All things are appropriate. And as Christ writes and delivers a message to the Church of Smyrna, he wants them to know one thing, because all around them was suffering and death. He wants them to know this, that he is the first and the last. He was dead and is alive, eternal life, eternal life. There were those. Smyrna was another very wicked, pagan city. And there were those who deprived and spoiled the Christians of their belongings either through legal means or whether it be through thievery or whether it been through taxation. They were in poverty. Physically they were in poverty. Spiritually they were rich.
1. Power of God
“These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again” (2:8)
That statement stresses the powerful sovereignty of the Lord Jesus. He is sovereign. He is in control. And He’s also in control of eternity, specifically, what happens after this world, what happens after death. Jesus is identified as the One “Who was dead, and came to life.”
2. Peace of the Lord
When you go through hard times, the Lord Jesus Christ offers His peace. He sees us in our trials. He knows what we are going through. And there are three kinds of trials these Smyrna Christians were going through. They are identified as suffering from ‘tribulation, poverty and blasphemy’.
Jesus says I know your works—tribulation, and poverty, and then He says, “I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.” I know the blasphemy you are enduring. The “blasphemy” He’s talking about are the slanderous words that some of the Jews in Smyrna were saying about them. These Jews in Smyrna did not share the church’s Christian beliefs and they were blaspheming God by spreading slanderous things about the Christians.
“Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days.” (2:10)
Jesus says, “Do not fear.” That is, be encouraged, be strengthened in the midst of your afflictions. Stop being afraid. Don’t worry. He strengthens us in our trials. Remember, He is in control. He sees what is happening. You will be thrown into prison and have tribulation for a period of ten days. The 10 days is probably a way of indicating that the time period of this church’s terrible persecution will be brief.
3. Remember the Promise
“Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor’s crown.” (2:10)
He says, “You be faithful until death,” that is, “stick with it” and I will reward your suffering in the end. I will give you the crown of life.” The crown of life is a symbol of the Christian’s rewards in the afterlife for his faithfulness in this life.
He also gives another promise. "The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death" (2:11). If we die before the Lord Jesus Christ comes again, we all will face the first death. Every one of us will face the first death. But not every one of us will face the second death. Those of us who have trusted Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour will only die once, because we’ve been born twice.
There are no promises of the “easy life” in Scripture. Becoming a Christian is no guarantee that we will never suffer persecution, hard times, and difficulties. Leaonard Ravenhill said, “When God opens the windows of heaven to bless you, the devil will open the doors of hell to blast you.” Whatever the devil does, our Lord is with us. Remember the Power of our Lord, the Peace of our Lord, and the Promise of our Lord. Do you want your church to be Smyrna? Of Course, we want to be rich in Christ’s eyes, Right?! We need to be faithful even in persecution!
God Bless!
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