7 Churches… The Persecuted Church in Smyrna
The Seven Churches In the Book of Revelation... An Explanatory Case Study of Love Grown Cold: The persecuted church in Smyrna Part 7:
Tuesday May 20, 2025
The church in Smyrna… the persecuted Church or Christian
Revelation 2:8-11 NKJV "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write, 'These things says the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life: [9] "I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you are rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. [10] Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. [11] "He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death."'
Problems: tribulation, poverty, impending imprisonment
Revelation 2:9-10 I know your works, tribulation, and poverty (but you're rich); and I know the blasphemy of those who day they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. [10 a, b] Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw stoned m some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days….
Solution: Never stop being faithful.
Revelation 2:10c… Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
The condition of being persecuted has always been the experience of the church, but it does not always define the church. The living church always thrived under persecution. The faithful church of Christ always excels under persecution… the greater the opposition the more glorious the testimonies.
Matthew 16:18 NKJV
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
Fighting is unavoidable if we are to complete our mission, but fighting is not our mission.
The church is not built simply to fight. We fight because the enemy opposes our mission. When the enemy opposes us, we resist him.
We must never allow the opposition to change our mission into resistance. Resistance is a tool in our toolkit, but it is not our mission.
God raised Nehemiah to go rebuild the fallen wall of the city.
Building the wall provided security, but beyond that, it led to the discovery of forgotten texts, which in turn helped the people to rediscover and rebuild their identity as God’s people, restoring them to true worship.
Sanballat and Tobias recruited many opponents to resist, intimidate and persecute him. Nehemiah did not allow the fear of persecution to stop him from building the wall. He did not allow them to change his mission from building to deliverance.
Nehemiah 4:15-18 NLT When our enemies heard that we knew of their plans and that God had frustrated them, we all returned to our work on the wall. [16] But from then on, only half my men worked while the other half stood guard with spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. The leaders stationed themselves behind the people of Judah [17] who were building the wall. The laborers carried on their work with one hand supporting their load and one hand holding a weapon. [18] All the builders had a sword belted to their side. The trumpeter stayed with me to sound the alarm.
The enemy will increase His attacks and make personal threats against us. We must remain firm to the end.
Nehemiah 6:9-11 NLT
They were just trying to intimidate us, imagining that they could discourage us and stop the work. So I continued the work with even greater determination. [10] Later I went to visit Shemaiah son of Delaiah and grandson of Mehetabel, who was confined to his home. He said, "Let us meet together inside the Temple of God and bolt the doors shut. Your enemies are coming to kill you tonight." [11] But I replied, "Should someone in my position run from danger? Should someone in my position enter the Temple to save his life? No, I won't do it!"
Fighting is unavoidable if we are to complete our mission, but fighting is not our mission.
We must not be defined by the battles we fought but by the people we build.
Matthew 16:18 NKJV
And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.
The enemy always tries to discourage or to distract people from their God-given mission. One of the ploys he uses is warfare. Every persecution is designed to discourage you or to distract you from what God has called you to. If we are always fighting, it is very easy for us to lose sight of our real mission which is to build.
Many have not denied Jesus but have become distracted that they are no longer faithful to Him.
The Mission of the Church.
Basically we have a three-tiered mission…
Bring them, Make them and Keep them.
We Bring Them by announcing the coming kingdom of our Lord and preaching repentance.
Matthew 13:47-48 NLT
"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind. [48] When the net was full, they dragged it up onto the shore, sat down, and sorted the good fish into crates, but threw the bad ones away.
Jesus sent out his disciples to go preach the coming Kingdom of God.
Matthew 10:7-8 NKJV
And as you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' [8] Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
In Mark's account of the same event, Mark 6:7-13, we are given a little more information about what the twelve actually did when they went out.
Mark 6:12-13 NKJV So they went out and preached that people should repent. [13] And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.
We Make Them disciples by baptizing and teaching all of Jesus' teachings.
Matthew 28:18-20 NKJV
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. [19] Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen.
We Keep Them by feeding the sheep, caring for them, guiding them, praying for their healing and deliverance and blessings.
John 21:15-17 NKJV
So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me more than these?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Feed My lambs." [16] He said to him again a second time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?" He said to Him, "Yes, Lord; You know that I love You." He said to him, "Tend My sheep." [17] He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of Jonah, do you love Me?" Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, "Do you love Me?" And he said to Him, "Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You." Jesus said to him, "Feed My sheep.
Jesus’ choices of words are, as always, deliberate. When he said “Feed My lambs,” in vs. 15, the word He chose was specifically the word for grazing sheep. He called them His lamb, implying that at this stage, they are young.
In vs. 16, He changed the terminology. When He said, “Tend my sheep,” the word “tend” is essentially to shepherd them. He was asking Peter to do everything a shepherd was supposed to do for sheep, which included but was not limited to feeding.
He used “sheep” instead of lamb to indicate that even though they are no longer babies, he was still responsible for them… perhaps to a greater degree than merely feeding them.
When in vs. 17, He was emphasizing that at no point in their lives would the sheep have to go without feeding.
We all can draw a personal lesson from that: No matter how mature we become as Christians, we will never outgrow the need to have a pastor feed us.
Acts 20:28 LSB
Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
1 Peter 5:2-4 NLT
Care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly-not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. [3] Don't lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. [4] And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never-ending glory and honor.
Every Christian is called to this three-tiered mission.
We must be making disciples of people: our children, family members, our colleagues, our neighbors, our fellow Christians in church. This is what it means to be a Christian.
Hebrews 12:2-3 NKJV
looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. [3] For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.
Persecution in one form or another will come. One may make bold to say that persecution is sometimes proof that you're doing something right.
2 Timothy 3:12 NKJV
Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.
You will face discouragement from things not working. You labor over people and they are not responding, not growing in faith. Sometimes betrayals will come from the very people you are helping. You will be tempted to give up. You will be tempted to start looking out for yourself.
The only thing that will keep you going is to keep looking up to the person of Jesus. Not His principles, but His person.
Jesus was betrayed by Judas. He was denied by Peter. All the other disciples abandoned Him. But He loved them all to the very end.
All the abuses and insults did not deter Him from the cross. The same people whom He fed with bread and fish, whose diseases He healed, whose dead He raised turned and asked for Him to be crucified. Jesus went all the way because He was faithful to the Father who sent Him. We too will be able to go all the way if we remain faithful to the One who died for us
The life of faith is a journey.
Jesus starts us on our journey.
Persecution is what you encounter during the journey.
Faithfulness is what you bring with you on your journey.
There is a reward, a crown, a joy awaiting you at the end of your journey.
A life of faith is best defined as a life of faithfulness to Jesus.
Every persecution, every opposition, every test of faith we face is simply a test of our faithfulness to Jesus.
Persecution: a test of faithfulness to Jesus.
Many Christians have not betrayed or denied Jesus but have become distracted that they have effectively abandoned Him. They are no longer faithful to Him. They are pursuing other things which Jesus did not ask them to pursue.
Prayer:
Lord help me to never betray You, to never deny You and to never abandon You.
Give me the grace to pass every test of faith.
May I be found faithful till the very end.
When we remain faithful to the end, we will find Jesus waiting for us at the end with His reward.
The greatest testimonies are not those of deliverance but those of faithfulness.
2 Timothy 4:6-8 NKJV For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of
my departure is at hand. [7] I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. [8] Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.
Apostle Paul faced many persecutions in his life and ministry yet we do not think of him in terms of being a persecuted or weak person. He puts it best when he said in 1 Corinthians 16:9 For a great and effective door has been opened to me, and there are many adversaries.
His use of the conjunction “and” instead of “but” shows that adversaries, adversity and persecutions come with the territory.
Acts 20:24 But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to me, so that I may finish my race with joy and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
We are not defined by our persecution, but by our faithfulness to the end.
If we allow persecution to become front and center to us, if we allow persecution to be what defines us, we will become less focused on faithfulness and more focused on our deliverance.
Hebrews 12:2 NKJV looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Deliverance vs. Reward.
All through our journey, He is never far from us. His rod and His staff are always for our comfort. He will sometimes allow us to go through.
We cry for deliverance but He offers us comfort. He says “You can make it,” “Hang in there,” “Don’t give up,” and best of all He says, “I’m right here with you.”
We want Him to take us out, but He wants to see us through. If He takes us out, if we don’t go through, there will be no reward waiting for us at the end of our journey. All our suffering and pain would have been for nought.
Many Israelites were delivered from bondage to Pharaoh in Egypt but did not make it to the promised land.
John 16:21 NKJV A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world.
The purpose of pregnancy is not that the mother is delivered but that she brings a new life to birth. Yes, we look forward to the day of delivery, but beyond that we look forward to holding our new baby. The new life is the reward that makes all the pain and discomfort of pregnancy and labor worth it.
There is a reward waiting at the end that will make all the persecution worth it.
The guarantee of a reward is given to those who are faithful to the end.
Revelation 2:10c… Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Acts 14:19-23 LSB But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and after winning over the crowds and stoning Paul, they were dragging him out of the city, supposing him to be dead. [20] But while the disciples stood around him, he rose up and entered the city. The next day he went away with Barnabas to Derbe. [21] And after they had proclaimed the gospel to that city and had made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, [22] strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, “Through many afflictions we must enter the kingdom of God.” [23] And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna
Jesus sent John to write the 7 letters circa A.D. 94-96. Polycarp was the Bishop of Smyrna during that period. He had been led to Christ through the preaching of Apostle John. Some Bible scholars said he was Bishop of Smyrna when the letter was delivered. That would mean that Jesus’ warning was quite timely for him.
It was a time of great persecution of the church. Many Christians were being martyred by the Romans. Some were thrown into an arena to be torn apart by wild beasts. Others were tied to stakes and burnt alive. Before being killed, they were often asked to deny Jesus and swear allegiance to Ceasar. A few took the offer, denied Jesus and were spared.
Circa A.D. 155, at the age of 86, Polycarp was arrested and brought before the Roman Proconsul. He was told and asked to deny Jesus, damn Christians as atheists and swear allegiance to Caesar so he could be set free. He responded with the following, now famous words:
“Eighty and six years have I served Him, and He has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?”
The Proconsul threatened to throw him to wild animals, unless he repented.
“Call them,” Polycarp replied.
“If you despise the animals, I will have you burned.”
“You threaten me with fire which burns for an hour, and is then extinguished, but you know nothing of the fire of the coming judgment and eternal punishment, reserved for the ungodly. Why are you waiting? Bring on whatever you want.”
Before his arrest, God had shown him in a dream that the pillow he was sleeping on was set on fire and it burned to ashes. He had gotten up from his dream and confidently told his associates that he would be martyred not by wild animals, but by burning.
Church history tells that he was set on fire but the fire did not consume him. Then he was stabbed and so much blood came out of him, the fire was quenched.
Hebrews 11:35 NKJV Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection.
Persecution has never succeeded in stopping the church’s growth. Harm is always caused by unfaithfulness by the bride of Christ to the person of Jesus, the Bridegroom.
Polycarp’s martyrdom, like every other before his, resulted in the church growing stronger. All the martyrs, like Polycarp, were faithful to the person of Jesus.
Many try to be faithful to the teachings of Jesus. They draw life principles from His teachings while downplaying the importance of His person.
Christianity is at its simplest a relationship with the person of Jesus. Living by the principles without faithfulness to the person of Jesus always led to heresy. Today many church-goers are no different from the practitioners of New Age religions, spirituality and philosophies. They are all man-centered, rather than Jesus-centered.
We do not celebrate the martyrs simply because of their sufferings. We are not masochists. Rather we celebrated them because like Jesus, they were victorious over death. They were killed, yes. But they were not defeated. They went to their deaths triumphantly. Every martyr's blood that was shed reproduced and brought many people into the kingdom of God.
Do not despise your sufferings. You must see them through to victory for that may well be your crowning achievement for Christ.
Revelation 2:10-11 LSB Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life. [11] He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will never be hurt by the second death.’
