Smyrna: Loyalty
Jesus' Letters to the Seven Churches • Sermon • Submitted
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Jesus’ Letters to the Seven Churches
Smyrna: Loyalty
January 13, 2018
5Introduction
This morning, we are continuing our series on Jesus’ Letters to the Seven Churches in Revelation. Last week, we looked at the church of Ephesus. The church of Ephesus did a lot of things well, but their love for God had grown cold. Today, we are going to look at Jesus’ letter to the church of Smyrna.
Read Text
Opening Illustration: Loyalty — Capitan
The letter to the church of Smyrna is all about loyalty. For the believers in Smyrna, where does their loyalty lie? Would they be loyal to God or loyal to Caesar? The question for us this morning: Where does our loyalty lie? Are we loyal to God.
1. Pressure and Persecution
Illustration: Fanatic Fan
Theological: The city of Smyrna was a fanatic fan of Rome. In 195 BC, Smyrna built a temple for the worship of Rome. Smyrna sided with Rome in important battles that solidified the Roman Empire. One winter the Roman soldiers faced a bitter winter. When the Roman soldier’s plight was announced in a general assembly of Smyrna citizens, it is said that the citizen of Smyrna took the clothes off their backs to send to the Roman soldiers. All this led to the Roman historian Cicero to refer to Smyrna as Rome’s most faithful allie.
In AD 25, Rome awarded Smyrna to build a temple for the worship of the Roman emperor Tiberius. This temple led to Smyrna being the leading center for Roman emperor worship in Asia. Once a year, all citizens were required to burn incense to the Roman emperor and proclaim Caesar as Lord. Unwillingness to comfort and proclaim Caesar as Lord would be interpreted by Smyrna as as disgraceful lack of patriotism and treason.
The believers in Smyrna were under tremendous pressure to proclaim Caesar as Lord. When they did not, they were persecuted.
Tribulation(v. 9): Tribulation refers to the pressure of a crushing affliction. The idea here is that the believers in Smyrna were facing severe persecution.
Poverty (v. 9): This word refers to extreme poverty. We might use a phrase today like dirt poor.
Why did the believers in Smyrna face such poverty. When citizens burned incense and proclaimed Caesar as Lord once a year were given a certificate. Not having the certificate led to economic sanctions. People would not trade with you. If you didn’t have the certificate, you would also be blacklisted from jobs or promotions at work.
Blasphemy: Verse 9 also refers to blasphemy or slander. This came from the Jews in Smyrna. The Jews in Smyrna opposed believers in Christ. Here is how their slander might have worked. Rome recognized the Jews as serving one God plus the Jews had helped out Rome in an important battle. So the Jews were except from burning incense and proclaiming Caesar as Lord. For a long time, Christianity was considered as a part of Judaism. The Jews rejected this. The Jews said that Christians were traitors to Judaism just like they were traitors to Caesar and Rome.
Verse 10 tells us that persecution for believers in Smyrna was about to get worse. Believers would be thrown into prison. Verses 10 encourages the believers in Smyrna to be faithful even to the point of death. We know from the historical data in Smyrna that Christians were killed because they worshiped Christ instead of worshipping Caesar.
Let’s recap. Smyrna expected also citizens to be loyal to Rome. When the Christians refused to proclaim Caesar as Lord, they were persecuted and even killed. It was dangerous to be Christian in Smyrna.
Practical: It’s dangerous to be a Christian in the world today. The world will always pressure Christians to conform to culture. When Christians do not conform to culture, the world will persecuted Christians. (Repeat)
The world pressures us to conform to culture? How does the world pressure you to conform to culture? How does the world persecute Christians today?
Here is the US, it’s mild. We have religious freedom. Persecution in US is tame. But Christians do face persecution here in the US. We are made fun of when we don’t conform to culture.
Illustration: Lady from Centrifuge who’s husband refused to go along with an immoral business practice.
In other parts of the word, persecution of believers is not so mild. We read about pastors and missionary groups being imprisoned in parts of the world. On average, 90,000 people are killed every year for their faith in Christ.
Story of Martyr
It’s dangerous to be a Christian in the world today. The world will always pressure Christians to conform to culture. When Christians do not conform to culture, the world will persecuted Christians.
Jesus makes it clear in verse 10 who the real culprit behind persecution is. It’s Satan. Leonard Ravenhill said it, and he said it well—and this is the truth that he said: “When God opens the windows of Heaven to bless us, the devil will open the doors of Hell to blast us.”
Jesus said that his followers would deal with persecution.
(CSB) You are blessed when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of me.
We are going to deal with pressure and persecution for Satan and the world. Let’s look next at Jesus’ encouraging to his persecuted church.
2. Remain Faithful
Theological: In verse 10, you might want to underline the phrase, “Be faithful.” The believers in Smyrna knew all about faithfulness and loyalty. They heard all their lives, “Be faithful to Rome, be loyal to Caesar.” But for Christians, loyalty to Rome and Caesar was no longer an option. Believers are to be loyal to Christ. Jesus commands the church to be loyal, to be faithful to Him no matter the cost, event to the point of death. (verse 10)
Just as burning incense and proclaiming Ceasear as Lord was a test for the citizens of Smyrna, persecution was a test for the believers in Smyrna. Where did their loyalty lie? Were they really loyal to Jesus? Would they be faithful to Jesus no matter the cost?
Practical: Are we really loyal to Jesus? Are we faithful to Jesus no matter the cost? At first, I thought those questions were hard to answer. After all, we don’t face the threat of imprisonment for our faith in Jesus. We don’t face the threat of death for our faith in Jesus.
But our loyalty to Jesus is to put to these in different ways every day. Our loyalty to Jesus is put to the test with our time. Will we be faithful to read the Bible and pray daily or do we find ourselves to busy with the activities of the day to spend 15 minutes praying and reading our Bibles?
Our loyalty is put to the test in the area of service. Do we faithfully serve God, or do we constantly tell God know?
Our loyalty is put to the test with our money. Are we faithful to give to the Lord or do we hold back from God?
Our loyalty to God is put to test in our church attendance. Our we faithful to be in church on Sundays or do we find ourselves doing other things most Sundays.
Our loyalty to God is embodied in our theme verse for 2019.
(NLT) Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.
Are we really loyal to God? Are we faithful to Him no matter the cost. If we are not loyal to God in areas like our time, service, giving, and church attendance, how can we be expected to be loyal to God in the face of persecution?
3. Victory not Defeat
Theological: The believers in Smyrna had heard all their lives. Be loyal to Rome. If we are loyal to Rome, Rome will take care of us. And Rome did. When the city of Smyrna was destroyed in a earthquake, it was Rome who rebuilt the city.
God promises the believers in Smyrna they he would take care of them if they remained loyal and faithful.
Look at verse 11. You face death on earth, but you will not be harmed by the second death. With Christ, we have resurrection and eternal life as believers. In verse 8, Jesus reminds the church that he is the one who was dead and came back to life. In , Jesus is described as the firstborn of the dead. The Bible teaches that Jesus is the first fruit of a great harvest of those who will be resurrected and live again. As believers in Christ, we are that great harvest. Death on earth is not the end. We have resurrection through Jesus. We have eternal life in Heaven through Jesus.
Jesus takes care of those who are faithful.
Practical:sw
Persecution seems like defeat.
Illustration: Defeat (Dad running for public officers , State losing bowl game)
Defeat is tough. Persecution seems like defeat. It seems like the devil has won.
But we see here in this letter that persecution is not defeat. Loyalty to Christ in the face of persecution if victory.
v. 10 — The word for crown actually means “wreath.” Smyrna was know for their athletic games and a wreath was given to the winning participants very similar to what happened in the Olympic Games in Greece. The wreath was a symbol of victory.
Persecution is not defeat. Loyalty to God in the face of persecution is victory.