Rick Renner — The City of Pergamum

my name is Rick Renner I'm in the ancient city of Pergamum on the Acropolis the city of Pergamum was really a unique place it was very spiritually dark all kinds of temples were sacrifices were being offered to the gods this city was literally teeming with demon spirits in all kinds of dark deep mysterious religions it's amazing that the gospel was able to penetrate this darkness but it will preach the gospel it can penetrate any environment and Pergamum is a great example of that and in the midst of this very oppressive environment where the church was viciously persecuted the church survived and thrived there was a thriving church here and the church was putting up with a lot of trouble from their neighbors because all of their neighbors were pagans all of their neighbors misunderstood Christians because the Christian faith was new pagans thought it was very strange and Christians were being persecuted great pressure was being put on them to compromise and there was a temptation to compromise in order to get along with their neighbors in fact there was a teaching called the doctrine of the Nicolaitans and the teaching said well what is it hurt to make a few compromises to be more like your pagans to go into pagan temples or Berlin listens to the gods if it will purchase you some peace with your neighbors maybe you need to accommodate the people that are around you and the believers here were tempted to compromise their faith in order to spare themselves trouble and to get along with their neighbors and when they begin to compromise Jesus spoke to them in Revelation chapter 2 and verse 16 and guess what he said he said repent he commanded them to change to stop making room for compromise and to repent to do the right thing in the presence of God regardless of the price or the cost they had to pay repentance is a part of the Christian life then and now Christ is still telling us to repent when we have an attitude or an action that is wrong and we need to know what the Bible says about repentance because it is such a key New Testament word it is for certain Christ will tell you to repent somewhere along the way if he does do you know what it means you need and that's what I'm gonna talk to you about today stay tuned for a teaching you can trust a message that will inspire strengthened and equipped you with vital insight and understanding from the Word of God here's Rick welcome to the program my name is Rick Renner and I'm so glad that you're allowing me to come into your home today and as I told you in the introduction today we're going to be dealing with Christ's message to the church in Pergamum you may say Pergamum what relevance does that have to do with me well it's in the Bible it's in Revelation chapter 2 and I think when you hear what you're going to hear today you're going to be amazed at how relevant it is for you we're dealing with Jesus message to the seven churches in Asia in Revelation chapter 2 and chapter 3 but before we get into the message I want to tell you that if you have a prayer need we're here for you and we're waiting for your phone call or your email or your letter we're already praying for you so if we hear from you and you tell us exactly how to pray it will just help us do a better job to pray for you I pray for you every morning every night our team prays for you we're believing that the Word of God will really make an impact in your life and I'm so thankful that you allow me to come right into your home to speak the Word of God to you but I also want to tell you that we're offering you my series called Christ's message to Pergamum to 10-part series based on these programs with all the photos and the video and the greek words the definitions it is amazing what is in this 10-part series and the study guide is really remarkable I have a copy of it my goodness if I receive that study guide I would be so blessed because it contains so much additional information that's not even in the program you will love the study guide this is perfect for your personal study to share with a friend and I'm going to tell you it is really ideal for a Bible study someone encouraged you to get this we're also offering you my little book called room for compromise the subhead says Christ's message to today's church the front of the book has an endorsement it says one of the best and most comprehensive books ever produced on this subject and this particular endorsement means a lot to me because it's not from a theologian it is from the director of the Museum in Pergamum that is amazing to me she read this she said I have never seen a book like this one and I'll tell you that this book really is a result of many years of study and research I've been to Turkey countless times with my video team my foot photographer with my research team and we have documented all these sites and put it into this book for you for people who love the Word of God and every page is full-color look at this it is just magnificent and I know that you'll love it and I want to read to you just one statement at the very beginning of the book between now and the time of Jesus triumphant return Society will race toward a collision with enzymes the spiritual climate is dramatically shifting and we ordained by God to live in this crucial hour the change is taking place before our eyes will result in one of two choices for every believer a decision to accommodate the world or a refusal to compromise those who yield to the temptation to accommodate the spirit of the age may avoid the pressure of overt persecution but they will also lose their capacity to walk in the strong power of the Holy Spirit but those who make no room for compromise must be ready to face the backlash of a world that grows increasingly intolerant of those who believe in and stand for moral absolutes however those who refuse to compromise can also expect to experience the empowering strength of the Holy Spirit to uphold them and see them all the way to victory in the end that's what this book is about it is such a gift it is a treasure and I know that it will mean to you so order your copy today but today we're going to jump right in to Revelation chapter 2 and we have a lot of material to cover and today I'm going to refer to my notes because there's so much material that I don't want to miss but we're going to be in Revelation chapter 2 in verse 12 where the Bible says and the angel of the church in Pergamum write these things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges verse 13 I know thy works and where thou dwellest even where Satan's seat is and how that holdest fast my name and has not denied my faith even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr who was slain among you where Satan dwelleth interesting that in verse 13 twice Jesus says Satan dwells in Pergamum and when we look at verse 12 it says to the angel of the church in Pergamum well before we can go any further first we have to stop to discuss Pergamum what was Pergamum what kind of city was Pergamum it's very important to understand the words of Jesus in these verses Pergamum was a magnificent city on the western side of the Roman province of Asia it was simply amazing in fact there has never been another city that even comes close to the dazzling brilliance that was in the city of Pergamum he was actually intentionally created to be a mirror of Athens Athens was the sophisticated city of the Western world but in Asia this was to be a mirror of Athens but in many ways it excelled Athens it excelled Athens in its architecture it excelled Athens in its sculpture it excelled Athens in terms of Education and philosophers the city of Pergamum was simply amazing it was a magnificent City that said on the crest of a hill in Western Asia now listen careful the city of Pergamum teamed with idols and pagan temples in fact it was such a bastion of idolatry that it was viewed to be the center of idolatry during the first century there was not a darker there was not a city more engrossed in idolatry in the entire Roman Empire than the city of Pergamum that's quite a statement when you consider how dark was the Roman Empire but there was not a city darker than Pergamum there was not another city devoted to paganism and idolatry as much as the city of Pergamum in fact much much later nearly 300 years later after the gospel was written there was a Roman Emperor who was raised as a Christian but he defected from the faith and decided that he would become a pagan a fully devout pagan where do you think he went to study idolatry and paganism he packed up his bags and he moved to Pergamum because Pergamum even 300 years after the writing of the new testament was still totally engrossed in occult rituals and idolatry it was simply a very dark spiritual place that is the city of Pergamum it had magnificent temples but the darkest religious site in the whole city of Pergamum was the great altar of zeus the great altar of zeus was so great that it was listed as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world he was gilded in gold it was covered with magnificent frescoes and today you can still visit the altar of Zeus it's not in Turkey or it's not in Western Asia but today it is in the Pergamum Museum in the city of Berlin and it is breathtaking when you see this amazing monumental sculpture and think that it was created probably nearly 3,000 years ago it just nearly takes your breath but it was the altar to Zeus and from this altar and from all the other temples and the altars in the city of Pergamum the smoke billowed into the sky 24 hours a day until the smoke of sacrifices literally hung and hovered over the acropolis of Pergamum and when visitors would approach the city from the valley below they could see the smoke billowing out into the air the top of the Acropolis if the Sun was shining they could see the great altar of Zeus as it shined and dazzled the gold that it was gilded with in the light of the Sun it was simply a spectacular dazzling sight and though it was beautiful outwardly spiritually it was one of the darkest places in the entire Roman Empire and in the midst of all that darkness the Church of Jesus Christ was born the Bible tells us where sin abounds grace much more abounds God loves to show up where there's darkness where sin abounds God loves to pour out his grace and that's what God did in the city of Pergamum when the church was birthed in the midst of all that spiritual darkness something else very important is that the city of Pergamum was the headquarters for the proconsul of Rome you said well what is a proconsul well that's the old word for a governor the proconsul was the highest authority in the entire Roman province of Asia he had the final say-so in law he was a judge he was a governor he was an executor he was everything and in the city of Pergamum he sat on the throne and he held a sword in his hand and he had what was called the right of the sword he had the right to say who lived and who died if he dropped the sword it meant someone would die if he held the sword it meant they would live but the proconsul said on his throne in the city of Pergamum and determined who would live who would be executed and his power was so weighty that you could say his shadow and the shadow of Pergamum didn't just cover Pergamum itself but it covered the entire region of Asia because whatever he ruled is what would happen all over the Roman province of Asia and the believers in Pergamum were living under the shadow of that sword he was against them he was against them because of their Christian faith and because they wouldn't worship the emperor and Christians were constantly in jeopardy in Pergamum because of the Roman council who held his sword but by the time the church was birthed in the city of Pergamum Pergamum was already very old and at least for four hundred years before the first century pagans had been coming from all over the Roman Empire to conduct ritual occult sacrifices in the city of Pergamon again the smoke just build into the air and the city was filled with so many different kinds of cults and gods and temples and strange eerie music that was coming out of all of those temples and sexual acts so detestable that I can't even describe them all of these were a part of ritual sacrifices and occult practices which were taking place on the Acropolis there in the city of Pergamum we don't know for sure who started the church but it's likely that the Church of Pergamon began during Paul's three-year residence in the city of Ephesus while Paul was in the city of Ephesus churches were birthed all over Asia it was a very exciting time for the gospel well Pergamum was only 95 miles from Ephesus it was a powerful City it was a political city what happened in Pergamum is eventually what would happen in all the cities of Asia so it's likely that Paul would want to reach the city of Pergamum if he could make a dent with the gospel in Pergamum it would have positive ramifications for the gospel all over Asia and Paul was very strategic and everything he did so either he went there himself or he dispatched teams from Ephesus to Pergamum and through those teams or through his own personal involvement he became the apostle to the church in Pergamum we don't know exactly who he sent or when he did it but this is likely what took place but when the gospel preachers went to Pergamum whether it was Paul to where there was a team they really did an amazing thing they pushed back the powers of darkness they bravely went where no one had ever gone and the gospel began to penetrate the spiritual environment in the city of Pergamum it makes me think of John chapter 1 verse 1 which says then the light shined in darkness and the darkness comprehended it not that's what the King James says but listen to this the word comprehended is a greek word catalan bono the word catalan bono is a greek word which means to seize grab hold of to pull down the tackle to conquer to master or to hold under one's power when you put all that together let me give you an r IV translation of john chapter 1 verse 5 darkness does not have the ability to suppress or to hold the light under its domain darkness simply does not have the power to tackle the gospel light it doesn't have that power it cannot master the light of the gospel darkness may seem to be powerful but darkness always crumbles it always fades when the gospel light begins to be preached from the very beginning of the church darkness tried to suppress the light but it couldn't do it the enemy's efforts were unsuccessful because the light of God always prevails even in the bleakest darkest circumstances and that is true in your life as well the gospel will prevail regardless of what situation you were in right now and John 1:5 triumphantly declares that darkness is ultimately incapable of suppressing the light or holding it under its domain darkness always gives way and light always breaks through with all of its glorious brilliance but again it's likely that the Apostle Paul went there or send a team and through his influence personally or the influence of his team the church was birthed in the city of Pergamum and right in the midst of all of that teeming darkness God's people begin to grow people begin to be evangelized and the light of the gospel begin to blaze in the city wow this is just amazing to me just amazing but the devil didn't just sit and let them do it savage persecution eventually came to the church and the Christians who lived in Pergamum had to learn how to deal with real spiritual warfare beyond anything that you and I have ever thought of real spiritual warfare they had to deal with an environment where Satan thrived were they continually dealt with bullying persecution prejudice imprisonment and many of them were even killed for their faith they were really up against it but they didn't surrender they kept shining the light and when we come to revelation 2:12 it says to the angel of the church in Pergamum this word angel is the same word we saw when Jesus addressed the church in Ephesus and the church in Smyrna it is a Greek word Angelus this word angel does not describe a heavenly angel with wings or heavenly angel that flies but it describes a human messenger the Greek word Angelus describes a human messenger or one sent on a special mission one dispatched to perform a specific assignment a delegate or a dignitary he describes the role of a pastor a Messenger of God this describes the pastor of the church and this is so very important because when Jesus had something to say to the church of Pergamum he did not directly address of a church he addressed the pastor of the church and this teaches us again just as we saw in Christ's message to Ephesus and Smyrna that God never bypasses Authority that he has set in place God respects those who have authority and if God has something good to say to the church he's going to say to the pastor first if God has a correction to give to the church the pastor is going to hear it first and it is up to the pastor to fully ingest what Christ says to assimilate it into his system and then to deliver it to the congregation in the power of the Holy Spirit that is the function of a pastor and now we find a revelation 2:12 Christ honors the pastor of the Church and he speaks to the pastor first and the Bible says under the Angel of the Church of Pergamum well let's stop and look at this word Church the word church is the greek word ekklesia the word ekklesia is a very well-known greek word from greek society and here's what it described not a church like we think of but originally was a very political word this word church described a called separated prestigious assembly of distinguished citizens who determined laws debated public policy formulated new policies argued and ruled in judicial matters they decided who should be banished who should be elected they were and when we use it in context of the church it describes the body of believers have been called out called for selected and assembled to be God's representatives in every town every city every state and every nation it is God's people assembled together to make decisions that affects the atmosphere of a legion this really is the meaning of the word Church that's where it comes from an assembled body of believers on a symbol group that has power to make decisions that affect a city a state a nation to change the environment this means God's intention was that the church be a people who have power to change the world we are to be God's prophetic voice to every city wherever we are god never intended that the church the hidden group of believers that hidden fear or cowered in fear God's plan was that the church rise to a position of power and influence that's what the word church the Greek word ekklesia emphatically tells us but believers in Pergamum were having a hard time doing this because of persecution particular persecution that was being brought against them during the emperor Domitian during his rule Domitian hated the church he hated believers he wanted to extinguish the faith and because of that the church in Pergamum could not carry on openly like they wanted because if their meetings had been discovered they would have been punished perhaps even executed for their faith so for a time they were the underground Church but in the underground Church they spiritually began to operate in spiritual power to change the atmosphere but here's what's amazing to me it didn't matter how dark the situation was it didn't matter that they were struggling because of opposing powers when Jesus addressed them he still called them the church they were his ecclesia they were his called out ones separated to rule and reign in the power of the gospel and that's who you are that's who your church is and we're out of time and we're just getting started but we'll be back tomorrow and we're gonna pick up right here but I'll be back in just a moment and I'm going to pray for you explore the Bible and the first century church with Rick Renner's book no room for compromise in this masterful hardback Bible study rick transports you to the first century in the life of the early church exploring the relevance of jesus' endtime message to the Church of pergamum then and how that endtime message is relevant today on every page Rick reveals the larger context of the book of Revelation and his appearance to the Apostle John taking you on a journey through the first three centuries of Christian opposition within a pagan world you'll be amazed to see how the early church thrived through the light life and power of Jesus Christ this beautifully bound four hundred page book available for just fifty five dollars features on location photography added artwork and historical illustrations that enhance the in-depth teaching when you call or go online today you can also get the 10 part teaching series Christ's message to the church in Pergamum as one of the seven churches in the book of Revelation the church in Pergamum was a light of faith in the pagan darkness in this series you'll see how Jesus's message of holding on to faith is just as relevant today as it was in the first century available in digital or physical formats starting at just $20 don't miss this special offer no room for compromise and Christ's message to the church in Pergamum call now 1-800-789-7895 what you consider joining us as pardons today your gifts can lift more people up to society has forgotten we can't do this work without your financial support when you give we are able to take the gospel both to our nearby world and to the ends earth we all have a part to play right from your home right now you can help us help others by becoming our partner in the work by supporting our work financially please call one eight hundred seventy four two five five nine three or go online to Rini org to give to your support we can continue to make a huge difference in people's lives what I privilege to share the Word of God with you today and I want to remind you again that if you have a prayer need we're here from you and we would love for you to call us or email us communicate with us so we'll really know how to pray for you and I'm offering you my series called Christ's message to Pergamum order it comes with an amazing study guide you will just love the study guide all the points all the principles everything all the history in these programs it's all in this 10 part series we're also offering you my book called no room for compromise Christ's message to today's church I can't begin to tell you how beautiful this book is and it's not just beautiful this book really says something in fact I don't know a purse that's obtained this book that has not been pleased even thrilled and because of its size a lot of people use it as a coffee table book and people just flip through the pages and enjoy it it just will enrich your life it will take you to somewhere new in your understanding of the New Testament times and your understanding of Scripture it is really a treasury that you're going to enjoy I don't want to pray for your father I thank you in the marvelous name of Jesus that today we had this time together I thank you Lord that you've called us to be your ekklesia you've called us to be your called out ones separated anointed your rule and reign to exercise spiritual authority to change our situations to change even the bleakest situation and father we thank you that the gospel is a gospel that cannot be suppressed it's light cannot be put down because it is the supernatural gospel of Jesus Christ let it work in us in Jesus name Amen well thank you for being with me today remember it Cleaves ESDS 84 it says where the word of a king is there's power let God's Word release its power in you today and I'll see you in the next program thank you for watching this broadcast for more information on product resources or to learn how you can partner with this ministry please connect with us at renner org or call one eight hundred seven four two five five nine three also please be sure to visit us on Facebook Twitter and Instagram

Channel: Renner Ministries

Views: 6,568

Rating: 4.7894735 out of 5

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Length: 28min 30sec (1710 seconds)

Published: Sun May 26 2019