Revelation 2 (#2) : Smyrna and Pergamum
Revelation 2 (#2) <Smyrna and Pergamum>
9. I know your afflictions and your poverty—yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
14. Nevertheless, I have a few things against you: There are some among you who hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to entice the Israelites to sin so that they ate food sacrificed to idols and committed sexual immorality.
15. Likewise, you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
◇ I once visited the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. In the main exhibition hall stood a magnificent temple with massive columns. At the time, I found myself criticizing Germany for plundering these incredible cultural treasures through force during the imperial era, acquiring them for next to nothing. Later, when I learned that this was actually ancient Pergamum mentioned in Revelation, I felt a pang of regret for having missed that connection.
Verses 14-15 contain Christ's rebuke to the church in Pergamum. This city was like a religious epicenter, home to the temple of Zeus, the temple of Emperor Augustus, and temples to Roman goddesses. While Pergamum may have been less significant than Ephesus or Smyrna economically and culturally, it was the most important city religiously and politically. The political leaders of Pergamum had the legal authority to impose and carry out death sentences.
We can well imagine what it meant to live as a Christian in such a city—to confess Jesus as Savior and hold fast to that faith. They stood firm against external attacks, even unto martyrdom (verse 13). Yet they fell victim to something more subtle: idolatry, immorality, and syncretism that crept in unnoticed.
There's a saying that a gentle rain will soak through your undergarments. What we unconsciously hear, see, and read gradually colors our hearts and spirits. This is why we must be careful about what we expose ourselves to. Now I understand the purpose of spiritual disciplines and ascetic practices. While these don't save us in themselves, they do help us maintain a closer relationship with Jesus.
Verse 9 contains praise for the church in Smyrna. The Lord commends their perseverance through tribulation and poverty, declaring that they are actually rich.
Their poverty was real and tangible. They say that after three days of hunger, there's no wall a person won't climb over. Enduring poverty—especially as a breadwinner or parent watching your family and children go hungry—must be like having your flesh torn away.
In "A Week in Rome," a novel about first-century Christian life, we see believers who were cast out of their trade guilds and unable to provide for their families because of their faith in Jesus, yet they held fast to their beliefs despite such dire circumstances (pp.50-51). This was the reality of first-century Christian life. Keeping the faith meant something vastly different from what it means today.
Among these suffering believers stands the risen Jesus Christ. He is the one who will lead them out of fear, poverty, and suffering. He promises that if they endure just a little longer, He will give them the crown of life and the white stone with their new name written on it.
Comparing myself as a twenty-first-century Christian to these first-century believers, I am filled with conviction and repentance. I repent of my complaints and dissatisfaction in the midst of such peace and comfort. I repent of my failure to live out Jesus' new commandment.
♧ Merciful and righteous God, help me to examine myself carefully and follow quietly in Your footsteps. Holy Spirit, make me strong and bold. Amen.