Repent, therefore, but if not, I will soon come to you and make war with them by means of the sword of My mouth. He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna. And I will give him a white stone, and upon that stone a new name will be written, which no one can know except the one who receives it. Rev. 2:16, 17.
The church at Pergamum is drifting into compromise, not rushing in intentionally. People don't just get up one morning and decide to give up their relationship with God or become totally secular. When Christians become secular, it is because they allow themselves to wander gradually into it. Perhaps they are not praying, or wrestling in private prayer, as much as they used to. Maybe they are just not reading the Bible and other spiritual books the way they did before. The slide into secularism is gradual.
The problem with compromise is that people slip into it without even realizing what is happening. Compromise tends to be popular--it makes everybody happy and offends no one. But it disturbs God. I should probably qualify that last statement. Conciliation and compromise are not the same thing. The former is good. The results of compromise, on the other hand, are not spiritually healthy.
With compromise comes lower personal standards. People don't naturally drift upstream. The normal tendency in any church is downstream toward a lower standard and less clarity in doctrine. Unless people are willing to swim against the tide through vigorous application of Scripture, a church will inevitable move to lower standards--as Pergamum did.
What is Jesus' solution to compromise? He leaves us in no doubt. Repent! The Greek form of the word implies that repentance is something they must start. The Pergamenes evidently don't think they need to repent, but Jesus insists that the wrong kind of tolerance requires repentance. If the church's leadership won't confront the people who are destroying the church, He will come and "make war with them by means of the sword of His mouth."
The remedy for a compromising spirit is, first of all, a firm decision. To repent is to make a total turn in your life, to renew spiritual disciplines. It means to stop drifting along and doing what feels good or what comes naturally. Repentance requires that you become intentional in what you do spiritually by scheduling time for prayer and study. And to provide time in your life for the things that God would have you to do, such as sharing your faith.
No matter what you've done or where you've been, it's not too late to turn things around.
Lord, open my eyes to the hidden compromises in my own life. I invite the spirit of repentance into my heart.
The church at Pergamum is drifting into compromise, not rushing in intentionally. People don't just get up one morning and decide to give up their relationship with God or become totally secular. When Christians become secular, it is because they allow themselves to wander gradually into it. Perhaps they are not praying, or wrestling in private prayer, as much as they used to. Maybe they are just not reading the Bible and other spiritual books the way they did before. The slide into secularism is gradual.
The problem with compromise is that people slip into it without even realizing what is happening. Compromise tends to be popular--it makes everybody happy and offends no one. But it disturbs God. I should probably qualify that last statement. Conciliation and compromise are not the same thing. The former is good. The results of compromise, on the other hand, are not spiritually healthy.
With compromise comes lower personal standards. People don't naturally drift upstream. The normal tendency in any church is downstream toward a lower standard and less clarity in doctrine. Unless people are willing to swim against the tide through vigorous application of Scripture, a church will inevitable move to lower standards--as Pergamum did.
What is Jesus' solution to compromise? He leaves us in no doubt. Repent! The Greek form of the word implies that repentance is something they must start. The Pergamenes evidently don't think they need to repent, but Jesus insists that the wrong kind of tolerance requires repentance. If the church's leadership won't confront the people who are destroying the church, He will come and "make war with them by means of the sword of His mouth."
The remedy for a compromising spirit is, first of all, a firm decision. To repent is to make a total turn in your life, to renew spiritual disciplines. It means to stop drifting along and doing what feels good or what comes naturally. Repentance requires that you become intentional in what you do spiritually by scheduling time for prayer and study. And to provide time in your life for the things that God would have you to do, such as sharing your faith.
No matter what you've done or where you've been, it's not too late to turn things around.
Lord, open my eyes to the hidden compromises in my own life. I invite the spirit of repentance into my heart.
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