In the letter to the church in Sardis in Revelation 3:1-6, Jesus had a surprise announcement for the church and promised a surprise visit if things did not change for the better. The announcement was that, in spite of appearances of vitality, the church was really quite dead, which would have fallen as a huge surprise to the church itself and to everyone who knew the church’s great reputation. Jesus had called the church in Ephesus to remember its earlier works, but Jesus called the church in Sardis to remember something even more foundational: how they received and heard the gospel. His call to them forces us to ask ourselves how we are hearing it today.
As the number of non-Jewish believers in Jesus began to overwhelm the original Jewish Christians, some wanted to make it harder for non-Jews to...
In Revelation 2:12-17, we meet the Church in Pergamum, a group of Christians that one has to admire for holding fast to the name...
As Paul waited in prison, he was able to rejoice in two certain outcomes because of his view of life and death.