Revelation 3

3 "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: 'The words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your works; you have the name of being alive, and you are dead. 2Awake, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. 3Remember then what you received and heard; keep that, and repent. If you will not awake, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you. 4Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy. 5He who conquers shall be clad thus in white garments, and I will not blot his name out of the book of life; I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. 6He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

Jesus addresses the church of Sardis, referring to Himself as the one with the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. He cites these things to assert His authority over the Churches, especially as Sardis is a church that has drifted from Him. It is the second "exception" to the general format of the letters. Contrary to Smyrna, though, Jesus has nothing affirming to say to Sardis. While they seem like a good and lively church, in reality they are dead. However, they are not so dead that they are beyond hope. Christ calls to them to awake, and perfect their works. Otherwise, their judgement will come when they least expect it--as is the case with all who become complacent about their faith.

However, Jesus does say that there are a few holy Christians in Sardis, and they are worthy of Him. Jesus promises that along with those, all who amend their ways and overcome, will be clothed in white garments, and their names will remain in the Book of Life. Jesus will bring them before the Father in Heaven.

7"And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one shall shut, who shuts and no one opens. 8I know your works. Behold, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut; I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. 9Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lie--behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and learn that I have loved you. 10Because you have kept my word of patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial which is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell upon the earth. 11I am coming soon; hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. 12He who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. 13He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

Philadelphia, like Smyrna, is a positive exception to the composition structure--again, nothing negative is reported about them. Jesus refers to Himself as the bearer of the Keys of David, an allusion to Isaiah 22:22, where Isaiah prophesies that the steward of David's house will be stripped of his authority, and the Keys given to another. This prophecy typologically points to Christ, who is the Steward of the New Covenant. He it is who has the authority to Open and Shut. And as such, He has opened heaven to the Philadelphians, that no one else can close. This is good news for them, because of the persecutions from the Jewish people. Because they are weak, Jesus promises them special care. He judges all people fairly, and helps those who remain faithful to them, and never gives anyone more than he can bear.

For those who are victorious, Jesus says that He will make them Pillars in the Temple! Those who were weak will be made strong enough to bear up the Church! More, they will be branded, inscribed, claimed as Jesus' own personal and treasured possession! Notably, in the later chapters of Revelation, we discover that the New Jerusalem in fact has no Temple. God Himself is the Temple of the New Jerusalem. In 1 Peter 2:5, St. Peter writes, "you, too, may be living stones making a spiritual house as a holy priesthood to offer the spiritual sacrifices made acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (NJB). Jesus, here, is promising that we will be incorporated into His Temple, and stand before God forever, worshipping Him!

14"And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: 'The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation. 15I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were cold or hot! 16So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth. 17For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing; not knowing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked. 18Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold refined by fire, that you may be rich, and white garments to clothe you and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen, and salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. 19Those whom I love, I reprove and chasten; so be zealous and repent. 20Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. 21He who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I myself conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne. 22He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"

This final letter, like the one to Sardis, has nothing positive to commend the Laodiceans for. Jesus identifies Himself as the faithful, true witness, and the origin of all things. In other words, He knows what He's talking about in his indictments.

The church of Laodicea has become complacent, "neither cold nor hot." Jesus says He wishes they were one or the other, as cold water is refreshing, and hot water is soothing, but because they are like lukewarm water, He will spit them out. In their prosperity, they have forgotten their need of God, and fail to realise that without Him, they are the very opposite of wealthy, but so poor as to be naked and blind! As such, Jesus counsels them to return to Him, using trade imagery that was familiar to their region. Laodicea was renowned for their affluence (and so Jesus counsels them to buy pure gold), which was a result of their rare black wool from the black sheep of the region (and so, Jesus instructs them to buy white robes--spiritually representing their righteous deeds). As well, they had developed a salve to relieve blindness from the dust and cataracts (which Jesus again alludes to, to cure them of their spiritual blindness). All the things that the Laodiceans had and prided themselves in materially, they needed spiritually.

Jesus alludes to Proverbs 3:12, reminding them of His unending love for them, despite their complacency. In fact, He continues to seek them out, knocking at the doors of their hearts, so that they might dine together. If they welcome Him, and are victorious, they will share His glory and kingship!

All seven of these churches were destroyed when the Muslims spread throughout the Middle East, and even today, there is but a small Christian presence there, and special permission is required in order to celebrate the Mass. Their fate should keep us mindful of our need for perseverance in following Jesus--as well as our need to pray for our fellow believers who are undergoing persecution throughout the world.

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