Skip to main content

End Game, Part 2 - Stay Faithful - The Church of Smyrna

The Church at Smyrna…

Revelation 2:8- (NIV) “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write:
These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died
and came to life again. 9 I know your afflictions and your
poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say
they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. 10 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. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you
life as your victor’s crown. 11 Whoever has ears, let them hear what
the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be
hurt at all by the second death.”

The church at Smyrna is a breath of fresh air. In fact, even the name means “myrrh” or
“ointment.” It was a spice that produced a scent that is described in the Old Testament to have
even “attracted” the presence of God. Smyrna is the first of two churches that God says, do what they are doing. He tells them he knows what they are going through, and that they have stayed true. What an amazing testimony for churches today. You have been attacked, you have faced loss and lack, but you have remained faithful. You have not been afraid, even when you had every right to be.

I understand this temptation very well – the one to give up and quit. Over the past twenty-five years we have seen our share of dry seasons.  But through every one of those dry seasons God has been faithful, we have survived, and the season changed.  God brought about the season of harvest.  That is the great thing about Jesus. He always brings the next harvest, if you are faithful in the meantime.  Don’t be afraid of what others might say, or what people might do.  Keep your eyes and your faith on Jesus.  It reminds me of the quote from President F.D. Roosevelt, “Fear is always worse than the things of which you are afraid.” 

So, the encouragement to the church today is a simple statement from God, “Do not fear – Be faithful!”

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

TRUTH

truth /tro ͞ oTH/  that which is true or in accordance with fact or reality. I’m growing a little frustrated these days.  When I was a child, you could rely on the news media to report “the facts and just the facts, Ma’am.”  In the days of Walter Cronkite, et al, the news was considered a reliable source; a place we could go for factual reporting and firsthand, verified accounts.  There were only three channels, after all... However, times - they are a’ changin’.  Is all news reporting reliable?  Is some news reporting reliable?  If you ask Fox, they are the only reliable news source.  If you ask CNN, MSNBC, etc., it’s them.  Yet, someone HAS to be wrong, as what they are reporting varies WILDLY.  If it doesn’t vary wildly, it’s colored with so much opinion and biased nuance, the facts can barely be perceived for the smokescreen of opinion. Here are some examples of conflicting reports, just off the top of my head: 1. ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Leadership Lessons from Crepe Myrtles

Last spring I cut the side of my face, right my left ear.  After the bleeding stopped I learned a great lesson about life, leadership, and relationships.  Along the front of our church we had a beautiful life of crepe myrtles.    They looked breathtaking: bright red, full of blooms and just a year old.  They had grown at a very rapid pace, partly because we had an unusually mild winter, partly because the temperature has been quite comfortable for them, but mostly because we have had a lot of rain extending late into the summer.   For those who are not familiar with Arkansas weather patterns, we usually have a lot of spring storms, bringing with them massive rains. Flash-floods - you know, National Weather Service alarms on your phone, kind of rains.  This usually happens from around April until the middle of June.  Then something crazy happens - the rain stops.  I mean, turn the spigo...
Post a Comment
Read more

Doing What You Love...

I was sitting in Starbucks awhile back working on this blog, making contacts with people, planning the rest of my day and just enjoying what God was doing in my life. We had just launched a new small group, Success iN Life (SNL). It was designed to help people find true, Biblical success in their lives. We talked about what true success looked like. We had a white board out and people gave words to define success. We had money, security, "Mother Theresa", but my favorite was from a gentleman who said, “Success for me is Happiness.” Wow what a statement. I believe that true success is seen in that simple word that most of us find hard to find - happiness. The true test of success in life is whether or not you are truly happy where you are. The Bible says, " the joy of the Lord is our strength ". The word joy denotes happiness. I have heard many people preach that joy and happiness are two different things, I don't thank so. I think that when you are fulfilli...
Post a Comment
Read more