Hi guys, we're going to continue reading from Revelation chapter 2, starting at verse 12.
And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write, the words of him who has the sharp
two-edged sword.
I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is, yet you hold fast my name, and you did
not deny my faith, even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was killed among you,
where Satan dwells.
But I have a few things against you.
You have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling
block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice
sexual immorality.
So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
Therefore, repent.
If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth.
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
To the one who conquers, I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white
stone with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives
it.
Muted.
We can't pee, Dave, you need to unmute yourself.
okay hopefully that's better this time
the boys keep telling me what could go wrong when you're up the front preaching
and i always find something to go wrong anyway i'll say again good morning everyone it's nice
to be with you this morning continuing our series in revelation at the reset series so we've been
saying that revelation is a view of the world from god's perspective and what an eye-opener it was
to john when first revealed to him and still an eye-opener to us all these years later it's a real
eye-opener chapter 1 verse 90 20 to see jesus so focused and passionate about continuing to grow
and protect his church in the world it's a real eye-opener that jesus speaks so directly to his
church through these seven representative churches demanding that we reflect his passion and reflect
his commitment to his church it's a real eye-opener that the church in ephesus looks so good from the
outside taking all the boxes for a great church yet they were dangerously unwell on the inside
at some point they'd given their heart away jesus was no longer their validation their satisfaction
or their delight and it was a real eye-opener that the church in smyrna which looks so awful from the
outside staggering under endless persecution yet they were declared rich faithful healthy so single-minded
in their love for christ that they were willing to give up everything for him even life itself
now every one of these thoughts cause us to re-examine ourselves and if necessary reset do we have
the church as central in our purposes as christ has do we reflect christ's passion as we're involved in the
local church here at grace do we have our heart firmly attached to jesus or have we given it to somebody else
or something else what is our view of suffering do we walk away from it as though somehow or other it's not
compatible with the christian life so many things that we really need to examine and if necessary reset
so that we might be the faithful church and this morning christ's word to the community of christ in
pergamum is also a real eye-opener as he exposes their creeping compromise of the gospel
now verse 13 starts as with every other letter jesus opening words i know
both wonderfully comforting and totally confronting so jesus knows the challenge of our culture he knew
how difficult it was for the community of christians in pergamum now that's a real comfort
pergamum was a center of roman imperial power in asia the high official the pro consul literally lived
in a former palace and he presided over an administration which was openly indulgent
sexually immoral politically corrupt
as well as that it was a center of learning large library people coming from all over the world to
study and practice a huge array of life philosophies and the skyline was dominated by huge temples to the
major roman and greek gods various aspects of these religions saturated shaped and dominated the daily life of everyone in the city
and verse 13 there's an image there it looked and felt like satan's home base
as if evil was enthroned
vice became virtue
and for all its religion it was a strongly anti the god of the christian city
anti the god of truth and righteousness
now in today's term we would say it was a cosmopolitan
permissive society a sydney a los angeles
one we recognize only too well living here in australia
but jesus also knows the danger of being seduced by our culture
and now his words become really confronting
now verse 13 and 14 and 15
they're unwavering faithfulness and loyalty in the past
and jesus concedes that recognizes that commends them for that
but that's now been undermined by a creeping compromise
and verses 14 and 15
two groups are identified
the first group is those who hold to the teaching of
balam
which is an old testament image
and the story is in numbers 22 to 31
and the king of moab
terrified by god's people heading his way en route to the promised land
was desperate to find a way to defeat them
they were too powerful to defeat militarily
so king balak asked balam
to pronounce a curse on them
god intervened and wouldn't allow that
however
it appears that balam
inferred a pathway of seduction and compromise
would have the same result
it would defeat god's people
and in numbers chapter 25 verses 1 to 4
we have a description of how god's people became
increasingly drawn into the moral
spiritual and physical practices of pagan moabite society
so much so to the point that they were so compromised
it was a joke to call themselves god's holy
and that word means separated
or covenant people
there was no more separation
that was just integration
the second group
verse 15 are those
who hold to the teaching of the nicolaitans
now that was a new group
operating in the early church
and it appears it had similar
it was connected to that old
concept of balam
the name might actually be connected
but it seems like it was a similar group
but a tad more radical
as far as the scholars know
and historians know
this group promoted
and justified viewpoints
which allowed christians to take on
many of the social
and religious values
and religious practices
of their pagan society
without hesitation
or a sense of guilt
well it's all pagan nonsense
so it can't hurt us
now we need to understand
that society in that day
was really close-knit
very highly interconnected
interconnected relationally
and so daily life
was built around religious duty
religious feasts
on religious holidays
in honor of pagan gods
and all of it
all of it was designed
to keep the gods happy
so that life was successful
and prosperous
now it was all in
to keep the gods happy
so that means
if you refuse to participate
in the daily temple routines
prayers
religious feasts
or religious holidays
then effectively
you were condemning
your whole culture
offending your whole community
alienating family
and friends
and worst of all
threatening everyone's prosperity
by annoying the gods
and getting them offside
there was a lot at stake
but if you did go along
to the community festivals
even if you didn't
fully participate
then you would be associated
with everything that did happen
and not only would you risk
getting sucked in
more and more
but your association
would effectively
lose any integrity
or identity
you might have
as a Christian
it all sounds familiar
doesn't it
living and engaging
in culture
is tough
now the point here
in this passage
is that in this
pressure environment
it was easy
to miss
or turn a blind eye
to creeping compromise
now
we need to understand
really clearly here
that the problem
in the church
is not
outright rebellion
it's not
blatant disobedience
no no
it's actually much more subtle
much more nuanced
than that
it's more like
how we become
desensitized
to the things
of our culture
to the emptiness
of it
to the immorality
of it
and what happens
over a period of time
is that
things we used
to be shocked at
things we used
to turn our eyes from
things we used
to condemn
we now tolerate
we now accept
quietly
we now sometimes
even find ways
to justify
and approve
and make no mistake
unless we're
really careful
we won't even
notice it happens
that's the notion
of creeping
compromise
so friends
the question
for us this morning
is not
if we are being
seduced by our culture
but to what degree
are we being
seduced by our culture
now let's turn the question
around as we move forward
what does it mean then
to be Christ's faithful church
in our culture
well this is
again a call
to reset
our attitudes
our desires
our actions
individually
and
together
as one body
we need to remember
we must remember
Christ's call
to distinctiveness
the teaching
right across
the New Testament
is that Christians
and indeed the Old Testament
Christians are to be
in the world
but not
of the world
in Revelation
chapter 1
verse 6
we're told there
that we have been
made told by Jesus
we've been made
a kingdom of priests
among other things
that means
we are
at God's hand
a distinct group
with the privilege
and responsibility
of speaking
his word
and modelling
his character
to our world
that is
our distinctiveness
again
in chapter 1
verse 12
and in chapter 1
verse 16
we're lampstands
we're stars
both are sources
of light
emitting
the light
of Jesus
in the darkness
of our world
and exposing
the empty way
of life
handed down
by our forefathers
to use the words
of Peter
in 1 Peter
chapter 1
now we're called
to this
individually
if you look
at verse 14
and 15
it's very clear
Jesus is very clear
there is some
in the church
a hold to these things
that is
not everyone
in the church
is guilty
of creeping
compromise
in that sense
of being involved
in those things
in fact
verse 13
says
yet you hold
fast my name
and you did not
deny my faith
even in the days
of Antipas
my faithful witness
who was killed
among you
were Satan
dwells
at some point
in the past
one of the local
Christians
Antipas
had been killed
now we're not told
why but presumably
in the context
it was because
he refused
to give in
to the pressure
to conform
to society
he refused
to play
by local rules
but notice
how he's described
by Jesus
he's described
as
my faithful
witness
the word
the word there
is martyr
my faithful
martyr
my faithful
witness
and the point
is that Jesus
readily
and warmly
identifies with
and approves
the uncompromising
gospel life
of Antipas
even though
it led
to his death
now
here's the challenge
our so-called
permissive society
shows itself
to be ruthlessly
intolerant
when someone
refuses to play
by its rules
and in the end
our world
really only
often offers
two options
either
seduction
and compromise
or
alienation
persecution
perhaps even
death
so
which one
will you
choose
it's a
fairly simple
equation
that may help
you work it
out
if your
starting point
is to think
of outcomes
that is
what will
keep you
safe
what will
give you
a hassle
free life
what will
make you
happy
what will
bring
greatest
acceptance
in the
world
you
operate
in
then
you're
likely
to say
to yourself
well
I really
need
to get
involved
in the
world
and so
the question
then is
how much
can I
indulge
in the
pleasures
of Australian
culture
before
calling myself
a Christian
becomes a
joke
do you
hear the
attitude
in that
now most
likely
if that's
your
framework
then you
will be
widely
accepted
by your
mates
but you'll
also be
irrelevant
as a witness
to Christ
and worse
totally
offensive
to
but if
your starting
point is to
think of
values and
identity
that is
who am I
as a
Christian
what does
that mean
for me
what is
important
in life
then you're
likely to
ask what
will most
honour
Jesus
what will
most reflect
his character
to those
around me
and most
likely
you will
suffer
dearly
for your
distinctive
stand
but I tell
you this
it will be
the most
clear and
compelling
witness to
Christ
and the
changing
power of
the gospel
and we
need to
remember
that the
best
witness
is
distinctiveness
not
likeness
now
we're also
called to
distinctiveness
as a whole
body
look at
verse 16
and there
might be some
discussion around
this but I
think this is
what track
we're going
down here
verse 16
Jesus says
therefore
repent
if not
I will
come to
you soon
and war
against
them
with the
sword
of my
mouth
as he
has been
doing right
through the
letter
Jesus is
speaking to
the church
as a
whole
and here
in verse
16
he called
the church
community
as a
whole
group
to repent
now
does that
seem strange
to you
why would
he do
that
well I
think it
goes like
this
while not
all are
guilty of
actual
compromise
Jesus
holds the
whole
community
responsible
for not
dealing
with those
who were
the verses
are very
clear
you have
some
among you
the idea
there is
that they're
there and
you're not
doing anything
about it
and so
what happens
is this
that their
failure or
willingness
to act
for the
spiritual
good of
their brothers
and sisters
caught up
in this
compromise
by challenging
them
actually
endanger the
spiritual
health of
the whole
church
and I
take it
that's why
Christ says
that in
verse 16
that if they
don't do
something about
it then
he'll have
to come
if they
don't repent
and take
action
then he'll
have to
come and
take them
on tackle
them
now that
possibility
is downright
terrifying
giving the
imagery in
verse 12
so go back
to verse 12
and also
back in
chapter 1
verse 16
the same
imagery
it's the
imagery
of the
short
sharp
two-edged
sword
now let me
give you a
little bit of
background
Roman soldiers
were feared
in battle
because of
the new
technology
they used
in their
phalanx
fighting
form
it was
a new
technology
of a
short
two-edged
sword
and it
was
incredibly
effective
in close
up combat
Jesus is
warning his
church
that if
they do
not wield
the sword
of his
word
chapter 1
verse 16
the sword
of his
word
was coming
out of
his mouth
they do
not wield
the sword
of his
word
to challenge
and correct
those sliding
into compromise
and loss
of distinctive
us as
people
then he
will come
and open
them up
quite literally
he will open
them up
now that
picks up an
image from
Hebrews 4
he will open
them up
his word
will expose
their inner
thoughts and
desires
or worse
still
Jesus may be
threatening to
take them
out completely
both
those guilty
of compromise
and
those guilty
of not
doing anything
about it
friends
this is so
contrary to
how we
think in
our
individualistic
Australian
culture
but it
comes down
to this
each of
us
has
responsibility
to guard
against
compromise
in our
whole
church
community
not enough
just to
look after
yourself
and say
well others
can look
after
themselves
not enough
to make
sure your
own heart
is right
your own
pathway
is right
and turn
a blind
eye to
others
who are
on the
pathway
of compromise
but again
here's the
problem
we are so
individualistic
that either
we won't
accept such
challenge when
others bring
it to us
or we
just ignore
compromise
when we
say it
for the
sake of
peace and
quiet
it's not
my
problem
what a
huge call
to reset
our
attitudes
and actions
this
letter is
but it
finishes on a
really promising
and positive
note as do
all the
letters
remember
Christ's
promises
for
distinctiveness
verse 17
holds two
promises
he who is
in the
ear let
him hear
what the
spirit says
to the
churches
to the
one who
conquers
or struggles
through
I will
give some
of the
hidden
manna
and I
will give
him a
white
stone
with a
new name
written on
the stone
that no
one knows
except the
one who
receives
it
first the
promise of
hidden
manna
what's that
a picture
of
well
it's an
old testament
picture from
the exodus
as many
pictures in
revelation
are
and it
goes like
this I
think
just as
God
provided
for his
people
even when
they were
thinking that
more
satisfaction
would be
found back
in Egypt
remember that
they were in
the wilderness
and they
said well
better back
in Egypt
eating onions
than out
here with
the Lord
even at
that point
God
provided them
total satisfaction
and manna
so Jesus
the bread
of life
is complete
satisfaction
for hungry
people
practically
what it
means is
this
don't look
to the
world
no matter
how pleasurable
how appealing
how showy
its indulgences
seem
it can't
and won't
satisfy
but there is
hidden satisfaction
in Jesus
remember the
manna was
something that
God's people
could see
that others
couldn't see
there is
hidden satisfaction
in Jesus
something Christians
can see
and indulge
in but those
around them
can't see
or benefit
from and
just think
we are
crazy as
Christians
they don't
know the
hidden satisfaction
that is ours
in Jesus
so why
compromise
why go to
somewhere else
that can't
and won't
satisfy
the promise
is that
God's people
will not
miss out
there's so
many things
in our
culture
that look
so appealing
and it's
easy for us
to start
thinking that
we'll miss
out
if we don't
have them
we don't
experience
them
that's the
start of
compromise
the attitude
of compromise
Christ says
to his people
you have no
need to fear
the consequences
of being loyal
and faithful
to me
you will
not miss
out
you will
have full
satisfaction
you will
dine on the
richest
of fair
the second
promise
is the
promise
of a white
stone
with a special
name written
on it
and that
seems really
weird to us
but it
wouldn't have
been at all
weird to people
living in
Pergamum
because what it
is it's an
invitation
so in Roman
society
the proconsul
or other
high officials
invited
special guests
to important
events
using a
square white
stone
actually a
piece of
clay
it was a
square white
piece of
clay
with the
person's
name
engraved
on it
in modern
terms
I think
it's something
equivalent
of having
access
all areas
past
to the
white
house
you can
just
wander in
there
because
it's
your
place
it's
your
domain
you have
a right
to be
there
you're
welcome
there
Jesus
is promising
that those
who stay
loyal to
him
who may
well
experience
the rejection
of their
society
or family
will never
be rejected
by him
in fact
he will
treat them
as his
special guest
in heaven
where he
and again
the temple
imagery comes
in here
where he
as the
temple
remember
revelation
chapter 22
the true
temple
he is the
temple
will dwarf
anything
the skyline
of
Pergamum
can boast
remember
what the
temple was
the temple
was where
you would
meet
God
the temple
was where
your success
and prosperity
and security
in life
was found
forgiveness
and acceptance
well Jesus
says
don't be
looking at
your skyline
here in
Pergamum
look to
me
come to
me in
heaven
we'll see
me the
true temple
and you
will know
forgiveness
and acceptance
with the
father
and you
will see
how ridiculous
all this
other stuff
was that
seemed so
appealing
so convincing
so much
the basis
of society
is just
so nothing
here on earth
you might look
like just
another person
being abused
or killed
but from
the perspective
of heaven
it is
taking up
your pre-booked
seat in
heaven
with the
Lord forever
so the
final question
is
whose
invitation
do you
desire
more
whose
invitation
do you
value
more
whose
invitation
do you
get more
excited
about
is it
the invitation
to be
welcomed
and accepted
by the
world
represented
by your
non-Christian
family
your friends
your neighbours
those in
your workplace
those in
your sporting
team
or when
they offer
those invitations
is that what
gets you excited
is that what
takes your
tweaks your
interest
or is it
the invitation
that the world
offers generally
the vast array
of pleasures
and distractions
that our
culture offers
we see it on the
TV all the time
that's advertising
come and enjoy
this you haven't
lived until you
experienced that
you can be this
sort of person
in that sort of
place
and it
messes with
our heads
well this
messes with
my head
anyway
what invitation
excites you
what invitation
do you desire
what invitation
do you long
for
is it that
that comes
from the
world
in myriad
forms
or is it
the invitation
from Jesus
you can't
accept
both
invitations
let me
pray
Lord again
you've spoken
both words
of terrific
comfort
you do
know our
situations
in great
detail
but Lord
your words
of comfort
become words
of confrontation
when you see
into our
hearts
you know
Lord
our attitudes
and when
those attitudes
are not
aligned
with what
is becoming
for us
your people
Lord help
us
to hear
your word
help us
to use
your word
and your
spirits
working within
us
to dig
deep
into
our own
hearts
to use
the sword
of your
word
to divide
our thoughts
and our
passions
right down
to our
innermost
being
so we
can see
what's
really
happening
on the
inside
and Lord
take action
to correct
that which
is wrong
help us
Lord
to avoid
that creeping
compromise
that loses
our identity
and loses
our witness
to you
help us
to think
about this
as a church
collectively
as well
as individually
in Jesus name
I pray
Amen