The Seven Churches in Asia...Smyrna

Of the seven churches in Asia, five were unfaithful and two were faithful. The church in Smyrna, which we'll be considering in this article, was one of those faithful congregations. The basic message here in Revelation 2:8-11 is that despite the obstacles a congregation may face, it can and must endure those obstacles...and when it does, it garners the praise and commendation of God.

In verse eight, Christ describes Himself as "the First and the Last, who was dead, and came to life." This description is fairly straightforward. Jesus is often described as the First and the Last. In Revelation 1:17, He said to the apostle John, "Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last." As the book comes to a close in chapter 22, Jesus once again says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last." The terms Alpha and Omega are the beginning and ending letters of the Greek alphabet. So basically, this is the same as saying that Christ is the Beginning and the End, and all of this emphasizes the power and divinity of Christ. After all, it is "in Him we live and move and have our being" (Ac. 17:28).

The latter part of verse two says that Jesus "was dead, and came to life." No explanation is necessary here. Jesus died for our sins and was raised from the dead.

In verse nine, the Lord begins His personal address to the Smyrna congregation, and as He did with Ephesus, He again says, "I know your works." Nothing escapes the oversight of the Chief Shepherd (1 Pet. 5:4). All things are "naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account" (Heb. 4:13). For the faithful child of God, this is uplifting, but for the unfaithful child of God or the alien sinner, this is frightening. Does it encourage or frighten you that Christ knows all your works?

Not only did Christ know their works, but He also knew their "tribulation, and poverty...and...the blasphemy of those who say they are Jews but are not, but are a synagogue of Satan" (vv. 3). One cannot miss the fact that the brethren in Smyrna suffered much for the cause of Christ. They were surrounded by ungodly people who mistreated and persecuted them. Like poor Lot who endured the wickedness of Sodom and Gomorrah (2 Pet. 2:7-8), these saints also had to endure the wickedness and filthiness of Smyrna. Yet they stuck together and maintained their resolve; they kept their focus on heaven, and as a result, they had remained faithful.

Notice in verse nine, that these saints were impoverished, yet in God's eyes, they were rich. What does this mean? Well, let's turn for a moment to Revelation 3:17. Here, as Christ addresses the sinful Laodicean church, He says to them, "Because you say, 'I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing'--and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind and naked--" and then in verse 18, "I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fre, that you may be rich..." Do you see the contrast? The brethren in Smyrna may not have been physically rich, but they were spiritually rich. The Laodicean congregation, on the other hand, may have been wealthy in the world's eye, but they were impoverished spiritually. What is the point? The point is simply that we need to emphasize spiritual riches over material prosperity.

In Revelation 2:10, the Lord says to the church in Smyrna, "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful even until death, and I will give you the crown of life." It is interesting to me that God not only told them that they were going to suffer, but did not promise to deliver them from this persecution. Basically, He told them that they would have to endure it. This same point is seen later, in Revelation 6. The saints cried out, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?" In verse 11, the message from God was that a "number of their fellow servants and their brethren...would be killed as they were..."

You see, God does not promise us that our lives will be free from difficulty and persecution. In fact, He allows us and wills that we endure such trials in this life. Not only do these trials strengthen us (Jas. 1:2-3), but the positive reaction of Christians to persecution is a powerful testimony to those in the world.

The Smyrna saints would be thrown in prison; that is, they would be persecuted. This persecution would last for ten days. Some argue that the ten days symbolized ten years (days can be symbolic for years in scripture). Others believe that the shortness of the trial is here implied. I can see either interpretation.

In the latter part of verse ten, we find the following conditional statement: "be faithful until death, and I will give you a crown of life." The crown of life is only obtained when we are faithful. What does this say about those saints who are unfaithful? The conclusion is clear: they will not receive the crown of life! Yes, salvation is conditioned upon our faithfulness (Col. 1:21-23; 1 Pet. 1:4-5).

Finally, in verse 11, Jesus tells the saints, "He who overcomes shall not be hurt by the second death." The second death is explained in Revelation 21:8: "But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolators, and all liars shall have their part in the lake of fire and brimstone, which is the second death." The second death is Hell! So those who are in sin will face eternal torment in Hell, but those who faithfully serve God, whose names are in the "Lamb's Book of Life" shall experience the bliss of heaven (Rev. 21:4, 22-24).

Will you experience heaven?