Pergamum: The Compromising Church

Revelation 2:12-17

September 11, 2005

Today is a day when we focus on being set free.

We want to be set free from the bondage of the enemy.

This morning we learned that one of his main tactics is

DELIBERATE INTIMIDATION.

There is a second tactic that the enemy loves to use.

DECEITFUL INFLUENCE

We also know he loves this

Simply by the number of times we are warned about it in the Bible.

Matthew 7:15 "Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”

Matthew 16:6 “And Jesus said to them, "Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."

Mark 12:38 “In His teaching He was saying: "Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like respectful greetings in the market places,”

Luke 12:15 “Then He said to them, "Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions."

Philippians 3:2-3 “Beware of the dogs, beware of the evil workers, beware of the false circumcision; for we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh,”

1 Peter 5:8-9 “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experiences of suffering are being accomplished by your brethren who are in the world.”

WAS THIS NOT HOW SATAN ATTACKED JESUS AND HIS FOLLOWERS?

Matthew 16:22-23 “Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You." But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but man's."

Matthew 14:15-18 “When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, "This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!" They said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish." And He said, "Bring them here to Me."

Acts 21:10-14 “As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, "This is what the Holy Spirit says: 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'" When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem. Then Paul answered, "What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, "The will of the Lord be done!"

You can see that Satan loves to attack with a deceitful influence.

We see him use it especially in those who have overcome fear.

Satan couldn’t scare Jesus out of obedience,

So he tried to subtly deceive Him out of it.

Satan couldn’t scare Paul out of going to Jerusalem,

So he tried to influence him not to.

When we fall prey to this sort of attack,

We can find ourselves in bondage to the will of the enemy

Without even realizing it.

The way this stronghold manifests itself

Is not through people who are too afraid to name the name of Jesus.

This stronghold manifests itself in people

Who are too willing to compromise what God is saying

In order to listen to the influence of others.

It is people who do what other people want, to keep them happy.

It is a much more subtle stronghold.

It is seen very clearly in the church at Pergamum.

- Not a port city

- Not overly immoral

- High Class, very educated

- Very patriotic, emperor worship

People worshiped God and Rome

People worshiped God and knowledge

That leads us to the church at Pergamum

“The Compromising Church”

They were pragmatic

One who is pragmatic is defined as:

“Practical; testing the validity of all concepts by their practical results.”

ENDS JUSTIFIES THE MEANS

WE SEE IT IN CHURCHES TODAY

And so a pragmatist will compromise fundamental truths

In order to achieve large growth and peace.

This was the church at Pergamum.

They had fallen prey to deceitful influence.

5 divisions of our text.

#1 THE COMPOSER

Revelation 2:12

Jesus only reminds them of one attribute.

Sword

(purpose is to destroy)

But His sword is not free swinging at anyone and everyone.

His sword is for the ungodly.

Revelation 19:15 “From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty.”

Jesus is the protector of His church.

He will protect His bride from the danger without and within.

And He reminds the church at Pergamum of this.

#2 THE COMMENDATION

Revelation 2:13

He says, “I know where you dwell”

Like Smyrna, what a comfort this must have been to the church at Pergamum to know that Jesus had seen all their difficulty.

And look at where they dwell.

“I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is”

We don’t know specifically what Jesus was talking about,

But we do understand the imagery.

The church at Pergamum

Might as well have been trying to minister

In Satan’s living room.

Pergamum was his capital city.

Comparable to a Christian T-Shirt booth

During the Muslim Pilgrimage.

They were stacked against overwhelming odds.

But despite the opposition

“and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who as killed among you, where Satan dwells.”

This is a huge praise from Jesus.

Pergamum wouldn’t refuse the name of Jesus.

They spoke His name even when Antipas was killed for it.

They spoke His name in the presence of Satan himself.

This church had obviously determined not to let fear be a factor.

The DELIBERATE INTIMIDATION was not effecting them.

They confessed Jesus even in the most hostile of situations.

Church, if we want to be commended by Jesus,

Then let nothing keep us from confessing the name of Jesus.

Let nothing stop us from proclaiming the gospel.

Mark 8:38 "For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."

Pergamum was not, and they were commended.

#3 THE CRITIQUE

Revelation 2:14-15

Pergamum may have overcome the enemies DELIBERATE INTIMIDATION,

But they were falling prey to another area.

Jesus offers up this critique of the church in Pergamum.

He uses the same phrase twice to indicate their problem.

Vs. 14, “because you have there some”

Vs. 15, “So you also have some”

CAN YOU SEE THE PROBLEM?

It wasn’t that they backed down from confessing the truth.

They backed down from enforcing it.

The first group of problem causers is mentioned in verse 14.

“you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality.”

NOW WHO WAS THIS BALAAM?

We see him first in Numbers 22

The children of Israel had just defeated the Amorites, and the Moabites had grown nervous. They knew they were in danger.

So the king of Moab (Balak) decided to try and hire Balaam as a prophet to curse the people for him.

You remember God told Balaam no, and so he passed the answer to Balak.

However, Balak offered more money, and this time Balaam was more willing.

So God let him go but planned to kill him, where it not for a really smart donkey.

But apparently Balaam eventually helped Balak out anyway.

TURN TO: Numbers 25:1-8

Numbers 30:15-16 reveals that this plan was actually concocted by Balaam.

So you have Balaam counseling exactly what John said.

“to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality”

They added the worship of false gods to worship of the true God,

And they intermarried with those who were considered unclean.

They had become guilty of pluralism.

Sure they worshiped God,

But they had some in their midst who worshiped other gods as well.

And the church at Pergamum was interwoven with them,

Associating with them like it was ok.

Look at the second group of problem causers.

Vs. 15, “So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolatians.”

CAN YOU SEE THEIR PROBLEM?

They had a problem with allowing DECEITFUL INFLUENCE to stay around. They had a problem with compromise.

2 Corinthians 6:14-18 “Do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, "I WILL DWELL IN THEM AND WALK AMONG THEM; AND I WILL BE THEIR GOD, AND THEY SHALL BE MY PEOPLE. "Therefore, COME OUT FROM THEIR MIDST AND BE SEPARATE," says the Lord. "AND DO NOT TOUCH WHAT IS UNCLEAN; And I will welcome you. "And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me," Says the Lord Almighty.”

God is clear about allowing His church to be saturated with false belief.

Church is the boat, The water is the world.

I don’t specifically know what Pergamum’s problem was.

Maybe they just wanted numbers,

Maybe they just wanted to get along,

LET ME SAY SOMETHING ABOUT UNITY.

I’ve heard many people mention the desire for unity in our church.

And that is a God desire for our church.

But let me point out what unity is not.

Unity is not just when people all get along.

The church at Pergamum was getting along, and Jesus was angry.

In fact, Jesus was angry that they were getting along.

And think about the logic.

HOW CAN A PERSON WHO IS TRULY IN LOVE WITH JESUS GET ALONG WITH FINE WITH A PERSON WHO ISN’T?

Paul described unity like this.

Ephesians 4:1-6 “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.”

God’s call is for a unified church,

But we don’t have the luxury as to choosing what our substance of unity is.

That has already been decided.

You can achieve false unity through compromise,

But that is clearly not what Jesus intended.

Jesus intended His church to be unified in the truth.

Pergamum was in trouble

Because they had compromised the truth in order to keep the peace.

That is to fall prey to the DECEITFUL INFLUENCE of the enemy.

And he loves to attack in this manner.

The church must not allow the world to influence.

James 4:4 “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

1 Corinthians 5:6 “Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough?”

Pergamum had compromised the truth in order to have peace.

In stead of confronting falsehood, they allowed it to remain,

And they were in trouble with Jesus.

#4 THE COMMAND

Revelation 2:16

It is time to repent.

It is time to turn around and go the other direction.

It is time to compromise the truth no longer.

WHAT DO YOU THINK THIS MEANT FOR PERGAMUM?

They had to confront the false beliefs,

And if they wouldn’t change, they had to remove them.

Jesus told Pergamum to repent OR ELSE

“or else I am coming quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.”

If repentance doesn’t happen, then Jesus will soon show up, and will make war.

MAKE WAR WITH WHO?

Them.

A DECEITFUL INFLUENCE ATTACKS FROM WITHIN

And Jesus statement is simple.

You deal with them, or I will,

But either way the church will be set free.

And trust me, Jesus knows how to protect His church.

2 Peter 2:4-10 “For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to pits of darkness, reserved for judgment; and did not spare the ancient world, but preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others, when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; and if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes, having made them an example to those who would live ungodly lives thereafter; and if He rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds), then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment, and especially those who indulge the flesh in its corrupt desires and despise authority.”

Matthew 13:47-50 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet cast into the sea, and gathering fish of every kind; and when it was filled, they drew it up on the beach; and they sat down and gathered the good fish into containers, but the bad they threw away. "So it will be at the end of the age; the angels will come forth and take out the wicked from among the righteous, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

So here comes the next question.

IS IT BETTER TO REPENT, AND CONFRONT THESE PEOPLE, OR JUST LET JESUS DEAL WITH THEM?

The message to Pergamum is you fix the problem, or I will come and kill them.

James 5:19-20 “My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

It is a simple command to stop compromising the truth just because it keeps everyone happy.

#5 THE CONNOTATION

Revelation 2:17

“to him I will give some of the hidden manna”

SUPERNATURAL PROVISION

Remember, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”

But not only that

”and I will give him a white stone, and a new name written on the stone which no one knows but he who receives it.”

I cannot tell you what this means.

IT IS THE REWARD OF JESUS

OVERCOME WHAT?

Compromise / influence

We are too quick to allow the devil to sway what we will do

Because of deceptive influence.

Read the word, and know what is right,

Don’t fall prey to the temptation

To just want to make everyone happy.

By now you’ve read all of Matthew, and most of Mark.

CAN YOU NAME ONE SINGLE TIME WHEN JESUS JUST WANTED TO MAKE EVERYONE HAPPY?

He never was motivated by that.

He was never led by deceitful influence.

HE ALWAYS DID THE WILL OF THE FATHER.

THE CHURCH HAS TOO LONG BEEN IN BONDAGE TO COMPROMISE

That is not of God.

It is time not only to overcome fear, but to overcome compromise.

Peter said it best.

Acts 4:18-20 “And when they had summoned them, they commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard."

That is the question for our church as well.

“Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge”

We know the answer.

It is time to purify God’s church.

Jude 3-4 “Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”