He lived, he died, he's alive. Dr. Matthew Everhard And dont be afraid about what you would do and what you would be like should you face, the church at Smyrna, what they faced. 4:2). Revelation 2:8-11, Denomination: But from salvation to glory there are three vitally important Or do with your weekends what everyone else would do. The church in Smyrna was a church of paradoxes. My Glorious Victor, Prince Divine, III. And I wonder if those of you this morning who are facing uncertain times, facing hardships, illness, chronic problems, test results, wayward family members Can you hear this comfort? The major influence for me on this study of Genesis is The Genesis Record by Henry Morris. He uses these reminders as an example to us of how we, too, can accomplish great things through our faith. And the Lord noticed it. For Jesus sake we pray. Revelation chapter 2, verses 8 through 11. . And it is one of the seven churches of Asia [Revelation 2:1-3:22]: Ephesus, and then right north, Smyrna. Paul takes a look around as he gives his last testimony. If I live, bless God, it is to love Him. When the spies arrived in Jericho, they entered into what everyone thought was a harlot's house. read more, Scripture: In fact, as I said last week, the two most struggling churches, the ones facing the greatest weaknesses, at least in an earthly sense, Philadelphia and Smyrna, are the ones about whom Jesus has nothing but good to say: I know your tribulation and your poverty. Job said, My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go (Job 27:6). Especially and particularly is that true with our young people. This is a study of the book of Genesis. Therefore, when he was brought before him, the proconsul, so the governor, asked if he were Polycarp, and when he confessed that he was, the proconsul tried to persuade him to recant, saying Have respect for your age and other such things as they were accustomed to say. We see it here in this text its the second death. Listening to a man expound the unsearchable riches of the Word of God. We all love to be acclaimed. Remember Paul said to the letter in Romans that those are Jews truly who are ones inwardly, written on the heart. So this letter is saying these are not spiritual Jews as we would understand the people of God, but they are people who have stirred up trouble. Featuring a sermon puts it on the front page of the site and So we dont have to long for it and want it. II Timothy 4:6-8 Paul was looking with That right there was meant to be comfort. Evil influences prevent people from being faithful. But from salvation to glory there are three vitally important way stations that become a part of our pilgrimage. 5 We will rejoice in thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners: the LORD fulfil all thy petitions. Number two let us be faithful even in our limited kinds of persecution. 2:4). But after thirty-nine years, standing here in this pulpit, there are thousands and thousands who come every Lords day listening to what? but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever. When a man loves the world and the things that are in the world, the day finally comes when he finds his hands empty and his heart broken. So the first command to the Church dont be afraid what youre about to suffer. Certainly Christians in many places are relatively free from that threat, but at all times there will be part of the Church that will be called upon to make the good confession in the midst of danger, hostility, and death. Of those 36 billion who have lived in the past 2000 years, by a very generous estimate, 12 billion were evangelized, had some access to the Gospel. I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. He knew they would experience difficult times in their lives. There was a price on the head of our Lord. The LORD preserves the faithful (Ps. sanctified, hallowed, blessed, II. Or it could refer to a garland, a victors crown. Suffering is suffering. He lived to be 86 years old, and for the second half of his life he served as the bishop of Smyrna, which we just read is the second city in Revelation, today the modern city of Izmir in Turkey. So if we have a late date for Revelation around 90 A.D., then this is some 65 years later, not that long. by choice to our Lord and Master forever, 1. 11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel (Gal. 5:17)-His point is that Elijah was a human being just like everyone else, yet his prayers accomplished much. Give it up and come, take up the cross, and follow me. And Nathan Hale volunteered as a spy to bring back the needed information. Scripture is a powerful force in our efforts to remain faithful-You must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them (2 Tim. Say away with the atheists. And I dont know if this meant to be humorous at the moment of his almost death, but heres the story Polycarp solemnly looked at the whole crowd of lawless heathen who were in the stadium. We dont want to make the mistake of saying that just because one worships three times a week every week he is faithful. Jesus does not offer a rebuke to Smyrna. The Bible says that Zaccheus was a rich man [Luke 19:1-2]. FAITHFUL EVEN UNTO DEATH II Kings 2:1-12 For the child of God, heaven is our ultimate destination. What does it mean for us? The Resurrection of Jesus says it all. Some of those Christians have been killed by other Christians. Come. having been freed(Deuteronomy 15:12-18), B. And He uses the word stugnaz, translated lowering, the sky is stugnaz, it is lowering. It tarries through the last breath. Now, before I speak of another, may I pause to avow; there is never, ever, a defeat, never in our commitment to our Lord. 6:4 ), in which he is to set aside those things of his old way of life ( 2 Cor. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. 1 Cor 15:14 Isa 38:1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. It may be in the workplace when you will not agree to do the advertising campaign they want to do, or the training that theyre making everyone do. Then, they feel they dont need God, because theyve succeeded in life. But from salvation to glory there are three vitally important read more, Scripture: Fearing death is natural, but Jesus means to set us free. It was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David (1 Ki. 10/18/2006 Amen.. In fact, Polycarp was a disciple of John, who wrote this book of Revelation. He knows your tribulation. If they were faithful to the end, surely we can be as well. Paul wrote along similar lines "I have fought the Church Of God, Joshua 2:1-15 THE GREAT ESCAPE Intro: Ill. And Jesus will reign now and into eternity. He famously died a martyrs death in 155 or 156, and when he died the church at Smyrna sent out a letter, To tell the story of those who have suffered martyrdom, especially blessed Polycarp, who as though he had set his seal by his martyrdom brought the persecution to an end.. You dont reject your Savior. You read these stories of the martyrs and even allowing that perhaps the Church spoke at times with some exaggerated spirituality, maybe, yet we believe that its historically true and happened and happened much like that. His salary was less than two hundred dollars a year. That is to say, even in Charlotte, North Carolina should you be a true, passionate, on fire, biblical Christian, absolutely in love with Jesus, no matter what it counts, at some point you will face opposition. The reason our adolescents, our young people, fall into, say, drugs, or into drinking, or into a thousand compromising positions, is because of peer pressure. When I was a youth growing up, Clarence Darrow, the great agnostic and atheist, literally covered the horizon in the legal profession. It is like manna from heaven to a hungry heart. empty and heart broken(1 John 2:15-17), IV. There are so many things in this world, which keep people from being faithful. Would to God we had ten thousand lives to offer to Jesus. The gate is too strait, and the way is too narrow for a man to enter heaven holding the love of the world in his arms [Matthew 7:13-14]. Hebrews says since the children have flesh and blood, He, too, shared likewise in their humanity so that by His death He might destroy the one who holds the power of death, that is the devil, and set free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death.. 2 Timothy 4:6-8, Denomination: Our home is not here, it is there [John 14:1-3; Reveltion 21:1-5]. And this allowed the Jews and the Romans to coexist. So they didnt have the same protection. Since we know that God will richly reward us, we should be faithful. He wants to be associated with them. Remember this is a letter from whom? 2 Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, 3 And said, Some of you perhaps pray for it every day, that would be wonderful. If only everyone could live knowing deeply this one true fact. It is one of the marks and the characteristics of a good disciple of Jesus; our love for one another. 23127). That sadly has happened. Father in heaven, we give thanks for Your many blessings. Selfishness prevents people from being faithful. For the LORD preserves the faithful, And fully repays the proud person (Ps. Please, sir, your Majesty, said the pastor, could you grant pardon to the boy? He did it. Gave his life to be a Baptist preacher, VII. Wed be fooling ourselves to make any sort of comparison. Knowing that we are not facing these exact circumstances, and we can be thankful for it, what does this mean for us? William Akehurst HSWC 3:14). The Bible discusses faithfulness as being much more than worshipping God. Web Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. Matthew 16:24-25: If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. And he gave his life to be a Baptist preacher, John Fawcett. And whenever you see a monument to Nathan Hale, you will find inscribed the last word that he said, I regret I have but one life to lose for my country. That is a little comparable patriotic devotion, like us in our supreme love for Christ. ON POINT, I Fawcett converted listening to George Whitefield preach, 1. IF we are in CHRIST. We have to remember the reality to come which will last forever and the reality that exists now. The Lord knows. Revelation 2:10, Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Christian Life, Faith, Love, Loyalty, Self-Denial, Great Doctrines of the Bible: Practical Theology, 1983, Revelation. And when John Fawcett stood and preached before the king, the king was so moved he said to the preacher, Ask anything and I will give it to thee. And the wonderful preacher replied, Sir, I have nothing for myself, but one of my families has a boy, a wayward boy who faces the sentence of death for forgery, in the strict laws of that time. And our Lord may the flow of our lives be in praise, and in adoration, and worship, and in love for Thee, O blessed God, that as grace and mercy reached down even to me. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was a hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarahs womb: he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith being fully persuaded that, what God had promised, He was able to perform. It is a great vast city, today called Izmir. And after he began his preachingafter he was a preacher, he was wonderfully converted. But here in the second half of the first century, several things had happened to make this situation untenable. Which leads to a second point of application. It is a sermon in the series on the Great Doctrines of the Bible. And in this section, composed of about five sermons, the messages are addressed to us who are Christians. Come do what you wish. Polycarp was then found guilty of confessing to being a Christian. Faithfulness in the midst of persecution doesnt mean you just grin and bear it, you suppress it, you pretend like it doesnt hurt. Many of us would say that murder is worthy of the death penalty; and if any of us had a child that were raped, we would probably believe the person who Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. John 19:17-27. 8:14). He comes with comfort, and notice He comes with commands. Dont you find those martyrdom stories inspiring and yet utterly overwhelming? This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at the Alum Creek church of Christ in Alum Creek, West Virginia. knows nothing about defeat (Romans 4:17-21, Genesis Holiness. We can remember the things of God. As long as Christianity was a sect of Judaism, there was little trouble. It is an instrument of execution, and when I am invited to take up my cross, I am invited to die to myself that I might live to the Lord. This lesson examines the Rev. Instead of worshipping as they should, they play golf on Sunday mornings or they go the race track or they go fishing. That was Smyrna in 155 or 156 A.D. After several months of study we have come to the concluding passage of 1st John. Many people have is just the opposite. And he was invited to preach before the king, King George III, in 1780. There was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in me sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up (1 Ki. Dont think youre the only one to whom injustice has ever happened. And our Lord, bless these to whom the Holy Spirit makes appeal this morning; some to put their lives with us in the church, some to follow our blessed Lord Jesus in baptism [Matthew 3:13-17], some to accept Thee as Savior; bless each one. Faithfulness. Just do the sacrifices, just do the ritual, and if you want to say youre doing it to the emperors as rulers, to honor them, and not as gods, then so be it. And he was sad at that saying, and went away grieved: for he had great possessions [Matthew 19:21-22; Mark 10:21, 22]. So the men prepared the pyre and stripped Polycarp of his clothes, and as they were about to nail him to the stake, Polycarp interrupted. 2:10 states, Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. There are too many professing Christians which the Lord cannot depend upon. Doubt will say, How? 18:6). This letter reported this man was certainly one of the elect. Say away with the atheist.. And a youngster wants to belong to the group. The young fellow knelt down before the Lord [Mark 10:17]. A THREE IMPORTANT LOOKS OR PAUL'S LAST TESTIMONY We know what the commentator says, and we know what the politician says, and we know what the philosopher says, and we know what the academician says. Hold fast to what you have, that no one may take your crown (Rev. Be faithful even unto the point of death because brother, sister, friend, when youre faithful to the point of death for Jesus, you get a crown of life. Dont think youre the only one to have this struggle. The handles of my plow where tears are wet. It was a great city in the day of the flesh of our Lord. And that beautiful, symbolic portrayal in the fifteenth chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy is symbolic of all of us. read more, Scripture: Because if were reading Scripture, well have the power to overcome temptation. Were at 7, 8 now? We fail to put God first in our lives-we dont base all our decisions based on what he would want, we neglect to mention the Gospel to our family and friends. And the world passeth away . WebWe know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. [First John] 4:7, Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth Those who seem to be strong in the faith prove to not have been in the faith. This is the one, verse 8, The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. It is in the transcendence of God that His eminence is so much comfort. There was But why do you delay? Near the close of the previous chapter Paul had said," The law entered that the offence might abound; but where sin abounded, grace did much more It has never happened in the history of the world. 2 letter from Jesus to the church at Smyrna. The ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity (Lk. Leave me as I am, for the One who enables me to endure the fire will also enable me to remain on the pyre without moving. Then Polycarp prayed a final prayer and when he said amen, the men in charge of the fire lit it. In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death ii Kings 2:1-12 for the child of God abideth forever,. 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