seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Revelation 3:3 “To the angel[a] of the church in Sardis write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits(b) of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits(b) of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
Revelation 3:1 Or messenger; also in verses 7 and 14
Revelation 3:1 That is, the sevenfold Spirit
This is from the easy english commentary.
The city called Sardis was about 30 miles south east from Thyatira. It was 50 miles east from Smyrna. Sardis was a busy trade centre. The powerful king of Lydia had ruled from Sardis. It had been his capital city. That was 700 years before. The ruler of Sardis was now King Croesus. There was a great distinction between him and other people. It was that he was the richest man in the world. His rule was magnificent. There had been gold in the city. It was in the river that flowed through the centre. Sardis was also a centre for the woollen trade. They dyed wool there.
Because they were so rich, the people became lazy. They had built the city on the top of a hill. The hill was very steep. They thought that no one could attack them. Twice, enemy soldiers had found a way to climb the hill. Each time there was no guard on duty. People had thought that they were safe. They were too safe to need a guard. They were too lazy to watch.
There was a great earthquake in AD 17. However, they soon rebuilt the city. The Emperor Tiberius helped them. He gave them a large amount of money. He also freed them from paying taxes. This benefit lasted for five years. The people felt safe. So they relaxed. They lived easy lives. The letter to Sardis is one of the most severe of the letters.
The 7 spirits of God refers to the Holy Spirit. He goes to the 7 churches. The 7 stars are the angels of the churches (1:20). The church belongs to Jesus Christ. He is Lord of the 7 stars. He holds them in his hand. He has a firm grip on them. He also judges them.
Christ knows what the Christians in Sardis have done. They are alive. They are successful. That is what the Christians in the other churches thought. There is no mention of Balaam, the Nicolaitans or Jezebel in this letter. There is no mention of false teachers. The people in Sardis were too lazy to bother about such things. Probably they had plenty of money. But the truth was that they were spiritually dead.l
Because they were so rich, the people became lazy. They had built the city on the top of a hill. The hill was very steep. They thought that no one could attack them. Twice, enemy soldiers had found a way to climb the hill. Each time there was no guard on duty. People had thought that they were safe. They were too safe to need a guard. They were too lazy to watch.
There was a great earthquake in AD 17. However, they soon rebuilt the city. The Emperor Tiberius helped them. He gave them a large amount of money. He also freed them from paying taxes. This benefit lasted for five years. The people felt safe. So they relaxed. They lived easy lives. The letter to Sardis is one of the most severe of the letters.
The 7 spirits of God refers to the Holy Spirit. He goes to the 7 churches. The 7 stars are the angels of the churches (1:20). The church belongs to Jesus Christ. He is Lord of the 7 stars. He holds them in his hand. He has a firm grip on them. He also judges them.
Christ knows what the Christians in Sardis have done. They are alive. They are successful. That is what the Christians in the other churches thought. There is no mention of Balaam, the Nicolaitans or Jezebel in this letter. There is no mention of false teachers. The people in Sardis were too lazy to bother about such things. Probably they had plenty of money. But the truth was that they were spiritually dead.l
David Guzik write this about the clean clothes.
Even shows that in some ways it was remarkable that there were a few names still faithful to the Lord. It may have been remarkable because of city's notoriously immoral reputation. Even in a city that wicked, some among the Christians had not defiled themselves by joining in sin.
Why does Jesus refer to defiled garments? In the heathen worship of the day, the pagan gods could not be approached with dirty clothes. The analogy can work for the worship of Jesus, because He gives His pure ones white garments.
"As sin is expressed under the notion of nakedness, so holiness is expressed under the notion of a garment." (Poole)
Why does Jesus refer to defiled garments? In the heathen worship of the day, the pagan gods could not be approached with dirty clothes. The analogy can work for the worship of Jesus, because He gives His pure ones white garments.
"As sin is expressed under the notion of nakedness, so holiness is expressed under the notion of a garment." (Poole)
Winston Churchill said to Britain in the early days of World War II: "I must drop one word of caution, for next to cowardice and treachery, overconfidence leading to neglect and slothfulness, is the worst of wartime crimes."
