Church In Smyrna
\nAuthor:Pat Aman<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201c\u201cTo the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. I know your afflictions and your poverty\u2014yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you life as your victor\u2019s crown. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who is victorious will not be hurt at all by the second death.\u201d
\n\u202d\u202dRevelation\u202c \u202d2:8-11\u202c \u202dNIV\u202c\u202c<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Christians in Smyrna were not wealthy. They were not of high society. They couldn\u2019t afford a big, beautiful buildings that would attract attention in Smyrna and give them a respectable place in their community. They had absolutely nothing but their faithful lives to enticed people to join. They couldn\u2019t afford to take off work to get things done at the church. They couldn\u2019t afford education. They had pressing bills at home. Poverty presents its own bundle of dilemmas that includes feelings of insignificance, inferiority, and depression. Life wasn\u2019t easy for the Christians in Smyrna. And yet\u2026 they had found true LIFE! They had found a peace that surpasses understanding! They had a deeper purpose for living than just getting by, serving their earthly masters, and living out their days. They had found the ultimate reason for living! A sure hope for their future! This earthly life had no meaning for them they were headed for a better place! They had far greater riches than the wealthiest of the wealthy! They had a far greater standing with the One who directs the highest society! They were rich even beyond what they could fathom<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus calls them to remain faithful in their suffering: \u201cBe faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life\u201d. Here, a specific crown is mentioned for those who die as a result of suffering for Christ. Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jesus makes a final promise to the believers in Smyrna: \u201cHe who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death\u201d Revelation2:11<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The overcomers, or \u201cconquerors,\u201d refer to all believers 1 John 5:4-5. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The second death is a reference to the final judgment of the wicked <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Believers will not be hurt \u201cat all\u201d by that judgment; their sin was judged at the cross, and, in Christ, there is no more condemnation. Romans 8:1<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, again we see the promises of living a Godly life. Not giving into carnally, and every lasting judgement. But the blessings of our Father God\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Devotion Written By: Pastor Pat Aman Book \u00a9 1996\/2020 \u201cCoffee With Pat Daily Devotionals\u201d and Westbow a division of Thomas\/Nelson<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Church In Smyrna Author:Pat Aman \u201c\u201cTo the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again. I know your afflictions and your poverty\u2014yet you are rich! I know about the slander of those who say they are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1973","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-devotions","author-admin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1973","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1973"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1973\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1974,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1973\/revisions\/1974"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1973"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1973"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/coffeewithpat.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1973"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}