By Pastor Greg...
A
young ventriloquist is touring the clubs,
and one night he's doing a show in a small town in Arkansas. With his dummy on
his knee, he starts going through his usual dumb blonde jokes when a blonde in
the 4th row stands on her chair and starts shouting: "I've heard enough of
your stupid blonde jokes. What makes you think you can stereotype women that
way? What does the color of a person's hair have to do with her worth as a
human being? It's guys like you who keep
women like me from being respected at work and in the community, and all in the
name of humor!" The embarrassed ventriloquist begins to apologize, but the
blonde yells, "You stay out of this, mister! I'm talking to that guy on
your knee."
I
hesitated to share that with you. I
agree that singling out someone because of their
hair color is wrong. I am living proof
that a person can be clueless regardless what color of hair they might
have. But, unfortunately, society
persecutes blonds, and I don’t know why.
Society
does the same to the Church, and I don’t know why.
The
Church endured persecutions shortly after it was born. A man named
Stephen was the first to be killed (Acts 7:59), and from that point, a “great wave of
persecution began that day, sweeping over the church in Jerusalem; and all the
believers except the apostles were scattered through the regions of Judea and
Samaria” (Acts 8:1).
John, the author of Revelation, witnessed the murder of his own brother. James was beheaded outside of Jerusalem.
Many
of the apostles were killed in some way; they were killed by Jews and by
foreigners who hated their message.
Matthew was killed in Ethiopia.
Peter was crucified in Rome.
Matthias was beheaded in Jerusalem.
James, the brother of Jesus, was
thrown out of the highest window in the Temple.
Andrew and Jude were crucified in Edessa, a city in southeast
Turkey. Bartholomew and Thomas were
killed in India.[1] And John… well,
he is a different story.
We
learn in Revelation 1 that John was writing these words while suffering on the
island of Patmos. Before his arrest, John was the pastor of the
Ephesus church.[2] But he was imprisoned because of his faithful
commitment to the Lord. So, Rome exiled
him to the penal colony on this tiny island
and forced him to work alongside other prisoners in the mines.[3] He was persecuted because of his faith.
That’s
a part of Revelation we often overlook; the persecution of the Church.
As
I mentioned last week, the Lord promises the Church that they will be spared
the wrath to come - God’s wrath – but, as John reminds us, the Church will not
be spared the world’s hatred. While on
this earth, the Church will experience persecution from the world. Jesus warned His followers that this would
happen. He said, “If the world hates you, remember that it hated
me first” (John 15:18). He stated that some believers “will be handed over
to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues. 18 [They]
will stand trial before governors and kings because [they] are [His] followers”
(Matthew 10:17-18). And this is precisely what has happened. Christian history is filled with countless
stories of hatred and brutality directed toward believers. A Christian is no longer a citizen of this
world, and for that reason, the world hates a believer (John 15:19).
Here
in America, the Church is not experiencing persecution. Oh, Christians may be harassed and teased;
they may be inconvenienced or marginalized, but that is not the same as
persecution. We still have a
Constitution that grants us freedom, and laws that protect our rights.[i] But I think most of us have heard about the
tyranny Christians face in other countries.
To be a Christian in some parts of this world means you are willing to
forfeit your life.
Did
you ever wonder where Jesus is in all of this?
While Christians are being set on fire, beheaded, fed to the lions, shot
in the head, and sawn in two, where is the Lord? Why does He permit the world to treat His
Church with such brutality? I know
trials and hardships create patient endurance (Romans 5:3), but to me, it seems these persecutions have gotten out
of hand. And no one appears to care. Does Jesus care?
Perhaps
these thoughts were on the minds of many Christians living throughout Rome,
which is why Jesus reveals Himself to John in a very unique way.
I, John, am your brother
and your partner in suffering and in God’s Kingdom and in the patient endurance
to which Jesus calls us. I was exiled to the island of Patmos for preaching the
word of God and for my testimony about Jesus. 10 It was the
Lord’s Day, and I was worshiping in the Spirit. Suddenly, I heard behind me a
loud voice like a trumpet blast. 11 It said, “Write in a book
everything you see, and send it to the seven churches in the cities of Ephesus,
Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”
12 When I turned to see who was speaking to me, I saw seven gold
lampstands. 13 And standing in the middle of the lampstands was
someone like the Son of Man. He was wearing a long robe with a gold sash across his chest. 14 His
head and his hair were white like wool, as white as snow. And his eyes were
like flames of fire. 15 His feet were like polished bronze
refined in a furnace, and his voice thundered like mighty ocean waves. 16 He
held seven stars in his right hand, and a sharp two-edged sword came from his
mouth. And his face was like the sun in all its brilliance.
17 When I saw him, I fell at his feet as if I were dead. But he laid
his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid! I am the First and the Last. 18 I
am the living one. I died, but look—I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the
keys of death and the grave.
19 “Write down what you have seen—both the things that are now
happening and the things that will happen. 20 This is the
meaning of the mystery of the seven stars you saw in my right hand and the
seven gold lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches,
and the seven lampstands are the seven churches” (Revelation 1:9-20).
Jesus
reveals Himself to John in all His glory.
He stood before John as One with power, authority, judgment, and
glory. But it is where He stood and what was in His hand that really matters.
Notice
what Jesus says in verse 20. He stood among the seven churches. He was present among them. Christ stood,
and still stands, among His Church.
Where there is a gathering of Christians, Jesus is there among them. Wherever His Church is persecuted, Jesus is
present. And the One who will eventually
judge the whole earth is watching how the world treats His bride (the Bible
describes the Church as the “Bride of Christ” in Revelation 19:7). Those who persecute the Church are storing up
wrath for the day of judgment (Romans 2:5).
Christ
is present among His Church.
Nothing goes unnoticed. That is
comforting to know. However, I also want
to point out what Jesus was holding in His right hand. Most Bibles say He was holding seven
“angels.” The word literally means “messengers.” Some Bible scholars suggest these “angels” or
“messengers” were those who brought God’s message to these churches. Maybe they were even the pastors. “Since the Greek word for “angel” used here (angelos)
can also describe human messengers (Matt 11:10; Luke 7:24; 9:52; Jas 2:25), it
may represent the leaders or pastors of the seven churches in this instance.”[4]
What
all this means is that while these seven churches were enduring trials and
persecutions, Jesus was present among them; keeping the Spirit alive (the image
of the lampstand), and holding their leaders close to His heart.
Although
we, as a congregation, are not being persecuted, we have endured our fair share
of trials. However, we did not face
these trials alone. Christ was holding
the leadership of this church close to His heart. He was here in our midst. In fact, Jesus is here with us right now. He stands among us. He was present for all that we have faced,
and He will be present for everything that we will face.
It
was important for John to learn that while he, the last surviving apostle, was
exiled to Patmos, Jesus was standing
among those churches which were under
John’s care. And that the Lord held
their leaders in His right hand.
Although these churches would endure persecutions, Jesus would not allow
the world to crush them. Despite the persecutions,
the light in these churches would not fade.
Although they faced trials, the Lord was still with them and among
them. The darkness of the world will not
overpower the light.
I
believe we need to remember this as well.
I think the Church today needs to realize that no matter what the world
might do, the Church will remain. And if
a local congregation remains faithful, the Lord will keep the Spirit alive in
that church (the meaning behind the candle and the lampstand). He holds church leaders close to His heart.
Guiding. Protecting. Strengthening.
I
know that many Christians worry about current events. In America, we worry about supreme court
decisions. We lament current denominational polity. We develop strategies and make plans so the
church will remain faithful to God’s Truth.
We even fret about our ability to survive as a church; fearful that we
will run out of money and be forced to close the doors. But in all this worry and fear, we forget
that Christ stands among us. And our Lord will do everything in His power
to keep us and sustain us until that day he presents us to the Father; as a
glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish (Ephesians
5:27). He is present. He holds us close. He keeps us secure. We are, after all, His bride.
[1] Foxes
Book of Martyrs, chapter 1
[2] http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf01.ix.iv.iv.html
[3] http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/anf07.vi.ii.x.html
[4] Barry, J. D., Mangum, D.,
Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016).
Faithlife Study Bible (Re 1:20). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[i] Congress
shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise
thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the
right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances.
