"Pergamum Church - Compromised Choices"

Pergamum Church – Compromised Choices

Near the end of the Israelite’s 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, they camped at the borders of the nations of Moab and Midian. The king of Moab, a man named Balak, feared the Israelites and was afraid that they were going to kill them. So, he sent for a prophet named Balaam to come and curse the Israelites.

At first, Balaam would not go because God told him he was not to go. When Balak sent another group to get Balaam, God told him he could go but could only say the words God put in his mouth. Balaam was greedy for the wealth and got on his donkey to go to the land of Moab. Three times the angel of the Lord stood in his path to slay him, but each time the donkey turned aside and finally laid down when there was no place to turn.

Each time, Balaam beat the donkey because he did not see the angel of the Lord. The third time, the Lord gave the donkey the ability to speak. He asked Balaam why he beat him when he was trying to save his life. Then God opened Balaam’s eyes so that he too could see the angel of the Lord. The angel warned him again to only speak the words God would give him.

Arriving in Moab, Balaam could only speak blessing on Israel and Balak, king of Moab, said that he would not honor or pay Balaam for blessing Israel. Later, we learn that Balaam counseled Balak to use their women to seduce the Israelites and to get them to partake in their idolatry and commit sexual immorality. This ploy worked, and had it not been for the zeal of Phineas, the son of Aaron, the plague that came into the camp might have wiped out the Israelites. As a result of this sin, 24,000 Israelites died from the plague. The teaching of Balaam did not go away, as we will see this morning as we look at the letter of the Lord Jesus to the church of Pergamum.

Turn in your Bibles this morning to Revelation 2:12-17, the letter to the compromising church.

Read Revelation 2:12-17 (NASB95): “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this: ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Therefore repent; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, to him I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it.’”

THE AUTHOR, THE CHURCH, THE CITY (Revelation 2:12)

Again, as in the previous two letters, the first verse of the letter gives us the church, the city, and a description that gives us the identity of the author. Let’s begin this morning with the identity of the author. He describes Himself by saying, “The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this:” This can be none other than the Lord Jesus Christ! John had described Him having this sword in his vision in chapter one, John describing his vision of the risen, glorified, exalted Lord Jesus Christ said in verse 16, “In His right hand He held seven stars, and out of His mouth came a sharp two-edged sword; and His face was like the sun shining in its strength.” (Revelation 1:16)

John describes Jesus Christ as having a sharp two-edged sword coming out of His mouth. In the letter, Jesus Christ describes Himself as the One who has the sharp two-edged sword. The author of Hebrews speaks of a two-edged sword. This two-edged sword has a two-fold purpose which we understand as the same two-fold purpose of the Word of God.

First, it separates the ones who are recipients of grace from condemnation with the world. And by its promises and message of salvation, cuts loose the chains of sin and condemnation which bind the helpless sinner. Its second purpose is the means of condemnation and rejection for those who refuse the message of grace. The Word of God, the two-edged sword, is an instrument of salvation and an instrument of death. This description of the Lord Jesus Christ pictures Him as the Judge and Executioner. This is not a positive introduction, but a warning to the church of Pergamum that they face serious judgment. Disaster would come quickly to this church for its tolerating of sin and compromising with the world.

The letter is addressed to the angel of the church in Pergamum. As I have already said in the preceding weeks, I believe the angel to be a man, a part of the leadership of this church. He would be the messenger, which the Greek word translated “angel” means, to bring this message to the church in Pergamum. We have no other information on this church and do not know when it was founded, but probably during the time that Paul was living and ministering in Ephesus. This church had felt the pain of persecution, but they remained true to Christ. We will get into that as we get into the main part of the letter. Before going there, I want to give you some background on this city.

Pergamum was located about one hundred miles from Ephesus. Smyrna was about halfway in between Ephesus and Pergamum. Unlike Ephesus and Smyrna, Pergamum was not a seaport, it lay about 15 or 20 miles from the Aegean Sea which goes up from the Mediterranean Sea between present day Greece and Turkey. Pergamum was the ancient capital of Asia and considered to be Asia’s greatest city. Pergamum still exists today as the Turkish city of Bergama.

Pergamum was an important center of culture and learning. Pergamum was also a center for worship for four of the main Greco-Roman gods, the city boasted temples dedicated to Athena, Asklepios (the god of healing.) The third temple was to Dionysos and the fourth which was a great altar on top of the hill was to Zeus. But overshadowing all these gods and goddesses was the city’s devotion to the cult of emperor worship. Because of this devotion to emperor worship, Christians were in danger not just one day a year as in the other cities of the province when they were required to offer a sacrifice to the emperor. But in Pergamum, it was a danger every day. It was in this city full of pagan idolatry that the little church of Pergamum existed. The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this:

THE COMMENDATION (Revelation 2:13)

Jesus begins by commending the church, and as to Smyrna, He tells them that He knows where they dwell. As the all-knowing God and the Head of the church, He is aware and fully understands their circumstances. He says He knows that they dwell where Satan’s throne is. There has been much speculation as to what Jesus meant by this. I believe it means that Satan, through the pagan idolatry and the cult of emperor worship, was fully entrenched in this city, and it would be hard to be a committed Christian without coming under persecution. All industry and society were connected to some form of idolatry. The very culture of the city was built upon the worship of multiple gods and goddesses. Jesus says that He knows, and He understands that they dwell in the midst of this evil and their adversary is Satan himself. Yet He says you hold fast to my name, you do not deny me, you do not deny the faith, even when faced with persecution you stood firm, even when Antipas, My witness, My faithful one was killed among you. Who this Antipas was is not known, possibly he was an elder in the church, and he was martyred for his faith in Christ. Here was a man who paid the ultimate price for his refusal to compromise his faith. Because of his faithfulness, Jesus commended Antipas with the titles, My witness, and My faithful one. Would you and I be commended with such titles if we were to face death for our faith in Christ?

Antipas’s faith and courage were a rebuke to those who were willing to compromise their faith with the world to avoid persecution. After commending them for keeping the faith, for courageously holding fast to the name of their Savior and not denying Him even if it meant death, Jesus says that there are a few things that He has against them.

THE CONDEMNATION (Revelation 2:14-15)

Jesus condemns the church of Pergamum because some in the church were holding to false and heretical teaching. Jesus says some were holding to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit sexual acts of immorality. They believed that they had liberty to engage in the social life of Pergamum and be involved in immorality and that this would not affect their standing with Jesus Christ or their involvement with the church. Despite what was written in Scripture concerning the Israelites and how 24,000 of them were wiped out because of this union with Satan and false gods, some in the Pergamum church believed they could attend pagan feasts and the immorality that went with them and still join the church to worship Jesus.

James was clear that friendship with the world and life in Christ are incompatible. He wrote in James 4:4,

Read James 4:4 (NASB95): “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” James even calls the believers he is writing to “adulteresses” because of their compromising with the world. He says you must choose one or the other, either friendship with the world, or friendship with God. Paul declared that we have no such liberty to live as we want, grace was given so that we might die to sin. He wrote in Romans 6:1-2,

Read Romans 6:1-2 (NASB95): “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” Jesus continues to condemn by saying that they have some who in the same way hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans, which He had commended the church in Ephesus for hating the deeds of this false teaching.

We are not certain what this false teaching involved, but since it is linked with the teaching of Balaam, it too taught that Christians could participate in pagan idolatry and pagan sexual practices. They believed that this was within their Christian liberty. That it would not affect their Christian faith, but as we have just seen in James and Paul’s words in Romans this is not the purpose of grace. This is not seeking to live the righteous life God desires. This is not giving Christ the first place in our lives. Not all the believers in the church of Pergamum participated in the heretical practices of these two groups. They remained faithful to Jesus Christ and the Christian faith. But they tolerated these two groups existing in the church. They refused to use church discipline and denounce these teachings as heresy. Because of this, they shared in the guilt and were in danger of the Lord’s judgment. Sin is never suppressed by compromising with it.

THE COMMAND (Revelation 2:16)

Jesus gave them the only remedy that could save them from His judgment, He commanded them to repent. This word repent in Greek means to change one’s life, based on a complete change of mind first, then attitude and thought concerning sin and righteousness.

Jesus was saying that those participating in the practices of these two teachings needed to repent of the sin, break off their friendship with the world, and begin to live as the righteous people God had called them to be in Christ, giving Jesus Christ first place in their lives. Those who were tolerating this sin in the church needed to repent and stand up for the truth of God’s Word and denounce this false teaching for the heresy that it was and exercise discipline on those who would not turn from the practice of this false teaching. Jesus was calling for the purifying of the church. If they do not repent, then He is coming quickly, and He will deal with those who are guilty, making war against them with the sword of His mouth. He warns them of impending judgment, and no one can withstand the sword of God’s judgment. It will be swift, and it will be complete. Again, this is not speaking of the Lord’s second coming but His coming to this church in local judgment. The goal of the church is not to provide an environment where unbelievers can just feel comfortable. It is to be a place where they can hear the truth and be convicted of their sins so they can be saved. This is what Jesus Christ was calling the church in Pergamum to do. To stop compromising and tolerating sin and begin confronting those following the false teaching with the truth so that they might turn from their sin to Jesus Christ for forgiveness.

THE COUNSEL AND THE PROMISE (Revelation 2:17)

The Lord Jesus Christ ends this letter as He does each of the seven letters, calling upon His readers to listen with spiritual ears to what the Spirit says to the churches. Jesus Christ, by using the plural for churches, indicates that each letter is for all churches to read. Each individual in each church must listen to the words of the Lord Jesus Christ and then examine their own heart to see if the commendation could be received by them or they need to repent of their sin. This counsel by the Lord Jesus Christ stresses the importance of His words and our responsibility to hear and obey them. As I said before, because Jesus repeats this same counsel seven times, it must mean that it is important for us to hear and obey.

Finally, Jesus makes a promise to the one who overcomes, to the one who has repented of their sins by agreeing with God that they are a sinner and in and of themselves there is no way they can change that fact. There is no way they can atone for their own sins, but they believe that Jesus atoned or paid for their sins by dying on the cross, taking their penalty for sin. That He was buried proving that He had died for their sin, and then rose from the dead three days later proving that He had triumphed over sin and death making a way for us to triumph over sin and death through Him. The one who believes this is the one who overcomes.

To the overcomer, Jesus promises three things: that the overcomer will eat from the hidden manna. Remember manna was what God gave to the Israelites to sustain them the 40 years they were wandering in the wilderness. Moses and Aaron had taken some and put it in a jar and hid it in the ark. That jar of manna was a picture of Jesus Christ who is hidden from us right now in heaven. For the believer, He sustains us daily and when we go to be with Him He will no longer be hidden to us. Jesus told those who had been fed by Him in the feeding of the five thousand and who wanted Him to keep feeding them, Jesus said in John 6:33-35,

Read John 6:33-35 (NASB95): “’For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.’ Then they said to Him, ‘Lord, always give us this bread.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst.’” The Lord Jesus Christ is the hidden manna that we will receive. Second, Jesus promised to the one who overcomes a white stone. Many have speculated as to the meaning of this white stone, but it seems best to understand it in light of the Roman custom, since the readers of the time would have understood this meaning.

The Roman custom was to give white stones to the victor of athletic contests. A white stone, with the victor’s name inscribed on it, served as his ticket into the special awards banquet. This white stone that will be given to us by Jesus Christ promises overcomers entrance to the eternal victory celebration in heaven. The third promise is that this white stone will have a new name inscribed upon it that no one knows except the person who receives it. The Greek word translated “new” does not mean new in contrast to old, but new in the sense of a different quality. This new name will uniquely reflect God’s special love for each of His children. This new name inscribed by God will serve as each believer’s entrance pass into heaven. Often when people adopt a child they change the name, this will be our name change for being adopted into the family of God.

The church in Pergamum had a choice to make, a choice that each church and I believe, that each person must make.  They could repent and receive all the blessings of eternal life in heaven.  Or they could refuse to repent and face the terrifying truth of Jesus Christ declaring war on them.  If we want to compromise with the world, then we will face judgment. Pick your pleasure, and I caution you to pick wisely.