Seeking for the help of the Lord,
I direct your prayer for attention to the Revelation chapter 3 and
reading part of verse 4. In verse 4, the words, Even in Sardis. The whole verse reads, Thou hast
a few names, even in sarnas, which have not defiled their
garments, and they shall walk with me in white, for they are
worthy." And it is a picture of a church that has very little
good said about it, a very sad description, And yet even in
Saunders, even in this church, there are a few that are of the
godly, that are living close to the Lord, and the Lord's blessing
upon them. It's a real answer to us if we
are prone to think, well, our own spiritual condition is because
of those around us, And because of the state of the pastor or
the state of the church, and here we have a little example
of a pastor and a church that are being very severely reproved,
and yet in the midst of it, there are those that are walking rightly,
close to the Lord, and favoured in their souls, and they're given
sweet promise. It's a good thing for us to remember
that. We don't want a religion that
is just propped up by those around us, nor do we want to be in a
situation that we blame everyone else for our own sad spiritual
state and condition. In Revelation chapters 2 and
3, we have seven letters that are sent to the churches. These letters are, as may be
said at the end of each letter, given by the Spirit to the churches. spoken to the churches. They
are first of all spoken to the angels of the churches, that
is to the pastors. We are left in no doubt at the
end of chapter one in the Revelation, where we have a picture of seven
golden candlesticks, and we're told the interpretation that
the candlesticks are the seven churches, the stars that were
in the hand, the right hand, of the Lord, they are the angels
or the pastors of the churches. And so the letters then are written
unto the angel of the church, each one labelled. Now though the churches referred
to were in their day literal churches, yet the message really
is to the church of God, the end of time. is not to be interpreted
that these are seven stages in the church through the history
of the church. Some have sought to take it that
way and to try to work out at what stage the church is at at
one present time. But these messages, they are
typical of the Church of God in all ages and any one local
church now may have those things that could be seen in one church
and seen in another church, or it may reflect that which is
in one church alone. There's only two churches, Myrna
and Philadelphia, of which nothing is said against them that is
wrong. They are commended and there's
nothing the Lord holds against them. The others, there is always
something. that is reproved and said against
them. The picture is that this also
is not an apostate church, it is a church that is a true church,
which is why the Spirit is sent to it, why they are reproved
and why they are corrected. We also know the solemn reality
that there are those that have been true churches, and yet over
time they have departed from the truth, the candlestick has
been removed, and though they might even now still be gathering,
yet do not bear any resemblance to a true Church of God. These are very searching passages
for any pastor, as searching passages for any people, like
their pastor so the people are to be understood in the same
state and condition. On to look with the Lord's help
firstly at the sad state of the pastor of the church and the
church depicted at Sardis. And then secondly these words
of our text even in Sardis a few names. And then lastly there's
a glorious promise and why to those few names. But firstly there is a description
of the church and remember it is the Lord that is looking And
he's looking at the heart, but he's also looking at the fruitfulness
and the works. God is not deceived by outward
names or by doctrines or by what appearance it has. The very first
thing that is said, and in many of the churches, I know thy works. James, he is very clear in his
epistle that faith without works is dead. He says, you show me
your faith without your works and I will show you my faith
by my works. And Abraham was justified by
works when he took his son as was commanded him and he went
to offer him up on Mount Moriah. He didn't just stay where he
was and say, I believe that God is able to raise him up, but
he obeyed and he went. And so our Lord, he told the
parable of the one that built his house upon the rock and one
that built his house upon the sand. And the difference between
the two and what he was illustrating was one that hears the word and
is a doer of that word. He is like one building his house
upon the rock, and the other was one that hears but does not
do, that built his house upon the sand. And with this church,
again we have, I know thy works. The Lord is knowing the fruit
or what is following, the profession and the word, that thou hast
a name that thou livest and art dead. The name was right. If we put it perhaps in terms
of our own churches, our own denomination, we might have the
name of a gospel standard church, we might hold the doctrines that
are correct and that are right, may have been in a church or
in a gathering that has a history of many hundreds of years, and
we say, well, we are continuing, we've kept going. But that may
only be but in name. It's something that today, especially
if someone is looking for a church, they might Look, perhaps for
a church that has the confessions in it, maybe the Baptist 1689
confession, but there are many, many. So it's quite common for
some of the Lord's servants to say that doesn't mean anything.
Someone will say they hold to that, but that church bears no
resemblance to the godliness and that which was set forth
in those confessions. And it's a very, very sad thing
when that is so. It's not just in the comparing
word for word at all. It is actually the walking of
it out. And it's a very easy thing for
us to rest upon a history, a heritage, and what has been very godly
and very upright, and think that we are still following in that
way and holding fast to the name. But our Lord looks at it and
he says, the name is right, the name is that thou livest, but
thou art dead. I don't believe in this, he's
pointing that this is someone that has a great name, that they're
someone that is well-renowned and high position, it is simply
one that has made profession of faith, but their actual walk
does not add up to that. We know that of course all of
our works are stained and dyed with sins. When we have in verse
2, For I have not found thy works perfect before God, is not meant
that those works are without sin. There's no man that doeth
good and sinneth not. Sin is mixed with all we say
and all that we do. But those works that are to be
done are those that are brought by the Spirit, the fruits of
the Spirit. In some of the other churches,
they have to remember the first works or where they have lost
their first love, they had to remember that, go back to that. When the Lord first quickens
a soul into life, then that soul is brought under conviction of
sin. That soul is being brought then
into concern for their soul. The fruit of the Spirit is that
there is prayer. With the Apostle Paul, behold,
he prayeth. And there is a concern, a diligence,
a watching, and a tenderness in the things of God, and to
being open, to being taught and instructed, and to be obedient
to the Word. And so when you have one that
is dead, it's as if they've gone back to what they were by nature,
all of the things that were wrought by the Spirit, as if they were
dead. There is not the tenderness,
there is the hardness. Prayer is left off, and the concern
is left off, and there's a coming to and fro to the house of God
as a door upon its hinges, and quite glad when the service is
finished and when the Lord's day is gone, and really living
two different lives, a life in the world and the life in the
Church of God. And the Lord knows He looks at
those fruits and effects of that soul. He's jealous of the heart
to have all the heart and out of the abundance of the heart
man speaketh and the works they show forth what actually is going
on within. And so The caution for this church
was to be watchful. Another thing you can take from
that is that they weren't watchful. They weren't comparing what was
happening with the Word. James, he says, that we are to
view the Word as a man looking into a mirror and not forget
for what we see, but taking into account what we see and examining
ourselves by the Word. Strengthen the things which remain. There were some things remaining,
but they needed strengthening. The warning is they're ready
to die. Another indication of departing
from what they once were. Remember, therefore, how thou
hast received and heard and hold fast and repent. There was a receiving, there
was a hearing, but there is to be holding fast to those things,
not letting them slip, not letting them slide away. And repent is
turning, returning again back to those ways. There is a warning,
if therefore thou shalt not watch, I'll come on thee as a thief.
And of course, when a thief comes, he wants to come undetected. He wants to come quietly, secretly,
take away precious things and to creep away. And what the picture
is, that that which that church had was going to lose them. They were going to be taken away
and they'd find that those things that they had They hadn't any
more, they were gone. A real sad picture of a church,
and you might say the people, the church, the congregation
liked to have it so. They had a pastor that didn't
pray for them, that didn't study the Word, that didn't bring them
fresh manna, fresh food for their souls, that didn't reprove, that
didn't warn, that in himself walk in a godly, holy, upright
way. And he is reproved, they are
reproved. And all of these churches had
different things set before them. But with this church, there's
a very sad state that is depicted here. And yet in the midst of
it, there is found those that truly
are the people of God. Now whatever church and whatever
state or condition a church may be in, remember the Lord knows
them that are His and He knows those that are truly fearing
His name and are troubled and sorrowful for those things that
are going on. The church may be getting to
a state really where it is going to be cast away, but those that
are really trembling before the ark, my mind goes to the African
ladies that came to us years ago in Melbourne when we were
walking on the beach and they came to us and they said, are
you Christians? And we said, yes, we are. And
they just poured out their huts. They were going to the assemblies
of God Church. And they said, well, that they're
having services for all the animals and the pets. They had the dogs
coming in and under the seats. And they said, we just sit at
the back of the chapel and cry at all the things that are being
introduced and done in the Church of God. And you see just a few
in the midst of a church that is crying and sorrowful at what
things they see and hear. And you can picture here, because
our second point, even in Sardis, a few names. Really, it's a warning to us,
just to generalise. We may look at a church outwardly,
or assembly of people, and see some of the things that are done
or see the pastor and think there's none of the Lord's people there,
there can't be anything good there. Well, if this was the
church of Sardis, the Lord would say, don't be quick to judge.
I know there's a few souls that are there. And I proved this,
we've seen this with some that have been with the Church of
England, where we're brought up under a church, with a gospel
standard, it would take a lot for us to move to another denomination,
and we've seen it with others, and the Church of England takes
a tremendous thing to actually move and to go to another church. We've been favoured here to have
some that have come to us From time to time, Michael especially
we remember, and with him when he died, and the Lord truly blessed
him. But there are those that put
up, you might say, with a real lot, where they are brought up,
where perhaps generations have followed, and put up with a lot,
and yet truly do mourn and fear the Lord. And it can be said
of them like this here, even in Sardis. And when we think
about that, we think of how it's pictured in the scripture. You
think of Ahab, which was a very wicked king of Israel, and said
that none did sell himself to wickedness that Jezebel, his
wife, stood up. And yet we have with Ahab, Obadiah,
who was the governor of his house. He was the governor of his house.
And when Jezebel was putting the Lord's servants to death,
he went and hid them 50 in a cave and fed them with bread and water
to preserve their lives. Who would think? In Ahab's house,
there's one of the Lord's people. And then we think of Paul saying
about those in Caesar's household, Again we have those Lord's people
in very unlikely circumstances. Daniel with Nebuchadnezzar or
later on with Darius and with those others that deceived the
king and had Daniel put in the lion's den. The Lord's people
are found in all sorts of places and that applies too with The
churches as well, even in Sardis. Now over the years, and not just
here, but Australia as well, sadly there's been those that
have left the Church of God, or left the outward assemblies,
and they haven't gone anywhere. And nearly everyone will always
blame the Church, or blame individuals, either the pastor or those in
it, that they've been doing something, and that's why their whole faith
in church and God has just disappeared, and it's because of this person
or that. Well, these few Insiders, they
were not like that. They were not blaming their condition
or giving a reason why they should leave the outward ministering
of the Word and the assembly of the people of God because
of what others did. They kept their garments, that
is their profession, their outward walk, the fear of the Lord and
how they regulated their lives. They kept that even in that atmosphere. It's good for us to remember
as well, it's not just speaking of in the church building. Those church members, they have
jobs and they have families Their works, their profession, the
people of God are to show forth the praises of Him who hath called
them out of nature's darkness and into His marvellous light.
And when the Lord speaks about the works or what He sees of
that church, He's not just saying, well, I'm only looking within
the church building when they are worshipping. Yes, a lot can
be seen there, and especially departures from the truth. where
the word is left off, where the order of service is changed in
a way to put weight maybe just on music and not on preaching
of the word, that really the Lord is looking at the whole
lives of the people of God. When you think about it, we might
spend five hours a week, six hours a week or so in the house
of God. The rest of the time, We're in
our families, we're in our workplace, we're mixing with the world and
the people of it, and they're saying we're supposed to be salt
and light in this world. And we've made profession and
the world expects that we walk according to that. And so it
is in that way that the Lord is looking and he's identifying
these even in Sardis, a few names. May he never be ashamed of being
the few. Remember there was but eight
souls that were brought into the ark and the Lord has said
when he comes shall he find faith on the earth. is a very personal
thing, true faith. And the Lord pictured, when he
was on earth, of those that, because of their love, even for
children or parents or wife or husband, they did not walk in
the way. And the Lord said to Peter, when
he looks back and says, what shall this man do? What is that
to thee? Follow thou me. And the Lord
said, The people of God are to take up their cross and follow
Him and walk after Him, not being held back from those that are
round about. Shall we find faith on the earth?
Well, blessed thing, if we are amongst those that are those
few. Few names, names that the Lord
knows. And so he gives to these few,
he gives a glorious promise, and he tells us why as well. He says of them, they have not
defiled their garments, their profession. They shall walk with
me in white, for they are worthy. One thing I want to say with
walking with the Lord in white, And here's one thing that led
me to this portion, really. There's a walking with the Lord
in tribulation. Before there is a walking with
the Lord in white in heaven, here below the disciples were
exhorted by the apostles and encouraged that they must, through
much tribulation, enter the kingdom. A walking with the Lord here
is like Moses choosing rather to suffer affliction with the
people of God rather than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for
a season, and is walking with the Lord as he was in this world,
a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief, enduring the contradiction
of sinners against himself. The things that the Lord endured
The blasphemy that they said of him, the contradicting the
words that he spoke, the refusal to obey or to walk in his ways
or be obedient to his word. The Lord says, if they have persecuted
me, they will also persecute you. If they have received my
word, If these things be done in the dry, in a green tree,
what shall be done in the dry? The people of God are not to
expect anything different than what the Lord endured. And the implication of the promise
of walking with the Lord in wine is that they've also walked with
Him in tribulation, that they've also walked here below Like the
Apostle Paul says, O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver
me from this body of death? The picture here is a soul that
is in a church that is fallen and defiled in many ways. But really, every one of the
Lord's people, they have, like Paul realized, that they have
an old nature. They have the sin that dwells
within them. They have the opposition, they
have the corruption of their old nature, the good that I would,
I do not, the evil that I would not, that I do. O wretched man
that I am. They thought that, well, we would
be a better Christian if we didn't have our fallen nature. We'd be a better Christian if
we had a better pastor and a better church and better circumstances
and those that surrounded us, and yet, Right through scripture,
the Lord has had his ones and twos and fews that he's given
that grace to as a very personal, particular blessing that comes
from heaven. And he maintains his people in
the most adverse circumstances and influences that are round
about them. And so he gives this this promise
that looks beyond this world, beyond this tribulation. Moses,
it was said that he had respect unto the recompense of the reward. The Church of the Thessalonians,
one of the evidences of the work of grace was that they looked
for his son from heaven. And it's a blessed thing where
our thoughts of eternity influence how we walk here below. Paul says, redeeming the time
because the days are evil. In other words, occupy till I
come. When those were in Babylon, they're
in captivity there. They're exhorted to build houses
and to live and to walk, not just to idle away the time, though,
to be fruitful and build up there. but the Lord would bring them
out of it, which he did. And so with these few, the very
blessing that is said to them, that they shall walk with me
in white. And if we are of that character,
may we be encouraged in the walking with the Lord in tribulation. It is said that the reason For
they are worthy, may be very clear of this, not worthy in
ourselves, not our own righteousness, but worthy is the Lamb that was
slain. And it is their hope. A true
church is pointing solely to Christ. Paul was very clear in
writing to the Romans that those who are seeking Salvation, even
though they had a zeal of God, it was not according to knowledge.
It was those that walked according to the faith of the Lord Jesus
Christ. And the Galatian church, they
were reproved because they had turned away from the gospel and
were leaning again to the law of God. They weren't to obtain
worthiness through the law. May we be very clear on that?
And worthiness is not through the law. We don't obtain salvation
by works. And yet without works that are
a fruit, there isn't salvation. And of course, Luther struggled
with this. He struggled with the Epistle
of James, brought out of the Roman Catholic Church, and emphasized
works as necessary for salvation. He struggled with the idea then
that there needed to be works as a fruit. And in some of these
churches it speaks of their first works and their latter works.
But it's a vital thing that our works are not looked upon as
a reason that we are to be saved, but as a fruit of true saving
grace. So when one is worthy, It is
that the works that they do, thou only hast wrought all our
works in us. Or like the apostle says, by
the grace of God, I am what I am. And all is ascribed to the Lord. It's like where the Lord commanded
the centurion. He says, I have found not so
great faith, no, not in Israel. And what did he say? I'm not
worthy that thou should come. under my roof. He discerned in
the Lord who he was. He said, I am one under authority. I say to this one, go, and he
goeth, come, and he cometh. And he saw that the Lord had
that authority. Speak the word only, and my servant
shall be healed. And so the worthiness is where
that soul is looking solely unto Christ. And there's a beautiful
promise that is further in verse five. He that overcometh, yes,
there are sins, there is the surrounding apathy and deadness
and carnality, but he that overcometh the same shall be clothed in
white raiment, going back to these same garments, same arrayed
in white. And I will not blot out his name,
out of the book of life. It may be there are those that
have their name on a church roll, it seems like their names are
in the book of life, but then they turn aside, they go back,
they don't continue to walk in the way, and it appears that
their names are blotted out of the book of life. That, of course,
can never be, because that book from the foundation of the world,
those names shall never be blotted out. They are written there,
they are known by God, they shall endure, they shall be kept, but
there have always been those throughout the history of the
Church, and even we might say most solemnly with Judas, who
was numbered amongst the disciples and the apostles of the Lord,
and yet proved that his name, though it appeared at first,
was not written in the Lamb's Book of Life. He that endureth
unto the end shall be saved. Those that are kept by the power
of God through faith unto salvation. The power of God is put forth
through the word of God and faith joined with the word so it profits
them. And that's why these letters
are written, the letters to the churches that we do hear, we
do heed the warnings that are set before us here. Another promise
is joined, that I will confess his name before my Father. Our Lord spoke in very similar
words, and he says of those that confess me before men, or are
unashamed of me before men, then will I confess before my Father
in heaven. So if you picture back to the
church in its state, you find really that a church is ashamed
of the Lord, is not bearing true witness before the world of the
Lord. Their profession is not a profession
that glorifies the Lord. So the blessing on these few
is that I will confess his name before my father and before his
angels. This word then is like all of the parables of
the Lord, finished with, he that hath an ear, let him hear, and
hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. One of the real
marks of the Lord's people and his dealing with them is that
he does reprove them, that he does speak to them, and does
give them these Like in here, these seven pictures, as if holding
it up, do you recognize your picture here? Do you recognize
the church here? Is this that which describes
you? And how we need the Spirit to
apply it. You think of David when he had
sinned in the case of Bathsheba with adultery and murder, a man
after God's own heart. What a defiling of his garment,
his profession. It was said by the Lord that
because of him the name of the Lord was blasphemed, then that
child should die. Yet with David, when he was held
up with a picture, like the parable of the poor man's lamb, at first
he could not see. He could not see that was him.
He could see what was wrong. He could condemn that person
because he had no pity. And he took the poor man's lamb
instead of all his flocks and herds as a rich man. But then
Nathan said, thou art the man, and David fell. under it then,
and that is what we need. We need to be searched by the
Word of God. It's not good that we come in
and out of the house of God and we're never approved, we're never
found wanting, we never go home laying it before the Lord and
searched. Well, we must put something right,
something must be corrected, something must be sought from
the Lord that he would give grace and help and help us to overcome
this fear of man that bringeth a snare. Help us to walk worthy
of his name. And so with here, really the
whole aim in all of these letters is that there's a falling under
the word, taking the reproof, making it that it is a profitable
word, and not just falling on deaf ears. And what a blessed
promise that is to those that go through this world. And the
Lord is pleased to give them grace and help and their trust,
their hope is in the Lord. And they go on and their eyes
are set heavenward and they're running the race, they're looking
unto Jesus. And those round about, they're
walking contrary, they're like Joshua. and my house, we will serve the
Lord. And may that be our desire. And when we read this word, even
in Sardis, even in this world, even in the situations that we
might find ourselves in, may our name be found recorded in
some humble place beneath our Lord the Lamb. May the Lord bless
this word and grant us to be numbered amongst these few names. Amen.