Devotionals
DAY THIRTY-FIVE
SARDIS
The Address
“And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; these things saith he that hath the seven spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest and art dead.” (Revelation 3:1)
As we examine this address, we note first that it is sent to the Angel of the church in Sardis. All of the churches are addressed this way, and as a review, these angels serve as intermediaries to the church. They cannot control what is going on but they serve as God's messenger to address the problem. Each of the churches has assigned to them an Angel messenger. We know nothing more about them as to how they are known by the church, but we can be assured their presence is some way realized.
First, we note in the address what God tells them about Himself. We are told that He holds seven spirits of God and the seven stars. That means he has the power to give life to the church and He also has the power to withdraw his spirit to those who are unfaithful. This is a serious message for Sardis and later on, in our message, we will understand how this message relates to their particular problem.
Second, God tells them that they have a name that lives but inwardly they are dead. It reminds us of the time when Jesus addressed the Pharisees as “whitened sepulcher's full of dead men's bones”. They had fancy buildings and a great reputation that gave an impression of respectability, but inwardly there was nothing but death. What a sad condition to be evaluated this way by the living God. We would think that the address alone would cause great humility and repentance, but it was not to be. By addressing them as a sleeping Church it reveals that there is still potential if they ever wake up. However, they are addressed as dead. There is hope for those who wish to find it, but the church at Sardis was disinterested. The address alone is indeed frightening.
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