The Church That Wasn't There

There's an old Nursery Rhyme that goes like this: “As I was going up the stair,/I met a man who wasn't there/He wasn't there again today/Oh, how I wish he'd go away.” There is something both humorous and slightly unnerving in the picture. What would it mean—what could it mean—to meet someone who wasn't there? How could we have the sensation of meeting someone without there being someone there to meet?

And yet, that is something of the picture which Jesus gives us of the church at Sardis when He addresses it in Revelation 3:1-6. There was a church in Sardis. It may, for all we know, have been a large church with many members. It may have had successful ministries in the world around it. It had recognition and reputation—it had a name as a living church. But, in reality, it was dead. Its reputation and ministry were a sham. It was the church that wasn't there.

Ephesus, Pergamos, and Thyatira had their share of problems; they were churches in grave danger from problems within their own walls. And yet they were, fundamentally, living churches if that life was somewhat diseased. But it seems that Sardis as a whole simply was not alive. The people are Sardis had ceased to follow God. Verse 2 says “I have not found thy works perfect before God.” The word perfect in Greek has the idea of bringing something to completion. The idea seems to be that they had started out following God, but they had dropped off along the way. They were still going through the motions of having church, but by in large it was merely a form with no reality. And not only that, but it seems that many people in the church were falling into open sin, defiling their garments with evil.

And I don't think Sardis was the only church ever to be in this position. This danger, this possibility is always real. Merely having a form of godliness and a reputation of spiritual life cannot, on their own, create an actual relationship with God. A church should have a name that it lives, but that—good as it is—will not prevent it from dying. Spiritual life, like physical life, is conditional; it may be lost. And even when it is lost, sometimes it takes a long time for anybody to notice. There have been many churches throughout history; there are some churches still today—which, like Sardis—are churches that aren't there. 

This church was in a far worse state than any of the churches addressed thus far. Jesus has stinging words and warnings for them. Jesus would most likely have stinging words and warnings for many churches today. But this letter is not simply a letter of condemnation; this is not simply Jesus telling off the church. This is a diagnosis—and a prescription. Jesus had a message for the church, a message which showed them their position but also showed the way out of it.

And I think this message is still relevant. Because spiritual death, spiritual loss is always possible. Whether we are in a church like Sardis which simply isn't there or within a bright and living church, we are still within the possibility of becoming dead. If we want to avoid that fate—if we want to maintain spiritual life or revive it when it has been lost—then we must hear what the Spirit saith unto the church. And there are two things which the Spirit said to this church.

First, be watchful. This is Jesus' primary word to the church; the first command of verse 2. Be watchful; be awake and alert, keep your eyes open.

One of Charles Dickens' characters, speaking of some event, says "It shook me in my habit--the habit of nine-tenths of the world--of believing that all was right about me, because I was used to it." I think we all recognize this feeling—this is what we call complacency, the habit of believing that everything is all right because we are used to it. And often this happens in our relationship with God—just thinking everything is good between us and God and that we are where we ought to be because we haven't taken any pains to think otherwise and because God hasn't done anything terrible to us yet. But obviously, this is false security. That is why Jesus warns us to be watchful—to be awake and alert; not just complacently accepting things, not drifting along thoughtlessly—but keeping our eyes wide open. 

We must be aware of our situation. Remember the primary problem in Sardis. It is found in verse 1: “Thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.” The problem was inconsistency. There was a difference between the appearance of the church in Sardis and the reality. This letter isn't written to pagans dancing around the altar of some false idol; this letter isn't written to atheists spitting at the sky or to sinners strung out in the gutter. This letter is written to a church, to people that gathered somewhere every Sunday to pray and hear the word of God preached.

And that was why they had to be aware. Because it was easy to think that since they were a church and had a good profession and because they were gathering together that everything was all right. It would be easy to think that because they had a name that they were living that they really were living. I almost used the word 'hypocrisy' to describe Sardis—because they were acting a part different from what they really were. But when we think of someone as a hypocrite we usually think of someone who consciously and deliberately assumes a false part—of someone who speaks complements while every second their mind is speaking slander—of someone who put on a mask. But it doesn't seem as if the people of Sardis were like that. Rather, it seems as if they themselves were unaware of the part they were playing. They were so used to their mask that they forgot they had it on.

And, human nature being what it is, this is always a possibility. That is why we must be watchful and aware of our situation. We should periodically take spiritual inventory, checking up on our relationship with God—because it so easy to lose sight of where we are and, without realizing it, drift away from where we ought to be. And while this is easy, it is not harmless. 

That is why we must be watchful and be aware of the danger. This letter is one of warning. Jesus was giving them an ultimatum. In verse 3 we have that warning: “If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.”  Generally speaking, if someone is going to break into your house, they do not send you a notice saying: “I will break into your house at 10:00 Wednesday evening.” A burglar's whole strategy, generally speaking, is to catch people off guard.  And Jesus is warning them that unless they watched, He would come to them unexpectedly and catch them off guard. 

There is something ironic here. If you go down just a few verses, when Jesus is speaking to the church of Philadelphia, he gives them this word of hope: “Behold, I come quickly.” But that which was held out in hope to a faithful church is given here as a warning. The presence of God is a double-edged reality. Just as, at the last day, when Jesus returns to Earth, it will be to some a day of rapture and to some the day of doom—so, whenever God comes on the scene, whenever God acts, it bring both hope and fear.

But the point is this. As Christians, we believe in God. We believe that God sees everything we do, knows all we think, is aware of all we are, is active in every moment of our life, and ultimately will judge us for all we do. That is what it means to believe in God. That is why we must be watchful, awake, and alert to the reality that God is always present and that, sooner or later, in one way or another, we will be called to account for our lives to Him.

I never used to own a fire extinguisher, but when I first moved into my apartment in Salem, I had a small fire in an old porch light. It wasn't serious and my neighbor was able to put it out with his fire extinguisher. But after that, I went out and bought an extinguisher of my own. I didn't want to be caught unaware like that. But, of course, many people go through life and never have a fire or a need of an extinguisher. I've never had a need for one since that day. You might be able to ignore or forget about that danger and be all right. But everyone will have to give an account to God—that is why we must keep watch. But that is only half of the story. 

We must also be aware of the hope. Like all of Revelation, this letter is a message of warning and also of hope. Sardis might be bad, but it was not hopeless. Jesus wrote to them to warn them and warning always implies hope because it implies the possibility of escaping the danger. Many people look at their lives, either on a natural level or even on a spiritual level, and realize how far short they fall of what they ought to be. But that knowledge drives them to despair and despondency. But Jesus' goal here was to stir them to action. He had a command for them. 

And that leads us to the second thing Jesus said to this church: “Strengthen the Things That Remain.” Even though there was much that was wrong with Sardis, Jesus' command to them wasn't to throw up their hands and despair. Jesus didn't say that He was going to wipe out the church and start fresh. He told them to take what was good in the church, what good things they had, and hold on to them. God didn't want them looking down at the ground in defeat, but to turn their eyes upward. I don't know everything that was involved in strengthening the things which remain, but as I look at this letter, I see several things that I think were involved. 

In order to strengthen the things that remained they were to look to God. Remember, as I said, this was a church. These were people who had a name that they were alive. They had had a profession. That was one of the things that remained. They knew who God was; in the midst of a world of idolaters and cynics, they knew and acknowledged the true God. And so they had to look to God, keep their eyes focused on him.

On one hand, this is because God is the only one whose opinion mattered. Verse 2 gives the charge against the church, that their works were not perfect before God. Maybe they were thinking, Well, you know, we don't have the problems in our church that Thyatira does—and certainly, we're much better than that church in Laoidica. Maybe they were complacent with their position because they were comparing themselves to other churches. Why do I think that? Because that's what we so often do—we so often compare ourselves with others and gain a false confidence. St. Paul describes those who: “measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.” (2 Corinthians 10:12)  That is why we should always keep our eyes on God—because our works will be judged by Him, and only His commendation or condemnation really matters.

But on the other hand, they had to look to God, because only God could help them. I've preached several times on Jonah. Jonah was not a very good prophet who was guilty of folly and rebellion by running away from God. But for all that, he knew God, and when he was in a dark place, he knew exactly who to call on. And that is what the church at Sardis had. They had slipped away from God—seemingly gradually, unlike Jonah, but they were still far away from God. But they knew God and when things were dark, they knew who to call on.

Revelation is a revelation of God, of Jesus. In verse 1, Jesus describes Himself as the one who has the seven stars. If you go back to chapter 1, you'll find that those seven stars represent the angels or messengers of the seven churches. There's debate about exactly what that means, but the basic point is that this pictures Jesus personally and closely involved with his churches. If the people of Sardis wanted to find God, they didn't have far to go. Sardis was the church that had a reputation to be alive but was actually dead. But Jesus, though many people claimed that he was dead, was really alive. And he was the only one who could bring life to this dead church. That was why they had to look to God because only God could restore the church.

As I said before, the first thing Jesus said to the church to do was to be watchful, be alert and awake, be aware of their situation. And part of being aware of their situation was being aware of God—aware of the danger that God would judge them for their unfaithfulness, but also aware of the hope which lies in God. God had given the church life in the beginning and God could restore the church's life. 

And that brings us to the next thing they were to do—Remember. This is verse 3: “Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast.” Frequently the Bible reminds us to remember. God works in time. History is very important for Christianity. The Jews were frequently reminded to look back to God's work in their past, especially in the Exodus. As Christians, we look back to the work of Jesus—to Calvary and to the empty tomb.  And in the same way, each of us, in our own personal life, has a history. If we are Christians, then we have our own story of God working in our life and our service to God. And so it is important sometimes to remember, to look back over our lives.

They were to remember the truth they had received. As I said, that's what important about Sardis—they knew the truth. They weren't in ignorance. They don't even seem to have had trouble with false teachings as Pergamos and Thyatira did. They had heard and received the truth of God's word. They knew what to do—they knew how they ought to be living. That was one of the things that remained. It is sadly true that it is possible for a church to have a complete knowledge of the truth and yet lack real life—but the solution to that isn't to throw over the truth but to hold tight to it and live by it. 

They were to remember how things once were. They once had been alive. This church hadn't always been in the state it was at the moment. When they first heard the gospel, they had received it gladly. This church had once been alive before God. Like Ephesus, they had once had a first love, a love for God and for one another. Once they had walked with God, following his law and looking to Him for help.

That was what they were to remember and there was something to remind them. Look at verse 4: “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.” Though the church as a whole had fallen away from God, there were still some people in the church who were following God fully, some that had kept alive their dedication to God, some who were walking with God, some who had a relationship with God so that God Himself could say that they were worthy. These people stood as reminders to the rest of the church of what they once had been and what they could be. It is dangerous to compare ourselves to others, but the example of others can be a good reminder to us of God's power—of what God can do for them and what He can do for us.

Sometimes it's important to forget the past and live in the moment. But so long as our eyes are focused on the present moment, we have no frame of reference; we have nothing to compare anything with. Imagine something as simple as walking across a field. You need to keep your eyes on the ground so you don't trip over some unseen obstacle. But if you never look back and see where you came from, you might be walking around in circles without even knowing it. You might walk all day and end up two feet from where you started if you don't stop sometime to look back. Remembering is important—remembering what God has done for us and where we are in comparison to where we once were. But the focus here is on God. This remembering is to remind us of God's work and drive us back to Him. And that only helps if we are listening to God. 

And that is the other things the church was to do—Hear. All the letters to these churches contain this phrase: “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” The church at Sardis had heard God's word before. Now they had the chance to hear God's word again, a word of warning. But that word would only help them if they were willing to listen to it. They could be sure to remember the truth they had received but that would mean nothing unless they actually paid attention to that truth.

Generally speaking, when the Bible speaks of hearing the word of God, it implies obeying that word. To hear is to obey. And that is definitely the case for the church at Sardis, because in verse 3, after telling them to remember how they had received and heard, Jesus tells them to “repent.” That is to say, they were to remember what they had heard and then make a change so that, once again, they were actually living according to that word.

This was the irony of their position. This church was dead; in many ways, they were very far from God. But they had everything they needed. They had God's word. They had spiritual examples. They had a special message from God Himself. God's own son was present to give them spiritual life. They had everything they needed—they had just failed to make use of those provisions. That was why Jesus' message to them was to hear and repent, to remember and overcome. It was the church that wasn't there; but it could have been there. It had once been a bright and vibrant church and it could be that way again. Many in the church had drifted far from God, but they could have been walking with God with unspotted garments if they had chosen to follow God. They had been overcome by the burden of life and the passage of time—but if they had listened to God and obeyed him, they could have been of that class which overcometh.

Sardis was a church in a very bad way, but it wasn't a hopeless case. It was dead, but God is the one who can bring the dead back to life. They had heard God's word—they just needed to listen to it; they needed to look to God, remember what God had done for them and how they had once served God, and then repent and walk with God once again. They were to hear what the Spirit said. And if they listened to God and followed Him, then one day they would hear their name read out by Jesus before God the Father and the angels, as one whose name was written in the book of the living.

Sardis was a city with great riches and with a history of greatness. James Emerson tells of seeing the ruins of Sardis one night and thinking about all the history which had taken place in that city. And he writes: “There were more varied and more vivid remembrances associated with the sight of Sardis than could possibly be attached to any other spot of earth; but all were mingled with a feeling of disgust at the littleness of human glory. All--all had passed away! There were before me the fanes of a dread religion, the tombs of forgotten monarchs, and the palm-tree that waved in the banquet-hall of kings; while the feeling of desolation was doubly heightened by the calm sweet sky above me, which, in its unfading brightness, shone as purely now as when it beamed upon the golden dreams of [the ancient king]." (Letters from the Ægean, quoted in Barnes, Rev 3:1) Sardis had once been a great city, but all that greatness had passed away; its kings had died and their wealth had been lost.

And that was what had happened to the church at Sardis as well. Once it had been a living church; once it had started out to follow God. But now it was dead; it had failed to live up to its reputations; its works were not perfect before God. It was a church in ruins; it was the church that wasn't there. Once there had been greatness there; once there had been the glory of God. But all—all had passed away. 

But something remains. Looking at the church in the world today, it may sometimes see that we see nothing but ruins; that all that was once there has passed away; that all is dead. But if we look up to the sky, we see one thing that remains. The church is sometimes absent; God is always present. The church may die but her Lord is alive forevermore.

And that is what makes the difference. The ruins of the ancient kings of Sardis will probably never be rebuilt because those kings are dead. But no matter how dead a church is, it is never hopeless, because its Lord is alive. That is why we must be watchful and strengthen those things that remain, ever keeping our eyes on God, for He is our life and if we overcome we will be written in the book of those who are alive and no one can erase our name. Without God, the church can never really live. And with God, it can never really die.