The Compromising Churches (Revelation 2:12-29)

Big Idea: Stay courageous in confronting false teachings and moral compromise.

In racing there's a time you don't think about life, you don't think about money, you don't think about anything but winning. When we were entering turn three on the second to last lap, all that mattered to me was that I came out first. I know Fittipaldi felt the same way. Indy is the biggest race in the world, and this was the last couple of laps. I made up my mind that I was not going to lift my foot off the throttle no matter what, and I figured Fittipaldi wasn't going to either. When we went into that turn side by side at over 200 miles an hour, we both knew only one of us was going to come out of it.

Some of you might know that I'm quoting Al Unser Jr., and some of you know that he was the one who did not make it through that turn. He spun out of control and hit the concrete wall at over 200 miles an hour. He walked away from the smoldering debris, applauding Fittipaldi's bravery and giving a thumbs up to show respect for the other driver's fortunate survival.

Wouldn't you say that a good set of nerves is needed for someone considering Indy racing? There are other lines of work that require heavy nerves. I'd say if an astronaut ever loses his nerve, his career is over. The same could be said about test pilots. If a narcotics officer ever loses his nerve, his career won't last long. If a commodities trader ever loses his nerve, it's likely that her career is gone.

Some jobs require more nerve than others, and surprisingly, church work ranks among the most nerve-intensive occupations. If church workers lose their nerve, there's a good chance they'll lose their church. It takes a lot of nerve to build a church and keep a church on a God-glorifying path over a long period of time. Church historians have noted many instances where church workers lost their courage, leading to the decline of their churches.

This morning, we're looking at two churches who are suffering from illnesses that threaten their very existence. In each case, the root of these life-threatening diseases is a loss of nerve among church leaders and workers. Let's briefly look at the concerns of Jesus for these two churches.

Pergamum (2:12-17)

Pergamum held the official title of the capital of Roman Asia. It was a beautiful and wealthy city, with a huge library, and many palaces. And it was the unofficial capital of what I told you about last week: emperor worship. In fact, Pergamum had three temples to the emperor cult. It was the first city in Asia to openly support the imperial cult. Refusal to take part in worshipping the emperor was considered a form of high treason.

Pergamum had three temples for the emperor and additional temples dedicated to other gods like Dionysus, Athena, and Zeus. Jesus refers to this city in verse 13 as the place "where Satan has his throne" due to its temples dedicated to the emperor and other gods. Pergamum was a stronghold of both pagan religion and emperor worship. And it was an unusually difficult environment for a Christian church.

And Jesus says, despite the great wickedness surrounding you, you've got one great thing going in your favor. You've stayed true to my name.

I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. (Revelation 2:13)

Similar to Smyrna, there was a period of persecution where church members had to confront the challenge of denying their faith in Christ. At least one man, Antipas, had been martyred. According to tradition, he was slowly roasted to death in a bronze kettle for refusing to deny Christ. Despite persecution and their pagan past, these believers remained faithful until death. They had stayed true to Jesus' name.

And yet, verse 14 says: (Revelation 2:14) Nevertheless, I have a few things against you. What Satan couldn't accomplish through suffering, intimidation, suffering, and death from outside the church, he achieved from within the church. Because, as Jesus points out, there's something seriously wrong within the church at Pergamum.

But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. (Revelation 2:14-15)

The issue stemmed from compromised lifestyles. Let me explain what the problem was. If you remember the story of Balaam in the Old Testament, Balaam was asked to curse the people of Israel. But God wouldn't let him. Instead, Balaam pronounced a blessing. But what of a direct frontal attack, Balaam was used in a more insidious way. Numbers 31:16 tells us that Balaam gave advice that led Israel to become involved in sexual immorality and idolatry. And some in the church of Pergamum were following that example.

The Nicolaitans believed that since pagan gods were not real, participating in pagan feasts was acceptable. You need to know that these pagan feasts involved temple prostitutes and sexual immorality. Sexual laxity was not considered a serious sin by the Greeks and the Romans. Some Christians in Pergamum were joining in holiday celebrations, including temple feasts and the surrounding sexual activities, thinking it was harmless.

Sexual freedom and idol worship were the order of the day. They said, "What's the problem? These idols aren't real. We can bow on the outside; what's important is our hearts. Let's get the Romans off our backs. Look what happened to Antipas. A little compromise won't hurt." A greater value was being placed on safety and comfort than on faithfulness and fidelity to Jesus Christ.

And according to verse 14, the problem wasn't church-wide. Only some were arguing this way. But church leaders lacked the nerve to confront it. They lacked the nerve to call it compromise. They lacked the nerve to put an end to it by hook or by crook.

This moment called for courage from the church and its members. The path forward may be daunting - confronting difficult issues could strain fellowship and potentially result in losing members. Yet the biblical principles of standing firm for truth and righteousness remain paramount, even when facing challenging consequences.

If you lose your nerve to confront compromised teaching, you'll eventually lose your church. The church will weaken from within, becoming susceptible to deception and problems, leading to inevitable decline. So in verse 16 and following, the message to the church is, repent fast! The entire church is summoned to repent for a sin of which only a few were actually guilty. Repent, Jesus said, for losing your nerve in confronting compromised forms of teaching!

Thyatira (2:18-29)

Look with me at the next church – the church in Thyatira. Thyatira wasn't a great city – it was a working person's town. And the problem here, as described in verses 19 to 21, was compromised leadership. Now, this church had a lot going for it.

“I know your works, your love and faith and service and patient endurance, and that your latter works exceed the first" (Revelation 2:19). This church had some great strengths. Their state reflected some outstanding progress in love and faithfulness. It was a church that was getting better in these two areas, rather than worse.

But Jesus reveals a perilous flaw in the church.

But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. (Revelation 2:20)

In the church at Thyatira, a woman had gained significant leadership without being held accountable by anyone. John referred to her as Jezebel. Most scholars feel that was not her real name, but rather a title conferred upon her to underscore her wickedness.

Now, Thyatira was a real trade town. It wasn't a big town, but a lot of trade took place there. To engage in the city's commerce, residents needed to join trade guilds, similar to trade unions or federations in this country. Without belonging to these trade guilds, it would be very difficult to make a decent living. The economy revolved around these guilds.

History tells us that each guild had its own patron deity, feasts, and seasonal festivities that included sexual revelries. Belonging to a guild required participation in its activities and associated immoralities, or risk losing your livelihood.

Clearly, any dedicated Christian could see that this kind of involvement in idol-worship and sexual immorality was deep trouble. They knew they should stay a country mile away from food that was offered to foreign gods and sexual immorality. And this woman, a prophetess and teacher, stood up and said, "Go ahead and participate. Join the carousing. Sure, worship Christ. But because you have to make a living, go ahead and get drunk in your guilds. Join in the sexual revelries. Compromise with the pagans around you. You have no choice – it's good for your career."

Verse 21 tells us that she herself was guilty of sexual immorality. And yet she was still a key leader in the church, despite her teachings and despite her lifestyle. And Jesus says to them, in essence, "Why are you putting up with compromised leadership? Don't you see the damage she's doing to your church? The lives she's leading astray? Where's your nerve? Stand up to this woman!"

Although the church was loving and growing in faithfulness and service, it struggled to show tough love to one of its leaders. They compromised their leadership. Verses 22 and 23 tell us that even though the church was unwilling to discipline this woman, God wasn't. God promised severe discipline – probably sickness, suffering, and even death, if she and her followers didn't repent. And he tells the rest of the church – probably a minority – to hold on; to stay faithful – until Christ returns again.

A Failure of Nerve

So the problems of the two churches in Pergamum and Thyatira were similar. The churches were on the ropes because they lacked the nerve to confront compromised lifestyles and compromised leadership.

I told you earlier that church work is near the top of the list of occupations that are nerve-intensive. It takes a lot of nerve to build a church and keep a church on a God-glorifying path over a long period of time. Church historians note many instances where church workers lost their resolve and, consequently, their churches.

I'm sure that the people in these two churches saw compromise. But they didn't want to do anything about it. They didn't want to make waves. The majority of churches today are unwilling to confront and lovingly discipline their own people. And they end up tolerating compromise, false teaching, and immorality.

I want to tell you three stories as we close this morning that illustrate what I'm talking about. Story number one: Jesus enters the temple. Gentle Jesus, meek and mild, takes a whip and drives people out of the temple. The dust is flying; tables are being turned over; animals are stampeding. What motivated Jesus to take such drastic action in the temple? Jesus saw God's honor being compromised. Jesus saw compromise, and he couldn't tolerate it. Something had to be done to stand up for God's honor. How can a person who loves God stand idly by while God's honor is being defaced?

Story number two: A young boy goes to deliver food to his brothers in the army. He overhears Goliath, the giant, taunting God. And David says, "I can't believe it? Why doesn't somebody do something about this? Why doesn't somebody take him on?" The answer comes back, "Because he's big." And David says, "So what? God's honor is at stake, and that is a non-negotiable." That's a cause worth taking a risk for. Any time God's honor is at stake, it's worth fighting for – even if there's risk involved; even if it means causing a few waves.

Story number three: a story I'm involved in. It's important to realize as I recount this story that I made mistakes. There are things that I should have done differently, as I look back. But the problem was open and flagrant sin within the congregation. A church member was openly committing a sin that threatened his spiritual well-being and that of the entire congregation. And the issue, I believe, was not his sin, but his refusal to repent of that sin and make a change.

So we began to practice loving discipline. We met with him privately and encouraged his repentance. Nothing happened. The leaders of the church met with him and encouraged his repentance. Nothing happened. We realized that as a church, we needed to practice loving discipline and remove him from our fellowship due to his open sin and refusal to repent.

There was no pleasure in this. It was done with a lot of prayers and a lot of soul-searching. This wasn't a witch hunt; there wasn't any "holier than thou" attitude. But at that point, the only loving thing left to do was to confront, in a loving and yet strong manner.

The church struggled with that. We lost people who weren't happy about it. I still remember a matriarch of the church saying, "This has happened before, and we've always swept it under the rug. I don't see why we're confronting it now." Ironically, a deacon was casually dressed for the Lord's Supper, and there seemed to be a stronger resolve to confront him about it than to practice loving church discipline in another matter.

But it was a tough time for the church, and for me as a pastor. But I'll never forget the Sunday when this man stood in front of the church. As a result of the church discipline, he finally repented and came clean with God. And I'll never forget the time when he stood in front of the church and said, "Thank you for loving me enough to confront me. If you hadn't practiced loving church discipline, I wouldn't be here." There weren't many dry eyes as we welcomed back a man who had wandered off but returned because the church cared enough to bring him back.

Listen to me. A believer's silence in the face of compromise is a chilling indication of spiritual weakness. A believer should not remain silent when faced with faulty teachings, questionable lifestyles of leaders or fellow believers, or lack of enthusiasm. The stakes are too high. God's honor is too important. The witness of the church is too important.

This morning's warning is very simple. You can't miss it. Believers at Richview Baptist Church, don't lose your nerve. There's too much riding on it. Pray that the pastor of this church never loses his nerve. Pray that the deacons of this church never lose their nerve for confronting compromise. Let's pray that we all love God enough to stand up against any giant that threatens his honor or the church's integrity, just like David did. No matter what the cost.

Don't tolerate false teaching and compromised lifestyles. We must avoid two extremes: unloving orthodoxy, like the Ephesian church that rejected false teachings but lost its first love, and loving compromise, seen in the churches of Pergamum and Thyatira.

Will you commit today to take bold action whenever you see God's honor threatened by compromised lifestyles, teachings, or leadership? Will we be a church that doesn't lack nerve when it comes to God's honor?

Adapted in part from a message by Bill Hybels