Hello everyone and welcome back to Deeper Waters. We’re going to be starting out on the third chapter of Revelation tonight as we continue our Trinitarian Commentary. I wonder how many people thought we could get so much out of just two chapters so far. Yet we have. This book is rich in Christology and too often we’ve been arguing eschatology so much that we’ve missed it. Speaking of Christology, I do ask for your prayers in my continued Christlikeness. It’s a struggle in many ways, but it is something that’s developing as I have continued to grow especially over these past few months. I also ask for prayers in finances as a couple of phone calls today indicate that something could be coming through soon. Finally, I ask for your prayers concerning the other related area in my life. For now, let us go to Revelation 3:1 and see what Jesus has to say to the church in Sardis.
1“To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.
This was certainly a message the church in Sardis liked to hear. The church hardly has anything good said about it. The praise comes with hearing that there are a few that walk with Jesus. One would hope that it would be rather that there are only a few who do not. Christ comes in like a lion to this church and gives quite strong threats.
How does he describe himself? First off, he holds the seven spirits of God. This would best be seen as a reference to the Holy Spirit. Seven is a number of completion. This would mean that Christ is the one who provides the Spirit to the churches. Again, that bespeaks of his deity.
He is also the one who holds the seven stars. Christ is the one who is in charge of the angels. One can remember the Hebrews 1 passage we went through and how repeatedly the author wanted to point out that Christ is greater than angels, which is a theme that we will see throughout this apocalypse.
What a message this would be to our churches today. Christ is the one who first off has the Spirit to give to us. Now I’m not going to get into the charismatic debates, but all churches need the Holy Spirit and to understand the role of the Holy Spirit. Unless he is involved in our ministry, it will be in vain. I leave it to you readers to determine how you think he should be involved based on Scripture, but I believe we all agree he needs to be involved.
Lastly, he holds the angels as well. The church hasn’t developed in Protestantism at least much on the theme of angels, but these are beings that the Bible speaks of and often. It wouldn’t hurt us to learn the role of angels in our lives and realize that God made these beings for a reason.
We should take this into consideration with how we can see Christ approaching our own churches. Christ did not hesitate to condemn this church and may it be that your church or mine is not one where Christ is condemning but then says “Well there are a few that walk right.” May it be the opposite. Again, the warning to Sardis is one for us today, and it comes from the one who is fully God and fully man.
We shall see what is said to the church in Philadelphia tomorrow.
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