Cross Examined 6 | Flatlined

We're continuing our series here at Cross Connection called "Cross Examine." Jesus examines His church, and today we're looking at the fifth church, the church at Sardis, a church that was called the dead church. The word that Jesus has for them is challenging. As we go through this passage of Scripture, open your Bibles to Revelation 3. I think you will be both encouraged and challenged at the same time.

So, open the Scriptures with us. God bless. Revelation 3:1 states that Jesus, of course, is the one who is dictating this letter to the Apostle John. Jesus says, "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: These things says He who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Be watchful and strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect before God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore, if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know the hour that I come upon you. You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments, and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before My Father and before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."

God, we pray for open ears. I pray that You would open ears and hearts so that we would be receptive to the word that You desire to speak to us. We believe that this Scripture is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. You are able, through Your word, to instruct us in righteousness, to rebuke, reprove, or correct us when that is needed.

So, God, we pray that Your living and powerful word would be effective in our lives today. Ready our hearts to receive from You, from Your word, by Your Spirit, and help us to know how we can apply these things in our lives in the day in which we live. For we ask this in Jesus' name. All God's people agreed and said, "Amen." You can be seated.

There's a big difference.

Between mostly dead and all dead, some of you know where that came from: Miracle Max in that wonderful movie, The Princess Bride. It's a favorite in my household. That is the wisdom of Miracle Max, who went on to say that mostly dead is still slightly alive. With all dead, there's usually only one thing you can do, he said, and that's to go through their clothes and see if there's any loose change.

In Revelation chapter 3, Jesus is addressing the fifth of seven churches—seven letters written to the seven churches in Asia. Now, to the church in Sardis, a church that is most commonly referred to as the dead church. The dead church, because the indictment against them, as we will see in just a few moments, is that they had a name that they were alive; they were, in fact, dead. Yet Jesus still has a word for them, which is what we are going to consider together today.

I recognize that this letter, and the letters we have looked at so far leading up to this, the four previous letters, have been pretty hard and heavy. I know that because just about every week, as we have been going through this, we have had a number of people coming up afterward, many with tears in their eyes, saying that there is conviction. This letter is going to be another heavy one. I want to encourage you that next week is going to be a happier letter.

The church application for us living in this day, even though these things were written 1,900 years ago to a church that actually existed in the western part of Asia Minor, or what is modern-day Turkey, speaks to us. At the end of each of these letters, Jesus says, "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches," speaking to all of the churches.

Jesus writes now to the angel, as it says in Revelation 3:1, to the angel of the church in Sardis. We have already considered that the angel—we don't know for certain what it means—could refer to an angelic being overseeing the church in that region, or it could be an earthly elder and overseer of that church. Whatever it is, Jesus is the one who has a word for the people that are part of the church in that city. The city of Sardis was about 35 miles to the southeast of Thyatira, the last letter that we looked at a couple of weeks ago.

About 52 miles directly east of the City of Smyrna, which we looked at several weeks ago, and 55 miles to the northeast of Ephesus, the first of the churches mentioned, is the city of Sardis. This letter to the church there is probably written around the year 95 AD. By the time Jesus writes to this church and city, Sardis had already existed for some 1,300 years. It was several hundred years after its founding that this great city, the capital of the kingdom of Lydia, was under the leadership and rule of one of the greatest known kings of the day, a king by the name of Croesus. This is when Sardis really rose to prominence, reaching the height of its power about 5 to 600 years after its founding in the year 1200 BC.

Sardis was the capital of the Lydian Empire, and because of its reserves of both silver and gold, it had become very wealthy. The city existed in a secure location, situated in a valley that stretched through Asia Minor, known as the Hermus Valley. Sardis was high upon a hill overlooking the valley, rising about 1,500 feet from the valley floor. The city was on a plateau, surrounded by steep cliffs on most sides. Because of this, the people of Sardis believed themselves to be secure, thinking that no one would ever be able to overtake their city; they considered it impenetrable.

I am always concerned when I hear about an unsinkable ship or an impenetrable city. The Scriptures say, "Take heed when you think you stand, lest you fall." Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall. Under the rule and authority of King Croesus, the most well-known and wealthy king of his day, he thought himself powerful, strong, secure, and wealthy. He had a great idea: he was going to move into Persia and attack the Persian Empire and King Cyrus in the 6th century BC. However, it didn't go well for him. While he was invading Persia, Cyrus came against him and completely defeated the armies of Croesus. He returned with his tail between his legs back to his kingdom, back to the city of Sardis, still believing himself secure. But Cyrus did not appreciate the fact that Croesus had decided to tread on his territory.

He followed him and surrounded the city of Sardis. The king, as Herodotus the Greek historian tells us, thought himself to be secure. He went to bed one night feeling completely comfortable, and the next morning, they had been overtaken and subdued by the people of Persia, Cyrus's Kingdom.

The reason for this was that, although they thought their city to be secure and impenetrable, Cyrus's armies had surveyed the city. Herodotus tells us that one of the guards of the city of Sardis, while leaning over the wall, had his helmet fall off. Some of the watchmen of Cyrus's army observed him as he walked down a secret trail to retrieve his helmet. They discovered there was a way to get in, and that night, they came like a thief in the night when the city was not under watch.

You would think that they would learn from such an event, but 335 years later, after the city was reinhabited, rebuilt, and regained its strength, another invading army from the Greek Empire, led by Antiochus the Great, laid siege to the city of Sardis. Once again, he approached by a secret way in the night while they were not watching. In their overconfidence, they felt secure and did not keep watch. Thus, twice in their history, this city was taken as if by a thief in the night.

This historical context gives interesting weight to the words that Jesus has for the church that existed there. The overthrow of the city of Sardis makes His words even more appropriate and applicable for us today, as we consider not just the city of Sardis but the Church in Sardis. Jesus is writing to the church that existed there at the end of the first century AD.

We don't know for sure when the church was first established, but it seems likely that it was established under Paul's ministry. During Paul's second missionary journey, described in Acts chapter 16, he wandered through this region of Asia Minor. While we are not told that he ever went to Sardis, we do know that he passed through that region.

Then, during his third missionary journey in the mid-50s AD, about 40 years before Jesus wrote this letter in the Book of Revelation, we know that Paul was in the city of Ephesus, which is 55 miles from Sardis.

The southwest of the city of Sardis was significant in the early church. In Acts 19:1, it is noted that Paul taught for two years in a school called the School of Tyrannus. Acts 19:10 states that while he taught there, all those in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks. It is highly probable that the Church of Sardis was established under Paul's ministry, as a result of his work in that region, around 55 to 58 AD. Now, forty years later, Jesus has a word for the church that still exists there.

Like the previous letters we have examined, this letter follows the same outline, which is on your sermon guide. I have called it the "wrap sheet": the Revelation, the Commendation, the Indictment, the Summons, and the Promise. This letter begins in the same way, with the Revelation given in verse one, as Jesus reveals something about who He is that is appropriate and specific for the people of this church.

He says, "Write to the angel of the church at Sardis: These things says He who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars." This is the one who is writing to the church at Sardis. As we have already seen, each of these revelations of Jesus to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3 points back to what was already seen in Revelation chapter 1.

To understand what is meant by the phrase "these things says He who has the seven spirits of God," turn a couple of pages to the left in your Bibles to Revelation 1:4. If you have been around the Bible for any length of time or have been part of a church, you know that there is one Holy Spirit. Ephesians chapter 4 tells us that there is one Spirit. Christians believe that there is one God who exists in three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. However, here we read about the seven spirits of God. What does that mean?

There is certainly a lot of discussion among commentators and Bible teachers about this concept. Revelation 1:4 is the first mention of it: "John to the seven churches which are in Asia: grace."

To you and peace from Him who was and is and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before His throne. Grace, John says, to the seven churches from the One who was, is, and is to come—that's Jesus—and from the seven spirits who are before His throne.

The seven spirits—what is that? Well, skip down to verse 16. Not only is Jesus revealed as having the seven spirits to the church at Sardis in Revelation 3:1, but He also has the seven stars. Revelation 1:16 says that when John saw Jesus, while he was in exile, a prisoner on the island of Patmos off the coast of Asia Minor, he saw Jesus on the Lord's Day. When he saw Him, it says in Revelation 1:16 that Jesus had in His right hand seven stars.

We've already considered this because Jesus revealed the same thing to the church at Ephesus. What are the seven stars? Revelation 1:20 answers that question when we read, "The mystery of the seven stars," which you saw in My right hand, says Jesus, "and the seven golden lampstands." The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches.

So, we see in Revelation 1:4 that the seven spirits of God are mentioned. Then we see the seven stars mentioned in 1:16, and in 1:20, they are described. What exactly are these? Obviously, there is a huge repetition of the number seven in the Bible, and specifically in the Book of Revelation. We have the seven spirits, the seven stars, the seven golden lampstands, and the seven churches. We have all these different sevens. In fact, the Book of Revelation has the number seven in it more than any other biblical book—31 times this number is mentioned.

Throughout the Bible, the number seven comes up quite frequently, and from all we can tell, the number seven is God's favorite number. If He were on a football team, He would have jersey number seven, no doubt. It seems to be His favorite number. How many of you would say, "Seven's my favorite number"? You have something in common with God right there; He likes the number seven.

I was looking at this a few days ago, and it's interesting that the number seven is the most significant number across many religions and cultures. It is used quite frequently. We see it throughout the world a lot. There are seven days in a week, seven colors in the rainbow, and seven notes in the scale.

In the musical scale, there are seven seas and seven continents. Snow White ran off with seven dwarfs, and there are Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. Shakespeare spoke about the Seven Ages of Man, and Sinbad had seven journeys that he went on. Of course, James Bond is associated with the number seven as well. It's a big deal!

Earlier this year, 30,000 people were polled about their favorite number. When asked that question, people have an infinite choice, yet the number that most people chose was number seven. For some reason, number seven comes up quite a bit. In Middle Eastern culture, specifically in Hebrew culture, the idea is that the number seven represents completeness and perfection.

God created for six days, and on the seventh day, He rested from His creation because it was finished. He looked back at it on the seventh day and said, "It's all good." Literally, that's what He said: it's all good. Therefore, the significance of the number seven is the idea of completeness, perfection, and fullness.

But what is the significance of the seven spirits of God? We believe and know that there is only one Holy Spirit. I would suggest to you, which is the most common interpretation from commentators, that Jesus has the fullness of the Spirit of God. Jesus writes to the church at Sardis, stating, "This is He who has the seven spirits of God." He possesses the fullness of the Spirit of God.

The Apostle Paul describes it in this way in the book of Colossians, which we will be studying after the new year, around March of next year. In Colossians 2:8, Paul warns the church, "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy or empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ."

In verse 9, he states, "In Him, in Jesus, dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily." The term "Godhead" may seem strange, but there is one God who exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We describe Him as the Godhead, and Jesus is the fullness of all that is God in bodily form.

Incarnate, He came to humanity. Amen. He is the fullness of the Godhead bodily, and that's encouraging to me.

Point number one on your outline: Jesus is complete and whole. Jesus is complete and whole, and you and I are not. We, in and of ourselves, are lacking. Now, we don't like to acknowledge that truth, especially in our culture and in the place that we live and in the time that we live. It's not something that you really hear people in the American culture of the 21st century ever really saying. We live in a culture where we think we can do it all on our own.

We live in a culture that is so focused on independence, in the sense that I can do it all on my own, pull myself up by my own bootstraps. I'm the captain of my ship, the master of my own destiny. I'm a self-made man. That's the way that people think in our culture. So, to be able to say that I am insufficient in our culture is just rare.

One of the things we need to accept, one of the things we need to come to the point where we realize and acknowledge, is that we, in and of ourselves, are not sufficient. One of the great books that shows this truth is the book of 2 Corinthians. There, Paul repeatedly comes back to this theme that we are not sufficient. In 2 Corinthians 3:5 and 6, he says, "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as being of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God."

We find our sufficiency; the Christian recognizes that they are only sufficient in Him. Later on in that letter, in 2 Corinthians 12, Paul would say this: being true, I will boast in my weakness. Amen. Who in our culture today would boast in their weakness? Yet, it's very similar to the first-century Roman culture because they had a culture very much like ours. You wouldn't say that you are weak. You're a Roman; you're a part of the greatest empire in the world. You're not weak.

But Paul says, "No, I recognize my weakness because when I see my weakness, then I find His strength." So, we are not sufficient in and of ourselves. Jesus, though, is completely whole, and we need Him. Why? Well, the very next verse in Colossians 2:8 and 9 tells us that Jesus is all complete and whole. The next verse, verse 10, says, "And you are complete in Him." You are complete.

In Him, you are completely lost and weak and have no ability apart from Him. But in Him, we are strong; we can do all things through Him who gives us strength. Philippians 4:13 tells us that He is the one who strengthens us.

This idea of the seven spirits of God most likely means that Jesus has the fullness of all that is God. There is another interesting passage of Scripture that seems to connect with this idea of the seven spirits of God. It is found in the book of Isaiah. You could turn there briefly if you'd like.

In Isaiah 11, the prophet Isaiah is speaking about the Messiah, who is going to come as the son of Jesse, the son of David, King David, the great king of Israel in the future. He says this about the Messiah in Isaiah 11:2: "The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord."

If you count it out in Isaiah 11:2, you find that seven times it is mentioned: the Spirit, the Spirit of God, the Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and the fear of the Lord. All of these things are descriptive of the fullness of the Spirit that Jesus came to Earth with. It was manifested for us to see, and it is recorded for us in John 2.

You remember that John the Baptist went to baptize, and the whole purpose of his baptism was to reveal the one upon whom the Spirit of God abode. As he was baptizing one day, Jesus came, and he baptized Him. The Spirit descended like a dove and abode upon Him. He said, "This is the one who has the fullness of the Spirit." Jesus has the fullness of the Spirit, and we are complete in Him, completely incomplete apart from Him.

Not only does Jesus have the fullness of the Spirit upon Him, but He also describes Himself to the church at Sardis here in Revelation 3:1 in His revelation of Himself as the one who has the seven stars. He has the seven stars, which Revelation 1:20 represents the church or those who are over the churches. This speaks to us that Jesus possesses the churches.

Point number two on your outline: the church is...

Jesus's possession is the church. Yes, there was a church at Sardis, but it wasn't their church. This is Cross Connection, but it's not our church; it's His church. Emanuel Faith is not Dennis King's church; it's God's church. Valley Baptist Church is not Gunner Hansen's church; it's God's church. This is His church, His possession.

Because we are His possession, He has the right to inspect us. Not only does He have the right to inspect us, but He also has the right to expect certain things from us. When those expectations are not met, He has the right to rebuke and punish us. We are His.

You may wonder how it is that we are His. We are His because we've been bought with a price. First Corinthians 6:20 says to the church, "For you," and it's in the plural there: "you," the whole church. You were bought with a price; therefore, because you've been purchased, redeemed, and bought with a price by the Lord Jesus, glorify God in your body and your spirit, which are God's. You are the possession of God. If you're a Christian today, we are the possession of God. We've been redeemed, purchased, and bought back.

Of course, we were created in the image and likeness of God, so as His creation, He has the right and rule over us. However, we see in Genesis chapter 3 that man rejected that and went away from it, finding himself in slavery to sin. But Jesus enters in and buys us back; He redeems us.

Some of you may be asking, "How did He purchase us?" The Scriptures make it very clear in Galatians 3:13 that Christ has redeemed us. In Acts 20:28, Hebrews 9:12, 1 Peter 1:18-19, and Revelation 5:9, it is stated that He bought us with His own blood. He bought us with His own blood, and if that's the case, we are precious and valuable in the sight of Jesus. He purchased you with His own blood; He laid down His life for you.

Today, if you're a Christian, know that if you're not a Christian, He wants you as His own possession, as His special treasure. You've sold yourself for nothing. Jesus says to the people of Israel through the prophet Isaiah, "You sold yourself for nothing, but I want to buy you back because you're precious to Me." Thus, as Christians, we end up being a special possession.

Treasure of the Lord. Peter knew this; he said, "You are His own special people." Then he went on to say, "You're a peculiar people, but you're still a special people, a special treasure of the Lord." That's so encouraging to me to know that Jesus wants us to be His possession. Amen! He wants us to be His work of art through which He displays His glory, the glory of the Master Artist. He wants to display it in our lives—something that is valuable and a special treasure, something that you put in a prominent place for all to see. That's how Jesus sees you and me. We don't always see ourselves like that, but that's how He sees us.

I was reading a design website the other day. I like graphic design and industrial design, and while I was reading this website, I came across an article about an hourglass. Yes, an hourglass! I was looking at this and reading about it. It is about a foot and a half tall and weighs around 26 pounds. Inside of it are not just sand, but tiny little micro balls that are coated with gold. It was beautiful! I was looking at this thing and thinking, "Man, I want one of these." Then I got to the bottom and saw the price: $40,000.

They have a smaller miniature version for only $175,000, but $40,000? I thought, "Well, I guess I won't be getting that." If you bought one of those, you would put it in a prominent place as a prized possession. Some people have prized possessions like that, in which they have invested great money. It's not just something you buy; it is an investment that retains its value in some way—a work of art, a beautiful, expensive piece of jewelry, whatever it may be.

I was reading a book recently by a guy down here in San Diego. He was talking about how he would walk to work every day and pass by an art gallery. He saw a painting in the gallery that he really liked, so he went in and inquired about it. It was very expensive, and it would take him months and months of savings to buy it. He wanted it so badly that he thought, "I'm going to do that." So he saved and saved and saved. Finally, he went to buy the painting, and the art gallery owner brought him out a lithograph, a copy of the painting, and said, "Here you go."

He asked, "What's this for?" The owner replied, "This is the one you hang up because the other one is so valuable you don't hang it. So we're going to give you the other one, but you keep that in a vault." He thought, "I don't want to keep that in a vault; I want the real deal!" No, no, no, no, that's not the way this art thing works.

Some people buy very expensive jewelry, and the same principle applies here. They keep the real pieces in a vault, but they wear a fake one because the real one is so valuable that they don’t want it out for anyone to see. Let me tell you something: you are so valuable to the Lord. He wants people to see your life. The Scriptures say we have this treasure in earthen vessels, and why? It is for all the world to see how awesome He is in and through our lives. We are the possession of the Lord; we are His. This is the revelation that Jesus gives to this church: I have the fullness of all that is God, and you are mine.

Then He moves to the next step. In verse one, at the end of it, He says to them, "I know your works." Every one of these seven letters begins with that phrase. Jesus typically moves into the commendation after the revelation, but this letter is a little different. He says, "I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead." There is, therefore, no commendation for the church that was in Sardis. There was nothing good that Jesus could say about this group of people at the church in Sardis, which is phenomenal. Previously, He spoke to the church that was lacking love in Ephesus and had some good things to say about them. He spoke to those in the city of Pergamos who were being led into false teaching and were caught in compromise, and He had good things to say about them as well. Even in Thyatira, the church that was completely given over to immorality, He still had good things to say.

But this church, the church at Sardis, is different. He says, "Listen, you have a name that you are good; you have a name that you are alive." That might almost seem commendable, but it is not. You have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. You have a reputation. He moves straight from the revelation to the indictment—no commendation at all. The indictment is very clear: you have a good reputation, but it is not a reality. It is just on the exterior, and really, it means nothing. It is a veneer; there is nothing substantial behind it. At a certain point in Sardis, the city's...

Throughout history, it was thought to be very wealthy because it had gold and silver reserves. However, by the time it was invaded by Antiochus the Great in the third century BC, all of its gold had been depleted, and all of its silver was gone. Even though it had a name that suggested wealth, it was a dying city. Not only did it have a reputation for being wealthy and secure, but twice in its history, that name meant nothing; there was no substance to it.

Here, Jesus says to the church that existed there, "You have a name that you're alive, but you're dead. You have a reputation, but there's no substance to it whatsoever." This is what we might call Christian phariseeism. You remember the Pharisees, if you studied the Gospels. Jesus constantly went back and forth with the Pharisees, who were a highly religious, self-righteous group of people in Israel. Yet, Jesus's word to them in Matthew 23 is, "You are whitewashed tombs. You look great on the outside, but you're full of deadness, full of dead men's bones."

This is a form of Christian phariseeism—a form of godliness that denies the reality of the power of who God is. You have a reputation, but it's not reality. It's like "The Wizard of Oz." How many of you remember "The Wizard of Oz"? Ultimately, Dorothy, the Scarecrow, the Lion, the Tin Man, and Toto get before the Great Oz, cowering in fear. You remember the Lion runs away, but then Toto, the little dog, runs over and opens up the curtain, revealing the Great Oz as a little weak wimp.

So here you have this church that had a name for being alive, but in fact, they were dead.

Point number three on your outline is very simple: Don't be dead; be alive. How? John 11:25 tells us that Jesus is the resurrection and the life. John 14:6 tells us that He is the way, the truth, and the life. Colossians 3:4 tells us that He is our life. The way, the truth, and the life—the resurrection and the life—becomes our life as Christians. We have confidence in His name because we have life in His name, as stated in John 20:31. Ephesians 2:1 reminds us that we were dead in trespasses and sins, but He has made us alive.

Every human being that is born is born dead; they are spiritually dead. Yet Jesus, who has all the fullness and is life, has the ability to impart life. That's why He is referred to metaphorically as the living water and the bread of life. He is the source and sustainer of all life. That's right. He says, "Come to me if you want to live."

To those who are alive in Him, He advises not to be dead again in sin and not to allow themselves to be weighed down by it. The church at Sardis may have been only mostly dead, as Jesus is writing a letter to them. You don't write letters to dead people. Miracle Jesus wants to give life to this mostly dead group of people. We don't know the spiritual state of most of them, but apparently, they called themselves a church. In some way, they had some form of church life, but there was no substance to it.

Had they put their faith in Christ and then retracted from that? I don't know. Had they gained salvation and lost it? Of course, there are all kinds of different teachings across the spectrum of Christianity on this. Were they never saved? We're not even going to get into that. Whatever the case, they called themselves a church, and Jesus refers to them as His church. Yet, He says they are dead, and He has a word for them. They must only be mostly dead; that's the only conclusion I can reach because you don't write letters to dead people.

I read a really strange article this last week about a family in England. Grandma had died a couple of years ago, and they buried her with her smartphone because she loved it so much. The family was sending her text messages of grief. Unfortunately, the cell phone company gave the phone number to someone new. Recently, when the 12-year-old granddaughter of Grandma sent a text of grief, she received a reply saying, "I'm watching out for you; it's going to be okay." The family wasn't too happy about that.

So, yes, you don't write letters to dead people. That's a true story; you can find it on the internet. It's crazy. This church must only be mostly dead, and Jesus is writing to them, saying, "Don't be dead; be alive." Well, how? The summons reminds us that we move from the Revelation to the Commendation.

The indictment, now the summons, is a call to this group of people. In verses 2 and 3, Jesus gives seven steps on how to move from death to life.

Be watchful and strengthen the things which remain that are ready to die, for I have not found your works perfect or complete before God. Remember, therefore, how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. If you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know the hour that I will come upon you.

These seven steps to life are important. I will give them to you quickly, and then we will run through them. If you don't get them immediately, we will go through them slowly.

The seven steps are:

1. Be watchful 2. Strengthen what remains 3. Complete your works 4. Remember 5. Hold fast 6. Repent 7. Be ready for His return

It is interesting that there are seven of them: be watchful, strengthen what remains, complete your works, remember, hold fast, repent, and be ready for His return.

I don't necessarily think that these things are in chronological order or a progressive step, but these are seven important truths that we should recognize. Whether you are not a Christian today and are dead in your trespasses and sins, or you are a believer in Jesus today and yet something in your life and your vitality with Jesus has grown cold, these are important things for us to lay hold of.

The first one is to be watchful. In Revelation 16:15, later on in the Book of Revelation, Jesus will say, "Blessed is he who watches." Another way of translating this is, "Oh, how happy is he who watches." Why is that?

In Jesus's last great message, recorded for us in a couple of the Gospels, but prominently in Matthew chapters 24 and 25, it is called the Olivet Discourse because Jesus spoke it while he was on the Mount of Olives. There, in the Olivet Discourse, twice—once in Matthew 24 and once in Matthew 25—Jesus tells His disciples, His followers, to be watchful. He says this in Matthew 24:42: "Watch."

Therefore, you do not know the hour that your Lord is coming. A few verses later, in chapter 25:13, He says, "Watch therefore, for you neither know the day nor the hour that the Son of Man is coming." So, watch! Keep your eyes circumspect, as Paul would tell the church at Ephesus: walk circumspectly with your eyes wide open because the days are evil. Be watchful.

The Apostle Peter also picked up on this, stating in 1 Peter 4:7, "But the end of all things is at hand. Therefore, be serious and watchful in your prayers." The first thing Jesus tells the church at Sardis, which was mostly dead, is to watch. Be watchful.

Secondly, strengthen what remains. Essentially, whatever is good among you, you need to build upon that. You have a name that you are alive, but you need to strengthen what remains. How do we strengthen what remains? I think of Paul's words to Timothy. He says in 1 Timothy 4, "Bodily exercise profits little." How many of you would agree that this is true? Bodily exercise profits little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having value in this life and in that life which is to come. It has value here and now, and in eternity. So, Paul says, "Exercise yourself towards godliness."

How do we do that? Right before he says to exercise yourself towards godliness, he instructs us to reject foolish and false doctrines. Reject anything that is foolish and false, just as Paul warned against the empty deceit in Colossians 2:8. Do not allow your faith to be spoiled by the vain deceit of this world. Reject anything that is foolish and false, and exercise yourself towards godliness.

In the next book to Timothy, 2 Timothy 2:15, he says, "Don't be ashamed; be a workman, rightly dividing the word of truth." I would suggest that one of the ways we strengthen what remains is through rightly dividing the word of truth.

Number three, He says to this mostly dead church, "Complete your works." You see it there at the end of verse two: "For I have not found your works perfect," which can also be translated as "complete" before God. Their works were only half done. While we are not saved by our good works, we are saved for good works. James tells the church that faith without works is dead.

Works is what is dead; faith without works is dead. This church was on the verge of being all dead. At this point, they were only mostly dead. He is about to remove his lampstand from them because of the death that is there. He says, "Listen, you need to complete your works. Don't have half-done obedience; partial obedience is full disobedience. Don't have partial repentance."

This city knew all about half-done things. They only half-watched their city in their history when it was twice overtaken. So, he says, "Complete your works."

Fourth, remember how you have received and heard. Not just remember what you received or what you heard, but how you received it. How did you receive what you heard? You received it by faith. You received it by faith. Return to the simple things, very similar to what he says to the church at Ephesus: "Repent and do the first works." You received the Gospel not by the doing of deeds, but by the hearing of faith. Salvation is by faith; faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. So, he says, "Remember how you received." Go back to the basics.

Number five: hold fast. The church that we looked at previously in the city of Pergamus held fast and did not deny the name of the Lord, as stated in Revelation 2:13. The church at Thyatira, which we looked at two weeks ago, was told by Jesus to hold fast until He comes. He said to them, "Hold on to what you have until I come." To this church, he says, "Hold fast."

Sixth, as he says to five of the seven churches, he says, "Repent." Repent simply means a change of mind that results in a change of action. They were going in one direction, and he says, "You need to repent and go in this direction." It's like when you're driving down the street. We don't like to look for directions. You're driving, and you have the little GPS. The nice lady says, "Recalculating." You’ve heard that before. Oh, yeah, we love that British accent. They make it a British accent so we don’t punch that thing. "Recalculating"—what does that mean? Repent. That's what she is saying in nice terms: "Recalculating."

So, Jesus is saying, "Recalculate; you're on the wrong road. It isn't working for you. Repent."

Number seven: be ready for His return.

Be ready for His return. Twice in history, the people of Sardis were unprepared and overconfident in their wealth and security. In their overconfidence, they were destroyed. They were not ready when the thief came in the night. Jesus says to this church, "If you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know the hour that I will come upon you." Therefore, you need to be watchful; you need to be ready for His return. We need to be ready for the return of the Lord. This is what the church generally classifies as the doctrine of imminency.

The doctrine of imminency is that Jesus could return at any time. He promised He would come a second time. Two angels, with the disciples as Jesus ascended into heaven, said, "Why do you guys stand here gazing up into heaven? Don't you know He is coming again in like manner?" Jesus could come at any time; that's the doctrine of imminency. We need to frame our lives with this concept. He could come at any time. He may not come this afternoon or tomorrow; He may not come next year, but He could come at any time, and we need to be ready for His coming.

Now, Peter cautions those who will say, "Where is the sign of His coming?" He says, "Listen, you're not being watchful." In 2 Peter 3:10, he reminds us that the day of the Lord comes as a thief in the night. The Apostle Paul did the same thing in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9. He says to the church at Thessalonica that the day of the Lord comes as a thief in the night. But then he says this, and this is so important—so many Christians miss this. He says, "But it won't overtake you as a thief because you're awake."

So what's the point? Wake up! Be ready for His return. Jesus, again in the Olivet Discourse recorded in Luke 12:40, says to His disciples, "Therefore be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour that you do not expect." He is coming at an hour that you do not expect, so be ready for His return. Be watchful. Strengthen what remains, complete your works, remember, hold fast, repent, and be ready for His return.

Now, the promise, the revelation, the commendation, the indictment, the summons, and the promise given in Revelation 3:4-6 states, "You have a few names, even in Sardis, even in the dead church. You have a few names who have not defiled their garments." This is the closest thing to a commendation that the church at Sardis has. There are some, a remnant, a small group.

There is a group within the church at Sardis that has not defiled their garments. The idea of defiling garments means that you defile your garments by sin. They shall walk because they have not defiled their garments. Their faith has works, and because of this, they shall walk with me in white because they are worthy. Remember, Paul says to the church, "Walk worthy of the calling wherewith you have been called." The church at Ephesus is worthy; they have walked with me and shall walk with me, and they have not defiled their garments.

He who overcomes—there's that key word that appears in all the letters. Verse 5 connects us back with 1 John 5:4 and 5, which tells us how to overcome by our faith that Jesus is the Son of God. He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life, but I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

Now, notice this as we close: a great truth here. He who overcomes, who has not defiled their garments and has walked worthy, that person will overcome by faith in His name, and they shall be clothed. Point number five in your outline is very simple: walk in purity.

The assumed question is, "How?" Since we don't have a lot of time, I'm just going to sum it up like this: read the Bible and do what it says. How do I walk in purity? Read the Bible and do what it says. When it says, "Don't lie," don't lie. When it says, "Speak the truth," speak the truth. When it says, "Don't use corrupt or coarse language," don't do that. When it says, "Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger," do that. Do what He says.

You might say, "I can't; I've tried." Listen, God gives us all ability. Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as being of ourselves, but He has made us able servants of the Gospel. That's right! I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. He works in us to will and to do His good pleasure. So, you say, "God, I can't do this on my own." I know you can't do this on your own. Here, I'm going to give you my power. Jesus never commands us to do anything that He would not first enable us to do.

So, read the Scriptures and do what they say. He says, "He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments."

Blot out his name from the Book of Life. Now, I know that this causes a lot of consternation for many commentators, and we have to recognize that there is a spectrum in Christianity regarding what people believe about how they are saved, how they maintain salvation, and what that looks like. There are people on one side of the spectrum and people on the other side. We seek to maintain a balance here at Cross Connection.

There are individuals who look at this and say, "I won't blot you out of my Book of Life." They express fear about this because they see an implication that they might be blotted out of the Book of Life. However, notice that He says, "I will not blot you out of the Book of Life." He is saying that He will not blot those who overcome out of the Book of Life.

Then the question arises: does that mean He might blot some out of the Book? I would say that when there is a caution in the Bible or an implied warning in the Scriptures, we should take it to heart. Whether you believe you can lose, reject, or compromise your salvation or not, we should pay attention to the warnings in Scripture. Jesus is pleading with the dead church because He loves them. He says, "Listen, I want you to overcome. I want you to be clothed in white. I want your name to be in the Book of Life, and I want to say your name before your Father in Heaven and before the angels."

How many of you want to hear Jesus say your name before God the Father and the angels in Heaven? I want to hear that! That's a commencement ceremony. Who cares about some university where they mess up your name as they give you your diploma? My diploma has my name spelled wrong. But anyway, Jesus is not going to mess up your name. The warnings in Scripture are important, and we should take them to heart.

A couple of months ago, my wife and I were getting our kids in her car while I was getting my stuff in my car on a weekday morning. She was getting ready to take the kids to school, and I was preparing to come here to the church. Suddenly, a helicopter came flying over the hill in front of our house and started circling about a quarter mile away. Then the loudspeaker came on: "This is the ESO Police Department. Come out immediately, or we will release the canine, and he will find you and bite you."

I turned to my wife and said, "Welcome to the 'Doo.'" The helicopter circled, and they said, "You have one minute to comply. Come out, or we will release the canine. He will find you and bite you." That was a warning! I thought that was awesome. I went to work in the opposite direction so I could see what was happening. I drove by, and there were five cops, and they had them.

They’re, I was like, yes, Justice, but he will find you and bite you. Listen, Church, Jesus said, "I will come again." That's right. You've seen that bumper sticker that says, "Jesus is coming, quick, look busy." Listen, that's mocking us, but anyway, it's still funny. He is coming quickly; He will come again. Are you watchful? Are you ready? Do you need to repent? Are there some things in your life that need to be completed? Do you need to strengthen some things that have just maintained weakness?

You're impatient with others, you're rude with people, you're unloving. Jesus says, "No, you need to strengthen the things I've given you: the fruit of the Spirit—patience, love, gentleness, and self-control." I've been writing on these in our weekly email that goes out for the last nine weeks, and so we need to strengthen those things.

There are some of us who need to recognize that there are people here in our midst, and we need to check ourselves on this. You may be a Christian in name only; you have a name that you're alive, but you're dead. Today, you need to repent, and there needs to be a course correction. You need to recalculate. That's right. I realize that these words are strong and heavy, but we need to take these things to heart. Caution and warning are good. That's why, when our kids are running out in the street, we caution them sternly and sometimes discipline them.

For whom the Lord loves, He chastens. That's right; He chastens, and some of us need that chastening of the Lord today. Amen.

Let's stand together and ask the Lord to help us with this as we close. Father God, these letters have been challenging, and You don't let Your church off easily because You want Your church to be in the right place. You want Your church to shine brightly with truth and grace, and all the things that are the evidence of Your Spirit in our lives: love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, self-control—all those things that are good and right before You.

So, God, would You work these things into our lives? Lord, I recognize that even as I've meditated on this the last couple of weeks, it's been convicting and challenging for me as well because I know there are things that need to be strengthened in my life. There are works that need to be fulfilled and completed. That's right.

And so, Lord, we remember. We want to be ready when You return, and we ask for Your help to hold fast. If there needs to be repentance today, a recalculation, we thank You that You are the one who is just and merciful. You forgive and cleanse the sin that is confessed.

So we come before You and say, Jesus, clean us; make us white today as snow. Come, let us reason together. You said, "Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow." You are the only one who has the ability to do that work in our lives. We pray in Jesus' name.