The letter to the church in Smyrna forces us to wrestle with something we may not want to wrestle with: the fact that following Jesus may itself bring suffering. We prefer the verses about Christ being our peace or his burden being light. That’s true, but so is suffering. Especially today, the problem of human suffering is something that often drives people – especially Western people who are themselves not intimate with suffering – away from the church. See Bart Ehrlman for one example.
Smyrna, today called Izmir, was a large port city about 50 miles north of Ephesus, very loyal to Rome. There was a patriotic ritual of loyalty to Rome involving putting incense into fire and declaring “Caesar is Lord”. This presented a challenge to the Christians at Smyrna, and this letter makes it clear that there would be suffering that would ensue.
Christ here introduces himself as “the first and the last,” a title given to God originally in Isaiah. He adds “who died and came to life” – both titles are there to give confidence to the church. Christ is greater than Caesar and greater than death.
Next comes the evaluation. Smyrna gets no criticism. Instead, he acknowledges their tribulation and their poverty. They may have been poor because the converts there originally came from the poorer classes, or as a result of persecution. Either way, the “health and wealth” gospel was not working for them. But to Jesus, their poverty was in fact wealth. Even in their material poverty, in the midst of the material wealth of Smyrna, it was the church that had the eternal advantage.
Next we hear about the “synagogue of Satan” – which can sound antisemitic to our ears. But recall that everyone involved in this conversation is, in fact, Jewish. It seems that there was a wealthy Jewish community that was making life difficult for the Christians in Smyrna, and here Christ is saying that their group is not, in fact, pointed to the living God, but rather Satan the accuser. This is the same way Christ rebuked Peter treats before – anyone who opposes the work of God is, in effect, on the side of Satan.
Next, Jesus gives counsel. He does not tell them that he will rescue them, but he does tell them not to fear what they are about to suffer. Specifically, they are about to suffer, with many of them thrown into prison. Prison was not the penalty, but rather the holding tank until the penalty, whether death or slavery. They are called to be faithful unto death. Smryna itself means “myrrh” – the incense that releases its aroma only when crushed.
This calls to mind Paul’s prayer that Christ remove the thorn in his flesh. Christ answered no: “my grace is sufficient for you.” We love grace, but do we love it when that is all there is?
The letter closes with a promise that they will, ultimately, be rescued from the final suffering.
We aren’t undergoing the same persecution as the Smyrnans, but remember that they were not persecuted because of what they believed, but because of how they lived it out. What would you do if your faith and duty to Christ brought you into conflict with your duty as a patriotic American?
What does it mean to be faithful unto death? First, to be confident in Christ’s sovereignty. You may not have all the answers, but if you have confidence that Christ was what he said he was and did what we are told he did, that is a firm foundation, even in the midst of the suffering that we are promised will come.
Second, being faithful to Christ means being convinced of Christ’s care. Even when it feels like He is silent, or even at against us. Eventually, Jesus will be all any of us have, as we walk through the dark river of death. Seek to make Christ alone enough, because at some point that will be ask we have.
Finally, we should be contented with Christ’s promises. Those promises are relatively simple: life everlasting and immunity from the second death.
One of John’s disciples was Polycarp, who eventually became the bishop of Smyrna. The persecution of the church in Smyrna continued, and Polycarp was eventually captured and given the opportunity to recant. Polycarp replied:
86 years have I have served him, and he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?
He was then martyred. He would have been a young man when this letter was originally read, and it is likely that these words of Christ in his ears. He knew early on that the plan of Christ includes suffering. We have the same message – are we prepared?
– Sermon Notes, Mahlon Friesen, Seed Church, Lynnwood, WA, June 2, 2019