He Reigns
Bible reading
1 ‘To the angel of the church in Sardis write:
These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars.
I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have found your deeds unfinished in the sight of my God. 3 Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you.
4 Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 The one who is victorious will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out the name of that person from the book of life, but will acknowledge that name before my Father and his angels. 6 Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches.
– Revelation 3:1-6 (NIVUK)
Devotional
Rabbits are incredible creatures! I should know, I have one! But because rabbits are low on the food chain, there are many other animals who enjoy a rabbit snack. So, rabbits have a way of hiding what they are feeling, even if that means they are hurt or sick. A rabbit will never let you know that it is in pain or that it doesn’t feel well. A rabbit will hide what’s happening on the inside to try and protect its life. The problem is, when an illness isn’t detected there’s no way to help it or cure it. One day the rabbit just dies, likely from a disease that it’s had for a long time.
Of all the churches in the book of Revelation, the Church in Sardis bothers me the most! The other six churches have serious problems, that’s true but Sardis… wow! Here is a church that looks great, acts great, is full of people, and has a great reputation in the city and with other churches. But, just like a rabbit, this church looked healthy, but when Jesus saw past their defences, He saw that they were almost dead!
What are we hiding in our hearts that is diseased and needs to be exposed? What have we left undone in our Kingdom work that Jesus wants us to go back to? What is dying inside of us that needs to have the touch of the Spirit to give it new life? It’s time to do some introspection this week before it’s too late. Let’s hear the voice of Jesus which is urgently calling us: “Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die!”. The promise of Jesus is that He will walk right beside us as we wake up, and He will help us to start to live again! “Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; hold it fast, and repent”.
– Connie Main Duarte
This devotional is part of a series that helps us navigate the texts of the book of Revelation with fresh eyes. A new devotional every Saturday.
These devotionals are available in Portuguese and in English.