WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:07.339 Well, good morning to you all. It's a real pleasure to be here at Brunsfield Evangelical 00:00:07.339 --> 00:00:12.460 Church this Sunday morning and to worship with you. And I'm very grateful for the invitation 00:00:12.460 --> 00:00:20.580 to preach as we take on the next three verses in the wonderful and sometimes difficult book 00:00:20.580 --> 00:00:26.539 of Revelation. And we're looking at the second of the seven letters that we're working through, 00:00:26.539 --> 00:00:35.420 a letter to this young, hard-pressed church in the city of Smyrna, a city that would now fall under 00:00:35.420 --> 00:00:42.039 the boundaries of modern-day Turkey. So I'd invite you to open a Bible as we look at Revelation 00:00:42.039 --> 00:00:45.739 chapter 2, verses 8 to 11. 00:00:45.740 --> 00:00:58.560 To the angel of the church in Smyrna write, 00:00:59.120 --> 00:01:07.439 These are the words of him who is the first and the last, who died and came to life again. 00:01:07.439 --> 00:01:18.259 I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich. I know about the slander of those who 00:01:18.259 --> 00:01:28.200 say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid of what you're about to 00:01:28.200 --> 00:01:36.539 suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer 00:01:36.540 --> 00:01:45.120 persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life 00:01:45.120 --> 00:01:53.360 as your victor's crown. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 00:01:54.500 --> 00:01:59.940 The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death. 00:01:59.939 --> 00:02:05.379 Let me just invite you to join me as we pray together. 00:02:10.659 --> 00:02:12.819 Our gracious Heavenly Father, 00:02:14.259 --> 00:02:20.680 when we're honest, we have to confess that sometimes we struggle to understand 00:02:20.680 --> 00:02:26.300 what you're saying. And sometimes we can be slow to place our trust in you. 00:02:26.300 --> 00:02:31.880 And sometimes even when we understand, we're reluctant to respond. 00:02:34.100 --> 00:02:37.040 As we gather here this morning, we thank you for your word, 00:02:38.160 --> 00:02:41.760 trusting in faith that the Bible speaks to us today, 00:02:42.760 --> 00:02:45.960 and acknowledging that we need your help 00:02:45.960 --> 00:02:49.660 if we are to hear it and respond rightly to it. 00:02:49.659 --> 00:02:58.039 So by your word and your spirit, speak, and help us to love you more, to know you better, 00:02:58.840 --> 00:03:04.039 and to respond again to the wonderful command and promise of the gospel. 00:03:05.180 --> 00:03:08.900 In the name of your Son, Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen. 00:03:08.900 --> 00:03:16.719 Until very recently, until May of this year, I was a student here in Edinburgh. 00:03:16.860 --> 00:03:19.640 I was studying theology, and one of my classmates, 00:03:19.900 --> 00:03:23.099 I'm going to change his name for reasons that might soon become obvious, 00:03:23.240 --> 00:03:24.120 let's call him Stephen. 00:03:24.540 --> 00:03:27.420 One of my classmates made the brave and unusual decision 00:03:27.420 --> 00:03:29.819 to invite me and my wife round for dinner. 00:03:30.500 --> 00:03:33.080 Now, I rarely say no to a dinner invite, 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:37.640 and at the set time, my wife and I turned up at Stephen's flat. 00:03:37.639 --> 00:03:42.139 And at this point, I should point out that neither Stephen nor his wife are from Scotland. 00:03:42.799 --> 00:03:45.819 They are international students who had travelled to Edinburgh 00:03:45.819 --> 00:03:49.619 to spend time studying here, and they were from China. 00:03:50.459 --> 00:03:53.599 And as we stood on the doorstep, and as I was talking to my wife, 00:03:53.619 --> 00:03:56.859 I was already anticipating some cultural differences. 00:03:57.859 --> 00:04:01.019 For one, this may surprise you, I don't speak Mandarin. 00:04:01.739 --> 00:04:03.719 To my consternation, neither did my wife, 00:04:03.719 --> 00:04:08.159 and I knew that Stephen's wife, at the very least, did not speak English. 00:04:08.979 --> 00:04:13.099 And as we walked in the door, we were invited to exchange our shoes for slippers, 00:04:13.460 --> 00:04:17.879 and I was very quickly given a fresh opportunity to embarrass myself with chopsticks. 00:04:18.579 --> 00:04:20.240 And it was a really good evening. 00:04:20.360 --> 00:04:24.660 We laughed, we talked, and we realized that Stephen, like me, 00:04:25.079 --> 00:04:29.439 similar age, Christian, training for full-time Christian work, 00:04:29.439 --> 00:04:32.560 lots in common, loves family, loves food. 00:04:33.180 --> 00:04:36.680 And you could see, in a sense, that our lives were on parallel tracks. 00:04:37.660 --> 00:04:41.560 But then we started talking beyond our studies, what was coming next, 00:04:41.620 --> 00:04:45.860 and then things suddenly peeled off in very different directions. 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:48.459 For me, it seemed quite straightforward. 00:04:48.680 --> 00:04:50.600 I had to do certain placements. 00:04:50.819 --> 00:04:52.459 I had to gain certain experience, 00:04:52.459 --> 00:04:55.799 and then one day hoped to serve in a useful way in a church, 00:04:56.479 --> 00:05:00.339 hopefully somewhere that me and my wife were quite content and happy to live. 00:05:01.239 --> 00:05:04.879 But for him, the picture was completely different. 00:05:06.240 --> 00:05:08.959 Stephen would be returning to a church in his home country, 00:05:09.819 --> 00:05:11.159 a church that wasn't permitted, 00:05:11.819 --> 00:05:14.099 that was not approved of by the state. 00:05:15.060 --> 00:05:16.000 And even as he studied, 00:05:16.099 --> 00:05:19.639 there was a perennial threat that his visa might be taken away from him, 00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:21.979 or that he might have his passport removed, 00:05:22.079 --> 00:05:25.039 or that the mechanisms of citizenship and immigration 00:05:25.039 --> 00:05:30.319 might be manipulated to separate him from his wife and his young baby daughter. 00:05:31.539 --> 00:05:33.219 The church that he'd grown up in, 00:05:33.300 --> 00:05:35.019 and the church he was likely to serve, 00:05:35.360 --> 00:05:37.360 often had to meet at strange hours in the day. 00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:40.319 They had to split into smaller groups and meet at homes. 00:05:40.319 --> 00:05:45.279 Day and night, he had to publish and circulate Christian books in secret. 00:05:48.180 --> 00:05:49.439 Plenty of common round. 00:05:49.639 --> 00:05:52.000 But a radically different outlook. 00:05:52.079 --> 00:05:54.279 And I left his flat feeling really full. 00:05:54.740 --> 00:05:55.800 I had no idea what I'd eaten. 00:05:56.360 --> 00:05:58.339 But I also felt greatly humbled. 00:05:58.939 --> 00:05:59.899 Because here was a friend, 00:06:00.019 --> 00:06:01.680 someone who was following the same Lord, 00:06:02.300 --> 00:06:04.199 someone who was preaching the same words. 00:06:05.139 --> 00:06:08.879 And yet, our expectations of what the Christian life was going to look like 00:06:08.879 --> 00:06:10.379 were pulls apart. 00:06:11.680 --> 00:06:12.839 And at first glance, 00:06:13.099 --> 00:06:15.959 as we think of those three verses that were read aloud, 00:06:15.959 --> 00:06:22.039 we can see how perhaps the words speak more directly to Stephen's situation than to mine. 00:06:22.680 --> 00:06:27.039 Or we might imagine that they say more to the church in, say, Pakistan or Syria, 00:06:27.599 --> 00:06:28.579 or perhaps in Turkey, 00:06:28.939 --> 00:06:31.500 than it does in Brunsfield. 00:06:31.500 --> 00:06:34.420 But by the grace of God, 00:06:35.079 --> 00:06:38.240 these words from Jesus to this suffering church in Smyrna 00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:41.300 do have something to say to us. 00:06:41.839 --> 00:06:44.079 And it says something loud and clear 00:06:44.079 --> 00:06:45.939 to each one of us 00:06:45.939 --> 00:06:47.259 who follows Jesus 00:06:47.259 --> 00:06:49.240 and calls him Lord. 00:06:51.040 --> 00:06:52.139 Now, before we get into that, 00:06:52.199 --> 00:06:53.819 I'm conscious that lots of people 00:06:53.819 --> 00:06:55.240 have been coming and going from holidays. 00:06:55.439 --> 00:06:56.540 There might be visitors here, 00:06:56.540 --> 00:06:59.819 and this is there being thrown straight into this series. 00:06:59.900 --> 00:07:02.100 So let me set the scene as we find it 00:07:02.100 --> 00:07:04.120 in the book of Revelation. 00:07:05.620 --> 00:07:08.360 This is the second, as I've said, of seven letters. 00:07:09.260 --> 00:07:12.000 And these letters are being written down, 00:07:12.140 --> 00:07:13.300 recorded by John. 00:07:14.000 --> 00:07:15.780 And John is looking 00:07:15.780 --> 00:07:17.960 from this rocky little island 00:07:17.960 --> 00:07:19.439 of Patmos to the mainland. 00:07:19.720 --> 00:07:20.700 And in a great vision, 00:07:20.780 --> 00:07:21.820 he sees the church 00:07:21.820 --> 00:07:23.820 in all its diversity 00:07:23.820 --> 00:07:25.800 and yet its unity in Christ. 00:07:25.800 --> 00:07:27.900 in the whole sweep of history. 00:07:28.340 --> 00:07:30.000 And he looks out on this great vision 00:07:30.000 --> 00:07:33.379 and he is confronted by a vision, 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:35.199 a vision we read of in chapter one 00:07:35.199 --> 00:07:36.720 of seven lampstands. 00:07:36.740 --> 00:07:38.780 And it's explained that these seven lampstands 00:07:38.780 --> 00:07:39.720 are seven churches. 00:07:40.220 --> 00:07:42.639 And there amid the lampstands, 00:07:43.439 --> 00:07:44.500 we find Jesus. 00:07:45.960 --> 00:07:48.340 And just as Jesus promised his disciples 00:07:48.340 --> 00:07:50.139 in that great verse in the Great Commission, 00:07:50.300 --> 00:07:52.120 surely I will be with you always 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:55.639 to the very end of the age. 00:07:55.639 --> 00:07:56.740 Jesus is there. 00:07:56.899 --> 00:07:59.180 He is present among the churches, 00:07:59.180 --> 00:08:02.060 walking among the lampstands. 00:08:02.439 --> 00:08:04.079 And he is tending to them. 00:08:04.159 --> 00:08:06.079 He is speaking to them. 00:08:06.180 --> 00:08:07.159 He is warning them, 00:08:07.539 --> 00:08:08.279 encouraging them, 00:08:08.419 --> 00:08:08.979 teaching them. 00:08:09.860 --> 00:08:11.079 He has rebukes for them, 00:08:11.219 --> 00:08:11.959 harsh words. 00:08:13.719 --> 00:08:15.740 And when we look around the church 00:08:15.740 --> 00:08:17.379 as we find it in Edinburgh 00:08:17.379 --> 00:08:18.300 and in Scotland, 00:08:18.300 --> 00:08:20.360 which is so often declining, 00:08:21.160 --> 00:08:21.900 so often discouraged, 00:08:21.900 --> 00:08:23.900 so often irrelevant, 00:08:25.900 --> 00:08:28.139 we need very little persuasion 00:08:28.139 --> 00:08:30.420 that we need to take seriously 00:08:30.420 --> 00:08:32.519 what Jesus has to say 00:08:32.519 --> 00:08:34.800 as he walks among the churches. 00:08:35.379 --> 00:08:38.340 And Jesus knows the churches intimately. 00:08:38.340 --> 00:08:40.740 If we imagine a tennis coach 00:08:40.740 --> 00:08:41.639 watching Andy Murray, 00:08:41.740 --> 00:08:43.379 he's not just interested in the scoreline, 00:08:43.460 --> 00:08:45.360 he's watching the angle of his elbow. 00:08:45.460 --> 00:08:47.460 He's watching the way he moves his feet, 00:08:47.540 --> 00:08:50.440 every last serve, volley, chip, serve, 00:08:50.440 --> 00:08:52.680 just to make these minute adjustments. 00:08:52.940 --> 00:08:55.399 And Jesus knows these churches 00:08:55.399 --> 00:08:56.879 as he walks among them. 00:08:57.259 --> 00:08:59.019 He knows every facet of their lives. 00:08:59.100 --> 00:08:59.940 He knows their faith, 00:09:00.160 --> 00:09:00.800 their doubts, 00:09:00.940 --> 00:09:01.440 their joys, 00:09:01.540 --> 00:09:02.080 their pain, 00:09:02.379 --> 00:09:04.100 every small detail 00:09:04.100 --> 00:09:05.659 of their circumstance, 00:09:06.620 --> 00:09:08.120 the opportunities they face, 00:09:08.560 --> 00:09:09.940 and also the opposition. 00:09:13.659 --> 00:09:15.879 And Christ speaks to these churches 00:09:15.879 --> 00:09:17.120 that he knows so well 00:09:17.120 --> 00:09:19.800 with penetrating insights. 00:09:20.379 --> 00:09:22.080 There are no platitudes here. 00:09:23.100 --> 00:09:24.120 We see in practice 00:09:24.120 --> 00:09:26.220 what the writer to the Hebrews describes 00:09:26.220 --> 00:09:28.120 in that famous verse in chapter four. 00:09:28.840 --> 00:09:31.620 The word of God is living and active, 00:09:31.620 --> 00:09:34.600 sharper than any double-edged sword, 00:09:35.279 --> 00:09:37.639 penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, 00:09:37.799 --> 00:09:38.940 joints and marrow. 00:09:39.620 --> 00:09:41.080 It judges the thoughts 00:09:41.080 --> 00:09:43.759 and attitudes of the heart. 00:09:43.759 --> 00:09:45.679 And so Christ speaks pointedly 00:09:45.679 --> 00:09:48.000 with purpose and power 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:49.600 to the seven churches, 00:09:49.740 --> 00:09:51.919 and he speaks to us today. 00:09:52.700 --> 00:09:55.600 Last week, we looked at the church in Ephesus, 00:09:55.720 --> 00:09:56.500 and we found a church 00:09:56.500 --> 00:09:58.480 that had so much going for it, 00:09:59.180 --> 00:10:00.519 so many plus points, 00:10:00.519 --> 00:10:01.840 praiseworthy deeds, 00:10:01.960 --> 00:10:03.019 hard work, 00:10:03.659 --> 00:10:04.120 sweat, 00:10:04.699 --> 00:10:05.279 perseverance, 00:10:05.860 --> 00:10:06.539 sound teaching, 00:10:06.840 --> 00:10:07.159 but 00:10:07.159 --> 00:10:09.899 in the final analysis, 00:10:11.039 --> 00:10:12.620 for all its activity and endeavor, 00:10:13.220 --> 00:10:14.100 it had forgotten 00:10:14.100 --> 00:10:15.899 its first love. 00:10:16.939 --> 00:10:18.360 And if that letter emphasized 00:10:18.360 --> 00:10:19.279 that love 00:10:19.279 --> 00:10:20.639 is a key mark 00:10:20.639 --> 00:10:21.899 of the Christian church, 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:23.779 the letter to Smyrna 00:10:23.779 --> 00:10:25.620 focuses on something else, 00:10:26.100 --> 00:10:27.360 a second key mark, 00:10:28.460 --> 00:10:28.819 suffering. 00:10:28.820 --> 00:10:30.820 And this leap 00:10:30.820 --> 00:10:32.280 from love to suffering 00:10:32.280 --> 00:10:33.620 might jar us at first, 00:10:33.720 --> 00:10:34.780 but when we think about it, 00:10:35.360 --> 00:10:36.440 we can see how the two 00:10:36.440 --> 00:10:38.280 are immediately intertwined. 00:10:38.360 --> 00:10:40.140 We think of a parent's 00:10:40.140 --> 00:10:41.140 sacrificial love 00:10:41.140 --> 00:10:41.879 for their child. 00:10:42.600 --> 00:10:44.140 We think of the patriot 00:10:44.140 --> 00:10:44.780 who will, 00:10:45.360 --> 00:10:46.280 at great cost, 00:10:46.379 --> 00:10:47.340 fight for their country. 00:10:48.040 --> 00:10:49.120 Or the sports fan, 00:10:49.200 --> 00:10:50.879 especially the Scotland sports fan, 00:10:51.480 --> 00:10:52.280 who knows nothing 00:10:52.280 --> 00:10:53.800 but hurt and disappointment 00:10:53.800 --> 00:10:55.580 in their love and pride 00:10:55.580 --> 00:10:56.340 for their country. 00:10:56.340 --> 00:10:58.840 Or again, 00:10:59.200 --> 00:11:00.700 the married couple 00:11:00.700 --> 00:11:01.700 who, 00:11:01.840 --> 00:11:03.180 with great forbearance 00:11:03.180 --> 00:11:04.540 and love and care, 00:11:05.139 --> 00:11:06.580 think back to their wedding vows 00:11:06.580 --> 00:11:07.200 for richer, 00:11:07.620 --> 00:11:08.300 for poorer, 00:11:08.600 --> 00:11:10.280 in sickness and in health, 00:11:10.840 --> 00:11:12.060 unto death us do part. 00:11:12.139 --> 00:11:12.800 And they mean it. 00:11:13.240 --> 00:11:13.800 And they mean it 00:11:13.800 --> 00:11:14.800 when the money runs out. 00:11:14.879 --> 00:11:15.560 And they mean it 00:11:15.560 --> 00:11:16.500 when one of them 00:11:16.500 --> 00:11:18.780 falls desperately ill. 00:11:18.779 --> 00:11:21.139 And despite what 00:11:21.139 --> 00:11:22.120 our popular culture 00:11:22.120 --> 00:11:22.959 might suggest, 00:11:23.659 --> 00:11:24.740 you're actually more likely 00:11:24.740 --> 00:11:25.879 to find real love 00:11:25.879 --> 00:11:27.740 by a hospital bed 00:11:27.740 --> 00:11:29.399 or at a graveside 00:11:29.399 --> 00:11:30.000 than you are 00:11:30.000 --> 00:11:31.459 in a fancy restaurant 00:11:31.459 --> 00:11:32.659 at a candlelit table 00:11:32.659 --> 00:11:33.759 for two. 00:11:35.159 --> 00:11:35.879 Real love 00:11:35.879 --> 00:11:36.819 is not cheap. 00:11:37.360 --> 00:11:38.139 It's costly. 00:11:38.639 --> 00:11:39.519 And it's prepared 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:40.079 to suffer. 00:11:41.259 --> 00:11:42.120 And we see 00:11:42.120 --> 00:11:43.339 this kind 00:11:43.339 --> 00:11:44.720 of suffering love 00:11:44.720 --> 00:11:45.659 right through 00:11:45.659 --> 00:11:46.199 the history 00:11:46.199 --> 00:11:46.980 of the church. 00:11:46.980 --> 00:11:48.820 There is the Christian's 00:11:48.820 --> 00:11:50.159 love for their saviour, 00:11:50.759 --> 00:11:51.360 a commitment 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:52.440 that is confessed 00:11:52.440 --> 00:11:53.259 and lived out 00:11:53.259 --> 00:11:54.620 even under the threat 00:11:54.620 --> 00:11:56.220 of radical 00:11:56.220 --> 00:11:57.700 and brutal 00:11:57.700 --> 00:11:58.879 persecution. 00:12:00.879 --> 00:12:01.720 We prayed 00:12:01.720 --> 00:12:02.920 for some of these situations 00:12:02.920 --> 00:12:04.420 just a few moments ago. 00:12:05.220 --> 00:12:06.539 Situations we find today 00:12:06.539 --> 00:12:07.920 in our world. 00:12:08.580 --> 00:12:10.240 And here in Smyrna, 00:12:10.860 --> 00:12:11.379 in the letter 00:12:11.379 --> 00:12:11.879 we're looking at, 00:12:11.920 --> 00:12:12.720 we find a church 00:12:12.720 --> 00:12:13.379 who is under 00:12:13.379 --> 00:12:14.639 extreme pressure, 00:12:15.539 --> 00:12:16.740 beset with difficulties 00:12:16.740 --> 00:12:17.539 opposition 00:12:17.539 --> 00:12:18.960 and bleak, 00:12:19.320 --> 00:12:19.680 draining, 00:12:20.019 --> 00:12:20.480 exhausting 00:12:20.480 --> 00:12:21.480 poverty. 00:12:22.940 --> 00:12:23.740 And while the church 00:12:23.740 --> 00:12:24.440 was struggling, 00:12:25.159 --> 00:12:25.899 it found itself 00:12:25.899 --> 00:12:27.120 surrounded by a city 00:12:27.120 --> 00:12:28.100 that was thriving, 00:12:28.379 --> 00:12:28.940 bustling with 00:12:28.940 --> 00:12:29.919 commercial activity, 00:12:30.600 --> 00:12:30.980 great, 00:12:31.139 --> 00:12:31.820 impressive 00:12:31.820 --> 00:12:33.060 architecture, 00:12:34.240 --> 00:12:34.759 culture, 00:12:35.740 --> 00:12:36.299 prosperity, 00:12:36.560 --> 00:12:37.100 learning, 00:12:37.720 --> 00:12:38.360 and a great 00:12:38.360 --> 00:12:39.440 religious centre 00:12:39.440 --> 00:12:40.620 for pagan worship 00:12:40.620 --> 00:12:42.899 and for worshipping 00:12:42.899 --> 00:12:43.620 the name 00:12:43.620 --> 00:12:44.759 of the emperor. 00:12:44.759 --> 00:12:46.379 and we have 00:12:46.379 --> 00:12:47.700 the church 00:12:47.700 --> 00:12:48.460 moving in a totally 00:12:48.460 --> 00:12:49.259 different direction 00:12:49.259 --> 00:12:50.120 from the society. 00:12:50.279 --> 00:12:51.179 One is affluent 00:12:51.179 --> 00:12:52.159 and upwardly mobile. 00:12:52.819 --> 00:12:53.319 The other 00:12:53.319 --> 00:12:54.379 is small 00:12:54.379 --> 00:12:56.019 and squashed. 00:12:57.480 --> 00:12:58.059 And Christ 00:12:58.059 --> 00:12:59.679 is perfectly clear. 00:12:59.759 --> 00:13:00.439 He doesn't try 00:13:00.439 --> 00:13:01.240 and brush it 00:13:01.240 --> 00:13:01.939 under the carpet. 00:13:02.779 --> 00:13:03.899 He says in verse 9, 00:13:04.360 --> 00:13:05.019 I know 00:13:05.019 --> 00:13:06.960 your afflictions 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:09.259 and your poverty. 00:13:09.259 --> 00:13:10.759 they're being 00:13:10.759 --> 00:13:11.379 squeezed 00:13:11.379 --> 00:13:12.419 from all sides 00:13:12.419 --> 00:13:13.299 and it hurts. 00:13:13.639 --> 00:13:14.299 It really hurts 00:13:14.299 --> 00:13:14.860 and there are no 00:13:14.860 --> 00:13:16.519 hidden reserves, 00:13:16.659 --> 00:13:17.080 there are no 00:13:17.080 --> 00:13:18.500 obvious moment 00:13:18.500 --> 00:13:19.200 of respite, 00:13:19.299 --> 00:13:19.740 there is no 00:13:19.740 --> 00:13:20.960 material security 00:13:20.960 --> 00:13:21.600 for them, 00:13:21.679 --> 00:13:22.000 there is no 00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:23.179 cheap get out 00:13:23.179 --> 00:13:23.939 of jail card 00:13:23.939 --> 00:13:24.259 free. 00:13:24.259 --> 00:13:27.200 But then 00:13:27.200 --> 00:13:28.419 the picture 00:13:28.419 --> 00:13:29.179 is fleshed 00:13:29.179 --> 00:13:29.620 out a little 00:13:29.620 --> 00:13:30.399 in the second 00:13:30.399 --> 00:13:31.159 half of verse 9 00:13:31.159 --> 00:13:31.939 we read of one 00:13:31.939 --> 00:13:32.720 strand of the 00:13:32.720 --> 00:13:33.120 opposition, 00:13:33.259 --> 00:13:33.980 one source 00:13:33.980 --> 00:13:34.759 of these 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:35.419 difficulties. 00:13:36.919 --> 00:13:37.419 The Jews, 00:13:37.539 --> 00:13:37.980 a group who 00:13:37.980 --> 00:13:38.580 had sought 00:13:38.580 --> 00:13:39.539 it seems 00:13:39.539 --> 00:13:40.659 to discredit 00:13:40.659 --> 00:13:41.759 and disparage 00:13:41.759 --> 00:13:42.840 the Christians. 00:13:43.340 --> 00:13:43.899 And we read 00:13:43.899 --> 00:13:44.299 a phrase 00:13:44.299 --> 00:13:45.039 that may seem 00:13:45.039 --> 00:13:46.139 quite troublesome 00:13:46.139 --> 00:13:46.939 to us. 00:13:46.940 --> 00:13:48.820 I know 00:13:48.820 --> 00:13:49.420 the slander 00:13:49.420 --> 00:13:49.920 of those 00:13:49.920 --> 00:13:50.300 who say 00:13:50.300 --> 00:13:50.640 they are 00:13:50.640 --> 00:13:50.960 Jews 00:13:50.960 --> 00:13:51.280 and are 00:13:51.280 --> 00:13:51.700 not, 00:13:52.680 --> 00:13:53.060 but are 00:13:53.060 --> 00:13:53.620 a synagogue 00:13:53.620 --> 00:13:55.080 of Satan. 00:13:55.220 --> 00:13:55.780 Now this is 00:13:55.780 --> 00:13:56.880 strong language, 00:13:57.020 --> 00:13:57.620 perhaps an 00:13:57.620 --> 00:13:58.260 offence to 00:13:58.260 --> 00:13:58.760 our modern 00:13:58.760 --> 00:13:59.840 sensibilities. 00:14:00.000 --> 00:14:00.660 One suspects 00:14:00.660 --> 00:14:01.540 it would be 00:14:01.540 --> 00:14:02.000 immediately 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:02.760 censored 00:14:02.760 --> 00:14:04.300 in our age 00:14:04.300 --> 00:14:04.860 of political 00:14:04.860 --> 00:14:05.740 correctness. 00:14:06.720 --> 00:14:07.540 But it is 00:14:07.540 --> 00:14:08.260 careful that we 00:14:08.260 --> 00:14:09.480 are honest 00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:10.040 about what's 00:14:10.040 --> 00:14:10.520 being said 00:14:10.520 --> 00:14:10.960 here and we 00:14:10.960 --> 00:14:11.460 tease out 00:14:11.460 --> 00:14:12.120 exactly 00:14:12.120 --> 00:14:13.020 what is 00:14:13.020 --> 00:14:13.540 meant. 00:14:14.620 --> 00:14:15.040 We need 00:14:15.040 --> 00:14:15.460 to consider 00:14:15.460 --> 00:14:16.140 the background. 00:14:16.940 --> 00:14:17.820 Now the very 00:14:17.820 --> 00:14:18.780 first Christians 00:14:18.780 --> 00:14:19.320 were of course 00:14:19.320 --> 00:14:20.620 very Jewish. 00:14:20.860 --> 00:14:21.620 Jesus was a Jew, 00:14:21.780 --> 00:14:22.380 Paul was a Jew, 00:14:22.520 --> 00:14:23.160 Peter was a Jew, 00:14:23.520 --> 00:14:24.420 and they clung 00:14:24.420 --> 00:14:25.520 to the Jewish 00:14:25.520 --> 00:14:25.780 hope. 00:14:25.860 --> 00:14:26.500 They studied 00:14:26.500 --> 00:14:27.200 the ancient 00:14:27.200 --> 00:14:28.160 Jewish scriptures, 00:14:28.300 --> 00:14:29.040 our Old Testament. 00:14:29.220 --> 00:14:29.960 They worshipped 00:14:29.960 --> 00:14:31.060 Jesus Christ, 00:14:31.180 --> 00:14:31.700 seeing him 00:14:31.700 --> 00:14:32.720 as the fulfillment 00:14:32.720 --> 00:14:34.460 of the promises 00:14:34.460 --> 00:14:35.640 that had been 00:14:35.640 --> 00:14:35.920 offered. 00:14:36.080 --> 00:14:37.080 Many were 00:14:37.080 --> 00:14:37.540 Jewish 00:14:37.540 --> 00:14:38.520 converts. 00:14:40.820 --> 00:14:41.240 Yet nonetheless 00:14:41.240 --> 00:14:42.000 we see 00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:43.280 in many occasions, 00:14:43.280 --> 00:14:43.960 we see this right 00:14:43.960 --> 00:14:44.400 through the book 00:14:44.400 --> 00:14:45.000 of Acts, 00:14:45.740 --> 00:14:46.580 the early church, 00:14:46.580 --> 00:14:47.420 the first Christians 00:14:47.420 --> 00:14:48.360 found themselves 00:14:48.360 --> 00:14:50.500 coming into a 00:14:50.500 --> 00:14:51.960 clash with the 00:14:51.960 --> 00:14:53.600 established Jewish 00:14:53.600 --> 00:14:54.740 authorities and 00:14:54.740 --> 00:14:55.259 communities. 00:14:55.900 --> 00:14:56.639 And in a church 00:14:56.639 --> 00:14:57.500 like Smyrna, 00:14:58.100 --> 00:14:59.560 the fledgling church 00:14:59.560 --> 00:15:00.660 would contain a mix 00:15:00.660 --> 00:15:01.600 of Jews and 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:02.440 non-Jews. 00:15:02.960 --> 00:15:03.600 And then of course 00:15:03.600 --> 00:15:04.220 there'd be the Jewish 00:15:04.220 --> 00:15:05.360 community itself, 00:15:05.920 --> 00:15:07.100 well established, 00:15:07.379 --> 00:15:07.800 flourishing, 00:15:07.980 --> 00:15:08.940 considerable in size, 00:15:09.060 --> 00:15:10.120 quite influential 00:15:10.120 --> 00:15:11.620 in the city. 00:15:11.620 --> 00:15:14.100 but they did not 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:15.240 share the belief 00:15:15.240 --> 00:15:16.460 that Jesus 00:15:16.460 --> 00:15:17.440 was Lord. 00:15:17.820 --> 00:15:18.560 And they did not 00:15:18.560 --> 00:15:19.220 share the belief 00:15:19.220 --> 00:15:19.740 that Jesus 00:15:19.740 --> 00:15:21.000 was Messiah. 00:15:21.799 --> 00:15:22.759 And some of the Jews 00:15:22.759 --> 00:15:23.779 rejected this belief 00:15:23.779 --> 00:15:24.740 and they slandered 00:15:24.740 --> 00:15:25.779 those who would 00:15:25.779 --> 00:15:26.620 follow Jesus 00:15:26.620 --> 00:15:28.480 and call him 00:15:28.480 --> 00:15:28.960 and worship 00:15:28.960 --> 00:15:30.539 him as Lord. 00:15:31.220 --> 00:15:32.139 And so cracks 00:15:32.139 --> 00:15:33.240 began to appear 00:15:33.240 --> 00:15:33.919 in a community 00:15:33.919 --> 00:15:34.840 that once seemed 00:15:34.840 --> 00:15:35.840 to be more 00:15:35.840 --> 00:15:37.080 blended together. 00:15:38.080 --> 00:15:38.879 And the Christians, 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:39.539 they didn't see 00:15:39.539 --> 00:15:40.039 their faith, 00:15:40.039 --> 00:15:40.459 as I've said, 00:15:40.480 --> 00:15:40.939 they didn't see 00:15:40.939 --> 00:15:41.679 it as something new, 00:15:41.779 --> 00:15:42.399 as some novelty 00:15:42.399 --> 00:15:43.599 invented out of nowhere. 00:15:44.759 --> 00:15:45.919 But quite simply 00:15:45.919 --> 00:15:47.480 it was impossible 00:15:47.480 --> 00:15:49.139 within the Jewish 00:15:49.139 --> 00:15:50.199 Christian community 00:15:50.199 --> 00:15:51.980 to affirm on one hand 00:15:51.980 --> 00:15:53.339 that Jesus is Lord 00:15:53.339 --> 00:15:54.860 and on the other 00:15:54.860 --> 00:15:55.939 that he isn't. 00:15:57.139 --> 00:15:58.059 Therefore the question 00:15:58.059 --> 00:15:59.360 became who is 00:15:59.360 --> 00:16:00.559 a true Jew? 00:16:00.659 --> 00:16:01.539 Who is true 00:16:01.539 --> 00:16:02.599 to all these promises 00:16:02.599 --> 00:16:03.719 that were given 00:16:03.719 --> 00:16:04.360 in the scriptures 00:16:04.360 --> 00:16:05.199 in the Old Testament? 00:16:05.399 --> 00:16:05.899 Was it those 00:16:05.899 --> 00:16:07.079 who are worshipping 00:16:07.079 --> 00:16:07.459 Jesus? 00:16:08.279 --> 00:16:09.299 Or is it those 00:16:09.299 --> 00:16:10.439 who reject him 00:16:10.439 --> 00:16:12.019 as a dangerous 00:16:12.019 --> 00:16:13.019 novelty? 00:16:14.779 --> 00:16:15.620 It's a difficult 00:16:15.620 --> 00:16:16.199 question. 00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:18.159 One answer is given 00:16:18.159 --> 00:16:19.740 in a way by Paul 00:16:19.740 --> 00:16:21.519 in Romans chapter 2 00:16:21.519 --> 00:16:23.399 and where he says 00:16:23.399 --> 00:16:24.339 that a Jew, 00:16:25.539 --> 00:16:26.539 the one who is a Jew, 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:27.839 is that one who 00:16:27.839 --> 00:16:29.500 has the spirit 00:16:29.500 --> 00:16:30.599 at work in their heart, 00:16:30.679 --> 00:16:31.659 not merely someone 00:16:31.659 --> 00:16:33.159 who's got the external 00:16:33.159 --> 00:16:34.539 image and appearance 00:16:34.539 --> 00:16:35.679 of a Jew 00:16:35.679 --> 00:16:37.039 where it's on the outside. 00:16:37.039 --> 00:16:38.559 It's about the heart. 00:16:39.919 --> 00:16:41.179 And with this perspective 00:16:41.179 --> 00:16:42.819 we can understand 00:16:42.819 --> 00:16:43.639 Christ's verdict 00:16:43.639 --> 00:16:44.599 in this letter 00:16:44.599 --> 00:16:45.860 in these harsh words 00:16:45.860 --> 00:16:47.019 that the Jews 00:16:47.019 --> 00:16:47.639 in Swerna 00:16:47.639 --> 00:16:48.299 have become 00:16:48.299 --> 00:16:49.779 a synagogue 00:16:49.779 --> 00:16:51.219 of Satan. 00:16:51.219 --> 00:16:52.599 It's not a vague slur. 00:16:53.339 --> 00:16:54.319 It's not a racial 00:16:54.319 --> 00:16:55.099 hate crime. 00:16:55.480 --> 00:16:56.980 It's not mudslinging. 00:16:57.819 --> 00:16:58.339 The Satan, 00:16:58.719 --> 00:16:59.019 literally, 00:16:59.199 --> 00:17:00.019 the accuser. 00:17:00.860 --> 00:17:01.719 And this community 00:17:01.719 --> 00:17:02.579 have been launching 00:17:02.579 --> 00:17:03.459 accusations 00:17:03.459 --> 00:17:04.980 against the Christians, 00:17:04.980 --> 00:17:06.819 slandering them 00:17:06.819 --> 00:17:08.680 and distancing them 00:17:08.680 --> 00:17:09.700 from the synagogue. 00:17:10.799 --> 00:17:11.019 Now, 00:17:11.240 --> 00:17:12.120 for us, 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:13.180 in our own small ways, 00:17:13.240 --> 00:17:13.960 we perhaps know 00:17:13.960 --> 00:17:14.860 that experience 00:17:14.860 --> 00:17:15.920 of being excluded, 00:17:16.079 --> 00:17:16.740 of being pushed 00:17:16.740 --> 00:17:18.400 out of a group. 00:17:19.240 --> 00:17:20.099 To think with regret 00:17:20.099 --> 00:17:20.759 and sorrow, 00:17:21.299 --> 00:17:22.120 I actually used 00:17:22.120 --> 00:17:22.980 to fit in here, 00:17:23.579 --> 00:17:25.160 but now I'm not welcome. 00:17:25.599 --> 00:17:26.500 To be ostracized, 00:17:26.539 --> 00:17:27.660 no longer part of the club, 00:17:27.819 --> 00:17:28.299 the team, 00:17:28.819 --> 00:17:30.319 and in some sad situations, 00:17:30.319 --> 00:17:31.259 no longer part 00:17:31.259 --> 00:17:32.240 of the family. 00:17:32.360 --> 00:17:33.319 To have your bridges 00:17:33.319 --> 00:17:35.579 utterly burnt. 00:17:38.019 --> 00:17:39.039 But for the church 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:39.559 in Smyrna, 00:17:39.659 --> 00:17:40.339 there were immediate 00:17:40.339 --> 00:17:41.619 practical 00:17:41.619 --> 00:17:43.099 and particular 00:17:43.099 --> 00:17:43.960 consequences 00:17:43.960 --> 00:17:45.480 because the Jews 00:17:45.480 --> 00:17:46.399 were in an unusual 00:17:46.399 --> 00:17:47.240 position in that 00:17:47.240 --> 00:17:48.359 they had established 00:17:48.359 --> 00:17:49.679 certain privileges. 00:17:50.599 --> 00:17:51.980 They weren't expected 00:17:51.980 --> 00:17:52.740 to participate 00:17:52.740 --> 00:17:53.639 in the same way 00:17:53.639 --> 00:17:54.619 with all that was 00:17:54.619 --> 00:17:55.439 going on in the rest 00:17:55.439 --> 00:17:55.919 of the city, 00:17:56.039 --> 00:17:57.579 this worship 00:17:57.579 --> 00:17:58.579 that was focused 00:17:58.579 --> 00:17:59.419 on a man, 00:17:59.919 --> 00:18:01.559 focused on the emperor. 00:18:01.559 --> 00:18:03.579 And whereas initially, 00:18:03.759 --> 00:18:04.339 from the point of view 00:18:04.339 --> 00:18:05.119 of everyone else, 00:18:05.220 --> 00:18:05.980 the Christians were 00:18:05.980 --> 00:18:07.740 indistinguishable 00:18:07.740 --> 00:18:08.659 from the Jews 00:18:08.659 --> 00:18:09.299 and therefore had 00:18:09.299 --> 00:18:10.200 the same privileges, 00:18:10.419 --> 00:18:12.299 suddenly those privileges 00:18:12.299 --> 00:18:13.339 were stripped away. 00:18:14.679 --> 00:18:15.879 And the expectation 00:18:15.879 --> 00:18:17.379 came to the Christian, 00:18:18.379 --> 00:18:19.759 you should be participating 00:18:19.759 --> 00:18:21.799 like everyone else. 00:18:22.240 --> 00:18:23.299 Why can't you? 00:18:24.159 --> 00:18:25.139 And it was clear 00:18:25.139 --> 00:18:25.859 that the Christians 00:18:25.859 --> 00:18:26.720 were caught between 00:18:26.720 --> 00:18:28.460 a rock and a hard place, 00:18:28.940 --> 00:18:30.319 ostracized from the Jews 00:18:30.319 --> 00:18:31.379 who had thrown them out 00:18:31.379 --> 00:18:32.759 and ostracized 00:18:32.759 --> 00:18:33.720 from the society 00:18:33.720 --> 00:18:34.559 that wanted them 00:18:34.559 --> 00:18:36.619 to worship a man God. 00:18:38.299 --> 00:18:39.119 And so, 00:18:39.700 --> 00:18:41.000 in the midst of a city 00:18:41.000 --> 00:18:41.899 that is booming, 00:18:42.119 --> 00:18:42.859 that is prosperous, 00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:43.939 that is on the up, 00:18:44.779 --> 00:18:46.240 we have this dismal picture 00:18:46.240 --> 00:18:47.439 of a church 00:18:47.439 --> 00:18:48.379 that is poor 00:18:48.379 --> 00:18:49.659 and persecuted, 00:18:49.939 --> 00:18:50.619 suffering because 00:18:50.619 --> 00:18:51.980 they would not betray 00:18:51.980 --> 00:18:53.679 the Lord they love. 00:18:54.460 --> 00:18:55.480 So we have this rich 00:18:55.480 --> 00:18:56.339 and full picture 00:18:56.339 --> 00:18:57.179 of Smyrna, 00:18:57.279 --> 00:18:57.720 Smyrna, 00:18:57.939 --> 00:18:59.500 the suffering church, 00:18:59.500 --> 00:19:01.099 and for many Christians 00:19:01.099 --> 00:19:01.880 through history 00:19:01.880 --> 00:19:03.319 and around the world today, 00:19:03.440 --> 00:19:04.259 Smyrna's story 00:19:04.259 --> 00:19:05.839 is their story 00:19:05.839 --> 00:19:08.000 and it's a difficult story 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:09.019 and in some measure 00:19:09.019 --> 00:19:11.059 it may be 00:19:11.059 --> 00:19:12.019 or have been 00:19:12.019 --> 00:19:13.200 or perhaps will be 00:19:13.200 --> 00:19:13.859 in the future 00:19:13.859 --> 00:19:16.160 our experience as well. 00:19:17.720 --> 00:19:19.019 By the grace of God, 00:19:19.099 --> 00:19:19.880 I know in my experience 00:19:19.880 --> 00:19:21.140 I've been spared 00:19:21.140 --> 00:19:22.019 any threat 00:19:22.019 --> 00:19:23.779 of physical violence 00:19:23.779 --> 00:19:25.240 for my faith. 00:19:25.240 --> 00:19:27.700 but perhaps you have 00:19:27.700 --> 00:19:28.559 or you know 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:29.380 the bitter taste 00:19:29.380 --> 00:19:31.200 of an unjust insult 00:19:31.200 --> 00:19:32.839 or you've endured 00:19:32.839 --> 00:19:33.839 that snub 00:19:33.839 --> 00:19:34.480 or exclusion 00:19:34.480 --> 00:19:35.359 being overlooked 00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:36.940 or you find yourself 00:19:36.940 --> 00:19:37.799 or your church 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:38.599 or the Bible 00:19:38.599 --> 00:19:40.039 ridiculed, 00:19:40.799 --> 00:19:41.240 overlooked, 00:19:41.480 --> 00:19:42.519 caricatured, 00:19:42.859 --> 00:19:44.120 presented in a straw man 00:19:44.120 --> 00:19:45.000 argument 00:19:45.000 --> 00:19:46.920 or perhaps you've been 00:19:46.920 --> 00:19:47.960 the young student 00:19:47.960 --> 00:19:48.640 who goes to join 00:19:48.640 --> 00:19:49.819 the university rugby team 00:19:49.819 --> 00:19:50.160 and they're told 00:19:50.160 --> 00:19:51.339 they can only take part 00:19:51.339 --> 00:19:53.199 if they take part 00:19:53.199 --> 00:19:54.039 in some ritual 00:19:54.039 --> 00:19:55.079 that would utterly 00:19:55.079 --> 00:19:56.679 shame the name of Jesus 00:19:56.679 --> 00:19:59.199 and probably play havoc 00:19:59.199 --> 00:20:00.519 with their digestive system. 00:20:01.439 --> 00:20:02.759 But that's beside the point. 00:20:03.439 --> 00:20:04.339 Or the individual 00:20:04.339 --> 00:20:05.039 who stands 00:20:05.039 --> 00:20:05.759 and they're trying 00:20:05.759 --> 00:20:07.059 to have a serious conversation 00:20:07.059 --> 00:20:08.919 and they're told 00:20:08.919 --> 00:20:09.939 plainly to their faith 00:20:09.939 --> 00:20:10.619 that they've committed 00:20:10.619 --> 00:20:12.279 intellectual suicide, 00:20:12.859 --> 00:20:13.799 that their faith 00:20:13.799 --> 00:20:14.579 is a crutch, 00:20:15.839 --> 00:20:17.419 that they're intolerant 00:20:17.419 --> 00:20:18.019 or arrogant 00:20:18.019 --> 00:20:18.799 or manipulative 00:20:18.799 --> 00:20:19.699 or bigoted 00:20:19.700 --> 00:20:22.580 or simply naive. 00:20:24.140 --> 00:20:25.299 The slander comes 00:20:25.299 --> 00:20:27.220 and difficulties follow. 00:20:28.420 --> 00:20:29.640 And it is inevitable 00:20:29.640 --> 00:20:31.660 because the church, 00:20:32.259 --> 00:20:34.180 the church is in the world. 00:20:34.700 --> 00:20:35.620 It is rooted 00:20:35.620 --> 00:20:37.299 in the unfolding of history 00:20:37.299 --> 00:20:38.120 and in culture 00:20:38.120 --> 00:20:39.319 and all that's going on. 00:20:39.759 --> 00:20:41.000 But it is committed 00:20:41.000 --> 00:20:42.799 to the lordship 00:20:42.799 --> 00:20:44.019 of Jesus Christ. 00:20:44.160 --> 00:20:45.880 It has a firm allegiance. 00:20:47.860 --> 00:20:48.880 And to the world, 00:20:48.880 --> 00:20:49.880 this allegiance 00:20:49.880 --> 00:20:51.820 which is outside the world 00:20:51.820 --> 00:20:55.000 is a disturbing fact. 00:20:56.120 --> 00:20:57.300 And the church is therefore 00:20:57.300 --> 00:20:59.680 a problematic presence. 00:21:01.720 --> 00:21:03.480 And the world around us 00:21:03.480 --> 00:21:04.780 may perhaps only raise 00:21:04.780 --> 00:21:06.840 an eyebrow in derision 00:21:06.840 --> 00:21:08.260 at the Christian 00:21:08.260 --> 00:21:10.040 who calls Jesus their friend 00:21:10.040 --> 00:21:11.660 or their savior. 00:21:11.820 --> 00:21:12.580 But when the church 00:21:12.580 --> 00:21:13.460 takes a stand 00:21:13.460 --> 00:21:14.020 and says, 00:21:14.900 --> 00:21:16.480 Jesus is not just my friend. 00:21:16.480 --> 00:21:18.099 Jesus is lord 00:21:18.099 --> 00:21:20.079 and Jesus is king. 00:21:20.740 --> 00:21:21.420 And when the church 00:21:21.420 --> 00:21:22.360 proclaims that there is 00:21:22.360 --> 00:21:23.059 an authority 00:21:23.059 --> 00:21:25.099 in Jesus Christ 00:21:25.099 --> 00:21:26.980 that does not follow 00:21:26.980 --> 00:21:28.660 under the authority 00:21:28.660 --> 00:21:30.059 of me, myself, and I 00:21:30.059 --> 00:21:30.980 and my own preferences. 00:21:32.140 --> 00:21:33.339 That proclaims an authority 00:21:33.339 --> 00:21:34.500 that does not fall 00:21:34.500 --> 00:21:36.519 under the majority rule. 00:21:37.620 --> 00:21:38.900 That proclaims an authority 00:21:38.900 --> 00:21:40.579 that doesn't get swept aside 00:21:40.579 --> 00:21:41.099 by someone 00:21:41.099 --> 00:21:42.200 because they're wealthy 00:21:42.200 --> 00:21:43.539 or healthy 00:21:43.539 --> 00:21:44.399 or educated. 00:21:45.539 --> 00:21:46.279 An authority 00:21:46.279 --> 00:21:47.839 that does not fall 00:21:47.839 --> 00:21:48.379 under 00:21:48.379 --> 00:21:51.240 the all-consuming power 00:21:51.240 --> 00:21:52.940 of human reason 00:21:52.940 --> 00:21:54.960 as it often appears today. 00:21:55.960 --> 00:21:56.779 When the church 00:21:56.779 --> 00:21:57.920 proclaims that kind 00:21:57.920 --> 00:21:58.519 of authority, 00:21:59.019 --> 00:22:00.180 when it calls Jesus 00:22:00.180 --> 00:22:01.480 lord and king, 00:22:01.539 --> 00:22:02.440 it will be met 00:22:02.440 --> 00:22:04.000 not with a raised eyebrow 00:22:04.000 --> 00:22:06.019 but with a clenched fist. 00:22:06.019 --> 00:22:09.220 this is Smyrna's situation. 00:22:10.339 --> 00:22:11.099 This may be 00:22:11.099 --> 00:22:12.400 our situation. 00:22:13.460 --> 00:22:14.420 And we need to listen 00:22:14.420 --> 00:22:15.759 carefully to what Christ 00:22:15.759 --> 00:22:17.519 says to this suffering church. 00:22:18.720 --> 00:22:19.700 To begin with, 00:22:19.740 --> 00:22:20.940 he does not waste words 00:22:20.940 --> 00:22:23.259 explaining the suffering. 00:22:24.400 --> 00:22:26.139 Nor does he promise 00:22:26.139 --> 00:22:27.359 a quick removal 00:22:27.359 --> 00:22:28.819 of the suffering. 00:22:30.220 --> 00:22:31.420 Though he does hint 00:22:31.420 --> 00:22:32.660 that they may well be, 00:22:33.379 --> 00:22:34.359 in fact they will be, 00:22:34.359 --> 00:22:35.979 delivered through it, 00:22:36.659 --> 00:22:37.379 he says, 00:22:37.899 --> 00:22:38.859 do not be afraid. 00:22:40.000 --> 00:22:41.019 But even as he 00:22:41.019 --> 00:22:42.539 invites them 00:22:42.539 --> 00:22:43.579 to have courage 00:22:43.579 --> 00:22:44.639 and not to fear 00:22:44.639 --> 00:22:45.500 what is happening, 00:22:46.419 --> 00:22:48.039 he offers another warning. 00:22:49.099 --> 00:22:50.319 There is more suffering 00:22:50.319 --> 00:22:51.459 to come. 00:22:52.459 --> 00:22:53.419 In verse 10, 00:22:53.939 --> 00:22:55.599 we see what they are 00:22:55.599 --> 00:22:56.479 to expect. 00:22:57.299 --> 00:22:57.740 Prison. 00:22:58.779 --> 00:22:59.619 You may lose 00:22:59.619 --> 00:23:00.919 your freedom. 00:23:02.519 --> 00:23:03.199 Persecution. 00:23:03.200 --> 00:23:04.819 You may lose 00:23:04.819 --> 00:23:06.200 your security 00:23:06.200 --> 00:23:07.680 and peace. 00:23:09.019 --> 00:23:09.460 Death. 00:23:10.259 --> 00:23:11.100 You may even 00:23:11.100 --> 00:23:13.039 lose your life. 00:23:15.059 --> 00:23:15.940 What then are we 00:23:15.940 --> 00:23:16.720 to make of this 00:23:16.720 --> 00:23:17.299 marginalized 00:23:17.299 --> 00:23:19.559 and downtrodden church? 00:23:19.660 --> 00:23:20.120 How are they 00:23:20.120 --> 00:23:20.980 in their own minds, 00:23:21.039 --> 00:23:21.940 in their own faith, 00:23:22.420 --> 00:23:23.319 supposed to match up 00:23:23.319 --> 00:23:24.140 a God of love 00:23:24.140 --> 00:23:25.039 and grace 00:23:25.039 --> 00:23:26.900 with their present 00:23:26.900 --> 00:23:28.160 afflictions? 00:23:28.160 --> 00:23:31.040 I wonder if you've 00:23:31.040 --> 00:23:32.600 spent time 00:23:32.600 --> 00:23:33.000 reading through 00:23:33.000 --> 00:23:33.740 the Psalms. 00:23:34.220 --> 00:23:34.740 I wonder if you've 00:23:34.740 --> 00:23:35.779 read Psalm 73. 00:23:36.700 --> 00:23:37.400 It's a kind of 00:23:37.400 --> 00:23:38.360 wrestling psalm 00:23:38.360 --> 00:23:39.040 where the psalmist 00:23:39.040 --> 00:23:39.920 is taking hold 00:23:39.920 --> 00:23:40.320 of God 00:23:40.320 --> 00:23:41.820 and saying, 00:23:41.900 --> 00:23:42.820 what's going on here? 00:23:43.800 --> 00:23:44.560 You might want 00:23:44.560 --> 00:23:45.680 to turn to it now, 00:23:45.980 --> 00:23:46.820 Psalm 73. 00:23:48.320 --> 00:23:48.740 I'm just going 00:23:48.740 --> 00:23:49.300 to pick out 00:23:49.300 --> 00:23:50.300 a few phrases. 00:23:50.299 --> 00:23:54.500 It starts like this. 00:23:55.619 --> 00:23:56.079 Surely, 00:23:56.399 --> 00:23:57.960 God is good 00:23:57.960 --> 00:23:59.419 to Israel. 00:24:00.720 --> 00:24:01.079 Surely, 00:24:01.919 --> 00:24:02.859 there is an 00:24:02.859 --> 00:24:03.879 expectation. 00:24:05.299 --> 00:24:05.559 And yet, 00:24:05.680 --> 00:24:06.299 as the psalm 00:24:06.299 --> 00:24:06.980 unfolds, 00:24:06.980 --> 00:24:07.700 it is clear 00:24:07.700 --> 00:24:08.359 that this 00:24:08.359 --> 00:24:09.180 confession, 00:24:09.359 --> 00:24:10.200 this belief, 00:24:10.839 --> 00:24:11.240 is held 00:24:11.240 --> 00:24:12.879 despite circumstances, 00:24:13.559 --> 00:24:14.720 despite disappointment. 00:24:14.720 --> 00:24:17.779 Verses 2-4. 00:24:18.860 --> 00:24:19.559 As for me, 00:24:20.120 --> 00:24:20.799 my feet 00:24:20.799 --> 00:24:21.839 had almost slipped. 00:24:22.519 --> 00:24:23.200 I had nearly 00:24:23.200 --> 00:24:24.240 lost my foothold. 00:24:24.360 --> 00:24:25.600 I envied the arrogant 00:24:25.600 --> 00:24:26.839 when I saw 00:24:26.839 --> 00:24:27.640 the prosperity 00:24:27.640 --> 00:24:29.480 of the wicked. 00:24:30.559 --> 00:24:31.660 Upwardly mobile 00:24:31.660 --> 00:24:32.620 Smyrna. 00:24:32.740 --> 00:24:33.360 They have no 00:24:33.360 --> 00:24:33.920 struggles. 00:24:34.500 --> 00:24:35.079 Their bodies 00:24:35.079 --> 00:24:36.140 are healthy 00:24:36.140 --> 00:24:37.600 and strong. 00:24:38.940 --> 00:24:40.000 And we see 00:24:40.000 --> 00:24:40.839 this perspective 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:41.740 in the suffering 00:24:41.740 --> 00:24:42.279 church 00:24:42.279 --> 00:24:43.400 in an affluent 00:24:43.400 --> 00:24:43.779 world. 00:24:43.779 --> 00:24:44.899 There is the church 00:24:44.899 --> 00:24:46.059 feeling like 00:24:46.059 --> 00:24:46.599 the ground 00:24:46.599 --> 00:24:47.319 is being ripped 00:24:47.319 --> 00:24:48.059 from under them. 00:24:49.180 --> 00:24:49.779 And then there are 00:24:49.779 --> 00:24:50.480 others who seem 00:24:50.480 --> 00:24:51.220 so prosperous 00:24:51.220 --> 00:24:52.500 and happy. 00:24:52.579 --> 00:24:53.660 And then in verse 13, 00:24:54.299 --> 00:24:55.720 this grim question. 00:24:56.779 --> 00:24:57.039 Surely, 00:24:57.279 --> 00:24:57.819 in vain, 00:24:58.299 --> 00:24:58.879 I've kept 00:24:58.879 --> 00:24:59.839 my heart pure 00:24:59.839 --> 00:25:01.200 and have washed 00:25:01.200 --> 00:25:02.019 my hands 00:25:02.019 --> 00:25:03.180 in innocence. 00:25:05.359 --> 00:25:05.819 And perhaps 00:25:05.819 --> 00:25:06.819 this is the question 00:25:06.819 --> 00:25:07.519 for Smyrna. 00:25:07.639 --> 00:25:08.420 Is there poverty 00:25:08.420 --> 00:25:09.180 in vain? 00:25:09.519 --> 00:25:10.700 Is there faithfulness 00:25:10.700 --> 00:25:11.079 in the midst 00:25:11.079 --> 00:25:11.660 of suffering 00:25:11.660 --> 00:25:12.240 and afflictions? 00:25:12.240 --> 00:25:12.879 Is this all 00:25:12.880 --> 00:25:13.900 for nothing? 00:25:17.240 --> 00:25:18.440 You need to listen 00:25:18.440 --> 00:25:20.180 to what Christ 00:25:20.180 --> 00:25:20.760 is saying 00:25:20.760 --> 00:25:21.660 to the church. 00:25:22.240 --> 00:25:22.900 And the answer 00:25:22.900 --> 00:25:23.400 is surely 00:25:23.400 --> 00:25:23.880 no 00:25:23.880 --> 00:25:24.980 and no 00:25:24.980 --> 00:25:25.900 again. 00:25:27.200 --> 00:25:27.940 Because where 00:25:27.940 --> 00:25:28.880 the world sees 00:25:28.880 --> 00:25:29.420 and where we 00:25:29.420 --> 00:25:30.280 with worldly eyes 00:25:30.280 --> 00:25:31.060 see poverty 00:25:31.060 --> 00:25:32.180 and lack 00:25:32.180 --> 00:25:33.160 and disappointment, 00:25:34.780 --> 00:25:35.700 Christ sees 00:25:35.700 --> 00:25:36.900 great riches. 00:25:38.180 --> 00:25:38.880 For what Christ 00:25:38.880 --> 00:25:39.520 is measuring 00:25:39.520 --> 00:25:39.980 is not 00:25:39.980 --> 00:25:41.560 temporal prosperity 00:25:41.559 --> 00:25:42.539 or influence 00:25:42.539 --> 00:25:43.220 or position 00:25:43.220 --> 00:25:44.460 which is here 00:25:44.460 --> 00:25:45.440 today and gone 00:25:45.440 --> 00:25:45.960 tomorrow, 00:25:46.619 --> 00:25:47.519 the rise and fall 00:25:47.519 --> 00:25:48.659 and the rich and famous. 00:25:49.399 --> 00:25:50.039 He is looking 00:25:50.039 --> 00:25:51.259 at spiritual riches 00:25:51.259 --> 00:25:53.419 that do not perish, 00:25:53.559 --> 00:25:54.799 that will not spoil 00:25:54.799 --> 00:25:56.559 or fade away. 00:25:57.859 --> 00:25:58.299 And so we have 00:25:58.299 --> 00:25:59.119 a paradox 00:25:59.119 --> 00:26:01.379 that is at the heart 00:26:01.379 --> 00:26:02.539 of the Christian church 00:26:02.539 --> 00:26:04.319 wherever it is found 00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:06.679 that the true riches 00:26:06.679 --> 00:26:07.480 of the church 00:26:07.480 --> 00:26:08.879 are found 00:26:08.879 --> 00:26:09.799 in poverty. 00:26:10.879 --> 00:26:11.659 This is something 00:26:11.659 --> 00:26:12.419 Christ taught. 00:26:12.500 --> 00:26:13.700 We could read the Beatitudes 00:26:13.700 --> 00:26:14.919 in Luke 6. 00:26:15.059 --> 00:26:15.359 Blessed 00:26:15.359 --> 00:26:17.399 are the poor, 00:26:17.980 --> 00:26:18.899 the hungry, 00:26:19.740 --> 00:26:20.419 the mourning, 00:26:21.480 --> 00:26:22.299 the weeping 00:26:22.299 --> 00:26:23.419 and the excluded. 00:26:23.420 --> 00:26:25.340 And Jesus, 00:26:25.820 --> 00:26:26.279 of course, 00:26:26.560 --> 00:26:27.180 lived it 00:26:27.180 --> 00:26:28.480 and died it. 00:26:28.560 --> 00:26:29.279 Paul puts it 00:26:29.279 --> 00:26:30.460 in his second letter 00:26:30.460 --> 00:26:31.120 to the Corinthians 00:26:31.120 --> 00:26:32.060 in chapter 8, 00:26:32.140 --> 00:26:32.800 verse 9. 00:26:33.180 --> 00:26:33.960 As he seeks 00:26:33.960 --> 00:26:35.279 to encourage a church, 00:26:35.800 --> 00:26:36.480 he points 00:26:36.480 --> 00:26:37.200 to the grace 00:26:37.200 --> 00:26:37.820 of Christ 00:26:37.820 --> 00:26:38.100 who, 00:26:38.580 --> 00:26:39.820 though he was rich, 00:26:40.460 --> 00:26:41.600 yet for your sakes 00:26:41.600 --> 00:26:42.920 became poor 00:26:42.920 --> 00:26:44.360 so that through 00:26:44.360 --> 00:26:45.160 his poverty 00:26:45.160 --> 00:26:46.660 might become 00:26:46.660 --> 00:26:47.480 rich. 00:26:47.480 --> 00:26:49.980 And so Christ 00:26:49.980 --> 00:26:50.720 says to the church, 00:26:51.240 --> 00:26:51.920 I know you. 00:26:52.860 --> 00:26:54.019 I know your poverty 00:26:54.019 --> 00:26:55.559 and your struggles. 00:26:56.480 --> 00:26:57.380 I know them 00:26:57.380 --> 00:26:58.559 because I've lived them 00:26:58.559 --> 00:26:59.680 and I died them 00:26:59.680 --> 00:27:00.519 and I tell you 00:27:00.519 --> 00:27:01.759 that you are rich 00:27:01.759 --> 00:27:03.799 in God's economy. 00:27:05.180 --> 00:27:06.539 And he says to them 00:27:06.539 --> 00:27:09.420 to be faithful, 00:27:10.240 --> 00:27:11.160 to not be afraid, 00:27:11.259 --> 00:27:12.140 even in the midst 00:27:12.140 --> 00:27:13.440 of their suffering. 00:27:13.559 --> 00:27:13.819 Yes, 00:27:13.880 --> 00:27:14.819 the world sees something 00:27:14.819 --> 00:27:15.720 that is broken 00:27:15.720 --> 00:27:16.420 and brittle 00:27:16.420 --> 00:27:17.299 and fragile, 00:27:17.480 --> 00:27:19.140 and Christ 00:27:19.140 --> 00:27:20.140 is not going to promise 00:27:20.140 --> 00:27:23.380 a consolation prize, 00:27:24.160 --> 00:27:25.120 but rather he 00:27:25.120 --> 00:27:26.440 fortifies them 00:27:26.440 --> 00:27:27.079 for this struggle, 00:27:27.160 --> 00:27:27.920 the struggle that will 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:29.299 continue for some time 00:27:29.299 --> 00:27:30.839 and he promises them 00:27:30.839 --> 00:27:32.599 the most wonderful prize. 00:27:33.279 --> 00:27:34.420 Drawing on the image 00:27:34.420 --> 00:27:35.059 of this city 00:27:35.059 --> 00:27:36.360 that had a great stadium 00:27:36.360 --> 00:27:37.539 in the center 00:27:37.539 --> 00:27:38.599 and had a great taste 00:27:38.599 --> 00:27:39.700 for pageantry 00:27:39.700 --> 00:27:40.420 and occasion, 00:27:41.299 --> 00:27:42.319 he promises them 00:27:42.319 --> 00:27:43.740 something 00:27:43.740 --> 00:27:46.220 like an Olympic medal 00:27:46.220 --> 00:27:47.880 except it's a wreath. 00:27:47.880 --> 00:27:49.100 It's bestowed 00:27:49.100 --> 00:27:49.799 on the head 00:27:49.799 --> 00:27:50.539 of a champion. 00:27:51.279 --> 00:27:52.059 Christ calls it 00:27:52.059 --> 00:27:52.660 a crown 00:27:52.660 --> 00:27:53.420 and it's a crown 00:27:53.420 --> 00:27:54.759 that is not for the athlete 00:27:54.759 --> 00:27:56.200 or the scholar 00:27:56.200 --> 00:27:58.559 or the powerful ruler, 00:27:58.700 --> 00:28:00.039 but it is a crown 00:28:00.039 --> 00:28:01.039 for the powerless, 00:28:01.579 --> 00:28:02.440 the penniless, 00:28:02.839 --> 00:28:04.039 irrelevant church, 00:28:04.880 --> 00:28:05.980 the church 00:28:05.980 --> 00:28:07.360 that will remain faithful, 00:28:07.579 --> 00:28:08.279 clinging on, 00:28:08.860 --> 00:28:10.779 even unto death. 00:28:10.779 --> 00:28:12.940 It's a great prize 00:28:12.940 --> 00:28:15.099 and it's a wonderful promise 00:28:15.099 --> 00:28:16.639 that in faithful suffering 00:28:16.639 --> 00:28:18.619 comes great blessing 00:28:18.619 --> 00:28:19.619 and this is the promise 00:28:19.619 --> 00:28:20.740 of the one who walks 00:28:20.740 --> 00:28:22.339 among the lampstands, 00:28:22.359 --> 00:28:23.440 the one who is first 00:28:23.440 --> 00:28:24.879 and who is last, 00:28:25.000 --> 00:28:25.859 who outlives 00:28:25.859 --> 00:28:27.039 and outstretches 00:28:27.039 --> 00:28:28.160 every empire 00:28:28.160 --> 00:28:29.279 and overrules 00:28:29.279 --> 00:28:31.119 every emperor, 00:28:32.259 --> 00:28:33.420 one who endured 00:28:33.420 --> 00:28:35.160 the quiet abandonment 00:28:35.160 --> 00:28:36.299 and anxiety 00:28:36.299 --> 00:28:37.259 of Gethsemane 00:28:37.259 --> 00:28:39.200 and the public horror 00:28:39.200 --> 00:28:40.839 of Golgotha, 00:28:41.759 --> 00:28:42.680 who knows 00:28:42.680 --> 00:28:45.319 spiritual emptiness, 00:28:45.599 --> 00:28:46.200 abandonment, 00:28:46.319 --> 00:28:46.779 injustice, 00:28:47.079 --> 00:28:47.440 mockery, 00:28:47.619 --> 00:28:48.160 violence 00:28:48.160 --> 00:28:49.119 and death, 00:28:49.220 --> 00:28:51.980 one who introduces himself 00:28:51.980 --> 00:28:53.319 as one who died 00:28:53.319 --> 00:28:54.200 and rose again. 00:28:54.359 --> 00:28:55.460 This is the one 00:28:55.460 --> 00:28:57.680 who promises the crown, 00:28:57.819 --> 00:28:59.200 who holds out the prize. 00:28:59.579 --> 00:29:00.599 This is the one 00:29:00.599 --> 00:29:01.480 who is sovereign 00:29:01.480 --> 00:29:04.119 even in the midst 00:29:04.119 --> 00:29:05.599 of persecution. 00:29:07.259 --> 00:29:07.660 And yes, 00:29:07.759 --> 00:29:08.599 persecution is coming 00:29:08.599 --> 00:29:09.420 from this church. 00:29:09.619 --> 00:29:11.019 It speaks of 10 days, 00:29:11.099 --> 00:29:12.440 not 240 hours, 00:29:13.140 --> 00:29:15.019 but a finite time. 00:29:16.019 --> 00:29:17.160 A finite time 00:29:17.160 --> 00:29:17.779 known by one 00:29:17.779 --> 00:29:18.940 who is first and last, 00:29:19.039 --> 00:29:20.200 who knows all our ends 00:29:20.200 --> 00:29:21.140 from the very beginning, 00:29:22.379 --> 00:29:23.180 our Lord 00:29:23.180 --> 00:29:24.359 and our Savior. 00:29:27.099 --> 00:29:27.599 Let me finish 00:29:27.599 --> 00:29:28.180 with a story, 00:29:28.460 --> 00:29:29.379 a story from history, 00:29:29.480 --> 00:29:30.480 a story from Smyrna, 00:29:31.319 --> 00:29:32.920 the story of Polycarp, 00:29:33.640 --> 00:29:34.700 who was one of the great 00:29:34.700 --> 00:29:35.980 early Christian leaders. 00:29:35.980 --> 00:29:37.180 He met John, 00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:38.140 who wrote Revelation, 00:29:38.680 --> 00:29:39.559 in his childhood, 00:29:40.059 --> 00:29:41.440 and he died 00:29:41.440 --> 00:29:42.960 on the 23rd of February, 00:29:44.099 --> 00:29:45.460 155 AD. 00:29:45.579 --> 00:29:46.779 And this is his story. 00:29:48.160 --> 00:29:49.440 Polycarp refused 00:29:49.440 --> 00:29:50.740 to take part 00:29:50.740 --> 00:29:51.799 in a simple ritual. 00:29:52.640 --> 00:29:53.099 There was nothing 00:29:53.099 --> 00:29:54.460 especially drizzly about it. 00:29:54.539 --> 00:29:55.279 Just sprinkle 00:29:55.279 --> 00:29:56.720 some powder, 00:29:56.860 --> 00:29:57.500 some incense 00:29:57.500 --> 00:29:58.960 and confess 00:29:58.960 --> 00:29:59.660 that Caesar 00:29:59.660 --> 00:30:00.720 is Lord. 00:30:00.759 --> 00:30:01.620 A small compromise. 00:30:02.440 --> 00:30:03.640 It wouldn't directly affect 00:30:03.640 --> 00:30:04.480 the health and happiness 00:30:04.480 --> 00:30:05.220 of anyone he knew 00:30:05.220 --> 00:30:06.000 or cared about. 00:30:06.960 --> 00:30:08.180 But he refused. 00:30:08.819 --> 00:30:09.740 And he was arrested 00:30:09.740 --> 00:30:10.900 and brought into the stadium 00:30:10.900 --> 00:30:12.200 where before the crowds 00:30:12.200 --> 00:30:14.279 and before the government official, 00:30:14.900 --> 00:30:15.980 he was appealed to 00:30:15.980 --> 00:30:17.400 to spare himself 00:30:17.400 --> 00:30:19.279 the death penalty. 00:30:20.140 --> 00:30:21.180 And he refused. 00:30:22.240 --> 00:30:23.000 They said, 00:30:23.099 --> 00:30:23.500 swear 00:30:23.500 --> 00:30:25.200 and I'll set you free. 00:30:26.039 --> 00:30:26.940 Curse Christ. 00:30:26.940 --> 00:30:27.980 That was the invitation. 00:30:29.660 --> 00:30:30.640 And this old man 00:30:30.640 --> 00:30:32.500 replied, 00:30:33.640 --> 00:30:34.840 80 and 6 years 00:30:34.840 --> 00:30:35.720 I have served him 00:30:35.720 --> 00:30:37.420 and he never did me 00:30:37.420 --> 00:30:38.059 any injury. 00:30:39.100 --> 00:30:39.820 How then 00:30:39.820 --> 00:30:40.880 can I blaspheme 00:30:40.880 --> 00:30:42.160 my King 00:30:42.160 --> 00:30:43.360 and Savior? 00:30:43.359 --> 00:30:46.919 And that same day 00:30:46.919 --> 00:30:47.639 this old man 00:30:47.639 --> 00:30:48.139 of faith 00:30:48.139 --> 00:30:48.899 was martyred. 00:30:50.379 --> 00:30:51.339 And his faith 00:30:51.339 --> 00:30:52.059 was in this 00:30:52.059 --> 00:30:53.099 great King 00:30:53.099 --> 00:30:54.759 the one who is first 00:30:54.759 --> 00:30:55.919 and is last 00:30:55.919 --> 00:30:56.599 who died 00:30:56.599 --> 00:30:57.799 and came to life again 00:30:57.799 --> 00:30:59.159 who says to his disciples 00:30:59.159 --> 00:31:00.619 on the cusp 00:31:00.619 --> 00:31:01.799 of his great 00:31:01.799 --> 00:31:02.699 hour of suffering 00:31:02.699 --> 00:31:04.500 in this world 00:31:04.500 --> 00:31:05.240 you will have 00:31:05.240 --> 00:31:05.899 trouble 00:31:05.899 --> 00:31:08.099 but take heart 00:31:08.099 --> 00:31:09.500 I have overcome 00:31:09.500 --> 00:31:10.039 the world. 00:31:10.039 --> 00:31:12.720 we live 00:31:12.720 --> 00:31:13.799 in a scary 00:31:13.799 --> 00:31:15.139 and broken world. 00:31:15.879 --> 00:31:16.420 This morning 00:31:16.420 --> 00:31:17.500 the Home Secretary 00:31:17.500 --> 00:31:18.079 announced 00:31:18.079 --> 00:31:19.200 new funding 00:31:19.200 --> 00:31:19.859 to protect 00:31:19.859 --> 00:31:20.779 places of worship 00:31:20.779 --> 00:31:22.799 and the Church of Christ 00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:23.659 in our world 00:31:23.659 --> 00:31:25.700 is a suffering church 00:31:25.700 --> 00:31:27.899 but we're to take heart. 00:31:29.079 --> 00:31:30.240 He who has an ear 00:31:30.240 --> 00:31:31.700 let him hear 00:31:31.700 --> 00:31:33.420 what the Spirit says 00:31:33.420 --> 00:31:34.619 to the churches. 00:31:34.779 --> 00:31:35.440 Let us pray. 00:31:40.039 --> 00:31:43.839 Lord our God 00:31:43.839 --> 00:31:45.099 our King and Savior 00:31:45.099 --> 00:31:48.460 we live our lives 00:31:48.460 --> 00:31:49.339 here in this city 00:31:49.339 --> 00:31:50.220 and in other places 00:31:50.220 --> 00:31:52.879 and it is our privilege 00:31:52.879 --> 00:31:53.559 to know 00:31:53.559 --> 00:31:54.639 and worship you. 00:31:56.339 --> 00:31:57.119 And as we study 00:31:57.119 --> 00:31:57.579 your word 00:31:57.579 --> 00:31:58.519 this morning 00:31:58.519 --> 00:31:59.180 we find it 00:31:59.180 --> 00:32:00.200 widens our vision 00:32:00.200 --> 00:32:03.859 and it reminds us 00:32:03.859 --> 00:32:04.839 that at the heart 00:32:04.839 --> 00:32:05.920 of our faith 00:32:05.920 --> 00:32:08.420 is a suffering king 00:32:08.420 --> 00:32:11.539 and that your church 00:32:11.539 --> 00:32:12.779 is a suffering church. 00:32:14.460 --> 00:32:15.519 Lord in our own 00:32:15.519 --> 00:32:16.180 sufferings 00:32:16.180 --> 00:32:17.220 help us to be 00:32:17.220 --> 00:32:17.759 encouraged 00:32:17.759 --> 00:32:18.600 to be faithful 00:32:18.600 --> 00:32:20.340 to hold on 00:32:20.340 --> 00:32:21.039 to the promises 00:32:21.039 --> 00:32:22.340 you hold out for us 00:32:22.340 --> 00:32:24.860 and in our times 00:32:24.860 --> 00:32:25.440 of peace 00:32:25.440 --> 00:32:26.060 and prosperity 00:32:26.060 --> 00:32:27.300 help us to pray 00:32:27.300 --> 00:32:28.960 and to remember 00:32:28.960 --> 00:32:31.180 and to honour 00:32:31.180 --> 00:32:32.060 those who 00:32:32.060 --> 00:32:33.779 the cost of following 00:32:33.779 --> 00:32:34.620 you is not merely 00:32:34.620 --> 00:32:35.680 inconvenience 00:32:35.680 --> 00:32:38.640 but that costs them 00:32:38.640 --> 00:32:40.500 their very last breath 00:32:40.500 --> 00:32:41.060 and penny. 00:32:43.080 --> 00:32:44.080 May they know 00:32:44.080 --> 00:32:44.820 your comfort 00:32:44.820 --> 00:32:45.600 may they hear 00:32:45.600 --> 00:32:46.160 your voice 00:32:46.160 --> 00:32:46.680 we pray. 00:32:47.480 --> 00:32:47.920 Amen.