Faithful in Suffering
Revelation 2:8-11
Message #4
Today Jesus addresses the suffering Church of Smyrna. We are going to see Jesus say to those who are suffering in the Church today: I know what you are going through; Do not fear what’s ahead of you; Be faithful to the end. What Jesus says to suffering Christians in the first century is what Jesus says to suffering Christians today. To the Church of Smyrna, Jesus issues no rebuke, no warning, no challenge because this church is standing fast and being refined in the fire of suffering. And so, Jesus comes to them with only encouragement, assurance, and promises of eternal reward.
By the earliest writers, Smyrna was called “The First City of Asia” because of its outward beauty. It was a huge, beautiful city on the shore of a beautiful harbor of the Aegean Sea, about thirty-five miles north of Ephesus. But just beneath its outward beauty, Smyrna had an incredibly dark and depraved spiritual side. The worst of its spiritual darkness was the worship of the Patron Goddess of the city, Cybele (SIB-uh-Lee). She was the mother goddess, a forerunner of Mother Earth, and a goddess of fertility, but her worship was one of the worst in all of paganism.
Let me read a bit of the description of the worship of this pagan goddess, just in case it relates to anything in our culture today.
Rick Renner, Scholar & Historian
The act of castration was involved in the worship of Cybele, the ritual worship emphasized self-mutilation and self-castration. The male priests had to castrate themselves and then dress in feminine garments to be deemed worthy to be called her priestesses. Once their male organs were removed these new “priestesses” were considered a “third gender” – neither male or female. These castrated male “priestesses” took female names and their physical appearance became so feminine that they were frequently mistaken for genetically born women.
Guys, I am talking about 1st and 2nd-century pagan worship. It just sounds like what public schools are trying to help kids do without their parent’s knowledge. This was hard-core pagan goddess worship that centered around the mutilation of a person’s gender. And this self-mutilation “worship” prepared the people for the torture and death of thousands of Christian Smyrna.
And it seems like it was both this pagan community and the Jewish community that incited and provoked the people and Rome to turn violently against the Christians until Christians were regularly rounded up and led into the great stadium there to be fed to the wild animals. Or to be lined around the stadium dipped in pitch and lit on fire as Nero had made famous years earlier, and it became common for Christians to be mobbed and killed while walking in the streets and marketplace.
William Barclay
“Nowhere can life have been more dangerous for a Christian than in Smyrna . . . In Smyrna, above all places, for a man to enter the Christian Church was literally to take his life in his hands. In Smyrna, the Church was a place for heroes.”
This persecution developed a small but strong church. Their devotion to Christ cost them everything, and so their bond with Christ and with each other was strong.
Revelation 2:8 (NLT)
8 “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Smyrna.
As with every letter, Jesus directs his message to the Angel (messenger) of the Church in Smyrna. Again, most scholars believe this is a reference to the pastor of the church.
One of God’s most famous messengers (Pastors) of the church in Smyrna was Polycarp. Polycarp was a personal friend and disciple of the Apostle John, who eventually became the pastor of the church in Smyrna and then the bishop of all the churches in that area. His martyrdom in Smyrna is one of the most famous, and we have a complete record of it from that time.
And it says Polycarp was tied to a stake to be burned alive. But when the fire was lit, the flames formed a cylinder around him, and a guard had to thrust a spear into him to kill him.
(again) - Revelation 2:8 (NLT)
8 “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Smyrna. This is the message from the one who is the First and the Last, who was dead but is now alive:
The first thing Jesus does for the suffering church is to remind them WHO he IS. And the first thing we need to know when we are suffering is WHO Jesus Christ IS in our lives.
So, Jesus says to John, tell them This is the message from the one who is the First and the Last, who was dead but is now alive. Jesus is identifying with the suffering Church in Smyrna, and so he picks a description of himself from Chapter 1 that would speak specifically to this church.
When Jesus says, This is the message from the one who is the First and Last, Jesus says I am the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and Omega – the All in All. All meaning Jesus is in full control, and for this church to get through what they were going through, they needed to know Jesus is in full control. And when we are suffering, we need to know our Lord Jesus is still in control.
And then Jesus says to them, I am the one who was dead but is now alive. This would speak volumes to the Church in Smyrna because they were dying for their faith. Jesus says I became dead for you, in your place, and I am alive – just as you will be alive. The Greek Tense for “Is Now Alive” is “AORIST,” meaning forever, continually alive – eternally alive. Jesus became dead in our place to pay for our sins. But that taste of death was just a brief interruption in his eternal life which Believers will share in him.
The suffering Church (and suffering Believers) need to know Christ has already conquered death on our behalf. He has finished the work and already won that battle, and by our faith, we are so identified with him that what he has done has been credited to us – meaning our eternal victory is secure in him. When tribulation arises in our lives, we need to know that in Christ, we have already won.
So first, Jesus identifies with the suffering Church, and then in Revelation 2, verse 9, Jesus says the words we need to hear so badly in our own tribulation.
Revelation 2:9 (NLT)
9 “I know . . .
Seven Letters – Seven Churches – Seven Times Jesus says, “I KNOW”
And to the suffering Church, this is the “I know” of great comfort. To some of the other churches, the “I know” from Jesus is not so comforting. But to the Christian who is standing firm in their faith in the midst of their suffering, these two words hold tremendous comfort and assurance. Jesus says, “I know.” If you are in difficulty, tribulation, suffering today and you are standing firm in your faith in Christ, then Jesus says to you, “I know what you are going through” Do not fear and be faithful to the end.
again - Revelation 2:9 (NLT)
9 (Jesus says) “I know about your suffering and your poverty . . .
Jesus is encouraging and strengthening the suffering Church in Smyrna. He’s not reviewing their “actions” or their “works” because being faithful in the midst of suffering has a way of purifying your life.
And so, Jesus says, “I know your suffering . . . and your poverty.” The word translated “suffering” here means “to be under tremendous pressure.” Jesus says I know the crushing pressure you are under, and I know your poverty, referring to the general state of their extreme hardship in life.
And when we are in suffering and hardship – Jesus knows. And in fact, Jesus made two promises about this to every believer.
John 16:33 (NLT)
33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
Both of these promises are equally sure.
1). In this world, we will have trials and sorrows and
2). Jesus has overcome those trials and sorrows on our behalf
We have got to remember our victory in Jesus Christ is just as sure as our trials and difficulties are.
And if you want to know how to walk in that victory, write down 1 John 5, verses 4-5.
1 John 5:4-5 (NLT)
4 For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.
5 And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Jesus Christ has conquered the tribulation of this world, and through our steadfast faith in him, his victory becomes our victory!!
So, are you all up on the acronym P.O.V.? It means “point of view.” And Jesus gives us a P.O.V. lesson here in Revelation 2, verse 9.
Revelation 2:9 (again) (NLT)
9 (Jesus says) “I know about your suffering and your poverty—but you are rich! . . .
In the long run, whose P.O.V. is more accurate, yours or God’s? This is a P.O.V. problem because we have mostly a temporal, earthly P.O.V., but Jesus has ultimately only an eternal P.O.V. Jesus sees past the temporal difficulties of this world, and he sees how these temporal difficulties are working in us and indescribable eternal blessing. And so, Jesus says, I know about your suffering and your poverty – but you are rich!
2 Corinthians 4, verses 17-18, are the power of the correct P.O.V.
2 Corinthians 4:17–18 (NLT)
17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!
18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now (our P.O.V,); rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen (God’s P.O.V.). For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
Romans 8:18 (NLT)
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.
It is all about our point of view.
Do we have the P.O.V. of the world or
Do we have the P.O.V. of heaven
And so, Jesus says to the suffering Church, I know your earthly poverty, but you are eternally rich!!
Now, Jesus isn’t finished telling the suffering Church all that he knows about them.
Again Revelation 2:9 (ESV)
9 “ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and (I know) the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
There was a strong (and angry) Jewish community in Smyrna (along with the pagans), and both groups were committed to getting rid of the Christians.
It would be like today if some group had unlimited financial backing, say – from George Soros – and they wanted to change our culture, and Christians were “in the way.” They might start campaigns to get the people and the government to see Christians as narrow-minded extremists, even racists, and they’d convince this previously Christian culture that they needed to silence those bad Christians, which is exactly what is happening in our nation today.
And so, through a misinformation campaign, the entire culture turned on the Christians which led to horrific massacres of many thousands of Believers. In Revelation 2, verse 9, Jesus calls those doing this work a synagogue of Satan because they are doing Satan’s work.
And you might think, right here, Jesus is going to save the day and rescue his people and make the bad guys pay!! But . . .That is not what happens. Instead, Jesus says your faith, in the midst of your tribulation, has made you eternally rich. And hold on because there’s more coming.
Revelation 2:10(a) (NLT)
10 Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days . . .
The simplest understanding here is that Jesus says, I am with you, I am your victory but. . . it’s not over yet. Jesus doesn’t say I’m going to make all of your hardship go away.
Instead, he says:
1). I know what you’re going through
2). Do not fear what’s in front of you
3). Be faithful to the end
Let me ask you a question. Would you want easy circumstances in your life with no Jesus? Or would you want Jesus in your life no matter the circumstances? People trade Jesus Christ for the pleasures of this world all the time; don’t do that!!
Only in Jesus Christ is there true victory
Only in Jesus Christ is there true eternal riches
Don’t trade that for easy, fleeting circumstances – today.
Jesus says here in verse 10, for ten days you will have tribulation. This may be a reference to the fact that there were ten periods of Roman persecution under ten different Roman Emperors, and Christians were brutally persecuted for the next 200 years after this letter was written, until in the early 4th century when Constantine married the Church with the State – which, if you know anything about how things went after that, you would probably agree that the persecution was by far better for the Church.
But here (again) in Revelation 2 verse 10, Jesus says some of you have more tribulation to come.
He’s already said two key things to these faithful Believers.
1). I know your suffering and your poverty
2). Do not fear what is ahead of you.
And then, at the end of verse 10, he gives the third exhortation.
Revelation 2:10(b) (NLT)
10 . . . But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life.
Remain faithful to the end, even when facing death, and Jesus himself will give you the Crown of Life. It is a victor’s crown – like in a sporting event – like a race.
Jesus himself is there at the finish line with the Crown of Life for all those who finish the race.
That is what you’re running the race for
That is what you’re being faithful for
The N.E.T. Bible translates verse 10 as I will give you the crown that is life itself. Jesus Christ is at the finish line, waiting to give you the crown that is life itself. The pleasures of this world won’t be there. What you think you need in this world won’t matter. There is only one thing that will matter: Jesus waiting for you at the finish line with the Crown that is life itself.
There is a moment coming for each one of us when that will be the only thing that matters. Make it matter today! Run the race with full faith in Jesus Christ, no matter what the course looks like.
And finally, if we’re faithful to Jesus, we can be sure of this: we will not experience the second death.
Revelation 2:11 (NLT)
11 “Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. Whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death.
There is a second death. It is eternal separation from God, and the only way to avoid it is to put your full faith in Jesus Christ alone and then hold on to him through the difficulties of this fallen world. Don’t be moved by the tribulations and difficulties that you face in this world.
Put your full faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and your Lord, and hear him say to you personally,
I know what you are going through
Do not fear what lies ahead in this world
Be faithful to the end
And I will be there to give you the Crown that is life itself.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says.
By the earliest writers, Smyrna was called “The First City of Asia” because of its outward beauty. It was a huge, beautiful city on the shore of a beautiful harbor of the Aegean Sea, about thirty-five miles north of Ephesus. But just beneath its outward beauty, Smyrna had an incredibly dark and depraved spiritual side. The worst of its spiritual darkness was the worship of the Patron Goddess of the city, Cybele (SIB-uh-Lee). She was the mother goddess, a forerunner of Mother Earth, and a goddess of fertility, but her worship was one of the worst in all of paganism.
Let me read a bit of the description of the worship of this pagan goddess, just in case it relates to anything in our culture today.
Rick Renner, Scholar & Historian
The act of castration was involved in the worship of Cybele, the ritual worship emphasized self-mutilation and self-castration. The male priests had to castrate themselves and then dress in feminine garments to be deemed worthy to be called her priestesses. Once their male organs were removed these new “priestesses” were considered a “third gender” – neither male or female. These castrated male “priestesses” took female names and their physical appearance became so feminine that they were frequently mistaken for genetically born women.
Guys, I am talking about 1st and 2nd-century pagan worship. It just sounds like what public schools are trying to help kids do without their parent’s knowledge. This was hard-core pagan goddess worship that centered around the mutilation of a person’s gender. And this self-mutilation “worship” prepared the people for the torture and death of thousands of Christian Smyrna.
And it seems like it was both this pagan community and the Jewish community that incited and provoked the people and Rome to turn violently against the Christians until Christians were regularly rounded up and led into the great stadium there to be fed to the wild animals. Or to be lined around the stadium dipped in pitch and lit on fire as Nero had made famous years earlier, and it became common for Christians to be mobbed and killed while walking in the streets and marketplace.
William Barclay
“Nowhere can life have been more dangerous for a Christian than in Smyrna . . . In Smyrna, above all places, for a man to enter the Christian Church was literally to take his life in his hands. In Smyrna, the Church was a place for heroes.”
This persecution developed a small but strong church. Their devotion to Christ cost them everything, and so their bond with Christ and with each other was strong.
Revelation 2:8 (NLT)
8 “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Smyrna.
As with every letter, Jesus directs his message to the Angel (messenger) of the Church in Smyrna. Again, most scholars believe this is a reference to the pastor of the church.
One of God’s most famous messengers (Pastors) of the church in Smyrna was Polycarp. Polycarp was a personal friend and disciple of the Apostle John, who eventually became the pastor of the church in Smyrna and then the bishop of all the churches in that area. His martyrdom in Smyrna is one of the most famous, and we have a complete record of it from that time.
And it says Polycarp was tied to a stake to be burned alive. But when the fire was lit, the flames formed a cylinder around him, and a guard had to thrust a spear into him to kill him.
(again) - Revelation 2:8 (NLT)
8 “Write this letter to the angel of the church in Smyrna. This is the message from the one who is the First and the Last, who was dead but is now alive:
The first thing Jesus does for the suffering church is to remind them WHO he IS. And the first thing we need to know when we are suffering is WHO Jesus Christ IS in our lives.
So, Jesus says to John, tell them This is the message from the one who is the First and the Last, who was dead but is now alive. Jesus is identifying with the suffering Church in Smyrna, and so he picks a description of himself from Chapter 1 that would speak specifically to this church.
When Jesus says, This is the message from the one who is the First and Last, Jesus says I am the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and Omega – the All in All. All meaning Jesus is in full control, and for this church to get through what they were going through, they needed to know Jesus is in full control. And when we are suffering, we need to know our Lord Jesus is still in control.
And then Jesus says to them, I am the one who was dead but is now alive. This would speak volumes to the Church in Smyrna because they were dying for their faith. Jesus says I became dead for you, in your place, and I am alive – just as you will be alive. The Greek Tense for “Is Now Alive” is “AORIST,” meaning forever, continually alive – eternally alive. Jesus became dead in our place to pay for our sins. But that taste of death was just a brief interruption in his eternal life which Believers will share in him.
The suffering Church (and suffering Believers) need to know Christ has already conquered death on our behalf. He has finished the work and already won that battle, and by our faith, we are so identified with him that what he has done has been credited to us – meaning our eternal victory is secure in him. When tribulation arises in our lives, we need to know that in Christ, we have already won.
So first, Jesus identifies with the suffering Church, and then in Revelation 2, verse 9, Jesus says the words we need to hear so badly in our own tribulation.
Revelation 2:9 (NLT)
9 “I know . . .
Seven Letters – Seven Churches – Seven Times Jesus says, “I KNOW”
And to the suffering Church, this is the “I know” of great comfort. To some of the other churches, the “I know” from Jesus is not so comforting. But to the Christian who is standing firm in their faith in the midst of their suffering, these two words hold tremendous comfort and assurance. Jesus says, “I know.” If you are in difficulty, tribulation, suffering today and you are standing firm in your faith in Christ, then Jesus says to you, “I know what you are going through” Do not fear and be faithful to the end.
again - Revelation 2:9 (NLT)
9 (Jesus says) “I know about your suffering and your poverty . . .
Jesus is encouraging and strengthening the suffering Church in Smyrna. He’s not reviewing their “actions” or their “works” because being faithful in the midst of suffering has a way of purifying your life.
And so, Jesus says, “I know your suffering . . . and your poverty.” The word translated “suffering” here means “to be under tremendous pressure.” Jesus says I know the crushing pressure you are under, and I know your poverty, referring to the general state of their extreme hardship in life.
And when we are in suffering and hardship – Jesus knows. And in fact, Jesus made two promises about this to every believer.
John 16:33 (NLT)
33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
Both of these promises are equally sure.
1). In this world, we will have trials and sorrows and
2). Jesus has overcome those trials and sorrows on our behalf
We have got to remember our victory in Jesus Christ is just as sure as our trials and difficulties are.
And if you want to know how to walk in that victory, write down 1 John 5, verses 4-5.
1 John 5:4-5 (NLT)
4 For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.
5 And who can win this battle against the world? Only those who believe that Jesus is the Son of God.
Jesus Christ has conquered the tribulation of this world, and through our steadfast faith in him, his victory becomes our victory!!
So, are you all up on the acronym P.O.V.? It means “point of view.” And Jesus gives us a P.O.V. lesson here in Revelation 2, verse 9.
Revelation 2:9 (again) (NLT)
9 (Jesus says) “I know about your suffering and your poverty—but you are rich! . . .
In the long run, whose P.O.V. is more accurate, yours or God’s? This is a P.O.V. problem because we have mostly a temporal, earthly P.O.V., but Jesus has ultimately only an eternal P.O.V. Jesus sees past the temporal difficulties of this world, and he sees how these temporal difficulties are working in us and indescribable eternal blessing. And so, Jesus says, I know about your suffering and your poverty – but you are rich!
2 Corinthians 4, verses 17-18, are the power of the correct P.O.V.
2 Corinthians 4:17–18 (NLT)
17 For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever!
18 So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now (our P.O.V,); rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen (God’s P.O.V.). For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.
Romans 8:18 (NLT)
18 Yet what we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later.
It is all about our point of view.
Do we have the P.O.V. of the world or
Do we have the P.O.V. of heaven
And so, Jesus says to the suffering Church, I know your earthly poverty, but you are eternally rich!!
Now, Jesus isn’t finished telling the suffering Church all that he knows about them.
Again Revelation 2:9 (ESV)
9 “ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and (I know) the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
There was a strong (and angry) Jewish community in Smyrna (along with the pagans), and both groups were committed to getting rid of the Christians.
It would be like today if some group had unlimited financial backing, say – from George Soros – and they wanted to change our culture, and Christians were “in the way.” They might start campaigns to get the people and the government to see Christians as narrow-minded extremists, even racists, and they’d convince this previously Christian culture that they needed to silence those bad Christians, which is exactly what is happening in our nation today.
And so, through a misinformation campaign, the entire culture turned on the Christians which led to horrific massacres of many thousands of Believers. In Revelation 2, verse 9, Jesus calls those doing this work a synagogue of Satan because they are doing Satan’s work.
And you might think, right here, Jesus is going to save the day and rescue his people and make the bad guys pay!! But . . .That is not what happens. Instead, Jesus says your faith, in the midst of your tribulation, has made you eternally rich. And hold on because there’s more coming.
Revelation 2:10(a) (NLT)
10 Don’t be afraid of what you are about to suffer. The devil will throw some of you into prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days . . .
The simplest understanding here is that Jesus says, I am with you, I am your victory but. . . it’s not over yet. Jesus doesn’t say I’m going to make all of your hardship go away.
Instead, he says:
1). I know what you’re going through
2). Do not fear what’s in front of you
3). Be faithful to the end
Let me ask you a question. Would you want easy circumstances in your life with no Jesus? Or would you want Jesus in your life no matter the circumstances? People trade Jesus Christ for the pleasures of this world all the time; don’t do that!!
Only in Jesus Christ is there true victory
Only in Jesus Christ is there true eternal riches
Don’t trade that for easy, fleeting circumstances – today.
Jesus says here in verse 10, for ten days you will have tribulation. This may be a reference to the fact that there were ten periods of Roman persecution under ten different Roman Emperors, and Christians were brutally persecuted for the next 200 years after this letter was written, until in the early 4th century when Constantine married the Church with the State – which, if you know anything about how things went after that, you would probably agree that the persecution was by far better for the Church.
But here (again) in Revelation 2 verse 10, Jesus says some of you have more tribulation to come.
He’s already said two key things to these faithful Believers.
1). I know your suffering and your poverty
2). Do not fear what is ahead of you.
And then, at the end of verse 10, he gives the third exhortation.
Revelation 2:10(b) (NLT)
10 . . . But if you remain faithful even when facing death, I will give you the crown of life.
Remain faithful to the end, even when facing death, and Jesus himself will give you the Crown of Life. It is a victor’s crown – like in a sporting event – like a race.
Jesus himself is there at the finish line with the Crown of Life for all those who finish the race.
That is what you’re running the race for
That is what you’re being faithful for
The N.E.T. Bible translates verse 10 as I will give you the crown that is life itself. Jesus Christ is at the finish line, waiting to give you the crown that is life itself. The pleasures of this world won’t be there. What you think you need in this world won’t matter. There is only one thing that will matter: Jesus waiting for you at the finish line with the Crown that is life itself.
There is a moment coming for each one of us when that will be the only thing that matters. Make it matter today! Run the race with full faith in Jesus Christ, no matter what the course looks like.
And finally, if we’re faithful to Jesus, we can be sure of this: we will not experience the second death.
Revelation 2:11 (NLT)
11 “Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. Whoever is victorious will not be harmed by the second death.
There is a second death. It is eternal separation from God, and the only way to avoid it is to put your full faith in Jesus Christ alone and then hold on to him through the difficulties of this fallen world. Don’t be moved by the tribulations and difficulties that you face in this world.
Put your full faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and your Lord, and hear him say to you personally,
I know what you are going through
Do not fear what lies ahead in this world
Be faithful to the end
And I will be there to give you the Crown that is life itself.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says.