Pergamum: The Compromising Church

PERGAMUM: THE DANGER OF COMPROMISE Spring Valley Mennonite; October 7, 2018; Revelation 2:12-17 As we study through the book of Revelation, the third church addressed by our Lord was of the city of Pergamum. Pergamum was the capital city of the Roman province of Asia, It related to Rome like a state capital in our country relates to Washington. The Roman governor of the province resided there. This governor had “the power of the sword”, the right to dole out capital punishment. I’ll explain the significance of this in a moment. Another interesting thing about Pergamum was that parchment, the durable writing material made from animal skins, was first developed and used there. Being more durable than Egyptian papyrus, which was the only writing material available at the time, Papyrus was made from pressing crossed layers of reeds. Being more durable, parchment scrolls and fragments on which the Bible was written or copied survive today and comprise many of the documents from which our Bible was translated. Lending credibility to our modern translations, there are over 6000 papyrus and parchment portions of the Greek New Testament in existence today. The story of parchment’s origin is somewhat humorous: The greatest library in the world was in the Egyptian city of Alexandria. The Roman ruler of Pergamum had the desire to establish a prestigious library in the city of Pergamum. He lured away from the Alexandrian library their head librarian to establish the Pergamum library. This angered the Egyptian king so that he prohibited the export of papyrus to Pergamum. As Egypt was the only source for papyrus, an alternative source of writing material had to be found, and the prepared skins of animals, or parchment, was developed. This is another example of how the wrath of man is made to praise God—a petty conflict between rulers resulted in the production of writing material crucial to the preservation of the early biblical documents. Pergamum was also a center of Emperor worship, which was established to unify the diverse nationalities of the Roman Empire. Once a year, citizens were required to offer a pinch of incense on the altar of Caesar and profess that Caesar was Lord. This citizen then was given a certificate good for one year that allowed the holder to worship whatever other god he chose. The temptation to the believer was to yield to this single simple requirement and worship the true God the rest of the year. The danger was of compromise with the world. In viewing the seven churches as representing periods of history, the first letter to Ephesus covers roughly the first century of the church—strong in doctrine but weak in love; the second letter to Smyrna represents the 2nd and 3rd centuries when the Christianity was under severe persecution by the Roman government; this third letter to the church at Pergamum covers the period of history after Christianity was ruled the official religion of the Empire by Emperor Constantine by the Edict of Milan in 313. The church during these next three centuries is characterized by compromise. Dr. Harry Ironside observes this about the church in Pergamum: “During the Smyrna period, Satan sought to destroy the church by persecution. In the next three centuries he tried different tactics: he endeavored to ruin the testimony by worldly patronage from without, and the introduction of false principles from within. …when the period of persecution ended, and the world began to look upon (the church) with complacency, to greet them with the outstretched hand and the smiling face, instead of with the sword and the frown, in every instance decline set in. So it was in the Pergamos period. Constantine’s patronage did what Diocletian’s persecution could not do. It corrupted the church…”1 Turn now to our text, Revelation chapter 2, beginning in verse 12: Read the Text: Revelation 2:12-17. I. THE LORD JESUS HOLDS THE ULTIMATE POWER Remembering that the Provincial Governor resided in Pergamum, and that he wielded the sword of capital punishment, the Lord Jesus reassures the church that it is He who holds the ultimate power in the world, the power of life and death. He holds the two-edged sword. He thus reassures all who fall under the thumb of earthly government that He continues control all life and death issues. We never need fear death at the hand of man as God will give grace when and if needed. But there is a wider meaning to the two-edged sword. In Rev. 1:16, this sword is coming from the Lord’s mouth, meaning the sword is His Word. Hebrews 4:12: “For the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword…” It reaches to the deepest part of our being and presents the Gospel standard by which one may be saved. We studied last week that the second death, the eternal condemnation apart from God, cannot hurt those who overcome by the salvation found in Jesus. We see from this verse that, not only does the Gospel words of life and death come from the Lord, but also we are reassured that “He knows where we dwell”. Psalm 139 tells us that there is nowhere we can go where God is not already there. From the highest mountain to the deepest part of the sea, God is there. When we are locked in the dungeon, God is there. When we lie on our death bed, God is there. When we live among ungodly people and in evil cultures, God is there. He knew what Pergamum was like. And, He knew the danger this church and the larger church was soon to face: the danger of compromise. II. DWELLING NEAR SATAN’S THRONE The church is said to be dwelling near Satan’s throne. As Biblically literate people, we know that Satan is the enemy of God, and that we are to flee the devil’s enticements, and to resist him. But this church is seen living next-door (if it were) to Satan’s throne! Instead of fleeing and creating distance, they allow Satan to live next-door; he is their next- door neighbor! This represents the danger of compromising with the world system and loving the world. John earlier had written in 1 John 2:15, “Do not love the word, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world.” Loving the world is like living right next door to Satan’s throne. We are to be in the world but not of the world. This was the danger facing those in Pergamum and, in fact, this was the faith-deadening experience of the church for the next 300 years. John McArthur describes what happened in these words, “In a.d. 313 the emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, granting religious freedom to the Christians and ending two and a half centuries of savage persecution. He adopted Christianity and made it the favored religion of the empire. That began the process by which Christianity merged with the Roman state. Heathen priests became Christian priests; heathen temples became Christian churches; heathen feasts became Christian festivals. Christianity was no longer a personal matter, but a national identity. The church married the political system, so that worldliness was synonymous with the church.2 The presence of persecution did not derail the church; illogically, persecution usually results in the growth of the church. It certainly strengthens the individual believer who holds fast his beliefs. Verse 13 implies that the church had one of their leaders, one named Antipas, killed by the Roman authorities. Perhaps “where Satan dwells” referred to the altar dedicated to the Roman Emperor. Antipas may have been offered as a blood sacrifice on that altar. Even such brutality did not sway the church. But what persecution did not do, compromise, along with toleration of heresy among them did accomplish. III. THE TWIN HERESIES OF BALAAM AND NICOLAS We read that there were two heretical groups existing within the Pergamum church: One group was holding to the teachings of Balaam, and another was following the teaching of the Nicolaitans. We remember Balaam as the prophet who had the talking donkey. He was recruited by Balak, king of Moab, to curse the Israelites as they camped on the plains of Moab across from Jericho. Balaam was reluctant to participate at first, but the lure of a rich reward proved too great to resist. Instead of cursing, Balaam ended up blessing Israel. But the story did not end there; while he could not curse the nation of Israel, he suggested a more subtle strategy. He advised Balak to tempt the men of Israel with a campaign of seduction, to lure them with the sexual favors of Moabite women; such immoral acts were part of the pagan ritual worship of Baal. One source described the doctrine of Balaam in somewhat different terms: “According to 2 Peter 2:15, Balaam’s “way” is a choice to promote falsehood for financial reasons: “…forsaking the right way they have gone astray, having followed the way of Balaam, the son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteous”. … Balaam’s “error” was his willingness to accommodate pagan beliefs out of greed. Jude 1:4 also refers to the sin of those “who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality.” One trait of false teachers in the church is that they attempt to turn Christian liberty into a “freedom” to be promiscuous. Putting these ideas of immorality and greed together gives a clear view of the doctrine of Balaam. It is the attitude that one can be fully cooperative with the world and still serve God. The doctrine of Balaam teaches compromise, wanting Christians to forget they are called to be separate and holy (Leviticus 20:26; 1 Peter 1:2); the doctrine of Balaam makes believers indistinguishable from the unbelieving world (Matthew 5:13).” 3 This doctrine of compromise and yielding to the seduction of the world system clearly was seen in the fourth, fifth and sixth centuries of church history. The doctrine of Balaam coexisted with the twin false teaching of Nicolas with its emphasis on disregarding the importance of resisting the flesh, which resulting in participation of immorality. I am never surprised by the methods of Satan in using immorality to corrupt believers. When sensuality and lust enters our mind, reason seems to flee. Think of how the church is severely wounded and set back when immorality is found among its leaders. A culture like America where sexuality is worshipped is truly the modern day “throne of Satan”. Few of Satan’s strategies are as effective as sexual temptation. It is the way of the world. Both the teachings of Balaam and Nicolas promoted immorality and materialism. They resulted in the church compromising with the worldly system. But not only this: it was not just the ones who yielded to temptation and were participating in such activities, but those who tolerated it reap the Lord’s wrath! The sin of compromise is seen when the believers or church say nothing when such error is taught! Let me be so bold as to wonder if our denomination is committing the sin of compromise with the world, as it refuses to take a definitive stand against the sin of homosexuality? Is this the modern-day counterpart to the teaching of Balaam and the teaching of the Nicolaitans? IV. THE CALL TO REPENT What was the solution to this error? It was to repent, to change their minds, a change of attitude resulting in a change of actions. Unless they repented, Jesus would come and “make war against them with the sword of My mouth”. God’s Word gives life, YES, BUT it also condemns. It is the Word of God by which our lives will be judged. We will be judged, not by the standard of what the majority thinks, not what is expedient, certainly not what the culture deems proper—but we are judged solely by what the Word of God declares as truth. The reward for overcomers? Hidden manna and a white stone. Here is symbolism, but there is a definite truth behind the symbols. Manna speaks of the sufficiency of Christ for all our needs. He gives strength to resist the temptation to compromise. The white stone was used to indicate innocence in a trial situation; it signified acquittal of an accused person. The word of the Lord Jesus speaks to us today. The danger of compromise with the world is ever present, but the Lord promises that with every temptation, He will provide a way of escape. As we yield to the control of the Holy Spirit in our lives, He will guide us in knowing what constitutes worldliness in our lives, and give us strength to resist compromise.