Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] The Apostle John, as we've talked about for many weeks now, or for a few weeks now, as we move through this revelation of Christ, writes from the isle of Patmos.
[00:00:12] He's been exiled there for preaching the gospel.
[00:00:15] And as he is worshiping on a Sunday, one Lord's day, the day the church recognized as the day Jesus was raised from the dead. And they celebrated the gospel gathering together. Even here on Patmos, John worships, celebrating the resurrection.
[00:00:37] And as he's worshiping the Christ, he receives this vision from an angel of Christ.
[00:00:47] It is an image that communicates all of Jesus's unhindered attributes, this glory that we read about earlier. And it causes him to fall on his face in awe and reverence, as though dead.
[00:01:07] And then Christ in this vision, calls John to write down all that he's going to show him that is going to happen during this last stage in human history.
[00:01:20] And this vision of Christ is one of this priestly king, full of glory.
[00:01:26] And his purpose is to purify his church as they will witness the Gospel in the last days.
[00:01:37] John was to write all of this down, all that Jesus showed him, and send it to seven churches. And we talked about last week, the first church on the list that this letter, this revelation would have gone to was the church of Ephesus. And we talked about how they had lost their first love, their affection and love for Christ, which led to love for others they had lost that. They forgot why they were doing what they were doing.
[00:02:04] And next we see the church of Smyrna. This would have been the next church that the male carrier would have come to with this letter.
[00:02:12] And so probably what would have happened is they would have written down a copy of the letter and left it with Ephesus.
[00:02:20] And then the mail carrier would have headed on to Smyrna with the original letter.
[00:02:25] And all of these churches are to read them in worship. So everyone hears.
[00:02:32] The church in Smyrna was formed from an overflow of Paul's ministry in Acts 19 that we talked about last week. His ministry is in Ephesus. It leaks out to Smyrna. This was a city within what we know as modern day Turkey. It would have been 40 miles north of Ephesus. And it was known for its great culture, its Roman culture, and many temples in Smyrna. There was the temple to the goddess Roma. There were many temples to her, but the first was built there.
[00:03:07] There would have been temples to all of the Caesars and the Empress Lydia.
[00:03:13] Many temples, much pagan worship and spirituality.
[00:03:18] But Smyrna was the most pro Rome city in the empire.
[00:03:24] They lived by this phrase. Probably you go into the city and there's this phrase over the city to roam first in all things.
[00:03:34] We are about Rome first.
[00:03:38] We worship the Caesar and our allegiance is to Rome.
[00:03:42] And as we've talked about, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ rejects that sentiment.
[00:03:49] These Christians are proclaiming, no, Jesus is Lord, not Caesar, and the city of God is first, not Smyrna.
[00:04:01] And so they endure tribulation.
[00:04:07] And Jesus wants this church to know they shouldn't fear tribulation.
[00:04:14] They shouldn't be scared. In many ways, it's expected.
[00:04:18] As we'll look at in the text, this word tribulation means crushing pressure.
[00:04:26] Pressure from the outside that is going to crush you.
[00:04:32] And it just so happens Smyrna's prosperity, the wealth of this city, it's a very wealthy city, was due to the production of this ointment that we know as myrrh.
[00:04:48] And the way this ointment was made was through crushing a plant.
[00:04:56] And as the plant is crushed and pressure comes in on this plant, there is a fragrant aroma that goes out.
[00:05:07] And this city is known for that. That's what they're known for. That's where their wealth comes from.
[00:05:13] And what God will tell this church is this pressure is by design, like myrrh. You are being crushed.
[00:05:24] And when you're crushed, you're not losing.
[00:05:28] Because as you are being crushed by tribulation and persecution, there is a fragrant aroma that is coming out. And it is the glory of Christ.
[00:05:39] As you endure persecution, the world around you, well, see, Jesus is worthy and worth it.
[00:05:51] That is the aroma that you will set forth in the world as you endure tribulation. So this tribulation is by design for this church.
[00:06:02] And he tells them, don't fear the tribulation. It has purpose. And don't fear losing because you are rich in Christ.
[00:06:11] Notice verse 8. To the angel of the church of Smyrna. He says, write to John, write to this messenger, the one who oversees the message of this church. It could have been a guardian angel or maybe the pastor there, it's hard to tell.
[00:06:28] You write to this church. Notice the words of the first and last.
[00:06:34] It's interesting is Smyrna had a coin that they used. And on this coin was inscribed this.
[00:06:42] The first city of Asia in size and beauty.
[00:06:48] Many of them would have had those coins on them while they read this.
[00:06:52] And what is the point?
[00:06:54] Well, there is one who is before your city.
[00:06:58] Your city isn't first, there is one who's better and takes precedent over your city.
[00:07:06] And it is the first and last that we've already seen in this book. Who is Jesus? The one who is before all things. He's eternal. He created all things.
[00:07:16] He controls all things, and he will consummate all things.
[00:07:21] There's one who is better than your allegiances. The first and the last Jesus. And notice who died and came to life we've talked about in chapter one. When John sees this vision of Christ, he falls as though dead. And Jesus lifts him up, comforts him with this truth, I am the living one. I died and behold, am alive forevermore.
[00:07:44] Smyrna in 582 BC was completely wiped out and destroyed.
[00:07:53] And then in 290 BC was rebuilt.
[00:07:58] And so these folks had a lot of pride in their city.
[00:08:03] They may even say of citizens of this city, we have been brought back from the dead, this great city of Rome.
[00:08:13] And yet Jesus wants to make clear not only is he before this city, preeminent over this city, he is even more resilient than this city.
[00:08:25] He is back from the dead.
[00:08:28] And notice he says, Verse 9, I know this is important. I know. Which means to intimately know something, your tribulation.
[00:08:39] And one of the points here is if he knows their tribulation, the pressure, then he's allowing it.
[00:08:46] You understand that for Jesus to say, I know you're suffering, but then allow must be by design for the church.
[00:08:58] He says, I know your tribulation. This isn't an accident. And your poverty.
[00:09:03] There are many in this church who, in this great city of wealth and prosperity, they had lost family and they had lost friends, and they had lost their jobs.
[00:09:15] And Jesus says, I know that's happening to you, so why is he not stopping it?
[00:09:22] Why is he not rescuing them from it?
[00:09:26] Because the tribulation, the pressure, has purpose.
[00:09:30] There's something coming from it that the world will see, and it is the worth of Christ.
[00:09:36] And they will see this notice, verse 9. But you are rich.
[00:09:42] You may lose all of these things in the world, but in Christ you're rich.
[00:09:47] He says in Jesus, you have more than anything you are losing. And the world needs to see that. That's the purpose of the tribulation you're going through, is that the world will see you have something better than this world has to offer in Christ.
[00:10:01] And many of us know how the book of Revelation ends.
[00:10:05] What comes down from heaven to earth.
[00:10:09] A city, a city better than this glorious city.
[00:10:14] And so these believers who are suffering in Smyrna he wants them to know, you are rich in Christ and you may lose wealth in this city, but there is a better city coming from heaven that has been given to you in Jesus.
[00:10:30] And for us as we read this, the question that we should ask ourselves as we witness the gospel is what are we really scared of losing?
[00:10:39] What is it in your life that you're scared of losing for the sake of the Gospel?
[00:10:46] What comes to mind that precious possessions that you say, I can't let go of these things Jesus would tell you, today, you're rich in Christ, you can freely let go.
[00:11:00] What are you scared of?
[00:11:03] You see, the truth is, even in this church, we've had professors and teachers who have been threatened to be censored for their faith in Christ.
[00:11:14] Folks in the medical field who were sidelined because they would not use pronouns or lie about gender, business folks who have missed opportunities because they would not hang out with decision makers in their company because of their Christian principles.
[00:11:35] And they lost opportunities.
[00:11:37] And many have been shunned because of their clear stance on marriage between one man and one woman and being very vocal about being pro life.
[00:11:50] There's folks in our church who have lost opportunities for the sake of the Gospel.
[00:11:58] The truth is we're free to do so.
[00:12:03] We have a better kingdom and a better city in Christ coming to us.
[00:12:10] And some of us, in light of this, should choose to have less of this world for the sake of Christ.
[00:12:16] You're free to do that.
[00:12:18] You don't have to chase the same amenities that everybody around you is chasing.
[00:12:23] The status by just having more from the outside. The stuff that everybody looks at and says, oh, they're successful, they're happy.
[00:12:35] Look at, look at the stuff they got. They must be happy.
[00:12:38] And we know that's not true. We look at folks who have lots of stuff all around us who are absolutely miserable.
[00:12:45] But we have Christ.
[00:12:47] And so part of our witness is choosing to have less of this world for the sake of Christ, to do ministry in a way where it cost us.
[00:12:57] We don't have everything. Everybody around us has. Maybe choosing to go to another place around the world and live in poverty because you're rich in Christ, but you are rich. Do you believe that?
[00:13:15] Do you believe you're rich in Christ? That if you lose status here, it doesn't matter, you're an heir to the kingdom. That's my status child of God.
[00:13:25] You may even be separated from family. Here you have the church of the Lord Jesus Christ that you'll spend eternity with. You have a family in Christ, you may lose money for your faith.
[00:13:37] Oh, you have a kingdom that in your inheritance that you will enjoy forever. Everything that you lose here, Jesus said, for his sake will be restored 100 fold.
[00:13:48] Do we believe that?
[00:13:49] Is Jesus enough?
[00:13:52] Next he says, do not fear making enemies.
[00:13:56] You see, the Jews at this time struck a deal with Rome and they would often pay them to allow them to worship in their synagogues.
[00:14:07] And initially, Christians were afforded the same privileges.
[00:14:14] Christianity for a bit, was just considered another sect of Judaism.
[00:14:21] And so Rome allowed them the same privileges for a short time.
[00:14:26] But then in 70 AD, Christians refused to join the Jews in revolting against Rome.
[00:14:32] And this was kind of an inflection point.
[00:14:36] Even though Jews who rejected the Messiah hated the church at this point, persecution from the Jews began to intensify and they began to sell out the church to Rome. Notice Jesus says, I know your tribulation. And he says, slander, which means injurious. Injurious speech that injures. I'll get it right, that hurts, that harms.
[00:15:07] The Jews who rejected Jesus were infuriated with Christians and began to call them atheists.
[00:15:14] They would tell the Roman government, they worship this Jesus of Nazareth that they say has been raised from the dead. He's no God. This is a figment of their imagination. They are atheists.
[00:15:28] They're not associated with us.
[00:15:31] They called the Christians cannibals for what we're going to do today.
[00:15:39] They eat flesh and drink blood.
[00:15:43] They eat Jesus flesh and drink his blood. They're cannibals.
[00:15:48] They're not religious, don't worship any God.
[00:15:52] They also spread rumors that at their gatherings they were just immoral love feasts. They slandered them.
[00:16:00] I'll never forget being in a village in Peru and walking up to a group of kids that we were trying to teach Bible studies to, and they ran and hid in their homes.
[00:16:12] And I asked the missionaries, why are they doing that. They act like they're scared of us.
[00:16:17] And it seemed like the day before they were out playing with our group and they said, well, every now and then the nuns come through here and. And they tell the kids that the gringos will eat them.
[00:16:30] And I remember how disheartening that was.
[00:16:35] Slander. That is just not true. It's just not reality.
[00:16:40] Jesus knows the slander you'll endure for the sake of the Gospel, things that aren't real. But here he says, this comes from Jews who say they're Jews. Notice the text and are not.
[00:16:52] I want to be very careful. There's A lot of division, conversation going on about Jews and the world. But we have to understand the context here.
[00:17:04] This isn't speaking to any of that. I want to be clear.
[00:17:08] The New Testament teaches that the promises of Abraham are not given to those who claim to be Jewish by the flesh, but those who believe in the Jewish Messiah, who is Jesus.
[00:17:22] The promises of Abraham are given to those who by faith trust in Jesus.
[00:17:29] The promises of Abraham are fulfilled in Jesus. And when you believe in Jesus, he gives them to you.
[00:17:36] And his only point here is that there are Jews who reject the true Messiah. They do not believe Jesus is king and Lord and Savior.
[00:17:46] They reject that idea. They're hostile toward that idea.
[00:17:51] And Paul or Paul, John or Jesus, actually Jesus. Let's get back to who's saying this.
[00:17:59] It's just pointing out they reject the Messiah and then. So they're not true Jews by faith according to spirit.
[00:18:08] But notice this phrase slander. And then Jesus says, but are a synagogue of Satan. And that's no slander because the Jews here, just like Satan, oppose Jesus.
[00:18:25] And so Jesus would say, that's a gathering of Satan, because they oppose me and they oppose the church. If we go back to that word slander, it can also be interpreted as blasphemy.
[00:18:40] So this group of people who are gathering in this synagogue who claim to be worshiping Yahweh, are actually blasphemous. Why? They reject me and they're trying to destroy my church.
[00:18:53] It's a synagogue of Satan.
[00:18:56] But notice what he says.
[00:18:58] Do not fear what you're about to suffer.
[00:19:03] It's obvious Jesus is angry with these religious leaders, so why does he just wipe them out?
[00:19:15] No, he says, I'm going to let you suffer at their hands.
[00:19:21] Don't fear it.
[00:19:23] Remember, we're to fear Christ most. We see in this vision. We tremble before him and he's for us. We have a Christ who's going to take care of us.
[00:19:33] But don't tremble before what you're about to suffer. In essence, what Jesus is saying here is you have just made the right enemies.
[00:19:42] Don't be scared, as though you've done something wrong or something horrible is going to happen to you that I can't take care of. Because remember, just like the religious leaders of the day, the Jewish leaders of the day, they brought in Rome to kill Jesus on a cross, Roman execution.
[00:20:06] All Jesus is saying is, the same thing's happening to you.
[00:20:10] You've made the same enemies that I have, so don't fear.
[00:20:14] We know how this turns out.
[00:20:17] Jesus was executed on a Roman instrument of torture and was raised from the dead three days later. So. So don't be scared. You've seen this happen before.
[00:20:26] You've just made the right enemies.
[00:20:29] Notice he says, behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison. Now, some people would just say this is connected back to the synagogue of Satan. And so the religious leaders and the Jews who reject Jesus of the day, who are out to destroy the church, but I think he's talking about Satan himself.
[00:20:49] And we have to understand that as we preach the gospel, worship and witness, we are in spiritual warfare all around in the spirit realm. That's not just in some galaxy far, far away. It is before us. We just don't see it.
[00:21:09] There is warfare raging, good versus evil, Christ versus Satan.
[00:21:17] And here, just like in the book of Job, Jesus says, I'm going to allow you to suffer and endure tribulation at the hands of our enemies. And many of them would have been arrested. And he says that you may be tested for 10 days.
[00:21:34] Now, I think 10 days here is just. It's another number of completion, like holding up 10 fingers.
[00:21:42] You are going to be completely tested. And the word test means to be proven. What he's saying to the church is, it's going to be completely proven that you align with me to the very end.
[00:21:57] You're going to be completely tested, that your allegiance is to me, and the world's going to see your allegiance to me.
[00:22:05] You've just made the right enemies.
[00:22:08] And so that's the next question I would ask you today, is why are you scared of making the right enemies?
[00:22:15] Most often it's because we want all the wrong friends.
[00:22:20] We make a big deal out of relationships where we just get some sort of temporary gain.
[00:22:29] In our cultural context, that's kind of the way this works out. Whether we're at work, we're at school, or part of a ball team, a group.
[00:22:41] In those factions, we kind of gravitate to the cool kids just in our heart. We think they get all the privileges.
[00:22:49] They're just kind of the cool kids at the lunch table. I want to be a part of what they're doing, those leaders, those people.
[00:22:58] And too often, we care too much about a seat at the table with those who will never be at Christ's table.
[00:23:07] We want to be liked by them and included by them.
[00:23:10] And many times they are enemies of Jesus. They reject the Gospel, they reject everything we stand for, but we still want to be included.
[00:23:21] In all our context, we have that drift in Our heart.
[00:23:27] But the truth is, the closer to Jesus you are.
[00:23:31] And let me be clear, the more clear with the gospel you are.
[00:23:36] We're not talking about generic moral values, okay?
[00:23:41] You can coast still in our culture with generic moral values.
[00:23:49] And you should have good moral values.
[00:23:52] I'm talking about to the sense, to the degree you begin to say, you know what? I believe the Bible is the word of God. And I order everything I do.
[00:24:03] Not just my political stances, but everything I do in light of the Bible. The way my family functions, the way I raise my kids.
[00:24:13] All of my views come from the Bible. And I want to be clear about that. It's not some generic cultural thing. I believe the Bible is the word of God and I start there.
[00:24:23] The more you are clear about that, the more enemies you will have. Some of us just aren't very clear about that.
[00:24:29] We like to stay in the mushy middle.
[00:24:34] The more you will say, no, no, no, Jesus is the only way of salvation. Jesus.
[00:24:40] If you do not believe in Jesus, you will suffer for your sin forever in hell.
[00:24:46] The more we say that, the more we know what the same sort of slander.
[00:24:51] You're unloving, you're dumb, anti intellectual weirdo slander because you've made the right enemies.
[00:25:06] We don't want to be jerks for Jesus.
[00:25:10] We don't want to alienate folks without grace and mercy and compassion. But we got to be clear about Lord and Savior.
[00:25:19] We got to be clear about the gospel direct.
[00:25:22] And when we do, we make all the right enemies. The question is, do you want all the wrong friends?
[00:25:31] Then he says, don't be scared of death. He says, be faithful unto death. Now in essence, that's what it means to be a witness, to say Jesus is Lord, even if it cost your life.
[00:25:41] Be a witness and I will give you the crown of life. Here the image is of a wreath or a crown that was put on the head of a runner.
[00:25:49] We envision a runner during this time standing on a podium and they're given this crown for winning the race.
[00:25:57] And I want to say this. There are many different crowns in the Bible. You'll see the mention of crowns throughout scripture. Don't try to differentiate between all of them.
[00:26:08] Oh, I want this crown in heaven.
[00:26:11] I want that crown.
[00:26:14] At the end of the day, we lay all our crowns before the feet of Jesus.
[00:26:18] But the idea of crown usually refers to making it to the end, in faithfulness to Christ.
[00:26:26] Running your race all the way to the end and you're rewarded. Here he says, with life in the book of Revelation, we overcome and we win Life at the end of the race.
[00:26:40] In Smyrna, the city itself was called the Crown of Asia.
[00:26:47] And in the city there was this shrine of the goddess of Nemesis.
[00:26:54] And it was atop the city.
[00:26:57] Beautiful shrine to this pagan God.
[00:27:02] I don't know if I should say that. Beautiful shrine to a pagan God. Don't pull that out of the sermon and post it anywhere.
[00:27:11] But at the bottom of the mountain, there was this street of gold, and it sort of set this place off as the crown of the crown city.
[00:27:22] And once again, what's Jesus saying here?
[00:27:26] There is a better crown.
[00:27:28] As you suffer at the hands of folks in your city, there is a better crown for you than even the crown of Asia, than even the crown of Smyrna. There is a better crown that will be placed on your head.
[00:27:46] If you endure to the end, you will be given life.
[00:27:52] This is what he's talking about here. You will be given life, eternal life at the end. That is the reward for the believer who continues to worship and witness to the end.
[00:28:03] And Jesus will be the one to give that to us. Remember, back in chapter one, Jesus says, I have the keys to death and Hades, meaning I have authority over these things.
[00:28:16] Death in Hades.
[00:28:18] And in the same way Jesus unlocked the door of life through his death, he unlocked the door of life for us. He dies so that the door of life can be opened to us.
[00:28:34] Now we mimic that when we die, we walk through that door of life to be rewarded with life and goodness in the presence of God forever.
[00:28:47] Jesus has authority to give you that.
[00:28:50] Who's the judge of this race? Jesus.
[00:28:52] And he's going to give it to everyone who is faithful to him to the end. If you believe in him and you follow him and you continue to cling to his gospel to the end, he's going to reward you with this crown.
[00:29:05] This is why Paul would say to live as Christ into to die is gain.
[00:29:11] This is why Paul so often used this race metaphor when he's teaching about what it means to be aggressive and intentional in gospel ministry to the end.
[00:29:24] He tells the elders in Ephesus that he's about to go and suffer and be bound and be put in prison for the sake of the gospel.
[00:29:35] And he would say in Acts 20:24, I do not count my life as dear to myself.
[00:29:43] Jesus is all that matters.
[00:29:46] He says, I'm not clinging to my life so that I may finish my race with joy.
[00:29:53] I want to cross the finish line with my hands. Raised in the air.
[00:29:58] Yes, I made it.
[00:30:01] I was faithful to the end.
[00:30:06] Oh, you have the power to do that.
[00:30:08] Why?
[00:30:09] The worst possible thing that could ever happen to you is the best possible thing that will happen to you.
[00:30:17] Death, the worst thing that you could ever imagine. Dying is actually the best thing.
[00:30:28] You die and you walk through that door and you're with Jesus forever.
[00:30:33] We conjure in our minds, if I'm faithful and I share the gospel, all of these things, horrible things that are going to happen to me.
[00:30:45] I have a neighbor that I've Talked to for 13 years about the gospel, and he's quite pleasant when I talk to him about the Gospel.
[00:30:57] But I still, every now and then before I speak to him, thinking he's going to smack me in the face if I start talking about Jesus again. I don't know. That's spiritual warfare. That's.
[00:31:09] We just think they're going to yell and they're going to scream and they're going to hate me and they're never going to ever talk to me again. And that doesn't happen.
[00:31:19] But let's say they kill you game.
[00:31:25] You go be with Jesus. So what are you scared of?
[00:31:29] What are you scared of? It's probably not going to happen.
[00:31:32] And guess what? They might get saved.
[00:31:38] People weren't calling Paul and saying, hey, let's have coffee. I want to talk to you about Jesus.
[00:31:45] Why? Because he might kill them.
[00:31:49] And the one who would call himself the chief of sinners was the greatest missionary ever known.
[00:31:56] So with all that fear and anxiety that you have for that person, oh, they're going to be so mad and they're going to hate me and it's going to be awful. It's probably not going to happen. And what if they believe the gospel?
[00:32:06] Oh, you don't have to fear even death.
[00:32:09] And then he says, don't be scared of judgment. Notice he who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says of the churches. Remember this phrase that Jesus used when he's telling parables? There's hidden things in this letter for the churches that they can only understand. But notice he says, churches, there is a word to this church. But he also wants all the churches to understand what he's telling this church because they will suffer persecution, too. Notice, to the one who conquers, this means conquer by the word of the Lamb, testimony to the end. They worship and they witness to the end. Notice, he says, will not be hurt by the second death. Now, this was a Jewish phrase that was used of eternal death, where those who Rejected, the Lord went and suffered forever.
[00:32:56] And we see the full picture of what that looks like at the end of this book, the Lake of Fire.
[00:33:01] All who reject Christ suffer in judgment forever, away from any of God's goodness. They just suffer forever for rejecting the Christ.
[00:33:14] But for the believer, Christ paid the penalty of the second death for you on the cross. He endured the wrath of God for your sin and what that means for you. When you walk through that door of death, your body dies. Your spirit goes to be with the Lord. And when Jesus comes, he will raise up everyone to face judgment.
[00:33:37] But your spirit and your body, reunite it for those who are in Christ. They will not be judged. They will go live with Christ forever. And this is why Jesus could say, if you follow me and do what I say, you'll never see death.
[00:33:52] That phrase from Jesus has always just gripped me. You won't see death.
[00:33:57] But I've walked in to waiting rooms and I've seen death.
[00:34:06] I've seen people close their eyes in death.
[00:34:10] I've seen death.
[00:34:12] What's he talking about?
[00:34:15] You won't see ultimate eternal death.
[00:34:19] You will close your eyes in death and open them to see the glory of Christ.
[00:34:26] You won't face the judgment, you won't face the second death. Look at that phrase. It will not hurt you.
[00:34:34] It can't touch you.
[00:34:38] There is therefore no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
[00:34:45] None.
[00:34:46] Jesus endured at all. Any wrath that God would have left for you, non existent, Jesus endured it.
[00:34:55] What's he telling the church?
[00:34:57] So you don't have to be scared.
[00:35:00] You don't have to be scared of the judgment of men.
[00:35:04] Jesus would also say, don't fear man, because what can they do to you? The answer is they can kill you, but they cannot send you to hell.
[00:35:15] They can't send you to hell. The worst possible thing for the Christian is the best possible thing. We enter life and we never see eternal judgment. We never see sin again.
[00:35:26] We never see the consequences of sin again. We only know the goodness of God forever. So why are we scared what other people think of us?
[00:35:35] Even things that are untrue, not right, that we can't vindicate right now, we can't get right.
[00:35:41] That's not true. Christians don't believe that you've ever felt that way.
[00:35:46] We don't believe that. Stop saying that.
[00:35:50] We just made the right enemies.
[00:35:53] We don't have to fear their judgment.
[00:35:55] We're free of eternal judgment. So we can be confident.
[00:35:59] Confident and bold with the gospel. Listen, I don't want to communicate in this book that sharing the gospel is something you should be scared and absolutely paralyzed in guilt for one of the things revelation does. It frees us.
[00:36:12] It frees you. If I'm worshiping this Christ, who's taking care of me? I'm free.
[00:36:18] I'm free. I can be bold and confident, not paralyzed in fear.
[00:36:28] In 110 A.D. a disciple of John named Polycarp became the pastor of this church.
[00:36:36] And in 55 AD authorities came to arrest him for preaching the Gospel.
[00:36:41] You know what he did when they came to arrest him?
[00:36:44] The pastor of the Church of Smyrna?
[00:36:48] He offered them food and drink and one hour of prayer before you take me away to burn me.
[00:36:56] Can we just talk?
[00:36:58] Y' all want something to eat?
[00:37:00] Need something to drink?
[00:37:03] Let me pray for you.
[00:37:05] And let me tell you about Jesus.
[00:37:07] He's free to do so.
[00:37:11] And right before they burned him, they asked him if he would recant.
[00:37:18] You say Jesus is Lord. Would you deny Jesus is Lord?
[00:37:23] He would not.
[00:37:25] And this is what he said.
[00:37:27] 80 and 6, 86 years I have served my king, and he has done me no wrong.
[00:37:37] How then can I blaspheme my king who saved me?
[00:37:43] Understand, it's not Jesus who is doing you wrong.
[00:37:47] Maybe it's the world that's doing you wrong.
[00:37:51] In Christ, he's done you no harm, and he will never do you harm in Christ.
[00:37:57] Oh, why would we deny him? Why would we be scared to proclaim his name?
[00:38:02] You see, the truth is, Polycarp was willing to face the fire of men because he would not see the eternal fire of God.
[00:38:10] And as folks stood around and they saw smoke, probably smelled flesh, Jesus would say it was a fragrant aroma.
[00:38:23] As he is pressed and crushed, the worth and worthiness of Christ came forth. The fact that we're even talking about it today, Jesus is worthy of your worship, and he's worthy of your witness. You see, the truth is, Jesus doesn't know your tribulation from a distance.
[00:38:44] He is a priestly king who was tested in all the ways that you'll be tested.
[00:38:51] And so today, as we come before the Lord's table, this is a perfect opportunity for us to worship right here, to remember the Gospel and worship Christ so that we would be better witnesses.
[00:39:05] And I want to invite you to worship Christ today.
[00:39:08] This king who was crushed under the pressure of your sin so that you would know the relief of heaven.
[00:39:16] This king who became poor so that you might become rich. This one who was slandered and blasphemed so that you will be given a name by God.
[00:39:25] Would we worship the one who wore the crown of thorns so you will receive the crown of life?
[00:39:30] Oh, we get to worship the one today who endured judgment so that you would be accepted forever.
[00:39:36] Will we come to the table and worship so that we would leave here today powerful, bold, courageous gospel witnesses?
