The church at Sardis. When I read Jesus’ words to this church, my skin crawls. You have a reputation of being alive, but you are DEAD. Lord, have mercy! What a frightening indictment. It makes me wonder how many churches today have a reputation for being alive, but are DEAD. Help us, Jesus!
Let’s listen to Jesus’ words with a discerning ear, friends.
Revelation 3: 1-6 (NIV)
1 “To the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God.
3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.
5 He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.
6 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
What we Know About the Church
- The church at Sardis was probably founded as a ‘church plant’ of Paul’s ministry
- History tells us that Melito, who was a Christian apologist, was one of the bishops of the church at Sardis in the late 2nd century. He also wrote the earliest known commentary on Revelation.
- This church has a reputation of being alive, but is really dead. There are several theories concerning what John might have meant:
- Was the church in decline due to a failure in evangelism?
- Was the church successful in number but not in spirit, and nothing was happening spiritually in the church?
- Had the church died theologically and embraced heretical beliefs?
- Commentator John MacArthur says this was a ‘church dominated by sin, unbelief, and false doctrine.’ P. 108
Sardis – The City
- The city of Sardis is modern day Bozdag in Turkey, near Izmir
- Founded about 1200 BC
- Aesop (Aesop’s Fables) may have been from Sardis
- Sardis was 50 miles east of Ephesus, and 30 miles south of Thyatira at the junction of 5 main roads
- Main religion was the worship of Diana/Artemis, much like Ephesus
- The citadel sat on a ridge on Mount Tmolus which towered about 1500 feet. The city itself, was located in the valley below. Sardis was considered to be impenetrable for opposing armies. This will be imp0rtant to remember as we study Sardis.
- A large gymnasium with an accompanying Jewish synagogue has been excavated, telling us that there was a significant population of Jewish people in Sardis.
- Sardis could possibly be the place of Jewish exile named Sepharad in Obadiah 20.
- Gold was discovered in the nearby Pactolus River which contributed to the great wealth of Sardis. This gave rise to the mythical story of Midas.
- Sardis was also known for its manufacturer of woolen garments
- Croesus was the most important king of Sardis. It was under his reign that the city fell to Cyrus.
- The city was captured a second time by Antiochus III in 214 BC.
- Devastating earthquake hit Sardis in AD 17, but the city was rebuilt with money from the emperor
Jesus’ Greeting to the Church
- “The One who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.”
- The seven spirits is understood as the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 11: 2 and Zechariah 4: 1-10), who gives life. That is what the Sardian church needed.
- The seven stars are the pastors of the seven churches. Jesus is reminding those pastors that they are controlled by Jesus.
- Jesus is asserting that He is in relationship with the Holy Spirit and with the church.
- Christ introduces Himself as ‘the One who sovereignly works in His church through the Holy Spirit and godly leaders.’ ‘ Devoid of the Spirit, the church at Sardis was dead, populated by the unredeemed.’ (MacArthur p. 109)
- It certainly seems that Christ is holding the pastors of the church responsible for the deadness of the church
Next week we will examine Jesus’ commendations and rebukes of this church. In spite of the deadness, there is hope. There is always hope in Jesus Christ.
