Becoming Closer
The Church in persecution
AD 100 - 316
Smyrna - church in persecution
nTitle of Christ -- and reward
n       No condemnation
n       No admonition
nTen days
nThe Second Death
nPolycarp
This is the first of two churches which our Lord praises unconditionally;  it is the church under persecution.  (Rev. 2:8-10)
Begin with the title of our Lord:  what greater comfort is there to the church under persecution than to know that our Lord is the one who has conquered death?  What greater comfort than this when facing death:  I know that my Redeemer lives, and I shall see him (Job 19:25)
What a paradox:  the church seems haggard, weak, oppressed and poverty stricken -- and it is so rich!  The Power of Paradox opens our eyes, and blinds those who say they can see.
The striking thing about this church is in the syncopation again:  there is no condemnation.  Tertullian had it right:  the blood of martyrs is the seed of the church.  It is when the church is suffering persecution, hounded by Satan on all sides, that she is strongest.  For this church, there is no need of condemnation or of admonition:  they have it right.
What, then, are these “ten days?”  In keeping with the day=year interpretation (familiar from Daniel) we would interpret this as a ten year period of persecution.  Various periods could be suggested for this;  they certainly had enough for that.  One such period included the death of Polycarp, in AD 155.  Polycarp was a disciiple of John, and was the bishop (“angel?”) of Smyrna when Revelation was written.  Eusebius (IV.15) tells us of his martyrdom.  A young Christian had been martyred for the amusement of the crowds.  He faced death so nobly that the mob called for the death of Polycarp, the bishop.  Polycarp had been granted a vision of his death;  a dream of his pillow in flames.  Polycarp made no effort to escape.   The constable who escorted him to the pyre said, “For what harm is there in saying Lord Ceasar, and to sacrifice, and thus save your life?”  Polycarp refused.  As he entered the arena, he heard the voice from heaven:  “Be strong, Polycarp, and contend manfully.”  The proconsul gave him several chances to deny Christ and live.  One got the reply, “Eighty and six years have I served him, and he never did me wrong; and how can I blaspheme my King that has saved me?”  The proconsul threatened him with being eaten by wild animals; then by fire.  Polycarp replied, “You threaten fire that burns for a moment and is soon extinguished, for you know nothing of the jdugment to come, and the fire of eternal punishment reserved for the wicked.”  The executioners wanted to nail him to the post;  so great was his strength of character that when he declined, they let him remain simply tied.  The fire was lit - and the flames kept from him.  Eusebius records the next scene thus:  “At length the wicked persecutors, seeing that the body could not be consumed by fire, commanded the executioner to draw near to him and to plunge his sword into him; and when he had done this, such a quantity of blood gushed forth that the fire was extinguished.”
No church could better represent the age as given by the futurists.  it lasted from about 100 AD to AD 316, when Constantine made Christianity the state religion of the Roman Empire (in hoc signo vinces).
The fate of Smyrna?  To this day the Turks refer to it as “infidel Smyrna” - the church that would not be conquered;  it stands as a beacon to us to this very day.