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Greetings, this is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church with a

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moment of truth where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and faith.

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And today, I'd like to challenge you to consider how rich do you have to be to have a profound

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effect with the gospel. We're going to look at the church in Smyrna today, which was a very

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poor church, but which nevertheless was very rich towards God and very influential in the province

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of Asia in which it was located. We're looking at the book of Revelation, and let me read, first of

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all, verses 8 through 11, where we see in Revelation chapter 2, verses 8 through 11, we see the situation

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of the church of Smyrna in Asia. Okay, here we go. To the angel of the church in Smyrna write,

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these are the words of him who was the first and the last, who died and came to life again.

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I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich. I know the slander of those who say they

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are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer.

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I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution

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for 10 days. Be faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.

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He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be

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hurt at all by the second death. This is the letter to the church at Smyrna in the book of Revelation

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in chapter 2. And as we move through our text today, we're going to see just how obscure and poor

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and uninfluential the church in Smyrna was, at least to the world's point of view. The world

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scoffed at groups of scruffy non-persons like the saints in Smyrna. Now, in contrast, let me list for

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you the 10 wealthiest famous evangelical pastors, quote-unquote evangelical pastors in America,

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and see if they are as influential as the church in Smyrna. First of all, number one,

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you may be surprised at this, you may not be surprised at this, but the wealthiest evangelical

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pastor in America is Kenneth Copeland, number one, at $760 million. That is his valued worth,

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almost a billion dollars, Mr. Kenneth Copeland. Wow. Number two, at a distance,

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second is T.D. Jakes at $150 million. Number three, Pat Robertson at $100 million. Hal Lindsey at $45

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million. Benny Hinn at $42 million. Joel Osteen, there he is, at $40 million. Cruflo Dollar at $27

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million. Jimmy Swaggart, oh, weeping Jimmy Swaggart at $10 million. Joyce Meyer, oh, a lady breaks into the

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top 10. Joyce Meyer at $8 million. And then finally, my favorite evangelical, quote-unquote,

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the almost rabbi, John Hagee at $5 million. Now, as I contemplate the vast gulf between the church in

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Smyrna and that in the United States of America, represented by these, quote-unquote, pastors,

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I have so many questions. Men and Joyce Meyer, if our Lord would write you a letter, as he did the

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Smyrnians, what would he say? Are you any more or any less remarkable or righteous or spiritual for

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your wealth than the Smyrnians were in their poverty? What would your faith look like? Copeland,

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Jakes, Robertson, Lindsay, Hinn, Osteen, Dollar, Swaggart, Meyer, Hagee, what would your faith look

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like if you and your wealth and fame and soft circumstances ran into the buzzsaw of trial and

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persecution that the Smyrnians experienced? Oh, to me, this whole letter, compared to the

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circumstances of these so-called pastors in America, forced me to ask this question, what is

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rich? What is rich and who is rich? Well, Revelation answers these questions. It doesn't just talk about

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the buzzwords of rapture and beast and 666 and the Great Tribulation. No, Revelation answers the

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questions I just asked. In fact, we might say that our Lord was far more interested in answering these

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questions than what is the rapture, who is the Antichrist, what does the Great Tribulation start,

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right? Well, let us look through these sets of questions that Revelation takes up and not obsess

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over those who tickle our prophetic fancy. Well, let me have three points with you today in the Church

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of Smyrna. First of all, covering verse number 8, which reads, to the angel of the church in Smyrna,

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write, these are the words of him who was the first and the last who died and came to life again.

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And about verse 8, I'd like to say, concerning the church of Smyrna, persecuted, poor, and imprisoned

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as you may be, know that he who is sovereign, raised to life, holds your life and destiny in his

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hand. Yes. Now, as you are beginning to see, as we go through the book of Revelation, each of the

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letters begins and ends by hearkening back to the founding vision of the apocalypse, if you go back

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to chapter 1, that is, that of the risen and ruling Christ. Further, each of the titles of Christ used

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to announce himself to the particular church in question ministers to the needs of that church.

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Have you noticed that yet? You will as we go through them. Remember these things in days to come,

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number 1. First of all, hearkening back to chapter 1 and the initial vision of the risen Christ,

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number 1. Christ is the first and the last. First point to remember, Christ is the first and the

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last. Remember what Christ told John right out of the gate, fear not, I am the first and the last.

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If you remember, we observed that throughout Scripture, this is shorthand for the sovereignty of

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God in all of life's circumstances. The tendency for anyone stunned and overwhelmed by suffering and

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persecution, do not underestimate these circumstances, dear listener. The tendency for anyone stunned like

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this is to question whether God is really present, whether he's really in control after all.

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Even the greatest of the Old Testament prophets, John the Baptist, had to ask. Now when John heard

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in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to them,

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are you the one who is to come or shall we look for another? Right? And as we shall see,

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the suffering of the church in Smyrna was every bit as intense as that of John's, such that they were

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most certainly susceptible to asking the same kinds of questions. So the assurance that Christ was

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sovereign in all of their circumstances, no matter how punishing, that would be of great comfort to the

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saints in Smyrna. See, Revelation is not just about the great tribulation and the rapture and 666 and the

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beast and all of this stuff. No. God the Father was so in his son's life as he suffered with increasing

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intensity as he came to the cross, where beyond measure he suffered for us. And like master, like

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servant, like teacher, like student, we suffer with him in his footsteps. And as it was with Christ,

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so it is with us that, as Paul says, all things work together for good for those who are called

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according to his purpose. Well, this is because Christ is the first and the last, as he says right

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here in Revelation. As Martin Luther says in the bondage of the will, he says, the Christian's chief

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and only comfort in adversity lies in knowing that God does not lie, but brings all things to pass

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immutably, and that his will cannot be resisted, altered, or impeded, unquote.

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Secondly, then note with me, too, from the opening verse, verse 8, the second thing we note from

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our text, where our Lord says, these are the words of him who, I'm sorry, these are the words of him

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who is the first and the last, who died and came to life again. Note with me, secondly, Christ died and

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came to life. Important assertion in this verse, this title of Christ, that he died and came to life,

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emblemizes his sacrifice for sin and triumph over death, such that he is now the master of it

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and their respective realms. I am the living one, as he said in chapter 1, verse 18, I am the living

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one. I died and behold, I am alive forevermore. And I have the keys of death and Hades, unquote.

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The ultimate threat of tribulation at the hands of men is physical death. Terrible, yes, but not

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finally fatal. Our Lord said during his earthly ministry, do not fear those who kill the body,

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but cannot kill the soul. Rather, fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell, unquote.

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Oh, the words of our Lord, sometimes fearsome, are they not? The Smyrnians feared God and loved

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his son and confessed him before men. And thus, they had nothing to fear from him, but only joy and

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an anticipation of things to come, despite their poverty in the earth. With what can you threaten

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a man who's already dead in his Savior, dear listener? As Paul says in Romans chapter 6, we were

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buried therefore with him by baptism into death. In order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead

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by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with

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him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his, unquote.

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Well, dear listener, with a promise like that, what is there to fear from tribulation from men?

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This is what our Lord tries to bring to the suffering saints in Smyrna, that reassurance.

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Nothing to fear from men, since they indeed are in the hands of the fearless one, the Lord Jesus

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Christ. There's nothing to fear from him, who indeed can destroy both soul and body in hell,

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as he said in his earthly ministry. Oh, dear listener, what a valuable reassurance that would be.

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Well, secondly, let me note with you from verses 9 and 10, the church in Smyrna,

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persecuted, poor, and imprisoned as you may be, patiently endure with faith to the point of death,

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and the crown of life is yours. That's the upshot of verses 9 and 10. And once again,

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those of verses read, I know your afflictions and your poverty, yet you are rich. I know the

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slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid

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of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you,

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and you will suffer persecution for 10 days. But be faithful even to the point of death,

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and I will give you the crown of life. Persecuted, poor, and imprisoned as you may be,

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saints in Smyrna, continue to patiently endure with faith to the point of death,

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and the crown of life is yours. That's the upshot of verses 9 through 10. Anyone who is familiar with

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the city of Smyrna in the day, well, they would have found the circumstances of the Christian church

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there incongruous with those of the city proper. In the day in which John wrote to this church,

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Smyrna was elegant and prosperous. It was one of the first planned cities of the Roman Empire.

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Oh, the city of Smyrna, if you were to visit it, you would be impressed. You would want to stay there.

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You'd want a vacation there, because the city of Smyrna stretched down slopes of a sun-baked mountain

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to a thriving, bustling harbor. It had both sea and land beauty to it, both mountains and oceans.

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The city of Smyrna also had streets that were laid out in straight lines. They were paved with

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stones. They had linings with up and down the streets with porticos in which you could rest and

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relax. The city of Smyrna had glorious temples to Emperors Augustus and the Emperor Tiberius.

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The city of Smyrna had something I would have loved. You'd found me there. It had renowned library

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and shrines. But they were dedicated to various Greek and Roman gods and icons, like the poet

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Homer. Well, in the city of Smyrna, there were many, also many, well-endowed Jewish synagogues there.

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Ding, ding, ding, ding, right? This rings a bell with us, with the synagogues of Satan.

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Well, since the city was so rich and prosperous, and there was a large Jewish community here,

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there were many, well-endowed Jewish synagogues there. So then, of what significance in a city of

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splendor like this, of what significance would be a poor, ignominious Christian church?

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Well, because of these things, the above attributes of our Lord would have brought great comfort to the

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Smyrnians, and all of those in similar circumstances throughout church history, too. We must always

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remember that the letters to these seven churches encompass the whole of the church throughout its

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history. The churches, seven churches of Asia, written to by our Lord and revealed unto John,

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indeed revealed particular circumstances to particular churches. But we can generalize from them to see

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the similar circumstances of all churches throughout church history. That is one of the main upshots

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of the book of Revelation, and the letters to the seven particular churches, particularly. We in the West,

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we have a difficult time understanding what a poor church like that of Smyrna, of what significance it could

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possibly be in the wealthy and rich and generous circumstances of the city of Smyrna proper. Put yourselves in

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their place, dear listener, and see how isolated and alone this church must have been, and many other

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churches around the world even today must be. They were under a persecuting hand, and they were poor,

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and they were falsely accused of crimes, and they were on the brink of imprisonment and death.

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Does anyone see, they might ask. Does anyone know, they might ask. Does anyone care, they might ask.

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Is it worth it to continue, they might ask. So then, hearing this from our Lord, I know your

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tribulation, your poverty, these kinds of things. I know your circumstances. Well, this is said

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virtually to all the churches, some of whom might not take as much comfort in being so thoroughly

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known as the Smyrnaians. Well, what was it the Lord knew about the church in Smyrna? It knew,

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first of all, you have tribulation. Yes, our Lord understands. He knows. You have tribulation.

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And tribulation, in the context of the book of Revelation, is suffering for the name.

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That is suffering for the name of Christ. As the hymn says, others may be carried to the skies on

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flowery beds of ease. I've always loved that line. Am I to be carried to the skies on flowery beds of

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ease? That's from the hymn, Am I a Soldier of the Cross? by Isaac Watts. Others may be so carried to the

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skies on flowery beds of ease, but not the saints in Smyrna. Rather, as our Lord says, they fought to

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win the prize and sailed through bloody seas. As the hymn, Am I a Soldier of the Cross goes on to say,

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the Smyrnians fought to win the prize and they sailed through bloody seas. Now, others may think

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they will be raptured out of the tribulation, but the church in Smyrna can teach us how to endure it

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with patience and without gaining a works righteousness either. There are some false

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trendy tribulation teachers. There are some false revelation red heifer rapture ranters who say that

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to go through tribulation and suffering is to attempt to win righteousness, your own personal

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righteousness by your works. But that is a false dichotomy, a false characterization. No,

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we are expected to walk in our Savior's footsteps, right? Like teacher, like student, like master,

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like servant. No, we are expected to. You better be ready to take upon your shoulders the yoke of our

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Savior, and that involves suffering and tribulation. You are not to be raptured out of tribulation. You are

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expected to be equipped for tribulation. Secondly, the saints in Smyrna, you have poverty as well. Not

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only do you have tribulation, but you have poverty. That is, the church in Smyrna, as the churches around

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the globe find themselves within, so often, financial poverty, your financial circumstances,

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old church in Smyrna. They're mean because you have been brought to them by your enemies. That is,

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you've been prevented from buying and selling. This has happened not just to some far-flung future

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generation, but it happened to the church in Smyrna. They were prevented from buying and selling,

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as we have seen in the past. Or else, perhaps the Lord found you in these poor financial circumstances

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when he called you, as Paul said. Paul could as easily have reminded the Smyrnians as he did the

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Corinthians. And I quote Paul, for consider your calling, brothers. Not many of you were wise according

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to worldly standards. Not many were powerful. Not many were of noble birth, right? Well, the church

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in Smyrna, the Smyrnians, could not afford to buy media time on TBN or film lavish videos and times to

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put up on YouTube. No, they couldn't afford for a luxurious cruise with Ligonier Ministries to the

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Holy Land. No, they probably couldn't afford the legal fees for the charges that they faced, right?

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To the rest of Smyrna, the church, the Christian church, those who followed Christ were the bottom

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of the barrel in town. But our Lord calls them rich. Our Lord calls them rich. But what were they rich

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in? Once more, Paul puts it very nicely. He says, but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame

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the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised

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in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are. And because of him,

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you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and

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redemption. Oh, yes. The irony of all this, right? Oh, the seeming contradictory nature of these things.

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They are wealthy, though, in the eyes of the world, they are poor. They are nevertheless rich

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spiritually because they are in Christ. And that wealth, that spiritual wealth will be reflected

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all through revelation, too, as a motif. Chapter 5, verse 12 will say, worthy is the lamb who was slain

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to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing, even though on the

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earth, all the opposites seem to obtain. And of course, this wealth, this beauty, this gloriousness

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will culminate in the city whose streets are paved with gold and adorned with gems and whose gates are

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pearls, right? Here is true wealth. And the wealth of that city, the spiritual wealth of that city is

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emblemized and the kinds of wealth reflected in the gems and gold and silver that I just cited for you.

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The church all over the globe is more like the church in Smyrna than any other. Yes, brothers and

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sisters, when we finally look at all things, we're going to see the church in America, especially the

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evangelical church, those that have the Revelation Red Heifer rapture, ranters amongst them are more like

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the church in Laodicea than any other church. But around the globe, the churches we see around the globe

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in the African continent, in the South American continent, these are more like the church in Smyrna than any

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other. The church all over the globe takes more comfort in texts like this one than those contrived to bring

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the false hope that they will be raptured out of the tribulation, that they will be raptured out of

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poverty, or that they will, instead of all this, claim their blessing of wealth if they just send seed

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money to Joel Osteen or Benny Hinn. Dear listener, I will say this in countervailance to Benny Hinn and

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Joel Osteen. God does want you to be rich. He wants you to be rich in wisdom and righteousness

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and sanctification and redemption. Well, dear listener, tribulation does not stop with this, does it? No,

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it does not. And we will continue then with the further tribulations and poverty and persecution

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in the world, at least, of the church in Smyrna. But there are continued wealth and success and love and

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care and concern by the Lord in heaven. We're going to see this reflected as we oscillate from

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earth to heaven here in days to come too. And we'll see the church of Smyrna from a different

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perspective. That is the heavenly one as we oscillate then beginning in chapter four with the church

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in Revelation, the church in Smyrna in the book of Revelation. But I eagerly look forward to

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continuing then with our study of the church of Smyrna in the book of Revelation next week.

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But until then, just know that no matter how poor and persecuted you may be, how poor and persecuted

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you may feel, how under the standards of the world you may be, how the world may seem to triumph over

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you, dear listener, dear saint, dear believer, no matter where you're listening to this around the

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world, just know that you are rich in Christ and that he knows you, he sees you, he dotes on you,

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and he looks forward to welcoming you then into his kingdom in days to come where the streets are

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paved with gold and the gates are made of pearls and all these great images to show the wealth that

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you have in your Lord Jesus Christ. It's him I love. It's him I look forward to being with

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through eternity. This has been Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church and we're

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looking at the book of Revelation, perhaps in ways you've never heard before, but we are now preaching

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through the book of Revelation as well and we're doing so in our worship services. We invite you to

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come to our blessed worship services and they are at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard.

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Yes, New Geneva meets for holy worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th

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and Boulevard, looking at the book of Revelation, preaching through it. And you can also then tap the

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rest of our sermons on this series by going to our website, which is dedicated to these messages,

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and you can either do our church website, which is newgenevaopc.org. That's all one word,

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newgenevaopc.org, or our website dedicated to these radio messages. That's omnispotestas.org,

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O-M-N-I-S-P-O-T-E-S-T-A-S.org, omnisprotestas.org. And you can resource all of these radio messages and

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sermons on the book of Revelation. Or you can call us for more information at area code 208-523-0196.

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That's area code 208-523-0196.