To the Church in Smyrna

Bring them to me.

Bring them to me.

That's what I felt the Lord remind me

I was like, no, I don't want people coming here

and seeing the curtains or seeing the lights

or seeing the band and going, oh, I'm at church now.

Bring them to me is all he said.

When you walk in here, the only hope, the only prayer

is that you meet Jesus.

You know, we're trying something different here.

We're trying something maybe a little bit strange

to all of us.

It's just, we're still figuring it out.

And you know what?

There's so many ways to do church,

but there's actually only one way to be the church

and that is to keep our eyes on him.

The thing that I'm most terrified of

is that we get so good at doing church.

We have a great team of people.

Even when I got here, the chairs were all done,

the stars were out, the sound was on,

people playing and it's all great.

It all feels like church.

There's so many ways to do church,

but there's only really one way to be the church

because the church is looking at Christ.

Can you believe this is only week three that we're here?

It's only the third week.

We've got so many things to figure out.

Actually, those of you who even shared before it,

who were serving before at KFCI,

ambassadors and all these other teams,

hey, we're trying to figure out what that looks like.

Give us a few weeks just to figure out

what actually we need here

and how you can serve

because actually you're absolutely here for a reason,

which is for him.

We're here to gather and then we're here to scatter

to actually use our hands to serve each other as well.

That's the second one that we read, right?

So just give us a few weeks

and we're going to figure out what that looks like.

But can we keep our eyes on him?

That's my hope.

That's my prayer

because it is so dangerous.

Even today I felt it.

Even as we were praying in there,

I was like,

man,

this could just start heading off in a direction

and it will be too late to catch.

Then we'll be back to just doing normal church

in the normal way.

And people can come in through the doors,

have a great time,

sing a few songs,

play a bit of ping pong

and then leave and not have met Jesus at all.

That's what scares me the most

because Christ didn't ask us to build the church.

Christ asked us to make disciples.

If you're here for the first time,

I welcome you.

But also then ask,

actually,

why are you here?

Or those of you who have been here a lot,

why are you here?

I hope it's not just to attend church.

I hope it's simply just,

you want to become a disciple of Jesus

and you want to figure out

what that means

to do it together.

Okay,

so let's have a think about that as we go.

We've been going through the book of Revelation,

which is a crazy one to do.

But for me,

it was actually,

how do we start with the end in mind?

Jesus has some pretty damning words

to say about the church.

If we're starting something here,

let's figure out

what it is we're actually doing.

Because I want to know

what Jesus says about the church

because I don't want to be guilty

of getting to a place

where at the end,

I've been doing church for 50 years

and Jesus comes and says,

you were doing church,

but you weren't the church.

Does that scare you?

That scares me.

That really scares me.

So we're going to carry on.

We're going through

the seven churches in Asia

and we're going to be going through

the second one today.

Are we okay with the sound?

Can you guys hear me at the back?

Now you can.

Do I just need to speak louder or?

Okay,

okay,

good.

Jesus,

John's praying.

John's on the island of Patmos.

He's praying

because the church is going through

all kinds of trouble.

And then Jesus opens up the curtain

and we actually have curtains now.

Jesus actually reveals the curtain

and that's his response.

He's saying,

actually,

John,

you're so worried about the church.

Let me tell you who I am

because when you know who I am,

you won't have to be worried

about anything else.

So Jesus peels back the curtain

and shows the real Jesus right now.

And then he talks to the church

and he talks to the seven churches of Asia.

Of course,

there aren't just seven churches in Asia,

but these seven churches

represent the whole complete church.

And last week,

we went through the letter to Ephesus.

So he starts from Patmos

and then he heads to Ephesus first.

It's the first place that he goes to

and it's the metropolitan.

And he's saying,

you guys are doing the most amazing church.

You are doing church very,

very well.

But,

but what?

What was the problem?

What was the problem with that church?

You've lost your first love.

You've lost the butterflies.

You've lost the reason

why you're even doing it.

You're an A-star pupil,

but you've forgotten the name

of the class that you're on.

The name of the class that you're on

is love

and you've forgotten it.

And because of that,

even though you are an A-star church,

I will shut you down.

That is what he says.

I will come to you

and I will remove you

from your lampstand.

That should send shivers down our spine.

When you're thinking about what church is,

you're like,

wait,

I could go to the most perfect church

and the person that that church

is trying to worship

is willing to shut it down.

And I said last week,

some of us turn up to church

with the heart,

more like a memorial service.

Doesn't it feel like that sometimes?

You turn to church,

you sing songs about a guy,

you talk about a guy

and then you leave

and you never really talk to

and meet or hear from the guy at all.

It's just a memorial service

you've just been to.

Yet Jesus says,

I am the first and the last.

I was dead

and now I am alive forevermore.

Even more so,

I am walking among you.

I am here right now.

I will sit on a beanbag

if that doesn't freak you out completely.

But I'm here.

Jesus is here.

I'm trying to convince you of that today.

That as you gather here,

Jesus himself is among us.

And we should treat that

with a bit of,

well,

a lot more reverence

than maybe we already do.

So then after the messenger

passes it to the church in Ephesus,

he then goes 30 miles north or so

to the next place.

And then he writes to the church

in Smyrna.

Now,

these seven churches,

he's basically going around

Asia Minor,

which is modern day.

Do you know where Asia Minor is?

What is it?

Modern day Asia Minor now?

Does anyone know?

Turkey.

Put your hands up

if you've been to Turkey.

So has anyone been to this next place?

It's Smyrna.

Modern day is called Izmir.

Put your hand up

if you've been to Izmir.

A few of us.

Out of the seven letters

that he writes,

this is an interesting one

because one,

Smyrna Izmir is still standing

right now.

And two,

it's the only church

out of the seven churches

which is still also remaining.

So this is fascinating.

I don't know if it fascinates you.

It fascinates me.

And this one is interesting

because last week

to Ephesus,

he was like,

you guys are A-star,

but you've done one mistake

and it's a major one.

In England,

when we had driving tests,

you can have up to 15 minors.

Right?

But then if you have one major,

you're out.

You're done.

Yeah?

So he's like,

you're A-star in everything else,

but you have one major problem.

No love.

So I would wipe you out

unless you repent.

Smyrna is interesting

because he actually doesn't

give them any problems.

They actually don't have

almost a threat

or an ultimatum.

They've actually done everything right,

but what's the problem here?

So we're going to read that now.

Hey,

for the gathering,

normally we have actually

asked people to stand.

I know that it's getting

a little bit harder and harder now,

but you know what?

Bear with me.

I just want to keep going with this.

Can I invite you to stand

for the word of the Lord?

Also,

we have a very dear brother of ours

who I hope you meet one day.

He's our social chair

of the gathering.

And now you're all standing up.

You might not be able to see him,

but he's quite tall.

That's Kubon over there.

Kubon,

wave to people.

That is Kubon.

He is our social chair.

He's the one who helps us organize

even something like

the volleyball this afternoon.

And Kubon's brother

is here to visit us

who is just as,

if not taller.

Are you taller than Kubon?

So I want to ask Qjoy

to read to us

because I have

a fairly high voice.

I thought it would balance it

with someone

who actually has

a very manly voice.

So we're going to invite

Qjoy to read

Revelation chapter 2

Revelation 2:8–11

verse 8 to 11 for us.

All right.

Revelation 2.

You said 8 to 11?

Yes.

All right.

And to the angel

of the church

in Smyrna write,

the words of the first

and the last

who died

and came to life.

I know your tribulation

and your poverty,

but you are rich.

And the slander of those

who say that

they are Jews

and are not,

but are a synagogue

of Satan.

Do not fear

what you are about

to suffer.

Behold,

the devil is about

to throw some of you

into prison

that you may be tested

and for 10 days

you will have tribulation.

Be faithful unto death

and I will give you

the crown of life.

He who has an ear,

let him hear

what the Spirit says

to the churches.

The one who conquers

will not be hurt

by the second death.

Amen.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thank you.

Thank you, Qjoy.

Oh, I can have my Bible.

Take a seat.

Thank you.

So,

he's writing

to the next church.

So, this messenger

takes this letter up

40 miles from Ephesus

and he ends up

in Smyrna.

And maybe,

similar to this,

a group here

would stand

and listen to this letter

being read out.

I need you to understand

the seriousness of this

because this church

is going through

some serious problems.

But maybe just a little bit

about Smyrna.

Smyrna is a very

interesting place.

Some people have been

to Izmir.

It's a beautiful city

from what I hear.

And actually,

it was known

to be a beautiful city.

It was known

to be the ornament

of Asia.

So, it's the third

biggest city now

in Turkey completely

but it used to be

the ornament of Asia

or the flower

of Asia.

Known to be

a beautiful city

and it had a lot

of pride in itself.

There were two main

kinds of people

in Smyrna.

There were one,

a group of Jews

and two,

a group of very,

well,

they were called

loyalists,

people who really,

really wanted

to impress

the Roman Empire.

So, these were

the kinds of people

that were there.

And the city

was interesting.

It had the exclusive

rights to myrrh.

Okay?

The fragrance of myrrh.

So, actually,

because of that,

it had a lot of people

going in and out

and it took a lot

of pride in itself.

It's the fragrance,

the flower,

the ornament of Asia.

Actually, on its coins,

it would actually write

the first city of Asia

in size and beauty.

So, it wanted to be

number one.

It wanted to be

known as the best place

in the world

and also most loyal

to the Roman Empire.

So, that's the kind

of context

that he's writing to here

and it's also very famous

for athletic games.

Okay?

So, a lot of contests

happened in Smyrna.

It was a key port.

If you just drew

a line straight

towards the west

from the port of Smyrna,

the first city

it would hit

is Athens.

So, you can imagine

the access

that this place had

and the beauty

that it had

and it still stands today.

You can actually

go and see this place.

At breakfast,

I was talking to my

father-in-law about this

because they'd taken

a whole trip around Turkey,

Asia Minor in the Bible

and this place is beautiful,

he says.

And so, this is what

Paul's writing to now

and, sorry,

what John's writing to

and Jesus himself

introduces as,

these are the words

of the first

and the last

who died

and came to life.

Again, Jesus said this

already in chapter one.

I am the first

and the last.

I am the Alpha

and Omega.

So, this church

that is suffering

through this kind

of persecution,

which by the way

has been happening

throughout the history

of Smyrna,

it was only even

in the early 1900s,

Christians were still

being killed.

My father-in-law

was telling me

about these tunnels

that would be under,

these underground tunnels

that were just complex

and complicated

that were under the city

where a lot of the Christians

were running away

from the persecution.

So, it was that kind

of place.

And can you imagine

hearing the words

of Jesus?

A messenger comes

and says,

Church in Smyrna,

I have a message

for you

from Jesus himself.

And Jesus says,

hey, Smyrna,

I am the first

and the last.

The one who died

and came back to life.

What's he saying there?

He's saying,

I know what you're

going through,

but let me tell you

something.

I'm going to have

the last word.

I'm the Alpha and Omega

and the first and the last.

So, whatever you're

going through in the middle,

it's not the end.

I'm coming back

to have the last word.

And I died

and then came back

to life.

Those in Smyrna

would have really

understood this

because one of the reasons

why this city was so proud

was in 600 BC,

it was completely flattened.

It was completely destroyed.

And then it was

Alexander the Great

that actually built it

back up again

into this beautiful city.

So, the city was known

to be the city

that resurrected,

that it was completely

destroyed and dead

and now is now

back to life

with all its beauty.

Now it's the first city

of Asia

in size and beauty.

Jesus knows this.

He walks amongst

this church

and he says,

I know

your tribulation

and your poverty

but you are rich

and the slander

of those who say

that they are Jews

and are not

but are a synagogue

of Satan.

So this church

is going through some stuff.

It's going through persecution.

It's going through,

it's going to be put in prison.

We're going to read

about that in a bit

and it also is in poverty.

So we're going to break

these down a little bit

and we're going to ask ourselves,

actually,

how did this church survive

till now?

What did they do

that was so right

that they didn't get

any criticism from Jesus?

He just gave them

an encouragement

because I want to know.

I want to know

why that gathering

managed to survive.

So he starts off

by saying this,

I know your tribulation.

Again,

I know.

I am Jesus.

I am walking amongst you.

I know.

That should bring

great comfort.

You know,

when you're going

through a challenge

and someone just puts

their hand on your back

and shoulder

and just go,

I know what you're going through.

Wouldn't that have been

of great comfort?

When someone was reading

this letter out to them,

they would have been

on the edge of their seat

going,

what's Jesus going to say?

He knows we're going

through all this trouble.

What's he going to do?

Maybe now he's going

to come back

and he's going to help us

overthrow the room.

What's he going to do?

Maybe we don't have to be

so scared for our lives anymore.

Maybe our children

can live knowing

that they don't have

to be scared

every time they go out

because they're associated

with us.

He says,

I know your tribulation.

The word there is,

I know your pressure.

I know the pressure

that you're under.

I know what you're going through.

I know the pressure

that you're under.

You see, why?

Those two groups,

there were the Jews

and then there were

the loyalists

to the Roman Empire.

At this point,

as I told you

a couple of weeks ago,

the emperor was starting

to persecute Christians,

really, really raising

the heat to these people

and really trying

to hunt the Christians down.

The Jews, on the other hand,

actually got exemption.

They actually,

they explained to the Romans

that, hey,

we worship Yahweh

and we can't worship Caesar

and all these other things.

So they were actually

given exemption

from doing the worshiping

of the Caesar

at the altars,

in the temples.

But the Christians

were not

because the Christians

were seen as this cultish

small group

that could threaten

to cause problems

in the Roman Empire.

And so therefore,

the Christians

were getting persecuted.

They were getting killed.

They were getting dragged away

and murdered.

Even worse so,

the actual Jews

and the loyalists

were actually

basically grassing them out,

starting to point

where they are,

starting to snitch on them.

So that was the pressure

they were getting under.

You and I,

we all gathered here

in Almutti

this Sunday morning

pretty free of pressure.

We just,

we woke up,

we got out of bed,

we just figured out

how we're going to get here

and we got here.

Imagine that church,

imagine a group

of this size,

but every single person

who came here

was under pressure

because they know

that by coming here,

by being here,

they might actually end up

either killed

or dragged into prison.

That changes things completely.

Right?

We have no threat

of why we're here

right now.

Jesus says,

I know your tribulation.

I know the pressure

that you're under.

And I want us

to be able to feel that.

You know,

when you've been under pressure

and someone just assures you,

I know the pressure

that you're under.

He also said,

I know your poverty.

Something else about

these Christians in Smyrna,

they were poor.

They were poor.

Because of the persecution,

because of the Jews,

because of the loyalists,

they were being discriminated against.

There were sanctions on them

even when they were

doing business.

Imagine a Christian

running a stall,

but people wouldn't go to them

because they were Christians.

So they wouldn't be able

to sell.

They wouldn't be able

to make profits.

So all these Christians

were known to be poor.

Forget being invited

into trade unions.

So this group

were completely sidelined

from society.

So Jesus says,

I know the pressure

that you're under.

I also know

that you are poor.

I know your poverty.

Do you know what Jesus

is saying here?

Jesus is saying,

I know how much it costs you

to be here.

I know how much it costs you

as a businessman

trying to follow

the way of Jesus

in this city

and all the discrimination

that you receive

because of it.

I know that you're poor.

I know that you're not only

worried about your children's safety,

you're also worried

whether you can even

feed your children or not.

Jesus says,

I know.

I know.

Brackets then,

he says,

but you are rich.

He says,

I know your poverty,

but you are rich.

He reminds them actually

that riches are not

just on this earth here,

but there are heavenly riches

that far outweigh,

far outweigh

what they can accumulate

on earth

because from dust

you came

and from dust

you will leave.

And so he says,

hey,

I know that you are poor here,

but know that you are

actually rich.

the spiritual blessings

that you have

far outweigh

the earthly riches

that other people have.

Have you met people,

I mean,

in Hong Kong,

it's the kind of place

where there is just

so much wealth

and there is

such a big gap,

but you know what,

sometimes,

not sometimes,

all the time,

we're reminded

that actually just

because we have money

it doesn't mean

that we're

completely happy.

Right?

Have you met

a rich person

who's really poor?

I have.

A rich person

who is really poor.

Actually,

I had a friend of mine

who's a CEO

of a big bank

and he said,

you know what,

it's interesting,

the more money you get,

the more poor they feel.

The more money people get,

the more poor they feel.

People who have loads of money,

somehow when he's talking to them,

it still sounds like they're poor.

Have you met people

who are rich

but actually poor?

I've also met people

who are poor

who are actually rich.

Last year,

I went to Nairobi

in Africa

and I was just

blown away

by the joy

that these kids have

because one kid

got handed down

a hand-me-down

pair of rollerblades

and the joy

that the whole community

had for that one kid,

I'm like,

you can't,

there is no price

you could pay for that.

The joy,

I've met rich people

who are poor

and I've met poor people

who are rich.

Jesus says,

I know your poverty

but remember,

you are rich

because you have

every spiritual blessing

because you know

you need me

and you know

that I am all you need.

That's what he's saying.

Again,

imagine yourself

being in that church.

You're going through

all this pressure.

You have no money.

You don't know

what you're going to eat tomorrow

and you get this letter

from Jesus

and Jesus says,

I know,

I know

and I am with you.

The encouragement

that he would have got

from that.

And then it says

something interesting

and the slander of those

who say that they are Jews

and are not

but are a synagogue of Satan.

You're getting slandered.

People are spreading

rumors about you.

You're trying to run

an honest business here

and people are spreading

rumors about your business.

You're trying to run

an honest gathering here

and people are spreading

rumors about what is happening

at this gathering.

And Jesus says,

I know

and these people,

they're pretending to be Jews

so they get the exemptions

from the Roman Empire

but they're not.

They're a synagogue of Satan.

Whoa.

Stop right there.

Jesus introduced himself

in chapter 1

and now he introduces

the main villain

in chapter 2.

They're a synagogue

of Satan

meaning the adversary,

the enemy.

A synagogue of Satan

means these people,

they say they're Jews

but they're fake.

Instead of serving

God's purposes,

they're actually serving

the devil's purposes.

and throughout

the whole history

of mankind

we see the devil working,

stirring up the hearts

of men

to fight against each other,

stirring up the hearts

of men

to turn away

from God.

We see the main villain

in the story now

and it is the devil.

It is Satan.

It brings me something

that actually brings me

encouragement

when I feel as though

I'm fighting

and losing battle.

Man,

there's something,

Paul talks about this.

What we fight against

isn't just against

flesh and blood.

It isn't just against

what we see.

There is a force

behind that we can't see

that we're up against.

The church in Smyrna,

sitting where you are

right now almost

and sitting the way you are

would have heard this

and would know exactly

what he's talking about.

Man,

Jesus knows the pressure

that we're under.

Jesus knows that we are

struggling from day to day,

that our businesses

are really struggling.

In this city,

this first city

of beauty and size,

this fragrance,

flower of Asia,

we are suffering

and Jesus knows.

The question for us is,

do we have any

of that kind of pressure?

Jesus then carries on.

He says,

I know all these things

and then he says,

don't be afraid

of what you're about

to suffer.

And then he says,

behold,

some of you are going

to be thrown into prison.

The devil is going

to throw you into prison.

Verse 10,

do not fear

what you're about to suffer.

Behold,

the devil is about

to throw some of you

into prison

that you may be tested.

He's saying,

some of you are suffering

right now

and you're going

to be thrown into prison.

The main enemy here

is the devil.

And you're going

to be thrown into prison

so that you may be tested.

Now,

nothing happens to us

without God's say so.

I mean,

that song that we sang,

that he's sovereign over us.

He's completely

in control here.

And Jesus says,

hey,

I know the struggles

that you're going through

and I'm about to,

what I'm about to say

is that actually

it's about to get worse.

You're going to be

thrown into prison.

Some of you are going

to be thrown into prison

and you're going

to be tested

because when you're

going to be tested,

that's when you know

whether this is something

real or not.

My question is,

how many of us

have been tested?

So,

the missions organization

I work for here

in Hong Kong

is called Young Life.

Young Life

is in 104

countries around the world.

And a couple of weeks ago

we met some of the colleagues

that we have

from different parts

of the world.

Some of them

can't call themselves

Young Life.

They have to call themselves

something different

because the countries

that they operate in

don't allow Christians

to work.

There are others

who are very scared

and weary

of even Zoom calls

that they can jump on.

There are so many things

that they have to consider.

This isn't that far

from home, people.

It reminds me

that actually

I don't think

I've ever

gone under

that kind of pressure.

I grew up in England,

same place as Gab's grew up.

Did you go,

did you have any pressure

going to church?

Apart from just mum

forcing you to church.

That was the only,

that was the only pressure

you got, right?

Like,

you don't wonder,

oh, if I make this choice today,

this could be my last choice.

We don't,

we don't really have that.

We don't have that

in Hong Kong right now.

But it's something interesting.

When you are threatened,

when you are tested,

that's when you know

it's real or not.

I mean,

we all hate tests, right?

Students,

who loves tests?

No one loves tests.

Florence,

dentist,

does not like tests.

But have you had tests?

Lots of them.

You see,

Florence is a dentist,

by the way.

But if I had a dentist

or a doctor

that I go and visit

and they say,

James,

sit on this,

sit on the chair

and open your mouth.

And if I ask them,

oh,

have you ever gone through

any education

or been tested?

They're like,

no.

I would not feel confident

in opening my mouth.

There's something about tests

that are actually good.

There's something about tests

that actually show

whether someone actually knows

what they're talking about

or not.

I had a bad back

the other week

and I went to

Damo here,

who's,

again,

I've said this before,

he's the best chiropractor

I know.

He's the only chiropractor

I know.

And he sits me

in these big machines.

It's literally like

they're time machines.

And I'm like,

Damian,

where am I going to wake up?

Can it be ancient?

I'd be really worried.

Some of the stuff

he does to me,

if he wasn't ever tested,

then I'd be really worried.

But because he is tested,

because he has been tested,

I'm like,

okay,

he knows what he's doing.

The question I have

to ask to you is,

has your faith

ever been tested?

How strong is your faith?

If someone comes against you

and your faith right now,

will it completely will

or will it still stand strong?

What Jesus seems

to be saying here

is that,

guys,

you're going to end up

in prison

that you may be tested

because when you're tested,

we're going to see

whether your faith

is real or not.

When the going gets tough.

When the going gets tough.

See,

Jesus knows

this is not going to happen.

The problem is

he's not bringing relief.

He's not saying,

hey,

I know you're going

through your pressure.

I know the poverty,

but don't worry.

I'm coming.

I got your back

and soon you're going

to be king.

Soon you're going

to rule with me.

No.

He's saying,

hey,

don't be afraid

of what you're about

to suffer.

Some of you

are going to be

thrown into prison

so that you may be tested.

And then he says,

and for 10 days

you will have tribulation.

10 days.

What they would have

understood that to mean

is this will be

a short amount of time.

You're going to be

put in prison.

You're going to go through

all the trouble.

But let me tell you

that it's 10 days

in the sense that

it is a limited amount

of time.

There will be an end to it.

Do you know

when you're sick

or when you have COVID?

Well,

before it was like,

oh,

you're going to be

pretty much out

for about 10 days.

And in those 10 days

it is painful.

You've got your sore throat,

you've got your fever,

all the stigma

so you're not allowed

to see anyone,

do anyone,

you can lock yourself

in the room,

but it's 10 days.

If you've had COVID

you'll understand this

in the sense that

it's really bad

when you're going through it

but you look back now

and it's like,

oh yeah,

it really was just 10 days.

Don't we have that?

That's exactly what

kind of Jesus is implying here.

He's saying,

don't be afraid

of what you're about to suffer.

The devil's going to

throw you into prison

so you're going to be tested

and you're going to be there

for 10 days

and you're going to have tribulation.

What that means is

it may feel quite a lot

in those 10 days

but when you look back

in the future

it's going to be okay.

It was only a short amount

of time.

What it's saying is

it is capped.

The suffering

is capped.

It is limited.

Why?

Because he's the first

and the last.

Because he will have

the final say.

That's what he's saying here.

He's saying,

don't worry,

it will happen.

But it's okay.

Don't bow under the pressure.

So the questions

that I have

as I got through this is

actually,

does my life

have any pressure?

Does my faith

ever get tested?

Now,

I'll say coming to Hong Kong

was probably my biggest test.

It challenged the way

I thought about God.

Challenged the way

I thought about

what churches.

I think I'd go as far

as to say that

maybe I didn't really

understand what it meant

to follow Jesus

until I actually

followed him

to a place

that I

didn't really want to go.

I asked this question

two weeks ago.

Is Jesus your Lord

and Saviour?

Then I asked you

if your answer was yes,

show me which part

of your life

where Jesus

is actually Lord.

I think I only really

learned that recently.

But if you're going

to follow Jesus,

you're basically saying

I'm going to follow you

wherever you want me

to go.

Here's the problem.

The Christian life

when lived properly

invites pressure.

The Christian life

when lived properly

invites pressure.

Why?

Because the way

of Jesus

is

by definition

going against

the way of the world.

Romans 12

is do not conform

to the patterns

of this world.

So if you're going to

live this life

properly,

it does invite

pressure.

Let me just pause

there for a second.

for those of us

who don't experience

any pressure,

that should give us

some food for thought.

Are you tracking

with me here?

Does your life

have any pressure

because of

the faith

that you have?

If it doesn't,

in the politest

way possible,

my question is

why not?

the Christian life

when lived properly

invites pressure

because we are

counter-cultural.

I've often said this,

if

the Christian life

doesn't cost you

anything,

it's not worth

anything.

If the Christian life

that you live

doesn't cost you

anything,

then it's not worth

anything.

The Christian life

when lived properly

invites pressure.

These people

will have had

to make choices.

Some of them,

he says,

they're fake Jews,

right?

That means some of them

had decided,

you know what?

If it's easier

to pretend to be a Jew

so I can avoid

some of the issues,

I'm just going to do that.

If it's easier

for me to do this

or not talk about Jesus,

then I'm going to do that

because that will help me

have an easier life.

And so people

started making compromises.

That's what was happening.

But then the ones

that were remaining

was,

Jesus says,

hey,

I know what you're

going through

and you will have pressure

but I want you to know

that pressure is good

because that means

your faith is real.

The last thing I want

is to make compromises

that do not really

have a real faith.

And when I get to the author

of all of this,

the creator,

he's like,

hey,

what you had wasn't real.

Does your life

invite any pressure?

If you're living your life

exactly the way

you want it to,

I'm happy for you,

bro,

but I don't know

if it's Jesus

you're following.

If you're doing

exactly what you want to,

of course there's things

that you don't like.

You don't like floods,

you don't like typhoons,

you don't like tests,

you don't like taxes,

I get all those things.

But if on the whole

your life is going

how you want it to,

maybe you're the Lord

of your life.

Maybe Jesus isn't Lord

because when it's lived

properly,

it should invite pressure.

There should be people

who look at you

and go,

oh,

why is your day

living like that?

Like,

that's,

that's not normal.

Shouldn't we be

in control

of our own destiny?

No,

not when Jesus

is your Lord.

Does your life

invite any pressure?

And I'm not saying

we should go out

and look for trouble

right now.

That's not what we're saying.

Like,

you don't need to go

and find a big wooden board

and stand outside

in the street

and go repent

for the kingdom of God

is near.

You don't need to do

that.

You can if you want to.

But,

but actually,

if you're living

for Jesus,

it should go against

the way of the world

and there should,

there should be pressure.

There should be a way

of,

actually,

you do things differently.

Not just for the sake of it,

but because your Lord

demands it.

I was listening to a sermon

earlier this week

where the guy was saying,

Jesus,

do you recognize,

do you realize

that Jesus died

for you?

I mean,

I know it's that,

okay,

everyone's like,

yeah,

yeah,

I get it,

I get it.

Jesus,

someone died for you.

Do you think

the most appropriate

response after that

is,

oh,

go to church

on Sunday

for two hours?

Is that it?

Is that what Jesus wanted?

I wanted to lay my life

down for these people

just so they make sure

they can carve out

their Sunday mornings

for me

and so long as

they don't come to church

too late,

it's going to be okay.

Jesus laid his life

down for us.

Is there any pressure

in our lives?

Maybe another question

that we have is,

what are the pressures

that we face

in this society?

I don't think

we are persecuted

in business

for being Christians here,

but what are some

of the pressures

that we face

in society right now?

Any thoughts?

I'm going to start

putting people

on the spot here

just to keep us awake.

What are the pressures

that we have in Hong Kong

right now that you think?

JP, anything?

Rent.

Yes.

That is a pressure.

Let's unpeel that

a bit more.

What does that represent

or what does that cause

after that?

The pressure of rent

leads to the pressure

of...

Rent leads to the pressure

of working

to get more money

so you can pay

your landlord

and that

then leads pressure

onto something else.

What would that lead

onto?

Having to work lots

means then

there's a pressure

of time.

One thing I've got to say

is when I met those

poor kids

who were rich

in Africa,

I was like,

at least one thing

they do have

that is the most

valuable thing.

Time.

The kids in Hong Kong,

some of them

that I meet,

they have everything

but time.

And time

is the most

valuable thing.

So yes,

the pressure of rent

leads to this

and so therefore

you have to work.

So therefore you have

to use all your time

to get that

so you can pay

for rent,

pay for someone

to live.

What if the pressures

are there?

Graceful pressures

are there in Hong Kong.

You have to look

like you're successful.

You have to appear

to be successful.

You have to appear

to be ambitious.

You have to appear

to know what you're doing.

To be attractive

in the way

so people can look

at you

for attention.

And we all know

that that's just a facade

and this is where

social media

is the biggest problem,

right?

I mean,

social media itself

is a neutral thing

but what it lends itself

to is everyone

just showing

their most successful

side

and then completely

filtering out

everything else.

And then now

we're all comparing

everyone,

like their successful

side to our ugly side

and then we feel

worse and worse.

And I've said this

to a lot of young people

recently.

So actually,

we were just talking

about this the other day.

I don't have Instagram

and Facebook on my phone.

The director of Young Life

with young people

does not have Instagram

on his phone

and I was laughed at

yesterday

and I'll tell you why.

I realized

when I was on my phone

scrolling,

zombie scrolling

through Instagram,

I was feeling FOMO.

Like,

fear of missing out.

I was feeling like,

oh,

wait,

they're at a party.

Why aren't I

invited to that?

Oh,

they live there?

That's super nice.

Look at that

matcha latte

that they're drinking

in Bali.

Oh,

that's so nice.

That barrister,

seriously.

I found myself

grown-ass man James

with a wife

and two kids

whom I love

in a beautiful home

that I have.

I have everything

that I could possibly want.

I'm scrolling on Instagram

and I'm like,

but I need more.

Literally.

And I'm like,

you know what?

This ain't good for me.

Now,

I still need to

be somewhat connected

to the world

so I choose to

go there

only when I'm on my laptop

and I'm going to decide,

okay,

I'm going to spend

a little bit of time

to go and check out

what's actually happening

in the world.

And then I realize

that nothing is happening

in the world.

It's the same thing

every time.

It really is the same thing.

I'm like,

I've been on social media

for Lent sometimes

and I come back

and I'm like,

oh,

nothing has changed.

I didn't actually need

to know about

everyone else's holidays

and everyone else's

plans.

But the pressure

of just

getting attention

from people,

from presenting

ourselves

in the right way

so other people

will like us,

that's a huge pressure.

What other pressures

are there?

Maybe one more.

Anything else?

Can anyone

think of anything?

Job title?

Absolutely.

It's part of this.

It's like,

oh,

what's your name

and what do you do?

What's your name?

Oh,

what do you do?

What's your name

and what do you do?

Why?

Because we,

well,

one,

we profile people

ourselves.

We find out the name.

We almost don't even

need to know the name.

We just need to know

what they do

because then we need to

decide whether we want

to hang out with them

or not,

right?

When you meet someone,

John,

you meet people

all the time.

Like,

actually,

I know you have this

because I know I have this.

When I'm speaking to people,

I'm like,

I need to quickly profile

whether this person

deserves my time

or not.

So it starts up,

hey,

what do you do?

Oh,

actually,

forget the name.

Just,

what do you do?

Job title.

We hold that

in such high regard here.

But I'm like,

there's so many other parts of it.

That's why I hate being called

Pastor James

because I'm like,

I don't come and call you

by your job title

and then your name.

Hey,

hey,

event manager,

Gabs.

How are you doing today?

Hey,

dentist flow.

Hey,

back genius demo.

No,

it's just demo.

But somehow,

our job titles,

somehow what we do

put so much pressure

onto us.

Sometimes,

it's not even from other people.

We just have it ourselves.

What am I doing with my life?

Why aren't I

a C-suite

member of the team?

Yeah.

Why aren't I a director?

Why aren't I this?

Why aren't I that?

Why don't I have

all these followers?

The pressure of job titles.

I've got to say that,

I mean,

those are all very real things.

Those are all very real things

that actually cannot just

derail our life here on earth.

It can threaten

whether we actually

end up in eternity or not.

I don't want to belittle them.

But I've also got to say,

they don't really weigh up

to some of the pressures

that the church in Smyrna had.

It's different.

None of us right now,

right here in this moment,

are going to be thrown

into prison by the devil.

Well,

unless you're about to do

something illegal,

then don't do it.

Don't do it.

Whatever you think you're doing,

don't do it.

The Christian life,

when lived properly,

invites pressure.

I encourage you.

I invite you.

If your life has no pressure,

if your faith doesn't

cause you to rub

against the world in any way,

I don't know.

I think you need to have a think

of what that faith is.

If your life,

if your faith doesn't