Revelation

When we first became parents, Natalie and I were determined to be good parents.

We'd worked out in advance of having kids.

But it didn't take us long to realise that we were far better parents without kids than with kids.

It's just a whole lot easier, I think, to think about and actually do it.

There were a few things that we decided we weren't going to bend on.

Sugar intake and TV time were the two things that we, amongst other things, were going to draw a line on.

We were pretty strict with both.

Poor little Izzy, for some time, thought that milk arrowroot was the best biscuit in the world.

That's because that's what I consistently told her, it was the best biscuit in the world,

until her little fingers wrapped for the first time around a Tim Tam.

And she discovered that I was lying.

I remember the first time that chocolate actually touched her lips.

I forget how old she was.

I don't think she was, she wouldn't have been a year old, I don't think.

But we were on a ferry between Townsville and Magnetic Island.

We were travelling with some friends and one of the lady had a, she was eating a Magnum ice cream.

Sitting, and she had Izzy on one lap, she's eating his Magnum ice cream.

And without even thinking about it, she ripped off a whole chunk of the chocolate and shoved it in her mouth.

And her eyes just lit up.

And the world changed.

It was all Technicolor and fireworks and fairies.

And she just immediately, having tasted the chocolate, she just immediately grabbed the other hand and went,

with the chocolate, with the ice cream and took a mouthful of it.

But for me in that moment, I was like, oh, compromise.

You know, and yet from that moment, how easy, it was all spoiled by that moment,

so how easy it is from that moment to compromise from one thing to the next thing to the next thing.

And now we go on holidays and I hear myself saying things like, it's holidays.

Eat an ice cream every day if you like.

How quickly it was that I bent.

And that's to say nothing about TV.

When your kids have been sick for a week, mum becomes a waitress and the TV's the nurse.

I mean, which is what's been happening for the last 10 days.

Our kids have just been, you know, one Peter Rabbit thing and Bob the Builder and all this other stuff that they watch.

One thing, Saddle Club, one after another after another.

And one of the things that I used to think was a real shame was I'd drive past people,

I'd take them on the highway and they'd see the TVs glowing in the back of the car.

And I remember thinking, oh, I'd never do that.

I've now worn out three sets of those dual screen TV things in the back of my car.

I'm looking for the fourth one already.

Compromise, I think, is one thing when it's sugar and TV.

It's another thing when it comes to sin and Jesus.

After 20 years of ministry, I cannot count the number of people who I know in all sorts of various ways

who have compromised with Jesus and walked away from faith in him.

I actually think, for me personally, it's one of the hardest things about ministry

is people making those decisions which ultimately see them walking away from Jesus.

Some of those people were more committed than me.

They were better taught.

They were further down the track, being Christians a lot longer.

People who were fervent for Christ.

Some were kids in youth groups.

Some were youth group leaders.

Some were students with me at Moore College.

Some of them were high-profile pastors and preachers.

It's very sad when it happens.

I remember specifically where I was when one of my best friends phoned me up

and in the course of the conversation said to me,

Steve, I'm just not convinced it's true anymore.

I remember pleading with another young lady

not to marry a certain non-Christian guy

they married and she is now finished with Jesus

none of these people

all circumstances are different

but one of the things which is interesting

is that none of them sought counsel earlier

in making their decisions

none of them shared their conflicts and their struggles of their hearts

now let me say

Jesus might not be finished with them

but for the moment

they are finished with Jesus

and as Jesus addresses this church at Pergamon

the believers there seem to be flirting with false teaching

they are not openly embracing immorality

and idolatry

but what they haven't done

is they haven't closed the door on it

they are leaving the door open to it

Jesus begins with a strong commendation of this church at Pergamon

and this commendation is made even stronger

because Jesus knows that they are living in a fairly bad neighbourhood

verse 13

I know where you live

where Satan has his throne

that's Pergamon

now so if Ephesus

we have looked at Ephesus and Smyrna so far

so if Ephesus is the sort of like business

you know

place of

of Asia Minor

sort of like your Sydney of Asia Minor

Smyrna was more like the Melbourne

cultural trendy kind of place

of Asia Minor

Pergamon was its Canberra

poor Pergamon

okay

so you've got the picture right

okay

it was the seat of government

in Asia Minor

and as such

it was the first place

to have a temple

which was authorised

as a place of worship

for the emperor

and so Pergamon

was the most important city

in Asia Minor

as far as the Roman imperial cult

was concerned

so Roman pagan idolatry

quickly gained acceptance

it amalgamated with a bunch of other

religious practices of Pergamon

so there was a nice

official

approved

blend

of

religious practices

and ideas

and thoughts

that's

where Pergamon was

that's the neighbourhood

but in spite of the bad influence

of the neighbourhood

Jesus says in verse 13

yet you remain true to my name

you did not renounce your faith in me

even in the days of Antipas

my faithful witness

who was put to death

in your city

where Satan lives

so in spite of their

proximity

to Satan's throne

they remain true

to the name of Jesus

that means what

they were actually living

for the glory

of Jesus

we can see here

that Jesus name

his glory

matters a lot

to him

by the way that he mentions it

to these churches

not just this one

to the other churches

so in chapter 2 verse 3

you have persevered

and have endured hardship

for my name

verse 13

you remain true

to my name

verse 8

of chapter 3

you have kept my word

and have not denied my name

verse 12

of chapter 3

I will write on him

the name of my God

and my own new name

Jesus cares

about his name

that is

he cares about

his reputation

I remember

going to a restaurant

with a member

of my extended family

when I was a teenager

and as we

sat down

we had this sort of

big table booked

and we sat down

and my grandfather

the patriarch

of the family

said to us all

at the table

now

listen up

I'm well known

in this place

now the implication

was that we had

to behave ourselves

and not do anything

that would actually

embarrass him

in any way

which as a teenager

you're kind of tempted to

once he says it

and he was concerned

for his reputation

we took it

as a bit of a joke

and as him

big noting himself

which is what he tended

to do

but all these years later

I mean we took a number

of years later

like 30 odd years later

now

it's still a joke

in the family

so

as my brothers

and my parents

and the extended families

went out to a restaurant

last year sometime

as we walked in the restaurant

dad turned around

and said

now boys

don't forget

I'm well known

in this place

so behave yourselves

and I think he'd had

a coffee there

once before

or something like that

and dad was up here

visiting recently

and he came to church

with me on Sunday morning

and I said to him

now dad remember

I'm well known

in this place

behave yourself

now I suspect

that most parents

know that feeling

that in some ways

my kids

are a reflection

on me

in some ways

and here we see

Jesus is saying

I care about my name

I care about my reputation

and this church

at Pergamum

had held fast

to the name of Jesus

and by doing that

by holding fast

to the name of Jesus

even to the point of death

as in the case

of Antipas

they were declaring

to the city of Pergamum

that Jesus

is better than life

it's what we looked at

last week

they held up well

in this satanic

stronghold

in which they lived

but their faithfulness

to Jesus name

was under threat

see it there

in verse 14

nevertheless

I have a few things

against you

you have put up

you have people there

who hold to the teaching

of Balaam

who taught Balak

to entice the Israelites

to sin

by eating food

sacrificed to idols

and by committing

sexual immorality

likewise

you also have

those who hold

to the teaching

of the Nicolaitans

now this is a bit

of a tricky bit

but this point here

is the heart

of the issue

for this church

at Pergamum

in the Old Testament

there's this strange

prophet

named Balaam

and there's another man

with a similar

sounding name

called Balak

now Balaam

was a prophet

for hire

and Balak

was the king

of Moab

and in Numbers

22 to 24

we read

that Balak

offered Balaam

money

to prophesy

a curse

upon God's people

Israel

you see

Balak was worried

because he had seen

how numerous

the people of Israel

were

they'd come out

of Egypt

and they were just

growing in prominence

and everywhere they went

they just succeeded

and he was kind of worried

they're going to move

into Moab

they're going to destroy

his kingdom

depose him as a king

and take over the place

and so he pays

Balaam

to curse God's people

to send them off

but every time

Balaam tried to

prophesy

against God's people

blessing came out

rather than cursing

it's fairly comical

actually

he'd stand up

and go

okay okay

I'll do it this time

and speak

and blessing comes out

rather than curses

and Balaam

desperately wanted

to get paid

he was a

prophet for hire

and Balak's

pulling his hair out

because he wants

these people cursed

he couldn't get God

to curse his people

and so he came up

with another plan

it's there in

chapter 25

verses 1 to 3

the men began

to indulge

in sexual immorality

with Moabite women

who invited them

to the sacrifices

to their gods

the people ate

and they bowed down

before these gods

and so Israel

joined in worshipping

the Baal of Peor

and the Lord's

anger burned

against them

see what happened

the Israelite men

were seduced

into idolatrous worship

which back in those days

was nothing short

of mass orgies

and if you flick

over to

Numbers 31

Numbers 31:15–16

verses 15

to 16

it mentions

these Moabite women

again

it says

these were the ones

who followed

Balaam's advice

and were the means

of turning

the Israelites

away

from the Lord

in what happened

at Peor

so that a plague

struck

the Lord's people

this whole plan

was Balaam's idea

and the plan

worked a treat

he could not

get

God

to abandon

his people

so what he did

was he came up

with a scheme

where God's people

abandoned God

and so God

cursed his people

for their

compromise

and their rebellion

it seems here

are similar things

happening at Pergamon

the people at Pergamon

are offered

one of two choices

persecution

like Antipas

who will

who remains

steadfast

in the name

of Jesus

or

seduction

a giving away

a giving up

this church

had stood firm

in the time

at Antipas

but now

there's a threat

of compromise

not all of them

there's a group

there

who are

threatening

to compromise

they're being

seduced

by the city

and

by its culture

and Jesus

now says

this church

at Pergamon

you've got

some people

in your midst

the Nicolaitans

who are teaching

the same sort of thing

that Balaam taught

they're trying

to encourage

Christians

to compromise

don't take it

so seriously

it doesn't matter

that much

these Nicolaitans

were at Ephesus

and it's quite

possible

that they're

at Thyatira

the church

for next week

their leader

is possibly

the woman

that John

calls

Jezebel

in chapter 2

verse 20

who calls

herself

a prophetess

but we see

in chapter 2

verse 6

that Jesus

was pleased

with the

Ephesians

because they

rejected the

Nicolaitans

it says

but you had

this in your

favour

you hate

the practices

of the

Nicolaitans

which I

also

hate

but Pergamon

they left

the door

open to

it

and what

was almost

certainly

taught

was syncretism

a combination

of religions

a combining

a coming

together

a tolerance

of ideas

that led

to a tolerance

of all sorts

of different

expressions

and lifestyles

it was a

drawing together

ultimately

it was a

lessening

of sin

what the

Bible

calls

sin

and a

minimisation

of the

importance

of Jesus

in a word

what these

people were

doing

was compromising

the Roman

imperial cult

included

worship

of the

emperor

and of

the gods

that would

be

inescapably

idolatrous

nothing short

of just

pure

idolatry

and there

is no

shortage

of evidence

that as

they participate

in their

idolatry

everything

just descended

into

drunkard

orgies

and the

teaching

of the

Nicolaitans

probably

validated

a certain

level of

participation

in this

kind of

civic

life

the

celebrations

of the

city

of

Pergamum

which

would

have

been

idolatrous

and

immoral

it was

causing

the

teaching

was

opening

the

door

for

God's

people

to

compromise

the

1924

summer

Olympics

were hosted

by the

city

of Paris

Eric

Little

was a

devout

Christian

who refused

to run

his heat

in the

100 metre

race

because it

was held

on a

Sunday

it was

his best

event

the schedule

had been

published

several months

in advance

his decision

was made

several months

in advance

that he

would not

compromise

his conscience

and his

principles

and run

on a

Sunday

and he

came under

enormous amount

of pressure

he's running

for his

country

so

enormous

amount

of pressure

for him

to

it doesn't

matter

that much

compromise

just a bit

I mean

the Olympics

only come

around once

in four

years

go to

church

next

Sunday

his decision

was final

he trained

instead

for what

is now

the 400

metre

race

it wasn't

his best

race

in fact

far from

it

he was

fairly

mediocre

at it

and when

the day

of the

Olympic

400 metre

race

came

Liddell

went to

the starting

blocks

and as

he went

there

one of

the

American

Olympic

team

masseurs

came to

him

and gave

him

a piece

of paper

and on

that piece

of paper

was written

1 Samuel

1 Samuel 2:30

2

verse 30

those who

honour me

I will

honour

and that

inspired him

to run

and to

run

hard

you see

he was

prepared to

give away

a certain

Olympic medal

he was

the favourite

for the

100 metre

gold medal

he was

prepared to

give up

an Olympic

medal

but he was

not prepared

to give up

on his

conscience

he was

not prepared

to compromise

and to sell

out on

Jesus

and for him

that was a

drawing of

the line

as it

turns out

he ran

hard

and he

won

the

gold

medal

for the

400

those who

honour

me

I will

honour

and Jesus

says to this

church at

Pergamum

I know

where you

live

I know

you're in

Satan's

domain

I know

where you

live

I know

where I've

put you

the same

evil one

here at

Pergamum

is the

ruler of

the kingdom

of the

air

he tried

to tempt

Jesus

into

compromising

in Matthew

Matthew 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

he used

Peter to

try and

dissuade

Jesus

from going

to the

cross

and Jesus

turns to

his best

mate

and calls

him by

his worst

enemy

and says

get behind

me

Satan

this evil

one

masquerades

as an

angel of

light

forget all

images of

horns and

tails and

fire and

all sorts of

stuff like

that

he is

a fast

talking

clean cut

charming

logical

morally

bankrupt

con man

he is

the ruler

of the

kingdom

of the

air

and he's

at work

in the

world

now

and his

desire

if he

cannot

destroy

you

front up

his

desire

will be

to seduce

you

until you

compromise

until you

compromise

until you

compromise

and Jesus

knows

where you

live

he knows

the pressure

that you

are under

when you

are confessing

him at

work

he knows

the pressure

on the

sporting field

or university

at home

he knows

it can mean

loss and it

can mean

hardship and it

can mean

laughter and it

can mean

rejection

exclusion

he knows

the pressure

to sleep

in on

Sunday

instead

I'm

deeply

encouraged

by

friends

of mine

who made

a decision

early in

their marriage

and even

when they

had kids

is that

we'll be

at church

every Sunday

we are

physically

able to

be

regardless

and I

said

why did

you make

that call

they said

we do

not trust

ourselves

we open

the door

just a

moment

particularly

for our

kids

just open

the door

for a

moment

and make

one excuse

we open

up the

floodgates

to make

all kinds

of excuses

Christians

in the

end

are people

who do

say no

there are

things that

we won't

believe

and there

are things

that we

won't do

and especially

we say no

if it means

saying no

to Jesus

and frankly

that is

hard

in our

culture

it is so

ironic

how a

soft

centered

tolerant

progressive

open and

permissive

society

can be

curiously

hard

on those

who refuse

to go

along

with them

they can

be curiously

hard and

intolerant

of those

who say

no

who won't

join

with them

and Jesus

says I

know where

I have

placed you

I

understand

but take

note

Jesus takes

compromise

very seriously

verse 16

he calls his

church to

repent

he calls

them to

turn their

back

on compromise

otherwise

he says

I will

come

to you

and will

fight

against them

with the

sword of

my mouth

the option

is either

be judged

by the

world

or be

judged

by Jesus

there is

no possibility

of laying

low

keeping your

head down

ducking

for cover

hoping the

trouble sort

of passes

God has

just as God

struck down

those who

compromised

in numbers

25

those who

sin

so Jesus

threatens to

come and

fight against

those holding

to the

teaching

the

Nicolaitans

he will

fight

against

them

with the

sword

of his

mouth

is what

it says

which is

what is

announced

there at

the beginning

of this

section

in verse

12

these are

the words

of him

who has

the sharp

double-edged

sword

we read

in chapter

19

verse 15

that when

Jesus returns

in glory

from his

mouth

it says

comes a

sharp sword

which to

strike down

the

nations

rather than

I think

imagining

that Jesus

has this

sort of

sword

shaped

tongue

we should

see here

that what

he means

is that

Jesus

in the end

will speak

decisive words

of judgment

his words

will be

final

his judgment

is final

and in

Ephesians

Ephesians 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6

where Paul

is encouraging

Christians to

stand firm

stay strong

with Jesus

and to stay

strong with

Jesus against

all the attacks

of the evil

one

he encourages

Christians to

take on the

armor of

God

and in

verse 17

of Ephesians

6

it says

the sword

of the

spirit

is the

word of

God

and in

Hebrews

Hebrews 4 · chapter mention

chapter 4

the word

of God

is a

living

and active

sharper

than any

double-edged

sword

it judges

the thoughts

and the

attitudes

of the

heart

ultimately

everything

will be

judged

according

to its

alignment

with

the

word

of

God

with

Jesus

word

and so

we're

called

here to

listen to

the

word

of

God

and

judge

everything

in

accordance

with

it

because

ultimately

everything

will be

judged

by

it

means

you judge

all

teaching

all

instruction

by

the

word

of

God

not

by the

word

of

Pergamum

not

what the

culture

is saying

what does

the word

of

God

say

that

is my

guide

that

is my

rule

that's

what

I

obey

let me

say that

every

person

that I

have seen

compromise

with sin

and eventually

walk away

from Jesus

has cut

themselves off

from listening

to the

word of

God

they only

listen to

teaching

that affirms

their view

they pull

back from

Bible reading

and from

Bible study

and from

other Christians

particularly

who challenge

them

they surround

themselves

with

people

who will

not

bring

the

scriptures

to bear

on their

lives

they pull

away

from

church

they reject

the word

of God

now there is a promise here to those who overcome

it's for those who repent and turn away from compromise

in verse 16

he will come and fight with those who compromise and tarnish the name of Jesus

but in verse 17 he will come and give manna and a white stone with a new name

written on it known only to him who receives it

now it's sort of difficult to know exactly what that means or both those things mean except to say it's it means good it's good stuff manna is that strange bread in that God gave to the people of Israel as they went in the wilderness he miraculously fed them day in day out and Jesus had in that that picture of God's miraculous provision of his people in the old testament when he said I am the bread of life

all who come to me will never grow hungry

and Jesus also said that man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God

and the word that brings judgment here is also the word that brings life forever

and Jesus promises to be our feed to feed us for all of eternity to give us nourishing life and sustenance for all of eternity

now the white stone with a name written on it is a little bit more confusing

it was what they used to do to get access into the stadium

we call it ticker tech nowadays

they called it white stoner tech

what they used to do is you get a white stone get your name on it that gave you entry into the stadium

and what Jesus promised here is basically

those who remain faithful to Jesus name will each be given a white stone by Jesus

with a new name written on it

and it will guarantee you access into his presence forever

that's the promise

because God honours those who honour him

one final challenge from this letter

what is interesting in this text is it flows from plural to singular

singular to plural all the way through

and

only some of the people in this church

at Pergamum

hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans

but the letter comes to the whole church

the whole church

and Jesus says I will come to you and deal with them

and it points to the way that as members of the church

we are both individually responsible for ourselves

and corporate responsibility for other members of the body

the whole church is being judged guilty

because they aren't doing anything to discipline

those who are holding to the teaching of Nicolaitans

which threatens to unravel the whole thing

they are failing to rebuke their brothers and sisters

and repentance here is to take the form of the church

pursuing a process of discipline

with those who are holding to the teaching of the Nicolaitans

and this process of discipline

is motivated by a desire to keep Jesus

from coming and fighting against them

to keep Jesus from coming and judging them

here the minority are compromising

and the majority aren't doing anything about it

and the call to this church at Pergamum

is dare to discipline

because compromise kills

and so it's not just good enough for me

and it's not just good enough for you

to hold to the Bible's truth

we must watch out for each other's lives

you must watch out for me

and I must watch out for you

you must watch out for each other

do you love Jesus?

do you love the honour of his name

and your brothers and sisters

enough to speak the truth to them?

to nip it in the bud early

when things start to arise

and say my brother, my sister

you are in a dangerous place right now

so much is at stake for you

now I suspect there are those amongst us

who have never done that

and may have been

potentially been Christians for years

never in love

pulled up another Christian brother and sister

and actually raised

privately with them

raised an issue

of wrong understanding

wrong thinking

or wrong living

maybe we're being fed

by our culture too much

we go

all that stuff's private

you know

you can't tell me how to live

it's my own business

I think the Bible calls us to it

maybe we think

it's the pastor's job to do it

it's my job to do it

it's interesting

when I first came here

I had two

people separately

pull me aside

and ask me

what I was going to do

with so and so over there

another person

and I asked both of them

who had known the person

for decades

what have you done so far?

nothing

nothing's been done

and I've been here for months

and you expect me to

if something was done

decades ago

we might not have the same issue

we've got right now

let me say that I am

incredibly grateful

to the people

in my life

who have spoken

who have had the courage

to speak words of truth

to me

someone in love

pulled me aside

for my questionable

humour

in fact right now

I'd say it's not

questionable at all

they were right

I was wrong

I'm glad they said it

someone in love

pulled me up

this is just a few examples

keep going really

pulled me up for

demeaning a young person

once

putting them down

inappropriately

with my humour

and they were right

I had a potential

to crush someone

who I ought not

have been doing that to

someone asked me

once

whether I

whether I thought

I was spending

too much time

with a person

of the opposite sex

particular person

they thought I was

I'm really glad

that they spoke to me

I'm grateful

because frankly

my heart will do

all sorts of back flips

and gymnastic contortions

to justify itself

it will just do that

I need to add here

I don't want to be spoken to

by people who are angry

people who have got

agendas to drive

people who are whingers

I don't need people

to rebuke me

who really enjoy rebuking

I want people to come to me

with tears

with their heart

being ripped out

in love for me

love for Christ

and the glory of his name

but I need them

to do it anyway

I need them to do that

for the promise

for those who overcome

is so important

that we need

a church culture

where we allow others

to open the Bible

and speak to us

and where we will

actually speak to them

as well

where we have the courage

to speak to others

because frankly

I want to be

an overcomer

I want to get that

white stone

whatever it is

I just know it's good

our core values

of humble authenticity

and treasuring Jesus

reflects

the sort of culture

we need

at St Paul's

a culture

where we

communicate

with honesty

authenticity

transparency

with vulnerability

of our imperfections

a culture

where we will

covenant together

make a commitment

together

to watch over

each other's lives

with vigilance

and accountability

we need

to help each other

to become

overcomers

and sometimes

helping each other

become overcomers

means

a difficult conversation

may we have the

humility

to own it

and accept it

and hear it

my brothers and

sisters

do you have

ears

to hear what

the spirit

says

to this church

St Paul's

Amen