Located 50 miles east of Ephesus and almost directly south of Thyatira.  It was at the junction of 5 main roads making it a center for trade.  It was known for its manufacture of woolen garments and the dyeing of wool. Much of Sardis’ wealth came from gold taken from the nearby Pactolus River.  Gold and silver coins were first minted in Sardis.  It was once the proud capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia (later the western capital of the Persian Empire).  Was also a military center for it was located on an almost inaccessible plateau.  The acropolis was about 1500 feet above the main roads and made a natural fortress.  The city became overconfident which led to its downfall.  Sitting on the high point, three sides were almost perpendicular rock walls.  Only from the south could entrance be made so the city fortified the south leaving the three sides unguarded.  Cyrus king of Persia led an attack and his men scaled the unguarded rock walls and gain entrance to the city.  The city never regained its independence and came under Roman control in 133 BC.  By the time of John’s day the city had rebuilt from a massive earthquake but it was never the splendor it once was.  The same was to be said for its church.

 The main religion was the worship of Artemis, one of the nature cults.  They had an impressive temple to Artemis and archaeologists have discovered that it had the largest synagogue found in the ancient world suggesting a large Jewish population.

 The problem of the congregation of the Sardis church was not with the Jews, the Romans, or false prophesy; the problem was solely itself.

 The church had become like the city – it was alive in name only.

The message to Sardis is a warning to all churches who are living on past glory.  Dr. Vance Havner states that there are often four stages to a ministry:

• a man
• a movement
• a machine
• a monument.

Sardis was in the monument stage.

  In Christ Jesus, the Head of the Church, there should never be a ‘has been’ church.  His Spirit gives the very life to a church.  When His Spirit is grieved, as through sin,  the church begins to lose life and power.

 There are no words of commendation for the church of Sardis.  The Lord does not point out doctrinal problems nor was there any mention of persecution.  This was a church that had become comfortable in the world and the world was comfortable with it.  It was living on a great name and reputation but it was dead.    The believers had gone to sleep spiritually.

 There was no persecution because there was no witness.  No friction means no motion.  The unsaved in Sardis saw the church as a respectable group of people who were neither dangerous nor desirable.  They were decent people with a dying witness.

 The message to Sardis contains no specific enemies, internal or external.  There was no Nicolaitans, no Balaams, no liars, no Jezebel’s, no deep secrets of Satan, no throne or synagogue of Satan.  Of all the churches, we know the least about Sardis.  However, the message to this church is urgent and serious.  Walt Kelly, a comic strip writer, wrote “We have met the enemy and he is us.”  Often when we encounter no spiritual adversaries, it is because we are the enemy.  Why would Satan need to attack a church that is ineffective.

Vs 1  To the angel of the church of Sardis write:  message was to the pastor or leader of the church at Sardis

 These are the words of Him who holds the seven spirits of God – refers to the fullness of the Holy Spirit (Isaiah 11:2)

•             The Spirit of the Lord
•             Wisdom
•             Understanding
•             Counsel
•             Strength
•             Knowledge
•             Fear of the Lord

And the seven stars.  The imagery shows Jesus the sovereign Lord of the church mediating His rule through godly leaders and pastors

 I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, – the church might fool the citizens of Sardis but it could not fool the Omniscient Lord Jesus.  It had a great reputation but that is all.  It was a building full of lost people going about the motions of ‘doing church.’  We were created as human beings – not human doings.  We are to ‘be’ the church – not ‘do’ the church.

 But you are dead – Jesus said the church was dead.  It was populated by unredeemed people playing church.  Spiritual death is always related to sin.  What are some dangers signs of a dying church?  See the below from John MacArthur:

•   When it is content to rest on past laurels
• When it is more concerned with the liturgical forms than spiritual reality
• When it focuses on current social ills rather than changing people’s hearts through preaching the life-giving gospel of Jesus Christ
•  When it is more concerned with what men think than what God said
• When it is more enamored with doctrinal creeds and systems of theology than with the word of God
•  When it loses its conviction that every word of the Bible is the word of God

 The Lord tells them to “wake up!”  The first step to revival is to acknowledge the lack of it.

                                    **dead dog picture**

 Life = growth, repair, reproduction, power

Death = initial swelling followed by decaying, stench, no reproduction, no power

Method for revival:

 Vs 2  Wake up! – don’t slowly roll out of your spiritual bed.  Wake up! Action, attention.  Don’t crawl under the covers of yesterday’s work – see a fresh vision of His glory.

             “We must pay more careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.”  Hebrews 2:1

  Strengthen what remains and is about to die – Fan into flame the dying embers.  Wake up, get up, shore up.  Look for what has fallen, what is weak, where you are vulnerable.  Feed your soul from His Word.

 For I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God – they were living a lie.

*Read Judges 16:20.

Samson “did not know that the Lord had departed from him.”

 Vs 3  Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard – Go back to the truths of God.  Get back into His Word, the bible.  Put down the how-to books and go to the One who wrote the Book.

 Obey it – just do it.  Obedience is putting action to words.  To delay is to disobey.

 And repent – confess and turn around.  Stop the direction you are going in.

 If you wake up, get up, shore up, read up, do up, repent up, then you will go up in revival.

 But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief – judgment of the church when they least expect it.

 And you will not know at what time I will come to you – surprised by His presence

 If they did not heed the Lord’s warning He would come like a thief in the night.  He would judge the church in Sardis.

 To those who were the true believers, He admonished them to strengthen what remained because the church was weak.  This small group of believers held the future of the church.

Vs 4  Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes – soiled is from the word muluno which means to stain, to defile, to smear, or to pollute.  Garments in scripture refer to character.  These are the true believers.  Although they were few in number, Jesus had not forgotten them.  They were encouraged to remain and would be rewarded for their faithfulness.

 Soiled, disheveled clothing or no clothing at all represents impurity and shame.

 It is likely that the problem at Sardis was a strong tendency to compromise Christian faith for the sake of conformity to social and cultural standards set by Asian society and the Roman Empire.  That was the majority.  The ones who had not soiled their clothes had become marginalized.  They were a small faction.

 Weirsbe said “It is good to guard our spiritual heritage but we must not embalm it.”

 They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy – they will walk with Jesus.  The white robes signify a celebration or festival.  The white of purity.  We will be dressed for the party, the wedding – without stain or wrinkle.  How do you remove stains (washing), how do you remove wrinkles (iron).  So if you are underwater or under the heat, cheer up!   He is getting you ready for your wedding day.

             “…to present her to Himself as a radiant church without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.”  Ephesians 5:27

Vs 5  He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white.  – all believers will be white with purity and holiness at His coming.

 I will never blot out his name from the book of life – He will not erase a believer’s name no matter how tangled they may get in this life.  He cannot go back on His word and this is comforting to us as believers.

 The Roman Empire recorded citizenship of everyone.  When someone died or became a criminal their name was blotted out.

 God’s Book of Life contained the names of all the living, the wicked as well as the righteous.  As unbelievers die their names are removed from the book, therefore at the final judgment the book contains only the names of believers.

 It then becomes the Lamb’s Book of Life – names of the saved are written in the book from the foundation of the world.  It is a book of life and lost sinners are dead.

             **Revelation 20:11-14**

            **Revelation 21:27**

 But will acknowledge his name before my Father and His angels – there will come a day when Jesus will publicly call your name before the Father and in the presence of the angels.  If you have ever felt insignificant, feel that way no more.  The Lord of the Universe will call you by name, personally, lovingly, to the Father and present you faultless as His bride.

Vs 6  He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches – this message is to all believers.  It was written to the church at Sardis, it is written to the present day church, it is written to you personally.  Do not fall asleep at the wheel, don’t get comfortable and let down your guard, don’t try to just slide into heaven.  He sees, He knows, He judges, and He rewards.

 Wake up!  Strengthen what remains, remember, obey, repent!

 There is a gorgeous white gown just your size with your name on the tag waiting for you and that glorious day when we shall behold Him face to face.