February 16, 2025 • 28 mins
What if the vibrancy of faith you once knew has quietly slipped away? Join us as we unpack the profound message to the church in Sardis, famously dubbed the "dead church," from the Book of Revelation. Through a heartfelt prayer, we set the stage for unfolding Jesus' powerful admonitions, underscoring the urgency of vigilance and repentance. Our discussion ventures into the mysterious symbolism of the "seven spirits of God," stirring a captivating discourse on its meaning, whether it embodies Jesus' power and wisdom or represents the Holy Spirit. In the midst of this exploration, you'll meet "Bob," a churchgoer whose journey towards spiritual leadership reveals the critical distinction between seeking personal glory and embracing a true calling to serve.
Move beyond the surface as we tackle the reality of spiritual death, drawing on Jesus' stark rebuke of the Pharisees as "whitewashed tombs." We explore the perilous path of spiritual compromise and corruption, drawing lessons from the biblical narratives of Sardis, Pergamos, and Thyatira. Our reflection is steeped in the wisdom of Psalms 1:1 and 1 Timothy 4:1-2, as we delve into the essence of maintaining an authentic relationship with God. As we conclude, Revelation 3:5 offers a beacon of hope, encouraging listeners to confront their spiritual state and embrace the possibility of redemption and renewal. Join us on this spiritual journey, where faith, introspection, and transformation converge.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, I give youthanks today for your grace and
your mercy upon us as a people,those who believe in you, and
your never-ending grace towardsthose who do not.
You continually ask that theywould come.
You continually knock at thedoor that they might just answer
(00:23):
it.
Lord God, that's why I'm here,that's why we're here today to
learn and study your word, tolearn from you, to hear from you
.
Today, for all of those withinthe sound of my voice, I pray
that you are well, that yourlives are honoring to God and
(00:45):
that you can feel his presencein your every move and your
every motion and every thought.
Father God, I give you thanks.
I give you thanks for all ofthe people within the sound of
my voice who are here with ustoday, within the sound of my
voice, who are here with ustoday.
May your word give us a peaceand an understanding of what you
(01:11):
want from us, what theconsequences are for our actions
and how we can solve ourproblems, whatever they may be,
wherever they may find you.
Lord God, it's in the name ofyour precious son, jesus Christ,
(01:35):
that I pray.
Amen.
Well, gang, we're halfway home.
We're actually better thanhalfway home.
We're halfway home.
We're actually better thanhalfway home.
We're to the fifth church ofthe seven churches in Asia Minor
.
As we continue our study throughthe book of Revelation, the
church in Sardis is labeled thedead church.
(01:57):
Wow, let's read it.
Pick up with me, starting inchapter number three, verse
number one, jesus says and tothe angel of the church in
Sardis, write these things, sayshe who has the seven spirits of
(02:17):
God and the seven stars.
I know your works.
You have a name that you arealive, but you are dead.
Be watchful and strengthen thethings which remain that are
ready to die, for I have notfound your works perfect before
God.
Remember, hold fast and repent.
(02:39):
Therefore, if you will notwatch, I will come upon you as a
thief and you will not know thehour which I will come upon you
.
You have a few names, even inSardis, who have not defiled
their garments, and they shallwalk with me in white, for they
(03:04):
are worthy.
He who overcomes shall beclothed in white garments and I
will not blot their name fromthe book of life, but I will
confess his name before myFather and before his angels.
He who has an ear to hear, lethim hear what the Spirit says to
(03:31):
the churches Okay, that wasRevelation 3, verses 1 through 6
.
As always, the angel mentionedhere is the pastor of the church
, but the verbiage here is a bitdifferent he who has the seven
spirits of God and the sevenstars.
He, of course, is Jesus, right,the seven stars again are the
(03:57):
pastors, and this time Jesusmentions the seven spirits of
God.
Well, gang, jesus never saysanything.
That means nothing.
He, of course, referring tohimself who has the seven
spirits of God.
(04:22):
I've read a couple of differentthings about what this might
mean, and I'm willing to saythat I don't know 100% what it
means.
It's one of those things, whenI get home, that God will reveal
to me, and my faith allows meto think in those terms.
I believe that the sevenspirits of God is a likely
(04:47):
reference to his power, hisbeing, jesus's power and wisdom.
I've also heard it referred toas the Holy Spirit, the seven
spirits of the Holy Spirit,which can be a little confusing,
but knowledge is the base pointhere Wisdom and knowledge.
(05:09):
Jesus knows all.
Okay, he knows it, he sees it,he understands it, and those are
things that we have tounderstand.
So, in the end, here Jesus isspeaking of his ownership of the
churches and the pastors ofthose churches.
This is a strong statement.
He's not subtly reminding them.
(05:31):
He's not so subtly, ratherreminding them of a stone fact
the church is mine, it's pastors, it's leaders, it's under
rowers.
Answer to me Well, we know this.
However, sometimes we do needto be reminded.
(05:54):
Keep this strong, opener inmind as we proceed.
Jesus isn't happy with hischurch in Sardis and, by
extension, the pastors of thischurch.
This brings up an interestingside note and, as with most side
trips with me, those of youwho've been with me for a while
know that most side trips withme always begin with a story.
(06:22):
I come from what some of youmight consider a large church,
maybe even a mega church.
We never really looked at itthat way, and it was out west.
One Wednesday evening beforeservice, I had occasion to speak
with what I'll call a memberfor simplicity's sake, though we
(06:46):
never kept a membership or tookso much as a headcount.
Let's call him Bob.
Okay, we're going to call himBob, and Bob was always a very
animated man, and this evening,as I sat across from him in the
cafe, I could tell Bob was onabout something.
Hello, I said as I took my seatacross from him hey brother,
(07:12):
bob shouted, even though it wasnot needed.
It was a coffee shop that wehad in the main level of the
church and there was no need toshout.
I was right there, but Idigress.
I'd been thinking I shouldstart teaching the Word and
(07:33):
maybe even be a pastor.
I waited, bob smiled and I lethis statement hang in the air
for a while.
Then he hit me with the anvil.
I told pastor that I'd be happyto fill in for him and help out
when he needs a break.
What do you think?
Okay, gang, there are two kindsof people who become pastors or
(08:03):
Bible teachers the ones thatare seeking their own glory and
the ones that are called to it.
The ones that are seeking theirown glory for themselves, do it
for the recognition, the fameand to be seen and many other
(08:23):
reasons that don't matter,because they are of the flesh,
not of the spirit.
In short, to them and for them,it's a job.
The ones that are called to it.
What do I mean when I saycalled to it?
Called by who?
Not a church body or acongregation?
(08:47):
Some churches have a callcommittee and they decide who
they're going to call to betheir pastor.
Well, I don't agree with thatphilosophy, because God calls a
pastor a Bible teacher, a leaderin the church and the church
(09:10):
itself.
They acknowledge that callingthat's how that works A pastor,
a Bible teacher.
They're called by God himself.
This brings me to my point.
Pastors and church leaders areheld to a higher standard by God
(09:32):
himself, by God himself.
So when Jesus claims hisownership of the churches,
that's a measure of his powerover those pastors.
That's a measure of his powerover those pastors, his dominion
over those pastors, that theyare called by him and no one
else.
And that's a huge, huge thing.
(09:52):
To get a better grip on what Ijust said, read Paul's epistles
to Timothy and Titus.
That's Titus, and then firstand second, timothy.
Being called the pastorate is nosmall thing.
Think of it this way you get aphone call today from the
(10:13):
president of the United Statesand he asked you to serve
alongside him in his cabinet.
Wow, that's a big deal.
Wow, that's a big deal.
The saying is I serve at thepleasure of the president.
You're going to want to do agreat job for him.
Now multiply that a hundredfold, a thousandfold, a millionfold,
(10:36):
to infinity-fold, if that's athing.
You receive a calling on yourlife from God.
He says he wants you to be apastor of his church, his
representative and, under rower,the Lord of the universe has
called you to serve him andshepherd his people.
(10:59):
That's what Jesus is tellingthe church in Sardis, it's
pastor and it's people you arehere because this is where I
placed you.
I called you to serve me.
I see you, as it says in thebook of Job.
It says have you seen myservant Job?
(11:23):
This is God saying I see him.
And in this case, as in thechurch of Sardis, god's saying I
don't like what I see.
Let's continue picking up inverse 2.
It says I know your works, thatyou have a name, that you are
alive, but you are dead.
(11:44):
Let that resonate a littlewhile.
Let that resonate inside youfor a little while.
What would you do if God saidyou were dead?
God said you were dead, jesuscalled you dead.
(12:06):
God said you were dead, jesuscalled you dead.
I can't even I've got gooseflesh climbing on my arms right
now, because I can't even beginto imagine what that looks like,
what that feels like.
This is the only compliment,veiled though it may be.
I know your reputation, godsays.
(12:29):
I know your name, I know whatpeople say about you, that
you're alive, ie good, workinghard for the kingdom, yada, yada
yada.
But you're dead.
Jesus isn't talking aboutphysical death here.
(12:50):
Let's get that clear right now.
Jesus isn't talking aboutphysical death.
The church is still breathing,walking around and moving
through their days.
Jesus is talking aboutsomething that's much worse
spiritual death.
Spiritual death.
He's speaking of something much, much worse.
That spiritual death is theworst kind of death a believer
(13:15):
can experience.
Viewed sophomorically, it'sgoing through the motions,
worship, prayer, service toothers, to others.
Outwardly, everything seemsright, but inside, inside the
soul, there's nothing.
Nothing, there's no connection,there's no depth.
(13:41):
The spirit is dead.
The spirit is dead.
Turn over with me to the left,to Matthew 23, verse 29 in your
Bible.
It says there even so, you alsooutwardly appear righteous to
(14:07):
men, but inside you are full ofhypocrisy and lawlessness.
This is Jesus speaking to thePharisees.
Further up the page, in verse27 of the same chapter, jesus
gives the Pharisees a starkexample of how he sees them.
Again, chapter 23, verse 27,new King James Version.
Woe to you, scribes andPharisees, hypocrites, for like
(14:35):
whitewashed tombs which indeedappear beautiful outwardly, but
inside are full of dead man'sbones and all uncleanness.
Let's read that again and alluncleanness.
(15:05):
Spiritual death begins with well, as we've learned in the last
couple of weeks, it begins withcompromise, that seemingly
little thing that you do thatappears meaningless and yet
leads you down a slippery slope.
The church in Pergamoscompromise, unchecked, leads to
(15:26):
corruption.
Which is the church in Thyatira.
Lastly and finally, spiritualdeath Sardis.
So let's take a trip back againto Psalms 1.1.
Again, that's in the middle ofyour Bible Psalms, chapter 1,
verse 1.
Bible Psalms, chapter 1, verse 1.
(15:47):
Blessed is the man who walksnot in the counsel of the
ungodly, nor stands in the pathof sinners, nor sits in the seat
of the scornful.
Okay, so here's an easy way toremember this Walking with the
ungodly, standing in the path ofsinners and sitting in the seat
(16:09):
of the scornful.
Remember it this way Walkingequals compromise, standing
equals corruption and sitting.
Well, you've taken your last.
You've taken your last.
You've taken your last, you'vemade your last decision.
You've decided to sit down withthe scornful as we wrap up here
(16:42):
.
Turn to the right 1 Timothy 4, 1and 2.
To the right 1.
Timothy 4, 1 and 2.
Now the Spirit says in lattertimes, some will depart from the
faith, giving heed to deceivingspirits and doctrines of demons
(17:14):
speaking lies in hypocrisy,having their own conscience
seared with a hot iron.
So how does spiritual deathhappen?
Simply put, it's knowing what'sright at first and choosing not
to do it, and then knowingwhat's right again and choosing
(17:35):
not to do it again and again,and again and again.
This is spiritual death, whenyou don't care any longer,
because that's where you get to.
You've accepted and embracedthe lies of the enemy for so
long that they no longer botheryou.
Are you there?
Do you know it?
Do you know it, do you?
(17:59):
That's the Holy Spirit tellingyou that it's not too late.
Here's the hope.
Here's the hope.
Look at verse number five.
He who overcomes shall beclothed with white garments.
(18:23):
Again, we're in Revelation now,chapter three, verse five.
He who overcomes will beclothed with white garments.
Again, we're in Revelation now,chapter 3, verse 5.
He who overcomes will beclothed with white garments, and
I will not blot out his namefrom the book of life, but I
will confess his name before myFather and before his angels.
(18:43):
So I heard it said once, and Ibelieve it church is a dangerous
place Because after a period oftime of attending church and
going to church and being atchurch, if you don't accept the
truth, if you don't submit tothe Almighty, you suddenly don't
(19:09):
care.
It becomes going through themotions.
As I said stand up, sit down,pray, go home.
I have, unfortunately sat inchurches that were spiritually
dead.
That's why I left spirituallydead, that's why I left.
(19:34):
And for the church at large andthis is what this letter, this
is who this letter is directedto, this is who the church is
directed to, and we'll leave itat verse six he who has an ear
to hear, let him hear what theSpirit says to the churches.
We've got to get it right, thechurch has to get it right.
(19:56):
But I'm not so concerned withthe church because, as I said at
the beginning of this study andI haven't repeated it I don't
think enough.
We are the church, each one ofus is the church.
On this rock I will build mychurch, jesus said.
(20:19):
Some of our brethren mistakenlybelieve that he was talking
specifically about Peter.
He wasn't.
He was talking, if you look atit in context, about faith,
about relationship with him,each and every one of us, and on
that faith he builds the church.
But it's not just believing.
(20:42):
Remember, as I've said before,demons believe in God.
They just don't accept him.
So where does that put somebodywho says, oh, I just believe in
God.
Well, that's great.
James said faith without worksis dead, faith without
(21:02):
relationship is dead, faithwithout relationship is dead.
And, folks, this is so veryimportant and I know that this
has been hard, I know this hasnot been an easy teaching.
It's a hard thing, but whatJesus is saying to the church in
Sardis is that you're justabout done.
He says that there are somewithin the church of Sardis, a
(21:29):
few names, he says, even inSardis, who have not defiled
their garments and they shallwalk with me in white, for they
are worthy.
Well, there's nothing we can doto be worthy.
There's nothing we canphysically do to be worthy of
(21:53):
God's love.
I know that's a hard thing, butit's true.
There's nothing we can do to beworthy of God's love, but we
can accept his free gift ofsalvation.
We can repent, repent, repent,for the kingdom of God is at
(22:14):
hand.
Now, if this message has touchedyou and you're beginning to
think to yourself wow, you knowwhat?
I don't have the kind ofrelationship with God that I
need.
I've kind of been going throughthe motions here.
I'm kind of well, I'm not kindof, I'm spiritually dead.
And God is telling me you know,strengthen the things which
(22:39):
remain.
You can always start again.
And all you have to do is talkto him.
That's all you can say.
Something like this.
You can say Lord, god, dearJesus, I know I'm a sinner in
need of a savior.
Lord, god, I have been goingthrough the motions.
(22:59):
I fear that I'm spirituallydead.
I fear that I'm approachingthat moniker of spiritual death.
And, Lord, I don't want that.
I want to be with you.
I believe, lord, that you came,that you walked among us, that
you died for my sins and thesins of all who would believe,
(23:19):
and I want you to be my Lord, myGod, my Savior and my friend.
I repent from my sin of goingthrough the motions.
I repent of my sin of makingcompromise which leads to
corruption, which leads to death.
Lord, I repent.
I want to get up and not sitwith the scornful anymore.
(23:42):
I want to walk away, lord, andI pledge to you that I'll do
that today.
Change my heart, lord.
I want you to be my Lord, myGod, my Savior and my friend In
Jesus' name, amen.
(24:02):
If you prayed that prayer,welcome, friend to the family of
God.
I'm going to have someresources for you in the next
several weeks, but the firstthing I would say to you is that
you need to find a solidBible-believing church.
(24:25):
You know it's interesting.
There are people who've beenpraying for you your whole life
and you didn't even know it, butif you think about it, you know
it.
Go to them.
Tell them what you've done,tell them that you've accepted
Jesus as your Lord and Savior,and go to church with them.
(24:49):
Find a good Bible-believingchurch and begin to study, begin
to learn, begin to walk withthe Lord, not because he needs
(25:10):
you, but because he wants you.
I prayed initially for those whoare listening and their
families, and to those that aresitting within the sound of my
voice, who may not have a family, who could say to me Larry, I
never had a father figure.
I never had anyone who couldteach me these things.
You have a father figure theLord, god Almighty.
(25:38):
Let him be your father.
Let him teach you up.
(25:59):
Whether it be Apple, spotify orwherever you get your podcasts,
you can follow on Apple,subscribe everywhere else and
give us a five-star review sothat we can begin to beat that
algorithm.
Also, I've got a fan mail spoton my website now where you can
(26:20):
write me a quick message and letme know what you think.
Let me know if you have anyquestions, any of those kinds of
things, and, lastly, if youchoose to support the ministry,
we certainly would appreciatethat there's a spot for that on
the website as well.
Until next week, gang, make itcount and be blessed.
Let's pray.
Heavenly Father, I give youthanks today for your grace and
your mercy upon us as a people,those who believe in you, and
your never-ending grace towardsthose who do not.
You continually ask that theywould come.
You continually knock at thedoor that they might just answer
(00:23):
it.
Lord God, that's why I'm here,that's why we're here today to
learn and study your word, tolearn from you, to hear from you
.
Today, for all of those withinthe sound of my voice, I pray
that you are well, that yourlives are honoring to God and
(00:45):
that you can feel his presencein your every move and your
every motion and every thought.
Father God, I give you thanks.
I give you thanks for all ofthe people within the sound of
my voice who are here with ustoday, within the sound of my
voice, who are here with ustoday.
May your word give us a peaceand an understanding of what you
(01:11):
want from us, what theconsequences are for our actions
and how we can solve ourproblems, whatever they may be,
wherever they may find you.
Lord God, it's in the name ofyour precious son, jesus Christ,
(01:35):
that I pray.
Amen.
Well, gang, we're halfway home.
We're actually better thanhalfway home.
We're halfway home.
We're actually better thanhalfway home.
We're to the fifth church ofthe seven churches in Asia Minor
.
As we continue our study throughthe book of Revelation, the
church in Sardis is labeled thedead church.
(01:57):
Wow, let's read it.
Pick up with me, starting inchapter number three, verse
number one, jesus says and tothe angel of the church in
Sardis, write these things, sayshe who has the seven spirits of
(02:17):
God and the seven stars.
I know your works.
You have a name that you arealive, but you are dead.
Be watchful and strengthen thethings which remain that are
ready to die, for I have notfound your works perfect before
God.
Remember, hold fast and repent.
(02:39):
Therefore, if you will notwatch, I will come upon you as a
thief and you will not know thehour which I will come upon you
.
You have a few names, even inSardis, who have not defiled
their garments, and they shallwalk with me in white, for they
(03:04):
are worthy.
He who overcomes shall beclothed in white garments and I
will not blot their name fromthe book of life, but I will
confess his name before myFather and before his angels.
He who has an ear to hear, lethim hear what the Spirit says to
(03:31):
the churches Okay, that wasRevelation 3, verses 1 through 6
.
As always, the angel mentionedhere is the pastor of the church
, but the verbiage here is a bitdifferent he who has the seven
spirits of God and the sevenstars.
He, of course, is Jesus, right,the seven stars again are the
(03:57):
pastors, and this time Jesusmentions the seven spirits of
God.
Well, gang, jesus never saysanything.
That means nothing.
He, of course, referring tohimself who has the seven
spirits of God.
(04:22):
I've read a couple of differentthings about what this might
mean, and I'm willing to saythat I don't know 100% what it
means.
It's one of those things, whenI get home, that God will reveal
to me, and my faith allows meto think in those terms.
I believe that the sevenspirits of God is a likely
(04:47):
reference to his power, hisbeing, jesus's power and wisdom.
I've also heard it referred toas the Holy Spirit, the seven
spirits of the Holy Spirit,which can be a little confusing,
but knowledge is the base pointhere Wisdom and knowledge.
(05:09):
Jesus knows all.
Okay, he knows it, he sees it,he understands it, and those are
things that we have tounderstand.
So, in the end, here Jesus isspeaking of his ownership of the
churches and the pastors ofthose churches.
This is a strong statement.
He's not subtly reminding them.
(05:31):
He's not so subtly, ratherreminding them of a stone fact
the church is mine, it's pastors, it's leaders, it's under
rowers.
Answer to me Well, we know this.
However, sometimes we do needto be reminded.
(05:54):
Keep this strong, opener inmind as we proceed.
Jesus isn't happy with hischurch in Sardis and, by
extension, the pastors of thischurch.
This brings up an interestingside note and, as with most side
trips with me, those of youwho've been with me for a while
know that most side trips withme always begin with a story.
(06:22):
I come from what some of youmight consider a large church,
maybe even a mega church.
We never really looked at itthat way, and it was out west.
One Wednesday evening beforeservice, I had occasion to speak
with what I'll call a memberfor simplicity's sake, though we
(06:46):
never kept a membership or tookso much as a headcount.
Let's call him Bob.
Okay, we're going to call himBob, and Bob was always a very
animated man, and this evening,as I sat across from him in the
cafe, I could tell Bob was onabout something.
Hello, I said as I took my seatacross from him hey brother,
(07:12):
bob shouted, even though it wasnot needed.
It was a coffee shop that wehad in the main level of the
church and there was no need toshout.
I was right there, but Idigress.
I'd been thinking I shouldstart teaching the Word and
(07:33):
maybe even be a pastor.
I waited, bob smiled and I lethis statement hang in the air
for a while.
Then he hit me with the anvil.
I told pastor that I'd be happyto fill in for him and help out
when he needs a break.
What do you think?
Okay, gang, there are two kindsof people who become pastors or
(08:03):
Bible teachers the ones thatare seeking their own glory and
the ones that are called to it.
The ones that are seeking theirown glory for themselves, do it
for the recognition, the fameand to be seen and many other
(08:23):
reasons that don't matter,because they are of the flesh,
not of the spirit.
In short, to them and for them,it's a job.
The ones that are called to it.
What do I mean when I saycalled to it?
Called by who?
Not a church body or acongregation?
(08:47):
Some churches have a callcommittee and they decide who
they're going to call to betheir pastor.
Well, I don't agree with thatphilosophy, because God calls a
pastor a Bible teacher, a leaderin the church and the church
(09:10):
itself.
They acknowledge that callingthat's how that works A pastor,
a Bible teacher.
They're called by God himself.
This brings me to my point.
Pastors and church leaders areheld to a higher standard by God
(09:32):
himself, by God himself.
So when Jesus claims hisownership of the churches,
that's a measure of his powerover those pastors.
That's a measure of his powerover those pastors, his dominion
over those pastors, that theyare called by him and no one
else.
And that's a huge, huge thing.
(09:52):
To get a better grip on what Ijust said, read Paul's epistles
to Timothy and Titus.
That's Titus, and then firstand second, timothy.
Being called the pastorate is nosmall thing.
Think of it this way you get aphone call today from the
(10:13):
president of the United Statesand he asked you to serve
alongside him in his cabinet.
Wow, that's a big deal.
Wow, that's a big deal.
The saying is I serve at thepleasure of the president.
You're going to want to do agreat job for him.
Now multiply that a hundredfold, a thousandfold, a millionfold,
(10:36):
to infinity-fold, if that's athing.
You receive a calling on yourlife from God.
He says he wants you to be apastor of his church, his
representative and, under rower,the Lord of the universe has
called you to serve him andshepherd his people.
(10:59):
That's what Jesus is tellingthe church in Sardis, it's
pastor and it's people you arehere because this is where I
placed you.
I called you to serve me.
I see you, as it says in thebook of Job.
It says have you seen myservant Job?
(11:23):
This is God saying I see him.
And in this case, as in thechurch of Sardis, god's saying I
don't like what I see.
Let's continue picking up inverse 2.
It says I know your works, thatyou have a name, that you are
alive, but you are dead.
(11:44):
Let that resonate a littlewhile.
Let that resonate inside youfor a little while.
What would you do if God saidyou were dead?
God said you were dead, jesuscalled you dead.
(12:06):
God said you were dead, jesuscalled you dead.
I can't even I've got gooseflesh climbing on my arms right
now, because I can't even beginto imagine what that looks like,
what that feels like.
This is the only compliment,veiled though it may be.
I know your reputation, godsays.
(12:29):
I know your name, I know whatpeople say about you, that
you're alive, ie good, workinghard for the kingdom, yada, yada
yada.
But you're dead.
Jesus isn't talking aboutphysical death here.
(12:50):
Let's get that clear right now.
Jesus isn't talking aboutphysical death.
The church is still breathing,walking around and moving
through their days.
Jesus is talking aboutsomething that's much worse
spiritual death.
Spiritual death.
He's speaking of something much, much worse.
That spiritual death is theworst kind of death a believer
(13:15):
can experience.
Viewed sophomorically, it'sgoing through the motions,
worship, prayer, service toothers, to others.
Outwardly, everything seemsright, but inside, inside the
soul, there's nothing.
Nothing, there's no connection,there's no depth.
(13:41):
The spirit is dead.
The spirit is dead.
Turn over with me to the left,to Matthew 23, verse 29 in your
Bible.
It says there even so, you alsooutwardly appear righteous to
(14:07):
men, but inside you are full ofhypocrisy and lawlessness.
This is Jesus speaking to thePharisees.
Further up the page, in verse27 of the same chapter, jesus
gives the Pharisees a starkexample of how he sees them.
Again, chapter 23, verse 27,new King James Version.
Woe to you, scribes andPharisees, hypocrites, for like
(14:35):
whitewashed tombs which indeedappear beautiful outwardly, but
inside are full of dead man'sbones and all uncleanness.
Let's read that again and alluncleanness.
(15:05):
Spiritual death begins with well, as we've learned in the last
couple of weeks, it begins withcompromise, that seemingly
little thing that you do thatappears meaningless and yet
leads you down a slippery slope.
The church in Pergamoscompromise, unchecked, leads to
(15:26):
corruption.
Which is the church in Thyatira.
Lastly and finally, spiritualdeath Sardis.
So let's take a trip back againto Psalms 1.1.
Again, that's in the middle ofyour Bible Psalms, chapter 1,
verse 1.
Bible Psalms, chapter 1, verse 1.
(15:47):
Blessed is the man who walksnot in the counsel of the
ungodly, nor stands in the pathof sinners, nor sits in the seat
of the scornful.
Okay, so here's an easy way toremember this Walking with the
ungodly, standing in the path ofsinners and sitting in the seat
(16:09):
of the scornful.
Remember it this way Walkingequals compromise, standing
equals corruption and sitting.
Well, you've taken your last.
You've taken your last.
You've taken your last, you'vemade your last decision.
You've decided to sit down withthe scornful as we wrap up here
(16:42):
.
Turn to the right 1 Timothy 4, 1and 2.
To the right 1.
Timothy 4, 1 and 2.
Now the Spirit says in lattertimes, some will depart from the
faith, giving heed to deceivingspirits and doctrines of demons
(17:14):
speaking lies in hypocrisy,having their own conscience
seared with a hot iron.
So how does spiritual deathhappen?
Simply put, it's knowing what'sright at first and choosing not
to do it, and then knowingwhat's right again and choosing
(17:35):
not to do it again and again,and again and again.
This is spiritual death, whenyou don't care any longer,
because that's where you get to.
You've accepted and embracedthe lies of the enemy for so
long that they no longer botheryou.
Are you there?
Do you know it?
Do you know it, do you?
(17:59):
That's the Holy Spirit tellingyou that it's not too late.
Here's the hope.
Here's the hope.
Look at verse number five.
He who overcomes shall beclothed with white garments.
(18:23):
Again, we're in Revelation now,chapter three, verse five.
He who overcomes will beclothed with white garments.
Again, we're in Revelation now,chapter 3, verse 5.
He who overcomes will beclothed with white garments, and
I will not blot out his namefrom the book of life, but I
will confess his name before myFather and before his angels.
(18:43):
So I heard it said once, and Ibelieve it church is a dangerous
place Because after a period oftime of attending church and
going to church and being atchurch, if you don't accept the
truth, if you don't submit tothe Almighty, you suddenly don't
(19:09):
care.
It becomes going through themotions.
As I said stand up, sit down,pray, go home.
I have, unfortunately sat inchurches that were spiritually
dead.
That's why I left spirituallydead, that's why I left.
(19:34):
And for the church at large andthis is what this letter, this
is who this letter is directedto, this is who the church is
directed to, and we'll leave itat verse six he who has an ear
to hear, let him hear what theSpirit says to the churches.
We've got to get it right, thechurch has to get it right.
(19:56):
But I'm not so concerned withthe church because, as I said at
the beginning of this study andI haven't repeated it I don't
think enough.
We are the church, each one ofus is the church.
On this rock I will build mychurch, jesus said.
(20:19):
Some of our brethren mistakenlybelieve that he was talking
specifically about Peter.
He wasn't.
He was talking, if you look atit in context, about faith,
about relationship with him,each and every one of us, and on
that faith he builds the church.
But it's not just believing.
(20:42):
Remember, as I've said before,demons believe in God.
They just don't accept him.
So where does that put somebodywho says, oh, I just believe in
God.
Well, that's great.
James said faith without worksis dead, faith without
(21:02):
relationship is dead, faithwithout relationship is dead.
And, folks, this is so veryimportant and I know that this
has been hard, I know this hasnot been an easy teaching.
It's a hard thing, but whatJesus is saying to the church in
Sardis is that you're justabout done.
He says that there are somewithin the church of Sardis, a
(21:29):
few names, he says, even inSardis, who have not defiled
their garments and they shallwalk with me in white, for they
are worthy.
Well, there's nothing we can doto be worthy.
There's nothing we canphysically do to be worthy of
(21:53):
God's love.
I know that's a hard thing, butit's true.
There's nothing we can do to beworthy of God's love, but we
can accept his free gift ofsalvation.
We can repent, repent, repent,for the kingdom of God is at
(22:14):
hand.
Now, if this message has touchedyou and you're beginning to
think to yourself wow, you knowwhat?
I don't have the kind ofrelationship with God that I
need.
I've kind of been going throughthe motions here.
I'm kind of well, I'm not kindof, I'm spiritually dead.
And God is telling me you know,strengthen the things which
(22:39):
remain.
You can always start again.
And all you have to do is talkto him.
That's all you can say.
Something like this.
You can say Lord, god, dearJesus, I know I'm a sinner in
need of a savior.
Lord, god, I have been goingthrough the motions.
(22:59):
I fear that I'm spirituallydead.
I fear that I'm approachingthat moniker of spiritual death.
And, Lord, I don't want that.
I want to be with you.
I believe, lord, that you came,that you walked among us, that
you died for my sins and thesins of all who would believe,
(23:19):
and I want you to be my Lord, myGod, my Savior and my friend.
I repent from my sin of goingthrough the motions.
I repent of my sin of makingcompromise which leads to
corruption, which leads to death.
Lord, I repent.
I want to get up and not sitwith the scornful anymore.
(23:42):
I want to walk away, lord, andI pledge to you that I'll do
that today.
Change my heart, lord.
I want you to be my Lord, myGod, my Savior and my friend In
Jesus' name, amen.
(24:02):
If you prayed that prayer,welcome, friend to the family of
God.
I'm going to have someresources for you in the next
several weeks, but the firstthing I would say to you is that
you need to find a solidBible-believing church.
(24:25):
You know it's interesting.
There are people who've beenpraying for you your whole life
and you didn't even know it, butif you think about it, you know
it.
Go to them.
Tell them what you've done,tell them that you've accepted
Jesus as your Lord and Savior,and go to church with them.
(24:49):
Find a good Bible-believingchurch and begin to study, begin
to learn, begin to walk withthe Lord, not because he needs
(25:10):
you, but because he wants you.
I prayed initially for those whoare listening and their
families, and to those that aresitting within the sound of my
voice, who may not have a family, who could say to me Larry, I
never had a father figure.
I never had anyone who couldteach me these things.
You have a father figure theLord, god Almighty.
(25:38):
Let him be your father.
Let him teach you up.
(25:59):
Whether it be Apple, spotify orwherever you get your podcasts,
you can follow on Apple,subscribe everywhere else and
give us a five-star review sothat we can begin to beat that
algorithm.
Also, I've got a fan mail spoton my website now where you can
(26:20):
write me a quick message and letme know what you think.
Let me know if you have anyquestions, any of those kinds of
things, and, lastly, if youchoose to support the ministry,
we certainly would appreciatethat there's a spot for that on
the website as well.
Until next week, gang, make itcount and be blessed.
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