“Write this letter to the angel of the church in Sardis. This is the message from the one who has the sevenfold Spirit of God and the seven stars: “I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief. “Yet there are some in the church in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes with evil. They will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. All who are victorious will be clothed in white. I will never erase their names from the Book of Life, but I will announce before my Father and his angels that they are mine. “Anyone with ears to hear must listen to the Spirit and understand what he is saying to the churches. Revelation 3:1-6
I do love
competitive sports. The days of my
involvement in team athletics is a rearview mirror issue…long gone, reduced to
an occasional tussle with a golf course.
As much as I have loved most sports, I’ve never cared a whole lot for
the concept of boxing. The whole idea of
throwing punches to mangle your opponent’s face, or a side blow to rupture his
spleen, is repugnant to me. And the fact
that my opponent would do the same to me (if he’s fast enough to catch up with
me)…well, that speaks for itself.
That being understood,
the pathos of a 15-round slugfest, where both fighters are battered, exhausted,
and nearly senseless from a half-hour of savage assault on their bodies, blows with
the average force of 2,500 pounds per square inch,[1] is profound.
One of the warriors is on his back, having been knocked there by his opponent. Just on the fading side of consciousness, he
is being counted-out by the referee. As the count reaches 7, the battered man’s trainer/second
is screaming from just outside the ring, get up…wake up…do something! It is in this moment it will become evident whether
training and instinct have created the heart to go on.
Like a boxer
on his back is the church of the 21st century. It’s an easy thing to look at the state of
the church and announce the count as just about over. And that may be true for some forms of church
to which we may have become too attached…formal processions and pomp…bishops, diocese
turf rules…books of rules…financial power, and many more.
But, what of
the church, the Bride of Christ? What of
the cosmic gathering of all the saints of all time? What of God’s plans for eternity? Are these also down for the count? I would say, YES…definitely…as
down as a carpenter, nailed to a cross on Friday morning. Frankly, it didn’t look too good for the
movement when Joseph of Arimthea begged for permission to bury Jesus in a
donated tomb. However it may have looked
at sundown on Friday evening, the church was just getting started. Fifty days later Peter would preach at the
Temple steps, a place where the crusty old guard in charge of the system soiled
God’s holy place, and three thousand souls signed up to follow the crucified
Lord.
The church
may have been reeling, battered, and torn on Friday, but Sunday was on its way!
Through the
centuries the church has had its share of Dark Ages, where
it seemed like Satan was going to win the day.
And, unless I miss my theological guess, we are in the same boat
today. You may have sensed it, or just
wondered, but the church is down right now, back to the canvas, reeling and
just barely conscious.
What to do? Let’s let God’s Word speak a word of hope and
revival:
This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today. Have a blessed day!
Title image Pixabay.com ∞ Unless
noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©
For other posts on Revelation 3 see: Epitaph of the Church and
Ears
to Hear; Heart to Obey
