The Problems Part 5

REVELATION Number 50

The Problems
Part 5

The church at Sardis was addressed in Revelation 3:1 thus. “You have a name that you are alive, and yet you are dead.” (NASB 2020) This is a church like many we find today. People look at it and see an active community gathering busily and appearing to be doing good works. But the Lord says they are dead. The dead do not have the Spirit of Life. This church is filled with religious practitioners who are devoid of the Spirit. Like the scribes and Pharisees of whom Jesus said, “you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.” (Matthew 23:27 NASB 2020)

It is important that we keep this in mind as we read of the problems the Lord Jesus points out to them. He points out their deeds in Revelation 3:2 saying, “Be constantly alert, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.” (NASB 2020)

If we miss the fact that many in this fellowship are religionists and not believers in Christ, then we can easily interpret this verse as warning the saints to be sure they are working hard enough so their deeds will not be found incomplete.

That is not the Lord’s message here at all. He is telling the believers in the fellowship at Sardis to be alert and strengthen themselves. The believers in this church are aging, as are we all, and the Lord would have them wake up and deal with the problems in their fellowship. The word translated “strengthen” here is στηρίζω (storizo). In this context, BDAG * defines this as “to cause to be inwardly firm or committed, confirm, establish, strengthen.”

The believers in Sardis need to be inwardly firm and committed to the Gospel and ensure that the truth is being taught. Their time is limited, so sitting idly by as the good-looking work being done keeps their reputation in the community intact will result in the eventual death of the church. Their works are incomplete because they are not being done through faith, but as though fleshly effort could result in righteousness.

We find this situation throughout the various institutional churches today. There are many believers in such churches, but there are also many who rely upon religious self-effort. This sort of “virtue signaling” has no life in it.

The church at Sardis was warned to wake up and become firmly committed to the pure Gospel lest they cease to exist. Likewise, those in Christ who are involved with religious institutions full of worldly people today are called to present the Gospel to the religionists in their fellowships. As with all such things, this must be done with gentleness and compassion through Love.

*BDAG - “A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature” (Walter Bauer, Frederick William Danker, Kurt and Barbara Aland, W.F. Arndt, and F.W. Gingrich) 3rd Edition