ANNOUNCER:
ON THIS DAY OF DISCOVERY, AUTHOR AND CORNERSTONE
UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT
JOE STOWELL... ENTERS A LAND RICH IN BIBLICAL
HISTORY, MODERN TURKEY, TO EXPLORE THE ANCIENT
CITY OF PERGAMUM. HERE IN PERGAMUM
A GROUP OF JESUS FOLLOWERS
CAME TOGETHER AS A CHURCH, ONE OF SEVEN CHURCHES
ADDRESSED IN THE BEGINNING
OF THE BOOK OF REVELATION. REVELATION, WRITTEN
BY THE APOSTLE JOHN, ONCE THE YOUNG DISCIPLE
OF JESUS CHRIST. AT THE END OF THE FIRST CENTURY
CHRISTIANITY IS FACING MOUNTING
OPPOSITION IN THE EMPIRE. JOHN IS A PRISONER
ON THE ISLAND OF PATMOS
FOR HIS FAITH IN ONE GOD, WHICH GOES AGAINST A ROMAN
EMPIRE THAT EMBRACES MANY GODS, CHIEF AMONG THEM
THE CAESAR OF ROME. IT IS ON PATMOS THAT JESUS
APPEARS TO JOHN TO SEND
A MESSAGE TO THE WORLD, A MESSAGE THAT IS TODAY WHAT WE
KNOW AS THE BOOK OF REVELATION, BUT TO THE FIRST CENTURY CHURCH, LETTERS OF CHALLENGE AND HOPE. JOURNEY TO THE SEVEN
CHURCHES OF REVELATION,
THE LETTER TO PERGAMUM, ON THIS DAY OF DISCOVERY. "AND TO THE ANGEL OF
THE CHURCH IN PERGAMUM WRITE, "THESE THINGS SAYS HE WHO HAS
THE SHARP TWO-EDGED SWORD: "I KNOW YOUR WORKS,
AND WHERE YOU DWELL,
WHERE SATAN'S THRONE IS. "AND YOU HOLD FAST TO MY NAME,
AND DID NOT DENY MY FAITH, "EVEN IN THE DAYS IN WHICH
ANTIPAS WAS MY FAITHFUL MARTYR, "WHO WAS KILLED AMONG YOU,
WHERE SATAN DWELLS. "BUT I HAVE A FEW
THINGS AGAINST YOU, "BECAUSE YOU HAVE THERE THOSE
WHO HOLD THE DOCTRINE OF BALAAM, "WHO TAUGHT BALAK TO
PUT A STUMBLINGBLOCK BEFORE
THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, "TO EAT THINGS SACRIFICED
TO IDOLS, AND TO COMMIT
SEXUAL IMMORALITY. "THUS YOU ALSO HAVE THOSE
WHO HOLD THE DOCTRINE OF THE
NICOLAITANS, WHICH THING I HATE. "REPENT, OR ELSE I WILL
COME TO YOU QUICKLY... "AND WILL FIGHT AGAINST THEM WITH THE SWORD OF MY MOUTH. "HE WHO HAS AN EAR,
LET HIM HEAR WHAT THE SPIRIT
SAYS TO THE CHURCHES. "TO HIM WHO OVERCOMES
I WILL GIVE SOME OF
THE HIDDEN MANNA TO EAT, "AND I WILL GIVE HIM
A WHITE STONE, "AND ON THE STONE A NEW NAME WRITTEN, WHICH NO ONE KNOWS EXCEPT HIM WHO RECEIVES IT." JOE STOWELL: A TRIP TO PERGAMUM
TODAY IS QUITE AN EXPERIENCE, IT IS AMONG THE BEST EXCAVATED CITIES OF THE ROMAN WORLD. SOME OF ITS
STUNNING SIGHTS INCLUDE
THE HELLENISTIC THEATER, WITH A CAPACITY OF 10,000
FOR ITS ATTENDEES. IT WAS THE STEEPEST
OF ALL THE THEATERS
IN THE ANCIENT WORLD. PERGAMUM WAS FILLED
WITH MANY TEMPLES TO
THE GODS OF ROME AND GREECE, AND OF NOTE,
THIS IS THE LOCATION OF
THE LIBRARY OF PERGAMUM, WHICH HELD SOME
200,000 VOLUMES. LONG BEFORE THE BIRTH OF JESUS
CHRIST, PERGAMUM WAS THE CAPITOL
CITY OF THE PERGAMUM EMPIRE, THAT EMPIRE THAT HELD THIS
REGION OF THE WORLD IN ITS GRIP. BUT BY THE YEAR 200 BC
KING ATTALUS REIGNED HERE. ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
ATTALUS DID WAS STRIKE
A PEACE TREATY WITH ROME. AS PART OF THAT TREATY
ROME GAVE HIM CONTROL OVER
ALMOST ALL OF ASIA MINOR, THIS TERRITORY NOW CALLED TURKEY, WHERE THESE SEVEN CHURCHES WERE BORN. BUT IN A FASCINATING MOVE,
HIS GRANDSON ATTALUS III, UPON HIS DEATH,
BEQUEATHED ALL OF THIS TERRITORY
BACK TO THE ROMAN EMPIRE. NOW, THAT WAS A GREAT DAY
FOR THE ROMAN EMPIRE, BECAUSE THIS WAS A VERY
CRITICAL PIECE OF LAND. TURKEY BORDERS ON THREE
MAJOR BODIES OF WATER: THE BLACK SEA,
THE MEDITERRANEAN,
AND THE AEGEAN SEA. THAT OPENED ALL THE SEAPORTS OF
COMMERCE TO THE ROMAN EMPIRE. ALL THE SEA LANES
BELONGED TO THEM. AND THIS WAS
AGRICULTURALLY RICH. IT WAS
THE BREADBASKET OF THEIR DAY. IT WAS SO GOOD THAT
IN AD 92 THE EMPEROR
DOMITIAN MADE AN EDICT... THAT ALL THE VINEYARDS IN
ASIA MINOR SHOULD BE CUT DOWN, BECAUSE THE COMPETITION
AGAINST THE ITALIAN
VINEYARDS WAS SO GREAT. SO IT WAS A GOOD DAY
FOR THE EMPIRE. BUT IT WAS A BETTER DAY
FOR THE GOSPEL, BECAUSE BEHIND THE SCENES OF THESE POLITICAL MANEUVERINGS, THE HANDS OF GOD
WERE AT WORK. SOME OF YOU MAY REMEMBER THAT
BEFORE HE WAS 30 YEARS OLD, ALEXANDER THE GREAT CONQUERED ALL THE KNOWN WORLD, WHICH GAVE THE KNOWN WORLD
ONE CULTURE, THE GREEK CULTURE. IT GAVE THE KNOWN WORLD ONE
LANGUAGE, THE GREEK LANGUAGE. THAT MIRACLE WAS SOMETHING THAT
PREPARED THE WAY OF THE GOSPEL
THROUGH ALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE. AFTER ALEXANDER'S DEATH, THOUGH,
IT SPLIT UP INTO SMALLER PIECES, AND BY NOW ROME HAD EVERYTHING
BACK FOR ITS EMPIRE EXCEPT
THIS BRIDGE OF LAND... BETWEEN THE EAST, JERUSALEM,
AND THE WEST, ITALY AND SPAIN
AND ALL OF EUROPE. WHEN ATTALUS HANDED IT BACK
TO THE ROMAN EMPIRE, THAT MEANT THAT THERE WOULD
BE NO BARRIERS TO THE GOSPEL, THAT EVERYTHING WOULD
BE WIDE OPEN IN THE EMPIRE. AND SO CHRISTIANITY SPREAD. I LOVE WATCHING THE HAND
OF GOD AT WORK PREPARING
THE WAY FOR THE GOSPEL. AND EARLY CHRISTIANS LIVED
HERE IN THIS CITY OF PERGAMUM. AND THEY HELD THE GOOD NEWS
OF JESUS CHRIST IN THEIR HAND. THEY HELD IT AT GREAT COST,
BECAUSE IN PERGAMUM IT
WAS AT GREAT RISK. WHEN IT CAME TO WORSHIPPING
THE GODS OF THE EMPIRE, PERGAMUM WAS EXACTLY
THE RIGHT PLACE TO BE. NEARLY EVERY MAJOR DEITY
HAD A TEMPLE HERE. IT WOULD BE LIKE GOING TO
HOLLYWOOD, AND IN HOLLYWOOD
YOU CAN TAKE A STAR TOUR. THEY PUT YOU IN A LITTLE VAN
AND YOU DRIVE THROUGH THESE
EXCLUSIVE NEIGHBORHOODS... AND SEE WHERE ALL THE IMPORTANT PEOPLE REALLY LIVE. COMING TO PERGAMUM, IN TERMS OF
WORSHIP, WAS EXACTLY LIKE THAT. NO MATTER WHAT YOU
DESIRED OR WHAT YOU NEEDED
OR WHAT YOU DREAMT FOR, THE GODS WOULD OFFER HERE
TO FULFILL THAT FOR YOU. PERGAMUM WAS EXACTLY
THE RIGHT ZIP CODE TO BE IN. THE ARRAY OF GODS AND GODDESSES
IN THIS TOWN WAS IMPRESSIVE. RIGHT OVER THIS
HILL HERE, STILL EXISTING,
IS THE ANCIENT ALTAR TO ZEUS. ZEUS WAS THE KING OF MOUNT
OLYMPUS, WHERE ALL THE GODS
AND GODDESSES DWELT. SO HE WAS THE KING OF KINGS. ZEUS WAS THE GOD OF THE SKY,
OF LIGHTNING AND THUNDER, AND WOULD USE LIGHTNING
AGAINST HIS ENEMIES. IT'S SAID THAT HE CONSORTED WITH
MORTALS AND GODS AND GODDESSES. WELL, IF YOU NEEDED
SOMETHING DONE, THAT WAS THE PLACE TO GO.
HE HAD ALL THE POWER. BUT MAYBE YOU CAME
TO PERGAMUM FOR PLEASURE. THEN WHY NOT GO TO
THE TEMPLE OF DIONYSUS? HE WAS THE GOD
OF WINE AND REVELRY. YOU WOULD GO THERE AND
PARTICIPATE IN THE FESTIVITIES, GET DRUNK WITH EVERYONE ELSE, PARTICIPATE IN THE ORGIES. SOMETIMES THE FRENZY WAS SO
STRONG THAT IT WOULD END UP
IN THE TAKING OF HUMAN LIFE. GOING TO THAT TEMPLE WAS LIKE,
"WHAT HAPPENS IN VEGAS
STAYS IN VEGAS," OR GOING TO NEW ORLEANS
FOR THE MARDI GRAS. BUT IF YOU'RE IN NEED OF FOOD,
IN NEED OF A GOOD CROP, THEN YOU WANT
TO GO TO THE TEMPLE OF
THE GODDESS OF DEMETER. SHE WAS THE ONE
WHO COULD GUARANTEE YOU
FOOD ON YOUR TABLE... AND A WONDERFUL CROP
AT THE END OF THE SEASON. MAYBE YOU'RE SICK. THEN HERE IN PERGAMUM WAS
THE TEMPLE TO ASKLEPIOS,
THE GOD OF HEALING. IT WAS ONE OF THE MAJOR SPOTS
FOR HEALING IN THE WORLD. PILGRIMS CAME FROM ALL OVER
TO COME TO THIS TEMPLE. AND IN THIS TEMPLE
IT WAS THE SNAKES
THAT DID THE HEALING. THE PRIESTS OF THE TEMPLE WOULD
OFTEN PUT PEOPLE IN A TRANCE,
THEY WOULD GO TO SLEEP AND... AND THEN THEY WOULD GET A VISION
OF WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THEM... AND THEY COULD TAKE IT TO
THE DOCTOR AND TELL THE DOCTOR, AND HE WOULD TRY TO
SOMEHOW MEDICATE IT. IN AN EVEN STRANGER RITUAL,
THEY WOULD OFTEN PUT
THE SICK PEOPLE... IN A LARGE ROOM AT NIGHT
THAT'S PITCH BLACK, AND IN
THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, IN THEIR DEEP TRANCE-LIKE SLEEP
THAT HAD BEEN INDUCED ON THEM, THEY WOULD RELEASE THE SNAKES
TO CRAWL OVER THEIR BODIES
IN A RITUAL OF HEALING. INTERESTINGLY, EVEN TODAY THE
MEDICAL SYMBOL THAT WE SEE IS A
ROD WITH SNAKES WOUND AROUND IT. IT DATES RIGHT BACK TO THAT
HOSPITAL HERE IN PERGAMUM. OR MAYBE YOU NEED WISDOM.
YOU JUST DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. THEN COME TO THE TEMPLE OF
ATHENA, THE GODDESS OF WISDOM, THE GODDESS WHO WOULD
UNDERSTAND AND FORM GREAT
MILITARY STRATEGIES... FOR ROME TO WIN ITS WARS. OR IF YOU WANTED TO AFFIRM
THAT CAESAR WAS LORD OF LORDS, THE SAVIOR OF YOUR LIFE,
GRANTING YOU SAFETY AND PEACE, THEN YOU WOULD COME TO
THE TEMPLE OF THE IMPERIAL CULT
UP ON THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN, THE TEMPLE TO TRAJAN. THIS WAS THE SCENE AT PERGAMUM, AND IF YOU WERE A FOLLOWER
OF JESUS CHRIST AND YOU
REFUSED TO BOW THE KNEE, IT WAS A GOOD THING FOR YOU
TO HEAR WHAT JESUS SAID AT
THE BEGINNING OF THE LETTER, WHEN HE SAID,
"I KNOW THE PLACE WHERE YOU
DWELL, WHERE SATAN'S THRONE IS." TO UNDERSTAND HOW CHALLENGING
IT WOULD BE TO BE A FOLLOWER OF
JESUS CHRIST HERE IN PERGAMUM, LET'S SAY THAT YOU AND I
ARE JEWS WHO LIVE HERE, AND YOU AND I DECIDE TO GO
BACK TO JERUSALEM WITH PILGRIMS
FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD... TO CELEBRATE
THE FEAST OF PENTECOST. SO WE PACK UP
AND WE GO AND GO THROUGH
THE RITUALS OF THE FEAST, BUT WHILE WE'RE THERE, SOMETHING
REALLY STRANGE HAPPENS, BECAUSE WE SEE A GROUP OF MEN WHO ARE MAKING AMAZING CLAIMS. THEY CLAIM THAT JESUS HAS COME,
THE MESSIAH, THAT HE IS
THE KING OF THE JEWS. THE MIRACLES SURROUNDING THAT
CATCH OUR ATTENTION, AND WE'RE DRAWN BY
THE HOLY SPIRIT TO JESUS CHRIST, AND YOU AND I ACCEPT
CHRIST AS OUR SAVIOR
THERE AND WE'RE BAPTIZED. OH, WHAT AN AMAZING
EXPERIENCE FOR US! AND NOW WE'RE PACKED UP, ON OUR
WAY BACK HERE TO PERGAMUM, AND WE'RE REJOICING
IN HAVING FOUND HIM. WE'RE REJOICING THAT WE HAVE
FOUND THE KING OF KINGS, THAT WE NOW HAVE DWELLING
WITHIN US THIS JESUS WHO
PROMISES US ULTIMATE PLEASURE, LIKE HE SAID, THAT HE HAS
COME TO GIVE US LIFE... AND TO GIVE IT TO US
MORE ABUNDANTLY. AND WE HEARD HOW HE FED
THE 5,000, THAT HE IS
THE FEEDER AND PROVIDER. WE WERE TOLD WHILE WE WERE THERE
THAT HE DID MIRACLES OF HEALING. IN FACT, WE SAW
SOME OF HIS FOLLOWERS,
APOSTLES, HEALING PEOPLE, THAT WE HAD... WE HAD
MET THE ULTIMATE HEALER. AND WISDOM? WELL, THE APOSTLE PAUL WROTE
TO THE CHURCH AT COLOSSE... THAT IN CHRIST ARE HIDDEN
ALL THE TREASURES OF WISDOM. AND SAVIOR, EMPEROR,
HE HAS SAVED US FROM OUR SINS
AND GRANTED US ETERNAL LIFE, AND WE'RE GOING BACK
REJOICING ABOUT THAT, UNTIL WE THINK ABOUT ACTUALLY WALKING THROUGH THE CITY GATES. AND NOW WE KNOW
THERE'S TROUBLE AHEAD. THERE'S TROUBLE AHEAD BECAUSE
GOING BACK AND TELLING OUR
JEWISH FRIENDS THIS... WILL PROBABLY GET US KICKED
OUT OF THE SYNAGOGUE. AND IF WE MAKE THESE CLAIMS
OF JESUS CHRIST, THAT HE IS
KING OF KINGS, NOT ZEUS; THAT HE IS THE SOURCE OF ULTIMATE AND TRUE PLEASURE; THAT HE IS THE PROVIDER,
NOT DEMETER; THAT ATHENA
IS NOT THE SOURCE OF WISDOM,
WISDOM IS FOUND IN JESUS CHRIST, WELL, THEN IT JUST ALL FLIES
IN THE FACE OF THE GODS, AND WE WILL BE GOD-DENIERS.
WE WILL BE THOUGHT OF AS... THE CHARGE WAS
THROWN AT EARLY CHRISTIANS,
THAT THEY ARE ATHEISTS, THAT THEY DO NOT
BELIEVE IN THE GODS. AND WE'LL BE OUT OF
THE SYNAGOGUE, AND WE'LL BE
OUT OF THE TEMPLE WORSHIP, CAUGHT IN NO MAN'S LAND
WHERE SATAN'S THRONE IS. THAT WAS THE CHALLENGE
TO THESE EARLY CHRISTIANS. SO, BEING A FOLLOWER
OF CHRIST IN PERGAMUM WAS
REALLY A HIGH RISK ADVENTURE. IT THREATENED YOUR COMFORT,
YOUR PERSONAL PEACE, RELATIONSHIPS WITH VALUED
FAMILY MEMBERS AND FRIENDS. IT THREATENED YOUR PROSPERITY. IT COULD EVEN THREATEN YOUR
POSITION IN THE COMMUNITY. THERE WAS NO PART OF YOUR LIFE
THAT WAS NOT TOUCHED BY YOUR
STAND FOR JESUS CHRIST... IN THE MIDST OF ALL OF
THESE GODS AND GODDESSES. IN FACT, YOUR VERY
LIFE WAS AT RISK. IN THE LETTER, JESUS HAS
RECOGNIZED THAT ANTIPAS... HAS ALREADY BEEN
MARTYRED FOR THE FAITH. IN PERGAMUM, THE ROMAN
GOVERNOR OF THIS REGION
HAD HIS HEAD OFFICES. IT IS SAID THAT HE HAD
THE "RIGHT TO THE SWORD." IN OTHER WORDS,
EVERY CASE BROUGHT
BEFORE HIM, HE COULD SAY, THEY WILL LIVE,
OR THEY WILL DIE BY THE SWORD. ANTIPAS PROBABLY DIED BY
THE SWORD OF THE ROMAN GOVERNOR. INTERESTINGLY, AS HE PROCEEDED
THROUGH THE STREETS, BEFORE HIM WAS SOMEBODY WHO
HELD A GIANT SWORD IN THE AIR. TALK ABOUT INTIMIDATION! CHRISTIANS KNEW THAT ON
A SWORD LIKE THAT THE BLOOD
OF ANTIPAS WAS SPILLED. SO JESUS COMMENDS THESE
EARLY CHRISTIANS THAT EVEN
IN THE FACE OF ANTIPAS' DEATH, THEY HAVE HELD FAST
TO THE NAME OF JESUS. I LOVE THAT.
YOU KNOW, LIKE, "HOLD ON!" DID YOU EVER
GET INTO A DANGEROUS
SPOT AND SOMEBODY SAYS, "HEY, HOLD ON! HOLD ON!" AND JESUS SAID,
"YOU'VE HELD FAST TO MY NAME." NOW OBVIOUSLY, IT WASN'T JUST
THE NAME, "JESUS," ALTHOUGH THAT
DID MEAN SAVIOR AND RESCUER. BUT IN SCRIPTURE, BOTH OLD
TESTAMENT AND NEW TESTAMENT, THE NAMES OF GOD REFLECT
HIS CHARACTER, SO THE NAME
THAT HE IS KING OF KINGS, THE NAME THAT HE IS
THE SOURCE OF ABUNDANT LIFE, THE NAME THAT HE IS HEALER,
THE SOURCE OF WISDOM, THE NAME THAT HE IS THE PROVIDER FOR ALL OF OUR NEEDS, THEY HAVE HELD ON TO
WHO JESUS REALLY IS. THERE IS A HYMN THAT
EARLY CHRISTIANS SANG,
PROBABLY HERE IN PERGAMUM. IT'S RECORDED IN
PHILIPPIANS CHAPTER 2. AND THE HYMN WORDS
GO LIKE THIS, "THAT GOD HAS
HIGHLY EXALTED JESUS CHRIST, "AND GIVEN HIM A NAME
THAT IS ABOVE EVERY NAME. "THAT AT THE NAME OF JESUS,
EVERY KNEE SHOULD BOW, "AND EVERY TONGUE SHOULD CONFESS
TO THE GLORY OF THE FATHER." CHRISTIANS BELIEVED THAT.
THEY WOULD NOT LET
GO OF HIS NAME. AND JESUS SAID, "AND EVEN IN
SPITE OF ANTIPAS' MARTYRDOM YOU
HAVE HELD FAST TO THE FAITH." THEY HAVE BEEN TENACIOUS.
THEY HAVE NOT BEEN SHAKEN. BUT THAT WASN'T TRUE
OF EVERYBODY HERE. THERE WERE SOME PEOPLE IN
PERGAMUM, IN THE CHURCH, WHO
WERE TIRED OF BEING DIFFERENT, WHO WERE TIRED OF
BEING EXCLUDED, WHO DIDN'T LIKE
THE DANGER OF FOLLOWING CHRIST. OH, THEY WANTED TO BE
A PART OF THE ASSEMBLY, BUT THEY WONDERED IF THERE
COULD BE A WAY TO COMPROMISE
AND TO RELEASE THE PRESSURE. WELL, INTERESTINGLY
ENOUGH, THERE WAS. SO, IF YOU DON'T
LIKE BEING DIFFERENT AND
YOU DON'T LIKE THE DANGER, AND YOU DON'T WANT TO
BE EXCLUDED, MAYBE WHAT
YOU COULD DO... WOULD BE KIND OF SNEAK
BACK INTO THE TEMPLE WORSHIP,
AND STILL BE A CHRISTIAN. JESUS SAYS YOU CAN'T DO THAT. IN FACT, HE SAYS THAT, "I KNOW
THAT THERE ARE SOME OF YOU... "WHO ARE PRACTICING SEXUAL IMMORALITY AND EATING MEAT
OFFERED TO IDOLS." NOW, AS BAD AS SEXUAL
IMMORALITY IS ON ITS OWN,
THIS IS FAR WORSE, BECAUSE HE'S SAYING THAT
THEY'RE GOING BACK IN AND DOING
SEXUALLY IMMORAL THINGS... AS AN ACT OF WORSHIP
TO THE DEITIES. THAT'S WHAT
HAPPENED IN THESE TEMPLES.
YOU SLEPT WITH PROSTITUTES. IT WAS AN ACT OF
ALLEGIANCE AND WORSHIP. AND EATING MEAT
OFFERED TO IDOLS, WELL, PAUL TELLS US THAT IF YOU
JUST BUY IT IN THE MARKETPLACE, IT'S PROBABLY NOT A PROBLEM. BUT IF YOU DO IT IN THE TEMPLE,
IT'S ALL A PART OF WORSHIPPING
THESE GODS AND GODDESSES. SO IN EFFECT, THESE BELIEVERS,
TRYING TO ESCAPE THE PRESSURE, HAVE DENIED THE NAME OF CHRIST AND CUT AN ALLEGIANCE WITH THESE GODS OF WOOD AND STONE. JESUS TAKES THAT SERIOUSLY.
HE COMPARES IT TO THE JEWS
WHO GAVE IN TO BAAL. NUMBERS CHAPTER 25,
THE ISRAELITES MARRIED
MOABITE WOMEN, AND BEGAN WORSHIPPING
THE GODS OF THE MOABITE
WOMEN, THE GODS OF BAAL. AND GOD JUDGED THEM AND 24,000
ISRAELITES WERE MURDERED
AS A JUDGMENT BY GOD... ON THIS ASSIMILATION OF
FAITHFULNESS TO GOD AND
COMPROMISE WITH IDOLATRY. ASSIMILATION INTO THE SYSTEMS OF
OUR WORLD TO TRY TO RELEASE US
FROM THE STRESS AND PRESSURE... HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PROBLEM.
IT CERTAINLY WAS A PROBLEM
FOR ISRAEL... WHEN THEY TRIED TO RELIEVE
THE PRESSURE BY CONSORTING WITH
THE GODS OF THE CANAANITES. AND JESUS TELLS US
IT'S A PROBLEM HERE IN PERGAMUM, WHEN CHRISTIANS TRY TO
LIVE IN BOTH WORLDS AT ONCE. THE PROBLEM IN THE CHURCH
OF PERGAMUM WAS NOT THAT
THE CHURCH WAS IN PERGAMUM. IT WAS THERE WAS TOO MUCH
PERGAMUM IN THE CHURCH. NOW, I FOUND MYSELF THINKING,
WHAT ARE THE THINGS THAT
MARGINALIZE US TODAY, THAT WE TRY TO REDUCE AND
DISCOUNT SO THAT WE CAN
STAY IN THE MAINSTREAM? AND IMMEDIATELY THE WHOLE
CONCEPT OF SIN CAME TO MY MIND. WHY IS IT THAT WE HEAR SO LITTLE
PROCLAMATION ABOUT THE DANGER
OF SIN AND CALL TO REPENTANCE? YOU CAN GO TO CHURCHES
TODAY THAT ARE LIKE A
PSYCHOLOGICAL PEP RALLY. YOU FEEL REALLY GOOD ABOUT
YOURSELF WHEN YOU LEAVE. REPENTANCE IS A NON-ISSUE. NOW, HELL DOESN'T GO DOWN
REAL WELL WITH OUR CULTURE. IT'S KIND OF EMBARRASSING THAT
GOD WOULD SEND PEOPLE TO HELL, SO WE DON'T HEAR MUCH ABOUT THAT ANYMORE, OR MAYBE WE, YOU KNOW, TRY TO TALK IT AWAY AND MAKE
IT NOT BE AS BAD AS THE JUDGMENT
OF GOD SAYS IT'S GOING TO BE. OR THAT JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY. I HEAR CHRISTIANS SAYING,
"WELL, HE'S THE ONLY WAY FOR ME. "YOU KNOW, I CAN'T SAY THAT
FOR EVERYBODY ELSE BUT HE
IS THE ONLY WAY FOR ME." SEEMS TO ME WE'RE FUDGING
A LITTLE BIT THERE. OR EVEN SUFFERING, THAT JESUS
CHRIST HAS TOLD US TO TAKE UP
OUR CROSS AND FOLLOW HIM, AND THAT SUFFERING IS PART AND
PARCEL OF OUR WALK WITH HIM
AND HIS WORK IN OUR LIFE. AND YOU CAN GO TO CHURCHES
TODAY THAT WILL TELL YOU
THAT'S NOT TRUE, THAT JESUS WANTS YOU TO BE
HEALTHY AND HAPPY AND WEALTHY, AND IF YOU JUST TRUST HIM
ENOUGH HE'LL GIVE YOU
EVERYTHING YOU WANT. WELL, IF JESUS WAS UPSET ABOUT
THIS STUFF AT PERGAMUM, I WONDER
WHAT HE THINKS ABOUT US TODAY? WHO LOSE OUR EDGE,
OUR DISTINCTIVENESS,
OUR DYNAMIC DIFFERENCE... IN THE POWER OF THE GOSPEL
BY TRYING TO COMPROMISE
AROUND THE EDGES. WELL, IF HE CALLED THEM
TO REPENT, HE MUST CALL
US TO REPENT, AS WELL. SO THE BELIEVERS
IN PERGAMUM WERE STUCK
IN A REALLY BAD PLACE, WHERE IT WAS TOUGH TO BE
A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST. AND MOST OF THEM
PREVAILED. THEY HELD FAST.
THEY WOULD NOT LET GO. I CAN'T HELP BUT THINK OF
SOME OF US WHO FIND OURSELVES
STUCK IN A BAD PLACE, WHERE IT'S TOUGH TO BE
A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST. PERHAPS YOU'VE ACCEPTED CHRIST
AS YOUR SAVIOR AND YOU WALK
BACK INTO YOUR HOME, INTO A RELATIONSHIP
WITH YOUR SPOUSE WHO
DOESN'T SHARE YOUR FAITH. THAT'S TOUGH. AT THE OFFICE,
TO PREVAIL AS AN UNASHAMED
FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST... AMONG COLLEAGUES WHO SPEAK BEHIND YOUR BACK, THINK YOU'RE WEIRD FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE, THINK YOU'RE ARROGANT
AND BIGOTED TO BELIEVE
THAT JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY. OR MAYBE YOU'RE STUCK IN
LONELINESS BECAUSE YOU WON'T
PLAY THE SEX GAMES OF DATING, AND THE PARTIES
AFTER THE OFFICE. I DON'T KNOW,
BUT I JUST KNOW THAT WHEN YOU'RE
A FOLLOWER OF JESUS CHRIST, YOU GET STUCK IN BAD PLACES,
WHERE IT'S TOUGH TO HANG ON
AND TO NOT LET GO. SO TO THESE FOLLOWERS
AT PERGAMUM JESUS HAD A GREAT
CLOSING STATEMENT IN THE LETTER, A STATEMENT OF REWARD. HE SAID, "FOR THOSE OF YOU
WHO OVERCOME, I WILL GIVE
YOU MANNA FROM HEAVEN." A REFERENCE TO THE OLD TESTAMENT
FEEDING OF THE ISRAELITES, WHEN THEY OTHERWISE WOULD
HAVE STARVED TO DEATH,
GOD PROVIDED FOR THEM. THINK OF THE MANNA...
MANNA OF... OF HIS LOVE
AND COMPANIONSHIP. THE MANNA OF HIS WISDOM,
THE MANNA OF HIS WORD,
THE MANNA OF PRAYER, OF THE INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT, HOW HE PROVIDES FOR YOU! CLING TO THOSE THINGS BECAUSE
HE SAYS, "I WILL PROVIDE." BUT THEN I LOVE
WHAT HE SAYS NEXT. "FOR THOSE WHO PREVAIL, YOU
WILL RECEIVE A WHITE STONE... "WITH A NAME ON IT
THAT NO ONE ELSE HAS
AND NO ONE ELSE KNOWS." SO WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WELL, WE'RE NOT REALLY SURE,
BUT IN THE ANCIENT WORLD... INVITATIONS TO MAJOR FESTIVITIES
AND EVENTS BY THE EMPEROR... WERE DONE ON A WHITE
PIECE OF MARBLE, AND YOUR NAME WOULD BE ENGRAVED AS AN INVITATION TO COME. AND WHEN YOU ENTERED
THE FESTIVITIES YOU WOULD
PRESENT YOUR INVITATION... ON THIS WHITE PIECE OF MARBLE
THAT HAD YOUR NAME ON IT. SO THINK OF THESE
BELIEVERS WHO WERE EXCLUDED
FROM THE FESTIVITIES, WHO HAD NO WELCOME IN THE
SOCIETY, OR IN THE CULTURE, HEARING THAT ULTIMATELY JESUS
WILL INVITE THEM TO HIS FEAST. THEIR NAME WILL BE ON THERE,
ACTUALLY, A NAME THAT
NO ONE ELSE KNOWS. IT'S LIKE YOUR PIN NUMBER.
THIS IS SO INTIMATE. AND YOU WILL BE WELCOMED
INTO THE FESTIVITIES AND
PLEASURE OF HIS PRESENCE. NOW, IN MY MIND,
THAT'S WORTH HANGING ON FOR! THAT'S WHAT JESUS PROMISES
TO THOSE WHO ARE FAITHFUL. GREAT WILL BE THEIR
REWARD IN HEAVEN.
