients of this letter had people on their roles that fit the above description; however, like the other letters in Revelation, Jesus is writing to the Church, the "ekklesia". This Greek word is used throughout the New Testament to refer to those who have been called by God into Christ, and who are now part of the Body of Christ. Therefore, if Christ referred to them as a church, then He is speaking to those He has already redeemed. These people would then possess eternal life.

Why then does our Lord call them dead?

A church that our Lord would refer to as dead would be those who address the Word of God without engaging in it. They know about God, but they don't really know God. Their "ministry" is neither driven by the Spirit nor empowered by Him. They have been born of the Spirit and, therefore have spiritual life, but they remain infantile with respect to spiritual things. They have ears to hear what the Spirit says to them, but they just don't listen. Instead when they pray, they do all the talking and most of what they say sounds like they're telling God what to do for them. They have been given the Robe of Righteousness, but, in a way, leave it hanging in the closet and opt to continue wearing the garments of self righteousness. While members of the Body of Christ, they are unresponsive to the Head and ineffectual in relationship to the rest of the Body. When they face a decision or a difficulty and look to God to help them, they have no real idea of what God's Will is in the matter. Their will in the matter overshadows and drowns out God's Will for them. They still respond to daily circumstances in basically the same manner as though they were not part of the Body of Christ. They look okay on the outside, but their is no depth on the inside. Their relationship with God and with other Christians is superficial at best and is best characterized as "dead".

Today, as well as 2000 years ago, this type of person is called a hypocrite. Prior to His death and resurrection, Jesus reserved His strongest criticism for hypocrites. He called them whitewashed tombs. These people were deeply "religious", but their greed, arrogance, lust, malice, hatred and self centeredness were completely intact and unaffected by their religion. They did not know God or recognize His only begotten Son. Although, Jesus plainly told them who He was, they called Him a blasphemer rather than accept Him and the life transformation that ensues.

Certainly, the attitudes of the first century Pharisee still exist in churches today. These people know the commands and promises of God, but choose to supplant them with their own brand of righteous legalism. Sadly, however, there is another class of "walking dead" in our churches today. These are the people who don't know any better. They are so spiritually illiterate that they are unaware that God's Word describes a life of fulfillment in Christ, and that eternal life is knowing God (John 10:10 & John 17:3). They have allowed themselves to be duped into believing that consistent church attendance and relatively good moral behavior constitutes Christianity. These people have made a profession of faith, submitted to baptism, enjoy the Lord's Supper, participate in Church events, speak out in business meetings and sometimes respond affirmatively to requests to serve in some ministry capacity. Yet, their character remains virtually unchanged; all of this "Christian" activity is external and therefore, secular rather than sacred. God is not at the control center of their lives directing, empowering and changing them. They don't know any better because they don't know how to commune with God and they won't let their Christian "friends" get close enough to see who they really are and thereby to counsel them. They are fairly comfortable with their Christianity; it's a "really good" part of their lives, but it's not their life.

How would you characterize your Christianity?

Paul described the Christian growth process to be like changing your clothes.

Colosians 3:5-14
Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. But now you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. Here there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

The people of Sardis and anyone like them today wear the soiled garments of the old self. Christ Jesus has offered to let them wear His character, but they don't want to part with their clothing of self to which they have become very "attached".

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Consequences:

The city was built on Mount Tmolus. On three sides the mountain slope was 1500 feet of nearly perpendicular rock with Sardis standing at the top. The fourth side, having a gentler slope, was defended by a city wall and gate. This made Sardis a virtually impregnable fortress city. Yet, both Cyrus (549 BC) and Antiochus (218 BC) conquered the city because the people had become inattentive and were not defending the city walls that were supposedly protected by the rocky mountain cliffs. The church had also become inattentive, so Jesus declares that if they don't wake up, He will overtake them like a thief in the night.

People who are not engaged in frequent conversations with the Lord, have only an obscure notion of what He is doing. He is Sovereign Ruler of Heaven and Earth. He has an intricate plan and will carry it out perfectly. We would do well to understand and fulfill His slightest request. It wouldn't do to be caught carelessly working against His plan. Any of us that have worked for a strict supervisor get the idea. Think how embarrassing and potentially career limiting it would be to be discovered sleeping on the job or worse yet, communicating company secrets to competitors. The discovery would catch you like a thief in the night. That is to say, you would be both surprised and devastated. Now magnify that as much as your imagination will allow. Almighty God, Creator of Heaven and Earth has given you a job to perform with a clear vision and sufficient power and authority to accomplish it. You have ignored the assignment and have, in fact, worked contrary to it. When He confronts you with your lethargy and rebellion:

How will you feel?
What will you say?

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Promises:

Those who overcome this dead hypocrisy by entrusting every aspect of their lives to the Lord will:

Walk with Christ Jesus

Wear White Robes of Righteousness

Remain forever enrolled in the Book of Life.

What comes to mind when you think of walking with Christ? Two things occur to me:

always in His presence and in close communion
going wherever He goes

The first sounds wonderful, and I eagerly long for it. I hunger for communication with the Lord that is unhindered by my spiritual ineptness. Imagine being in His presence totally aware of His every move, and every word. Think what it will be like to ask Him a question and receive an immediate reply that you clearly hear and understand. Those who overcome sin by faith in Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord will walk with Him in this very manner. He guarantees it! In fact since we have already been blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3), I believe He as already given us all we need for this level of communion with Him at this very moment. This is not a promise reserved only for the future, but is one that starts immediately for the overcomer and continues for eternity. The only thing that hinders this direct communication is our unwillingness to allow Him complete control of our lives. Our disobedience of God's directives, our unwillingness to trust Him in every area of our lives increases our spiritual deafness. Trust and obedience open our spiritual ears so that we may hear what the Spirit says.

How's your hearing?

The second thought that comes to mind about walking with Christ is that to walk with Him means we must go where He goes. Now since He indwells us, you might say that all Christians walk with Him (i.e. go where He goes). The fact is that more often than not we take Him along with us. We set our own agenda. We make the plans and all the decisions. The vast majority of our actions are something we do as a result of our own deliberations or worse yet, a reflex response to the actions of others. If we desire to go where Jesus goes, we need to ask Him where He's going. His agenda must be a higher priority to us than our own. The only way I know how to grasp His agenda is to commune with Him deeply. I'm talking about something beyond what most Christians call daily devotions. I think communing with Christ is even more than Bible study and prayer. These are essential ingredients to the level of communion that I'm referring to, but they are not all it takes to get there. They must be combined with real conversation with the Lord; conversations like you have with your dearest friend.

When was the last time you had a real conversation with the Lord?

Another aspect of the promise given to "overcomers" is that they will be adorned in white. Throughout the Bible, white raiment signifies holiness and righteousness. Since these characteristics only come from God, the white apparel is a gift to us fashioned by God's Hand. I am reminded of the first time God prepared clothing for humans. Adam and Eve disobeyed God's instructions and experienced the emotions that always accompany our sinfulness when we stand in the presence of God - shame followed by fear. The first thing they did was to attempt to cover themselves and the second action, when God called out to them, was to run and hide. God confronted their sin and then provided appropriate apparel to relieve their shame. The covering He provided was the first sacrifice of an innocent life for the removal of the shame of sin. When we wear the white raiment supplied by the Lord, we are wearing none other than the Righteousness of Christ. This completely removes our shame and, therefore, totally removes the fear that drives us away from God. In this white robe, we approach God with complete absense of fear. Nothing stands between us as long as we have our sins washed away by the Blood of Christ.

What guilt are you harboring?
How long will you allow it to cause you to run and hide from God?

The last part of the promises given to the overcomers in the Church of Sardis was that their names would never be erased from the Book of Life. Let's take a look at this Book.

An anguished interchange between a wrathful Yahweh and a pleading Moses after the discovery of the golden calf illustrates the Old Testament understanding of the Book of Life. Moses asks that God either forgive the people or "blot me out of the book you have written" (Exodus 32:32). Yahweh responds that he will blot out whoever has sinned; the punishment is immediate. The Book of Life is a list of the righteous. In the Old Testament focus on divine reward and punishment in this life, the blessed on the list receive their blessings here and now and those stricken from the book suffer in this life, not in some eternal future. The psalmist understands this when he asks God to "list my tears on your scroll" (Psalm 56:8) and have his enemies "blotted out of the book of life" (Psalm 69:28).

The New Testament transforms this balance book into an eternal ledger of heavenly citizenship. Within the classical world, citizenship was not an automatic right, but a strictly protected honor. Citizens were specifically enrolled, and the enrollment was strictly limited. In the Gospel story of the seventy sent out into the world, Jesus assures these disciples that their names will be written in heaven (Luke 10:20). In the letter to the church at Sardis, heavenly citizenship, exemplified by listing in the Book of Life, is promised to those who overcome the world. Those who overcome the world are those who rely upon God as Lord of their lives. We finally see the real significance of the Book of Life in Revelation 20.

Revelation 20:11-15
11 Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. 12 And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. 13 The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. 14 Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. 15 If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
NIV

Here we see that our lives are recorded. These records will be opened as a judgement against all who stand before God in the Final Judgement. Our lives will be compared to the holiness that God requires of us all. When our lives are examined against the Law of God, we all fail! God doesn't grade on the curve; some do better than others, but the final grade is still failure. Just before He evaluates our lives, God looks into another book (the Book of Life). If our names are not written in this book, He will compare all our thoughts, words and actions against His standard of righteousness. And since none of us measure up to His righteous requirement, we will be thrown into Hell! The Book of Life reveals that Christ died for our sinfulness and that He arose again to give eternal life to everyone that would accept His death as their own death to sin and His life as their new eternal life as the Children of God!

If you aren't sure your name is written in the Book of Life,
write me. We need to talk!

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Don't accept an imitation; Get Real!