“Jesus' Letter to Sardis”
“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 reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and
strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works
complete in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, then, what you received and heard.
Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you
will not know at what hour I will come against you. 4 Yet you have still a few
names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk
with me in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who conquers will be clothed
thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life.
I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. 6 He who has an
ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’
The Church in Sardis was not what it seemed to be. Everyone
thought they were alive and vibrant and active and living – but they were sick,
about to die, and slipping into a slumber. Perhaps it was apathy. Or maybe you
could call it forgetfulness. Or spiritual frailness. Or all of the above. It kind of reminds you of when Jesus
criticized the Pharisees as being “white-washed tombs” – beautiful on the
outside, but inside only rotting bones.
Now, there is no perfect Christian, and there is no perfect
congregation of Christians. Remember the church in Ephesus, and her lack of
love. The church in Smyrna, and her fear of persecution. The church in
Pergamum, and her struggles with false doctrine. And the church in Thyatira,
which tolerated open sin and heresy. Jesus calls them all to repent, so does he
also call to the church in Sardis.
Sardis, the sleepy church, is called to “wake up”. Just what
was going on here? He says, “I have not found your works complete in the sight
of my God”. And we recall the relationship between faith and works. Faith
drives good works. Good works are an expression of faith. So something is wrong
with their faith, too, it seems. The lacking works are a symptom of the real
problem.
Perhaps Sardis was one of those churches that just went
“through the motions”. Every Sunday gathering, saying the same old things,
singing the same old songs (though probably with little gusto). Mouthing the
words with no meaning or thought. One commentator put it this way, the “rituals
of godly pretense”. Oh sure, their pomp and ritual made them look alive and
well, but inside there was a sickness – a critical illness – of which Jesus was
fully aware.
There are, today, all sorts of gurus and experts,
self-appointed and otherwise, who want to diagnose congregations and do growth
assessments and community engagement studies.
These well-meaning programs often seek to clarify just what your church
is doing wrong, or not doing enough of, in order to grow and thrive. You should see the junk email your pastor
gets about all this. And, oh, if it were
that easy. To simply diagnose a
congregation’s ills.
Some have said to me that Messiah has a problem with getting
enough volunteers. And while that’s
fairly subjective, it might be true.
Many people, even the pastor sometimes, find it easier to write a check
than to spend some precious time. Others
would probably criticize us for being inwardly focused – not a “mission
outpost” but a “maintenance station”.
It’s budget time and the church council is struggling again to crunch
the numbers, and weigh how much to spend, and how much giving will be there to
cover expenses. Or even the experience
of a visitor who comes here – some say, “oh they were so friendly” and some
say, “oh, they were so cold. No one talked
to me.” I suppose the mileage really
does vary.
I don’t know, and they don’t teach at seminary how to do it,
and I wouldn’t believe them if they claimed to – figure out how to diagnose a
congregation as a whole. Maybe only
Jesus can do that, as he does to these seven churches. But notice this. He’s not concerned about outward, but inward
realities. He doesn’t chide the churches
for being unfriendly or not volunteering on committees. He doesn’t exhort them to more pot-lucks. He doesn’t even say they need to serve the
needs of their communities. He calls
them to repentance.
Repent of your lack of love.
Repent of false doctrine. Repent
of your fear of persecution. Simply,
repent of your sins.
And while Jesus speaks to Sardis, he is really speaking to
all of the churches, and to all Christians. Just as we too are called to repent
of lovelessness, fear, toleration of false teaching and sin... so are we called
to true faith which expresses itself in good works. A living faith which is not
mere show. A rich and true trust in Jesus Christ – which naturally brings about
the evidence in our lives.
So how are we doing? How are we doing as a congregation, and
as individuals?
If Jesus looked at us as a congregation, would he see an
active and living faith expressed in good works of love? Would he see us
helping the blind, the hungry, the poor – the widow and orphan? Well some
people volunteer with Braille or swaddling clothes. Some donate to the local
food pantry or work at various volunteer organizations. And as a congregation,
we send money to support mission and mercy work in our district and abroad.
Some might look at us and say, “my how alive! How vibrant and active Messiah
Lutheran Church is! What wonderful works they are doing for the Lord!”
But is that just an appearance of life, where death is
always close at hand? In our congregational life, do our works really measure
up? Could more people be involved? Could we do more to serve more people? Are
there works that go undone because we have better things to do? Is there a
sense that “someone else will do that”? Do we think that we give “enough”,
serve “enough” and volunteer “enough” of our time?
Or in our own personal lives – how would the one who has the
seven spirits and the seven stars grade us? Would we get a gold star? Or would
we get a mark of, “needs improvement”?
No, Jesus doesn't grade on a curve, nor does he judge us in
comparison to others. His standard is the perfect law. And we must admit, this
is a test we would all fail, if left to ourselves.
But rather than fail us for our failings, he calls instead
for repentance. “Wake up!” he says - “Remember!” he reminds. “Don’t soil your
garments” Turn away from your sin and come again in faith to the cross. He
calls, because he wants you to believe and live. He calls, because he wants to
grant faith in abundance. He calls because he wants that faith to be expressed
in good works.
And when we repent, he forgives. He grants gifts we don't
deserve, he forgives our sin, enlivens faith, and by his Spirit he brings about
those good works in us.
In these letters, he couches his grace in the promises of
gifts – and to Sardis he promises 2 – a white robe, and a name written in the
book of life. Both of these images appear later in the vision of Revelation,
and both remind us of God's grace in Christ.
The white robe is a symbol of his own righteousness –
evoking our baptism. There in the waters of grace he washed our robes soiled
with sin, washed them in his own blood – taking away each spot and stain. And
as we return to our baptism in daily repentance, so does he wash our robes
again and again. The Old Adam is drowned, and the New Adam arises to live in
faith.
And that book – a book of life – in whose names God has
carefully recorded all those who belong to him. It reminds us that God knows
us, that he has claimed us, and that he has an intention for us. His plan is in
writing – it's just waiting to be fulfilled. The blueprint for our salvation is
sure, it's all there in black and white.
So again, like Sardis, we have some repenting to do. Maybe
as a church, and also as individuals.
May we repent of our lack of good works, which comes from our lack of
faith. Though we may look alive and well, we are sick and dying – apart from
Christ. But let us never be apart from Christ! For in the one who died and
lives, we die to sin and live for eternity. He calls us to keep his words,
remember them, and wake up. Repent and believe – and conquer – by his grace. In
his name, Amen.
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