Revelation 03:1-6 - Sardis: The Dead Church

By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at / Published Life BPC 10:45am service, 2006-12-03

Text: Revelation 3:1-6

Of the seven churches that Christ wrote to, this church was the least attractive. For most of the other churches, He had words of commendation as well as words of condemnation. But when He wrote to the church of Sardis, the only words He had were words of condemnation. In order to help us understand what Jesus wrote here, let us first look at:

I. The Background of the Church

Sardis had a glorious past that had made it one of the greatest cities of the ancient world. Its location commanded the trade of the islands in the Aegean Sea and the military road that ran through an important river valley. In the 6th century BC it was the capital of the ancient Lydian Empire which occupied half the area of present day Turkey. From Sardis, the famous king Croesus once ruled this thriving empire for 14 years. People used to say 'as rich as Croesus' whenever they wanted to describe anyone who was fabulously rich. Gold from his mines and from the sands of the nearby River Pactolus filled his coffers to overflowing. The people of Sardis naturally enjoyed a life of opulent wealth and luxury. But all that affluence eventually led them into decadence, complacency, moral decay and great decline!

Besides wealth, the city of Sardis had also boasted of its security. It was built on a mountain spur about 480 metres above the valley floor and was regarded as being virtually impregnable to military assault. Several times armies had tried to overthrow the city without any success. There were two times in its history when it fell to foreign assault, once by the Persians, and once by the Greeks, and both victories were achieved by stealth. Sardis was so confident it could not be conquered that it failed to guard its walls adequately. In the dead of the night a band of brave soldiers climbed up the sides of the ravine. They entered an unguarded gate, overthrew the city and plundered away all its wealth. 

Thus, the city of Sardis was characterized by a complacent spirit. Today, all that is left of Sardis is a large archaeological site filled with the ruins of a glorious past. What lessons can we learn from this church of Sardis? I would like to suggest 3: 

I. Do Not Dwell On Your Past Achievements (v.1)

The first lesson is found at the end of v.1 which says, 'I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.' This tells us about the awful condition of the church in Sardis. It once had a name or reputation of being alive because of its past spiritual accomplishments by Spirit-filled Christians who really knew the Lord. But that name, that wonderful reputation they had, no longer applied to them because they were no longer alive, but dead. They still continued - but it was just a form. Its original vibrant character was gone.

It is a sad thing that when a church becomes like that, it tends to live in the past. Instead of doing something about its present state of decline, it keeps on looking back to the good old glorious days when it was strong, healthy and vibrant, and just sit back and bask in its glorious past. One writer said, 'A church is in danger of death when it begins to worship its own past; when it is more concerned with forms than with life; when it loves systems more than it loves Jesus; when it is more concerned with material than it is with spiritual things.'

Now, it is interesting to note that this pathetic state of the church in Sardis was actually a reflection of the city of Sardis itself at this time. By the time of Christ, when the Roman Empire took over control, other cities like Ephesus and Smyrna had already overtaken the city of Sardis and become more prosperous. But instead of trying to regain the city's high position, the citizens of Sardis were content just to live off a fame and glory that was past. Sir William Ramsay, who visited this city a few decades ago aptly remarked, 'No city of Asia at that time showed such a melancholy contrast between past splendour and present decay as the city of Sardis.' 

Apparently this same spirit had affected the Church of Sardis. Their loyalty and service to Christ were things of the past. Now they were nothing. And they were still dwelling in the past. The important lesson we must learn from this is that we must never keep dwelling in our past and just rest on what has been achieved and accomplished. And this may happen to us if we are not careful.

When God blesses a church so that it reaches a satisfactory measure of growth and success, there comes a time when the church stops growing but remains satisfied just to maintain its status quo and enjoy what it has attained. 

And the same thing can also happen to us as individual believers. I have known some who used to be actively serving in church when they were young Christians, but after some time, they stopped doing all of these things, feeling satisfied, and saying to themselves, Let others take over. I think I have already done more than enough.' And then they simply take a back seat and rest on what they have accomplished. Very often, this marks the beginning of a decline in their spiritual life. 

Dearly beloved, if you feel like leaving some area of service that you have been doing for the Lord because you want to give others the opportunity to serve, be sure that this will not be the end of all service for you. You need to move on then to other things. When something is done, there are yet more things to be done for the Lord. Never think that you have already arrived. You need to keep progressing. If you don't, you will only stagnate and perhaps you may even regress and lose what you have gained. Soon you may find yourself no longer alive to the things of God.

Returning to our text we notice that the church in Sardis was described in v.1 as being 'dead'. And in v.2 even the things that remained in the church are described as 'ready to die.' The foul stench of death was already shrouding this church. This is an awful picture of a church. Let us try to imagine what it might have been like: Here was a church whose members were no longer having any impact for Christ on their community. Their hearts had grown cold. They were much too busy with their own worldly pursuits and no longer took God's Word seriously. Most of them were not even believers. They were not spiritually alive but dead. They were what we would call 'nominal Christians.' Nominal comes from the word 'name' - someone who has a name for something.

The few Sardisian Christians who still attended worship services on the Lord's Day did pray and sing hymns but it was all rather mechanical and lifeless - their hearts were not in it. When the sermon was preached, they wondered when the preaching would end, so that they could go off to do their own things. They excused themselves whenever they could, from any service they were called upon to do, and gave their offerings grudgingly to the Lord.

When you see things like these happening in a church, you are actually watching the process of decay. The unhealthy symptoms of death are beginning to set in. And if this goes on for long the church will die and becomes just an empty shell. Such was the awful state of the Church in Sardis. Unfortunately there are thousands of churches like that around the world today. This is the reason why many non-Christians today have a negative impression of the Christian faith. They see their profession of faith, they hear their wonderful words, but sadly they see no life in them. 

Now interestingly enough, one of the things that the city of Sardis boasted about in ancient times was that it had the most impressive cemetery that covered a thousand hills. They even boasted about it and called it their necropolis, or 'Dead City.' What a horrible thing to be famous for. But would it not be even more dreadful, if in the eyes of Christ we too one day became a necropolis, a dead church with no life in our midst? God forbid! May it never be! But what must we do then, in order to keep this from happening? How do we prevent Life Church from becoming 'Dead Church'? Let us look at v.2: 'Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die:' This brings us to the second lesson we can learn from what Christ wrote to the church in Sardis:

II. Be Revived to Fulfill Your Present Task (vv.2-3)

The first need of any dying or dead church is to wake up to its pathetic condition. Wake up and arouse yourself to work and faithful service! This is the call that Christ gave to the Christians at Sardis. And this is perhaps the urgent call that many of us here need to hear as well. 

In a book entitled 'Man: The Dwelling Place of God' A.W. Tozer wrote the following words: 'The complacency of Christians is the scandal of Christianity...They declare that Jesus Christ is very God of very God, made flesh to dwell among us. They insist that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. They testify that He is to them Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption, and they steadfastly assert that He will be to them the Resurrection and the Life for eternity to come. These Christians know, and when pressed will admit, that their finite hearts have explored but a pitifully small part of the infinite riches that are theirs in Christ Jesus.

They read the lives of the great saints whose fervent desire after God carried them far up the mountain toward spiritual perfection; and for a brief moment they may yearn to be like these fiery souls whose light and fragrance still linger in the world where they once lived and labored. But the longing soon passes. The world is too much with them and the claims of their earthly lives are too insistent; so they settle back to live their ordinary lives, and accept the customary as normal. After a while they manage to achieve some kind of inner content and that is the last we hear of them. This contentment with inadequate and imperfect progress in the life of holiness is, I repeat, a scandal in the Church of the Firstborn. The whole weight of Scripture is against such a thing.' Dearly beloved, have you become a complacent Christian? Perhaps you need to heed the Lord's wake-up call.

Now, according to v.2 the church of Sardis was dying. However, there was still some hope left of salvaging the little life that was left in it. But in order to do this decisive emergency measures must be taken before it is too late. The Christians at Sardis needed to act quickly. First, as the end of v.2 says, they needed to realise that all their works which they were so proud of, were not perfect before God. They needed to acknowledge that something is really wrong with them, and that God is not pleased with them. They had been weighed in the balances and been found wanting. Many of them would probably have been shocked to learn the real value of all their works in God's sight. As the refining fire of God revealed that what they thought were gold, silver and precious stones, turned out to be wood, hay and stubble, we can just imagine the forlorn cries of shock and dismay that would come from them.

And it may also perhaps be worthwhile for us to think about what the real worth of our own works would be when it is revealed by God. Let us remember that God does not assess our work for Him in the same way that people assess them. People may praise you when they see your piety, and outward devotion. But God may not praise you at all, as He beholds your inward motives for them. 

Let us fear therefore, and examine our motives, lest th Lord should say to us, 'I have not found thy works perfect before God.' But if we come to realise now that our works have fallen short of God's approval, there is no need for us to lose all hope. Just as the Christians at Sardis still had the opportunity to do something about their predicament, so have we. 

Let us look now at v.3 'Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.' According to this the action we must take is to return to the Word of God which we have received and heard. God's Word must be restored to its rightful place in our lives. 

There is a worrying trend in the world today � The trend that Christians are spending less and less time to read, study and memorise God's Word than before. Why? Because other pursuits of life are taking up more and more of our time. Many have become much too busy with other things to spend any meaningful time in the Word of God. There are so many things that demand our time, and if we are not careful, our lives will become so jammed-packed with them that Bible reading and Bible study will be crowded out by them. How sad it would be, if we became so engrossed with other things that we stopped having any time for Bible reading each day, stopped attending Bible study sessions, stopped having any family worship at home, and eventually even stopped coming to church to hear God's Word preached and taught - and, worse still to do all that without feeling that anything at all is missing from our lives! 

And how terrible it would be if the Lord Jesus Christ should return when we least expect Him to return, just like a thief in the night, and find our souls in a spiritually impoverished and dead condition! And the question that you must consider this morning is: Will this be true of you? What if Christ were to return right now? Will He find you in your best state, spiritually healthy and strong, or will He be grieved to find you very weak spiritually, due to your prolonged neglect of His Word?

Dearly beloved, there can really be no revival of spiritual life in your heart, until the Word of God is restored to its rightful place in your life. This is what you need in your life more than anything else. You need to hold fast to the Word. You need to live by it, for God Himself has decreed that man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth from the mouth of God. And as you do that your soul will be revived as God breathes new life into you through His powerful Word.

Now these were the things that the church at Sardis needed to do in order to emerge out of its miserable condition. We have seen that first of all, it needed to stop dwelling on its past achievements. 

We have also seen that it needed to be revived for its present task. Now as we go on to vv. 4 and 5 we see one more thing that the Church of Sardis needed to do. It needed to strive to receive future rewards. 

III. Strive to Receive Your Future Rewards (vv.4-5)

In these two verses our Lord now motivates the believers of Sardis to heed all His instructions to them well. And He does this by giving them the wonderful prospect of obtaining at least 3 great rewards. The first is the prospect of being clothed in white raiment. This would be of great interest to believers at Sardis because the city of Sardis was well known for its wool textile industry. Many of them probably earned their living from the manufacture and export of woolen textiles and garments.

Now, one important spiritual problem of many believers at Sardis seems to have been the problem of compromised standards of conduct. In order to avoid offending their unbelieving friends and neighbours, the Christians of Sardis had followed them, adopted their sinful ways of doing things, their ungodly manner of speech and their worldly attitudes and values. The Lord wanted them to realise this, and He used their own interest in textiles and garments to illustrate this. And so He said in v.4 'Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments.' Only a few members of the church still had clean, undefiled garments. This clearly implies that the rest of them, who were the great majority in the church, had garments that were defiled. Their lives had become soiled and stained with sin, bringing shame and embarrassment to them. As such they had made themselves unworthy to stand before the Lord and walk with Him. 

But the Lord now makes a promise to all these believers who had soiled their garments through compromised conduct. He promised that if they were to put in every effort to change their ways, by returning to a life that is based on the purity that is taught in the Word of God, He will clothe them with clean, white garments and they would then be able to walk with Him and enjoy blessed fellowship with Him. Now this is also a reminder to us to maintain the purity of our own life, by keeping ourselves from being defiled by the sinful and ungodly ways of the world we live in. Let us learn to maintain the biblical standards of conduct that God expects from us in all areas on life. If we are faithful to keep these standards we too can look forward to the reward that Jesus promised to those at Sardis: We will be clothed in white raiment and be able to share sweet fellowship with Him.

Now this was not the only reward promised to those who overcome. Look in v.5 and you will find that Jesus also promised not to blot out their names out of the book of life. In ancient cities like Sardis, the names of all the citizens who lived in the city were recorded in a book. Their names remained there until death and then they would be blotted or erased out of the book. But ancient records tell us that a person's name could also be blotted out of the book before he died, if he was branded as a social outcast or a criminal. And this means that he was stripped of his citizenship and could no longer enjoy the rights and privileges of being a citizen there.

Now there were perhaps some Christians at Sardis who were afraid of persecution and losing their citizenship if their faith in Christ were to cause people to be offended against them. So they compromised for the sake of keeping their names from being blotted out of the city's book. It was perhaps specially for those who had this fear, that Christ now gives the wonderful assurance that: If, by being faithful in following Him, they suffered the removal of their names from the book of citizenship in Sardis, then they can be comforted by knowing that there is a Book of Life in which their names are permanently written, and from which they will never be blotted out. And it is a far greater privilege to have one's name written in this book than in any other book or register of citizenship in the world! 

Dear friends, is your name written in this Book? Please make sure it is. You can do this by repenting of your sins and turning by faith to Christ alone to save you from sin and eternal death. If you have not been saved yet - please delay no more. Receive Christ into your life now as your personal Saviour and Lord. Seek Him in prayer and He will answer you. He will come into your heart and assure you that your citizenship in heaven is absolutely secure. Your name will never be blotted out of the book of life. And that assurance will motivate you to be faithful to Him.

But the real reward for our faithfulness will not just be this assurance of security, but rather the next thing that is mentioned in v.5. Those who overcome will have the privilege of having their names confessed by Jesus Himself before the Father and before all His angels. What a blessed privilege it is to have your name acknowledged with approval by Christ before God the Father and before all the angelic hosts of heaven! This is a greater honour than any earthly citation that men can give to you. Some people would do anything to get their name listed in some roll of honour (e.g. the Guiness Book of Records, or the 'Who's Who'). But all the prestigious listings and citations of this world are nothing compared to the heavenly citation that believers can have.

Dearly beloved, let us endeavour to be worthy of being honoured in heaven. Run the race of life set before you with all diligence. And if you faithfully keep learning the Word of God, and apply it well to every area of your life, obeying and following your Lord rather than the world, you will most certainly be rewarded. It is worth doing all these things, for the prize of earning God's undeserved commendation. Think of how delightful it will be in heaven to hear the words, 'Well done, thou good and faithful servant: enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.' Make this your life-long quest, your one aspiration in life, to press toward the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

Revelation 21:1-5 - Behold, I Make All Things New

By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at / Published Life BPC Watchnight service, 2004-12-31

Text: Revelation 21:1-5; 2 Corinthians 5:17

I. A New Year

As we all look forward now to the year that will begin in about an hour's time, many of us may perhaps be wondering what kind of year 2005 will be. It is supposed to be a 'new' year. To some people, that may mean that it will not be the same as the old one. Perhaps many of us here are also hoping that the New Year will be a much better one - a really 'new' year without all the old problems and trials that we or the world have faced in 2004, a year that will be filled abundantly with much more goodness, peace, happiness and prosperity for all of us. And so, tonight people everywhere are wishing one another 'Happy New Year' or 'May you have a very prosperous New Year.' That same wishful sentiment is regularly expressed by everyone on every New Year's Eve � that the word 'new' in it bears the thought of better things than what we had before.

Unfortunately not every 'new' year in the past has fulfilled all our expectations. As the years come and go, each of them has brought its share of blessings, but each of them without any exception, has also brought its share of burdens! And we can easily extrapolate or predict that for the years that are to come as well - each New Year that comes will present us with an interesting mixture of blessings and burdens. The sober truth we have no choice but to accept is that as long as sin and its effects continue to exist and thrive in this world, there will be nothing new under the sun. King Solomon made this stark observation in Ecclesiastes 1:9 'The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.'

This applies to 2005. In fact, there are already indications that things will not be completely rosy in 2005. The World Health Organisation has already warned that a great flu pandemic will break out and claim many lives, and recently that there will be a great outbreak of cholera because of all the unburied decaying bodies left by the tsunami waves. Economists predict that there may be a global recession. And 10 days ago our Minister Mentor mentioned that if two important events turn sour next year it could spell the worst of times for the world - the elections in Iraq and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. With such a grim outlook 2005 may not be different from 2004.

So if every year that goes by is generally the same and with nothing really new under the sun, why should we bother to celebrate the beginning of each New Year? I would like to suggest that we who are in Christ have good reason to look forward to every new year - because each year only brings us one year closer to the time when Christ will return from heaven to earth, to the time when He will reign on earth for a thousand years, and to the time when all things will finally be made new!

Dearly beloved, we ought to joyfully welcome the coming New Year because it will bring us one step nearer to the full realization of all these things. As the clock strikes 12 tonight, we can greet one another, 'Blessed New Year,' and add to that the reason why it is so blessed, in the words of the apostle Paul in Romans 13:11, 'For now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.' (Practise with congregation) Doesn't that add a whole new dimension to your new year celebration? Doesn't it remove the humdrum futility of going through the same routine at this time every year? Doesn't it lift you now above all the cares and burdens that you anticipate even in this coming year?

Yes dear Friends, although there is nothing new under the sun, we are approaching nearer to that glorious future, that will begin only when Jesus Christ returns, a most glorious, most wonderful future when all things will be made new! 

II. A New Heaven and a New Earth 

But how do we know for sure that all things will really be new? We know it because God has already revealed it to us in His Word. Let us turn back to our text in Revelation 21 and read v.1 'And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.' The first thing that we want to note is the things that have passed away from the scene.

The first heaven and the first earth here refer to the present existing one we are in. This was the heaven and earth that God created in Genesis chapter one and which was declared to be very good by the end of the sixth day of creation. Unfortunately within a short time, this heaven and earth came under the curse of sin because of man, and since then it has been wearing away and decaying. One writer describes the present earth like a gigantic clock that is running down. Sin has contaminated not only the earth with bloodshed and violence, but has also contaminated the skies (atmospheric heaven) with warplanes and missiles. This present heaven and earth has become so polluted with the sinfulness of man that it cannot be inhabited by the coming new society of sinless perfection. Hence, it must pass away.

The question is 'How will the heaven and earth pass away?' We think of the massive size of the earth and all the things in it. How will it be destroyed? Well, last Sunday we saw how tsunami waves reduced seaside resorts and towns to rubble. Just a few years ago we witnessed on television how two huge towers 110 storeys high were demolised within a short time when two hijacked planes crashed into them. There were great flames of fire, and billowing smoke and then the awesome collapse of the building within a few seconds! Buildings that took years to build, to furnish and to fill with thriving banks and businesses all came to nought within just an hour or two.

Dearly beloved, the passing away of the old heaven and the old earth will be like that, but on a much larger scale. The description of it is found in 2 Peter 3: 10 'the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.'

Let us learn an important lesson from this: There is no use investing so much of your time and effort in the things of this present heaven and earth. Why should you labour so hard to gain the things of this world, which will eventually be destroyed and totally forgotten? Let us labour rather for the things that will come after the old heaven and earth have passed away - and that is the new and glorious heaven and earth. It is interesting to note that long before the apostle John wrote about this, God had already revealed this through the prophet Isaiah. Isaiah 65:17 'For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.'

A. Their Absolute Freshness 

This verse states one important fact about this new heaven and new earth that is not mentioned in our text of Revelation 21, and that is how they will come into being. God says that He will create them. It will not be merely the same matter from the old heaven and old earth that is recycled and reformed into something different (like taking clay models and reshaping them into something else). 

It will be an entirely new creation, made out of nothing like the first one, but much better than the first one. And that means that everything in it will be absolutely new, fresh and unused. Now, another feature of this new heaven and new earth that we look forward to is:

B. Their Eternal Duration

How long will they last? The answer is found in Isaiah 66:22 'For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.' God Himself says that the new order of creation will remain before Him. This means that it will last forever.

It will be the ultimate, final state and there will be no further changes or other creations after it! Now, we who live in Singapore have seen our built environment changing drastically through the years. A new building that looks really nice comes up but after a few decades it is dwarfed by the surrounding buildings and then it is demolished and replaced with a new one. But this new building will in turn become an eyesore after some time and be replaced with another. There seems to be no end to it. No structure is permanent. Because if it is permanent, it would mean that it is perfect, and never needs to be replaced at all.

C. Their Unmatched Perfection

And this brings us to the next amazing feature of the new heaven and new earth - their eternal duration implies that they are perfect. They cannot be improved upon nor replaced with anything that is better, because they are already the best that can ever exist! They will fill up the sum of perfection, in every possible aspect. One aspect of perfection is moral perfection or righteousness. Let us look at 2 Peter 3:13 which tells us 'Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.'

This means that there will be nothing that is sinful, deceptive, misleading, enticing or tempting at all in the whole environment, unlike the present environment we live in today, so saturated with unwholesome images and sinful influences (and having a casino will only make it worse). All these things will be absent from the new heaven and the new earth because perfect righteousness dwells in it. 

But while that important feature makes the new heaven and the earth the most ideal place for us to dwell in, it also creates a great problem: Look at v.27 of Rev 21 'And there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie' How can morally imperfect creatures like us dwell there? How can we who are sinners entertain even the slightest hope of living in such a perfect and sinless place? Dearly beloved, the only way to be a part in that future glorious age when God creates all things anew, is to be created anew!

III. A New Creature

And the good news is that this is already true of those who are in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17 'Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.' I would like you to observe something quite interesting here: The striking resemblance between this verse and our text of Rev 21:1-5. In this verse there is a new creature; Rev 21:1 speaks of the new heaven and the new earth. In this verse 'old things are passed away'; Rev 21:4 mentions that 'the former things are passed away.' And in this verse we find the words 'behold, all things are become new' while in Rev 21:5 God says, 'Behold I make all things new.'

What does this interesting correspondence between 2 Corinthians 5:17 and Revelation 21:1-5 mean to us? It tells us that the only way you can ever rejoice to have a part in God�s new creation, is if you yourself have become a new creation. If you are not a new creation, you can have no part in the coming glorious new heaven and earth with their absolute freshness, eternal duration and unmatched perfection.

And so we come to the crux of tonight's message - And that is the need for you to be a new creation. How can you know if you are a new creature? The answer lies in the first part of the verse: 'Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature' Only those who are saved, those who are in Christ are new creatures, who can have a part in God�s new Creation. If you have truly believed in Jesus Christ to be your Saviour and Lord, you have become a new creature. 

A. Accomplished by Being in Christ

Before we were saved, we were controlled by our old nature, and we were all slaves to sin. Sin dominated our thoughts and actions like a hard and cruel taskmaster and we were helplessly under its control. 

We served sin and suffered all the unpleasant effects that came with it: hatred, bitterness, deceit, strife, jealousy, rebellion, pride and lust. But all that has changed for those who are in Christ. Through His power we are liberated and delivered from the power of sin. Although sin may still be present in our lives, its power over us is now broken.

Those who are not in Christ yet cannot enjoy such freedom from the power of sin. The old sinful nature is still very much alive in them and they cannot succeed to live the new life of Christian living, no matter how hard they may try, because they are still under the power of sin. Sometimes in a large church like this, it happens that there are some who come and participate in all activities: worship, fellowship and prayer. And it is just assumed by all that they are saved. 

But they seem to have an ongoing problem with sin in their life. They are just the same as before, falling back into the same old sins again and again. Perhaps there may even be some right here tonight who are like that. Please examine yourselves and ask this question: Do you still find yourself helplessly under the power of sin? Is your life still controlled by sin? If your answer to both of these questions is 'yes' then perhaps you are not a new creature yet, and with no part in the new heaven and new earth.

Another way to tell whether you are truly a new creature or not, is to see if there is a new quality in your life. Some would call this a transformed life. The apostle Paul called it 'newness of life' in Romans 6:3,4.

B. Exhibited by Newness of Life

'Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.'

To walk in newness of life, is to exhibit a new quality of life, one that is quite different and superior to the quality to your former life. When you walk in newness of life you will live for heavenly things and not for earthly things any more. Dearly beloved, do you have this new quality in your life? Do you still love the things that you loved before? If you are walking in newness of life, your values in life will be different. 

You will be more concerned with the things of God than the things of the world, and with things that are eternal, rather than with things that are temporal, and with things that are above, rather than with things that are on the earth.

Above all, if you are truly walking in newness of life, you will respond to the Word of God. You will listen to God when He speaks to you through His Word. You will be ready to do His bidding and take His Word seriously. Those who walk in newness of life will tremble at God's Word, and will be moved and convicted by it. And they respond to that Word with prayer, trust and obedience. They are not just hearers of the Word, but also doers of the Word. They are like the good ground in the parable of the sower of Matthew 13 who 'heareth the word and understandeth it and also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth some an hundredfold, some sixty and some thirty.'

This now helps you to know if you are walking in newness of life: Do you listen to God when He speaks to you through His Word? Do you respond to Him readily? Or are you more like a dead person who does not seem to listen or respond at all? We all know that things that are dead have no ability to hear and respond. You may shout at them, scream at them, pinch them, shake them and still not get the slightest response from them. 

If the Word of God that you have been receiving has made little or no impact on your life, and you find that you do not respond to it, this may indicate that you are not walking at all in newness of life. And if as we have seen before, you are still living in sin and you are under its power, then this may indicate that you are not saved. Then please do not delay any longer to come to Jesus Christ and ask Him to come into your life right now. 

It would be good to make sure of your salvation before this year ends. If you can see evidence that you are walking in newness of life, do not be satisfied with that, but do the following: Repent of whatever besetting sins that are still found in your life - leave them all behind and do not bring them into the New Year. Renew your love and commitment to the Lord tonight - so that you may trust in Him to lead you well in the New Year. And resolve to strive for the greater heights of Christian living and service that God wants you to attain - let Him accomplish more through your yielded life in the New Year.

Then you can really, really look forward earnestly to the day when the Lord will make all things new, to that great and wonderful day when you will dwell forever in the new heaven and the new earth. And so, as we enter into the New Year tonight, let us all set our hearts on the words that God has spoken to us in Revelation 21:5 'Behold, I make all things new!'

Revelation 02:18-29 - Thyatira: The Corrupt Church

By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at / Published Life BPC 10:45am service, 2006-11-26

Text: Revelation 2:18-29

I. The Background of the Church

A. Its Location

The church was located at Thyatira, which is known today as Akhissar, a modern city in West Turkey with about 150,000 people. Its existence goes all the way back to 3,000 BC because its strategic location on an intersection of important roads has made it a commercial centre for trade. In fact Thyatira was one of the first few places where money in the form of gold and silver coins was first used in the world. And today it is still the trade and business centre in its region. Historical records show that in New Testament times Thyatira had an extensive trade union network. Every skilled worker in the city was a member of a trade union. There was a tailors union, a woolworkers union, a tanners union, a potters union, a bakers union etc. 

The most prominent of all these trade unions of Thyatira was the one which dealt with the manufacture and trade of a purple-coloured cloth. This purple cloth for which Thyatira was so well known, was expensive and usually worn by kings and queens. Purple was the colour of royalty and Kings and nobility would come from miles around to Thyatira to purchase its purple cloth (cf. when Christ was crucified the soldiers put a purple robe on him to mock him as the King of the Jews.)

B. Its Origin

How was a church planted in Thyatira? Although there is no record in the Bible or in church history of how the Gospel reached this city, some commentators believe that it was brought by a Thyatirean lady named Lydia. 

From Acts 16:14 we know that Lydia had probably brought bales of Thyatirian purple cloth to the Macedonian city of Philippi because there was a ready market for them there. She set up an offshore sales outlet to sell the famous cloth. As she stayed in Philippi she heard the Gospel through the apostle Paul, and was soundly converted! And the very first church in Europe soon started to worship the Lord in her house at Philippi. With the joy of salvation bubbling deep in her heart, Lydia and her family probably returned to Thyatira later on to bring her friends and loved ones there to Jesus Christ. Listen to what Bishop Trench wrote about Lydia: 'She who had gone forth for a while to buy and sell and get gain, when she returned home may have brought home with her richer merchandise than any she had looked to obtain.' 

Soon a thriving church was established at Thyatira, and by the end of the first century there was a rather large Christian community there. At the beginning of the third century Epiphanius wrote that almost all of Thyatira was Christian. And as late as the 10th century there are records of a church still existing in that city.

C. Its Environment

However, when the Church first started it may have been quite difficult to live as a Christian in Thyatira. This is because of the pervasive idolatry and immorality that was promoted by the powerful trade unions which dominated the whole city's economy. If you wanted to make any commercial gains in Thyatira, you had to join a trade union. Without joining a trade union, you would be oppressed and ostracized out of business. Now, each trade union had its own patron god. As a trade union member you would be expected to attend its regular fellowship meals which always began with the worship of the patron god's idol. The food was offered to the idol first before it was consumed by the members. After each fellowship meal, the members would freely engage in immoral acts with one another. 

Therefore, when a Thyatirian became a Christian, he would have to make a difficult decision. As a Christian, he cannot be involved in any idol worship or consume food that had been offered to idols because these sins are expressly forbidden by the Lord. He also had to abstain from fornication and from any form of sexual immorality (see Acts 15:20, 29; 1 Thessalonians 4:3). But in order to ply his trade successfully and enjoy any commercial and financial benefits at Thyatira, he would have to do these forbideen things or risk losing his membership in his trade union. 

Dearly beloved, what would you do if you were in such a situation? Would you compromise your stand for the Lord as a Christian, or would you be willing to forego all those commercial benefits? It was a choice between commercial suicide and spiritual suicide. In a few short years many Singaporeans may have to face such a decision. With the opening of the two integrated resorts, there will be plenty of lucrative job offers in the casinos up for grabs. As Christians must have the moral courage to forego such attractive opportunities in order to take an uncompromising stand against gambling.

That is not all. When the Antichrist appears on the world scene we may have to stake a stand against receiving the mark of the Beast (666) even though it means that we will not be able to buy or sell anything without having this mark (Revelation 13:17)

Perhaps it would not be too difficult to take a firm uncompromising stand if all your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ are also taking the same stand with you. There is bound to be a large degree of mutual encouragement when there is unity of conviction and unity of practice. But if many Christians do not take the stand and they choose to compromise to reap the benefits, it makes it difficult for the rest to resist the offers. From what our Lord wrote to the Church at Thyatira we will see that this was the kind of situation that Christians were facing there. Let us find out why as we now look at:

II. The Message of Christ to the Church

Of all the messages to the seven churches, the one that Christ wrote to the church of Thyatira was the longest - 12 verses. It consists of four parts:

A. Christ's Approval of the Church (v.19)

The highest approval that you can ever receive in life is God's approval. We see this implied in the title that Jesus used for Himelf in v.18 'These things saith the Son of God.' This title is deliberately used in this letter to bring out the deity of Jesus Christ - it brings out the truth that He is none other than God the Son, the 2nd person of the Holy Trinity, co-equal and co-eternal with God the Father. Knowing that Christ is the Son of God would certainly encourage the Christians in Thyatira to treasure His approval above all things, rather than seeking to be approved by the world in which they lived and by its idolatrous and licentious trade unions. 

And His approval of them as a church is given in v.19 in the most glowing terms: 'I know thy works, and charity, and service, and faith, and thy patience, and thy works; and the last to be more than the first.' What an impressive report card this church had! You could say that they had scored 'As' in every subject - their love (which is translated here as 'charity'), their service, their faith, their patience and their works. 

Unlike the loveless Ephesian Church, the ones who were at the Church of Thyatira had remained in their first love. The Ephesian believers had been told to return to doing the first works (v.5). In contrast to that, the Thyatirean believers were already doing more than their first works! Here is something good that we can learn from them: all of us should desire to keep growing spiritually and developing godly virtues. As we do that we can hope to receive the same divine approval that the Thyatirian Christians received from the Lord.

However, despite this glowing report, the Church of Thyatira had a very serious flaw which could not be hidden away from the Lord.

B. The Admonition (vv.20,21)

You will notice that in v.18, the Lord identifies Himself as the One 'who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass.' Under His penetrating vision everything that goes on within the church is exposed - even those things that were done in secret. Whatever sinful blemishes His burning vision exposed must then be removed. This removal is what His feet represents. Their description of being like fine brass speaks of Christ's work of refining His Church, because brass has to go through a refining process in a hot furnace to become 'fine brass.' 

This would have been familiar to the Thyatirians. Besides being known for its royal purple cloth, Thyatira was also quite well known for the fine quality of its brass ware. And now the Lord's piercing vision was about to expose a putrid and festering sore deep within the Thyatirean Church. Just as brass must be refined in a hot fiery furnace to attain its finest quality the Lord must refine this Church with His word to remove the dross of false teaching out of it. 

His word of admonition is found in v.20 'Thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols.' You may notice here that Jesus did not admonish the Church for something that it had done, but for what it had not done - it had not stopped a false teacher within its own ranks. This is not even a case of a church agreeing with the false teacher or encouraging her to propagate her sinful teachings and practices. It was simply the case of a church allowing a false teacher to infiltrate its ranks. It is basically the sin of careless neglect. 

Are you guilty of this sin of neglect? Have you allowed sinful habits to 'build their nests' in your life? Please learn an important lesson from this: The Lord takes our sin of neglect very seriously. If you have certain sinful habits that you have done nothing to eliminate, do something about them. If you keep tolerateing them, they will only keep growing until your life is controlled by them. Whenever a problem starts to grow you have to nip it the the bud. 

This was something that the Church at Thyatira failed to do, and thus they incurred the displeasure of Christ. The problem there was like this: A certain member of the church had boldly proclaimed herself to be a prophetess from God. She was apparently quite influential and in a position to teach many other members of the church. And what was she teaching them? This is where our background knowledge of Thyatira that we learned earlier will help us. 

Do you remember the temptation that Christians at Thyatira faced to compromise their standards in order to be in the trade unions? Well, this false teacher was probably teaching them that there is no harm in taking part in the immoral and idolatrous fellowship meals that their trade unions required them to attend regularly. 

She may have reasoned that since Christ has already set them free from all legalistic prohibitions, they can do whatever they want as Christians and no one should judge them (cf. Galatians 5:1). She may also have taught them that in order to win sinners to Christ, they have to come down to their level and live like them to be identified with them (1 Corinthians 9:22). If they chose to stay away from these trade unions, who is going to witness to them? Besides that she may have also convinced them that their loving Heavenly Father will surely understand their need to make a living, and thus He will not mind their bending His Laws here and there just a little bit, in order to earn an income. 

Dearly beloved, these arguments may sound quite reasonable and convincing, but please be warned that they are deadly poison! To say that we can do whatever we want because Christ has set us free is to abuse our Christian liberty (Galatians 5:13). To teach that one can use any means - moral or immoral - to win sinners to Christ as long as it works, is using the end to justify the means. This is utterly unbiblical (1 Samuel 15:22). And to teach that God understands that we sometimes have to bend or break His Laws a little in order to make a living, is to grossly misrepresent God (Psalm 50:21; Matthew 6:25,26).

Recently a series of books has been published that has sold over 7 million copies worldwise and has been translated into 34 languages and has even been made into a movie. Entitled 'Conversations with God' these books were written by Neale Walsch to promote a teaching called 'the New Spirituality.' He claims that anyone can hear God's voice speaking directly without using the Bible. But the things that are revealed through this means contradict what God has given in His written Word. For instance, Walsch says that God supposedly told him, 'I do not forgive anyone because there is nothing to forgive. There is no such thing as right or wrong and that is what I have been trying to tell everyone, do not judge people. People have chosen to judge one another and this is wrong, because the rule is 'judge not lest ye be judged.'

Dearly beloved, please do not be fooled by such words even though they may sound quite appealing. Otherwise, you may become just like the Thyatireans who were misled by the false teacher who is called Jezebel in v.20 of our text. Now the name 'Jezebel' in v.20 may not be her real name, but it is used here by the Lord Jesus to expose her true character - that she just is as evil and wicked as the Old Testament Queen Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab. Queen Jezebel was notorious for making the worship of Baal popular in Israel. Baal was a fertility god, and his worship involved immoral and licentious practices. There were temple prostitutes, both male and female, associated with Baal worship.

It was Jezebel who promoted that depraved worship widely in the northern kingdom of Israel until it became the most popular religion of the day. She herself supported over 800 prophets of Baal, who ate at her table. She was the one who tried to kill Elijah after his famous encounter with 480 prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel when fire came down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice. Elijah had courageously faced the 480 prophets of Baal, but when Jezebel threatened to kill him he ran for his life. 

Queen Jezebel was also the one who murdered her neighbor Naboth because her husband coveted his vineyard. She was a ruthless, immoral, seducer of the people, and that is why Christ uses her name for this dominant woman who was in the Church at Thyatira. Married couples, if you have a baby girl please don't ever give her the name 'Jezebel'! It is really not a good name at all, but a name of terrible reproach. And it signifies a terrible end. The Old Testament Jezebel met her end by being thrown down from her palace window and being devoured by dogs. Let us look at v. 22 now to see how the New Testament Jezebel met her end.

C. The Adjudication (vv.22,23)

'Behold, I will cast her into a bed, and them that commit adultery with her into great tribulation, except they repent of their deeds.' We observe that the Jezebel of Thyatira would be punished by being cast into a bed - Not a bed of pleasure and fornication, but a bed of pain and affliction! This implies that she will be struck with a plague or sickness. Today, many who commit sexual sins are similarly cast into a bed of sickness and affliction - by suffering from sexually transmitted infections. 

Whatever it was that this Jezebel of Thyatira suffered from, it is clear that it was divine judgment for her sins. Perhaps you may wonder why Christ punished her so severely. The reason why severe judgment is needed is that she was already beyond redemption. V.21 states that she had so graciously been given the opportunity to change her ways and to repent of her evil deeds. But she had refused to change. Hence the day of grace was over for her, and the only thing that remained for her now was divine judgment! Like a master surgeon, the Lord Jesus had to remove the cancerous tissue from within the Church before it spreads any further and does more damage. Now, in order to rid the church of this malignant growth Christ not only had to deal with Jezebel, but also with those that she had influenced in the church. 

Here we can see how the Lord is fair and consistent - since He had given Jezebel ample opportunity to repent of her sins (v.21), He also gives those who have been misled by her the opportunity to repent of their sins (v.22). He mercifully gives them ample warning about the divine judgment they would receive, so that they can take the necessary steps to be saved from it. If they refuse to repent despite His warning, they can have no one else to blame but themselves when they come under condemnation because they have proven themselves to be just like her.

Perhaps the Lord is also giving ample warning now to some of us here this morning. Perhaps some of you have heard the Gospel before and had been attracted to it, but you have yet to repent of your sins and turn to Jesus Christ alone for salvation. Perhaps you think that there is still plenty of time left for you to indulge yourself in the pleasures of sin. If this is true of you, I would plead with you now to stop being mistaken about God's mercy and grace. 

I want to say this to all our friends here who are still unsaved: God commands you to repent of all your sins right now. There are 4 truths about repentance you need to know: Firstly, Repentance is necessary to prevent your ruin. Secondly, Repentance requires time and opportunity to be committed to turn from your sins and seek God's provision of salvation through the precious blood of His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ. Thirdly, where God gives you the time and opportunity to repent, He expects you to use the opportunity to repent. Fourthly, when the opportunity for repentance is not used, you will perish with a double destruction - not only for your sins, but now also for having despised and rejected God's mercy and grace. 

Dear unsaved friends, please consider this very carefully: Will your soul end up in eternal death like Jezebel and her children? I hope not. Turn to the Lord Jesus right now. The Bible says, 'now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.' (2 Corinthians 6:2) Believe in Him and receive Him as your Saviour and Lord, and He will surely save you from your sins. 

D. The Awards (vv. 24-28)

And instead of speaking words of judgement to you, He will speak words of peace to you. When you have turned to Him and been saved, the Lord will speak words of love and comfort to strengthen and encourage you, just like the words in v.24 which He wrote to His precious saints who had not followed the false teacher of Thyatira 'But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.' 

How tender are the words that Christ spoke to His faithful servants! He knows that their capacity and ability are limited, and He will not add more burdens to them than what is absolutely necessary. Dearly beloved, if you have been doing your part in Christian living and service for Him faithfully, perhaps Jesus is also saying to you in the same gentle and tender tones, 'I will put upon you none other burden. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come.' To hold fast means to hold tightly and firmly on to something, and not loosen one's grip of it. Christ wants you to hold fast what you already have. There are at least two things that you have and must hold fast: Firstly, you have all the precious truths that you have learned from His Word: Retain them within your grasp and don't ever lose or compromise them. 

As Proverbs 23:23 says, 'Buy the truth, and sell it not.' In order to hold fast to these precious truths, you must live up to them. Let your life be fully conformed to these truths. As God's Word says in Philippians 3:16, 'Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing.'

The second thing you have and which you must hold fast is your fellowship with the Lord each day. Please hold on most firmly to your precious daily quiet time with the Lord. Treasure it, and let nothing ever rob you of it. In the Song of Solomon 3:4 the Shulamite who went searching for her beloved finally says, 'but I found him whom my soul loveth: I held him, and would not let him go'

Now we come to the question, 'What is there to gain from holding fast to what we already have?' There are two attractive awards you can look forward to, as given in vv.26-28. The first award for holding fast faithfully is to receive 'power over the nations.' This refers to the privilege we will have to reign on earth with Christ during the time of His millennial kingdom. 

This promise of power over the nations would have been especially meaningful to those Christians in Thyatira who suffered under the oppression of their trade unions. What does it matter to them now if their businesses and incomes declined when they refused to join in the ungodly fellowship meals? One day, they will be the ones to exercise power with Christ over the nations of the world!

I trust that this promise may also be a source of much encouragement to those who are presently being oppressed or even persecuted in your place of work by ungodly bosses and employers. If you are weary with being always on the receiving end of office politics because you are a Christian, please take heart: The day will come when you will be the one in charge and no one can oppress you any more.

The second award for holding fast is even better than the first one. In v.28 Jesus said, 'And I will give him the morning star.' What is this morning star? It cannot be a literal star, for what good is it to have a huge ball of burning gas? The answer is found in Revelation 22:16, where Jesus says, 'I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.' What Jesus promises to those who hold fast faithfully is Himself! And dear friends, if you truly love the Lord Jesus, there is no better award than this that you can ever hope to receive. To all of us who love Him, Jesus is truly our heart's greatest desire. He is 'the Lily of the valley, the Bright and Morning Star, and the fairest of ten thousand to our soul!'

Let us therefore take heed to the precious words which we have heard from our Lord Jesus today: Repent of those sins that you need to repent, and Hold fast to what you already have. As the last verse says, 'He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.'

Revelation 01:4-6 - Making Us Kings and Priests

By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at Life BPC Evening service, 2014-04-27

Text: Revelation 1:4-6

The first thing we notice in this passage is that it was originally written to the seven churches in Asia. This does not refer to the continent that is called Asia today, but to the Roman province of Asia which was on the western part of present-day Turkey. These seven churches were located along a road which begins at Ephesus on the coast, moved north through Smyrna and Pergamum turning east through Thyatira, then south to Sardis, southeast to Philadelphia and finally ending at Laodicea. One question that is often asked is, “Why was the Book of Revelation addressed only to these seven churches?” Various answers have been given, e.g. some think that these seven churches represent seven ages of church history. Others think that seven is the number of completeness, and since this number is used 54 times in the book as a symbol of perfection, the number of churches addressed in it is limited to seven just to follow the same pattern.

The best explanation comes from understanding the unique relationship of John the Apostle with these seven churches, and what was happening to them when this book was written. Although these churches were established mainly through Paul’s ministry, they came under the care of John the Apostle after Paul died in AD 67. John took up residence at Ephesus and there he wrote his Gospel and his epistles which are 1, 2 and 3 John. From there he visited these churches regularly and exercised good pastoral care over them, even protecting them against false teachers like Cerinthus and false doctrines like Gnosticism.

Things became extremely difficult for Christians when Domitian became the emperor of the Roman Empire in 81 AD. Domitian was a cruel tyrant who wanted everyone to acknowledge him as Lord and God. When the Christians refused to do this, he persecuted them severely and turned everyone against them by blaming them for famines, earthquakes and plagues that affected any province in the empire. Many Christians were forced to renounce their faith in Christ. Some were killed, and many like John, were imprisoned or exiled. Let us read verse 9 to see where John was exiled: “I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.”

Patmos was a small island (about the same size as Jurong island) located off the west coast of Turkey. During his exile there, John was most concerned for all the Christians in the seven churches of Asia since they were directly under his care. He knew what they were going through – their problems, their trials and their need for strength and encouragement in the midst of persecution. During his exile John must have prayed fervently that God would help and protect them. Then one day, the Lord Jesus Himself appeared to John on the island of Patmos and gave him messages for the seven churches. These messages, which revealed the glorious future they should all look forward to, became the Book of Revelation in our Bible.

And what an awesome revelation it turned out to be, even to John! Through it, John was assured that in the midst of the most severe trials of life, the Christian’s greatest encouragement is always to be found in Jesus Christ and in the glorious work that He is doing in the lives of His people. This is reflected in the preface of the book which is the passage we read a while ago. Here in verses 4-6, we find three wonderful truths that we must focus on, in order to persevere as followers of Christ:

I. The Supreme Excellence of Christ’s Person (vv.4,5a)

A. As God the Son

You will notice that in John’s greeting to the seven churches in v.4, grace and peace is bestowed upon them from three sources. The first source is ‘Him which is, and which was and which is to come.’ This refers to God the Father. The second source is ‘the seven Spirits which are before His throne.’ This refers to the God the Holy Spirit. And in v.5 the third source is Jesus Christ, who is God the Son. I am sure you can recognise that together, these three are the Holy Trinity – One God in three persons! You will also notice that much more is mentioned about the Son than about the Father and the Spirit – He is the subject of vv.5 and 6, and continuing beyond that into vv.7 and 8. This does not make Him greater than the other two persons in the Trinity. All three persons in the Trinity are of equal essence, rank, honour and power.

But what John wanted to do here is to present Jesus within the context of the Trinity. He wanted his readers to see that Jesus Christ is none other than God the Son, of the very same essence as God the Father and God the Spirit from all eternity! This would convince them never to acknowledge Emperor Domitian as Lord and God and to renounce their faith in Christ. And we likewise, ought to persevere faithfully as followers of Christ, because He is none other than the Almighty God Himself. God is supreme. He is infinitely greater than any human king or government in authority. Instead of fearing what the most powerful men can do to us, we should fear what Christ can do to us. As Jesus said in Matthew 10:28 – “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”

B. As the Faithful Witness

Besides being God the Son, Jesus is the faithful witness. This title describes His function of revealing God to man. It is similar to what John wrote at the beginning of his Gospel when he designated Jesus as ‘theWord’ – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” He is the divine logos, the living Word who is the express image of God’s person. John clearly wanted his readers to take Jesus as their only reliable source of revelation from God. This would counsel them never to accept other sources of revelation, and particularly the many false teachers who troubled the seven churches. We likewise must take Jesus as our only authoritative source of truth from God, since He is the Faithful Witness. In today’s world religious pluralism is widely accepted and upheld, and those like us who claim that Jesus is the only way to God are despised as bigoted extremists. Every view about God and salvation is held as valid truth.

It was recently reported in the news that the Prime Minister of England was severely criticised for saying the Britain is still a Christian country. What a difference this is from the times of the Reformation and the Great Awakening when the majority of English people were not ashamed of Christ and even brought the Gospel around the world. Let us be careful not to follow the trend of religious pluralism by being reminded that Jesus is the Faithful Witness of God for us. And that’s not all. Jesus is also…

C. As the First-begotten of the Dead

This is the next thing that is mentioned in v.5 of our passage. It highlights the resurrection of Christ, the glorious event which was celebrated last Sunday. In John 14:19 Jesus told His disciples, “…because I live, ye shall live also.” This great assurance is now echoed to the seven churches through the description of Jesus as ‘the first-begotten of the dead. It would bring comfort to those who had to die for refusing to renounce Christ during Domitian’s persecution. So what if they are beheaded, fed to the lions or burned at the stake? They know that they will resurrect from the dead and have new indestructible bodies. We can likewise overcome all fear of death by looking to Jesus as the first-begotten of the dead. Unlike others, we Christians face death not with despair but with hope and joy of the better life to come.

One reason why many of us are not living as joyfully and courageously as we ought to be is that we do not focus enough on Jesus Christ. We focus instead on our own fears and failures and on the fearful situation we are in. We must change our focus. Look instead at Jesus who is God the Son, the Faithful Witness and the First-begotten of the dead and you see what a difference it makes. And besides all that you must look at Jesus…

D. As the Prince of the Kings of the Earth

This is the next description of Jesus in v.5 of our passage, and it reveals that though earthly rulers may seem to have great power right now, they cannot exert more power than what Jesus allows them to have. When they overstep the limits, He will remove them easily. This truth would compel the seven churches to submit to Christ’s greater authority rather than that of the Roman Emperor. When Domitian issued his decree for Christians to renounce their faith in Christ and to proclaim himself Lord and God, he actually decreed his own doom. In AD 96, he was assassinated and the Roman senate immediately condemned the memory of his reign to oblivion. The news of his death not only brought great relief to Christians then, but it would have reminded them that Christ is the undisputed ruler of the world, the King of kings and Lord of lords!

Perhaps some of us may be worried that the confrontation in Ukraine may soon escalate into conflict and war, or that North Korea may be become bolder under its present president. As we watch government authorities flaunting their power in the world’s affairs today, let us remember that in reality Jesus is the one who rules over all. None of them can ever do more than what He allows. So whenever we have to choose to obey men or obey the Lord Jesus, let us be careful always choose to obey Him.

And there is an even better reason for us to obey Him rather than others: No one has ever loved us like Jesus. This leads us now to the second important truth from this passage:

II. The Sacrificial Efforts of Christ’s Love (vv.5b)

We see this in v.5 – “Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.” This is really the highest point of the passage, where John brings out so well the full glory of the magnificent love of Jesus for us. Let us savour each part of this wonderful description. First of all, we see…

A. The Unworthy Objects of His Love

The ones whom Jesus loved were not the most lovable creatures. In our own human thinking, someone of such supreme excellence as we have just seen surely deserves to love and be loved by objects that are worthy of His excellence. And most high-ranking leaders prefer to make friends with people who are like them. When they throw lavish dinner parties their invited guests would usually be the elite members of society. The ‘rich and famous’ are the ones who get to enjoy their company and hospitality.

But who are the ones whom Jesus loved? Verse 5 tells us that it was those who needed to be washed from their sins. It was those who were deeply stained with sin, those whose hearts were rebellious and cold toward Him, those who had offended Him and grieved His holy being to the very core. We are actually the most unworthy objects of His love.  In fact it is not wrong to say that Jesus loved those He should have hated! By right He should have despised and rejected us. But the wonder of wonders is that instead of doing that, He washed us. Verse 5 tells us that His love for us moved Him to wash us. This brings us to consider…

B. The Unsurpassed Power of His Blood

Our sins were so deeply rooted in our souls that nothing could wash them away. Nothing could wash away the dark stains of guilt and the festering infection of sin that had defiled us. Nothing, except the precious blood of Jesus. Nothing can surpass the purifying power of the blood of Jesus Christ!

One of the things that Singapore has become famous for, is our recycling of sewage water into drinkable water. I am talking about NEWater. There are now four NEWater plants that produce 76,000 tons of recycled water daily. But you may remember that when NEWater was first introduced through the media about 10 years ago, we could not imagine how that dirty, smelly waste water from our bathrooms and toilets could ever go into our mouths. I think that many of us were horrified at the thought of drinking water that has been taken right out of our sewage system! But today we are drinking it every day because NEWater makes up 1% of all our drinking water. And what is really amazing is that this purified water is even cleaner than water from all other sources, and it is really very safe to drink. What a powerful purifying process this is!

But there is a purifying process that is so many times more powerful than this: It is the precious blood of Jesus that washes us whiter than snow. The Lord boldly proclaims – “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” (Isaiah 1:18) How wonderful it is to be cleansed not just from some of our sins, or from most of our sins, but from all of our sins. And all that we need to do to be washed is to come and confess our sins to Him. As 1 John 1:9   says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” This cleansing wash is freely available to all sinners who will come to receive it.

However, we must not think that since it is free to all, it must be a very cheap and common thing. People tend to think that good things are not cheap, cheap things are not good, and free things should not be considered at all. But while the blood of Christ is freely offered to all without cost, it was actually procured at the greatest cost to Christ. This brings us now to consider…

C. The Unfathomable Cost of Our Salvation

Look at the end of v.5 again, and there you will see the words, “in His own blood.” It was with His own blood that Jesus washed us – not just a few drops of it, but the entire volume of it. He had to bleed and bleed until He died in order to give all His blood to wash us. It cost Him His life. That makes His blood so much more costly than all the gold and silver in the world! It would be a terrible crime for us to underestimate the cost of our salvation, a heartless crime to regard His blood as something that we can disregard so easily when it is freely offered.

This is one reason why you must take your salvation from sin so seriously. Perhaps there may be someone here today who has never taken it seriously even until now. You have heard the Gospel many times, but your heart is not moved to respond. The Bible says, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved” (Acts 16:31) but you keep on delaying and postponing the commitment to believe in Him and be washed in His blood. Now that you have understood what Jesus has done to save you, can you continue to delay any more?

We have just seen the full magnificent glory of the love of Jesus for us, as revealed in the words of v.5, “Unto Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.” This ought to move not only those who are still unsaved, but also those who are already saved to persevere as followers of Christ. As Isaac Watts wrote, “Love so amazing, so divine demands my soul, my life, my all!” There is however one more important truth that should move us to do this…

III. The Superb Effects of Christ’s Work (v.6)

Please look now at verse 6, which says, “And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” Now this is a continuation from the last part of v.5 which describes what Jesus has done for the ones He loves. And so, now we learn that the love of Jesus moved Him not only to wash us in His own blood, but also to fit us for effective service to God.

A. We Serve God:

1. As Kings

Firstly, Jesus has made us kings unto God. This does not mean that we may become self-willed rulers who demand loyalty and obedience from others to satisfy our own selfish cravings for glory and honour. The biblical concept of kingship is quite different from this worldly idea of kings. Our model of kingship is none other than Jesus Himself. Jesus is a king who rules by love and by faithful obedience to the Father’s will. As a king, His mission is to subdue all things to Himself in order to harness their fullest potential to bring glory to God the Father. As a king Jesus had to conquer sin, death and Satan in order remove every hindrance to God’s purposes for His creation.

How then did Jesus make us kings? Firstly, He released us from our slavery to Sin so that we can be free to subdue ourselves. Secondly, He gave us the Holy Spirit to empower us to subdue ourselves (Romans 8:1,2). Thus we are able to mortify the deeds of the body (Romans 8:13) and to develop virtues of patience and temperance or self-control (Galatians 5:22,23). Thirdly, Jesus equips us with His spiritual armour to have victory over sin and Satan and to bring sinners to Christ (Ephesians 6:10-18). This spiritual armour includes the Word of God and Prayer. Our present mission as kings is to bring everything under Christ’s rule and authority (2 Corinthians 10:5). Fourthly, Jesus will assign kingly duties to each of us when we reign with Him in His millennial kingdom on earth. As Revelation 5:10 says, “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” (cf. 20:6)

2. As Priests

Besides making us kings to God, Jesus has also made us priests unto God. Our model for priesthood is Jesus. As a priest, He has unlimited access to God and enjoys intimate fellowship with Him. There, Heintercedes for His people in order that God’s blessings may not cease to flow to them. As a priest Jesus also offered up Himself as a complete sacrifice to God.

How did Jesus make us priests? Firstly, He enables us to come boldly unto God’s throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16; 10:19,20). There, we are to offer supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanks for all men, for kings and for all that are in authority (1 Timothy 2:1,2). Secondly, He enables us to offer spiritual sacrificesof praise (Hebrews 13:15), good works (Hebrews 13:16), consecrated living (Romans 12:1, Philippians 2:17) and material support for God’s ministers (Philippians 4:18).

Thus we have seen how Jesus makes us kings and priests to God. When these two roles are combined into one, we become a ‘royal priesthood’, as mentioned in 1 Peter 2:9 – “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” This brings us now to the ultimate objective we ought to have for all our service to God…

B. We Glorify God

You will notice that the end of v.6 says “…to Him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.” This is the first of many doxologies in the book of Revelation (4:11; 5:12; 7:12; 19:1). In fact, God’s glory is one of the main themes of this book. What does this teach us?

It teaches us that the greatest honour that any mortal being can ever have is to glorify God. And it is possible for us to have this honour only because of what Jesus Christ has done for us. If we had been left all to ourselves, we would have remained where we were and never be of any use to bring glory to God. But Jesus alone has loved us enough to transform us from the unworthy sinners that we once were, into a royal priesthood fit for service in God’s kingdom. What a great Saviour Jesus is! What superb effects He has wrought in us! May this closing thought fill our hearts afresh with love and gratitude to Him, and may we all be stirred up to persevere in following Christ and in glorifying Him at all times!

Revelation 19:11-16, 20:1-10 - Doctrine of the End Times

By Rev Charles Seet

Preached at Life BPC Reformation Lectures, 2004-10-29

Text: Revelation 19:11-16, 20:1-10

1.   Introduction 

�        This doctrine of Scripture is designed to particularly excite us and motivate us to live for the Lord and serve Him well.

 

�        It is known as the doctrine of eschatology, or literally, 'the Last days' or 'the End times'.

 

�        It is based on a number of passages in the Bible that contain prophecies about the future, e.g.

Daniel 2, 7, 11:36-12:13                       Ezekiel 37- 48

Zechariah 12-14                                   Matthew 24

1 Corinthians 15:20-57                         1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:3

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12                         Revelation 4-22

 

2.   Views of the Events and Prophecies of the End Times
 

a.   There are three main views of the events of the End Times: 
Premillennialism, Postmillennialism and Amillennialism.

 

i.    Premillennialism: Christ returns before the thousand years.

o       Several powerful empires and nations will rise and fall, culminating with the rule of the whole world by the Antichrist.

o       The Gospel of Christ would have been preached in the whole world by then, but there would also be a great falling away from the faith by the church at large.

o       The Antichrist will make a peace treaty with the nation of Israel at first but then he will suddenly break this treaty, oppress Israel, and demand to be worshipped as a god.

o       God will send plagues of judgement to punish the whole world.

o       The False Prophet, together with the Antichrist will respond with miracles of their own.

o       The greatest military offensive in history will be launched against Israel, but Christ will return to save Israel.

o       The Antichrist and the False Prophet will be cast them into the lake of fire.

o       Satan will be bound for a thousand years in the bottomless pit.

o       During that time Jesus will rule on earth with all the raptured and resurrected saints.

o       All Israel will be saved and will worship Christ in a glorious temple.

o       At the end, Satan will be released to stir up one final rebellion against God.

o       He will be defeated and cast into the Lake of Fire and brimstone to burn forever.

o       All the unsaved dead who shall be resurrected, judged and cast into the same lake.

o       The old heaven and old earth will be destroyed with fervent heat.

o       A new heaven and new earth will appear together with the new Jerusalem.

 

ii.   Postmillennialism: Christ will return after the thousand years.

o       The kingdom of God is now being extended in the world through the spreading of the Gospel.

o       The world will eventually be Christianized.

o       The return of Christ will occur at the close of a long period of unprecedented righteousness and peace.

 

iii.  Amillennialism: There is no literal one thousand years.

o       It is just a symbol for the present long period of time between Christ's first and second coming.

o       There is also no specific period called the Tribulation. Things will just continue to get worse and may intensify briefly before the end of the world.

o       Satan was bound at the cross, but he will be loosed for a brief period before the end of the world. During that time, it will seem as though the Gospel is not having an effect and evil will be rampant.

o       The physical land of Israel has no more significance to God than any other country. 
We, the church, are now the only 'Israel' that God cares about.

o       The prophecies of Antichrist have been fully fulfilled in the Papacy.

o       A remnant of the Jews will continue to be saved, but there will never be a time when all the Jews will be saved.

o       Jesus returns unexpectedly, with no warning, and the world ends.

 

b.   There are three main views of the prophecies of the End Times:
Historicism, Preterism and Futurism.
 

i.    Historicism: Held by some amillennialists, and some premillenialists.

o       This was the view expounded by the Reformers.
 

o       Westminster Confession 25:6 'There is no other head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor can the Pope of Rome, in any sense, be head thereof; [but is that Antichrist, that man of sin, and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the church against Christ, and all that is called God.]'
 

o       It is the view that Bible prophecy, especially the Book of Revelation, describes the events of the last two-thousand years.  

ii.   Preterism: Some amillenialists today prefer to take this view.

o       It is the view that some, most or even all of the events in Bible prophecy took place in the past. 
 

o       E.g. prophecies about the Antichrist and his persecution are regarded as fulfilled in the Roman emperor and the persecution of Christians who refused to worship the emperor.
 

o       It originated from the Jesuits after the Reformation.
 

o       The most extreme preterists (liberals) believe that all the 'prophecies' have been fulfilled by the time of writing.

 

iii.  Futurism: The view held by most premillennialists.

o       Most of the events of Bible prophecy take place in the distant future with respect to the time of writing. 
 

o       The seal judgments, trumpet judgments and bowl judgements will only take place within a short time period before the millennium.
 

o       B-P Constitution: 4.2.7 'We believe in the personal, visible and premillennial return of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ to judge this world and bring peace to the nations.' 

3.   Five Reasons Why We Are Premilllennialists

a.   Premillennialism is based on a literal interpretation of Scripture. 

�        It takes the Scriptures in their literal and normal sense.
 

�        How does the interpreter decide whether a biblical passage is literal or figurative? The decision must be based on the same criteria as in any other literature: (1) Either the writer or speaker must indicate in direct words that he is using a figure of speech; (2) Or the context must make it clear that the words have to be taken figuratively. In any other case, the literal meaning of the words must be accepted as the intended sense. 
(Biblical Interpretation: The Only Right Way by David Kuske, 1995, Northwestern Publishing House)
 

�        It avoids spiritualizing or allegorizing the text:

�        E.g. Rev. 20:1 - angel = Christ; coming down from heaven = incarnation;

�        vv.2,3 - binding and casting of Satan = death on the cross;

�        v.4 - Those who reign with Christ for 1,000 years = the present church age;

�        vv.5,6 - first resurrection = born again;

�        vv.7-9 - defeat of Satan's final rebellion = Christ's Second Coming

 

�        The plain sense of Revelation 20:1-9: After Christ returns, Satan will be bound for a thousand years while the resurrected saints reign with Christ over the nations of the world, until he is loosed again to be defeated and destroyed forever. 

b.   Premillennialism is the view that has stood the test of time. 

i.    The Growth of Early Premillenarianism (1st-3rd Centuries)

�        Papias of Hierapolis (70-163)

�        Justin Martyr (105-165)

�        Irenaeus (140-202)

�        Tertullian (160-220)

�        Hippolytus of Rome (170-235)

�        Commodianus (3rd Century Christian poet)

�        Lactantius (4th century Christian apologist)

�        Methodius of Olympus (died 311)

�        Apollinaris of Laodicea in Syria (310-390)
 

ii.    Augustine and Amillenialism (4th - 18th Centuries)

�        Montanism had given premillenialism a bad reputation.
 

�        Some church fathers began to express unhappiness with premillennialism:

o       Origen (185-255)

o       Dionysius of Alexandria (ca. 262)

o       Eusebius (260-339)

o       Victorinus of Petau, Austria (270-303)

 

�        When the church was finally given a favoured status under the Roman emperor Constantine, premillennialism declined. 
 

�        Augustine of Hippo (354-430) rejected premillenialist teaching because he thought that it encouraged Christians to have a carnal hope. 
 

�        His interpretation of Revelation 20 became the Amillennial position.
 

�        It prevailed throughout the period of the Medieval Church and even into the time of the 16th century Protestant Reformation. 
 

�        Premillennialism still continued to exist among certain groups of believers who were against the Roman Catholic Church. 
 

�        Unfortunately there were also some very extreme groups that gave the premillennialists a bad reputation (e.g. Radical Anabaptists).

 

�        The Reformers therefore chose to remain in the Amillennial position, although they firmly advocated the literal interpretation of Scriptures.
 

�        Some Reformers however, believed that the Scriptures taught a future general conversion of the Jews (e.g. Martin Bucer, Peter Martyr and Theodore Beza).
 

�        Johann Heinrich Alsted (17th century) revived the Premillennial view, and for a short while it claimed a small following among some Puritans (e.g. Joseph Mede and Thomas Goodwin).
 

�        But radical Puritans such as the Fifth Monarchy Men gave Premillennialism a bad reputation.

 

iii.   The Rise of Postmillennialism (18th and 19th centuries)

�        It was a later development in the Puritan movement, and influenced by Daniel Whitby (1638-1726).
 

�        The optimism that gave rise to this view dissipated with the violent political changes that shook the world. 
 

�        By the end of WWII, it became the least popular view, and Premillennialism had made a big comeback. 
 

iv.   The Return of Premillenialism (19th -21st Centuries)

�        There was an increased interest in Bible prophecy and eschatology, and books and conferences on the last days became common. 
 

�        As liberal churches were postmillennial, Bible-believing Christians moved to premillennialism in order not to be associated with them. 

�        In the middle of the 19th century certain groups linked with the premillenial view became extreme (e.g. The Millerites). 

�        The futurist variety of premillennialism was popularized by the Dispensationalists.
 

�        It was further strengthened in 1948 when the nation of Israel was reborn, fulfilling Bible prophecies.

Observations:

�        Premillennialism is the oldest of the three views. 
 

�        Although at times it fell into disfavour because of some radical or extreme group that espoused this view, the church always returned to it. 

c.   Premillennialism gives us the right perspective of our present role in promoting God's Kingdom. 

�        Postmillennialists and Amillennialists: 
There is a tendency to promote God's kingdom by social and political action. E.g.

o       Augustine -  'The City of God'

o       The Roman Catholic Church

o       Calvin�s Geneva

o       Christian Reconstructionists (Rousas J. Rushdoony) 

�        Premillennialists:

o       It is up to Christ alone to effect these socio-political changes during the millennium.
 

o       Our present role: to preach the gospel of eternal life, and to build up the saints with the Word of God.

d.   Premillennialism is confirmed by many verses of Scripture.
 

�        1 Corinthians 15:23-24 'But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.  Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.'

There is clear evidence of a long time gap between Christ's second coming and the end of the world. 
 

�        Acts 1:6-7 'When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?  And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.'

Jesus' answer implies that the disciples were right to expect a future restoration of a political kingdom. 
 

�        Romans 11:25 'For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.'

The present state of blindness of Jews will end when God's plans for the Gentiles are fulfilled. 
 

�        Romans 11:28,29 'As concerning the gospel, they are enemies for your sakes: but as touching the election, they are beloved for the fathers' sakes. For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.'
 

�        Other than salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, God's plans for the Jews include promises of: 
 

o       A glorious visible, political kingdom here on earth.
 

o       Ownership of a piece of prime land by divine right.
 

o       God's blessing to those who help them and favour them.
 

o       God's curses to those who harm them and seek to destroy them.
 

�        Their history has shown that God continues to be faithful to those promises He had made to their forefathers, and to love His 'firstborn son' (Exodus 4:22; Jeremiah 31:9).
 

�        They look forward to the Millennial Temple, the offering of sacrifices and the reign of the Messiah (Zechariah 6:12-13; Ezekiel 40-46).

Zechariah 6:12-13 'Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and He shall grow up out of His place, and He shall build the temple of the LORD: Even He shall build the temple of the LORD; and He shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon His throne; and He shall be a priest upon His throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both.'
 

�        These millennial sacrifices will only serve to remind people of what Christ has already done on the Cross. They will be unique and distinct in their features 

(see Ezekiel 40:1-46:24; Isaiah 56:7; 66:20-23; Jeremiah 33:18; Zechariah 14:16-21; Malachi 3:3-4). 

e.   Premillennialism is the only view that commends hope to a world that is miserably failing and seized with fear.

�        The very best of human efforts will never bring forth the perfect world that people dream of. 
 

�        The Bible gives us the hope of a better world to come, where: 
 

o       The paradise that was lost by the first Adam will be regained by the second Adam. 
 

o       Christ will establish His righteous rule over the whole world. 
 

o       The whole world will be finally be subdued and filled according to the divine mandate God gave to Adam: 

Genesis 1:28 'And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.'
 

�        Why will it last only for a thousand years? 
 

o       Because it is not meant to be permanent (1 Corinthians 15:24). 
 

o       The millennium must give way to the permanent eternal state with the new heaven and the new earth!

 

Our Response: Let the doctrine of the End Times motivate you to live for the Lord and to serve Him well now, knowing that His kingdom is coming soon!

Why the Rod Is Righteous?

By Rev Charles Seet
(Preached at Life BPC, 8am service, 8 June 2003)

Text: Proverbs 13:24; 23:13,14

Those who are parents will realize that no two children are exactly alike (even identical twins). They may come from the same parents, bear the same surname, and may grow up together in the same home, and may bear some resemblance to each other. But they have different personalities, different strengths and different weaknesses. One child is very fussy while the other is very accommodating. One child is very messy while the other is very meticulous. Our objective as parents is to know each child’s temperaments well enough to help each of them to grow up successfully. This is not easy, and we need to seek wisdom from God to do it.

 

I. The Sinful Nature Is Found In Every Child

One area that we really need wisdom to help each child in, is to deal with the sinful nature that he is born with. That sinful nature is there from birth, and even earlier than that – from the time of conception, as the godly king David, said in Psalm 51 – “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceiveme.” This sinful nature is part of the fallen image that the child inherits from us, and that we in turn inherited from our own parents. This fallen image goes all the way back to our first parents, Adam and Eve who disobeyed God. This means that every child has inherited a natural tendency to sin. This has become a permanent trait passed from generation to generation, like a permanent stain that cannot be removed from the human race.

And this helps us to understand what causes the common experience that all parents have with babies. At first when the baby is born, we are filled with pride and praise for our little angelic bundle of joy – howsweet and innocent it looks when he opens his eyes, smiles with a toothless grin and utters his first baby sounds.

But not long after that, we discover to our horror that our cute little newborn is not so angelic after all. The sinful nature in him unravels itself as he grows up. He begins to be quite demanding and unreasonable, at times fussy and moody, trying the parents’ patience to the limit. He manifests a will of his own, and works out interesting ways to get what he wants. He puts on an act, or plays hard to get. He refuses to eat or sleep when he is supposed to do so, and sets conditions that must be met. If those conditions are not met, he vents his displeasure and throws a tantrum, crying until he is all red in the face. And the baffled parents are left wondering, where did he learn all these things from? We never taught him to do them!

He does not have to learn to do these things. They come quite naturally, because of the sinful nature that he already has. And where did that sinful nature come from?  It came from us, his parents! Not all parents however, are willing to admit that. You will always find some mothers complaining to their husbands who come home from work, “Do you know what your son did today?” And you also will find some fathers saying to a child when they are upset with him, “Go to your mother!” But the interesting thing is when the child isgood and has done well both of them will gladly say, “He’s my son” without the slightest hesitation!

The truth of the matter is that the sinful nature we see in him comes actually from both father and mother. We must be willing to admit that we are partly responsible for it, since his sinful nature is a replicaof our own. And our willingness to admit this then gives us a sense of responsibility to help the child to deal with this sinful nature that we have passed on to him. It makes us seek earnestly for a remedy for the child’s problem of sin. Now, what kind of remedy can best help the child to deal with the sinfulness or foolishness that is in his heart?

II. The Rod of Correction is the Remedy

The answer is found in Proverbs 22:15 – “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.” The rod of correction here refers to parental acts of disciplining the child when his sinful nature rears its ugly head. Although the word ‘rod’ here suggests the use of a stick or cane, it should be understood as a metaphor for all the various ways of applying discipline besides the cane, including the use of words of rebuke, removal of privileges, and doing unpleasant tasks. The purpose is to make the child realize that sin always brings about unpleasant consequences. And as such disciplinary measures are applied, the child develops a healthy aversion not for the disciplines itself, but for sin.

In the Bible we can find a good example of the rod of correction being used in God’s disciplining of Israel. At the time when the nation of Israel went astray from God and disobeyed Him, God disciplined them (Deuteronomy 8:5 – “…as a man chasteneth his son, so the LORD thy God chasteneth thee.”). As a result of God’s discipline the nation was brought many times to repentance and to a renewed walk with Him.

The Bible also provides us with a negative example of father who did not discipline his sons at all. This is found in the account of Eli the high priest. Eli had two sons, Hophni and Phineas, who followed their father’s footsteps in serving as priests at the Tabernable in Shiloh. But both of them were evidently not disciplined when young and they grew up to be wicked priests, who abused their privileges and took advantage of worshippers who came to the Tabernacle to worship the Lord. The sad thing is that their father, Eli did not have the heart to stop his sons and discipline them, although he was grieved by their sins. The awful result is that God judged the house of Eli: 1 Samuel 3:13 – “For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever for the iniquity which he knoweth; because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not.”

Eli did not restrain his sons at all, even though he knew about the evil things that they were doing. The question we ask is, Why did he not restrain them? Perhaps he may have thought that it would be a veryunloving thing for him to do as their father. To this day there are some parents who have the mistakenidea that if they love their child, they should not hurt him or discipline him at all. They don’t want their precious child to go through the least suffering at all, not even if that suffering is the necessary consequence he has to bear for his own wrongdoing.

Such parents must listen most carefully to the words of wisdom found in Proverbs 29:15 – “The rod and reproof give wisdom: but a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame.” One mother I know has a child who was never disciplined because he was the youngest in the family, and his father too busy and had died when the child was barely 6 years old. He grew up to become wayward and got himself into serious trouble with the authorities. But rather than seeing him go to jail, the mother paid the huge fine for him. But he promptly got into trouble again, and she had to bail him out a second time. When he did it one more time, she decided to let him spend time in jail – because all her efforts to protect him from the penalty of the law was apparently not doing him any good. It had only made him bolder and bolder to think that he could always get away with breaking the law.

In the same way, withholding the rod of correction from a child who needs it will do him more harm than good. And Proverbs 23:13,14 therefore instructs us – “Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.”

All good parents know full well that it is sometimes necessary for a child to experience some pain for his own good. For example, in taking an injection to give him immunity against certain deadly diseases like Tuberculosis, Tetanus, Typhoid, Measles, Mumps, and Rubella. Why do we make our children go through this regime of painful injections, despite their cries and protests? Isn’t it because we love them and we want the best for them?

III. The Rod Must Be Used With Love And Wisdom

The same thing holds true now for the rod of correction. It may be painful and unpleasant both to the child and to his parents, but it is definitely worth all the good results that it brings. If we truly love our children and want the best for them, we should not withhold the rod of correction from them. To withhold the rod from them is actually as good as hating them! As Proverbs 13:24 tells us – “He that spareth his rod hatethhis son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes.”

This verse also gives us an important principle about the use of the rod of correction. Whatever discipline we give must always be done with love, and not with anger. It is a sad fact that some parents cross this line when disciplining their child, and in a fit of rage they inflict more physical and emotional pain than what is needful and helpful to the child. Some cases of child abuse have sadly resulted from parents who have not controlled themselves while disciplining their child. How do we exercise love in using the rod of correction? Here are some guidelines to help us.

A. Words of Instruction and Correction

First of all, children must be given words of instruction. They must be told where the boundary lines are. For example, they must be told that directly disobeying authority, or deliberately infringing upon the rights of others, or violating a known moral principle are things they should not do. These rules should always be kept simple, enforceable and be clearly explained to the child. And before any physical punishment is inflicted for breaking a rule, words of correction should first be given to him. If the child responds to those words of correction by an immediate withdrawal from his disobedience, there is no need to go further. But if the child does not respond to the words of correction, and persists in carrying on his disobedience, then that is the time when punishment becomes most necessary. For this, we go on now to the second guideline for exercising loving discipline which is about:

B. The Right Amount of Discipline

Discipline is just like medicine. It must always be given with the correct dosage. If one gives too little, it will not be effective at all. There must be some degree of firmness in discipline. But if one gives too much, then it may do more harm than good! There must be restraint and gentleness in discipline. The discipline given should also be fair, appropriate, and consistent. It must be fair so that no child would think that he is being unjustly given more discipline then the rest of his siblings. Discipline must be appropriate for the child’s age. As a general rule, the cane should be used only up to the age of 12. Those who are older would need different forms of discipline, e.g. loss of privileges or isolation. And discipline must be givenconsistently in order to be effective. It should not be sometimes given, and sometimes not given, depending on the disposition or mood of the parent.

There is a passage in God’s Word that warns us against the danger of overdoing discipline and of administering it unjustly, unfairly or inappropriately. It is Colossians 3:21 that says, “Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged.” You will notice that this instruction is specifically addressed to fathers, who because of their physical strength, might tend to be a little too severe in their exercise of discipline. This will only build up deep-seated anger or resentment in the hearts of their children.

There may be some occasions when some of us who are fathers may be caught in a wrong frame of mind and spirit at the time when we have to discipline a child, and we overdo it. When we realize that we have beentoo severe, what should we do? We should not be afraid to apologise to the child for the excessiveness of our discipline. Don’t try to justify it or say, “Why do you have to make me cane you when I am in a foul mood?” Making an sincere apology will keep the child from developing feelings of resentment. The point that must be emphasized here is that the feelings of the child must be taken into consideration in our exercise of discipline. And because of this we should also not be guilty of excessive faultfinding or ofnagging our children too much. If we do this, our children will become discouraged, that is, they will loose heart and become quite despondent.

This is already happening in some homes today. Some time ago there were reports in the papers about the increased number of psychiatric cases of primary and pre-primary children and also about a large number of children calling the SOS hotline for help. And the reason: The great pressure they face at school and at home. A child who faces constant negative criticism from teachers as well as from parents may soon be convinced that he cannot do anything good at all, and just give up. And some children who cannot take this kind pressure anymore may come to the point of taking their own lives.

Seeing that the wrong use of discipline whether it is verbal or physical, can be detrimental to a child, it is important for all parents to exercise discipline with both wisdom and love. A Dutch Reformed writer once said, “Chastisement is a bitter pill that must be coated with wisdom and dispensed with love, otherwise the pill will be spat out.” It is a good practise to reassure the child that you still love him, just after meting out the disciplinary action to him. It is also good to encourage him with words of praise when he begins to dowhat is right. Such words can go a long way to help the child, as given in Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.”

Now, earlier on we had seen that the aim of all discipline is to help the child deal with his sinful nature. This means that our disciplinary efforts are not complete until we have taken one more step, which is:

C. Turning the Child to God For Forgiveness and Help

We all know that when a child is corrected for having done wrong to someone, he should be required to make an apology to that person. It is only when he is able to say, “I’m sorry for what I have done to you”that we know that the correction has been successful. But we must also let him know that the One who has been offended the most by his sin, is God, and so above all else, he should make an apology to God.

This is where you can help your child by praying together with him, helping him to confess his sin to God and to ask for God’s forgiveness. When you keep on including this step in the process of correcting your child, he will soon realize how dependent he is on God’s grace to forgive him for his sins. And if the child is not saved yet, this realization can be used by God to lead him to trust in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross to wash all his sins away. And by directing your child to turn to God each time you discipline him, you are also helping him to seek God’s help to deal with his own sinful nature.

Soon it will become natural for him to ask God to help him overcome the urge to sin. Being saved from sin through trusting in Jesus, and seeking God’s help to overcome one’s sin are the ultimate solution to the sin problem that is found in every person, even to your child’s sin problem.

IV. The Rod Should Be Used With Prayer

When we who are parents come to realize that God is the only One who can deal effectively with that sin problem in our child’s life, we should also be praying for him. After all, even the disciplinary measures we implement to help the child are part of the tools that God uses to mould him and change him from within. Let us remember that God is not only our Heavenly Father, but the child’s heavenly Father as well. As a loving heavenly Father He is even more concerned for the child’s struggle with sin than we are. And as a loving heavenly Father, you can be sure that God will also use the rod of correction on him when necessary. Hebrews 12:6 tells us, “For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.” God may use trials, disappointments, and other circumstances as his rod of correction.

God’s disciplinary actions on him will always be the best for him. He knows exactly how much chastisement to give to your child – neither too much nor too little. What this means to those who are parents, is that while you ought to do your part in using your rod of correction wisely and lovingly, you should also bepraying that God will use His divine rod of correction on your child in the way that He knows best. If you find that your child is not responding well to your efforts to discipline him, pray for him, and make your prayer as fervent as you can.

About 250 years ago there was an old godly woman who prayed most fervently for her son. The son’s name was John and he had run away from home in his teens to become a sailor. This godly mother had been so disappointed to hear reports that John had become a very wicked sailor, indulging in the lusts of the flesh and involved in the notorious trade of slaves in Africa. But while she lived in poverty, and wept for her son while working as a washerwoman, she believed in two things: the power of prayer and the reformation of her son. She continued to pray very hard for his salvation. God answered her prayer by working a miracle in the heart of John Newton. Through the various trials that he went through as a sailor he was soundly disciplined by God, gloriously saved, became a preacher and brought thousands of men and women to Christ. And he became the author of that famous hymn, “Amazing Grace, How Sweet the Sound.”

So I speak to all Christian parents: If you love your children and want the very best for them, pray for them: that God would work in their hearts, guide them, protect them, and discipline them, so that they may become useful citizens of His kingdom. But pray also for wisdom and guidance from the Lord to teach you to discipline your children well with love and wisdom, so that they will become god-fearing, godly people who will love the Lord and do His will.

Sometimes we neglect to pray for our children because we are too busy with our work as parents making a living, making ends meet and taking care of the house. Let me tell you this: In 18th century England there was a woman named Susanna Wesley. She was a mother with 17 children. Though she was also a pastor’s wife and extremely busy, she made it a point to spend one hour each day shut up alone with God in her room, praying for each and every one of them. Later on, two of her sons, John and Charles Wesley, gave their lives to the Lord as preachers, brought revival to England and became the famous founders of the Methodist movement.

This morning we have seen why the rod of correction is righteous. It is because every child is born a sinner and needs correction to overcome sin in his life. We have seen that the rod must be used with love, wisdom and prayer, to accomplish its goal of correction. Let us be therefore be faithful to do our part, while we trust in the Lord to do His part in the lives of our children.

  1. What is a Family?
  2. Tying & Tightening the Nuptial Knot
  3. The Responsibilities of Children to their Parents
  4. The Parent's and Pastor's Joy - 3 John 4

Subcategories

Gospel in Dialect

Do you face a language barrier when trying to witness for Christ to dialect-speaking relatives? Or do you need to polish up your Mandarin in order to share the Gospel with your Mandarin-speaking friends? This Gospel toolkit will help you to learn how to share the Gospel in Mandarin, Cantonese, Hokkien and Teochew.

There are 15 lessons covering the various topics in gospel presentation. Each lesson consists of a set of phrases, written in English, Chinese characters and Hanyu Pinyin.

To hear the proper pronunciation of the phrase, click on the respective plugin associated with each phrase. When the phrase is read for you, you should repeat it aloud. You can keep on playing back the phrase and repeating it aloud until you have mastered the phrase. Then go on to the next phrase in the lesson.

As you learn to speak new phrases, keep on reviewing the ones that you have learnt. Finally, test yourself to see if you can say the following in Mandarin / dialect aloud: 

Family

Introduction

Why a family resource page?  It has been often said that the family is the most important institution in the nation.  But never has this sentiment been as greatly emphasized in our history as a nation than now in recent times.  Indeed, the family is the most important institution because it is the first environment to which every person is exposed; it is the primary influence of a person, especially in his early formative years.  And failure of the family to influence and mould the child positively has contributed to the moral and ethical breakdown of societies.  Even the expert opinions of sociologists and psychologists point to the truth of this statement.  Counselors and mental health workers increasingly have to rely on Family Therapy to deal with the problems of the clients, seeing as how many adult conflicts and problems are actually conflicts and problems not resolved in youth within the family.  Of course, it is not surprising to find such delinquency and immaturity in the world.  And sadly, it is not surprising to find such worldliness and worldly problems in the church, as families capitulate their God-given rights.  More than ever, there is need for a family resource page, where families can be encouraged and taught to raise up Godly homes and to revive the Covenant family.  

And one of the main emphases of this resource page is on the subject and discipline of Family Worship.  According to the Westminster Directory of Family Worship, we are told that “BESIDES the publick worship in congregations, mercifully established in this land in great purity, it is expedient and necessary that secret worship of each person alone, and private worship of families, be pressed and set up; that, with national reformation, the profession and power of godliness, both personal and domestick, be advanced.”  Herein, it is suggested that national and ecclesiastical revival finds its genesis in the home.  And this is biblical. 

The theological foundations of family worship is in Deuteronomy 4:9,10 where believers are told to “keep thy soul diligently…[and to]…teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons when the Lord said unto me, Gather me the people together, and I will make them hear my words, that they may learn to fear me all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children.” 

It is also in Deuteronomy 6:4-7 where the words which God had commanded believers should be taught diligently to their children, that they should “talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”  The chief Christian educators of our children are their parents, who have been given this sacred duty.

Psalm 78:2-7 also teaches this, especially when it says regarding the law “which he commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: that the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children: that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments.” 

According to Dr Joel Beeke, “Every church desires growth. Surprisingly few churches, however, seek to promote internal church growth by stressing the need to raise children in covenantal truth. Few seriously grapple with why many adolescents become nominal members with mere notional faith or abandon evangelical truth for unbiblical doctrine and modes of worship. I believe one major reason for this failure is the lack of stress upon family worship. In many churches and homes family worship is an optional thing, or at most a superficial exercise such as a brief table grace before meals. Consequently, many children grow up with no experience or impression of Christian faith and worship as a daily reality.”

“Would we see revival among our children? Let us remember that God often uses the restoration of family worship to usher in church revival. For example, the 1677 church covenant of the Puritan congregation in Dorchester, Massachusetts, included the commitment ‘to reform our families, engaging ourselves to a conscientious care to set before us and to maintain the worship of God in them; and to walk in our houses with perfect hearts in a faithful discharge of all domestic duties, educating, instructing, and charging our children and households to keep the ways of the Lord.’”

Douglas Kelly says that “Family religion, which depends not a little on the household head daily leading the family before God in worship, is one of the most powerful structures that the covenant-keeping God has given for the expansion of redemption through the generations, so that countless multitudes may be brought into communion with and worship” of God. 

So may these resources help all Lifers to build up their families in the fear and admonition of the Lord; that Family Worship would not be an optional exercise but a time of day and activity well-sought after by Godly parents and children.  Amen.

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