The apostle John writes in 1 John 2:15-17: Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. We are called to be a people of the Gospel; the Gospel must be central to our lives. Remember Paul said to the letter in Romans that those are Jews truly who are ones inwardly, written on the heart. So this letter is saying these are not spiritual Jews as we would understand the people of God, but they are people who have stirred up trouble. Hes already won. The connection of this passage will help us to understand its meaning. As we apply this standard, our views on many things undergo a radical change. Number one pray for the persecuted Church. He wants to be associated with them. If they die faithfully, they get a crown of life. Revile Christ. This was typical Roman procedure. But listen to the heroes of the faith. Isnt that unusual, that you would have a minister really converted? You got, theres two deaths, and unless Jesus comes back in our lifetime, we all face the first death, but not all have to have the second death. Number one. Some believe godly living, great faith and positive thinking will exempt them from trials. If they were faithful to the end, surely we can be as well. And I wonder if those of you this morning who are facing uncertain times, facing hardships, illness, chronic problems, test results, wayward family members Can you hear this comfort? A fifth characteristic of the true servant of Christhe possesses a continuing and undying faith in our victorious Lord Christ. 15, 16), VI. If God says anything, preacher, tell us what does God say? Never. Now the next verse: And God counted his faith for righteousness, because he believed in the Lord [Genesis 16:6]. 15:58). Luke 14:25 and 26: And there went great multitudes with Him: and He turned, and said unto them, If any man come to Me, and hate not his father, and mother, his wife, and children, his brothers, and sisters, and yea, his own life also, he cannot be My disciple. In 23 B.C. Because when the Lord looked into the heart of that rich, young ruler, he loved things more than he loved God [Matthew 19:21-22; Mark 10:21-22]. THE CHURCH THAT WOULD NOT SURRENDER 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. Youre faithful. Which leads to a second point of application. Denial of self(Matthew 16:24-25), A. Of course it does. Genesis 50:1-26, Denomination: Repent. Since we know that God will richly reward us, we should be faithful. sanctified, hallowed, blessed, II. We will suffer. If they refuse to swear by Caesar, if they refuse to worship our gods, then we must punish them., Polycarp replied, For 86 years I have been His servant and He has done me no wrong. We all love to be acclaimed. Its important to remember what happened after the Resurrection! Or suppose I were to stand in this pulpit and lecture on the humanities, or any subject you would choose to name: philosophy, psychology, medicine, astronomy, anything. We are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul (Heb. Truly, temptations----works of the devil challenge our daily thoughts and decisions. He uses these reminders as an example to us of how we, too, can accomplish great things through our faith. In Matthew 16:3 Jesus uses it describing the face of a sky before a violent storm. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was a hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarahs womb: he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith being fully persuaded that, what God had promised, He was able to perform. 21:25). It is one of the marks and the characteristics of a good disciple of Jesus; our love for one another. And on page four hundred he says, If there is one scrap of proof that we are alive after we are dead, why is not that scrap given to the world? For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faithFor by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of Our Lord is saying, you be faithful and true even if it costs your life, and I will give you a crown [Revelation 2:10], stephanos, crown; the word Stephen, and you read about him and his martyrdom just now [Acts 7:54-60]. Supreme love for Jesus our Lord(Luke 14:25-26), A. And if you would just swear by Caesar, recant Christ, just let them go. Dethrone The Bible says that Zaccheus was a rich man [Luke 19:1-2]. John 19:17-27. And of those 8 billion Christians in the 2000 years since Christ, even nominally Christian, about 70 million have been martyred by one definition or another, a little less than 1%. But the Jews had been given a special exemption. The fourth characteristic, the fourth mark of a true disciple of our Lordone who continues unswervingly in the Word of God. The Bible tells us that there is a sin that leads unto death - one single sin - and it might not be what we expect. They could offer sacrifices in honor of the emperors, not as gods but as rulers. But look at Jesus (John 1:10-11, Mark 5:40, If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. There is a marvelous thing that happens when a man places Jesus first in his lifeloves our Lord supremely above all other loveHe hands back to you your home, your family, your wife, your business, your children, every dream and vision of your soul. Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life. 1 Cor 15:14 Why didnt the Lord say that to Joseph of Arimathea, who is described in the Bible as a rich man? In fact, Polycarp was a disciple of John, who wrote this book of Revelation. Hebrews 9:24-27. today we want to focus our attention on John. The word staphanos, Stephen, means crown. And when the Lord says, be thou faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life, it could be a diadem, a royal crown. It is in riches. And it happens. One of the marks, I say, of a true disciple of Christ, he never wearies, hes never seen, hes never sated listening to the Word of God. Then finally, number three let us remember death is not the enemy. a man loves the world and the things that are in it, he will find his hands Polycarp was born in A.D. 69, so just before the destruction of Jerusalem and the fall of the Temple, well within the lifespan of some who would have been eyewitnesses to Christ and his work. Death has no power over anyone who is in me! Thats why Jesus is able to say in verse 10, Be faithful unto death, and I will give you Amen. The first one is this: and I take these out of the Bible, out of the New Testament. Preacher, just stand up there and tell us what God says. Losing focus of whats important in life prevents people from being faithful. We all know the occasions where suffering brings out the absolute best in people, and weve seen it in our own church. Putting this altogether, you can understand why in some parts of the Empire it was the Jews who sometimes instigated this persecution against the Christians. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at the Alum Creek church of Christ in Alum Creek, West Virginia. Christ delivered man out of death to the promise of the gift of eternal life yet man thinking he is in the perfection of God's love, sins. But, if in a household there was a slave, and when time came, when that seventh year came and the slave was freeif he so loved his master or she so loved her mistress, that he did not want to leave, then they went through this kind of a simple ritual. You can understand how this might happen. Isa 38:1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. This is the one, verse 8, The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life. It is in the transcendence of God that His eminence is so much comfort. Methodist. But we also know that suffering brings with it many temptations. General Washington needed information concerning the British troops. What youre about to suffer need not be fearful. He stayed there in that tiny church over fifty years; their pastor over fifty years. And Nathan Hale volunteered as a spy to bring back the needed information. We Christians must be faithful. But why do you delay? But pastor, does God say anything? You may say, Well, wait a minute, Pastor. The tragic and terrible civil war he was fighting in his heart registered in his countenance, stugnaz; and he lost the battle. You dont forget His promise. Faithfulness is full time until the end of time. You couldnt help but know a man like that. Near the close of the previous chapter Paul had said," The law entered that the offence might abound; but where sin abounded, grace did much more Yes, death is an enemy, and we mourn for death. The second death is. The knows nothing about defeat (Romans 4:17-21, Genesis Its marking out the date and time of his death. by It is a message to Be faithful until death.. Probably dates to around 108 A.D., that is shortly after the death of Ignatius. 8:14). This comes in chapter 21, the final chapter in some of the manuscripts of The Martyrdom of Polycarp. Currently 160,000 Christians, by one estimate, are martyred every year. Certainly Christians in many places are relatively free from that threat, but at all times there will be part of the Church that will be called upon to make the good confession in the midst of danger, hostility, and death. But from salvation to glory there are three vitally important "way stations" that are a part of our Christian pilgrimage. Note: When doing a study on a book in the Bible you use a lot of resources. 2:10 )? I would never think to say, Away with the atheists. I would Would I stand fast? Most of us fear death, but as a Christian were called to hope. will tell you one of the driving forces in human life is to be accepted, Which naturally leads to the second command, at the end of verse 10 Be faithful unto death. and the rich young ruler(Mark 10:21-22, Matthew I have never heard an exception to this in my life, and it is always false, it is always untrue. Give it up. Its a letter from Jesus, who is the Jewish Messiah. Some put it much lower than that, if its actually killing you because you confess Christ, the higher number is if in some way the state has starvation or death or opposition to religious groups, including Christians. We dont want to make the mistake of saying that just because one worships three times a week every week he is faithful. Moule]. WebTrue faithfulness to God is maintained to the end. I have decided to follow Jesus, the characteristic of a true disciple of our Lord. The reason our adolescents, our young people, fall into, say, drugs, or into drinking, or into a thousand compromising positions, is because of peer pressure. Heres the key-those men and women were just like we are. 15:9). ON POINT, I They assume they will go to heaven. We dont have a small Christ who is coming and just saying, Oh, I will shed a tear for you. No, this is the One who is the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last. They were most affluent and well-to-do. Our inheritance is not here, it is there [1 Peter 1:4-5]. We are given by choice, by volition, to our Lord and Master forever. Dont you find those martyrdom stories inspiring and yet utterly overwhelming? Number one let us pray for the persecuted church. The weakness of men, universally, is to please one another. Can you imagine after forty years the people here by the thousands listening to me lecture on mathematics or science or literature or the humanities? How can I blaspheme my King who saved me? There proconsul continue to press him to recant Christ and swear by Caesar and Polycarp refused. Or do with your weekends what everyone else would do. deep, never sated thirst for the Word(Romans Let me finish with three points of application. They are clear and unequivocal; the first one is this: supreme love for Jesus our Lord. living faith, consumed with one desire to please Him(John 12:42-43), 1. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faithFor by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of How faithful are you this morning? read more, Scripture: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is Indeed, the devil will throw some of Almost half of those were murdered, starved, died in prison camps in the Soviet Union. King James Version (KJV) < Previous Verse Next Verse > View Chapter Revelation 2:10 Context They are all doing it. So many fall away because they are selfish-they dont care what God says theyre going to do what they want to do. having been freed(Deuteronomy 15:12-18), B. And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart (Gal. Believing it possible that through Christ we may live in the required manner, that we may avoid sin--desist from sinning--give it up and abandon it altogether, and put it forever away. We fail to put God first in our lives-we dont base all our decisions based on what he would want, we neglect to mention the Gospel to our family and friends. WebSermons by Bible: Sermons by Category: Sermons by Topic: Sermons by Speaker: Sermons by Language: Sermons by Date: Staff Picks: Comments, ALL -1 sec: Top Sermons: Online Bible: Hymnal: Daily Reading: Our Paul wrote along similar lines "I have fought the Remember Jesus says those who utter all kinds of false things about you, who slander you, that, too, is a kind of persecution and we ought to pray that we will not grow spiritually flabby as a church should we be called upon to face persecution. The Importance of Christs Resurrection Kids, young people, you will face even more pressures. We dont want to exaggerate it, we dont want to claim that were facing what other people are facing. 2:4). Give us ears, give us courage, no matter the time, no matter the opposition, no matter the circumstances. I dont want it to come. A. Its the basic foundation of the Christian faith it is fundamental When we think of all Jesus endured to save our souls, how could we not be faithful? read more, Scripture: For me I have it written down. That number of about 0.8% of Christians throughout history, in fact, has been constant over many centuries. Church Of God, Joshua 2:1-15 THE GREAT ESCAPE Intro: Ill. And this allowed the Jews and the Romans to coexist. Suffering. Well, the magistrate was not happy with this. So you add them all up, and what? They were poor, but Jesus says, Youre rich. They were persecuted by Jews who Jesus says were not really Jews. Once they become a Christians, they begin visiting the sick and shut-in but its just too much trouble so they quit. And they will come and go, and the worse they can do to you is put you to death. B. That is the mark of a disciple of Christ. In order to be faithful, we must put God first in our lives-You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind (Matt. For the child of God, heaven is our ultimate destination. 2:10). Certainly under all of the rules of logic the one who assumes that an apparently dead person is still alive should be able to produce substantial proof. The Pharisees did that (Matt. And as a youth, I read The Story of My Life by Clarence Darrow. It is a great vast city, today called Izmir. Theres no point in being fearful now. More were killed by other religious groups, and far and away, most of those Christian martyrs were killed by the state, some 55 million out of those 70 million. An appeal for faithfulness in an era when Revelation 2:8-11, Denomination: When the boy was sixteen years old, he went to hear George Whitefield preach, and he was converted; wonderfully converted, listening to George Whitefield preach the gospel. Centuries earlier, during the period when Rome was struggling with Carthage for supremacy, Smyrna sided with the Romans. This is the pastor bringing the message entitled Faithful Unto Death. You dont doubt His goodness. And on the first anniversary of that wonderful experience, he wrote that marvelous hymn: [O for a Thousand Tongues, Charles Wesley]. In fact, this one disqualifying sin will exclude us from ever going to heaven and receiving eternal life. They were poor, but rich in what really matters. Listen to what it says: Now the blessed Polycarp was martyred on the second day of the first part of the month Xanthicus, seven days before the Kalends of March, on a great Sabbath, about 2 oclock in the afternoon. The Word of God tells us to have compassion for our brothers and sisters who are facing difficulty and prison and opposition, and some will even pay the ultimate price of martyrdom. [The Pearly White City, Arthur F. Ingler]. So to his sorrowing little congregation, he preached a farewell message and they placed everything on the wagonhis books, his furniture and everythingand he and his wife and the children climbed on the wagon, and they turned to leave.