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 MESSAGE TO THE CHURCH AT SARDIS

Revelation 3:1 Amplified Bible

“To the angel (divine messenger) of the church in [a]Sardis write:

“These are the words of Him who has [b]the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars: ‘I know your deeds; you have a name (reputation) that you are alive, but [in reality] you are dead.

Jesus describes Himself as having the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars. We know from Revelation 2:1 that the seven stars of the messengers to the seven churches. The seven Spirits is a little more confusing. We know Father, Son, and Spirit as the persons of the Triune God. So three makes sense. We know that God’s nature is beyond our understanding, so if we are talking about His character, then that number would be much, much larger. We know that in scripture, the number seven represents completeness, perfection and wholeness. We always need to look at scripture in context of all of scripture, scripture interpreting scripture. Some theologians believe that Isaiah 11:2 explains what Jesus says in Revelation 3:1.

Isaiah 11:2 Amplified Bible

And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him—

The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The Spirit of counsel and strength,

The Spirit of knowledge and of the [reverential and obedient] fear of the Lord—

 

They would say that the seven Spirits are His Lordship, His Wisdom, His Understanding, His Counsel, His Power, His Knowledge, and the Fear of the Lord. (The Seven Spirits of God - Central Baptist Theological Seminary )

Other theologians believe the seven Spirits are the Spirit of Truth, the Spirit of Holiness, the Spirit of Faith, the Spirit of Wisdom, the Spirit of Power, the Spirit of Grace, and the Spirit of Glory. (seven Spirits of God | The Institute for Creation Research )

I think we can agree that the seven Spirits affirm the completeness of God’s character, that His character is beyond comparison. In contrast Jesus tells the church that their faith, commitment and deeds are incomplete. 

Revelation 3:2 Amplified Bible

2 Wake up, and strengthen and reaffirm what remains [of your faithful commitment to Me], which is about to die; for I have not found [any of] your deeds completed in the sight of My God or meeting His requirements.

I can imagine how hard those words would affect anyone. Jesus tells them a hard truth: their faith is about to die because their deeds are not complete in His sight. However, true to his character, He asked them to wake up, strengthen and reaffirm their faith and their commitment to Him. We have a picture hanging on our living room wall that was painted by a deacon of one of the churches that my husband pastored while he was in seminary. (Jim Hardin) It shows an abandoned church building filled with hay. That picture had significance to my husband because he drove past that hay filled church every day when he was in college, and often mentioned how sad it was for a church to be used as a barn instead of a place of worship. The interesting part that aligns with the words Jesus spoke to the church at Sardis is that lightning struck that church building and it burned to the ground. To apply this to us as individuals and as churches, are we actively growing in a vibrant faith and serving God will power as we worship and minister, or are we dry and dead like the hay in that abandoned church building? 

Revelation 3:3 Amplified Bible

3 So remember and take to heart the lessons you have received and heard. Keep and obey them, and repent [change your sinful way of thinking, and demonstrate your repentance with new behavior that proves a conscious decision to turn away from sin]. So then, if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. 

Jesus asked them, and He asks us,  repent. Look at the steps in that process. Remember what you already know. We have heard the message of redemption, the commitment to Jesus as Lord and Savior. We know what we should do. We have head knowledge. Take to heart the lessons we heard. That’s commitment, yielding to God’s work in our lives, dying to self and allowing His Spirit to live unfettered in us. Keep and obey what we already know to be true, not obedience in our own strength. That’s legalism and a works based salvation. We can do nothing to earn our salvation, but out of reverence for the gift Jesus gave us, we submit to His Spirit and allow Him to guide our actions and decisions. Demonstrate your repentance. True repentance results in the miraculous work of God changing our hearts. The change in our heart brings about different behavior that is in line with God’s precepts. Without that true repentance, Jesus will come like a thief in the night, or like a random lightning strike that takes away the illustration of a dead church filled with hay.

Revelation 3:4 Amplified Bible

 4 But you [still] have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes [that is, contaminated their character and personal integrity with sin]; and they will walk with Me [dressed] in white, because they are worthy (righteous).

The good news is that even in dead churches, there are still a few people who have a true and genuine, growing relationship with God. This was true in Sardis. Walking daily with Him results in His Righteousness being reflected in us.

Revelation 3:5-6 Amplified Bible

5 He who overcomes [the world through believing that Jesus is the Son of God] will accordingly be dressed in white clothing; and I will never blot out his name from the Book of Life, and I will confess and openly acknowledge his name before My Father and before His angels [saying that he is one of Mine]. 6 He who has an ear, let him hear and heed what the Spirit says to the churches.’

The only way to overcome, to have white clothing, symbolizing that we belong to Jesus, to have Him claim His as His own, is to believe that Jesus is the Son of God who died for our sin so that we can be saved, to acknowledge Him as Savior and Lord. We need to listen to what He tells us and act accordingly.